A.
To cast doubt on something the professor said
B.
To get the professor’s opinion about a topic from class
C.
To indicate that she wishes to change the subject
D.
To check whether she has understood a philosophical argument
正确答案:A
译文
NARRATOR:Listen to a conversation between a student and her philosophy professor.
FEMALE STUDENT:Professor Miller?
MALE PROFESSOR:Hi, Laura. Everything alright?
FEMALE STUDENT:Yeah. I just... wanted to let you know... after this semester I... I’ve decided to change my major.
MALE PROFESSOR:Really? Why? I, I thought you loved philosophy.
FEMALE STUDENT:I do, but ... I don’t know. I have to be practical.
It’s great to take all these philosophy classes, but I mean... I need to start thinking about finding a job after I graduate.
MALE PROFESSOR:Because, uh let’s see... people with a degree in philosophy don’t have anything to offer employers. Right?
FEMALE STUDENT:Well... kind of. Lots of my friends are business majors. I need to study something that’ll actually prepare me for a career.
MALE PROFESSOR:If I had a dollar for every time I heard that.
OK. Studying something like business is great preparation, of course. Especially for people who already know their career goals.
But for those who don’t, well... what’s yours, what’re your goals?
FEMALE STUDENT:I have no idea.
MALE PROFESSOR:So, for you... perhaps it’s not the best option.
FEMALE STUDENT:That’s a good point.
MALE PROFESSOR:With a major in philosophy... besides the possibility of grad school—which I think would be wonderful for you—you know lots of things that are valuable in any career.
FEMALE STUDENT:Like what? How Johnson tried to refute Berkeley’s empiricism?
MALE PROFESSOR:Well... what did Johnson do?
FEMALE STUDENT:Well, you know... what Berkeley said was that we can’t really know any objects, we can just perceive them. It’s all about our senses perceiving things.
Berkeley basically made the point that it doesn’t really make sense to believe in actual, physical matter...
What Johnson did was, Johnson was trying to disprove that, so he kicked a big stone.
He said that refuted Berkeley.
MALE PROFESSOR:Uh-huh. So, what do you think of that?
FEMALE STUDENT:Well, not that I’m convinced by Berkeley either, but I really don’t think Johnson refuted anything.
And I think Berkeley would just say that Johnson still doesn’t know anything apart from what he senses.
Seeing the stone, feeling his foot hurting after he kicked it—it’s all still just based on his perceptions.
Johnson can’t argue that he knows anything other than what his senses have told him.
MALE PROFESSOR:You know what you just did?
FEMALE STUDENT:Told you something that’s not relevant anywhere but a philosophy class?
MALE PROFESSOR:No. You demonstrated well-developed analytical skills.
Philosophy majors can critique other people’s reasoning, make a convincing argument, summarize... and communicate very effectively.
These things are important in any career. And in life!
FEMALE STUDENT:OK, but... still! You don’t see any of that in job descriptions!
MALE PROFESSOR:Really? Oh, I think you do. I’ve seen so many articles lately, by heads of companies in all kinds of fields, complaining that it’s hard to find employees who can do that.
Ask at the career services office—they’ll tell you the same thing.
FEMALE STUDENT:Well, I guess career services would know.
MALE PROFESSOR:Also, why don’t you think about... You know, our department always has information about summer internships. That’d give you some concrete experience to put on your résumé.
FEMALE STUDENT:That’s an idea.
MALE PROFESSOR:An internship could help you get your foot in the door.