Detailed Reading

Ⅰ. Difficult Sentences

1. (LL. 1~2) It was early December 2003, my first season as a Salvation Army bell ringer, when I was confronted with the question.

1. What does a Salvation Army bell ringer do?

(=To ring the bell and ask people to donate money to help the poor.)

2. Translate this sentence into Chinese.

(=首次面对这个问题，是在2003年12月初我第一次为救世军摇铃募捐的时候。)

2.  (LL. 5~6) I can still see the confusion and curiosity in his eyes as he asked, “Are you poor?”

    1. Why did the boy ask such a question?

(=Because he was confused and curious.)

2. How much did the boy know about the Salvation Army bell ringer?

(=Obviously he knew nothing about that.)

3.  (LL. 7~8) “Well,” I stammered, trying to think, “I have more than some people, but not as much as other.”

1. How did the author think of the question?

(=He thought it was difficult to answer.)

2. What does the author’s answer mean?

(=This means he is neither poor nor rich.)

4.  (LL. 8~9) His mother scolded him for the social no-no ...

1. What is “social no-no”?

(=Something that is socially inappropriate.)

2. Why did the mother scold her son?

(=Because the author looked poor, the question was socially inappropriate to ask.)

5.  (LL. 13~14) Yet I feel nothing more than a passing whim to attain the material things so many other people have.

1. What do many other people have?

(=The material things.)

2. Please paraphrase this sentence.

 (=However, I have only occasionally felt the urge to go after the material things so many other people have.)

6.  (LL. 19~20) And I love the “can do” attitude that follows.

1. What is the “can do” attitude?

(=That is self confidence.)

2. How do you understand this sentence?

(=And I love the feeling of self confidence brought by brisk exercises.)

7.  (L. 31) Shortly after her visit, our relationship went straight south.

 1. What was their relationship after her visit?

(=Their relationship went sour. That is to say, they were no longer boyfriend and girlfriend.)

2. Why there was such a change in their relationship?

(=Because the girl actually paid much attention to material things although she claimed that she was interested in what was on the inside, and after she went to the author’s apartment, she found he was really poor.)

8.  (LL. 35~38) There is a commercial on the radio that begins, “Everybody wants a high-end TV …” The pressure to purchase is real. It may be true that everybody wants a high-end TV. After all, nobody wants to be a nobody.

1. What is “a high-end TV”?

   (=A TV that is expensive and of high quality.)

2. What can be inferred from this part about what role commercials can play in society?

(=Commercials can put people under pressure to purchase more than is really necessary.)

9.  (L. 49) December is the time of year I feel wealthiest.

    Why does the author think so?

(=Because December is the time for him to work for the Salvation Army as a bell ringer, which gives him a genuine sense of belonging and brings him happiness in helping others.)

10.  (LL. 50~51) Over the past four years, I’ve grown to understand more about myself because of a single question from a curious child.

1. How has the boy’s question affected the author?

(=The boy’s question has helped him realize that, despite his lack of expensive possessions, he is rich in many other ways and should be thankful for that.)

2. Translate this sentence into Chinese.

 (=由于一个好奇的孩子提了一个简单问题，我在过去的四年中对自己的了解进了一步。)

Ⅱ. Words and Expressions

1. (L. 2) confront: vt.

1) (of a problem, difficulty, etc.) face (sb.) threateningly 

* The difficulties that confront us seem insuperable.

* A major difficulty that confronts international students is how best to judge the quality of a program in a foreign university.

2) (of a person) face and deal with (a problem, difficulty, etc.)

军人必须面对危险和死亡。

(=A soldier has to confront danger and death.)

* Astronauts have to confront the unknown.

  be confronted with: be brought face to face

  (=The prisoner was confronted with his accusers.)

  * conclusions that can be confronted with experience

2. (L. 3) donation: n. money or goods given for a good cause

* The hospital receives a good deal of money in donations.

他们对慈善事业慷慨捐助。

(=They made a generous donation to charity.)

Collocation:

a blood donation 献血

make/give a donation 捐赠

promise a donation 允诺捐助

3. (L. 5) confusion: n. a state of uncertainty about what sth. means, etc.

