12 Unit 9 The Damned Human Race

备课纸 任教课程:《综合英语》(二)年月日 Unit 9 一、授课时间:第15--16周 二.授课类型:课文分析8课时;习题讲解4课时 三.授课题目:The Damned Human Race 四.授课时数:12 五.教学目的和要求: 通过讲授课文使大学生了解有关马克吐温幽默讽刺的写作风格,学会用英语解释句子以达到学以致用的目的。要求学生主动地预习课文,课前准备练习,学会分析文章体裁和进行段落划分。 六.教学重点和难点: 1)背景知识的传授:About the author; 2)文章的体裁分析及段落划分; 3)语言点的理解: Word study: allegiance; ascent; atrocious; avaricious; brood; conjecture; degenerate; descent; disposition; exterminate; gory; mutilation; oblige; rabid; scruple; wantonly Grammar Focus: Study and learn how such contrast expressions as and, but, compared to/with, while, unlike, and on the other hand, are used. 七.教学基本内容和纲要 Part One Warm – up 1.1 Warm-up Questions 1.2 Define the following words and phrases Part Two Background Information 2.1 Have you read much of Mark Twain? Can you name some stories, novels or essays he wrote? How do you like him? What qualities in his writings brought him world renown? Is this essay written in his usual humorous vein? Part Three Text Appreciation 3.1 Text Analysis 3.1.1 Theme of the text 3.1.2 Structure of the text 3.2 Writing Devices 3.2.1 Contrast 3.2.2 Humorous 3.2.3 Satire and Parallelism 3.3 Sentence Paraphrase Part Four Language Study 4.1 Phrases and Expressions 4.1.1 Word list: 4.1.2 Phrases and expressions list: 1 任教课程:《综合英语》(二)年月日 4.1.3 Word Building 4.2 Grammar 4.2.1 Object Part Five Extension 5.1 Group discussion 八、教学方法和措施 本单元将运用黑板、粉笔、多媒体网络辅助教学设备等教学手段,主要采用以学生为主体、教师为主导的任务型、合作型等教学模式,具体运用教师讲授法、师生讨论、生生讨论等方法进行教学。 九.作业,讨论题,思考题 完成课后练习; 多看英语报刊杂志及英语经典小说,扩大阅读量; 精听与泛听相结合,逐步提高自己的听力水平; 积极参加英语角等有助于提高英语口语的活动; 坚持用英语写日记; 做一些专四相关练习; 十.参考资料: 1)杨立民主编,《现代大学英语精读》(4)第二版,学生用书。北京:外语教学与研 究出版社,2012。 2)杨立民主编,《现代大学英语精读》(4)第二版,教师用书。北京:外语教学与研 究出版社,2012。 3)李观仪主编,《新编英语教程》(第三、四册)。上海:上海外语教学研究出版, 1999。 4)黄源深,虞苏美等主编,《综合英语教程》(1-4册)。北京:高等教育出版社,1998。 5)《高等学校英语专业英语教学》,北京:外语教学研究出版社,2000。 6)Judy Pearsall主编,《新牛津英语词典》。上海:上海外语教育出版社,1998。 7)丁往道、吴冰等编著,《英语写作手册》。北京:外语教学与研究出版社。 8)张道真,《现代英语用法词典》(重排本)。北京:外语教学与研究出版社,1994。 9)张道真,温志达, 《英语语法大全》上、下卷。北京:外语教学与研究出版社,1998。十一、课后小结 任教课程:《综合英语》(二)年月日 Unit 9 The Damned Human Race Part One Warm – up 1.1 Warm-up Questions 1. Do you have any idea why Mark Twain became more and more bitter in his later years? Do you agree that it was largely due to his personal misfortunes? How would you describe this essay? Serious and matter-of-fact? Scientifically detached and objective? Hilariously humorous? Bitterly satirical? Or what? 2. What is the main idea of this essay? Do you think the subject of human nature still deserves our close attention today? Is Twain’s condemnation of human beings in line with the Darwinian theory of evolution? How does the author come to doubt this? Is that the result of scientific experiment? Is Mark Twain serious when he says that he has done many months of painstaking and fatiguing work in the London Zoological Garden? What kind of effect do you think he hopes to achieve with this mock seriousness? 3. Do you take Mark Twain’s views seriously? Why do you think Twain wrote this essay? Does he have any serious purpose other than amusing his readers? 1.2 Define the following words and phrases 1. sport 2. loose 3. grace 4. confined 5. occasion 6. prior 7. unhumanly 8. distinction 9. subject sth/sb to sth 10. have not scrupled to do sth 11. cheat sb out of sth Part Two Background Information 2.1 About the author: Mark Twain (1835---1910) was born Samuel Langhorne Clements in Florida, Missouri, but lived as a child in Hannibal, Missouri, on the Mississippi River. He took the pen name Mark Twain from the call of the pilots on the river steamers, which indicated that the water was twelve feet deep, a safe depth for a steamer.During his early years, he worked as a riverboat pilot, newspaper reporter, printer, and gold prospector. But then he turned to writing, and became one of the greatest of American writers. 