Eva Ullmann took her master’s degree in 2002 on the part that humour has to play in psychotherapy, and became hooked on the subj

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问题    Eva Ullmann took her master’s degree in 2002 on the part that humour has to play in psychotherapy, and became hooked on the subject. In 2005 she founded the German Institute for Humour in Leipzig. It is dedicated to "the combination of seriousness and humour". She offers lectures, seminars and personal coaching to managers, from small firms to such corporate giants as Deutsche Bank and Telekom. Her latest project is to help train medical students and doctors.
   There is nothing peculiarly German about humour training. It was John Morreall, an American, who showed that humour is a market segment in the ever-expanding American genre of self-help. In the past two decades, humour has gone global. An International Humour Congress was held in Amsterdam in 2000. And yet Germans know that the rest of the world considers them to be at a particular disadvantage.
   The issue is not comedy, of which Germany has plenty. The late Vicco von Buelow, alias Lori-ot, delighted the elite with his mockery of German seriousness and stiffness. Rhenish, Swabian and other regional flavours thrive—Gerhard Polt, a bad-tempered Bavarian, now 72, is a Shakespeare among them. There is lowbrow talent too, including Otto Waalkes, a Frisian buffoon. Most of this, however, is as foreigners always suspected: more embarrassing than funny.
   Germans can often be observed laughing, loudly. And they try hard. "They cannot produce good humour, but they can consume it," says James Parsons, an English man teaching business English in Leipzig. He once rented a theatre and got students, including Mrs Ullmann, to act out Monty Python skits, which they did with enthusiasm. The trouble, he says, is that whereas the English wait deadpan for the penny to drop, Germans invariably explain their punchline.
   At a deeper level, the problem has nothing to do with jokes. What is missing is the series of irony, overstatement and understatement in workaday conversations. Immigrants in Germany share soul-crushing stories of attempting a non-literal turn of phrase, to evoke a horrified expression in their German friends and a detailed explanation of the literal meaning, followed by a retreat into awkward politeness.
   Irony is not on the curriculum in Mrs Ullmann’s classes. Instead she focuses mostly on the basics of humorous spontaneity and surprise. Demand is strong, she says. It is a typical German answer to a shortcoming: work harder at it.
James Parsons seems to believe that Germans______.

选项 A、can be easily amused
B、might be excellent actors
C、are enthusiastic about plays
D、might pretend to be amused

答案D

解析 观点题。根据James Parsons定位到第四段。答案来自该段前三句:Germans can often be observed laughing,loudly.And they try hard.“They cannot produce good humour,but they can consume it,”says James Parsons.其中they try hard“他们很努力(发出笑声)”说明德国人假装能够欣赏幽默,即选项[D]might pretend to be amused“可能假装被逗乐”正确。选项[A]can be easily amused“很容易被逗乐”;该项停留在第一句表面,非正确答案。选项[B]might be excellent actors“可能成为优秀的演员”;文章没有任何提示,该项属于无中生有。选项[C]are enthusiastic about plays“对戏剧充满热情”;原文they did with enthusiasm指“学生们表演得很有热情”,而不是“德国人对戏剧充满热情”。综上,本题答案为[D]。
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