大学英语精读（第三版）第一册

Unit 7 The Sampler Back to the main 大学英语精读（第三版）第一册

Lead In Background Text Reading Skills • Questions to the Text • Discourse Analysis • 3. Language Points • 4. Classroom Activity Writing Fun Time Back to the main

HOME Lead In Direction: Make a story according to the following pictures, and share it with your classmates. Just use your imagination. Christmas food Old people Christmas God Rest You Merry Gentleman

HOME Background Information The Origin of Christmas Christmas Day — December 25 — which celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of the Christian religion, is the biggest and best-loved holiday in the United States. According to the Bible, the holy book of Christians, God decided to allow his only son, Jesus Christ, to be born to a human mother and live on earth so that people could understand God better and learn to love God and each other more. “Christmas”— meaning “celebration of Christ”—honors the time when Jesus was born to a young Jewish woman Mary. More information of Christmas, please see: http://www.history.com/minisites/christmas/

HOME Mary was engaged to be married to Joseph, a carpenter, but before they came together, she was found to be with child. Because Joseph, her husband, was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."

HOME Although the exact date of the birth of Jesus nearly 2,000 years ago is not known, the calendar on the supposed date divides all time into B.C. (Before Christ ) and A.D. (a Latin phrase, Anno Domini, "in the year of our Lord.") For the first 300 years, Jesus' birthday was celebrated on different dates. Finally, in the year 354, church leaders chose December 25 as his birthday.

HOME The Christmas Season For Christians, the Christmas season lasts from Christmas Eve till after New Year’s Day or, especially in England, till Epiphany (主显节) (January 6). Commercially, the period is much longer. Stores usually begin to decorate their departments for Christmas in November. Special attention is paid to the shop windows designed to attract Christmas shoppers.

HOME Old People in the West Most people retire from work between the ages of 60 — 65. This has two main consequences, one economic and the other psychological. Economically: Although retired people receive a pension from the government or from their past employers, it is often significantly less than they earned when they were working. Unless people have managed to save money during their years at work, their standard of living may decline dramatically when they retire.

HOME Psychologically: Old people in Western countries are generally considered useless, a burden on their families and on the public purse. They are hardly held in respect. On the other hand, most of them used to focusing on work, simply do not know how to relax or pursue other interest now that they have time to do so. They feel they “should” be working and contributing, because work was where they were respected and their skills recognized. As retired people, their self-confidence is diminished. The longer they are away from the work place, the keener grows a sense of being superfluous.

HOME Free Samples Stores use free samples as a “come-on” in competing for customers. If a store provides free samples of products, it’s likely that more people will shop there. Samples, usually of new foods and drinks, are given with the understanding that if you like them, you will buy them. It is not socially acceptable to continue to sample the same product time and time again without making a purchase.

1. Questions to the Text HOME Direction: Read through the text in three minutes to find answers of following questions. • How many characters were there in the story? And who were they? • Answer: There were three: the old man, the shop girl and the author. • 2. What were laid out in a row in the store during the Christmas season? • Answer: Delicious puddings. • What did the author in the story often wonder? • Answer: He often wondered whether people would sample puddings when they have no intention to buy any. • What did the shop girl tell him when he asked the above question? • Answer: She told him that there was an old gentleman who came there to sample puddings but never bought anything. • 5. Was the shop girl friendly to the old man when he turned up in the store? How do you know? • Answer: Yes, she was; she gave him a spoon and encourages him to sample the puddings.

HOME 6. Was the old man shocked when the author offered to buy him some puddings? How do you know? Answer: Yes, he was; he jumped back as if he had been stung. 7. Did the old man accept the author’s offer? Answer: No, he declined it with dignity. 8. What did the old man have in his worn little black pocketbook? Answer: He had nothing but coins. 9. How did the author feel when he realized that because of his offer, the old man had been forced into a purchase he could not afford? Answer: He longed for the power to unsay his tactless words, and he felt that the kindest thing he could do would be walk away. 10. Just make a guess: In what country did this story take place? What are the words or expressions that give you the clue? Answer: The story must have taken place in Britain; the old pays for the puddings with “shillings and pennies”.

2. Discourse Analysis HOME Main Idea Time During the Christmas Season Characters the shop girl, the old man, the author The poor old man sampled one after another of the puddings without purchase. The author’s good intention to help made the old man very angry and hurt the old man’s dignity. Plot The author wanted to buy the old man some puddings, but the old man jumped back as if he had been stung. Then the old man purchased the puddings which he could not afford. Climax Good intentions alone are not enough to help others. We should use appropriate ways to avoid hurting others. Theme

HOME 3. Language Points (Read the text in detail.) The author finds out that good intentions alone are not enough when his attempt to be kind to an old man leaves them both feeling worse than before.

HOME The Sampler In a certain store where they sell puddings, a number of these delicious things are laid out in a row during the Christmas season. Here you may select the one which is most to your taste, and you are even allowed to sample them before coming to a decision. I have often wondered whether some people, who had no intention of making a purchase, would take advantage of this privilege. One day I asked this question of the shop girl, and I learned it was indeed the case.