2.2 His masterpiece: Innocents Abroad 1869 任教课程:《综合英语》(二)年月日 The Adventures of Tom Sawyer 1876 The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn 1885 Life on the Mississippi 1883 The Prince and the Pauper 1882 2.3 His writing style: hilariously humorous bitterly satirical 2.4 About the story: The author writes about ugly human traits and dispositions. In his opinion, human beings are not ascended from the lower animals but descended from the higher animals. Part Three Text Appreciation 3.1 Text Analysis 1.Questions for thinking: a.How does the author contrast human beings with other animals? What specific human traits and dispositions does he condemn? How would you describe the image of human beings in the author’s writing? And what arguments does the author give to support his views? b.Why does he say that man is the cruel animal? What examples does he give to illustrate the point? Do you agree with Twain that human beings are cruel whereas tigers, wolves, and anacondas are not? 3.1.2 Structure of the text I. Introduction : Topic and credibility of the author’s research (paras. 1-3) A. Topic : The descent of man from the higher animals (para. 1) B. Credibility : The use of scientific method and authentic institution where the experiments were conducted (para. 2) C. A characteristic example of his experiments (para. 3) II. Findings about man as against higher animals (paras. 4-17) A.Man’s greed (para. 4) B.Man’s immorality (paras. 5-8) C.Man’s cruelty (para. 9) D.Man’s inclination for wars (paras. 10-11) E.Man’s position of enslaving and being enslaved (para. 12) F.Man’s hypocrisy (paras. 13-15) G.Man’s inability to learn to live together peacefully (paras. 16-17) III. Conclusion : Restatement of the thesis (para. 18) Logic & Technique The main body is arranged accordingly to the various traits and dispositions of human beings as contrasted to the “higher animals.” However, in the second half, the author begins to adopt a polemic tone. He seems to be arguing with people who believe in man’s superiority. Notice how 任教课程:《综合英语》(二)年月日 Mark Twain achieves humor. He talks tongue in cheek throughout the essay, using highly exaggerated and formal words and expressions as appropriate for the academic writing he pretends the essay to be. He adopts a pompous style very different from the usual colloquial vernacular he is famous for, to ridicule those critics who say Mark Twain lacks proper education. Relevant questions: 1. How is this essay organized? What devices does the author use to make the article interesting? What do you have to say about the diction of this essay? Mark Twain is generally known for his skilful use of the vernacular. Would you consider this essay a good example? Is this article written in a colloquial and informal way? How would you explain his adoption of this style? 2. Do you agree with Mark Twain? If you were to write in response to this essay to express some different opinions, what would you say? 3.1.3 Detailed Analysis of the text Part I: Main Idea This slightly abridged essay is organized like a paper to report results of a scientific experiment. It has a thesis statement at the beginning and a brief summing-up at the end. The main body is arranged according to the various straits and disposition of human beings as contrasted to the “higher animals”. However in the second part of the body the author begins to use a polemic tone. He seems to be arguing with people who believe in man’s superiority because they can reason, have moral principles and religion, and love their neighbors and country. Part II: Discussion 1. How does the author contrast human beings with other animals? What specific human traits and dispositions does he condemn? How would you describe the image of human beings in the author’s writing? And what arguments does the author give to support his views? 2. Why does he say that man is the cruel animal? Conclusion of the text: It is wrong to think that Mark Twain is pessimistic or cynical. He is neither. Behind all the bitterness is a warm and human heart. Mark Twain does not really believe that human beings are incurably cruel, greedy and wicked. Otherwise he would not have bothered to write those essays. He writes about ugly human traits and dispositions precisely because he thinks human beings are capable of mending their ways if they can open their eyes to their own weaknesses and understand the conditions that give rise to them and nurture them. In other words, his policy is to frighten in order to enlighten. 