CRITICAL READING TRAINING

Target: Fact and Opinion 1

Lesson 8 のような論説文では，あることについての意見（Opinion）を最初に述べ，次に事実（Fact）に基づいた根拠を提示して読み手（聞き手）を説得する，という構成が多く見られます。したがって，相手が納得できるような根拠や理由を示せるかどうかが大切な要素になります。この点を意識して，次の問題に取り組んでみましょう。

Read the passage below and answer the following questions.

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Lucy: Peter, look at the circles in the center of the illustrations on the right and left of figure A. Which do you think is bigger?

Peter: I think they are the same size. 　①　 The central circles only look different because the viewer automatically makes a comparison with the surrounding circles. A measurement would prove they are the same.

Lucy: Well, what about figure B? I suppose you’re going to tell me that the horizontal lines are parallel.

Peter: Well, yes, in my opinion, they definitely are. The diagonal lines only give the impression that the lines（　A　） parallel. Focusing on the diagonal lines gives us the （　B　） idea. Look. When I measure the space between each line we can see that 　②　.

Lucy: Peter, you are a genius!

Understanding Fact and Opinion（ 事実と意見を区別して考える問題）

(1) Choose the appropriate sentence to fill in blank ① in the passage to explain the reason for Peter’s opinion.

  1. The circles in the center draw the viewerʼs attention to the outer circles.
  2. Though the size of both circles in the center is actually different, we believe them to be the same.
  3. The different-sized circles surrounding them create an optical illusion.

(2) Choose the best combination to fill blanks A and B.

  1. (A)　arenʼt ―　(B)　right
  2. (A)　arenʼt ―　(B)　wrong
  3. (A)　are ―　(B)　right
  4. (A)　are ―　(B)　wrong

(3) Choose the statement that best fills blank ② in the passage.

  1. the distance between the lines at the left end is wider than at the right
  2. the distance between the lines at the right end is wider than at the left
  3. the distance between the lines is the same at both ends