试题列表
单选题
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
1
阅读Passage One，回答C-1到C-4四个问题。请从A、B、C、D四个选项中选出可以填入题干空白处的最佳选项。
Passage One
The fourth round of heavy smog that hit Beijing in four weeks has sent more people to the hospital with respiratory(呼吸的) illnesses and led to calls for laws to control the pollution.
Pan Shiyi, a real estate developer, said he is planning to propose(提出) a Clean Air Act to the local government. As a representative of the Beijing Municipal People’s Congress, he started an online survey at 9:20 am. Within three hours，more than 25,000 web users, or 99 percent of total respondents, welcomed his proposal on Sina Weibo, China’s Twitter.
They have good reasons to stand alongside Pan. The latest round of haze(雾霾) reduced visibility to under 500 meters in many parts of the city. The smog has also led to a great increase in respiratory illnesses, particularly among children and the elderly. Anxious parents and doctors about all blame the smoggy air for the illnesses. Though most schoolchildren are home for the winter holidays, the bad air can easily move indoors. Besides, ordinary medical masks fail to provide adequate protection, so some people have turned to gas masks and respirators(呼吸器).
The causes of the scary smog are rather mysterious, though experts blame excessive emissions and the mountains around Beijing that trap pollution in winter, unless there is adequate wind to clear it away. Some critics have pointed fingers at China’s top two oil firms, China National Petroleum Corp and China Petrochemical Corporation, saying the companies’ outdated production technologies produce large quantities of substandard, highpolluting gas fuel.
Meanwhile, concerned Beijingers have moved their brainstorming sessions to cyberspace. If Pan’s proposal for a Clean Air Act is adopted, netizens say the new law should include items providing for “carfree days” in times of smog, higher standards for vehicle fuel, stricter restrictions on industrial and exhaust gas emissions，and more effective protection for the public.
Beijing is not the only city that has ever lost the blue sky. Five days of thick fog caused thousands of deaths in Britain in December 1952, urging the government to pass the first Clean Air Act in 1956, which introduced smokeless zones and cleaner fuels to reduce pollution. That may provide some experience for Beijing to refer to.
C-1. Why did Pan Shiyi started an online survey?
A
To investigate the public’s opinions on pollution.
B
To tell people the danger of the smoggy weather.
C
To call on more people to support his proposal.
D
To collect supporting evidences for his proposal.
正确答案：D
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
2
阅读C-1题干中Passage One材料，完成本题。
C-2. What can we learn from the passage?
A
People are clear about the causes of the smoggy weather.
B
Children staying indoors will not get respiratory illnesses.
C
Smog is worse for people with lower resistance to diseases.
D
Masks can give people protection against the smoggy weather.
正确答案：C
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
3
阅读C-1题干中Passage One材料，完成本题。
C-3. Britain is mentioned in the last paragraph to __________.
A
suggest Beijing should learn from other countries
B
let people know many places have this problem
C
tell people the situation in Britain is worse
D
call on the government to pass Britain’s Clean Air Act
正确答案：A
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
4
阅读C-1题干中Passage One材料，完成本题。
C-4. What’s the best title for this passage?
A
The Use of Gas Masks and Respirators
B
Beijingers Call for a Clean Air Act
C
Effective Protection for Blue Sky
D
The Mysterious Causes of the Scary Smog
正确答案：B
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
5
阅读Passage Two,回答C-5到C-8四个问题。请从A、B、C、D四个选项中选出可以填入题干空白处的最佳选项。
Passage Two
The story happened during the Second World War. An old man lived in a small town of Germany. He had three sons and they all worked in the same factory where he had worked. After the war had begun, his sons were all made to join the army one after another and they all died in the fights. The old man was very sad. He didn’t have enough food and was often hungry. And nobody helped him and he didn’t know how to go on living.
