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　　As a historian who’s always searching for the text or the image that makes us re-evaluate the past, I’ve become preoccupied with looking for photographs that show our Victorian ancestors smiling (what better way to shatter the image of 19th-century prudery?). I’ve found quite a few, and — since I started posting them on Twitter — they have been causing quite a stir. People have been surprised to see evidence that Victorians had fun and could, and did, laugh. They are noting that the Victorians suddenly seem to become more human as the hundred-or-so years that separate us fade away through our common experience of laughter.

　　Of course, I need to concede that my collection of ‘Smiling Victorians’ makes up only a tiny percentage of the vast catalogue of photographic portraiture created between 1840 and 1900, the majority of which show sitters posing miserably and stiffly in front of painted backdrops, or staring absently into the middle distance. How do we explain this trend?

　　During the 1840s and 1850s, in the early days of photography, exposure times were notoriously long: the daguerreotype photographic method (producing an image on a silvered copper plate) could take several minutes to complete, resulting in blurred images as sitters shifted position or adjusted their limbs. The thought of holding a fixed grin as the camera performed its magical duties was too much to contemplate, and so a non-committal blank stare became the norm.

　　But exposure times were much quicker by the 1880s, and the introduction of the Box Brownie and other portable cameras meant that, though slow by today’s digital standards, the exposure was almost instantaneous. Spontaneous smiles were relatively easy to capture by the 1890s, so we must look elsewhere for an explanation of why Victorians still hesitated to smile.

　　One explanation might be the loss of dignity displayed through a cheesy grin. “Nature gave us lips to conceal our teeth,” ran one popular Victorian saying, alluding to the fact that before the birth of proper dentistry, mouths were often in a shocking state of hygiene. A flashing set of healthy and clean, regular ‘pearly whites’ was a rare sight in Victorian society, the preserve of the super-rich (and even then, dental hygiene was not guaranteed).

　　A toothy grin (especially when there were gaps or blackened teeth) lacked class: drunks, tramps, and music hall performers might gurn and grin with a smile as wide as Lewis Carroll’s gum-exposing Cheshire Cat, but it was not a becoming look for properly bred persons. Even Mark Twain, a man who enjoyed a hearty laugh, said that when it came to photographic portraits there could be “nothing more damning than a silly, foolish smile fixed forever”.

　　31. According to Paragraph 1, the author’s posts on Twitter

　　A. changed people’s impression of the Victorians.

　　B. highlighted social media’s role in Victorian studies.

　　C. re-evaluated the Victorians’ notion of public image.

　　D. illustrated the development of Victorian photography.

　　32. What does author say about the Victorian portraits he has collected?

　　A. They are in popular use among historians.

　　B. They are rare among photographs of that age.

　　C. They mirror 19th-century social conventions.

　　D. They show effects of different exposure times.

　　33. What might have kept the Victorians from smiling for pictures in the 1890s?

　　A. Their inherent social sensitiveness.

　　B. Their tension before the camera.

　　C. Their distrust of new inventions.

　　D. Their unhealthy dental condition.

　　34. Mark Twain is quoted to show that the disapproval of smiles in pictures was

　　A. a deep-root belief.

　　B. a misguided attitude.

　　C. a controversial view.

　　D. a thought-provoking idea.

　　35. Which of the following questions does the text answer?

　　A. Why did most Victorians look stern in photographs?

　　B. Why did the Victorians start to view photographs?

　　C. What made photography develop slowly in the Victorian period?

　　D. How did smiling in photographs become a post-Victorian norm?

　　【试题解析】

　　31. According to Paragraph 1, the author’s posts on Twitter

　　A. changed people’s impression of the Victorians.

　　B. highlighted social media’s role in Victorian studies.

　　C. re-evaluated the Victorians’ notion of public image.

　　D. illustrated the development of Victorian photography.

　　【答案】A. changed people’s impression of the Victorians.

　　【题型】细节题

　　【解析】根据题干关键信息“the author’s posts on Twitter”，定位到原文第一段二三两句，其中“causing quite a stir”“引起相当大的轰动”和“surprised”“惊讶”以及本段末句“suddenly seem to become more human”“突然变得更加有人情味”，作者连用“stir轰动”“surprised惊讶”“suddenly突然”三个词，表明人们对维多利亚时代人民也可以放声大笑这一事实感到不可思议，因此答案A“changed people’s impression of the Victorians 改变了人们对维多利亚时代人的印象”正确。

　　32. What does author say about the Victorian portraits he has collected?

　　A. They are in popular use among historians.

　　B. They are rare among photographs of that age.

　　C. They mirror 19th-century social conventions.

　　D. They show effects of different exposure times.

　　【答案】B

　　【题型】细节题

　　【解析】根据题干关键信息“the Victorian portraits he has collected”定位到原文第二段首句，其中“my collection of ‘Smiling Victorians’”为题干和原文的同义改写为此题难点，“makes up only a tiny percentage of the vast catalogue of photographic portraiture 在庞大的肖像摄影目录中只占很小的一部分”为答案出处，正确答案“They are rare among photographs of that age. 它们在那个时代的照片中很少见。”为该句的同义改写，因此答案B正确。

　　33. What might have kept the Victorians from smiling for pictures in the 1890s?

　　A. Their inherent social sensitiveness.

　　B. Their tension before the camera.

　　C. Their distrust of new inventions.

　　D. Their unhealthy dental condition.

　　【答案】D

　　【题型】细节题

　　【解析】根据题干关键信息1890s，定位到原文第四段末句，但该句并无答案，根据细节题解题思路及文本提示信息“elsewhere”，第五段的首句“the loss of dignity displayed through a cheesy grin 笑而露齿，失去尊严”以及第二句“before the birth of proper dentistry, mouths were often in a shocking state of hygiene在正确的牙科技术诞生之前，口腔的卫生状况常常令人震惊”可以得知选项D“Their unhealthy dental condition. 他们不健康的牙齿状况。”为正确选项。

　　34. Mark Twain is quoted to show that the disapproval of smiles in pictures was

　　A. a deep-root belief.

　　B. a misguided attitude.

　　C. a controversial view.

　　D. a thought-provoking idea.

　　【答案】A

　　【题型】例证题

　　【解析】根据题干“人们引用马克·吐温的话来说明，人们不赞成在照片里微笑”信息，考查点为论据的论证关系，其中“马克·吐温”句为论据句，其论证的观点应在论据之前，即该段的第一句，其中but之后为该句核心部分，应重点阅读“but it was not a becoming look for properly bred persons”“但是对于教养良好的人来说，这不是一种得体的表现”与答案 A“a deep-root belief. 一种根深的信念”保持一致。

　　35. Which of the following questions does the text answer?

　　A. Why did most Victorians look stern in photographs?

　　B. Why did the Victorians start to view photographs?

　　C. What made photography develop slowly in the Victorian period?

　　D. How did smiling in photographs become a post-Victorian norm?

　　【答案】A

　　【题型】主旨题

　　【解析】本题考查文章主旨，纵观全文，作者通过在社交平台发布维多利亚时期人们微笑的照片来打破大众的对于维多利亚时期人不笑的刻板印象，并逐一分析了该印象的原因，因此答案A“为什么大多数维多利亚时代的人在照片里看起来都很严肃?”与作者的写作思路保持一致。

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