* The enemy retreated in great confusion.

他们的突然到来打乱了我们的计划。

(=Their unexpected arrival threw our plan into confusion.)

Collocation:

covered with confusion 非常慌张

in confusion 乱七八糟，处于混乱状态

throw into confusion 使狼狈，使慌乱

N.B.: 该词的动词为confuse，confusing意思是“令人困惑、迷惑的”， confused意思是“糊涂的、混杂的”。

4. (L. 5) curiosity: n. a strong desire to know about sth.

 * Just to satisfy my curiosity, how much did you pay for your car?

(=We burned with curiosity over what was in the box.)

Collocation:

from/out of curiosity 在好奇心驱使下

in open curiosity 公然出头过问与自己无关的事

Curiosity killed a cat. 好奇伤身。

5. (L. 7) stammer: v. speak with a tendency to repeat rapidly the same sound or syllable

* It’s cruel to make fun of people who stammer.

他结结巴巴地道了谢。

(=He stammered his thanks.)

6. (L. 10) deny: vt.

1) say that sth. is not true    

  * There is no denying the fact that Japan began to invade China as early as the early 1930’s.

   2) refuse to admit or accept

(=He denied knowing anything about their plans.)

7. (L. 10) fill out: add information such as your name and address in (a form or document)

* It took me quite a while to fill out the questionnaire.

请把附表填好。

(=Please fill out the attached blank.)

8. (L. 11) fall into: belong to (a particular group of things that have similar qualities) 

理事会成员们意见相左，分成自由和保守两个阵营

(=The council members disagreed, falling into liberal and conservative camps.)

      * All whales fall into two groups, those with teeth and those without.

9. (L. 13) nothing more than: only, just

(=Happiness is nothing more than good health and a bad memory.)

  这只不过是个杜撰的故事而已。

(=It is nothing more than a made-up story.)

10. (L. 19) attain: vt. succeed in achieving, esp. after a lot of effort   

      我决心不惜任何代价达到目的。

(=I’m determined to attain my purpose at any cost.)

* She attained her ambition of becoming a pilot.

Collocation:

attain one’s goal 达到目的

attain the age of 有…岁了

attain the top of a moutain 到达山顶

CF: get, gain, obtain & attain

这四个词都是动词，都有“得到”、“获得”之意。

get是最普通的用语，可指通过任何方式的获得，多用于口语中。例如：

* She got the highest score in fancy rope jumping. 她在花样跳绳中得分最高。

gain多指在竞争中获得，所得的东西往往是有用的或是所期待的。例如：

* I hope you will gain the victory this time. 我希望你这次获得胜利。

obtain是书面语，指靠他人或自己努力而得到，强调结果或目的。例如：

      * By this method, we obtained a good result. 我们用这种方法获得了好结果。

attain强调达到完美的地步。例如：

* Such a condition is very difficult to attain. 这样的情况是很难达到的。

11. (L. 16) minimal: adj. very small in size or amount; as small as possible

  暴风雨只造成极轻微的损失。

(=The storm did only minimal damage.)

      * The Ford CEO offered to work for a minimal salary of one dollar a year.

 N.B.: 该词的动词为minimize。反义词为maximal。

12. (L. 21) cherish: vt. love (sth./sb.) very much and protect them

(=Riding horses with my mother when I was a kid has become a cherished memory.)

      * She cherished the child as though he were her own.

Collocation:

cherish fond dreams of 做…的美梦

cherished desire 夙愿

cherish a deep love for 热爱…

13. (L. 21) fabricate: vt. make up (a story, a piece of information, etc.) in order to deceive people

        * Have you ever lied a little, or fabricated a story about yourself, to impress someone you meet the first time?

她缺席的借口显然是瞎编的。

(=The excuse for her absence was obviously fabricated.)

14. (L. 22) tickle: v.

1) amuse and interest

      * The comedian tickled the crowd with his jokes.

      * It tickled her to think that her boss would dress up as a clown at the New Year party.

2) move one’s fingers on a sensitive part of another’s body in a way that makes them laugh

      * She tickled the boy's feet and made him laugh.

