6Part BDirections:In the following article, some sentences have been removed. For Questions 41—45, choose the most suitable one from the list A—G to fit into each of the numbered blank. There are two extra choices, which do not fit in any of the gaps.Dr. Mortimer J. Adler, a noted philosopher, author, editor, lecturer, and teacher, Dr. Adler has throughout his long and distinguished career been a proponent of the great books of western civilization that comprise a liberal education and support a free society. He is chairman of the Board of Editors of the Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., director of the Institute for Philosophical Research in Chicago, chairman of the Paideia Project, and honorary trustee of the Aspen Institute.There is no end to the making of books. Nor does there seem to be any end to the making of lists of "great books." There have always been more books than anyone could read. And as they have multiplied through the centuries, more and more blue-ribbon lists have had to be made.No matter how long your life, you will, at best, be able to read only a few books of all that have been written, and the few you do read should include the best. You can rejoice in the fact that the number of such is relatively small.The listing of the best books is as old as reading and writing. The teachers and librarians of ancient Alexandria did it. Quintilian did it for Roman education, selecting, as he said, both ancient and modern classics. In the Renaissance, such leaders of the revival of learning as Montaigne and Erasmus made lists of the books they read.41)________________________________________________________. Yet there is a surprising uniformity in the lists which represent the best choices of any period. In every age, the list makers include both ancient and modern books in their selections, and they always wonder whether the moderns are up to the great books of the past.What are the signs by which we may recognize a great book、 The six I will mention may not be all there are, but they are the ones I've found most useful in explaining my choices over the years.42)______________________________________________. GONE WITH THE WIND has had relatively few readers compared to the plays of Shakespeare or DON QUIXOTE. It would be reasonable to estimate that Homer's works has been read by at least 25,000,000 people in the last 3000 years.43)_________________________________________________________. The astronomer Kepler, whose work on the planetary motions is now a classic, is reported to have said of his book that "it may wait a century for a reader, as God has waited 6000 years for an observer."44)_____________________________________. They are not written by specialists about specialties for specialists. Whether they be philosophy or science, or history or poetry, they treat of human, not academic problems. They are written for men, not professors. To read a textbook for advanced students, you have to read an elementary textbook first. But the great books can be considered elementary in the sense that they treat the elements of any subject matter. They are not related to one another as a series of textbooks, graded in difficulty or in the technicality of the problems with which they deal.45)__________________________________________________. Let me illustrate this point by taking Euclid s elements of Geometry and Newton s Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy. Euclid requires no prior study of mathematics. His book is generally an introduction to geometry, and to basic arithmetic as well. The same cannot be said for Newton, because Newton uses mathematics in the solution of physical problems. His style shows how deeply he was influenced by Euclid s treatment of ration and proportions. His book is, therefore, not readily intelligible, even to scientists, unless Euclid has been read before.[A]There is one kind of prior reading, however, which does help you to read a great book, and that is the other great books the author himself read.[B]A great book need not even be a best seller in its own day. It may take time for it to accumulate its ultimate audience.[C]Great books are probably the most widely read. They are not best sellers for a year or two. They are enduring best sellers.[D]I am not saying that great scientific books can be read without effort.[E]It is to be expected that the selections will change will the times.[F]Great books are popular, not pedantic.[G]Great books are always contemporary.
H.A. B. C. D. E. F. G.
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