It was a very cold winter night. The old man couldn’t go to sleep. He had been hungry for two days and it was so cold in his room that ice could be seen. He had to get up and began to run in the room until he lay down on the floor. The next morning he had to beg from door to door. He had been to a lot of cities and knew a lot.
Once he came to a village, but the villagers were all poor and couldn’t give him anything. He was too hungry to go to another village. He thought hard and found a way. He came to a police station and called out, “Hitler is a foolish pig!”
Out came an old policeman at once. He took the old man into a room, gave him some bread and a cup of tea. Then he said, “Don’t say so in our village, sir!”
“I’m sorry, sir,” said the old man. “I don’t know it’s Hitler’s home town.” “No, no, sir,” the policeman said in a hurry. “It’s pigs’ hometown!”
C-5. The old man’s sons joined the army because _______.
A
they were all strong
B
they loved their country
C
they wanted to be full
D
they had to do so
正确答案：D
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
6
阅读C-5题干中Passage Two材料，完成本题。
C-6. The villagers didn’t give the old man any food because _______.
A
they weren’t kind-hearted
B
his sons were in the army
C
they were also hungry
D
they hated him
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
7
阅读C-5题干中Passage Two材料，完成本题。
C-7. Which of the following is true?
A
The old policeman would send the old man into prison.
B
The old policeman hated Hitler, too.
C
The old policeman thought Hitler was better than pigs.
D
The old man found a friend at the police station.
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
8
阅读C-5题干中Passage Two材料，完成本题。
C-8. The policeman thought _______.
A
Hitler was more foolish than pigs
B
the old man insulted(侮辱) their hometown
C
the old man had to say sorry to him
D
the old man had to fight with Hitler
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
9
阅读Passage Three,回答C-9到C-12四个问题。请从A、B、C、D四个选项中选出可以填入题干空白处的最佳选项。
Passage Three
I recently heard a story about a famous research scientist who had made several very important medical achievements. A newspaper reporter interviewed him why he was able to be so much more creative than the average person. What set him so far apart from others?
He responded that it all came from an experience with his mother that occurred when he was about two years old. He had been trying to remove a bottle of milk from the refrigerator when he dropped the slippery bottle, spilling its contents all over the kitchen floor—a real sea of milk!
When his mother came into the kitchen，instead of shouting at him, giving him a lecture or punishing him, she said, “Robert, what a great and wonderful mess you have made! I have rarely seen such a huge pool of milk. Well, the damage has already been done. Would you like to get down and play in the milk for a few minutes before we clean it up?”
Indeed, the boy did. After a few minutes, his mother said, “You know, Robert, whenever you make a mess like this, eventually you have to clean it up and restore everything to its proper order. How would you like to do that? We could use a sponge(海绵), a towel or a mop. Which do you prefer?” He chose the sponge and together they cleaned up the spilled milk.
His mother then said, “You know，what we have here is a failed experiment in how to effectively carry a big milk bottle with two tiny hands. Let’s go out in the back yard and fill the bottle with water and see if you can find a way to carry it without dropping it. ”The little boy learned that if he grasped the bottle at the top near the lip with both hands, he could make it. What a wonderful lesson!
This famous scientist then said that it was at that moment that he knew he didn’t need to be afraid to make mistakes.
C-9．When the mother found the kitchen floor covered with milk, she ________.
A
gave the boy a lecture instead of shouting at him
B
praised the boy instead of punishing him
C
felt satisfied with the boy’s trying to help himself
D
calmed down the boy and helped him find a way to clean the floor
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
10
阅读C-9题干中Passage Three材料，完成本题。
C-10．The child’s experience resulted in the following BUT ________.
A
offering the boy a chance to grasp the bottle
B
benefiting the boy all his life
C
helping the boy be more creative
D
making the boy realize the mistake is of value
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
11
阅读C-9题干中Passage Three材料，完成本题。
C-11．According to the passage, the way the scientist’s mother used is _____.