3.3 Sentence Paraphrase 1. I have been studying the traits and dispositions of the ―lower animals‖, and contrasting them with the traits and dispositions of man. I find the result humiliating to me. I have been studying the characteristics of the so-called lower animals in comparison with those of man. The result of this study makes me, as a man, feel terribly ashamed. traits and dispositions: characteristics; features; nature; qualities; personalities 任教课程:《综合英语》(二)年月日 humiliating: making me feel ashamed; embarrassing; mortifying Notice the tongue-in-cheek way the author expresses his ideas. He makes it sound as if he were conducting and reporting on the result of a scientific investigation. In other words, he is deliberately using a pompous style to achieve humor. 2. For it obliges me to renounce my allegiance to the Darwinian theory of the Ascent of Man from the Lower Animals and to name it the Descent of Man from the Higher Animals. Because the result of my study forces me to give up (to abandon) my loyalty to (firm belief in ) Darwin’s theory of evolution and to change the theory of the Ascent of Man from the Lower Animals to the theory of the Descent of Man from the Higher Animals. to oblige sb to do sth: to force sb to do sth; to make it necessary for sb to do sth to renounce: to abandon or give up; to reject or disown allegiance: loyalty, esp. to a nation or a cause 3.That is to say, I have subjected every postulate that presented itself to the crucial test of actual experiment. In other words, I have put every theory or hypothesis there is to the decisive test of actual experiment. to subject sht/ sb to sth: to cause sb/sth to undergo or experience sth unpleasant or difficult and often for a long time,e.g. They were subjected to very cruel tortures. The desertification subjected people living in that area to great hardships. postulate: (fml) assumption; theory; hypothesis that presented itself: that happens or exists, e.g. when the opportunity presents itself you must seize it at once. 4.It also seemed to suggest that the earl was descended from the anaconda, and had lost a good deal in the transition. It also seemed to show that the earl came from the anaconda and had lost a lot of the anaconda’s good qualities in the process. to be descended from sb: to be related to sb who lived a long time ago 5.I was aware that many men who have accumulated more millions of money than they can ever use have shown a rabid hunger for more, and have not scrupled to cheat the ignorant and the helpless out of their poor saving in order to partially appease that appetite. I knew that many men who have more money than they can ever use have shown a mad desire to get more, and they have not hesitated to cheat poor people and their few saving in order to satisfy that desire. rabid: uncontrollable (Note: it is related to rabies, which is an acute, infectious and often fatal disease of dogs, also known as hydrophobia, transmitted by the bite of the infected animal) to have not scrupled to do sth: to have not hesitated to do sth because of trouble conscience or 任教课程:《综合英语》(二)年月日 embarrassment from moral considerations to cheat sb out of sth: to trick or deceive sb in order to get an advantage, e.g. to cheat sb out of his money or job or land,etc Compare: to talk sb out of sth; to trick sb out of sth the ignorant and helpless: the uneducated and powerless people; the poor laboring people in general to appease: to satisfy or relieve (hunger, thirst, desire, etc) 6.Cats are loose in their morals, but not consciously so. Man, in his descent from the cat, has brought the cat’s looseness with him but had left the unconsciousness behind—the saving grace which excuses the cat. Cats are immoral, but they do not know it. They just can’t help it. Man has inherited cats’ looseness, but not their innocence, which is what excuses the cat for its low morals. to be loose in morals: immoral the saving grace: the redeeming quality; the quality that makes up for the generally negative characteristics. 