By the time the Montgomery Improvement Association chose the 26-year-old Martin Luther King Jr. as its leader, the hours-old bus boycott¹ by the black citizens of Montgomery, Alabama, was already an overwhelming success. King would later write that his unanticipated call to leadership "happened so quickly that I did not have time to think in through." "It is probable that if I had, I would have declined the nomination²."
　　Although press reports at the time focused on his inspiring oratory³, King was actually a reluctant leader of a movement initiated⁴ by others.(The boycott began on Dec. 5 1955.) His subsequent writings and private correspondence reveal man whose inner doubts sharply contrast with his public persona. In the early days of his involvement, King was troubled by telephone threats, discord⁶ within the black community and Montgomery's "get tough" policy, to which king attributed his jailing on a minor⁷ traffic violation⁸. One night, as he considered ways to "move out of the picture without appearing a coward," he began to pray aloud and, at that moment, 　　"experienced the presence of the God as I had never experienced Him before."
　　He would later admit that when the boycott began, he was not yet firmly committed to Gandhian principles. Although he had been exposed to those teachings in college, he had remained skeptical⁹. "I thought the only way we could solve our problem of segregation¹⁰ was an armed revolt," he recalled. "I felt that the Christian¹¹ ethic¹² of love was confined to individual relationships."
　　Only after his home was bombed in late January did king reconsider his views on violence. (At the time, he was seeking a gun permit and was protected by armed bodyguards¹³.) Competing with each other to influence King were two ardent¹⁴ pacifists: Bayard Rustin, a black activist¹⁵ with the War Resisters League, and the Rev⁵. Glenn E. Smiley, a white staff member of the Fellowship of Reconciliation¹⁶. Rustin was shocked to discover a gun in King's house, while Smiley informed fellow pacifists that King's home was "an arsenal¹⁷."
1. What did King think of his nomination as leader of the Montgomery Boycott?
A) He hadn't expected it.
B) He had to think about it carefully.
C) He would refuse to accept it.
D) He was prepared to accept it.
2. Why was King unwilling¹⁸ to lead the movement at first?
A) Because he doubted if the boycott would be successful.
B) Because he was troubled with a traffic accident at that time.
C) Because he thought he was too young to be a leader.
D) Because he himself didn't start the boycott.
3. Which of the following is Not mentioned as something that happened at the beginning of the black people's movement?
A) King was put into prison.
B) Black people disagreed with each other.
C) King's armed revolt proposal was turned down.
D) Black people found it hard to accept the policy pursued in Montgomery.
4. Which of the following was the immediate¹⁹ cause that made King change his view on violence?
A) The education he received in college.
B) The attack of his home.
C) The influence of two active non-violence advocates.
D) The verdict of the Supreme²⁰ Court.
5. In Paragraph 4, the last sentence "King's home was 'an arsenal'" means
A) King's home was a place where people got together.
B) King's home was a place where people tested bombs.
C) King's home was a place where weapons were stored.
D) King's home was a place where bombs exploded.
Keys:ADCBC

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