Standard English Most of us have an image of such a normal or standard English in pronunciation, and very commonly in Great Britain this is “Received Pronunciation", often associated with the public schools, Oxford, and the BBC. Indeed, a pronunciation within this range has great prestige throughout the world, and for English taught as a foreign language it is more usually the ideal than any other pronunciation. At the same time, it must be remembered that, so far as the English- speaking countries are concerned, this "Received Pronunciation" approaches the status of a "Standard" almost only in England: educated Scots, Irishmen, Americans, Australians, and others have their own different images of a standard form of English. Even in England it is difficult to speak of a standard in pronunciation. Pronunciation is infinitely variable, so that even given the will to adopt a single pronunciation, it would be difficult to achieve. The word dance may be pronounced in a dozen ways even by people who do not think of themselves as dialect speakers; there is no sure way of any two people saying the same word with precisely the same sound. In this respect, pronunciation much more closely resembles handwriting than spelling. In spring, there are absolute distinctions which can be learnt and imitated with complete precision: one can know at once whether a word is spelt in a "standard" way or not. But two persons' handwriting and pronunciation may both be perfectly intelligible, yet have obvious differences without our being able to say which is "better" or more "standard." Comprehension of the text. 1. What does the passage mainly discuss? A) English pronunciation, spelling and handwriting. B) The status of Received Pronunciation in the English-speaking countries. C) The difficulty of achieving a standard in English pronunciation. D) Variations in the pronunciation of the word" dance". 2. What can we learn about "Received Pronunciation" from the passage? A) It is a sub-standard form of the English language. B) It is an ideal form of English pronunciation in English-speaking countries. C) It is a standard form of English pronunciation among intellectuals everywhere in the world. D) It is a somewhat standard form of English pronunciation in England. 3. In what way is pronunciation more like handwriting than spelling according to the passage? A) They can both be learnt with complete precision. B) They vary from individual to individual. C) Neither of them is essential to the acquisition of the English language. D) They can hardly be imitated. 4. Why is so difficult to achieve a single standard pronunciation even in England? A) Because most people do not go to public schools. B)Because there is a lot of controversy over the pronunciation of the word “dance”. C) Because no two people can be said to pronounce words in exactly the same way. D) Because dialect speakers do not want to change their pronunciation. 5. What can be inferred from the passage? A) There is no such thing as a single standard English in pronunciation in the English-speaking world. B)It is necessary for people to agree on a single English pronunciation in order to avoid misunderstanding. C) The American model of pronunciation is gaining higher prestige in the English speaking countries. D)Received pronunciation will disappear soon.