      婴儿喜欢轻轻呵痒和紧紧拥抱。

(=Babies like to be tickled and hugged.)

15. (L. 25) vital: adj. very important, necessary, or essential

(=This point is vital to my argument.)

 * The leader’s vital and cheerful manner filled his men with courage.

Pattern:

be vital to … 对…极为重要

16. (L. 25) well off: rich, or having enough money to live well 

      * The Communist Party of China will lead the Chinese people in building a well-off society.

      如果他年轻时多努力一点，现在就能过得舒服些。

     (=If he had worked harder when young, he would be well off now.)

17. (L. 26) emotional: adj. connected with people’s feelings

(=His emotional language reduced many of the audience to tears.)

* Nature has programmed us all with both physical and emotional needs.

18. (L. 26) pursuit: n. the act of looking for or trying to find

  我们为追求幸福生活而努力工作。

(=We work hard in pursuit of happy life.)

* He exercises every day in pursuit of health.

Collocation:

daily pursuits 日常事务

educational pursuit 教育事业

pursuit of profit 追逐利润

in one’s pursuit of happiness 追求幸福

19. (L. 26) out of place: feeling uncomfortable or not suitable in a particular situation

* Your jokes are out of place on such a solemn occasion.

在正式的舞会上，我感到局促不安，很不自在。

(=At the formal party I felt very awkward and out of place.)

20. (L. 34) in contrast to: when a contrast is made to

      * In contrast to her sister, she is very tall.

(=In contrast to his brother, he is always considerate of others.)

21. (L. 35) consequence: n. a result of sth. that has happened

      * Jimmy experienced severe headache as a consequence of heavy drinking the night before.

      这样一种错误可能导致灾难性的后果。 

(=Such a mistake would perhaps lead to disastrous consequences.)

Collocation:

as a consequence 因而，结果

in consequence 因此，结果

in consequence of …的结果，因为…的缘故，由于

of consequence 有势力的，重要的

take the consequences 自食其果，承担责任

CF: effect, result & consequence

这三个词都是名词，都有“结果”之意。

effect表示由某种原因直接产生的某一结果或状况。

result表示某一事件的发生或某一行为所造成的结果，有“最终的结果”之意。

consequence表示由于逻辑推断得出的结果，或由于某种原因、一些必要的条件而造成的结果。

(Directions:) Fill in the blanks with the words above. Change the form where necessary.

1. The dilemmas that parents find themselves in today is a _______ of changes in society. (=consequence)

2. I tried to persuade him, but with little or no ______. (=effect)

3. One of the ______ of this illness is that you lose your hair. (=effects)

4. It represents the ______ of ten years’ labor. (=result)

5. The high level of unemployment has produced harmful social ______. (=consequences)

22. (L. 36) commercial:

1. n. an advertisement on TV or radio

* TV commercials today are more imaginative than they were 20 years ago.

2. adj. relating to business

  * He left the commercial world to become a government official.

商业函件

(=commercial correspondence)

23. (L. 39) focus: v. concentrate (one’s attention, etc.) on (sth.); concentrate (on sth.)   

(=You should focus your attention on your work.)

* The only way to attain your goals is to stay focused and work hard.

24. (L. 41) affluent: adj. rich enough to buy things for pleasure

        自然资源丰富的土地

(=land affluent in natural resources)

    * In an affluent society people can afford to strike a balance between work and life.

CF: rich, wealthy & affluent

这三个词都是形容词，都有“丰富”、“富有”之意。

rich意为“有钱的”、“富有的”，其程度超过正常需要的，语气强烈；形容人时，指拥有大量金钱、财产，其引申义为“富于…”。例如：

* The rich get richer while the poor get poorer. 富人更富，穷人更穷。

wealthy指人、家庭或国家富有、安康、富裕；语气较缓，程度可大可小。尤指拥有大量财产、财富。例如：

* Some wealthy people are likely to be philanthropists. 有些富人往往是慈善家。

affluent意为“富裕的”、“富足的”，尤指家庭和社会，在这一点上相当于wealthy，是较正式用语。例如：

* It’s our duty to build an affluent and civilized society in the new century. 在新世纪建设一个富裕文明的社会是我们的义务。

25. (L. 43) genuine: adj. real, true

  他真心诚意地愿意帮助我们。    

(=He has a genuine desire to help us.)

