2024年1月12日发(作者：)

2021年英语专八听力真题和原文答案

PART I LISTENING COMPREHENSION [25 MIN]

2021英语专八真题音频.mp3

SECTION A MINI-LECTURE

In this section, you will hear a mini-lecture. You will hear the lecture ONCE ONLY.

While listening, please complete the gap-fulling task on ANSWER SHEET ONE and write

NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each gap. Make sure the word(s) you fill in is (are)

both grammatically and semantically acceptable. You may use the blank sheet for note

taking. You have THIRTY seconds to preview the gap-filling task. Now listen to the

mini-lecture. When it is over, you will be given THREE minutes to check your work.

Current Challenges Confronting U.S. Higher Education

The first Challenge: force of the marketplace

 Current situation:

- Presence of the marketplace as (1) ____ extremal force

- Government support: (2) ____

- Public institution asking for less government (3) ____

e.g., new legislation to provide (4) ____

 Results:

- Higher institutional priorities given to (5) ____

because of their (6) ____

- Ways to generate more money for institutions

- creating new programs, e.g., (7) ____

- adding new units focusing on generating (8) ____

- building (9) ____

- Implications

- increasing focus on (10) ____ in academic research

- higher tuition fees for students

University administrators have to respond to the marketplace.

The second challenge: equality in (11) ____

 l Post War massification of U. S. higher education:

- (12) ____

 Reasons:

- Low (13) ____ of racial and ethnic minorities

- Inability of low-income individuals to (14) ____

 Government role:

- Mediating the negative effects of competition in order to (15) ____

(1) ________

(2) ________

(3) ________

(4) ________

(5) ________

(6) ________

(7) ________

(8) ________

(9) ________

(10) _______

(11) _______

(12) _______

(13) _______

(14) _______

(15) _______

Section B Interview

This is the end of Part Two of the interview. Questions 6 to 10 are based on what you have just

heard.

Question 6, what did Maureen think about socializing with writers?

Question 7, what was Maureen's view about a community for poets?

Question 8, why did her sections have concluding stanzas?

Question 9, what did Maureen think about her way of poetry reading?

Question 10, what is the interview mainly about?

This is the end of Part One of the interview. Questions 1 to 5 are based on what you have just

heard.

Question 1, what is Maureen McLean, according to the interviewer?

Question 2, when did Maureen first begin to read poetry?

Question 3, who were the most important teachers to Maureen?

Question 4, which of the following did Maureen feel more strongly about when she returned to

teach at Harvard?

Question 5, why did Maureen bring recordings to class?

答案解析和原文

1、MINI-LECTURE录音原文

Current Challenges Confronting U.S. Higher Education

Good morning, everyone. In our last lecture, we discussed challenges that face universities and

colleges worldwide. Today, we'll take a special look at U.S. higher education and see what

challenges U.S. higher education is facing. OK, let's get started.

The first challenge we are examining in today's lecture is the force of the marketplace on higher

education. Many people believe that the marketplace has overtaken state government as the

dominant external force, shaping and reshaping American higher education, even for public

colleges and universities. You may ask, why is it so? Well, as is always the case, government

support is not keeping pace with educational expenditures. So, in many ways the market is having

more bearing on higher education than government. In order to create more flexibility, many public

colleges and universities are now asking for less government regulation and supervision. In some

instances, they are even asking for less state money in return for more autonomy. And, their

argument is that the current structures and accountability requirements have hindered their capacity

to be effective and efficient. The ability to set their own tuition fees and secure freedom from state

policies and regulations in areas, such as purchasing and building, represent just some of the

additional autonomy that public institutions are seeking. And many are pressing for new legislation

to provide this freedom through a range of innovations, including public corporations, charter

colleges, state enterprise status and performance contracts.

So, what is the result of these efforts? Well, the result is that activities and research in certain

fields and disciplines, for example, engineering, applied natural science and agricultural science

become higher institutional priorities because they have stronger market value than other programs

such as humanities do. So, what has happened is that institutions create new programs, alter

academic calendars and pursue different financial aid policies to capture more and better students, in

particular those who can afford to pay high tuition. For instance, executive MBA programs are

increasingly popular. Also, institutions seek contracts and partnership agreements and enhance

research programs with practical applications that have large financial payouts. In order to do so,

they are changing their institutional structures. And how do they do it? Let me tell you, institutions

would add new units that focus on generating external grants and bringing new technology to

market. They would build conference centers and create for profit subsidiaries. All of these are done

to generate more revenue for institutions. What are the implications of this? Well, the implications

are that academic research is increasingly focused on marketable knowledge. Entrepreneurial

priorities are taking precedence, services are being outsourced, and students are carrying an

increasing burden to pay higher tuition fees for their education.

