Statuses are marvelous human inventions that enable us to get along with one another and to determine where we "fit" in society. As we go about our everyday lives, we mentally attempt to place people in terms of their statuses. For example, we must judge whether the person in the library is a reader or a librarian, whether the telephone caller is a friend or a salesman, whether the unfamiliar person on our property is a thief or a meter reader, and so on.

The statuses we assume often vary with the people we encounted, and change throughout life. Most of us can, at very high speed,assume the statuses that various situations require. Much of social interaction consists of identifying and selecting among appropriate statuses and allowing other people to assume their statuses in relation to us. This means that we fit our actions to those of other people based on a constant mental process of appraisal and interpretation. Although some of us find the task more difficult than others,most of us perform it rather effortlessly.

A status has been compared to ready-made clothes. Within certain limits, the buyer can choose style and fabric. But an American is not free to choose the costume（服装）of a Chinese peasant or that of a Hindu prince. We must choose from among the clothing presented by our society. Furthermore,our choice is limited to a size that will fit, as well as by our pocket book（钱包）. Having made a choice within these limits we can have certain alterations made, but apart from minor adjustments,we tend to be limited to what the stores have on their racks. Statuses too come ready made, and the range of choice among them is limited.

1.In the first paragraph, the writer tells us that statuses can help us ________.

A. behave appropriately in relation to other people

B. determine whether a person is fit for a certain job

C. protect ourselves in unfamiliar situations

D. make friends with other people

Best Answer:A

详解：答案A。第一段第一句指出，身份使人与人之间能够彼此相处，并且使每个人都能确定自己在社会中的恰当位置。A项与第一段内容相符;B、C、D三项在文章中未提到。因此，A项为正确答案。

2.According to the writer, people often assume different statuses _________.

A. as the situation changes

B. as their mental processes change

C. in order to better identify others

D. in order to identify themselves with others

Best Answer:A

详解：答案A。第二段第二句明确地说明了我们绝大多数人都能在极短的时间内根据不同情况采用不同的身份，A项与此一致，为正确答案。B、C两项的内容与本段主题无关。D项说“为了让自己和他人打成一片”，文章中identify意为“识别”，因此D项不对。

3.The word“appraisal”(Para.2) most probably means“_________”.

A. involvement

B. appreciation

C. assessment

D. presentation

Best Answer:B

详解：答案B。第二段倒数第二句指出，我们不断地在内心盘算我们对对方的估量和判断是否正确，以便使我们的行为与他人和谐一致。也就是说，在社会交往中，双方各自选择得体的举止行为方式是依据各自对对方情况的判断。A项意为“卷入”，B项意为“评价，评估”，C项意为“欣赏；感激”，D项意为“介绍；赠送”。因此，B项为正确答案。

4.In the last sentence of the second paragraph, the pronoun “it” refers to"________”.

A. constant mental process

B. selecting one's own statuses

C. identification of other people's statuses

D. fitting our actions to those of other people appropriately

Best Answer:D

详解：答案D。it指的是前半句中的the task,而the task是指前一句中的fit our actions to those of other people，因此，D项为正确答案。

5.By saying that “an American is not free to choose the costume of a Chinese peasant or that of a Hindu prince” (Para.3),the writer means _______.

A. different people have different styles of clothes

B. ready-made clothes may need alterations

C. our choice of statuses is limited

D. statuses come ready made just like clothes

Best Answer:C

详解：答案C。第三段讲到人们选择衣服时受到各种条件的限制。文章更后一句讲到身份也一样，都是现成的，可供选择的幅度是有限的。因此，C项为正确答案。