HOME “Now there’s one old gentleman, for instance,” she told me, “he comes here almost every week and samples each one of the puddings, though he never buys anything, and I suspect he never will. I remember him from last year and the year before that, too. Well, let him come if he wants it, and welcome to it. And what’s more, I hope there are a lot more stores where he can go and get his share. He looks as if he needed it all right, and I suppose they can afford it.” She was still speaking when an elderly gentleman limped up to the counter and began looking closely at the row of puddings with great interest. “Why, that’s the very gentleman I’ve been telling you about,” whispered the shop girl. “Just watch him now.” And then turning to him: “Would you like to sample them, sir? Here’s a spoon for you to use.”

HOME The elderly gentleman, who was poorly but neatly dressed, accepted the spoon and began eagerly to sample one after another of the puddings, only breaking off occasionally to wipe his red eyes with a large torn handkerchief. “This is quite good.” “This is not bad either, but a little too heavy.” All the time it was quite evident that he sincerely believed that he might eventually buy one of these puddings, and I am positive that he did not for a moment feel that he was in any way cheating the store. Poor old chap! Probably he had come down in the world and this sampling was all that was left him from the time when he could afford to come and select his favorite pudding. Amidst the crowd of happy, prosperous looking Christmas shoppers, the little black figure of the old man seemed pitiful and out of place, and in a burst of benevolence, I went up to him and said:

HOME “Pardon me, sir, will you do me a favor? Let me purchase you one of these puddings. It would give me such pleasure.” He jumped back as if he had been stung, and the blood rushed into his wrinkled face. “Excuse me,” he said, with more dignity than I would have thought possible considering his appearance, “I do not believe I have the pleasure of knowing you. Undoubtedly you have mistaken me for someone else.” And with a quick decision he turned to the shop girl and said in a loud voice, “Kindly pack me up this one here. I will take it with me.” He pointed at one of the largest and most expensive of the puddings.

HOME The girl took down the pudding from its stand and started to make a parcel of it, while he pulled out a worn little black pocketbook and began counting out shillings and pennies on to the counter. To save his “honour” he had been forced into a purchase which he could not possibly afford. How I longed for the power to unsay my tactless words! It was too late though, and I felt that the kindest thing I could do now would be walk away. “You pay at the desk,” the shop girl was telling him, but he did not seem to understand and kept trying to put the coins into her hand. And that was the last I saw or heard of the old man. Now he can never go there to sample puddings any more.

Back intention n. determination to act in a certain way Eg: Those who look at goods in shop windows with no intention of buying are called window shoppers.

Back lay out:arrange or spread out Eg: The new books were laid out neatly on the table. The goods for sale were attractively laid out.

Back sample v. to taste food or drink to see what it is like Eg: We sampled several local cheese. n. a small part representing the whole Eg: a sample of cloth Would you show us some samples of your work?

Back take advantage of:make use of sth or sb for one’s own benefit Eg: The old man took (full) advantage of the good weather to do some gardening. Such a skilled tennis player knows how to take advantage of his opponent’s chief weakness.

Back suspect suspicious adj. v. /sәs’pect/ guess or suppose; feel doubt about suspicionn. Eg: I suspect the truthfulness of hiswords. The police suspected him to be a robber. It’s eleven o’clock. I suspect he will not come. n. /’sΛspect/ sb. suspected of wrong doing Eg: The police cannot arrest any suspect without firm evidence.

Back evident adj. clear to the eye or the mind Eg: She looked with evident envy at Judy’s new ring. It is evident that someone destroyed the paper on purpose.

Back • positive adj. • sure or certain • Eg: I am positive that it was Joan who screamed for help just now. • Can you be positive about what you heard? • hopeful and confident • Eg: a positive attitude to life • (in math) greater than zero; (of electricity) caused by deficiency of • electrons • Eg: “﹢” is the positive sign. • You must have confused the positive pole with the negative • pole.

Back come down in the world: lose a place of respect or honor； become lower as in rank or fortune Eg: The stranger plainly had come down a long way in the world. Poor old George has come down in the world since his business failed.

Back prosperous adj. rich; successful prosperity n. Eg: We should hold a party for the prosperous business this year. I hear he has become rather prosperous.

Back out of place:not in one’s proper position; unsuitable Eg: Her dress was out of place at the ceremony. It was out of place for Smith to make that remark.

Back do sb. a favor / do a favor for sb: do sth. kind to sb. Eg: Will you do me a favor? He asked me to do him the favor of shutting the window.

Back as if / as though: seeming to show that eg: She always talks to me as if she were (was) my sister. He walked slowly as if he had hurt his leg. It looks as if we’ll be late. 用法: 1. 描述非现实情况时，在as if / as though 从句中用假设的过去式或过去完成式。（口语中，多用was取代were。） 2. 口语中，主句为现在式，而且由内容可清楚判别是表达非现实的意思时，在as if 后的从句中有时也用现在式。 Eg: He treats me as if I am (were) a stranger.

Back appearance n. (1) look 外表，样子 eg: Never judge a man by his appearance. (2) the act of appearing出现；出席 eg: His sudden appearance surprised me.

