Passage One
Questions 46 to 50 are based on the following passage.
How on earth did we come to this? We protect our children obsessively from every harm; we scrutinize every carer, teacher or doctor with whom they come into contact. Yet despite all this, one group, which in no way has their best interests at heart, has almost unconstrained access.
We seem to take it for granted that advertisers and marketers are allowed to condition even the youngest children. Before children have even developed a proper sense of their own identity, or learned to handle money, they' re encouraged to associate status and self-worth with stuff, and to look to external things such as fame and wealth for validation. We' re turning out little consumers rather than young citizens who will value themselves for what they contribute to the society in which they live.
We' ve reached this point so gradually that many of us have never questioned it. It's crept up on us in the 60 years since advertisers started to target the young and found that they could recruit them to a commercial assault on their parents. We' ve come to know it as“pester power” or the ability of children to pressure parents to make certain purchases.
Many psychologists, child development experts and educators point to research suggesting that this emerging cradle-to-grave consumerism is contributing to growing rates of low self-esteem, depression and other forms of mental illness.
Not all psychologists agree. There' re plenty working hand in glove with a £12bn-a-year industry that has turned the manipulation of adult emotions and desires into an art form— often literally. It's also one that's forever developing new ways to persuade our children to desire material possessions, and because of advertisements’ viral effect they only need to infect a few to reach the many. Advertising and marketing can serve a useful purpose for children. Marketing may help socialize children as consumers, inform them about products, and help them carve out unique identities as they reach adulthood.
Then, should we ban all advertising aimed at young children? I say yes.
Of course there' ll be plenty of objections to an outright ban on advertising to the under-11s. There' ll be those who argue that would be a breach of freedom of speech and infringe the rights of corporations to brainwash little children into demanding their products.
Most parents hate what advertising does to their children, but we do have the power to end it and let our children grow up free from many of the pressures of consumerism until they' re old enough to make their own decisions. And though advertising is only part of an all-pervasive (无处不在的) marketing culture we need to make a start somewhere. Let's ban all advertising targeting children of primary school age and younger now.
46. Which group of people does the author say has almost unrestricted access to children?
A) Advertisers.
B) Carers.
C) Teachers.
D) Doctors.
47. What kind of people should we enable children to become according to the author?
A) Those who look to fame and wealth for external and ultimate validation.
B) Those who value themselves because of their contribution to society.
C) Those who associate self-worth with the ability to handle money.
D) Those who have developed a proper sense of their own identity.
48. Many child development experts and educators call attention to research that suggests ____ .
A) life-long consumerism is causing more and more cases of psychological problems.
B) increasing commercialization of education is eroding many children's self-esteem.
C) the growing desire for wealth is contributing to a rising rate of depression.
D) the craving for purchasing material things is nurtured throughout one's life.
49. What does the author imply about the impact of advertising?
A) It is actually infectious to many rather than a few.
B) It is rooted in our desire for material possessions.
C) It is comparable to that of virus.
D) It is literally limited to children.
50. What is the opponents' argument against a complete ban on advertisement to young children?
A) It would deprive them of the chance to learn about products.
B) It would render them unable to carve out unique identities.
C) It would breach their freedom as would-be consumers.
D) It would violate the rights endowed upon advertisers.
答案解析;
46. 由题干中的关键词“has almost unrestricted access to children”定位到第一段“Yet despite all this, one group, which in no way has their best interests at heart, has almost unconstrained access.” 以及第二段“We seem to take it for granted that advertisers and marketers are allowed to condition even the youngest children.”，文中提到广告商和营销人员几乎不受限制地接触孩子，所以选A。
47. 由题干中的关键词“enable children to become”定位到第二段“We' re turning out little consumers rather than young citizens who will value themselves for what they contribute to the society in which they live.”，作者认为我们培养的是小消费者，而非会因对社会贡献而自我珍视的年轻公民，即作者希望孩子成为因对社会有贡献而自我珍视的人，所以选B。
48. 由题干中的关键词“child development experts and educators”定位到第四段“Many psychologists, child development experts and educators point to research suggesting that this emerging cradle-to-grave consumerism is contributing to growing rates of low self-esteem, depression and other forms of mental illness.”，文中提到从摇篮到坟墓的消费主义导致自尊心低下、抑郁和其他形式的精神疾病发生率上升，即终身消费主义导致越来越多心理问题，所以选A。
49. 由题干中的关键词“impact of advertising”定位到第五段“It's also one that's forever developing new ways to persuade our children to desire material possessions, and because of advertisements’ viral effect they only need to infect a few to reach the many.”，文中提到广告有病毒效应，感染少数就能影响众多，即广告对很多人有感染性，所以选A。
50. 由题干中的关键词“opponents' argument against a complete ban”定位到第七段“There' ll be those who argue that would be a breach of freedom of speech and infringe the rights of corporations to brainwash little children into demanding their products.”，反对者认为全面禁止侵犯企业给小孩子洗脑让他们要求产品的权利，即侵犯了广告商的权利，所以选D。
