People often talk as if shyness is a disease or mental condition that can be cured. I prefer to think of it as an emotional disability. It’s something we are born with and something we carry with us in our entire lives. There are too many people, however, who seem to be determined to find some way of doing away with their shyness. In my opinion, it’s a waste of time. I don’t mean that we should do nothing about it; quite the contrary, I think we need to separate the basic fact of shyness from our ability to take part in a social environment.
Look at one of the most famous shy people of them all, Johnny Carson. This man is painfully shy, yet for decades he made a living talking and associating with different people every night, in front of a national audience. Carson has never done away with his shyness, but he has successfully found a way to deal with it to the extent that he could be, not just a talk show host, but a legend (传奇) among talk show hosts. Look also at Sally Fields, who has recently admitted her problem with shyness. This is a woman who has appeared in many films, TV shows and interviews, yet in her early years she was so shy that she turned down a lunch invitation from Jane Fonda because she was terribly afraid of meeting her.
I guess that our shyness is there because each of us is born with some insecurity (不安全感) and this insecurity prevents us from reading out to others the way people with a more open personality do. As we grow up and become adults, we allow our social skills to grow and develop. But we are still stuck in kindergarten or elementary school or wherever it was when our shyness took root in our soul.
小题1:. In the author’s view, shyness can be explained as _________.
A．a disease that can be easily cured
B．a not very normal mental condition
C．an emotional disability
D．something we pick up after birth小题2:. The author believes it’s a waste of time to ____________
A．develop a healthy personality
B．talk with as many people as possible
C．study where shyness comes from
D．look for ways to do away with one’s shyness小题3:. Which of the following is TRUE of Johnny Carson?
A．He dared to speak in front of a national audience.
B．He did away with his shyness carefully.
C．He was described as a hero in some legend books.
D．He failed to become a good talk show host.小题4:. The author thinks that our shyness is there because _______
A．we are not open enough
B．we don’t feel safe at heart
C．we try to reach out to others all the time
D．we lack certain social skills
