Unit TwoUnit Two Lessons from Jefferson

Designed by Shi Yuan

BookⅡ

The Second Two Periods

Reading and Translation

Reading and Translation

• Review—Memorize the new words • Comprehension of the text• Chinese and English phrases • Words and expressions • Difficult sentences • Assignments

obtain

action

create

false

prefer

talent

agreement

custom

hesitate

origin

reject

threaten

appoint

educate

humble

owe

resent

conflict

error

influence

perform

source

Word-web

Proper Names

Bruce Bliven / 布鲁斯 · 布利文

Thomas Jefferson / 托马斯 · 杰斐逊

George Washington / 乔治 · 华盛顿

Abraham Lincoln / 亚伯拉罕 · 林肯

the Declaration of Independence 《独立宣言》

the James River 詹姆斯河

Lafayette / 拉斐特

Heaven / 上帝；天堂

Philadelphia / 费城 ( 美国港市 )

Comprehension of the text Questions

1. Why is Thomas Jefferson less famous than George Washington and Abraham Lincoln?

Washington is well-known for his leadership in the American Independence War. Lincoln is well-known for his role in abolishing slavery in the United States.

2. Why do we associate the name of Thomas Jefferson with the Declaration of Independence?

He was the writer of the Declaration of Independence.

3. Why was Jefferson chosen to write the Declaration of Independence?

He was a good and tireless writer whose complete works fill more than fifty volumes.

4. What was Jefferson’s attitude towards “people of humble origins”?

In a day when few noble persons ever spoke to those of humble origins except to give an order, he went out of his way to talk with gardeners, servants, and waiters, looked into their cooking pots and ate their bread.

5. Why did he insist upon having a free press?

A free press could tell the truth.

6. What was the philosophy underlying Jefferson’s determination never to answer his critics?

There were two sides to every question. If one took one side with decision and acted on it with effect, those who took the other side would of course resent his actions. So he believed in conflict rather than unquestioning agreement.

7. Why does the author say that American education owes a great debt to Thomas Jefferson?

Because Jefferson believed that only a nation of educated people could remain free.

Comprehension of the text Questions

Outline of the Text

• Thomas Jefferson was the third president of the United States and the author of the Declaration of Independence. He was a versatile man, whose interests ranged widely. Here are some of his ideas and examples as mentioned in the text: “Go and see”, “You can learn from everyone”, “Judge for yourself”, “Do what you believe is right”, “Trust the future, trust the young”. These are still of great interest to us.

Words and expressions

• most• most 是限定词，表示“大多数的”；它前后决不

能有其他限定词，如冠词 (the ,a ) 、物主形容词 (my, their,our ) (this/these/those)

• Most people agree with his attitude.• 多数人赞同他的态度。• Most pop music drives me out of my mind.• 大部分流行音乐常常使我发疯。

althoughalthough 和 though 在许多情况下用法相同，但前者在语气

上比后者稍强，因此 Although 更用于句首。

Although/Though he hurried, the shop was closed when he got there.

虽然他紧赶，他到达那里时商店还是关门了。I’d quite like to go out, (al)though it is a bit late

虽然有点晚了，我还是很想出去。

• 在下面这些情况，我们只能用 though ，而不能用 although

• 1) though 可以和 even, as 连用，构成 even though （即使） ,as though （似乎）

• Even though it was summer, it rained continually, and it was often bitterly cold. 即使是夏季，天也不断地下雨，而且常常是刺骨地寒风。

• He acted as though he had never lived in England before.他表现得好象以前从未在英国生活过。

• 2) though 可用作副词，放在句尾，表示“不过”的意思；但 although 始终只能用作连词。

• It was a quite party. I had a good time, though• 这次聚会非常安静，不过，我还是玩得很痛快。

• 3) though 还可以用于特殊句型：形容词 / 副词 +though+ 主语 + 动词：

• Cold though it was, I went out. 尽管天气冷，我还是出去了。

• Bravely though they fought, they had no chance of winning. 虽然他们打得很勇敢，还是没有获胜的希望。

• source: n. place from which sth. comes; place where a river starts

• They get their money from various sources.• 莱茵河的源头在哪里？ Where does the Rhine have its source?