Then how do university administrators view this trend? That is, the marketplace is showing

stronger impact on how institutions are run. In fact, university administrators see little option except

to respond to the marketplace. The reason is if their institution does not react effectively, it will not

have the necessary resources to offer high quality and diverse academic programs. Institutions

unable to compete may face hard circumstances because government support continues to fall,

students become better informed consumers and advances in technology also widen the number and

reach of competitors. In turn, the ability to compete for students, resources, faculty and prestige

becomes a driving strategic force. At its extreme, competition can overtake more traditional

academic values. However, the downside of pursuing market goals without appropriately balancing

them against the public good is, is that institutions will no longer be able to fulfill their social

responsibility to produce well-educated citizens and face the threat of losing their privileged place

in society as they resemble more closely other market driven organizations.

Now, let's move on to the second challenge facing U.S. higher education, that is the tension

between competition and equality in admissions decisions. Since World War Two, U.S. higher

education has been engaged in a process of massification, that is expanding to serve students from

all walks of life. Motivating this effort is a widespread belief in the power of education to create

social and economic mobility, and a belief in the morality and social value of making higher

education accessible to everyone. Research data bear out public perceptions. When young people

from low-income backgrounds complete a bachelor's degree. Their income and employment

characteristics after graduation are equivalent to their peers from more affluent backgrounds. So,

education can truly be the great equalizer.

Although there is widespread public faith in the value of higher education, the progress of

massification has been slow and uneven. And why is it slow and uneven? Well, one, higher

education did not admit significant numbers of racial and ethnic minorities until after the civil rights

of the 1960s forced change. Second, despite significant expenditures on financial aid, minority and

low-income individuals are still less likely to attend college than whites or students from middleand

upper-income families. Although access gaps have nowadays narrowed somewhat, large gaps

remain between completion rates. Low-income students come to college less prepared and must

balance academic demands with work and family responsibilities.

Finding ways to increase the enrollment rates of low-income students and encourage their

success once enrolled are two of the most important problems facing American higher education.

One of the challenges to meet these goals is that they can conflict with the other central tenets of

American higher education, that is, market competition and resistance to government control. As I

said before, for example, institutional competition for the most academically talented students is

likely to encourage increased use of tuition discounting for students who have no financial need.

And this could divert resources away from low-income students who need financial aid. Similarly,

institutions may seek to distinguish themselves in the academic marketplace by becoming more

selective in admissions decisions, thus reducing the number of low-income students admitted.

However, a primary role of government is to mediate the potentially negative effects of competition

by insisting that institutions adhere to their missions, and that institutions provide need-based

financial assistance to students. So, a constant preoccupation of American higher education is this

tension between the competitive, ambitious nature of institutions and the interests of government in

promoting important public goals, primary among them, broad access and widespread success for

all students.

OK, for today's lecture, we have briefly discussed some of the major challenges facing U.S.

higher education, such as the impact of the marketplace on institutions and the tension between

competition and promoting public goals.

2、MINI-LECTURE答案解析

1. dominant / prevailing / governing 等

解析：美国高等教育所面临的两大挑战之一便是市场的力量。不少人人甚至认为市场已

替代政府成为主导高等教育的力量。原文线索：Many people believe that the marketplace

has overtaken state government as the dominant external force…所以我们应该填 dominant，

或者近义词 prevailing、governing 等，另外也要注意这些近义词与 force 的搭配合适。

2. insufficient / not enough / inadequate

解析：市场力量逐渐占主导也就意味着政府支持的不足。原文线索：…government support

is not keeping pace with educational expenditures. So, in many ways the market is having more

bearing on higher education than government. 政府的支持的不足，也就将大学的更多经费

来源交给了市场去弥补。可以填写 insufficient、not enough、inadequate 等。

3. regulation and supervision 或 supervision and funding 或 regulation, supervision, funding

解析：不少美国高校为了获得更多的灵活自主权，便请求政府减少监管。甚至以减少政

府经费的投入，来换取更多的自主权。原文线索：In order to create more flexibility, many

public colleges and universities are now asking for less government regulation and supervision.

