A group of labour MPs, among them Yvette Cooper, are bringing in the new year with a
call to institute a UK "town of culture" award.
labour 劳动，分娩，人工
institute 实行，建立，机构，研究所
bring in 引进，生产，增加
一个劳动组织MPs，伊薇特·库珀也在其中，在新的一年呼吁设立英国“文化之城”奖。
The proposal is that it should sit alongside the existing city of culture title, which was held by Hull in 2017 and has been awarded to Coventry for 2021.
proposal
n.提议;建议;动议;求婚
英国约克郡风光
建议的内容是这个奖励应该和现存城市的文化称号并存。从2017年起，这个奖由赫尔创办，2021年授予了考文垂。
Cooper and her colleagues argue that the success of the crown for Hull, where it brought in ₣220m of investment and an avalanche of arts，ought not to be confined to cities.
avalanche
n.雪崩;山崩
confine
v.限制;限定;监禁;禁闭;使离不开(或受困于床、轮椅等)
考文垂大教堂
库珀和她的同事认为，“赫尔赢得桂冠”的成功为赫尔带来了2.2亿法郎的投资和大量的艺术作品，（这样的好处）不应局限于城市。
Britain's towns, it is true, are not prevented from applying, but they generally lack the resources to put together a bid to beat their bigger competitors.
put together把…放在一起;组合;装配;组装;把…组队（或汇总）;制订，创造（协议、计划或产品）
bid
v.出(价);(尤指拍卖中)喊价;投标;努力争取;企图获得
n.买方的出价;投标;努力争取
v.向(某人)问候、道别等;告诉(某人做某事);吩咐
诚然，英国的城镇并没有被阻止申请这个奖项，但它们通常缺乏资源去整合竞标，去击败更大的竞争对手。
A town of culture award could，it is argued，become an annual event，attracting funding and creating jobs.
有人认为，文化小镇奖可以成为一项年度活动，吸引资金，创造就业机会。
Some might see the proposal as a booby prize for the fact that Britain is no longer able to apply for the much more prestigious title of European capital of culture, a sought-after award bagged by Glasgow in 1990 and Liverpool in 2008.
booby
n.笨蛋;傻瓜;(女人的)乳房(多见于儿童用语);鲣鸟(大型热带海鸟)
prestigious
adj.有威望的;声誉高的
sought-after
adj.(因稀有或质优而)受欢迎的，吃香的
bag
n.(尤指商店用的)纸袋，塑料袋;手提包;旅行袋;一袋(的量)
v.把…装进袋子;捕获，猎杀(动物);得分
有些人可能会把这项提议看作是一个骗人的奖项，因为英国已经不能再申请欧洲文化之都这个更具声望的称号了，1990年格拉斯哥和2008年利物浦获得了这个备受追捧的奖项。
A cynic might speculate that the UK is on the verge of disappearing into an endless fever of self-celebration in its desperation to reinvent itself for the post-Brexit world: after town of culture, who knows what will follow——village of culture？ Suburb of culture? Hamlet of culture?
cynic n.认为人皆自私的人;愤世嫉俗者;悲观者;怀疑者
speculate v.推测;猜测;推断;投机;做投机买卖
on the verge of 将近(几岁);即将…
reinvent v.以新形象示人;以新形式出现
一个愤世嫉俗的人可能会猜测，英国正濒临消失在一种无休止的自我庆祝的狂热中，拼命希望在脱欧之后以新形象示人：继文化之城之后，谁知道接下来会发生什么——文化之村？文化 之郊 ？文化的哈姆雷特？
It is also wise to recall that such titles are not a cure-all.
recall
v.记起;回忆起;回想起;使想起;使想到;勾起;召回
n.记忆力;记性;召回令;回归请求;回收令
cure-all 万灵药 ; 灵丹妙药
同样明智的是，这样的头衔并不是万能的。
A badly run "year of culture" washes in and out of a place like the tide, bringing prominence for a spell but leaving no lasting benefits to the community.
prominence
n.重要;突出;卓越;出名
spell
v.用字母拼;拼写;拼出，会拼(单词);拼作;拼成
n.(持续的)一段时间;(干某事或在某处工作的)一段时间;咒语;符咒;魔法
一个经营不善的“文化年”就好像潮水在一个地方的涨落，带来一段时间的显赫，却没有给社区留下持久的利益。
The really successful holders of such titles are those that do a great deal more than fill hotel bedrooms and bring in high-profile arts events and good press for a year.
