Silence is unnatural to a man. He begins life with a cry and 1 it in stillness. In between he does all he can to make a 2 in the world, and he 3 silence more than anything else. Even his conversation is an attempt to prevent a fearful 4 .If he is introduced to another person,and a number of pauses occur in the conversation, he will regard himself as a 5 , a worthless person, and will be full of envy of the most empty-headed chatterbox (话多的人). He knows that ninety-nine percent of human 6 means no more than the buzz of a fly, but he is anxious to join in the buzz and to 7 that he is a man and not a waxwork (蜡像).
The 8 of conversation is not, for the most part, to communicate ideas; it is to 9 the buzzing sound. There are, it must be 10 , different qualities of buzzes; there is even a buzz that is as annoying as the continuous noise made by a mosquito (蚊子). 11 at a dinner party one would rather be a mosquito than a quiet person. Most buzzes, 12 ,are pleasant to the ear, and some of them are pleasant even to the mind. He would be a ( n) 13 man if he waited until he had a wise 14 to take part in the buzz with his neighbors .
Those who 15 to pick up the weather as a conversational opening seem to me not to know the reason why human beings wish to talk. Very few human beings join in a conversation 16 learning anything new. Some of them are 17 if they are merely allowed to go on making a noise into other people’s 18 ,though they have 19 to tell them except that they have seen two or three new plays or that they had food in a Swiss hotel. At the end of an evening during which they have said nothing meaningful for a long time, they just prove themselves to be 20 conversationalists.
1.A.discusses B.ends C.leads D.faces
2.A.word B.scream C.living D.noise
3.A.fears B.appreciates C.desires D.dreams
4.A.beginning B.result C.silence D.loss
5.A.celebrity B.stranger C.clerk D.failure
6.A.activity B.conversation C.behavior D.socialization
7.A.share B.prove C.ignore D.announce
8.A.effect B.aim C.topic D.art
9.A.show up B.make up C.keep up D.hold up
10.A.recognised B.realized C.expected D.admitted
11.A.But B.So C.Unless D.And
12.A.fortunately B.confidently C.curiously D.surprisingly
13.A.outspoken B.impolite C.foolish D.mature
14.A.application B.thought C.obligation D.experience
15.A.long B.continue C.mean D.hate
16.A.in the hope of B.in need of C.in the face of D.in favour of
17.A.nervous B.disappointed C.satisfied D.cautious
18.A.minds B.bodies C.actions D.ears
19.A.nothing B.something C.everything D.anything
20.A.modest B.serious C.successful D.secretive
B D A C D
B B B C D
A A C B D
A C D A C
解析：1. B【解题思路】根据空前的"begins life with a cry and"和空后的 stillness可推知，人生开始于啼哭,结束于沉寂。
2. D【解题思路】根据下文中的"If he is introduced to...envy of the most empty-headed chatterbox (话多的人）"可知，他尽力制造声音。
3. A 【解题思路】根据"In between he does all he can to make a 2 in the world"以及下文中的"fearful"的提示可知，他害怕沉以 A项正确：
4. C【解题思路】根据上下文可知，甚至他（与他人）的交谈也在试图阻止可怕的沉默。
5. D【解题思路】由空后的a worthless person可知，如果在自己被介绍给他人时遇到了许多谈话的中断，那么他就认为自己是个 失败者，是一个无用的人。
6. B【~解题路】他知道人心绝大部分的谈话都空洞无物，像苍蝇的嗡嗡声，但他还是急于加人他们并且急于证明他是一个人而 不是一个蜡像。根据上文讲人们制造声音来打破沉默以及下文 多处提到的conversation可知此处指谈话。
7. B【解题思路】参见上题解析。故B项符合语境。
8. B【解题思路】人们谈话大部分不是为了交流想法，而是为了把谈论继续下去。故选B项，aim"目标，目的，意图"。
9. C【解题思路】参见上题解析。show up"露面"；make up"虚构；keep up "保持，持续，继续下去"；hold up"支撑"。
10. D【解题思路】人们必须承认，嘈杂声有不同的特点。recognise"认识，认出"；realize"意识到"；expect"预计，期待"；admit"承 认D项符合语境
11. A【解题思路】嘈杂声虽然令人厌烦，但在宴会上，一个人宁可做一个像蚊子那般不断发出嘈杂声的人也不愿意沉默。前后 两句为转折关系，故用But。
12. A【解题思路】根据"are pleasant to the ear"可知，幸运的是，这些嗡嗡的嘈杂声大多还是令人愉快的，所以A项符合语境。
13. C【解题思路】如果一个人直到有了一个合理恰当的想法才加入谈话，那他就会显得愚蠢。
14.【解题思路】参见上题解析。故B项符合语境。
15. D 【解题思路】根据"not to know the reason why human beings wish to talk"可知，此处指那些不喜欢以天气作为谈话开端的人。
16. A【解题思路】大家都知道很多聊天没有实际内容，所以很少有人抱着学新东西的目的去聊天。in the hope of "怀着……的 希望"，符合语境。
17. C【解题思路】一些人只要获准给其他人的耳朵制造声音就满足了。nervous"神经紧张的"；disappointed"失望的，沮丧的"； satisfied"满意的，满足的"；cautious"谨慎的，小心的"。
18. D【解题思路】参见上题解析。D项符合语境。
19. A【解题思路】他们在谈话中除了谈一些生活琐事以外，没有什么可以告诉他人的。故选A。
20. C【解题思路】在晚上结束的时候，他们长时间的谈话空洞无物，只证明了自己是成功的健谈者。