7. Indecency, vulgarity, obscenity--- these are strictly confined to man; he invented them. These are only man’s problems. They are limited to man. They only happen to man 8. No--- Man is the Animal that Blushes. He is the only one that does it--- or has occasion to. No, man is not the only animal that laughs, but it is true that man is the animal that blushes. He is the only animal that does it or has the need to. to have occasion to do sth: to have the need or necessity to do sth Notice that Mark Twain is saying here that only man needs to blush because he consciously does bad, immoral things. 9.Man--- when he is King John, with a nephew to render untroublesome, he uses a red-hot iron;In the case of King John who wanted to get rid of his nephew he used a red-hot iron to torture him. King John: was th e youngest son of Henry II. During his brother Richard I’s absence on the third Crusade, John himself declared king and later held his brother in captivity.He was believed to have murdered his nephew Arthur I of Brittany. This and many other cruel things he did made him extremely unpopular, and finally a civil war resulted during which he died, presumably poisoned. to render sb untroublesome: to cause sb to become untroublesome; to prevent sb from making trouble for him (King John’s throne had been stolen f rom his nephew. Therefore he thought his nephew posed a threat to him.) 10. …in the first Richard’s time he shuts up a multitude of Jew Families in a tower and sets fire to it; the first Richard: Richard first, King of England , otherwise known as the Lion-Hearted. 任教课程:《综合英语》(二)年月日 to set fire to: to make sth start burning Notice that it does not mean the same as “to make/light a fire” or “to build a fire”. 11.The cat is moderate--- unhumanly moderate,… she doesn’t dig out its eyes, … or drive splinters under its nails--- man-fashion; when she is done playing with it, she makes a sudden meal of it and puts it out of its trouble. unhumanly moderate: reasonable, not so violent, not so excessive or extreme, unlike human beings( Unhumanly is not to be mixed up with inhuman. It is actually a word coined by the writer.) man-fashion: like man; as man does to be dong doing sth: to finish doing sth to make a meal of: to eat it up to put sb out of his trouble: to end sb’s trouble 12. There is not an acre of ground on the globe that is in possession of its rightful owner…Not a single piece of land is in the hands of its original owner. Every piece of land has been stolen. Mark Twain is referring to the fact that the world has been, in the course of history, divided and re-divided countless times through war. 13. Man is the only Slave. And he is the only animal who enslaves. He has always been a slave in one form or another, and has always held other slaves in bondage under him in one way or another. Mark Twain is referring to the idea that in the history of human civilization, our society has always been based on some kind of exploitation of man by man. No one is free. Everyone is a slave of one form or another and at the same time enslaved those under him. to hold sb in bondage: to keep sb in the state of being a slave 14. … and in the intervals between campaigns he washes the blood off his hands and—works for ―the universal brotherhood of man‖---with his mouth. …and when they are not fighting each other, they will start talk ing about peace and universal brotherhood, but without any sincerity. Man, according to Mark Twain, is not only cruel and warlike, but also hypocritical. to work for… with his mouth:to pay lip service to …; to give empty promises to… the universal brotherhood: the idea that all living human beings are brothers and sisters to each other四海之内皆兄弟的思想;博爱 Note that the word man= humankind (men and women)。The world brotherhood also includes women in this sense. 