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

这是一个比较抽象的题目，音乐、电影、书籍方面的话题都可以和文化有关，无论选择优劣，解读“Why”都是有一些难度的，需要提示的是，文化的形成往往与自然环境有着密切的联系。因此，只要怀着一种包容的心态就可以理解不同地域文化、不同生活习俗之间的差异。换种表达方式可能更贴近事物本身，那就是文明的先进程度，由于历史、自然等多方面的原因，文明进化快慢程度上的确存在差异。另外，解答时注意适当引入你所想表达的观点可能会引起考官的注意。

Candidate 1: In my opinion, some cultures may be superior to others only in certain aspects. Despite the cultural differences between the Orient(东方国家) and the Occident(西方国家), 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.

回答严谨，Candidate 1首先将some cultures may be superior界定在certain aspects，显示了一定的客观逻辑分析能力。紧接着从父母与子女的关系、独立人格等三个社会现象的分析中阐述了东西方在价值理念的差异之处，指出东方价值理念中仍然存在的落后意识。最后指出若非在特定的field，是很难说清孰优孰劣的。特别是aspects和field两词在首尾的遥相呼应显示出Candidate 1的用法考究和一定的语言功底。

Candidate 2：Frankly speaking, I think some cultures really do better in certain fields. In other words, they specialize in(专长于) 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(文艺复兴) 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(得出结论) 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(相对的语言). When applied to different cultures, they might appear to be a little improper and cause some awful problems.

首先，Candidate 2在回答的砌砖承接上做得不错，用Frankly speaking引入一个观点后，用As we all know和However分别从正反两方面进行客观分析，最后用in a word总结出文化优劣与否很难评判的结论，可见Candidate 2具有一定的逻辑分析能力；其次，从举例来看，正面以文艺复兴为例，说明文化繁荣程度的地区差异性，紧接着又以玛雅文化为例从反面说明，历史湮没的文化未必就是落后的文化，说明并不存在统一的标准去衡量文化的优劣。当然，如果能将这个题目的解释换一个角度，可能会使得表达的意图更加明了。

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?)

选择旅行的目的地是一个小小学问，如果你钟爱艺术，可以去巴黎；如果你喜欢体育，可以去希腊；如果你醉心历史，可以去希腊。

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.