• CF: • source & origin 这两个名词均有“根源，起因”之意。• source 原指“水源”，转义指事物的“根源，起因或出处”。

例如：• Is the water polluted at source or further downstream? 河水是

在源头还是在流出之后受到污染的 ?• origin 指事物起始于某时或某处，或由其产生另一事，即“起

源，起因，由来”，有时也指“出身，血统”。例如：• The origins of some words are unknown.• He never forgot his humble origins. 他从未忘记过自己出身卑

微。

• personal ： 私人的、个人的、亲自• --personal interview• --a personal visit• --personal belongings• --It’s impolite to ask such a personal questions a

s age ,status, and salary.

• appoint: put sb. in or choose sb for a position, job, etc. • appoint indicates that the selection is made by someone

officially charged with this duty. • -Premier Wen Jiabao appointed a new cabinet. • -I heard that the committee would appoint him director of

the China Studies Program. • -He was appointed to a university chair.

• Pattern:• appoint sb. as • appoint sb. (to do) sth. • appoint sb. to (a job, post, position, etc.)

• CF: appoint; name• “appoint” indicates that the selection is made by someon

e officially charged with this duty.• “name” is less formal and tells little about the chooser or

the method of choice involved.

• e.g. • 1).The president appointed a new cabinet member.• 2 ） .I heard that the committee would appoint him direct

or of the China studies program.• 3).He was appointed to a university chair.• 4).When will they name a successor?• 5).He was named captain of the team.

• by birth: so far as family origin or nationality is concerned

• My parents are both Indian by birth, but they have American citizenship.

• He is British by birth, although he was born in France.

• NB:• birth 除了与 by 搭配构成短语 by birth 以外，常见的短语

还有：• give birth “ 生孩子；产仔” give birth to“ 生（孩子）；

产生；引起”

• in a day when: in a period of time when

• day: period of time

• -In his day, things were quite different.

• -The young scholar is the man of the day.( 当代的风云人物 )

• humble: adj.

• 1) low in position• Even when she became rich and famous, she never forg

ot her humble background.• 学校为出身贫贱的孩子提供了很好的教育。 The school h

ad provided a good education for children of humble backgrounds.

• 2) having a modest opinion of oneself• In my humble opinion ， we should never have bought th

e car in the first place.

• capitol, Capitol, capital:• capitol ：州议会大厦；课文指 Virginia州的殖民政府的议会大厦

• Capitol ：美国国会 (Congress) 大厦， in Washington D.C.

• capital: 首都

• go out of one's way to do sth.: make a special effort or exert oneself more than usual to do sth.; do one's best to do sth.

• -She always goes out of her way to help others who are in need.

• -Both parties are going out of their way to reach a compromise.

• threaten: v. hang over dangerously; utter a threat against

• It’s no use threatening me ─ I’m not going to do it. • 他们每次争吵时，他妻子总是威胁说要离开他。 Every ti

me they have an argument, his wife threatens to leave him.

• Pattern: • threaten sb. with sth. • be threatened to do sth.

• reject: vt. refuse to take, believe, use or consider• We rejected his idea for a music club, and decided to have an art cl

ub instead. • 他向她求婚 , 她拒绝了。 She rejected his offer of marriage.

• CF: • reject, refuse & decline 这三个动词均含“拒绝”之意。 All these wo

rds mean “to be unwilling to accept, receive or take into consideration”. But refuse is stronger than decline, often suggesting firmness and sometimes even bluntness. Decline, on the other hand, is to refuse politely and is often applicable to situations where invitations to social events are turned down. And reject is more emphatic than refuse, implying an unmistakable denial.