A
instructive
B
strict
C
formal
D
strange
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
12
阅读C-9题干中Passage Three材料，完成本题。
C-12．The purpose of the passage is to show ________.
A
a usual way to cultivate a child
B
a scientist’s medical achievements
C
a mother’s wise way of helping her child
D
the advantages of making mistakes
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
13
阅读Passage Four,回答C-13到C-16四个问题。请从A、B、C、D四个选项中选出可以填入题干空白处的最佳选项。
Passage Four
Americans are getting ready for the biggest soccer event in the world. For the first time the world cup soccer competition will be held in the United States. While millions play the game around the world, soccer or football has only recently become popular here. It is only in the last 30 years that large numbers of young Americans became interested in soccer. Now it is the fastest growing sport in the country. A recent study found that almost 18 million young boys and girls play soccer in the United States.
The study also found that soccer is beginning to replace more traditional games like American football as the most popular sport among students. And so, when the world cup begins next week, more than one million Americans are expected to go and see the teams play. Organizers say this year’s world cup will be the biggest ever. All the seats at most of the 52 games have already been sold.
Soccer has been played in the United States for a little more than one hundred years. But how did the sport come to this country? And how long has it existed in other parts of the world? No one knows exactly where the idea for soccer came from, or when people began playing the game. Some scientists say there is evidence that ball games using the feet were played thousands of years ago. There is evidence that ancient Greeks and Romans and native American Indians all played games sim ilar to soccer.
Most experts agree that Britain is the birthplace of modem soccer. They also agree that the British spread the game around the world. Unlike the game today, which uses balls of man-made material or leather, early soccer balls were often made of animal stomachs. The rules of early soccer games also differed from those we have today.
C-13. Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the text?
A
Americans were preparing for the world cup when the author wrote this article.
B
More younger Americans became interested in soccer in the last 30 years.
C
Soccer is the fastest developing sport in the world.
D
The article was written before the world cup held in the United States.
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
14
阅读C-13题干中Passage Four材料，完成本题。
C-14. Which was the most popular sport as a traditional game among students?
A
Basketball
B
American football
C
Soccer
D
Tennis
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
15
阅读C-13题干中Passage Four材料，完成本题。
C-15. For how long has soccer been played in the United States?
A
About a hundred years.
B
About fifty years.
C
Only recently.
D
About thirty years.
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
16
阅读C-13题干中Passage Four材料，完成本题。
C-16. What is the author going to state in the next paragraph?
A
There have been attempts to start a professional soccer organization in the U. S..
B
In the 12th century soccer games in Britain often involved whole towns.
C
Professional soccer grew quickly in Europe.
D
Experts believed that the United States would win.
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
17
阅读Passage Five,回答C-17到C-20四个问题。请从A、B、C、D四个选项中选出可以填入题干空白处的最佳选项。
Passage Five
The cohesiveness（内聚力） of a family seems to rely on members sharing certain routine practices and events. For a growing share of the American labor force, however，working shifts beyond the normal daylight hours—what we here call “shift work”—makes the lives of families difficult.
Existing research shows that both male and female shift workers express high levels of stress and a sense of conflict between the demands of work and family life. But shift work couples still maintain a traditional attitude to the meaning of marriage and the individual roles of husband and wife. They expressed a willingness to do “whatever it takes” to approximate their view of a proper marriage, including sacrificing sleep and doing conventional things at unconventional hours. For the majority of couples interviewed, even when wives worked outside their homes, a proper marriage is characterized by a very clear division of roles: husbands are “providers” whose major responsibility is to support the family; wives are “homemakers” who clean, cook, and care for husbands and children.
I expect him to be a good provider and there when I need him, loyal about the same things as he would expect out of me, expect that I expect him to dominate over me. But in a manner of speaking. when it’s time to be a man I expect him to stand up instead of sitting back expecting me to do everything.