high-profile
adj.经常出镜(或见报)的;高姿态的
真正成功地拥有这些头衔的人，需要做很多事而不仅仅是填满酒店卧室、带来高调的艺术活动和占据一年的好新闻。
They transform the aspirations of the people who live there；they nudge the self-image of the city into a bolder and more optimistic light.
nudge
v.(用肘)轻推，轻触;(朝某方向)轻推，渐渐推动;用胳膊肘挤开往前走
n.(肘部的)轻推，碰
bolder
adj.bold的比较级
大胆自信的;敢于表白情感的;敢于冒险的;明显的;轮廓突出的;粗体的;黑体的
他们改变了居住在那里的人们的抱负；他们把城市的自我形象推向了一种更大胆、更乐观的光明之处。
It is hard to get right，and requires a remarkable degree of vision, as well as cooperation between city authorities，the private sector, community groups and cultural organizations.
remarkable
adj.非凡的;奇异的;显著的;引人注目的
vision
n.视力;视野;想象;幻象;梦幻;神示;异象
sector
n.(尤指一国经济的)部门，领域，行业;(尤指军事管制的)区域，地带;扇形
这是很难做到的，而且需要高度的远见，以及城市政府、私营部门、社区团体和文化组织之间的合作。
But it can be done：Glasgow’s year as European capital of a culture can certainly be seen as one of a complex series of factors that have turned the city into the powerhouse of art, music and theatre that it remains today.
但这是可以做到的：
作为欧洲文化之都的这一年，（这个称号）无疑可以被视为一系列复杂因素之一，这一年（的称号）使格拉斯哥成为了艺术、音乐和戏剧的重镇，至今仍保留着。
格拉斯哥大学
A “town of culture” could be not just about the arts but about honouring a town‘s peculiarities——helping sustain its high street，supporting local facilities and above all celebrating its people.
peculiarities
n.怪异的性质(或习惯);怪癖;(人、物、地等的)个性，特色，特点;奇怪;怪异
一个“文化之城”的称号不仅仅和艺术有关，而是要是一个尊重城市特色的城市——帮助维持其商业街，支持当地设施，最重要的是庆祝它的人民。
大笨钟 伦敦
Jeremy Wright, the culture secretary should welcome this positive，hope-filled proposal，and turn it into action.
文化部长杰里米·赖特（Jeremy Wright）应该欢迎这一积极、充满希望的提议，并将其付诸行动。
题目：
21.Cooper and her colleagues argue that a “town of culture” award could_____.
A. consolidate the town-city ties in Britain.
B. promote cooperation among Britain's towns.
C. Increase the economic strength of Britain's towns.
D. focus Britain's limited resources on cultural events.
consolidate
v.使加强;使巩固;(使)结成一体，合并
22.According to Paragraph 2, the proposal might be regarded by some as ____.
A. a sensible compromise
B. a self-deceiving attempt
C. an eye-catching bonus
D. an inaccessible target
compromise
n.妥协;折中;互让;和解;妥协(或折中)方案;达成妥协(或和解)
v.(为达成协议而)妥协，折中，让步;违背(原则);达不到(标准);(尤指因行为不很明智)使陷入危险，使受到怀疑
23.The author suggests that a title holder is successful only if it_____.
A. endeavours to maintain its image
B. meets the aspiration of its people
C. brings its local arts to prominence
D. commits to its long-term growth.
endeavour
n.(尤指新的或艰苦的)努力，尝试
v.努力;尽力;竭力
commit to
把…送交，托付给…;使（某人或自已）对…作出承诺，承担义务 或担负责任；使（自己）致力于（某事或做 某事）;把…固定在，保留在…之上或之中〔说明〕commit to常不用于进行体。
- "Glasgow" is mentioned in Paragraph 3 to present_____.
A. a contrasting case.
B. a supporting example
C. a background story
D A related topic
contrast
n.明显的差异;对比;对照;明显不同的人(或事物);(摄影或绘画中的)颜色反差，明暗对比
v.对比;对照;(靠近或作比较时)显出明显的差异，形成对比
- What is the author's attitude towards the proposal?
A. Skeptical
B. Objective
C. Favourable
D. Critical
objective
n.目标;目的;(望远镜或显微镜的)物镜
adj.客观的;就事论事的;不带个人感情的;客观存在的;基于事实的;宾格的
critical
adj.批评的;批判性的;挑剔的;极重要的;关键的;至关紧要的;严重的;不稳定的;可能有危险的
答案：CBDBC