One’s style of the dress reveals the human obsession with both novelty and tradition. People use clothing to declare their membership in a particular social group; however, the rules for what is acceptable dress for that group may change. In affluent societies, this changing of the rules is the driving force behind fashions. By keeping up with fashions, that is, by changing their clothing style frequently but meanwhile, members of a group both satisfy their desire for novelty and obey the rules, thus demonstrating their membership in the group.
There are some interesting variations (变种) regarding individual status. Some people, particularly in the West, consider themselves of such high status that they do not need to display it with their clothing. For example, many wealthy people in the entertainment industry appear in very casual clothes, such as the worn jeans and work boots of a manual laborer. However, it is likely that a subtle but important signal, such as an expensive wristwatch, will prevail over the message of the casual dress. Such an inverted (颠倒的)status display is most likely to occur where the person’s high status is conveyed in ways other than with clothing, such as having a famous face.
【小题1】According to the author, fashions serve all the following purposes EXCEPTA．satisfying an interest in noveltyB．signaling a change in personal beliefsC．displaying membership in a social groupD．following traditional rules【小题2】Why does the author discuss individual status in paragraph 2?A．To state that individual’s status is not important in the WestB．To argue that individuals need not obey every fashion ruleC．To contrast the status of entertainers with that of manual laborersD．To explain how high status may involve an inverted status display【小题3】What’s the meaning of the underlined word?A．newnessB．conventionC．noblenessD．benzeneB
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(答案→)B
解析：文章介绍了人们的着装可以提现人们所属于的社会群体，但是因为人类对新颖和传统的痴迷，服装的时尚经常在改变。
【小题1】考查推理题：题目的意思是“根据作者观点，下列哪个不符合时尚的目的”。A和D，在文中第一句话“One’s style of the dress reveals the human obsession with both novelty and tradition.”可以体现出来，C项可以在第一段中“People use clothing to declare their membership in a particular social group”找到答案，只有B项“为信仰的变化发出信号”没有在文中体现。因此，选B。
【小题2】推理题：题目的意思是“为什么作者在第二段中讨论个人地位?”第二段的最后一句话“Such an inverted status display is most likely to occur where the person’s high status is conveyed in ways other than with clothing, such as having a famous face.”是对整段的总结，同时说出了本段的目的，即“哪些地位高的人会包括在倒转的地位表现中”。因此选D。A意思是“为了陈述在西方国家个人地位不重要”，而“Some people, particularly in the West, consider themselves of such high status that they do not need to display it with their clothing.”因此A与这句话意思矛盾，所以不选。B意思是“为了论述个人地位不需要遵循每个时尚规则”，在文中没有体现，不选。C意思是“为了将娱乐圈人们的地位与手工劳动者的地位作对比”，显然不是作者的目的，因此不选C。
【小题3】猜词题：这句话出现在第一段，而第一句话中也出现了：One’s style of the dress reveals the human obsession with both novelty and tradition.一个人的着装风格提现了人类对新奇和传统的痴迷。和novelty是tradition对应的，可知novelty是“新奇，新奇的事物”，答案是A。