『新东方在线托福阅读』为托福考生准备了ETS托福TPO/Official 16 Passage 1阅读练习：The word “consensus” in the passage is closest in meaning to真题题目及答案解析，TPO/Official 16 Passage 1阅读原文范文音频翻译

托福TPO/Official 16 Passage 1阅读原文The word “consensus” in the passage is closest in meaning to题目答案及解析-新东方托福官方网校手机版

贸易是中东地区城市经济的支柱，当商队通过沙漠时，只受到取水和山脉的限制。

Trade was the mainstay of the urban economy in the Middle East, as caravans negotiated the surrounding desert, restricted only by access to water and by mountain ranges.

这种情况自古以来就有，部分原因是该地区的地质状况，主要是石灰岩和砂岩，很少有金属矿石和其他有用材料的矿床。

This has been so since ancient times, partly due to the geology of the area, which is mostly limestone and sandstone, with few deposits of metallic ore and other useful materials.

古代对黑曜石（一种用于制造镜子和工具的黑色火山岩）的需求导致了与亚美尼亚的北部贸易，而用于切割工具的玉石是从突厥斯坦运来的，珍贵的青金石是从阿富汗进口的。

Ancient demands for obsidian (a black volcanic rock useful for making mirrors and tools) led to trade with Armenia to the north, while jade for cutting tools was brought from Turkistan, and the precious stone lapis lazuli was imported from Afghanistan.

这样的探险可以追溯到古苏美尔，这是已知最早的中东文明。

One can trace such expeditions back to ancient Sumeria, the earliest known Middle Eastern civilization.

记录显示，苏美尔人建立的商队和贸易站，在波斯和阿拉伯的周围山区和沙漠中用谷物交换原材料，如木材和石头，以及金属和宝石。

Records show merchant caravans and trading posts set up by the Sumerians in the surrounding mountains and deserts of Persia and Arabia, where they traded grain for raw materials, such as timber and stones, as well as for metals and gems.

Reliance on trade had several important consequences.

生产一般是由熟练的个体工匠在师傅的指导下做计件工作，师傅同时也是商店的老板。

Production was generally in the hands of skilled individual artisans doing piecework under the tutelage of a master who was also the shop owner.

在这些商店里，等级的差别被模糊化了，因为工匠和师傅们在同一间简陋的房子里肩并肩地劳作，他们通常是同一行会和宗教派别的成员，住在同一个社区，而且经常有假定的（或真正的）亲属关系。

In these shops differences of rank were blurred as artisans and masters labored side by side in the same modest establishment, were usually members of the same guild and religious sect, lived in the same neighborhoods, and often had assumed (or real) kinship relationships.

工人与主人之间有一种双方都可以拒绝的相互契约，这种关系被概念化为一种合作关系。

The worker was bound to the master by a mutual contract that either one could repudiate, and the relationship was conceptualized as one of partnership.

这种工艺生产模式促进了中东城市各处自治和思想平等的工艺行业的发展。

This mode of craft production favored the growth of self-governing and ideologically egalitarian craft guilds everywhere in the Middle Eastern city.

这些基本上是专业协会，为其成员提供互助和保护，并允许维护专业标准。

These were essentially professional associations that provided for the mutual aid and protection of their members, and allowed for the maintenance of professional standards.

独立行会的增长得到进一步的推动，因为贸易顺差不是国内工艺品生产的结果，而是主要来自国际贸易；政府让劳动人民自己管理自己，就像部落联盟的牧羊人被他们的领袖所抛弃。

The growth of independent guilds was furthered by the fact that surplus was not a result of domestic craft production but resulted primarily from international trading; the government left working people to govern themselves, much as shepherds of tribal confederacies were left alone by their leaders.

在这种于自由放任环境中蓬勃发展的多种小规模的支持联谊、崇拜和生产的地方平等主义或准平等主义的组织中，个体之间可以在一个和谐和意识形态平等的社会中相互影响，追随自己选出的领袖，通过共识自我管理，同时尽量减少财富和权力的差距。

In the multiplicity of small-scale local egalitarian or quasi-egalitarian organizations for fellowship, worship, and production that flourished in this laissez-faire environment, individuals could interact with one another within a community of harmony and ideological equality, following their own popularly elected leaders and governing themselves by shared consensus while minimizing distinctions of wealth and power.

商业经济还具有一种特殊的道德立场，这是以贸易为生的人的典型特征——一种个人主义的、精于算计的、冒险的、适应环境的态度。

The mercantile economy was also characterized by a peculiar moral stance that is typical of people who live by trade—an attitude that is individualistic, calculating, risk taking, and adaptive to circumstances.

就像部落里的人一样，人际关系和对性格的仔细权衡在一个几乎没有规则的商业经济中一直是至关重要的，在这里，一个人的话就是一个人的纽带，非正式的信任关系将一个国际贸易网络联系在一起。

As among tribespeople, personal relationships and a careful weighing of character have always been crucial in a mercantile economy with little regulation, where one’s word is one’s bond and where informal ties of trust cement together an international trade network.

商人和工匠们也从未对具有道德优越感的贵族容忍太多，他们更倾向于开放市场的平等主义伦理，在那里，稳定的努力工作、同伴的忠诚和创业技能决定了一切。

Nor have merchants and artisans ever had much tolerance for aristocratic professions of moral superiority, favoring instead an egalitarian ethic of the open market, where steady hard work, the loyalty of one’s fellows, and entrepreneurial skill make all the difference.

而且，就像牧民一样，对环境不满的中东商人和工匠可以简单地收拾行囊，前往更绿色的牧场——在历史上的大多数其他文明中，这是完全不可能的自我主张的行为。

And, like the pastoralists, Middle Eastern merchants and artisans unhappy with their environment could simply pack up and leave for greener pastures—an act of self-assertion wholly impossible in most other civilizations throughout history.