* It appears to be genuine, but I have my suspicions about it.

CF: real, true & genuine

这三个词都是形容词，都有“真的”、“真正的”之意。

real普通用语，指真实的或与事实相符的。

true强调客观事实与实际情况相符合，兼有real的含义。

genuine指真实性是有据可查的。

(Directions:) Fill in the blanks with the words above. Change the form where necessary.

1. It is _______ that the earth is round. (=true)

2. Is this a ______ Ming vase? (=genuine)

3. This is a story of ______ life. (=real)

4. A mirage is not a ______ object. (=real)

5. ______ silver (=genuine)

26. (L. 45) go through: experience (sth. difficult or unpleasant)

* He’s amazingly cheerful considering all that he’s gone through. 

孩提时代, 他经历了一个又一个的艰难困苦。

(=When he was a child, he went through one hardship after another.)

(Directions:) Choose the appropriate translation for the expression “go through” in the following sentences.

A. 检查、审查、搜查

B. 完成、做完

C. 遭受、经历

D. 看完

D 1. How long will it take to go through the book?

C 2. I’m flattered that you went through all this trouble just for me.

A 3.They went through our luggage at the customs.

B 4. With great concentration she went through the movements.

27. (L. 47) linger: vi.

    1) last or continue for a long time

   * Before leaving Suzhou, we took a last lingering look at the beautiful view.

(=The beautiful melody is lingering in my mind.)

2) take a long time to leave or disappear

  * He lingered outside the school after everybody else had gone home.

CF: stay, remain & linger

这三个词都是动词，都有“停留”、“逗留”之意。

stay是本组词中最普通的用语。或长期或短期，或永远或暂时地停留。例如：

* My car stays in the garage most of the week. 我的车子一周大部分时间都停放在车库里。

remain强调维持原来的状态，表示“逗留”时比stay更正式些。例如：

* Little of the original architecture remains. 原来的建筑现在留存很少了。

linger意思是“逗留”、“徘徊”，尤指迟迟不愿离开的样子。例如：

      * He should have gone out, but lingered over his meal till it was too late to catch the train. 他本该出门了，可还慢腾腾地吃饭，以致来不及赶火车了。

28. (L. 47) individual:

    1. n. person considered separately from their society

  个人权利

  (=rights of individuals)

* The welfare of the individual is bound up with the welfare of the community.

     2. adj. of or for one person

* A good coach knows how to take best advantage of the strength of each individual player on the team.

        * She has her own individual way of walking.

29. (L. 52) tangible: adj. that can be clearly seen to exist; that you can touch and feel

* Tangible assets refer to those assets that have a physical form, such as machinery, buildings and land.

(=Sculpture is a tangible art form.)

N.B.: 该词的反义词为intangible。

After Reading

Ⅰ. Useful Expressions

1. 面临，遭遇 be confronted with

2. 仰头向上看 look up at

3. 填写 fill out

4. 属于 fall into

5. 仅仅，不多于，不强于     nothing more than

6. 转瞬即逝的念头 a passing whim

7. 磨损，损耗 wear and tear

8. 虽然，尽管 in spite of

9. 期望，盼望 look forward to

10. 富裕的，有钱的     well off

11. 不自在，格格不入     out of place

12. 陈旧的家具 dated furniture

13. …之后不久 shortly after

14. 走下坡路，失败     go south

15. 转折点 a turning point

16. 与…形成对比     in contrast to

17. 对…予以注意，致力于     focus on

18. 归属感 a sense of belonging

19. 遭遇困难     go through a rough time

20. 久不消逝的微笑     a lingering smile

21. 为…感恩     be thankful for

22. 收入最低的档次     the lowest income bracket

23. 创作才能     the gift of creativity

24. 对物质财富的追求     the pursuit of possessions

Ⅱ. Compound Dictation

(Directions:) You will hear a passage three times. When the passage is read for the first time, you should listen carefully for its general idea. When the passage is read for the second time, you are required to fill in the blanks numbered from 1 to 7 with the exact words you have just heard. For the blanks numbered from 8 to 10, you are required to fill in the missing information. You can either use the exact words you have just heard or write down the main points in your own words. Finally when the passage is read for the third time, you should check what you have written.

