One of the most popular literary figures in American literature is a woman who spent almost half of her long life in China, a country on a continent thousands of miles from the United States. In her lifetime she earned this country's most highly acclaimed literary award: the Pulitzer Prize, and also the most prestigious form of literary recognition in the world, the Nobel Prize for Literature. Pearl S. Buck was almost a household word throughout much of her lifetime because of her prolific literary output, which consisted of some eighty - five published works, including several dozen
novels, six collections of short stories, fourteen books for children, and more than a dozen works of nonfiction. When she was eighty years old, some twenty - five volumes were awaiting publication. Many of those books were set in China, the land in which she spent so much of her life. Her books and her life served as a bridge between the cultures of the East and the West. As the product of those two cultures she became as the described herself, "mentally bifocal." Her unique background made her into an unusually interesting and versatile human being. As we examine the life of Pearl Buck, we cannot help but be aware that we are in fact meeting three separate people: a wife and mother, an internationally famous writer and a humanitarian and philanthropist. One cannot really get to know Pearl Buck without learning about each of the three. Though honored in her lifetime with the William Dean Howell Medal of the American Academy of Arts and Letters in addition to the Nobel and Pulitzer prizes. Pearl Buck as a total human being, not only a famous author. is a captivating subject of study.
novels, six collections of short stories, fourteen books for children, and more than a dozen works of nonfiction. When she was eighty years old, some twenty - five volumes were awaiting publication. Many of those books were set in China, the land in which she spent so much of her life. Her books and her life served as a bridge between the cultures of the East and the West. As the product of those two cultures she became as the described herself, "mentally bifocal." Her unique background made her into an unusually interesting and versatile human being. As we examine the life of Pearl Buck, we cannot help but be aware that we are in fact meeting three separate people: a wife and mother, an internationally famous writer and a humanitarian and philanthropist. One cannot really get to know Pearl Buck without learning about each of the three. Though honored in her lifetime with the William Dean Howell Medal of the American Academy of Arts and Letters in addition to the Nobel and Pulitzer prizes. Pearl Buck as a total human being, not only a famous author. is a captivating subject of study.
1. What is the author's main purpose in the passage?
(A) To offer a criticism of the works of Pearl Buck.
(B) To illustrate Pearl Buck's views on Chinese literature
(C) To indicate the background and diverse interests of Pearl Buck
(D) To discuss Pearl Buck's influence on the cultures of the East and the West
2. According to the passage, Pearl Buck is known as a writer of all of the following EXCEPT
(A) novels (B) children's books (C) poetry (D) short stories
3. Which of the following is NOT mentioned by the author as an award received by Pearl Buck?
(A) The Nobel Prize (B) The Newberry Medal
(C) The William Dean Howell medal (D) The Pulitzer prize
4. According to the passage, Pearl Buck was an unusual figure in American literature in that she
(A) wrote extensively about a very different culture
(B) published half of her books abroad
(C) won more awards than any other woman of her time
(D) achieved her first success very late in life
5. According to the passage, Pearl Buck described herself as "mentally bifocal" to suggest that she was
(A) capable of resolving the differences between two distinct linguistic systems
(B) keenly aware of how the past could influence the future
(C) capable of producing literary works of interest to both adults and children
(D) equally familiar with two different cultural environments
6. The author's attitude toward Pearl Buck could best be described as
(A) indifferent (B) admiring (C) sympathetic
(D) tolerant
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