托福閱讀真題Official 51 Passage 1（七）

托福閱讀真題Official 51 Passage 1（七）

Memphis:United Egypt’s First Capital

The city of Memphis,located on the Nile near the modern city of Cairo,was founded around 3100 B.C.as the first capital of a recently united Egypt.The choice of Memphis by Egypt’s first kings reflects the site’s strategic importance.First,and most obvious,the apex of the Nile River delta was a politically opportune location for the state’s administrative center,standing between the united lands of Upper and Lower Egypt and offering ready access to both parts of the country.The older predynastic(pre-3100 B.C.)centers of power,This and Hierakonpolis,were too remote from the vast expanse of the delta,which had been incorporated into the unified state.Only a city within easy reach of both the Nile valley to the south and the more spread out,difficult terrain to the north could provide the necessary political control that the rulers of early dynastic Egypt(roughly 3000–2600 B.C.)required.

The region of Memphis must have also served as an important node for transport and communications,even before the unification of Egypt.The region probably acted as a conduit for much,if not all,of the river-based trade between northern and southern Egypt.Moreover,commodities(such as wine,precious oils,and metals)imported from the Near East by the royal courts of predynastic Upper Egypt would have been channeled through the Memphis region on their way south.In short,therefore,the site of Memphis offered the rulers of the Early Dynastic Period an ideal location for controlling internal trade within their realm,an essential requirement for a state-directed economy that depended on the movement of goods.

Equally important for the national administration was the ability to control communications within Egypt.The Nile provided the easiest and quickest artery of communication,and the national capital was,again,ideally located in this respect.Recent geological surveys of the Memphis region have revealed much about its topography in ancient times.It appears that the location of Memphis may have been even more advantageous for controlling trade,transport,and communications than was previously appreciated.Surveys and drill cores have shown that the level of the Nile floodplain has steadily risen over the last five millenniums.When the floodplain was much lower,as it would have been in predynastic and early dynastic times,the outwash fans(fan-shaped deposits of sediments)of various wadis(stream-beds or channels that carry water only during rainy periods)would have been much more prominent features on the east bank.The fan associated with the Wadi Hof extended a significant way into the Nile floodplain,forming a constriction in the vicinity of Memphis.The valley may have narrowed at this point to a mere three kilometers,making it the ideal place for controlling river traffic.

Furthermore,the Memphis region seems to have been favorably located for the control not only of river-based trade but also of desert trade routes.The two outwash fans in the area gave access to the extensive wadi systems of the eastern desert.In predynastic times,the Wadi Digla may have served as a trade route between the Memphis region and the Near East,to judge from the unusual concentration of foreign artifacts found in the predynastic settlement of Maadi.Access to,and control of,trade routes between Egypt and the Near East seems to have been a preoccupation of Egypt’s rulers during the period of state formation.The desire to monopolize foreign trade may have been one of the primary factors behind the political unification of Egypt.The foundation of the national capital at the junction of an important trade route with the Nile valley is not likely to have been accidental.Moreover,the Wadis Hof and Digla provided the Memphis region with accessible desert pasturage.As was the case with the cities of Hierakonpolis and Elkab,the combination within the same area of both desert pasturage and alluvial arable land(land suitable for growing crops)was a particularly attractive one for early settlement;this combination no doubt contributed to the prosperity of the Memphis region from early predynastic times.

Question 13 of 14

Look at the four squares[■]that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.While considerations of political power and ease of administration were decisive in choosing the location of the new capital,the site clearly had other advantages.Where would the sentence best fit?Click on a square[■]to add the sentence to the passage.

正確答案：A

題目詳解

題型分類：插入句子題

題干分析：考察句子和句子之間的銜接判斷，從帶插入句子可以看出是承上啟下的句子，預(yù)測前面會提及到政治權(quán)利及管理方面的優(yōu)越性，后面會提及到其他好處。

選項分析：

A選項后面提到also served as an important node for transport and communications可知是另外一個方面好處，后面幾個選項都是圍繞一個話題transport and communications進(jìn)行講解，所以不能分開，A選項正確。

B選項，選項后方conduit和前方node for transport and communications呼應(yīng)。

C選項，選項后方imported from the Near East...have been channeled還是講運(yùn)輸。

D選項，therefore對前面交通便利進(jìn)行總結(jié)，不能拆開。

Question 14 of 14

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.

Around 3100 B.C.Memphis was chosen for its strategic importance to be the first capital of a recently united Egypt.

Answer Choices:

A.

River-based trade from northern Egypt and imported goods going south all passed through the Memphis region,making Memphis an ideal location for controlling trade.

B.

After Memphis became the capital city,river-based trade along the Nile gained in importance,while land-based desert trade declined in importance.

C.

Recent geological surveys suggest that the topographical features of the Memphis region made it particularly well-suited for controlling communications and trade.

D.

The Nile,despite a constriction of its valley near Memphis,was the most advantageous route for communication and travel once the floodplain had begun to rise.

E.

The rulers of unified Egypt enjoyed a monopoly over foreign trade because all such trade was required to go through the Wadi Digla,to which the rulers controlled all access.

F.

While the location of Memphis was agriculturally favorable,it was particularly attractive because it enabled Egypt’s rulers to control trade moving through the desert from the Near East.

正確答案：ACF

題目詳解

題型分類：文章總結(jié)題

題干分析：選擇概括性的正確選項。

選項分析：

A選項，對應(yīng)第一段句子簡化題以及第二段第三句話。

C選項，對應(yīng)第三段開頭兩句話。

F選項，對應(yīng)最后一段倒數(shù)第四句和倒數(shù)第二句，倒數(shù)第四句講控制貿(mào)易是主要的原因，倒數(shù)第二句講農(nóng)業(yè)也是個原因，所以農(nóng)業(yè)和主要原因相比就沒那么重要。

B選項，對應(yīng)第四段第一句，與原文相反，沙漠路線和河流路線都重要，而且after邏輯不對，文章講成為首都的原因不是首都建立后造成的影響。

D選項，對應(yīng)第三段第四句和第五句，與原文相反，文章說the floodplain was much lower比較容易控制貿(mào)易交通等。

E選項，對應(yīng)最后一段第四句和第五句，那個時候還沒壟斷呢，是想壟斷，所以才選擇孟菲斯作為首段，所以enjoyed a monopoly不對。

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