1. Do you think conciously or unconsciously, that some cultures are superior or inferior to others? Why?

這是一個比較抽象的題目，音樂、電影、書籍方面的話題都可以和文化有關，無論選擇優劣，解讀“Why”都是有一些難度的，需要提示的是，文化的形成往往與自然環境有著密切的聯系。因此，只要懷著一種包容的心態就可以理解不同地域文化、不同生活習俗之間的差異。換種表達方式可能更貼近事物本身，那就是文明的先進程度，由于歷史、自然等多方面的原因，文明進化快慢程度上的確存在差異。另外，解答時注意適當引入你所想表達的觀點可能會引起考官的注意。

Candidate 1: In my opinion, some cultures may be superior to others only in certain aspects. Despite the cultural differences between the Orient(東方國家) and the Occident(西方國家), there do exist some admirable ingredients(成分) in the western culture.

First and foremost, the equality between parents and children. The parents are not always superior to the children, and the children have much more freedom to make up their own decisions, that is, they are more like close friends.

Secondly, the independent personality. Western people have a strong sense of supporting themselves and being independent. They begin earning their pocket money early in their life, even as kids.

Finally, westerners do not always assess a person according to his background. If only he can achieve success through personal struggle, he can win status. It's a talent-oriented instead of a background-oriented society.

All in all, we could only say one culture is superior or inferior to the other in a specified field.

回答嚴謹，Candidate 1首先將some cultures may be superior界定在certain aspects，顯示了一定的客觀邏輯分析能力。緊接著從父母與子女的關系、獨立人格等三個社會現象的分析中闡述了東西方在價值理念的差異之處，指出東方價值理念中仍然存在的落后意識。最后指出若非在特定的field，是很難說清孰優孰劣的。特別是aspects和field兩詞在首尾的遙相呼應顯示出Candidate 1的用法考究和一定的語言功底。

Candidate 2：Frankly speaking, I think some cultures really do better in certain fields. In other words, they specialize in(專長于) and perhaps achieve more or even dominate these areas for periods of time, that's what it all adds up to(如此而已).

As we all know, the Renaissance(文藝復興) was abundant with genius artists, among whom world-famous Leonardo de Vinci, Raffadlo Sanzio and Michelangelo were the most dazzling(耀眼的) stars. Likewise, France did wouderful work in the later years, and Germany also contributed a lot to philosophy in the last several hundred years.

However, you can never draw a conclusion(得出結論) that one culture is absolutely superior to another merely based on the facts. In really, and culture, including those ruined ones, may once be splendid in human history. Today, when we appreciate the Maya Pyramids(金字塔), when we write on paper, when we enjoy Brazillian football, etc, it is necessary to bear in mind that all cultures have blossomed.

In a word, "superior" and inferior" are two relative terms(相對的語言). When applied to different cultures, they might appear to be a little improper and cause some awful problems.

首先，Candidate 2在回答的砌磚承接上做得不錯，用Frankly speaking引入一個觀點后，用As we all know和However分別從正反兩方面進行客觀分析，最后用in a word總結出文化優劣與否很難評判的結論，可見Candidate 2具有一定的邏輯分析能力；其次，從舉例來看，正面以文藝復興為例，說明文化繁榮程度的地區差異性，緊接著又以瑪雅文化為例從反面說明，歷史湮沒的文化未必就是落后的文化，說明并不存在統一的標準去衡量文化的優劣。當然，如果能將這個題目的解釋換一個角度，可能會使得表達的意圖更加明了。

2. If you had a chance to travel, which place would be your first choices? And why? (Or: Which place in the world would you most like to visit? Why?)

選擇旅行的目的地是一個小小學問，如果你鐘愛藝術，可以去巴黎；如果你喜歡體育，可以去希臘；如果你醉心歷史，可以去希臘。

Candidate 1: If I had a chance to travel, I'd like to go to Xinjiang first. For one reason, the air there is much fresher and cleaner. I would lie on the grassland, looking at the blue sky with white clouds, which would be so relaxing and comfortable. Or I can ride on horseback across the grassland, which is so exciting.

For another, I prefer to go to Tianshan for sight-seeing because it sounds beautiful to me. Besides, I'm eager to taste the famous Turpan grapes and Hami muskmelons picked by myself. Thus, it's better to visit there in a right season. Wow, how wonderful! I wish I had a pair of wings so that I could fly there immediately.