A
As a boy growing up in Minneapolis during the 1970s, Russell King knew he wasn't into the things most other boys liked. “I didn't really like sports, and I liked to play with girls,” King, now 57, said. King liked dolls (布娃娃) but he got the message early that because he was a boy, he wasn't supposed to. “I remember a time when I was playing with dolls, as a little boy about 6 years old, my father saw me, and he said, “Boys don't play with dolls.”
But in primary (初级的) school, King’s music teacher, Paige Macklin, inspired the reverse message.
Macklin made him sing the young boy part in the song “William's Doll" for a concert. It couldn't have been a more fitting song. “William's Doll' is a song about a boy wanting to play with a doll but everybody saying 'no'," King said. Suddenly, he didn't feel so alone. “I realized, ‘somebody else has these feelings. This isn't just me,’” King said.
King told his former teacher that he was grateful to her for what she inspired in him. She couldn't have guessed at the time that King's voice would lead him to the stage, where he performs cabaret in drag (一种身着异性服饰的艺术表演) as Miss Richfield. “As a teacher, you don’t know how you might have influenced students. And not in any way I would have expected that," Macklin, now 75, told King.
“You didn't expect the soloist (独唱者) to turn out to be a big drag character?” King said with a laugh. Singing that song allowed him to be comfortable with being himself, he said. “As that 6-year-old boy, I couldn't be a little kid I wanted to be. I wasn't supposed to like dresses and color, and all the things I liked. I couldn't really have a voice, and singing that song gave me a voice.
21. What happened in King's childhood?
A. His father didn't respect his hobbies.
B. His father wanted him to play sports.
C. He wasn't allowed to play with girl
D. He had a great gift for singing.
22. Which of the following can replace the underlined word “reverse” in Paragraph 2?
A. unfair B. contrary C. right D. reliable
23. What does the text try to tell us?
A. Music plays an important role in a kid's life.
B. A childhood doll may speak a lot about a kid.
C. We should feel comfortable about being ourselves.
D. Sticking to our hobbies will finally bring success.