Back mistake (sth. or sb.) for: suppose wrongly that sth. or sb. is sth. or sb. else Eg: She is often mistaken for a famous singer. mistake sympathy for love

Back long for:wish very much for Eg: We are all longing for peace. I long for a timely reply from you.

HOME 4.Classroom Activity Character Analysis Direction: Describe the personalities of the three characters, and find the facts in the text to justify your description.

HOME The old man Personalities Evidence in the text elderly; wrinkled face; poorly dressed; could not afford a pudding; having only coins in his worn little black pocketbook Old and poor the “little black figure” Short and thin “He jumped back as if he had been stung, and the blood rushed into his wrinkled face.” denying knowing the narrator “in a loud voice” and with “dignity” sensitive and dignified proud and wanting to save face “forced” to buy one of the largest and most expensive of the puddings; keeping trying to put the coins into the shop girl’s hand; never coming back again his choice of words (e.g. I don’t think I have the pleasure of knowing you.) well-educated

HOME “Well, let him come if he wants it, and welcome to it.” She offered a spoon to the old man to sample the pudding. kind-hearted & sympathetic When she speaks of the old man, she uses the word “gentleman”. polite Sympathetic in a burst of benevolence strategic & considerate “Will you do me a favor?”

Reading Skills HOME Reading for the main idea When you are reading paragraphs for the main idea, try to force yourself to read a bit faster than usual. By doing so, you will find it easier to concentrate on ideas and the relationships between ideas. The slow reader usually cares too much about individual words and thus may actually comprehend less than quick reader. In reading paragraphs, you will inevitably come across some words you don’t understand. Don’t waste too much time worrying about them. Just continue your reading. The most important thing is to understand the material as a whole and one or two unknown words won’t make much difference.

HOME Direction: Read the following paragraph and answer the question after it. Having worked at a 7-Eleven store for two years, I thought I had become successful at what our manager calls “customer relations”. I firmly believed that a friendly smile and an automatic “sir”, “ma’am” and “thank you” would see me through any situation that might arise from soothing impatient or unpleasant people to apologizing for giving out the wrong change. But the other night an old woman shattered my belief that a glib response could smooth over the rough spots of dealing with other human beings.

Question: Which of the following best expresses the main idea of this paragraph?A. The narrator, a smart young man, thought that after working at a grocery store for two years, he had learned all the skills necessary to build up good relations with customs.B. The narrator, a smart young man, believed that, with a friendly smile and a natural greeting, he could handle all situations.C. A chance encounter with an old woman at the store one night helped the young man come to see that things in actual life were much more complicated than he had expected. HOME Answer: (c)

HOME Writing Ellipsis: Sometimes we can make a sentence shorter by omitting one or more words to achieve brevity or to avoid repetition. This is called ellipsis. For example: (1) …though he never buys anything, and I suspect he never will (buy anything). (2) Well, let him come if he wants it, and (he is) welcome to it.

HOME Rewrite the following sentences, leaving out words which can be omitted. 1. His words moved everyone who was present. His words moved everyone present. 2. What a pity it is you can’t go to the lecture! What a pity you can’t go to the lecture! 3. Though he is still a young man he is a leading biologist in that country. Though still a young man, he is a leading biologist in that country. 4. Fill in the blanks with articles wherever they are necessary. Fill in the blanks with articles wherever necessary. 5. Is there anything wrong with the tape-record? Anything wrong with the tape-recorder?

HOME Paragraph Writing Write one-paragraph composition describing the “sampler” in the story you have just studies. Begin the paragraph with the sentence: “Every week during the Christmas season a poorly-dressed, elderly gentleman would appear in a certain store where he sampled puddings, but never bought any.” Complete the composition with six to eight sentences, using the words or phrases given below. elderly poorly dressed come down in the world cannot afford (to buy a puddings) feel pity for offer (to buy him a pudding) jump back save his honor very proud

Fun Time HOME Question I begin with T and end with T ,and I am full of T. What am I? 问题: “我”以“T”开头,仍以 “T”结尾,并且内心充满了“T”.猜猜“我”是什么? 给了时间你们罗,还不知道?这问题的答案就是我给出的图片哟,希望你们猜对,很抱歉就算猜对了也没有奖品哟. Teapot

God Rest You Merry Gentlemen Back O tidings of comfort and joy, Comfort and joy, O tidings of comfort and joy! God rest you merry, gentlemen, Let nothing you dismay, Remember Christ our Saviour Was born on Christmas Day; To save us all from Satan's power When we were gone astray. O tidings of comfort and joy, Comfort and joy, O tidings of comfort and joy! From God our heavenly Father A blessed angel came; And unto certain shepherds Brought tidings of the same; How that in Bethlehem was born The Son of God by name. O tidings of comfort and joy, Comfort and joy, O tidings of comfort and joy! "Fear not, then," said the angel, "Let nothing you affright; This day is born a Saviour Of a virgin pure and bright, To free all those who trust in him From Satan's power and might." O tidings of comfort and joy, Comfort and joy,

大学英语 精读 （第三版）第一册