15. Man is the Religious Animal. He is the only Religious Animal. He is the only animal that has the True Religion--- several of them. Man claims to be the only animal capable of religious belief. Religion of course is considered here 任教课程:《综合英语》(二)年月日 something much more important and noble than animal instincts because it emphasizes the spiritual and moral life of human beings. But Mark Twain sneers at this because the different religious in the world have resulted in endless religious suppressions, persecutions and wars. 16. He was at it in the time of the Caesar’s, he was at it in Mohammed’s time, he was at it in the time of the inquisition, he was at it in France a couple of centuries, he was at it in England in Mary’s day, he had been at it ever since he first saw the light to be at sth: to be engaged in a certain activity The Caesars: in the times of Caesars, the early Christians were cruelly persecuted by the Romans. Mohammed: in Mohammed’s time, the Muslims were cruelly persecuted. Inquisition:it means that “inquiry” or “investigation”. Specifically, it refers to the former tribunal in the Roman Catholic Church directed at the suppression of heresy. (Queen) Mary: in Mary’s day, the Protestants were persecuted. to see the light: to come into existence, to be born. Mary Tudor: commonly known as Bloody Mary, Queen of England. 17. And so I find that we have descended and degenerated, from some far ancestor--- some microscopic atom wandering at its pleasure between the mighty horizons of a drop of water perhaps… down the long highway of perfect innocence, till… And so I find that without knowing it, we have descended and deteriorated from our ancestor---some tiny atom which moved about freely and happily in the huge world of a drop of water perhaps… perfectly innocence during this long process of change… until we have fallen to the bottom, to the lowest stage of our development and become human beings. to do sth at one’s own pleasure: to do sth when you want to microscopic: extremely small, only seen under a microscope mighty: awesomely huge the long highway of perfect innocence: the long process of our change from one insect into another, one animal into another and one reptile into another, all completely innocent, until we become human beings and lose all our innocence. 18. Organization of the text: This slightly abridged essay is organized like a paper to report results of a scientific experiment. It has a thesis statement at the beginning and a brief summing-up at the end. The main body is arranged according to the various straits and disposition of human beings as contrasted to the “higher animals”. However in the second part of the body the author begins to use a polemic tone. He seems to be arguing with people who believe in man’s superiority because they can reason, have moral principles and religion, and love their neighbors and country. Part Four Language Study 任教课程:《综合英语》(二)年月日4.1 Phrases and Expressions Translation 1. 我明天得去看看牙科大夫,我的一颗门牙松动了。 I have to go to the dentist tomorrow. One of my front teeth is loose. 2. 你翻译得太随意了,应该更加忠实于原文才是。 Your translation is a bit too loose. You ought to be more faithful to the original. 3. 时尚总是变来变去的。几年前大家都穿紧身牛仔裤,但是现在宽松的寸衫和裤子再度流行。 Fashions come and go. A few years ago everybody was wearing tight jeans, but now loose shirts and pants are back. 4. 很多村民其实并不喜欢那些恐怖分子,但是他们不得不同意窝藏他们,因为他们知道,如果不那么做,他们就会遭受严厉的惩罚。 Many villagers actually did not like the terrorists, but they had to agree to harbor them because they knew if they didn’t, they would be severely punished. 5. 内战结束以后,很多黑人仍然遭受严重的种族歧视。他们仍然不能指望政府给他们帮助。After the Civil War, many black people were still subjected to serious racial discrimination. They still could not count on the government to render assistance to them. 6. 传统上妇女们都被禁锢在家里,被剥夺了就业的机会。但是在战争时期,很多妇女必须进工厂去代替男人工作,这就开始唤醒了她们的社会觉悟。 Traditionally women were confined to their homes, deprived of the opportunity to seek employment. But in the course of the war, many women were obliged to go to factories to replace them, and this began to awaken women’s social consciousness. Useful Words & Expressions 1. the rightful owner 2. the universal brotherhood of man 3. loose morals 4. a soiled mind 5. brute force 6. a saving grace 7. rabid hunger 8. a religious zealot 9. zoological garden 10. the scientific method 11. vast stores of food 12. odds and ends 13. war atrocities 14. questionable taste 15. traits and dispositions 16. painstaking work 4.2 Grammar 4.2.1 Learn and summarize ways of making contrast. 