D
Until late in the 20th century, most Americans spent time with people of generations. Now mid-aged Americans may not keep in touch with old people until they are old themselves. That’s because we group people by age. We put our three-year-olds together in day-care center, our 13-year-olds in school and sports activities, and our 80-year-olds in senior-citizen homes. Why?
We live away from the old for many reasons: young people sometimes avoid the old to get rid of fears for aging and dying. It is much harder to watch someone we love disappear before our eyes. Sometimes it’s so hard that we stay away from the people who need us most.
Fortunately, some of us have found our way to the old. And we have discovered that they often save the young.
A reporter moved her family onto a block filled with old people. At first her children were disappointed. But the reporter baked banana bread for the neighbors and had her children deliver it and visit them. Soon the children had many new friends, with whom they shared food, stories and projects. “My children have never been less lonely,” the reporter said.
The young, in turn, save the old. Once I was in a rest home when a visitor showed up with a baby. She was immediately surrounded. People who hadn’t gotten out of bed in a week suddenly were ringing for a wheelchair. Even those who had seemed asleep wake up to watch the child. Babies have an astonishing power to comfort and cure.
Grandparents are a special case. They give grandchildren a feeling of security and continuity. As my husband put it, “my grandparents gave me a deep sense that things would turn out right in the end.”
Grandchildren speak of attention they don’t get from worried parents. “My parents were always telling me to hurry up, and my grandparents told me to slow down,” one friend said. A teacher told me she can tell which pupils have relationships with grandparents: they are quieter, calmer, more trusting.
53. Now in an American family, people can find that ____.
A. children never live with their parents
B. not all working people live with their parents
C. aged people are supported by their grandchildren
D. grandchildren are supported by their grandparents
54. The reason why old people are left alone may be that ____.
A. the old don’t like to live in a big family
B. the young can’t get enough money to support the old
C. different generations have different lifestyles
D. the old are too weak to live with the young
55. The fact that the reporter told us shows that ___.
A. old people in America lead a hard life B. old people in America enjoy banana bread
C. she had no time to take care of her children D. old people are easy to get along with
56. Seeing a baby, the old people get excited because ____.
A. they had never seen a baby before B. the baby was clever and beautiful
C. the baby brought them the image of life D. the baby’s mother would take care of them
答案：BCDC

第53题的答案是B。请看原文第一段的这一句：Now mid-aged Americans may not keep in touch with old people until they are old themselves. 既然是mid-aged，他们的父母一定是old people，而且他们自己一定是working people，因为他们既不是孩子，也没到退休年龄。再看may not，意为“或许不”、“也许不”，换句话说就是“不一定、不都是”的意思。这样一分析，就能看出来这句话的意思和答案B not all working people live with their parents的意思相契合。
容易混淆视听的可能是C、D两个选项，因为文章后半部分讲了一些grandparents与grandchildren融洽相处的事例，但他们之间的关系是相互关心与慰藉，谈不上support。Support的意思是在经济上给予资助，或帮助别人渡过难关，或支持别人的某个主意、某项计划等，用support来形容grandparents与grandchildren的关系，显然言过其实。

第54题的答案是C。从That’s because we group people by age. We put our three-year-olds together in day-care center, our 13-year-olds in school and sports activities, and our 80-year-olds in senior-citizen homes. 以及We live away from the old for many reasons: young people sometimes avoid the old to get rid of fears for aging and dying.可以推断不同年代的人的生活方式不同，是老年人与年轻人不再同住、老年人独居的原因。
第55题的答案是D，文章后半部分列举的许多例子都说明了“我们和老年人相处很容易”，即 old people are easy to get along with。A、C选项在文中皆未提及。B是似是而非的答案，从the reporter baked banana bread for the neighbors and had her children deliver it and visit them. Soon the children had many new friends，…似乎可以得出结论：old people in America enjoy banana bread （美国老人爱吃香蕉饼）。但实际上他们enjoy的是孩子们善意的举动，而不是banana bread本身，所以选B就错了。
第56题的答案是C。选这一题一要用到排除法，二要用到生活中的常识。选项A显然有悖起码的常识，几十岁的老人怎么可能连婴儿都没见过呢？B、D文中均未提到，因而不是正确答案。剩下C选项，在文章中也未被提及（虽然有一句Babies have an astonishing power to comfort and cure.但毕竟与C的说法扯不上关系）。但我们运用生活中的常识，结合文中描述的情景，便可以判断C就是答案！我们经常看到老人一见到婴儿就高兴得不得了，凑上去又是抱又是逗，因为婴儿勾起了他们对自己的童年、甚至一生的回忆，对一个垂暮之人来说，婴儿象征着生命和重生。所以选项C是正确答案。