对长途贸易的依赖也意味着，中东的伟大帝国无论从字面上还是象征意义上都是建立在流沙之上的。

Dependence on long-distance trade also meant that the great empires of the Middle East were built both literally and figuratively on shifting sand.

中央国家,尽管通常非常富有，人口众多，但本质上是脆弱的。因为新的国际贸易路线的发展可能会破坏货币基础和侵蚀国家权力，就像15世纪末瓦斯科·达·伽马(Vasco da Gama)的非洲之旅开辟了一条南部航线后，欧洲海员绕过中东商人时发生的那样。

The central state, though often very rich and very populous, was intrinsically fragile, since the development of new international trade routes could undermine the monetary base and erode state power, as occurred when European seafarers circumvented Middle Eastern merchants after Vasco da Gama’s voyage around Africa in the late fifteenth-century opened up a southern route.

该地区的生态环境也允许武装掠夺者在周围的荒地上徘徊，这几乎是一个国家不可能控制的。

The ecology of the region also permitted armed predators to prowl the surrounding barrens, which were almost impossible for a state to control.

因此，边缘国家的人民在与中央打交道时具有很大的优势，这使得政府当局感到没有安全感和紧张。

Peripheral peoples therefore had a great advantage in their dealings with the center, making government authority insecure and anxious.

According to paragraph 1, why has trade been so important throughout the history of the Middle East?

The word “repudiate” in the passage is closest in meaning to

According to paragraph 2, how did Middle Eastern shop owners treat their workers?

The author includes the information that “surplus was not a result of domestic craft production but resulted primarily from international trading” in order to

According to paragraph 3, all of the following are true of the Middle Eastern craft guilds EXCEPT:

The word “consensus” in the passage is closest in meaning to

According to paragraph 4, which of the following was NOT necessary for success in the mercantile economy?

Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.

The word “ethic” in the passage is closest in meaning to

According to paragraph 4, what choice did Middle Eastern merchants and artisans have that many other people have not had?

The word “intrinsically” in the passage is closest in meaning to

In paragraph 5, why does the author mention the new trade route opened up by Vasco da Gama’s fifteenth-century voyage around Africa?

Look at the four squares  that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage. For one thing, it created a demand for finished goods to be sold both locally and abroad.  Where would the sentence best fit? Click on a square  to add the sentence to the passage.

Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.

Trade and the Ancient Middle East Trade was the mainstay of the urban economy in the Middle East, as caravans negotiated the surrounding desert, restricted only by access to water and by mountain ranges. This has been so since ancient times, partly due to the geology of the area, which is mostly limestone and sandstone, with few deposits of metallic ore and other useful materials. Ancient demands for obsidian (a black volcanic rock useful for making mirrors and tools) led to trade with Armenia to the north, while jade for cutting tools was brought from Turkistan, and the precious stone lapis lazuli was imported from Afghanistan. One can trace such expeditions back to ancient Sumeria, the earliest known Middle Eastern civilization. Records show merchant caravans and trading posts set up by the Sumerians in the surrounding mountains and deserts of Persia and Arabia, where they traded grain for raw materials, such as timber and stones, as well as for metals and gems. Reliance on trade had several important consequences.  Production was generally in the hands of skilled individual artisans doing piecework under the tutelage of a master who was also the shop owner.  In these shops differences of rank were blurred as artisans and masters labored side by side in the same modest establishment, were usually members of the same guild and religious sect, lived in the same neighborhoods, and often had assumed (or real) kinship relationships.  The worker was bound to the master by a mutual contract that either one could repudiate, and the relationship was conceptualized as one of partnership.  This mode of craft production favored the growth of self-governing and ideologically egalitarian craft guilds everywhere in the Middle Eastern city. These were essentially professional associations that provided for the mutual aid and protection of their members, and allowed for the maintenance of professional standards. The growth of independent guilds was furthered by the fact that surplus was not a result of domestic craft production but resulted primarily from international trading; the government left working people to govern themselves, much as shepherds of tribal confederacies were left alone by their leaders. In the multiplicity of small-scale local egalitarian or quasi-egalitarian organizations for fellowship, worship, and production that flourished in this laissez-faire environment, individuals could interact with one another within a community of harmony and ideological equality, following their own popularly elected leaders and governing themselves by shared consensus while minimizing distinctions of wealth and power. The mercantile economy was also characterized by a peculiar moral stance that is typical of people who live by trade—an attitude that is individualistic, calculating, risk taking, and adaptive to circumstances. As among tribespeople, personal relationships and a careful weighing of character have always been crucial in a mercantile economy with little regulation, where one’s word is one’s bond and where informal ties of trust cement together an international trade network. Nor have merchants and artisans ever had much tolerance for aristocratic professions of moral superiority, favoring instead an egalitarian ethic of the open market, where steady hard work, the loyalty of one’s fellows, and entrepreneurial skill make all the difference. And, like the pastoralists, Middle Eastern merchants and artisans unhappy with their environment could simply pack up and leave for greener pastures—an act of self-assertion wholly impossible in most other civilizations throughout history. Dependence on long-distance trade also meant that the great empires of the Middle East were built both literally and figuratively on shifting sand. The central state, though often very rich and very populous, was intrinsically fragile, since the development of new international trade routes could undermine the monetary base and erode state power, as occurred when European seafarers circumvented Middle Eastern merchants after Vasco da Gama’s voyage around Africa in the late fifteenth-century opened up a southern route. The ecology of the region also permitted armed predators to prowl the surrounding barrens, which were almost impossible for a state to control. Peripheral peoples therefore had a great advantage in their dealings with the center, making government authority insecure and anxious.