任教课程:《综合英语》(二)年月日 4.2.1.1 Recognize and underline expressions of contrast in these sentences. 1. …the earl is cruel and the anaconda isn’t; and that the earl wantonly destroys what he had no use for, but the anaconda doesn’t. (para. 3) 2. The higher animals engage in individual fights, but never in organized masses. (para. 10) 3. So the richest 20% of the world’s population consumes the lion’s share of resources, while the poorest 80% have to get by on the crumbs. (para. 22, Unit 8) 4. I was an atheist at the time. And she was a Methodist. (para. 26, Unit 1) 5. That had been a placid pastime compared to his digging now. (para. 30, Unit 12, Book 3) 6. Maybe not. On the other hand, you may turn out to be the one man hidden away who will bring merriment to the tired old human heart. (para. 7, Unit 16, Book 2) 7. Unlike most men he knew, he really pitched in on the housework. (para. 1, Unit 2, Book 2) 8. Yet love is better than life, and what is the heart of a bird compared to the heart of a man? (para. 27, Unit 5, Book 1) 9. For its part, nature cared nothing about the five passengers. Our man, on the other hand, cared totally. (para. 7, Unit 6, Book 2) 4.2.2 Study and analyze the grammatical structure of these involved sentences. 1. The facts stood proven that the difference between an earl and an anaconda is that the earl is cruel and the anaconda isn’t; and that the earl wantonly destroys what he had no use for, but the anaconda doesn’t. This seemed to suggest that the anaconda was not descended from the earl. (para. 3) 1. This is a complex sentence. Main clause: The facts stood proven (subject +link verb + predicative) Subordinate clauses: Two appositive clauses that clarify the subject of the main clause “the fact.” 1)that the earl is cruel and the anaconda isn’t (made up of two coordinate clauses) 2)that the earl wantonly destroys what he had no use for, but the anaconda doesn’t (made up of two coordinate clauses) The second appositive clause contains a what-clause– what he had no use for – functioning as the object of the verb “destroys.” 2. He is the only animal that for sordid wages will march out, as the Hessians did in our Revolution, and help to slaughter strangers of his own species who have done him no harm and with whom he has no quarrel. (para. 10) 2. This is a complex sentence. Main clause: He is the only animal Subordinate clause: the rest of the sentence (a relative clause) In the relative clause: Subject: that (relative pronoun) Predicate verb: “will march out” and “(will) help to slaughter” Other modifiers: 1)as the Hessians did in our Revolution (adverbial modifying the verb “will march out”) 2)who have done him no harm (relative clause modifying “strangers of his own species”) 任教课程:《综合英语》(二)年月日 3)(with) whom he has no quarrel (relative clause also modifying “strangers of his own species”) The preposition phrase “for sordid wages” is used as an adverbial of purpose modifying both “will march out” and “(will) help slaughter.” Part Five Extension 5.1 Group discussion 1. Do you believe it possible to frighten in order to enlighten? Do you think it important for human beings to be keenly aware of their inborn weaknesses? 2. Why can’t we identify the nice people, entrust all the money and power to them and let them rule the rest of the people forever? 3. Can we shield young people from all evils so that they will never be badly influenced? 4. Are we really as bad as Twain said we are? Is it true there is no hope for the human species? How would you respond to those who hold pessimistic views about human beings? 5. Shouldn’t Mark Twain talk about “Damn the rich” or “Damn the capitalists,” or “Damn the US imperialists,”or “Damn the racists”? How come he chooses to damn the whole human race without making any distinction?