Part II  Reading Task

Comprehension

Possible answers to content questions:  

1. He wrote them on a ship on the way to the island of Tulagi in the South Pacific on Thanksgiving Day, 1943.

2. Preparing a traditional Thanksgiving dinner featuring roast turkey made the writer extremely busy.

3. The writer was thinking about Thanksgiving.

4. He decided to write letters to show gratitude to those who had helped him in his life.

5. He had always accepted what they had done for him, but never expressed to any of them a simple "Thank you."

6. He decided to write to his father, his grandmother, and the Rev. Lonual Nelson, his grammar school principal.

7. His father had impressed upon him from boyhood a love of books and reading.

8. He remembered that each morning Nelson would open the school with a prayer over his assembled students.

9. He recalled how his grandmother had taught him to tell the truth, to share, and to be forgiving and considerate of others. And he thanked her for her delicious food and for all the wonderful things she had done for him.

10. His reading of their letters left him not only astonished but also more humbled than before, because they all thanked him rather than saying they would forgive him for not having previously thanked them.

11. The writer learned that one should learn to express appreciation for others' efforts.

12. The writer wished for all people the common sense to achieve world peace, and find the good and praise it.

Text Organization

1.

    Parts         Paragraphs                    Main Ideas

Part One       Paras 1-9 On Thanksgiving Day 1943, as a young coastguardsman at sea, the writer came up with the idea of expressing his gratitude to people who had helped him before.

Part Two       Paras 10-16      The writer wrote three thank-you letters to his father, the

Rev. Nelson and his grandmother.

Part Three      Paras 17-23       The writer got three letters in reply.

Part Four      Paras 24-26       The writer wishes everyone to find the good and praise

it.

2.

Language Sense Enhancement

1. 1) decades     2) undergoing

  3) had done wrong           4) welcome reassurance

  5) appreciated    6) brought back

  7) relatives     8) accomplish

  9) consume                10) representing

Vocabulary

I. 1. 1) sprinkled  2) in turn

3) reversed  4) repay

5) at sea  6) traditional

7) statement  8) longed for

9) in secret  10) unloaded

11) weep  12) under way

2. 1) stretch out 2) make out

3) hope for  4) turns (it) over

5) put away  6) brings back

7) got to  8) go about

3. 1) As supplies of traditional fuels diminish, people are working to increase the use of solar energy.

2) We accord high priority to meeting the challenges of economic and environmental development in the region.

3) While it is true that children of today are exposed to more information than were children of the past, it does not follow that they automatically become more sophisticated.

4) Since she borrowed those books from the library she has been immersed in British history and culture.

5) Everything changed in a flash on June 1, 2000 when he lost both legs in a serious traffic accident.

4. 1) I'd like to express my sincere thanks to everyone who has been so considerate of my well-being. My heart is filled with gratitude that words cannot express.

2) After everyone assembled on the playing field amid the noise and excitement of the spectators, our coach again impressed on us the need to do our best in quest of excellence.

3) Everything I saw in my hometown was marvelous. I could hardly believe that it had undergone such swift changes through cultivating fruits, vegetables, flowers and the rest in the past few years.

II. Collocation

1. fond of  2. sick of

3. thoughtful of 4. confident of

5. conscious of 6. critical of

7. guilty of  8. ashamed of

III. Usage

1. To know what people really think, pay regard to what they do, rather than what they say.

2. It is cooperation, rather than conflict, that will enable you to achieve your success.

3. Ann made students think for themselves rather than telling them what to think.

4. I think I'll stay at home this evening rather than go / going out.

5. Most people are content to let perfect days happen at random rather than plan / planning for them.

Comprehensive Exercises

I. Cloze

 1.

1) at sea  2) Turning over

3) reverse  4) got to

5) repay  6) gratitude

7) assembled 8) immersed in

9) unloading  10) swift

2.

   1) Instead             2) possessions

   3) richer    4) breath

   5) cherish      6) special

  7) specific     8) shining

   9) miracles         10) gift

II. Translation

1.

  1) Grandma took it for granted that food prices would soar, so she bought a lot of rice.

  2) I can quote you several instances of her dedication to science.

  3) The 1980s saw the start of the swift development of some special economic zones in China.

  4) Tension between the two countries stemmed in part from the latest spy affair.

  5) Peter has worked in a law firm for many years. You can consider having him as your lawyer to act on your behalf when you need legal help.

2.

Amid the atmosphere of Thanksgiving George was immersed in the diary left to him by his father, who died at sea after he completed two successive trips around the world. The diary brought back every moment George had spent with his father and many of the specific things his father did on his behalf. George's father used to impress on him the need to undergo all kinds of hardship in quest of excellence. Even today, George still remembers how his father would quote Aesop's famous saying "Gratitude is the sign of noble souls" and tell him to accord the greatest importance to it.