In some instances, they are even asking for less state money in return for more autonomy. 可

以填写 regulation and supervision，也可以填写 supervision and funding，或者 regulation，

supervision，funding。三个要素（规章、监管、资金），建议至少提到两个。

4. more autonomy 或 more freedom

解析：美国高校通过减少向政府要钱，来换取更多的自主权。可以填写：more autonomy，

或 more freedom。原文线索：And many are pressing for new legislation to provide this

freedom through a range of innovations, including public corporations, charter colleges, state

enterprise status and performance contracts.

5. certain disciplines 或 certain programs

解析：美国高校争取更多自主权会带来怎么样的效果呢？这些高校会优先考虑设置市

场前景更好的专业，比如工程、应用科学、农业科学等；因为他们比文科专业更能带来

现实利益。原文线索：Well, the result is that activities and research in certain fields and

disciplines, for example, engineering, applied natural science and agricultural science become

higher institutional priorities because they have stronger market value than other programs

such as humanities do.

6. stronger market value 或 more profits 或 more financial advantages 等

解析：基于第 5 题的分析，我们知道，设置那些实用专业是基于有利可图的考量。可以

填写 strong market value，或 more profits 等。原文线索：…because they have stronger

market value than other programs such as humanities do. 可以填写能表达“更加有利可图、

更具有市场价值”这类意思的表达。

7. executive MBA programs 或 executive MBA courses

解析：具体到操作层面，美国高校的办法还真不少，比如搞一些能创收的好项目：高级

工商管理硕士课程、学位班之类，也就是国内所称的 EMBA。注意，executive 不可缺，

不然意思差别很大。

8. external grants 或 external funding 或 external fund

解析：“创收”的办法不止于此，还可以增加一些能够带来经济效益的部门，来将科研

成果或技术产业化，也就是国内的“技术转移”，这样做当然是为了获得更多外部收入。

原文线索：Let me tell you, institutions would add new units that focus on generating external

grants and bringing new technology to market.

9. conference centers

解析：技术转移算是有技术含量，还有一些技术含量不高的，比如直接搞地产，盖会议

中心等，其实就等于搞起了酒店和餐饮业。原文线索：They would build conference centers

and create for profit subsidiaries.

10. marketable knowledge

解析：美国高校的上述做法意味着什么呢？意味着他们也会将突出科研的功利导向和

市场导向，或者提高学费来增收。原文线索：Well, the implications are that academic

research is increasingly focused on marketable knowledge.

11. admissions decisions

解析：美国高等教育所面临的第二个挑战是在录取时如何保持竞争和公平之间的平衡，

原文线索：…the second challenge facing U.S. higher education, that is the tension between

competition and equality in admissions decisions. 本质上也就是公平、均等问题。

12. expanding admission 或 accessible to everyone 或 expansion of enrollment

解析：讲座简要回顾了二战之后美国高等教育的大众化（massification）历程，并认为

大众化是促进教育机会均等的重要途径。大众化，顾名思义就是扩招、降低入学门槛。

原文线索：Since World War Two, U.S. higher education has been engaged in a process of

massification, that is expanding to serve students from all walks of life.

13. mobility 或 upward mobility 或 possibility of upgrading

解析：谈及上述“公平挑战”的原因，也就是那些妨碍高校教育大众化的因素：少数族

裔的低流动性（社会阶层固化等），还有低收入人群可能无法顺利完成学业。原文线索：

one, higher education did not admit significant numbers of racial and ethnic minorities until

after the civil rights of the 1960s forced change. Second, despite significant expenditures on

financial aid, minority and low-income individuals are still less likely to attend college than

whites or students from middle- and upper-income families.

14. complete their studies 或 complete the degree 等

解析：见 13 题分析。另有原文线索：Although access gaps have nowadays narrowed

somewhat, large gaps remain between completion rates.

15. promote public goals

解析：市场的竞争本质和高等教育的公益性，如何平衡？政府应该扮演怎样的角色？作

者认为，政府应该调保证教育的公益性或公共目标。原文线索：So, a constant

preoccupation of American higher education is this tension between the competitive, ambitious

nature of institutions and the interests of government in promoting important public goals,

primary among them, broad access and widespread success for all students.

3、Interview录音原文

Section B Interview

In this section, you will hear one interview, the interview will be divided into two parts at the end

of each part. Five questions will be asked about what was said. Both the interview and the

questions will be spoken once only after each question. There will be a 10 second pause. During

the pause, you should read the four choices of A, B, C and D. and mark the best answer to each

question on answer sheet two. You have 30 seconds to preview the choices.

