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When does history begin It is tempting to reply "In the beginning", but like many obvious answers, this soon turns out to be unhelpful. As a great Swiss historian once pointed out in another connection, history is the one subject where you cannot begin at the beginning. If we want to, we can trace the chain of human descent back to the appearance of vertebrates, or even to the photosynthetic cells which lie at the start of life itself. We can go back further still, to almost unimaginable upheavals which formed this planet and even to the origins of the universe. Yet this is not "history". Commonsense helps here: history is the story of mankind, of what it has done, suffered or enjoyed. We all know that dogs and cats do not have histories, while human beings do. Even when historians write about a natural process beyond human control, such as the ups and downs of climate, or the spread of disease, they do so only because it helps us to understand why men and women have lived (and died) in some ways rather than others. This suggests that all we have to do is to identify the moment at which the first human beings step out from the shadows of the remote past. It is not quite as simple as that, though. We have to know what we are looking for first and most attempts to define humanity on the basis of observable characteristics prove in the end arbitrary and cramping, as long arguments about "apemen" and "missing links" have shown. Physiological tests help us to classify data but do not identify what is or is not human. That is a matter of a definition about which disagreement is possible. Some people have suggested that human uniqueness lies in language, yet other primates possess vocal equipment similar to our own; when noises are made with it which are signals, at what point do they become speech Another famous definition is that man is a tool-maker, but observation has cast doubt on our uniqueness in this respect, too, long after Dr. Johnson scoffed at Boswell for quoting it to him. What is surely and identifiably unique about the human species is not its possession of certain faculties or physical characteristics, but what it has done with them--its achievement, or history, in fact. Humanity’s unique achievement is its remarkably intense level of activity and creativity, its cumulative capacity to create change. All animals have ways of living, some complex enough to be called cultures. Human culture alone is progressive: it has been increasingly built by conscious choice and selection within it as well as by accident and natural pressure, by the accumulation of a capital of experience and knowledge which man has exploited. Human history began when the inheritance of genetics and behavior which had until then provided the only way of dominating the environment was first broken through by conscious choice. Of course, human beings have always only been able to make theh- history within limits. These limits are now very wide indeed, but they were once so narrow that it is impossible to identify the first step which took human evolution away from the determination of nature. We have for a long time only a blurred story, obscure both because the evidence is poor and because we cannot be sure exactly what we are looking for. According to the author, when should be regarded as the beginning of human history
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Roger Rosenblatt’s book Black Fiction, in attempting to apply literary rather than sociopolitical criteria to its subject, successfully alters the approach taken by most previous studies. As Rosenblatt notes, criticism of Black writing has often served as an excuse for expounding on Black history. Addison Gayle’s recent work, for example, judges the value of Black fiction by overtly political standards, faring each work according to the notions of Black identity which it put forward. Although fiction assuredly springs from political circumstances, its authors react to those circumstances in ways other than ideological, and talking about novels and stories primarily as instruments of ideology limits much of the fictional enterprise. Rosenblatt’s literary analysis discloses relations and connotations among works of Black fiction which solely political studies have overlooked or ignored. Writing acceptable criticism of Black fiction, however, presupposes giving satisfactory answers to a number of questions. First of all, is there a sufficient reason, other than the racial identity of the authors, to group together works by Black authors Second, how does Black fiction make itself distinct from other modem fiction with which it is largely contemporaneous Rosenblatt’s idea shows that Black fiction constitutes a distinct body of writing that has an identifiable, coherent literary tradition. Looking at novels written by Blacks over the last eighty years, he discovers recurring concerns and designs independent of chronology. These structures are thematic, and they spring, not surprisingly, from the central fact that the Black characters in these novels exist in a predominantly White culture, whether they try to conform to that culture or rebel against it. Black Fiction does leave some aesthetic questions open. Rosenblatt’s thematic analysis permits considerable objectivity; he even states that it is not his intention to judge the merit of the various works--yet his reluctance seems misplaced, especially since an attempt to appraise might have led to interesting results. For instance, some of the novels appear to be structurally diffused. Is this a defect, or are the authors working out of, or trying to create, a different kind of aesthetic In addition, the style of some Black novels, like Jean Toomer’s Cane, verges on expressionism or surrealism; does this technique provide a counterpoint to the popular theme that describes the fate against which Black heroes are struggling, a theme usually conveyed by more naturalistic modes of expression In spite of such omissions, what Rosenblatt does include in his discussion makes for a keen and worthwhile study. Black Fiction surveys a wide variety of novels, bringing to our attention in the process some fascinating and little-known works like James Weldon Johnson’s Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man. Its argument is tightly constructed, and its forthright, clear style exemplifies levelheaded and penetrating criticism. The author refers to James Weldon Johnson’s Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man most probably in order to
成员单位的连环担保使集团法人客户的信用风险有所上升。( )
Decide which of the choices given below would best complete the passage if inserted in the corresponding blanks. Mark the best choice for each blank on your answer sheet. Many theories concerning the causes of juvenile delinquency (crimes committed by young people) focus either on the individual or on society as the major contributing influence. Theories (31) on the individual suggest that children engage in criminal behavior (32) they were not sufficiently penalized for previous misdeeds or that they have learned criminal behavior through (33) with others. Theories focusing on the role of society suggest that children commit crimes in (34) to their failure to rise above their socioeconomic status, (35) as a rejection of middleclass values. Most theories of juvenile delinquency have focused on children from disadvantaged families, (36) the fact that children from wealthy homes also commit crimes. The latter may commit crimes (37) lack of adequate parental control. All theories, however, are tentative and are (38) to criticism. Changes in the social structure may indirectly (39) juvenile crime rates. For example, changes in the economy that (40) to fewer job opportunities for youth and rising unemployment (41) make gainful employment increasingly difficult to obtain. The resulting discontent may in (42) lead more youths into criminal behavior. Families have also (43) changes these years. More families consist of one-parent households or two working parents (44) , children are likely to have less supervision at home (45) was common in the traditional family (46) This lack of parental supervision is thought to be an influence on juvenile crime rates. Other (47) causes of offensive acts include frustration or failure in school, the increased (48) of drugs and alcohol, and the growing (49) of child abuse and child neglect. All these conditions tend to increase the probability of a child committing a criminal act, (50) a direct causal relationship has not yet been established.
有效的声誉风险管理是有资质的管理人员、高效的风险管理流程以及先进的信息系统共同作用的结果。( )
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