A lot of us lose life’s tough battles by starting a frontal(正面的) attack—when a touch of humor might well enable us to win. Consider the case of a young friend of mine, who hit a traffic jam on his way to work shortly after receiving an ultimatum(最后通牒) about being late on the job. Although there was a good reason for Sam’s a being late—serious illness at home—he decided that this by-now-familiar excuse wouldn’t work any longer. His supervisor was probably already pacing up and down preparing a dismissal speech.

　　Yes, the boss was, Sam entered the office at 9:35. The place was as quiet as a locker room(更衣室); everyone was hard at work. Sam’s supervisor came up to him. Suddenly, Sam forced a grin and stretched out his hand. “How do you do!” he said. “I’m Sam Maynard. I’m applying for a job. Which, I understand, became available just 35 minutes ago. Does the early bird get the worm?”

　　The room exploded in laughter. The supervisor clamped off a smile and walked back to his office. Sam Maynard had saved his job—with the only tool that could win, a laugh.

　　Humor is a most effective, yet frequently neglected(忽略), means of handling the difficult situations in our lives. It can be used for patching up differences, apologizing, saying “no”, criticizing, getting the other fellow to do what you want without his losing face. For some jobs, it’s the only tool that can succeed. It is a way to discuss subjects so sensitive that serious dialog may start a quarrel. For example, many believe that comedians(喜剧演员) on television are doing more today for racial and religious tolerance(忍受力) than people in any other forum.

　　1. Why was Sam late for his job?

　　A. Because he was ill.

　　B. Because he got up late.

　　C. Because he was caught in a traffic jam.

　　D. He was busy applying for a new job.

　　2. The main idea of this passage is ________.

　　A. Sam Maynard saved his job with humor

　　B. humor is important in our lives

　　C. early bird gets the worm

　　D. humor can solve racial discriminations

　　3. The phrase “clamped off” in Paragraph 3 means ________.

　　A. tried to hold back B. tried to set C. charged D. gave out

　　4. Which of the following statements can we infer from the passage?

　　A. Many lose life’s battles for they are lacking in a sense of humor.

　　B. It wasn’t the first time that Sam came late for his work.

　　C. Sam was supposed to come to his office at 8:30.

　　D. Humor is the most effective way of solving problems.

　　【答案解析】

　　本文通过一个小故事讲述了幽默的重要性。

　　1. C。细节题。根据who hit a traffic jam on his way to work可知，他迟到的原因是他碰上了交通堵塞。

　　2. B。主旨题。根据短文第 1 句是主题句 A lot of us lose life’s tough battles by starting a frontal(正面的) attack — when a touch of humor might well enable us to win (在人生很多场激烈的争斗中，我们如果与人硬碰硬正面交锋的话，可能败得一塌糊涂。而幽默往往使我们反败为胜)和文章第 4 段第 1 句，可知整篇短文讲的是幽默的重要性。

　　3. A。词义猜测题。前面提到老板连辞退他的话都想好了，而Sam开的这个玩笑使人们哄堂大笑。而老板为了树立他的威严，仍然强忍住笑。故答案为A。

　　4. B。 推断题。根据 …shortly after receiving an ultimatum(最后通牒) about being late on the job 我们可以了解到，Sam不止一次上班迟到了。