To husbands, a good wife is someone who is:
Understanding of what I feel go through at work ,I need that respect at work, I hope I get it at work. I want my wife to realize what I expect at work. I don’t want her to give me a lot of shit when I come home from work because I don’t know if this makes much sense.
These views seemed critical to maintain the families of the shift workers.
C-17. Despite ______, shift work couples still hoped to maintain a stable life.
A
traditional beliefs about marriage
B
lack of control over time
C
a very clear division of roles
D
the demands of work workers were NOT satisfied with
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
18
阅读C-17题干中Passage Five材料，完成本题。
C-18. From the selection, we can conclude that female shift workers were NOT satisfied with ______.
A
their work
B
their children
C
their husbands’ inability to protect the family and provide companionship
D
leisure activities
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
19
阅读C-17题干中Passage Five材料，完成本题。
C-19. What is implied by the author?
A
Shift work had a direct effect on the attitudes and behavior of family members.
B
Shift workers could live a normal life.
C
Shift work couples had unconventional ideas about marriage.
D
Female shift workers were satisfied with the time spent together with their families.
题型：单选题客观题分值2分难度：中等得分：2
20
阅读C-17题干中Passage Five材料，完成本题。
C-20. In order to continue the marriages of the shift workers, ______.
A
wives must learn to care for the children when their husbands are absent
B
shift work couples must administer their time and activities
C
wives mustn’t adapt their own feelings of boredom to their husbands’ work
D
all of these
听力题
题型：听力题客观题分值30分难度：困难得分：30
1
C-21 请听录音，录音下方列出了十个不完整的句子，根据所听内容，从所给四个选项中选出正确的选项补全空出部分。
The Culture of Color.mp3
题型：单选题客观题分值3分
1
When it comes to color, our first reaction is mostly the seven-tone spectrum of the rainbow. Color has a particularly important and ______________ in China in both the language and aesthetics. Some rarely used Chinese characters are assigned a specific color, and these figurative prototypes have developed into poetic images with the changing of the times.
A
important role
B
key role
C
prominent role
D
marvelous role
题型：单选题客观题分值3分
2
Incorporating Chinese colors and their ____________ into the campus is what educators at Yunjin Primary School in Chongqing believe a first step toward reviving the traditional aesthetic consciousness – using Chinese colors and patterns to ingeniously design their school logo and build up cultural meaning.
A
cultural essence
B
traditional festivals
C
cultural origin
D
traditional customs
题型：单选题客观题分值3分
3
According to designers for the school, Chinese colors are the precipitation and quintessence of Chinese culture, as well as the best educational resource for cultivating aesthetic qualities and _____________.
A
cultural precipitation
B
cultural self-confidence
C
cultural quintessence
D
cultural essence
题型：单选题客观题分值3分
4
Recently more attention has been given to the topic partly as a result of the increasing popularity of _____________. Whether it’s the smashing TV series The Story of Yanxi Palace, or the historical costumes presented in the series The Longest Day in Chang’an that restored the standard color cards of the Tang Dynasty, all these authentic renderings have taken the audience by storm and aroused in them a yearning for Chinese classical colors.
A
Chinese operas
B
Chinese TV series
C
Chinese region dramas
D
Chinese costume dramas
题型：单选题客观题分值3分
5
Low saturation color systems are featured and the restrained color matching, subdued and somber, consists mainly of muted whites and grays, complemented by beige, cream, almond and grayish blue. Many __________ claim that the color palette of The Story of Yanxi Palace strikes a remarkable resemblance to colors used by Italian painter Giorgio Morandi. The colors exude understated vintage quality.
A
netizens
B
citizens
C
residents
D
villagers
题型：单选题客观题分值3分
6
At the beginning of the year, the Cultural and Creative Center of China Academy of Art released the 2021 Chinese color power lychee red (gei li hong). Inspired by the red color of lychee, the team also use the homophonic pun (li stands for power and also lychee) to convey the wishes of the Chinese people to _______________ – gei li (powerful) in all aspects.