• reject 多指由于某物某事某行为不能让人满意而被当面直截 了当地拒绝。

• refuse 语气较重，指态度坚决，肯定无疑的拒绝。• decline 指婉言谢绝他人的帮助或邀请等。

• 1. He asked me to give him another loan, but I refused.

• 2. The army doctors rejected several recruits as unfit.

• 3. When asked to comment on details of the agreement, she declined.

• 4. He's in trouble but he's refused all my offers of help.

• 5. We declined his offer of a lift.

• leave• leave “交托给；让 独自干”；常用句型 leave sb.to do

或 leave it to sb.to do• I’ll leave it to you to make the decision.• I’ll just leave the meat to cook for a while.• Not/never hesitate to do 表示“毫不犹豫地干”• Young painters don’t hesitate to attempt one style after a

nother.• If you need any help, don’t hesitate to ask.

• Prefer: choose (one thing) rather than (another) • -They prefer to die rather than surrender. • -I'd prefer to have something to eat/that we had som

ething to eat before we set off.

• Pattern:• prefer to sth.• prefer to do sth.• prefer sb. to do sth. • prefer to+ v. rather than + do sth. • prefer + that-clause (should be/be)

• latter: adj. nearer to the end

• The latter point was of great importance.

• NB:• 常与 the latter 搭配使用的是 the former “ 前者的

（两者中先提到的）” • Jack and Bill are twins, but the latter is taller tha

n the former. 杰克和比尔是孪生兄弟，不过比尔个子要高点。

unquestioning

unquestioning and unquestionableunquestioning” 不提出疑问的，无异议的，不表示怀的 ”He demands unquestioning obedience from his followers. 他要求追随

者对他绝对服从。unquestionable”无疑的，无可争辩的”His honesty is unquestionable.

Collocations:beyond question 毫无疑问 in question正在谈论的out of the question 毫无可能的out of question 没问题 without question毫无疑问

• false: • 1 ） not true or correct 错的• --They must have given a false alarm. Nothing unusual h

appened.• 2 ） not genuine, artificial 假冒的、人造的• --false teeth/hair/ passport/coins/papers(假证件 )• 3 ） insincere虚假的，不真诚的• --The politician responded with false enthusiasm.

• conflict v. = clash; be apposed冲突、对立• --conflict with each other/sb.

• n. = disagreement, clash• --armed conflicts• --The two companies come into frequent conflict

s as a result of competition.

• agreement: • --They are in agreement on that issue. 意见一致• --make/reach/ arrive at/ come to an agreement

达成协议• --The agreement comes into effect. 协议生效

• act on: do sth. in accordance with; follow; take action according to

• -Acting on his father's advice, he chose business English as his major.

• -Acting on the doctor's suggestion, the woman has decided to go on a diet.

• -If your idea is good, we will act on it. • - 他总是凭猜想行事。 He always acts on a guess.

• resent: vt. feel angry or bitter at • I bitterly resent your criticism. 我对你的批评十分反感。

• 我们对他成为令人注目的中心人物感到忿恨。 We resent his being the center of attraction.

• Pattern:• resent doing sth. • resent sb./sth. doing

• superior: adj. good or better in quality or valueThe government troops were superior in numbers.

• 这种布比那种好。 This cloth is superior to that.

• Collocation: • be superior in 在…方面占优势• be superior to优于…的；高于…的

• NB:• superior 的反义词是 inferior ， “下等的、劣等的”， 常

用的搭配是 “ be inferior to” ， 例如：• These products are inferior to those we bought last year.

这些产品比我们去年买的质量差。• Women are not inferior to men. 女人并不比男人差。

• influence:

1. vt. have an effect on 影响• She's very good at making friends and influencing peopl

e. • Public opinions are usually influenced by mass media. 公众的观点常常受大众媒介的影响。

• 2. n. power to affect sth. or sb. 影响 , 影响力• The two main influences in a child’s development are the

family and the school. • My teacher's influence made me study science at college.

