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1、SectionIIReadingComprehensionPartADirections:Readthefollowingfourtexts.AnswerthequestionsbeloweachtextbychoosingA,B,CorD.MarkyouranswersontheANSWERSHEET.(40points)Text1KingJuanCarlosofSpainonceinsistedkingsdon'tabdicate,theydieintheirsleep.Butembarrassin
2、gscandalsandthepopularityoftherepublicanleftintherecentEuro-electionshaveforcedhimtoeathiswordsandstanddown.So,diestheSpanishcrisissuggestthatmonarchyisseeingitslastdays?DoesthatmeantheunitingisonthewallforallEuropeanroyals,withtheirmagnificentuniformsan
3、dmajesticlifestyles?TheSpanishcasepreviousargumentsbothforandagainstmonarchywhenpublicopinionisparticularly.Polarized,asitwasfollowingtheendoftheFranceregime,monarchscanriseabove"mere"politicsand"embody"aspiritofnationalunity.Itisthisapparenttranscendenc
4、eofpoliticsthatexplainsmonarchscontinuingpopularityasheadsofstates.Andso,theMiddleEastexpected,Europeisthemostmonarch-infestedregionistheworld,with10kingdoms(notcountingVaticancityandAndorra).ButunliketheirabsolutistcounterpartsintheGulfandAsia,mostroyal
5、familieshavesurvivedbecausetheyallowvoterstoavoidthedifficultsearchforanon-controversialbutrespectpublicfigure.Evenso,kingsandqueensundoubtedlyhaveadownside,symbolicofnationalunityastheyclaimtobe,theirveryhistory—andsometimesthewaytheybehavetoday-embodie
6、soutdatedandindefensibleprivilegesandinequalities.AtatimewhenThomasPikettyandotherecumenistsarewarningofrisinginequalityandtheincreasingpowerofinheritedwealth,itisbizarrethatwealthyaristocraticfamiliesshouldstillbethesymbolicheartofmoderndemocraticfamili
7、esshouldstillbethesymbolicheartofmoderndemocraticstates.Themostsuccessfulmonarchiesstrivetoabandonorhidetheiroldaristocraticways.Princeandprincesshaveday-jobsandridebicycles,nothorses(orhelicopters).Evenso,thesearewealthyfamilieswhopartywiththeinternatio
8、nal1%,andmediaintrusivenessmakesitincreasinglydifficulttomaintaintherightimage.WhileEurope'smonarchieswillnodoubtbesmartenoughtostriveforsometimetocome,itistheBritishroyalswhohavemosttofearfromtheSpanishexample.Itisonlythe