1）Part One

Now, listen to part one of the interview questions, one to five are based on part one of the

interview.

Host (H): Maureen McLane (M) is a poet and critic. After her undergraduate studies in American

history and literature, she studied English literature on a scholarship before earning her Ph.D. at the

University of Chicago. In addition to academic publications on British Romanticism, Maureen

McLean has written a number of memoir and criticism. One of them,

My Poets, became a finalist

for the 2012 National Book Critics Circle Award in autobiography and her most recent collection of

poetry,

This Blue, was a finalist for the 2014 National Book Award. Today we have Maureen

McLain, now professor of English at New York University, with us on the radio show. Good

evening, Maureen.

M: Good evening.

H: Now, can you tell us when you first began to read poetry?

M: I would probably say in my high school days, of course, there had been some other things in the

environment in my childhood before high school, like nursery rhymes, hymns, my mother's playing

piano and guitar, poems my father might come out with—but in terms of reading poetry, it really

came about through high school, literature classes in general were very stimulating to me.

H: You begin one section of

My Poets

by talking about the lecture course you took in your

freshman year with Helen Vendler and the poetry section you had with William Corbitt. Were there

other teachers who were important to you?

M: Well, there were several people important to me who weren't poetry people at all. They were

historians or professors of music.

H: Oh, that's interesting.

M: I had a wonderful tutor, now a professor of English at the University of Chicago, Janice Knight.

Janice was and is a scholar of colonial America. But she also knew a lot about a certain line in

American poetry. She introduced me to Susan Howe's work? I mean, those people became

important to me in various ways. I almost feel as if in the end, the poets themselves are the most

important teachers. I do think that if you bend towards becoming a writer, at the end of the day, it's

writing that teaches you I mean, other writers’ works.

H: You were an undergraduate at Harvard and then you returned to teach there. What was that like?

M: When I returned, I was at a very different phase of life. Being back as a professor at Cambridge,

where Harvard University is, was very different. It was much more commercialized and cleaned up

than when I was an undergrad. I liked being near Fresh Pond and going to Walden. I felt like I was

getting to know New England a little bit better in a way that was very different from when I was 18.

I liked that and I was more aware of the environment.

H: You write in

My Poets

about the power of listening to "poetry fans read those poems or works

they are committed to". Is this an important teaching tool for you?

M: I definitely bring recordings to class. Recordings offer a great way to refocus one's attention on

the poem. I feel like it's definitely a zone for encounter, a zone that's really powerful. I also think

there is an inner ear which is much more relevant to my sense of poetry than actual vocalization.

Some people are very attuned to this ear. For example, they compose in their minds, maybe reciting

aloud and only at the end do they write things down. So, I do think there's an inner ear that is

activated when one writes, or at least for me. And that is as loud as audible as our conversation right

now.

2）Part two

Now, listen to Part Two of the interview. Questions 6 to 10 are based on part

two of the interview

H: In My Poets, you write about attending readings and socializing with writers and the energy or

tension of those face-to-face encounters. But in interviews, you've also said that you think that it's

a tremendous gift to be lonely in poetry. Could you talk about that?

M: I really think this comes down to one's temperament. Other writers are much more readily

sociable creatures. They feel there's a kind of continuity between their writing life and their social

life. I never experienced things that way at all.

H: Could you tell us why?

M: For me, poetry was not a zone about professionalization or networking. There are many, many

different kinds of writerly engagement, but I feel that people should be given permission not to

engage. There's so much pressure to find a community and one wants a community. But community

may not come from the people organizing the poetry reading. It might be found among the folk

musicians playing down there in the street. A community for poets is not necessarily other living

poets.

H: Another question. How do you arrange the poetry in your books? I notice that they're all divided

into sections and all end with the concluding part.

M: My last two books, for instance, This Blue have essential sections that speak to a complex set of

associations with particular places. It's also the case that some of the poems are so strongly voiced

that if I were to begin with them, people might think the entire book is in that one mode. And I

wanted to avoid that. And I often write sequences, so I almost think of the sections more musically.

H: Mm hmm.

M: And I'm interested in ushering people through a series of mental and tonal landscapes of sound

and thought worlds. For good or ill, my books have not tended to be that narrative.

H: Is this the reason that each section has a concluding part?

M: I think a concluding stanza marks a kind of sending forth of the book to the world. It also allows

you to back away from something to modulate out of certain kinds of intensities and to gesture

maybe to something in the future. It can either restate a note or it can refer to something more

broadly.