A
defeat the disease
B
overcome difficulties
C
overcome the epidemic
D
increase cohesion
题型：单选题客观题分值3分
7
After repeated debugging and screening, dozens of lychee-related colors with the highest frequency were determined by the design team. Combining the classical names of lychee and red in traditional Chinese culture, the final version was named after_________________ – four different levels of red genealogy as the standard color of this project. The theme color is permeated with the vigorous oriental aesthetics.
A
xuan huang, chi xia, qing bai, cao qing
B
fei hong, jiang zi, ming huang, qing lu
C
dan hong, zhu bai, dan lan, qian huang
D
dan xia, xi lan, yu he and luo shen
题型：单选题客观题分值3分
8
Despite the fact that the Chinese aesthetic has been eclipsed for a long time, scholar Guo Hao and designer Li Jianming are among the many who are willing to __________ this treasure trove.
A
explore deeply
B
compare carfully
C
dig deep into
D
invest largely into
题型：单选题客观题分值3分
9
They have reviewed nearly 400 color-related literature and classics, conducted an unprecedented textual research and _________ 384 traditional Chinese color names.
A
summed up
B
amount to
C
average
D
count to
题型：单选题客观题分值3分
10
Guo divides the words used by the ancients to describe colors into two categories: concrete and imagery. Concrete is the color of words that come from ___________. The imagery words are based on everything superimposed on the way humans perceive and record the world, derived from human activities, emotions and imagination.
A
the nature and the society
B
the humans and the nature
C
the heavens and the earth
D
the ancient and the modern
简答题
题型：简答题主观题分值30分难度：困难得分：
1
1
C-22-2 阅读后写作（满分30分）
阅读A celebration for a time of promise，也可点击链接https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202501/22/WS67909bc2a310a2ab06ea89df.html阅读。阅读材料围绕“春节—充满希望的庆典”话题展开，请同学阅读后，按照以下要求用英文完成不少于250字的写作。
1. 用约100字简单概述阅读材料内容；
2. 用约150字谈谈你对“春节被联合国教科文组织列为遗产而在全球范围内的知名度日益提高”的看法。
请不要用附件或者图片形式提交作业！
请不要用附件或者图片形式提交作业！
请不要用附件或者图片形式提交作业！
禁止雷同！禁止雷同！禁止雷同！
A celebration for a time of promise
Spring Festival enjoys a growing global profile with recent UNESCO heritage recognition. Zhao Xu explores the cultural roots of this age-old tradition and how it has evolved over time.
“Amid the crackle of firecrackers, the old year takes flight.
The spring breeze brings warmth, and Tusu wine brings delight.
On countless households, the morning sun gleams.
As fresh peachwood charms take the old ones’ place.”
In 1069, Wang Anshi, the renowned poet and statesman of the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), composed this poem to celebrate the arrival of a new year. Its jovial tone reflected Wang’s own lighthearted spirit as he stood on the threshold of sweeping changes he initiated as vice-chancellor of the state.
The poem endures as a timeless expression of hope, memorized and recited by generations of Chinese during the New Year celebrations, including the coming one.
That hope is rooted in a seasonal promise. The traditional Chinese calendar aligns the New Year with the end of winter and the beginning of spring, hence the name “Spring Festival”.
At the core of the calendar, which integrates both moon-based (lunar) and sun-based (solar) cycles of timekeeping, is an effort to harmonize agricultural and social practices with the rhythm of nature. The New Year marks the beginning of the farming season, as hope stirs beneath the thawing earth.
The calendar had evolved over thousands of years, so did Chinese New Year traditions. While the New Year begins at the stroke of midnight, the festive celebrations typically extend for weeks, and in certain areas, over a month, commencing days before New Year’s Eve.
