The Original Plush Toy|泰迪旋风

The Original Plush Toy

by Daniel Howard

Stuffed animals and plush toys all started with the humble teddy bear.

　　It seems as though stuffed animals and plush toys are made for every animal in the zoo, and even a few that are not. The soft, cuddly toys have _(1)_ incredible popularity and they appear to have been a part of most childhoods. However, these toys can almost all be traced back to one _(2)_ item — the teddy bear.

　　The teddy bear was invented _(3)_ by two men in the early 20th century. In the United States, Morris Michtom invented the teddy bear and named it _(4)_ President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt. Although Roosevelt was a hunter, he once famously _(5)_ to kill a bear on a hunting excursion. Roosevelt permitted Michtom to use his nickname for the bears.

　　At the same time Michtom was making his teddy bears, Richard Steiff in Germany was also inventing a soft bear to be used as a children's toy. These first bears were _(6)_, with long noses and small eyes. As teddy bears have developed, however, they have become cuter, with smaller noses, larger eyes, and shorter _(7)_. These cuter bears reminded people of babies, so they sold better.

　　Today, teddy bears are as popular as ever, and they come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. The toy is so popular that teddy bear museums have sprung up around the world. The first was opened in Petersfield, England, in 1984, but it closed in 2006. This museum was not the last, however, as teddy bear museums can be found in countries throughout Europe, Asia, and in the United States.

1. (A) abolished (B) achieved (C) conserved (D) justified

2. (A) classic (B) obedient (C) tentative (D) upright

3. (A) superficially (B) accordingly (C) passively (D) concurrently

4. (A) over (B) into (C) upon (D) after

5. (A) enhanced (B) harassed (C) declined (D) manipulated

6. (A) realistic (B) patriotic (C) preventive (D) skeptical

7. (A) rituals (B) myths (C) limbs (D) hurdles

泰迪旋风

填充玩具和绒毛玩具都是源自于不起眼的泰迪熊。

　　填充玩具和绒毛玩具彷彿是为动物园里的每一只动物量身打造一样，即使有一些并非如此。柔软又逗人喜爱的玩具受欢迎程度十分惊人，而且它们似乎一直都是大多数人童年的一部份。然而，这些玩具几乎都可以追溯到同一项经典的产品，那就是泰迪熊。

　　泰迪熊是由两个人于二十世纪初期同时发明的。在美国，莫里斯‧米奇汤姆发明了泰迪熊，并将它以总统迪奥多‧『泰迪』‧罗斯福命名。虽然罗斯福是一名猎人，但他曾经在一次打猎活动中拒绝猎杀小熊而声名大噪。罗斯福允许米奇汤姆使用他的绰号来为这些玩具熊命名。

　　在米奇汤姆制作他的泰迪熊的同时，德国的理察‧史泰福也发明了一种柔软的熊熊来作为孩子的玩具。这些最早的熊熊相当逼真，它们有着长鼻子和小眼睛。胨然而，随着泰迪熊的发展，它们变得更可爱，有着较小的鼻子、较大的眼睛和较短的四肢。这些更可爱的熊熊会让人们想到小婴儿，因此它们的销量也更好了。

　　如今，泰迪熊和以往一样受到欢迎，它们有着各种形状、大小和颜色。这种玩具相当受欢迎，因此世界各地的泰迪熊博物馆如雨后春笋般出现。第一座博物馆于 1984 年在英国彼得斯菲尔德市开幕，但于 2006 年关闭。然而，这座博物馆并不是最后一座，因为泰迪熊博物馆的踪迹在欧、亚各国和美国都找得到。

答案： 1. B 2. A 3. D 4. D 5. C

6. A 7. C