Passage Three
Practically every serious study of Western history and the roots of the modern Western world starts with or very quickly focuses on the ancient Greeks and their achievements. Everything Western is not rightfully traced back to the Greeks. Christianity，though influenced by the great Greek thinker Plato and the Romans，is essentially near Eastern in spirit and content. Our Western legal system is probably more influenced by the Romans；and our prose literature comes from traditions that evolved well after the heyday of Greek civilization. Still，our poetry is inspired by ancient Greek poetry and virtually every ideal（traditional or modern）unique to the West is derived from the ancient Greeks—particularly ancient Athens.
Greek civilization came to be founded，in large part，on the ideals of freedom，optimism，secularism，rationalism，the glorification of both body and mind，and a high regard for the dignity and worth of the individual.
Though the ancient Greeks had a great deal of respect for their“gods”，they did not feel they were the slaves of the“gods”or that the“gods”were in control of their lives. Instead，the Greeks came to believe that the thoughts and actions of mankind were determined by human beings. That being the case，the Greeks strove to understand the world and to guide their future by rational and logical thoughts，not by superstitions or emotions. They believed that man was the greatest of creatures on earth and that both the body and the mind should be actively developed and encouraged to grow and become as strong as possible. Finally，the ancient Greeks felt that each separate and different person deserved to be treated fairly and justly. They believed that each person had his own dignity and worthiness that could never be taken away and should never be attacked，assaulted，suppressed，denied，or ignored by anyone else—even the highest of Kings or the most powerful of people.
Their culture was the first in the history of the West to be based upon the primacy of the intellect. They were the first to believe firmly in the supremacy of free inquiry. They investigated any and all subjects without fear and considered no issue or problem beyond the scope of man’s reason and thought. To them the mind was supreme over faith or dogma and logic，and science was superior to superstition.
11. The main idea of this passage would be .
A. certain ancient Greeks who contributed to the development of Western culture
B. particular individuals among the ancient Greeks who produced peerless intellectual and aesthetic achievements
C. golden heritage of the ancient Greek civilization
D. models of perfection for the culture of the West
12. It can be inferred from the passage that the ancient Greeks were .
A. under the sway of mysticism
B. at the mercy of their passions
C. primarily concerned with human interests and values
D. given to a trust in the power of magical forces
13. The word“strove”in paragraph 3，sentence 3 is closest in meaning to .
A. studied B. learned C. believed D. endeavored
14. The word“dogma”at the end of the passage is closest in meaning to .
A. tenet B. tenure C. tenant D. taint
15. It can be inferred from the passage that the ancient Greek civilization .
A. inspired the Western prose literature
B. was the source from which mythology evolved
C. was the origin to which everything western is justifiably traced back
D. still serves as models of perfection for the culture of the West

参考答案：11-15 CCDAD