Everything Wang so vividly recounted — the customs his contemporaries embraced at this time of year — continues to thrive today. Here’s the reason: Although China is no longer the agrarian society it once was, the yearning for the return of warmth, the joy of being with loved ones, the bond to the past, and the promise of renewal all endure — each beautifully symbolized by Chinese New Year.
As Wang rightly noted, the old year would only depart at the ear-splitting sound of firecrackers — tiny thunderclaps that rattle street-level windows, send children cupping their ears in delight and leave a confetti of shredded red paper that once wrapped the fiery explosives.
Yet, few know that the firecrackers we recognize today only emerged during Wang’s time, as gunpowder — first invented by the Chinese around the 9th century — advanced significantly due to the frequent warfare between the Song Dynasty (960-1279) and its neighbors.
Before that, the sharp, explosive sound was made by igniting dried bamboo stalks, which is why the Chinese name for firecrackers is bao zhu, meaning “bamboo burst”. Alternatively, the resounding crack could be produced by snapping a whip, giving firecrackers the name bian pao, meaning “whip blast”.
While the firecrackers create a chaotic symphony full of energy, it is not to delight the ears, but to drive away a ferocious beast, according to legend.
This beast, named Nian — the same character for “year” — once struck terror in the villages, until a wise old man discovered that despite its apparent invincibility, Nian feared three things — loud noises, bright lights and the color red.
Thus, firecrackers explode at night, candles flicker until dawn, and lanterns sway from every rooftop. The color red appears everywhere, from scarlet couplets and paper-cut window decorations to red envelopes filled with money, gifted to the younger generation as a blessing of good fortune.
How did Nian come to be seen as a force of destruction? Cultural historians have long pondered this, suggesting it may be tied to winter’s unforgiving nature. Yet, with the arrival of the new year comes a gentle assurance — a chance to triumph over misfortune, the weight of the past, and the person we once were.
“All the passing years lay behind me, like distant mountain ranges … separating me from my childhood,” wrote venerated Chinese author Ba Jin (Li Yaotang, 1904-2005) in Ring in the New Year (Guo Nian), recalling how, as a boy, he once burned his cotton-padded shoes with firecrackers during an unforgettable New Year’s moment.
He confessed that even if he could return to that sweet childhood dream, he would not, for he had to confront the pain of his soul and his duty “to love his much-suffered countrymen and to fight for freedom and peace”.
Ba Jin wrote this in 1934, during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1931-45).
In those dark and uncertain times, Chinese New Year was no mere celebration. It stood as a testament to resolve, a solemn reminder that even traditions rooted in millennia could crumble if not fiercely protected, sometimes at the cost of life.
To preserve that heritage is the highest form of veneration for one’s forebears, a tradition deeply embedded in the customs of Chinese New Year celebrations.
Emotional bond
An indispensable part of Chinese New Year is the reunion feast on New Year’s Eve. In northern China, families often gather to make and eat dumplings. These dumplings, round and palm-sized, with minced fillings and ingot-like shapes, symbolize wealth. Sometimes, a hidden coin brings extra luck to the finder. The real charm lies in the making process. After a year’s separation, relatives sit around the table, kneading dough, chatting, and sharing stories of joys and sorrows. Laughter fills the air as dumplings take form, strengthening family bonds.
In southern China, rice cakes (nian gao) are staples, suggesting progress for the coming year, along with sweet tang yuan that represent family unity. Spring Rolls and fish, whose name implies surplus, are also popular. Notably, on New Year’s Eve, the fish’s head and tail are left, wishing for a good start and end.
As Lao She described in “The Spring Festival in Beijing”, preparations start on the eighth day of the 12th lunar month. Housecleaning, stocking food, and making new clothes begin. In the past, new, handmade clothes were a highlight, especially for children.
