Exercise 2
Read the following passage carefully and choose the best word to fill in each blank.
When Sir Winston Churchill, the great British Prime Minister, reached his 80th birthday in November 1954, he was presented with his portrait by a well-known modern artist, Graham Sutherland. The painting had been _____1_____ and paid for by the members of Parliament, who wanted to _____2_____ the Grand Old Man of World War II.
Sir Winston and Lady Churchill were deeply moved by this mark of respect. _____3_____ of them,of course, allowed the donors to see how much they both disliked the portrait. “It makes me look stupid,which I am not!” protested Churchill in _____4_____. Publicly, he only _____5_____ that it was a fine example of modern art. His friends knew that Sir Winston did not care for modern art.
Churchill was so unhappy about the portrait that finally his wife had it _____6_____. Churchill passed away in 1965, and his wife followed him in 1977. Shortly after her death, the public learned what had happened to the painting, and a heated argument _____7_____. The painter was understandably sad.The artist community claimed that the destruction of the picture was a _____8_____. Historians said that they regretted the _____9_____ of a historical document. All agreed that the Churchills could not do what they had done. A good part of the public felt that the owner of a portrait of course had the right to_____10_____ it if it made him so unhappy. The question, however, has been raised many times before:who has the right to a work of art—the sitter, the owner, the donor, or the artist who created it?
1. A. found B. ordered C. purchased D. commanded
2. A. honor B. help C. prove D. please
3. A. All B. None C. Both D. Neither
4. A. public B. return C. honor D. private
5. A. protested B. insisted C. remarked D. explained
6. A. kept B. hidden C. destroyed D. repainted
7. A. took up B. burst out C. gave in D. let out
8. A. right B. trick C. murder D. guilt
9. A. appearance B. disappearance C. arrival D. approval
10. A. hide B. dispose of C. sell D. make use of