Unit10 Text 1

A Debt To Dickens

Warm-up Activity

There are dark shadows on the earth, but its lights are stronger in the contrast. — Dickens

Chinese version

这是最坏的时代，同时也是最好的时代。 —— 狄更斯

Pre-reading questions

1.1. Almost every Chinese reader is familiar with Almost every Chinese reader is familiar with Charles Dickens ,one of the most popular Charles Dickens ,one of the most popular English novelists of the 19th century.Please English novelists of the 19th century.Please name some of them and tell what you have name some of them and tell what you have learned from them.learned from them.

22. . It is helpful for a student of read literature iIt is helpful for a student of read literature in the original ?Why or why not?n the original ?Why or why not?

Words and ExpressionsWords and Expressions Words and ExpressionsWords and Expressions

E.g.

1.Bloggers are agile in adjusting their tone ―and privacy settings ―to advance ideas and stay out of trouble .

——他们灵活地调整自己的语气 和隐私设置——以宣扬观点和免除麻烦。

agile: able to move quickly and easily

2.These days , however , even the agile Mr Saleh is finding it increasingly hard to keep the peace and secure his grip . 然而，这些日子，甚至连头脑灵活的萨利赫也在发觉保持和平、确保他的控制越来越困难了。

extraordinary:very unusual or extraordinary:very unusual or surprisingsurprising

E.g.1.Our economy is emerging from extraordinary recession into recovery . 我们的经济正摆脱衰退到惊人的复苏。

E.g.3.It was an extraordinary experience to

witness the first sunrise of the new millennium .

亲眼目睹千禧年的第一缕曙光是一种与众不同的经历。

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heritage:the traditional beliefs,values,customs,etc. of a family ,country,or society

E.g.1.Individuals who do get on often

dump their Romani heritage , and the baggage that goes with it.

一些融入社会的人往往已经抛弃了罗姆人的传统，抛弃了罗姆人的信仰。

indefatigable:determined and never give up

3.Despite the monumental difficulties involved , Chinese people will undoubtedly exhibit their indefatigable resilience and achieve great success in both regards. 尽管遇到的困难很大，中国人无疑会表现出不知疲倦的活力，在两方面都取得巨大成功。

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obligation:a nomal or legal duty to do sth. E.g. 1.The obligation of cohabitation of spouses is the

basis of marital rights . 夫妻间的同居义务是夫妻其他权利与义务的基

础。2.The best argument is that , having committed to building a decent state in Afghanistan , the west has a moral obligation to keep going. 最有说服力的论据是，既然承诺在阿富汗建立一个像样的国家，西方就背负着信守承诺的道

德义务。

solitary:spending a lot of time alonesolitary:spending a lot of time alone

E.g.

You cannot afford to relax your vigilance for a moment.

警惕性是万万不可放松的 .

unctuous:too friendly and praising people too much in a way that seems very insincere

E.g.1.Her unctuous tones are

disgusting . 她那虚情假意的语气叫人恶心。

2.Unctuous in the mouth with undergrowth and fruit flavours .

圆滑的口感，有着淡淡的果香 味。

peril:great danger ,esp.of being harmed or killed

E.g.1.This debate offers great opportu

nities and great peril . 这个辩论提出了极大的机遇和危

险。 2.Many species are in peril of

extinction because of our destruction of their natural habitat .

许多物种由于我们破坏了它们的自然环境，现在正面临灭绝的

危险。

singlesingle a.a. adj.: not married or related to the adj.: not married or related to the unmarried stateunmarried state

E.g. She remained single till the end of her E.g. She remained single till the end of her days.days.她终身未嫁。她终身未嫁。

b. singles: unmarried men or women

E.g. singles bar单身男女约会的酒吧

c. singles: (tennis and golf) game with one person on each sideHe has won four singles.他赢了四场单打赛。

be indebted to:to be very grateful tobe indebted to:to be very grateful to

E.g. He was indebted to her for nursing him through pneumonia. 他感激她护理好了他的肺炎。 I am greatly indebted to you for your kindness. 我非常感激您的恩惠。

straighten out: make free from confusion or ambiguity;

make clear

E.g. He got it all screwed up, it will take a week to straighten out the mess. 他把事情全搞坏了，要花一星期时间才能把这一团糟的局面整理出头绪来。

Text StructureText Structure

Structural analysis of the textStructural analysis of the text This text is an excellent piece of narration,characterize This text is an excellent piece of narration,characterize by a number of writing strategies,some of which are by a number of writing strategies,some of which are exceptional.First of all,the writer's personal experiences exceptional.First of all,the writer's personal experiences are narrated from both the first-person point-of-view are narrated from both the first-person point-of-view and the third-person point-of-view,both and the third-person point-of-view,both employedflexibly and properly.Secondly,the last employedflexibly and properly.Secondly,the last paragraph is closely related to the first paragraph,the paragraph is closely related to the first paragraph,the two naturally echoing each other.two naturally echoing each other.

Main Idea of the TextMain Idea of the Text

In the text, the author's purpose of writing is to express heartily her gratitute to Charles Dickens.

Sentence Paraphrasing

1. Her parents were too busy to pay much heed to her.

Her parents were so busy that they hardly had any time to attend to her.

2.The somber blue books on the high shelf were quite beyong her reach.

She was too short to get hold of the dusty ,blue books on the high shelf.

3. She opened the closely printed page of an old edition,and discovered her playmates.

She read from page to page an old edition of the novels,printed in small letters,and found the friends she could play with .

Sentence TranslationSentence Translation

1. Some of students long to study what they want to,not what they are asked to.

有些学生渴望学自己想学的，而不是被要求学的东西

2. I always keep a sum of at least 1,000 yuan on hand,in case of an emergency.

我身边总是放着一笔钱，至少一千元，以备急用。

3.It was a long time before I begin to feel at home in English.

我花了很长时间才开始感觉到能自如运用英语。

Writing practice

Write a 250-word composition on the topic “A friend in need is a friend indeed”. In the first part of your composition, describe how you first met and how long you have known each other. In thesecond part, say something about how you spend time together. In the last part, explain in brief why you think he/she is your bestFriend.