• Collocation: • have a great / good / bad influence upon / on…对…有很大 / 好 / 坏的影响

• have influence over 对…有影响力• under the influence of 在…的影响下

• CF: • influence, affect & impress 这三个动词均含“影响”之意。• influence侧重在思想、性格、行为等方面所产生的潜移默化的影响，

也可指自然力的影响。• affect 主语通常是物而不是人，指一物对另一物产生的消极影响。• impress 强调影响既深刻又持久。

• 1. The tax increases have affected us all.• 2. Your mother was clearly not impressed by our behavior in the re

staurant.• 3. He tried to impress me with his extensive knowledge of wine.• 4. Don’t let yourself be impressed by what she said. • 5. The divorce affected every aspect of her life. • 6. The sights of the city never fail to impress foreign tourists.

• above all: most important of all• Children need many things , but above all they

need attention.• Be polite, above all, to old people.

• NB:• 与 “ above all” 有相似意义的表达方式有：• First, first of all, firstly, for one thing, in the first i

nstance, in the first place

• owe sth to sb./sth.: be in debt to sb./sth.; be obliged to sb./sth. for sth.; admit thankfully sb. /sth. as the cause of sth.

• -He owes 50$ to his friend. • -He owed his success more to luck than to ability.

• take sides with “支持，站在 的 一边”• She took sides with me against the teacher.• She sided with her brother against the others in t

he class.• on the side “ 作为兼职，作为副业”• He’s a teacher, but he makes a little money on t

he side by repairing cars in his free time.

• come/go into effect 生效，实施• in effect实际上，事实上• put/bring into effect实行• carry into effect实行，使生效• take effect 生效，起作用• of no effect无效的，无用的

• discover; invent; create

• To discover is to find or find out something that is already in existence but was not known about, such as a place or a fact.

• To invent is to make something that had no previous existence, such as a machine or a method, through the use of the imagination or through experiment.

• To create often means to bring something new into existence out of old things or to produce a character or a role in a play through the imaginative process.

• 1. Until Columbus discovered America no one in Europe knew it existed

• 2). Jefferson invented several devices for making daily chores easier.

• 3). Mr. Smith, a very imaginative writer, creates many enduring characters in his novels.

• hold “持有（某种看法，观点”、 “认为”• 不能用进行时• I hold that your decision is wrong.• Your decision is hold to be wrong.• The court held him to have told the truth.

Difficult sentences

• 1. Many of his ideas are especially interesting to modern youth.

• 他的许多思想对当代青年来说特别有吸引力。

• 2. By birth and by education Jefferson belonged to the highest social class.

• 从出身及所受的教育来看，杰弗逊属于社会的最高阶层。

• 3. If you will only do this, you may find out why people are dissatisfied and understand the revolution that is threatening France.

• 只要你这样做了，你就会发现老百姓为什么会不满意，你就会理解正在威胁着法国的革命。

• 4. Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.

• 倘使让我来决定，我们是应该要一个政府而不要报纸还是要报纸不要政府，我会毫不犹豫地选择后者。

• 5. It is conflict and not unquestioning agreement that keeps freedom alive.

• 是冲突而不是绝对的一致使自由保持了活力。

• 6. Jefferson felt that the present should never be chained to customs which have lost their usefulness.

• 杰弗逊认为，当今之事决不能被那些已经无用的习俗来束缚手脚。

• 7. He did not fear new ideas, nor did he fear the future.

• 他不害怕新的思想，也不害怕未来。

• 8. I steer my ship with hope, leaving fear behind.

• 我满怀希望地驾驭着自己的航船，而吧恐惧抛在身后。

Assignments

• Read the new words by heart after class, next time we’ll have a dictation.

• Read the phrases again and again.• Do the rest exercises.• Preview Writing.