Bên cạnh PHÂN TÍCH ĐỀ THI 30/5/2020 IELTS WRITING TASK 2 (kèm bài sửa HS đạt 6.5), IELTS TUTOR cũng cung cấp Đề thi IELTS READING: The history of tea.
I. Kiến thức liên quan
II. Làm bài online
III. Đề thi IELTS READING: The history of tea
The story of tea begins in China. According to legend, in 2737 BC, the Chinese emperor Shen Nung was sitting beneath a tree while his servant boiled drinking water, when some leaves from the tree blew into the water. Shen Nung, a renowned herbalist, decided to try the infusion that his servant had accidentally created. The tree was a Camellia sinensis, and the resulting drink was what we now call tea.
It is impossible to know whether there is any truth in this story. But tea drinking certainly became established in China many centuries before it had even been heard of in the West. Containers for tea have been found in tombs dating from the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD) but it was under the Tang Dynasty (618-906 AD), that tea became firmly established as the national drink of China.
It became such a favourite that during the late eighth century a writer called Lu Yu wrote the first book entirely about tea, the Ch’a Ching, or Tea Classic. It was shordy after this that tea was first introduced to Japan, by Japanese Buddhist monks who had travelled to China to study. Tea received almost instant imperial sponsorship and spread rapidly from the royal court and monasteries to the other sections of Japanese society.
So at this stage in the history of tea, Europe was rather lagging behind. In the latter half of the sixteenth century there are the first brief mentions of tea as a drink among Europeans. These are mosdy from Portuguese who were living in the East as traders and missionaries. But although some of these individuals may have brought back samples of tea to their native country, it was not the Portuguese who were the first to ship back tea as a commercial import.
This was done by the Dutch, who in the last years of the sixteenth century began to encroach on Portuguese trading routes in the East. By the turn of the century they had established a trading post on the island of Java, and it was via Java that in 1606 the first consignment of tea was shipped from China to Holland. Tea soon became a fashionable drink among the Dutch, and from there spread to other countries in continental western Europe, but because of its high price it remained a drink for the wealthy.
Britain, always a little suspicious of continental trends, had yet to become the nation of tea drinkers that it is today. Starting in 1600, the British East India Company had a monopoly on importing goods from outside Europe, and it is likely that sailors on these ships brought tea home as gifts. The first coffee house had been established in London in 1652, and tea was still somewhat unfamiliar to most readers, so it is fair to assume that the drink was still something of a curiosity.
Gradually, it became a popular drink in coffee houses, which were as much locations for the transaction of business as they were for relaxation or pleasure. They were though the preserve of middle- and upperclass men; women drank tea in their own homes, and as yet tea was still too expensive to be widespread among the working classes. In part, its high price was due to a punitive system of taxation.
One unforeseen consequence of the taxation of tea was the growth of methods to avoid taxation—smuggling and adulteration. By the eighteenth century many Britons wanted to drink tea but could not afford the high prices, and their enthusiasm for the drink was matched by the enthusiasm of criminal gangs to smuggle it in. What began as a small time illegal trade, selling a few pounds of tea to personal contacts, developed by die late eighteenth century into an astonishing organised crime network, perhaps importing as much as 7 million lbs annually, compared to a legal import of 5 million lbs!
Worse for die drinkers was that taxation also encouraged the adulteration of tea, particularly of smuggled tea which was not quality controlled through customs and excise. Leaves from other plants, or leaves which had already been brewed and then dried, were added to tea leaves. By 1784, the government realised that enough was enough, and that heavy taxation was creating more problems than it was wordi. The new Prime Minister, William Pitt the Younger, slashed the tax from 119 per cent to 12.5 per cent. Suddenly legal tea was affordable, and smuggling stopped virtually overnight.
Another great impetus to tea drinking resulted from the end of the East India Company’s monopoly on trade with China, in 1834. Before that date, China was the country of origin of the vast majority of the tea imported to Britain, but the end of its monopoly stimulated the East India Company to consider growing tea outside China. India had always been the centre of the Company’s operations, which led to the increased cultivation of tea in India, beginning in Assam. There were a few false starts, including the destruction by cattle of one of the earliest tea nurseries, but by 1888 British tea imports from India were for the first time greater than those from China.
The end of the East India Company’s monopoly on trade with China also had another result, which was more dramatic though less important in the long term: it ushered in the era of the tea clippers. While the Company had had the monopoly on trade, there was no rush to bring the tea from China to Britain, but after 1834 the tea trade became a virtual free for all.
Individual merchants and sea captains with their own ships raced to bring home the tea and make the most money, using fast new clippers which had sleek lines, tall masts and huge sails. In particular there was competition between British and American merchants, leading to the famous clipper races of the 1860s. But these races soon came to an end with the opening of the Suez canal, which made the trade routes to China viable for steamships for the first time.
Questions 1 – 7
Complete the sentences below with words taken from Reading Passage
Use ONE WORD for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 1-7 on your answer sheet.
1. Researchers believed the tea containers detected in ……………….. from the Han Dynasty was the first evidence of the use of tea.
2. Lu Yu wrote a………………..about tea before anyone else in the eighth century.
3. It was………………..from Japan who brought tea to their native country from China.
4. Tea was carried from China to Europe actually by the…………………
5. The British government had to cut down the taxation on tea due to the serious crime of…………………
6. Tea was planted in………………..besides China in the 19th century.
7. In order to compete in shipping speed, traders used………………..for the race.
Questions 8 – 13
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage?