H: Do you have a particular approach to reading your own poetry aloud?

M: Well, you can get locked into your own sense of things, and your way may not be the best way

to read that poem. You can get a little muscular contraction on your face. One doesn't want to have

facial tics. One doesn't want things to be routinized. And I think about that. Sometimes people are

surprised by my reading. I remember a poet said to me, Oh, your poems are a lot funnier than I

thought they were. He was being very nice, but I didn't know how to take that.

H: Ok, Maureen, thank you so much for being with us today.

M: Pleasure.

This is the end of Section B, Interview. This is the end of Part One, Listening Comprehension.

4、Interview 答案详解

1. A. A publisher.

B. A broadcaster.

C. An anchorwoman.

D. An academic.

提问：What is Maureen McLean, according to the interviewer?

答案：D

原文线索：主持人在开头部分介绍了 Maureen 的职业背景和诗作获奖情况。Maureen 的

职业不是诗人，而是学者，“Today we have Maureen McLain, now professor of English at New

York University, with us on the radio show”。

2. A. During her childhood.

B. During elementary school.

C. During high school.

D. During nursery.

提问：When did Maureen first begin to read poetry?

答案：C

原文线索：I would probably say in my high school days, of course, there had been some other

things in the environment in my childhood before high school.

3. A. Historians.

B. Writers and poets.

C. Professor of music.

D. Professor of English.

提问：Who were the most important teachers to Maureen?

答案：B

原文线索：听到这里时，先别急着下判断：Well, there were several people important to me

who weren't poetry people at all. They were historians or professors of music.

再细听：I mean, those people became important to me in various ways. I almost feel as if in

the end, the poets themselves are the most important teachers. I do think that if you bend towards

becoming a writer, at the end of the day, it's writing that teaches you I mean, other writers’ works.

4. A. The environment.

B. Academic work.

C. Commercialization.

D. Local history.

提问：Which of the following did Maureen feel more strongly about when she returned to

teach at Harvard?

答案：A

原文线索：I felt like I was getting to know New England a little bit better in a way that was

very different from when I was 18. I liked that and I was more aware of the environment.

5. A. To help students to better remember poems.

B. To facilitate the process of composing poems.

C. To activate one’s inner ear automatically.

D. To better appreciate the poems.

提问：Why did Maureen bring recordings to class?

答案：D

原文线索：So, I do think there's an inner ear that is activated when one writes, or at least for

me. 这里的 inner ear 其实指的就是对诗歌的理解，通过录音可以更专注。

Now, listen to Part Two of the interview. Questions 6 to 10 are based on Part Two of the

interview.

6. A. Continuity between writing and social life was a gift.

B. Link between writing and social life was necessary.

C. She preferred to stay away from other poets.

D. She thought socializing experience helped a lot.

提问：What did Maureen think about socializing with writers?

答案：C

原文线索：Other writers are much more readily sociable creatures. They feel there's a kind of

continuity between their writing life and their social life. I never experienced things that way at all.

7. A. Its members could be anyone.

B. Its members had to be poets.

C. It should be professional.

D. It had a networking role.

提问：What was Maureen's view about a community for poets?

答案：A

原文线索：But community may not come from the people organizing the poetry reading…A

community for poets is not necessarily other living poets.

8. A. To express stronger emotions.

B. To allow for flexibility in expression.

C. To avoid readers’ misunderstanding.

D. To signal the end of a section.

提问：Why did her sections have concluding stanzas?

答案：B

原文线索：I think a concluding stanza marks a kind of sending forth of the book to the world.

It also allows you to back away from something to modulate out of certain kinds of intensities and

to gesture maybe to something in the future. It can either restate a note or it can refer to something

more broadly.

9. A. It was innovative.

B. It was emotional.

C. It was different.

D. It was ordinary.

提问：What did Maureen think about her way of poetry reading?

答案：C

原文线索：Maureen 朗读诗歌的方式有些与众不同，“Sometimes people are surprised by

my reading. I remember a poet said to me, Oh, your poems are a lot funnier than I thought they

were”。

10. A. Maureen’s teaching and writing experience.

B. Maureen’s experience as student and poet.

C. Maureen’s views on socializing for poets.

D. Maureen’s works of criticism and poems.

提问：What is the interview mainly about?

答案：D

解析：需要对整个访谈的内容进行概括，访谈主要谈论 Maureen 的作品。