Question

Small talk is meaningless conversation in terms of content，but is often seen as socially important in certain situations，or context．In many English-speaking countries，it can be viewed as rude or unfriendly not to make small talk.
Discussing the weather with people who you don’t really know is an example of small talk that many of us are very familiar with on a daily basis．We may chat about the weather with the cashier at the supermarket or with the attendant at the gas station．Small talk may also be related to the situation such as waiting in line．People in the line may comment to others about how slow it is in the post office or bank that day，for instance．We also engage in small talk with people we may see every day but don’t really know such as those we share the elevator with in our office building．
Small talk is common at parties when guests may know the host but not each other．It is considered rude not to mingle and speak with other guests at social functions，so small talk can break the ice and get guests chatting．Compliments(贊美)may be a type of small talk such as one woman at party complimenting another on her dress．
Some people like small talk because they find silence uncomfortable and／or they enjoy communicating verbally．Others enjoy meeting new people and use small talk to start conversations. When making small talk，especially with strangers or those you don’t know very well，it’s important to observe certain socially acceptable conventions．First，small talk should be general and not personal or about controversial topics. Second，while compliments are acceptable，they shouldn't refer to the person’s body or sound like a pick-up line．
【小題1】What do people usually talk about in small talk?

A．Light topics．	B．Personal topics．
C． Meaningless things.	D．Controversial affairs．

【小題2】Who do we usually have small talk with?

A．Close friends．	B．People we don’t really know．
C．Family members．	D．Our seniors．

【小題3】At parties，it’s considered rude to          ．

A．speak to one guest only and not speak with other guests

B．speak to several guests at the same time

C．compliment a woman on her dress

D．have small talk with the host

【小題4】We can infer from the last paragraph that           ．

A．compliments are the most acceptable in small talk

B．we should refer to a person’s body when complimenting in order to sound sincere

C．there are some rules in making small talk

D．some people use small talk to make new friends

Answer 1

【小題1】A
【小題2】B
【小題3】A
【小題4】C

解析試題分析：文章介紹了閑聊的話題，場合，社會習俗等。
【小題1】推理題;從第二段提到的天氣的話題，可知閑聊的話題是：輕松的話題，選A
【小題2】細節題：從那個第二段的句子：Discussing the weather with people who you don’t really know is an example of small talk that many of us are very familiar with on a daily basis．可知我們經常和不熟悉的人閑聊。選B
【小題3】細節題：從第三段的句子：It is considered rude not to mingle and speak with other guests at social functions，可知不和其他客人閑聊是不禮貌的。選A
【小題4】推理題：從最后一段的句子：it’s important to observe certain socially acceptable conventions．可知閑聊是有規定的。選C
考點：考查社會現象短文
點評：本文對細節題和推理題考查較多，要求考生仔細閱讀文章，抓文章的中心思想和段落大意。細節題重點抓住關鍵句的理解。