2015考研英语阅读集中练：Capital of Culture
正所谓得暑期者的天下，暑期复习也是强化复习的关键时段，考生一定要认真把握，加强集中复习。对于考研英语阅读来说，大家也要借着暑期这个东风提高阅读能力，下面为大家整理考研英语阅读文章，希望大家能够多读多练多记，提高整体阅读水平。Capital of Culture
Washington, DC has traditionally been an unbalanced city when it comes to
the life of the mind. It has great national monuments, from the Smithsonian
museums to the Library of Congress. But day-to-day cultural life can be thin. It
attracts some of the country's best brains. But far too much of the city's
intellectual life is devoted to the minutia of the political process. Dinner
table conversation can all too easily turn to budget reconciliation or social
security
This is changing. On October 1st the Shakespeare Theatre Company opened a
775-seat new theatre in the heart of downtown. Sidney Harman Hall not only
provides a new stage for a theatre company that has hitherto had to make do with
the 450-seat Lansburgh Theatre around the corner. It will also provide a
platform for a large number of smaller arts companies such as the Washington
Ballet, the Washington Bach Consort and the CityDance Ensemble.
The fact that so many of these outfits are queuing up to perform is
testimony to Washington's cultural vitality. The recently-expanded Kennedy
Centre is by some measures the busiest performing arts complex in America. But
it still has a growing number of arts groups which are desperate for mid-sized
space downtown. Michael Kahn, the theatre company's artistic director, jokes
that, despite Washington's aversion to keeping secrets, it has made a pretty
good job of keeping quiet about its artistic life. The Harman Centre should act
as a whistleblower.
Washington still bows the knee to New York and Chicago when it comes to
culture. But it has a good claim to be America's intellectual capital. It has
the greatest collection of think-tanks on the planet, and it regularly sucks in
a giant share of the country's best brains. Washington is second only to San
Francisco for the proportion of residents 25 years and older with a bachelor's
degree or higher.
Washington's intellectual life has been supercharged during the Bush years,
despite the Decider's aversion to ideas. September 11th, 2001, put questions of
global strategy at the centre of the national debate. Most of America's
intellectual centres are firmly in the grip of the left-liberal establishment.
For all their talk of "diversity" American universities are allergic to a
diversity of ideas. Washington is one of the few cities where conservatives
regularly do battle with liberals. It is also the centre of a fierce debate
about the future direction of conservatism.
The danger for Washington is that this intellectual and cultural
renaissance will leave the majority of the citizens untouched. The capital
remains a city deeply divided between over-educated white itinerants and
under-educated black locals. Still, the new Shakespeare theatre is part of
job-generating downtown revival. Twenty years ago downtown was a desert of
dilapidated buildings and bag people. Today it is bustling with life. If
Washington is struggling to fix the world, at least it is making a reasonable
job of fixing itself.
词汇注解
重点单词
monument /'m?njum?nt/
【中文释义】n.纪念碑
【大纲全义】n.纪念碑，纪念馆，遗迹，不朽的业绩
devote /di'v?ut/
【中文释义】v.投入于
【大纲全义】v.(to)，奉献，致力，投入于
outfit /'autfit/
【中文释义】n.机构
【大纲全义】n.用具，机构，全套装配;全套服装 v.配备，(得到)装备
testimony /'testim?ni/
【文中释义】n.证据
【大纲全义】n.证据，证词;表明，说明
vitality /vai't?liti/
【文中释义】n.生命力，活力
【大纲全义】n.生命力，活力，生气;体力
desperate /'desp?rit/
【文中释义】adj.不顾一切的
【大纲全义】adj.不顾一切的，铤而走险的;绝望的，危急的
artistic /ɑ:'tistik /
【文中释义】adj.艺术的
【大纲全义】adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的;善于艺术创作的
bow / bau/
【文中释义】v.弯腰
【大纲全义】v./n.鞠躬，点头;压弯 n.弓(形);蝴蝶结
suck /s?k/
【文中释义】v.吸收
【大纲全义】v./n.吸，舐;吸收(取)
allergic/?'l?:d?ik/
【文中释义】adj.过敏的
【大纲全义】adj.过敏的，患过敏症的;强烈反感的;极讨厌的
renaissance /r?'neis?ns/
【文中释义】n.文艺复兴
【大纲全义】n. 文艺复兴(时期);新生，复兴
bustling /'b?sli?/
【文中释义】adj. 忙乱的
【文中释义】adj. 熙熙攘攘的，忙乱的
超纲单词
unbalanced adj.不平衡的 minutia n. 细枝末节，细节
reconciliation n调和 hitherto adv.到目前为止
aversion n.反恶 supercharge v.增加负荷
left-liberal n.左冀自由派，激进派 conservatism n.保守主义
itinerant n.巡回者 dilapidated adj.荒废的
重点段落译文
当谈到精神生活时，华盛顿哥伦比亚特区从传统上来讲一直是一个发展不稳定的城市。从史密森尼博物馆到美国国会图书馆，它拥有很多意义非凡的民族纪念碑。但是日常文化生活却相对匮乏。这个城市吸引了国家的一些最优秀的人才，但这里的市民却津津乐道于政治上的细枝末节，餐桌上的闲聊都能很容易地转到财政预算案和解和社会保障上。
这种情况正在发生改变。10月1日，莎士比亚戏剧公司在市中心新建了一座775个座位的新剧院。过去，一些戏剧公司不得不屈就在仅有450个座位的兰斯保罗剧院，悉尼哈曼大剧院的建成不仅为他们提供了一个崭新的舞台，还为许多小型的艺术公司提供了表演平台，如华盛顿芭蕾舞团、华盛顿巴赫合奏团以及城市舞蹈团。
这么多机构争相演出的事实正式华盛顿地区文化生命力的有力证明。从很大程度上来讲，最近扩张过的肯尼迪艺术中心是美国最繁忙的综合艺术演出场所。但仍有越来越多的艺术团极力想跻身闹市，占一席之地。肯尼迪戏剧公司的艺术主管迈克尔·卡恩开玩笑说：虽然华盛顿人不善保守秘密，但他们对艺术生活却只字不提。哈曼艺术中心则应该担当告密者的角色。
在文化方面，华盛顿仍不如纽约和芝加哥，但是它却有足够的资格成为美国的智力之都。它拥有全国最优秀的智囊团，而且它还不断地吸引大量国家最优秀的人才。在25岁和25岁以上拥有学士或更高学历居民的比例方面，华盛顿仅次于旧金山。
尽管执政者厌恶有太多想法的人，但在布什执政期间，华盛顿的卓越才智却已经超负荷了。2011年9月11日，全国辩论中心提出了有关全球战略的一些问题。美国大多数智能团都大力支持组建左翼自由派，因为他们的所有关于“多样化”的谈论以及多样化思维都会遭到美国高校的反对。在少数城市，保守派经常和自由主义者展开争论，华盛顿就是其中之一。它也是关于保守派未来发展方向激烈辩论的中心所在地。
华盛顿的困难在于这次智力和文化复兴并没有深入到大多数的市民之中。这座城市仍然是一座在受过充分教育的外来白种人和受教育不足的本地黑人之间存在这明显差异的城市。还有，新的莎士比亚歌剧院为城区经济的复苏提供了部分的工作岗位。20年前，市中心还是一座废墟，到处到时荒废的建筑物和无家可归的人。今天却是一派熙来攘往、欣欣向荣的景象。如果华盛顿想竭力稳定世界，那么它至少应该先制定一个合理的措施保持自身稳定。
From TIME
By David Worth
Oct.29,2007
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