On the 23rd day of the 12th month, the Kitchen God goes to heaven. Families offer sticky sweets like malt sugar to keep him quiet. He’s welcomed back on New Year’s Eve with firecrackers. In some areas, Tusu wine is served. Younger members drink first, signifying growth, then elders, reflecting on time passing. It’s a ritual showing time’s cyclical nature of growth and loss.
Cherished memories
With time’s passage, family moments during Spring Festival turn into precious memories. Each generation has its own unique Spring Festival tales.
In the past, when materials were scarce, the festival was a longed-for feast. Kids anticipated it for weeks, mouths watering at the thought of a table full of dishes. The family-made meal, with kitchen clatter and food aromas, peaked the festive mood. It was more than food; it was the climax of a year’s hopes, stretching from noon to midnight.
After 1978’s reform and opening-up, the economy boomed, and migrant workers emerged. For them and their families, Spring Festival shifted from a break in farming to a cherished reunion. Parents brought city stories, bridging the rural-urban gap.
Before high-speed rails, pre-festival train trips were ordeals. Carriages were crammed, aisles filled with standing passengers. The sweaty air and weary groans filled the space. Everyone lugged big packages, as regional goods differed. Students also joined the journey, with parents waiting in the cold.
Nowadays, those tough times fade. Kids don’t crave festival candy like before, and some may even celebrate on faraway beaches. Yet, urbanization makes separations common, making reunions pricier. As Lao She might’ve said, Spring Festival, in the face of life’s hardships, offers solace, warming weary souls on cold nights.
Illuminating ritual
It has long been a cherished custom for most people to stay awake all night starting from Chinese New Year’s Eve, known as shou sui. This practice reveals a profound longing to protect what matters most, and the lit lamps are hoped to guide loved ones home. An 8th-century poet vividly portrayed the tranquility near the end of shou sui: “The candlelit lamp’s faint flame, obscured by the curtain, fades and dies; the incense on the brazier burns to ash and sighs.”
Centuries later, the great Su Shi of the Northern Song Dynasty, a contemporary of Wang Anshi, penned a poem titled “Shou Sui”. He wrote, “To sense the year’s end approaching; is like seeing a snake slipping into a ravine. Half its scaled body has already vanished away; who can stop its journey, or make it stay?” Su Shi’s influence across poetry, prose, and painting in Chinese culture is immeasurable. Interestingly, the upcoming Jan 29 ushers in the Year of the Snake, regarded as the “dragon minor” in Chinese culture, due to its resemblance to the dragon and shared qualities of grace, mystery, and power. In his poem, after a night of sitting, Su Shi “rose to peer at the slanting Northern Spoon”, referring to the Big Dipper. This recognizable star pattern in the Northern Hemisphere was used to mark time, and its tilt signaled the nearing dawn. Ancient Chinese likely gazed at the stars while awaiting the new year’s first light.
Indeed, the traditional Chinese calendar was rooted in astronomical and mathematical progress, intertwined with society’s cultural, agricultural, and political aspects. While China adopted the Gregorian calendar on Jan 1, 1912, the traditional one endures for cultural celebrations, giving us a taste of the nation’s rich heritage. Visiting temple fairs and making dumplings remain integral to family reunions, binding generations together during Spring Festival.
Spring Festival usually concludes on the 15th day of Chinese New Year, corresponding to Feb 12 in the solar calendar. This final day, marking the first full moon of the new year, is traditionally illuminated by delicately handcrafted lanterns — some bearing riddles — that adorn every corner.
Su Shi, whose poetic instinct was forever in tune with the moon, once wrote:
“Life brings both joy and sorrow, union and separation.
Like the moon’s phases, in constant fluctuation.
Imperfect it’s been since the dawn of creation.”
For many of us, the past year has been far from perfect, and the year ahead may hold its trials. Yet, it is the courage to face adversity and the strength to carry on with grace that transforms all the imperfect moments into perfect memories.
As for New Year’s Eve and every night and day, do what Su Shi recommends in his Shou Sui poem — “Make the most of your time.”
请先 ！