cảm ơn ạ
Probably the most famous film commenting on the twentieth- Century technology is
Modern Times, made in 1936. Charlie Chaplin was motivated to make the film by a reporter
who, while interviewing him, happened to describe the working conditions in industrial
Detroit. Chaplin was told that healthy young farm boys were lured to the city to work on
automotive assembly lines. Within four or five years, these young men's health was destroyed
by the stress of work in the factories.
The film opens with a shot of a mass of sheep making their way down a crowded ramp.
Abruptly, the film shifts to a scene of factory workers jostling one another on their way to
a factory. However, the rather bitter note of criticism in the implied comparison is not
sustained. It is replaced by a gentle note of satire. Chaplin prefers to entertain rather than
lecture.
Scenes of factory interiors account for only about one-third of Modern Times, but they
contain some of the most pointed social commentary as well as the most comic situations. No
one who has seen the film can ever forget Chaplin vainly trying to keep pace with the fastmoving conveyor belt, almost losing his mind in the process. Another popular scene involves
an automatic feeding machine brought to the assembly line so that workers need not interrupt
their labor to eat. The feeding machine malfunctions, hurling food at Chaplin, who is strapped
in his position on the assembly line and cannot escape. This serves to illustrate people's utter
helplessness in the face of machines that are meant to serve their basic needs.
Clearly, Modern Times has its faults, but it remains the best film treating technology within
a social context. It does not offer a radical social message, but it does accurately reflect the
sentiment of many who feel they are victims of an over-mechanised world.
1: According to the passage, Chaplin got the idea for Modern Times from ______.
A. fieldwork B. a conversation
C. a newspaper D. a movie
2: The young farm boys went to the city because they were ______.
A. attracted by the prospect of a better life B. driven out of their sheep farm
C. promised better accommodation D. forced to leave their sheep farm
3: The phrase “jostling one another” in the third paragraph is closest in meaning to
“______”.
A hurrying up together B. jogging side by side
C. running against each other D. pushing one another
4: According to the passage, the opening scene of the film is intended ______.
A. to introduce the main characters of the film B. to produce a tacit association
C. to give the setting for the entire plot later D. to reveal the situation of the factory
workers
5: The word “vainly” in the fourth paragraph is closest in meaning to “______”.
A. recklessly B. carelessly
C. hopelessly D. effortlessly
6: The word “This” in the fourth paragraph refers to ______.
A. the situation of young workers in a factory B. the scene of the malfunction of
the feeding machine
C. the malfunction of the twentieth- Century technology D.the scene of an assembly line in
operation
7: According to the author, about two-thirds of Modern Times ______.
A. entertains the audience most B. is rather discouraging
C. was shot outside a factory D. is more critical than the rest
8: The author refers to all of the following notions to describe Modern Times EXCEPT
“______”.
A. satire B. criticism
C. entertainment D. revolution
10: Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
A. In Modern Times, the factory workers' basic needs are well met.
B. Modern Times depicts the over-mechanised world from a social viewpoint.
C. The working conditions in the car factories of the 1930s were very stressful.
D. The author does not consider Modern Times as a perfect film.
10: The passage was written to ______.
A. explain Chaplin's style of acting B. review one of Chaplin's popular films
C. criticize the factory system of the 1930s D. discuss the disadvantages of
technology