    He’s the most ___1___ (famous) businessman in the world. Many ___2___ (pages) have been written about how he has dominated the revolution in personal ___3___ (computing). But we know little about him as a person. Here’s a ___4___ (familiar) anecdote which may show his personality: when Bill Gates was in the ___5___ (sixth) grade, his parents decided that he needed some kind of help. He was at war with his mother Mary, an extrovert woman who believed that he should do what she told him. She would call him to ___6___ (dinner) from his bedroom, which she had given up trying to make him clean, but he wouldn’t ___7___ (respond). “What are you doing?” she once asked him. “I'm thinking,” Bill answered. “You're thinking?” “Yes, Mom, I’m thinking,” he said aggressively. “Have you tried thinking?” Finally, his parents decided to ___________8____________ (send him to a psychologist). The psychologist concluded that Bill was extremely intelligent. __________________9______________ (After a one year session and a large amount of tests), the psychologist told Bill’s parents: “You’re going to lose. You had better adjust to it because there’s no use trying to punish him. It’s useless to try to compete with him.” ______________________10______________________ (A lot of computer companies have concluded the same).

Ⅲ. Sentence Translation

1. The pressure to purchase is real. It may be true that everybody wants a high-end TV. After all, nobody wants to be a nobody.

(=购买这种电视机的压力千真万确。也许每个人真的都想要一台高档电视机，毕竟没有人想做一个无名之辈。)

2. I was standing just outside the doorway of a Wal-Mart, offering a “thank you” and a smile to each person who dropped a donation into my red kettle.

  (=当时我就站在沃尔玛商场入口处门外，对每一位向我的红壶里投入捐款的人都报以一声“谢谢”和一个微笑。)

3. My 1999 car shows the wear and tear of 105, 000 miles. But it is still dependable.

  (=我的汽车是1999年的产品，到现在开了十万五千英里，已经很破很旧了，但是它依然可靠。)

4. But there is one vital area of my life where I am not so well off. In a society that spends so much emotional energy on the pursuit of possessions, I feel out of place.

  (=但是在我生活中，有一个重要方面我并不那么富有。在一个对物资财富的追求投入如此之多心力的社会中，我觉得很不自在。)

5. 然而，想要得到其他那么多人都有的物质的东西, 对我来说，只不过是转瞬即逝的念头而已。

  (=Yet I feel nothing more than a passing whim to attain the material things so many other people have.)     

6. 五十三年来我一直非常健康。我不但不生病，而且精力充沛，情绪饱满。

  (=I’ve enjoyed exceptionally good health for 53 years. It's not just that I've been illness-free, it's that I feel vigorous and spirited.)

7. 当我写出美丽的诗句，或编造出能把人逗乐的笑话，我内心感到很富有。通过写作而获得的洞察力，不断地令我惊奇。

  (=When I write a beautiful line of poetry, or fabricate a joke that tickles someone, I feel rich inside. I'm continually surprised at the insights that come through my writing process.)

8. 她对我说，对她而言，最重要的是“一个人的内心”。我以为我找到了非同一般的生活伴侣。

  (=What was most important to her, she told me, was "what's on the inside." I thought I had found someone special to share my life with.)

Ⅳ. Group discussion

Imagine that you and three friends in your class have, as a group, just won RMB 1, 000 000 in a lottery. You have decided to have a meeting to help and advise each other on how best to share and use the money. Make a plan of how you personally think the money should be used. It could include:

² Immediate personal needs

² Help for family and friends

² Ideas for investment

² Extravagances and luxuries

² Donations to charity

Meet with the other three. Compare plans and try to reach some agreement.

Unit2.ppt

Track 2-02-02.mp3