About a century ago more people would not have appreciated the study of a foreign language as they do today. Gone are those days

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问题     About a century ago more people would not have appreciated the study of a foreign language as they do today. Gone are those days when patriotism (爱国主义) towards one’s own language was a major obstacle to learning foreign languages, a time when most nations were trying to throw their alien (外国的) rulers out of their countries in their freedom struggles.
    Gone are those days when people were proud of their mother or father tongues and considered that their native languages alone will meet the need to survive. Language skills today have become as important as other business and career skills like IT, vocational or professional skills. Thus learning a foreign language today has become essential for an individual whether it is for careers, growing a business, or even to make an impression.
    All that one needs to possess these days is a drive to learn a foreign language and there are all kinds of institutes and courses that teach various foreign languages like French, German, Spanish, and Japanese. Today’s world economy has bridged the barriers of race, sex, color and religion and the world has become a smaller place. Today’s businesses also demand language skills to expand and grow in other countries. Tens and hundreds of businesses worldwide are expanding and growing their businesses by promoting them in countries other than their countries of origin. The tremendous growth of the Internet has further increased the demand for language skills. In Canada an official rule also says that all commercial establishments must have their websites created both in English and French, the official languages of the country.
    Language can also ease race and border barriers. You are more welcome in an alien nation if you know the language of the people there and can converse in their tongue. People in these countries immediately respect you and think you care about their culture as much as they do because in any culture language is the key identity.
Why didn’t people study a foreign language in the past?

选项 A、It was strictly forbidden.
B、It was seen as disloyalty.
C、It was too difficult.
D、It was taught by foreign rulers.

答案B

解析 根据题干中的study a foreign language in the past将本题出处定位到首段。该段提到,在大约一个世纪以前,更多的人不像今天的人这样重视学习一门外语,对自己国家语言的热爱成为学习外语的主要障碍那样的时代已经一去不复返了,在那个时代,大多数民族都在为自由而战,拼命将他们的外来统治者赶出自己的国家。由此可推出,以前人们之所以不学外语是因为他们把外语学习看作是对国家的不忠诚,故答案为[B]。[A]在文中未提及:[C]是针对obstacle设的干扰项;[D]是针对该段第二句的后半句设的干扰项。
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