In boxes 8-13 on your answer sheet, write:
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
8. Tea was popular in Britain in the 16th century.
9. Tea was more fashionable than coffee in Europe in the late 16th century.
10. Tea was enjoyed by all classes in Britain in the seventeenth century.
11. The adulteration of tea also prompted William Pitt the Younger to reduce the tax.
12. Initial problems occurred when tea was planted outside China by the East India Company.
13. The fastest vessels were owned by America during the 19th century clipper races.
IV. Giải thích từ vựng
1. Legend
Meaning: Truyền thuyết
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "According to legend, in 2737 BC, the Chinese emperor Shen Nung was sitting beneath a tree while his servant boiled drinking water..."
Explanation: Một câu chuyện truyền thuyết hoặc không chắc chắn về tính xác thực.
2. Infusion
Meaning: Nước pha (từ lá, thảo mộc,...)
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "...decided to try the infusion that his servant had accidentally created."
Explanation: Một chất lỏng thu được bằng cách pha hoặc ngâm các chất khác nhau trong nước.
3. Established
Meaning: Được thiết lập, được hình thành
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "But tea drinking certainly became established in China many centuries before it had even been heard of in the West."
Explanation: Được chấp nhận hoặc được phổ biến trong một thời gian dài.
4. Imperial sponsorship
Meaning: Sự bảo trợ của hoàng gia
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "Tea received almost instant imperial sponsorship and spread rapidly from the royal court..."
Explanation: Sự hỗ trợ hoặc tài trợ từ hoàng gia.
5. Encroach
Meaning: Xâm phạm, xâm lấn
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "The Dutch began to encroach on Portuguese trading routes in the East."
Explanation: Dần dần lấn chiếm hoặc vượt qua ranh giới.
6. Monopoly
Meaning: Sự độc quyền
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "...the British East India Company had a monopoly on importing goods from outside Europe..."
Explanation: Quyền kiểm soát duy nhất hoặc thống trị một ngành hoặc thị trường.
7. Curiosity
Meaning: Điều kỳ lạ, hiếm thấy, sự tò mò
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "...it is fair to assume that the drink was still something of a curiosity."
Explanation: Một điều kỳ lạ, không phổ biến hoặc chưa được biết nhiều.
8. Punitive
Meaning: Mang tính trừng phạt
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "In part, its high price was due to a punitive system of taxation."
Explanation: Có ý định trừng phạt hoặc áp đặt gánh nặng lớn.
9. Smuggling
Meaning: Sự buôn lậu
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "One unforeseen consequence of the taxation of tea was the growth of methods to avoid taxation—smuggling..."
Explanation: Việc vận chuyển hàng hóa bất hợp pháp.
10. Adulteration
Meaning: Sự pha trộn (làm giảm chất lượng)
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "Worse for the drinkers was that taxation also encouraged the adulteration of tea..."
Explanation: Thêm các chất khác vào sản phẩm làm giảm chất lượng ban đầu.
11. Cultivation
Meaning: Sự trồng trọt
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "...which led to the increased cultivation of tea in India, beginning in Assam."
Explanation: Hành động trồng trọt hoặc phát triển cây cối.
12. False starts
Meaning: Những khởi đầu thất bại
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "There were a few false starts, including the destruction by cattle of one of the earliest tea nurseries..."
Explanation: Những khởi đầu không thành công hoặc gặp khó khăn.
13. Virtual free for all
Meaning: Gần như sự tự do hoàn toàn
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "...after 1834 the tea trade became a virtual free for all."
Explanation: Một trạng thái mà mọi người tự do cạnh tranh mà không có sự kiểm soát.
14. Clippers
Meaning: Tàu buồm nhanh
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "...using fast new clippers which had sleek lines, tall masts and huge sails."
Explanation: Một loại tàu buồm được thiết kế để di chuyển nhanh.
15. Sleek
Meaning: Bóng bẩy, thon gọn
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "...using fast new clippers which had sleek lines, tall masts and huge sails."
Explanation: Có bề ngoài mượt mà, hiện đại hoặc hấp dẫn.
16. Mast
Meaning: Cột buồm
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "...using fast new clippers which had sleek lines, tall masts and huge sails."
Explanation: Cột đứng trên tàu dùng để treo buồm.
17. Stimulated
Meaning: Kích thích, thúc đẩy
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "...stimulated the East India Company to consider growing tea outside China."
Explanation: Khuyến khích hoặc thúc đẩy một hoạt động nào đó.
18. Transaction
Meaning: Sự giao dịch
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "Gradually, it became a popular drink in coffee houses, which were as much locations for the transaction of business..."
Explanation: Hành động trao đổi hoặc thực hiện công việc kinh doanh.
19. Excise
Meaning: Thuế tiêu thụ đặc biệt
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "...smuggled tea which was not quality controlled through customs and excise."
Explanation: Thuế áp dụng cho một số hàng hóa sản xuất hoặc bán trong nước.
20. Spur
Meaning: Thúc đẩy, khuyến khích
IELTS TUTOR xét ví dụ từ bài đọc: "...spurred on by competition between British and American merchants."
Explanation: Khuyến khích hoặc đẩy nhanh một hành động hoặc phát triển.
V. Đáp án
IELTS TUTOR lưu ý:
- 1. tombs
- 2. book
- 3. monks
- 4. Dutch
- 5. smuggling
- 6. India
- 7. clippers
- 8. FALSE
- 9. NOT GIVEN
- 10. FALSE
- 11. TRUE
- 12. TRUE
- 13. NOT GIVEN
Các khóa học IELTS online 1 kèm 1 - 100% cam kết đạt target 6.0 - 7.0 - 8.0 - Đảm bảo đầu ra - Thi không đạt, học lại FREE
>> Thành tích học sinh IELTS TUTOR với hàng ngàn feedback được cập nhật hàng ngày
