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Surviving an economic crisis
Surviving an economic crisis
Unit 7 Section AUnit 7 Section A
FOREIGH LANGUAGE TEACHING AND RESEARCH PRESS AIR FORCE ENGINEERING UNIVERSITY
It’s a recession when your neighbor loses his job; it’s a depression when you lose yours.
— Harry S. Truman
Hunger is not the worst feature of unemployment; idleness is. — William E. Barrett
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7 Economy: Power behind everyday lifeUNIT
Section A
3
Surviving an economic crisis
Surviving an economic crisis
Objectives
To talk about economic crisis
To further understand the text
To apply the phrases and patterns
To master the essay writing skill
7 Economy: Power behind everyday lifeUNIT
Contents
Surviving an economic crisisSection A
Warming-up activities
Text study
Language application
Summary
Warming-up activities
Lead-in
Pre-reading activities
Cultural background
Surviving an economic crisisSection A
1. How does economic recession affect ordinary people?
• Long months of struggles;• Harsh reality;• Losing jobs;• Losing apartment;• Losing high living standards;• Losing status;• Losing belief and self-esteem;
2. Do you have any solutions to economic crisis?
• To go beyond short-term financial rescue solutions;• To seek long-term transformation;• To construct a system in which market forces are
checked through ethical regulations and oversight;• To construct a framework of common values.
1. How do you understand global economic meltdown?
2. What is US government’s first response to the economic crisis?
Watch a video clip about economic meltdown
and discuss the questions.
Pre-reading activitiesWatch and talk
Video Watching
Pre-reading activitiesWatch and talk
1. How do you understand global economic meltdown?
• Severe and sudden deterioration;• Worldwide recession;• Resulting in huge financial loss;• Credit crunch;• Stock market crash.
Pre-reading activitiesWatch and talk
2. What is US government’s first response to the economic crisis?
To bailout the banks with TRAP
(Troubled-Asset Relief Program) so
as to help banks get rid of toxic
assets.
Pre-reading activitiesWatch and talk
The economic ______ is claiming another victim: world trade. Last month the World Bank predicted a two percent _________ this year—the largest drop since the 1940s. Economies that depend on exports for growth have been hit hard.
This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.
Listen to a short passage concerning economic crisis and fill in the missing information.
crisis
decrease
To be continued
Compound dictationPre-reading activities
Credit has improved in some cases since the
financial crisis __________ in September.
But falling demand, including reduced
demand for oil, has cut trade around the
world. The International Monetary Fund
recently called for government spending, tax
cuts and international ___________ to
support growth.
worsened
cooperation
To be continued
Listen to a short passage concerning economic crisis and fill in the missing information.
Compound dictationPre-reading activities
To ease credit, the Bank of England last week reduced its main interest rate to one and one-half percent — its lowest ever. The bank was ___________ in 1694. Britain’s economy may have _______ by one percent just in the final three months of last year. The first _________ are expected at the end of January.
established shrunk
To be continued
estimates
Listen to a short passage concerning economic crisis and fill in the missing information.
Compound dictationPre-reading activities
This week, Germany’s ___________________ agreed to an economic aid package worth about 67 billion dollars. The two-year plan calls for spending on public works and a tax cut for low-income Germans. Critics considered an earlier measure too small to ________________ in Europe’s largest economy.
coalition government
fight the recession
Listen to a short passage concerning economic crisis and fill in the missing information.
Compound dictationPre-reading activities
Questions Previewing
1. What is economic crisis?
2. What does mortgage refer to?
3. What triggered US subprime mortgage crisis?
Tips
Tips
Tips
Cultural background Economy
1. What is economic crisis?
• Sudden downturn; • Financial crisis;• Falling GDP;• Drying up of liquidity;• Rising / falling prices.
Cultural background Economy
2. What does mortgage refer to?
• A legal agreement;• The purchase of real estate;• Payment periods;• Interest rates.
Cultural background Economy
3. What triggered US subprime mortgage crisis?
• A national banking emergency;• A large decline in home prices;• Declines in residential investment;• Reductions in household spending and
business investment;• Mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures; • The devaluation of housing-related
securities.
Cultural background Economy
Main idea & structure
Language focus
Critical thinking
Text study
Surviving an economic crisisSection A
What was the consequence when large numbers of homeowners failed to repay their loans? (Para.1)
Tips The companies that had the oversight
and those that owned the loans (as well as their subsidiaries and their shareholders) lost sizable amounts of money.
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
The text starts with an introduction about
the ___________ caused by the economic
crisis, in which the author sets forth the
thesis statement — many people
experienced long months of struggles when
the _______________ swept the nation.
(Para.1)
Part I (Para. 1)
great impact
economic slump
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
Sue faced life as _______ after being evicted from her apartment. (Paras. 2-3)
Where is she going?
Sue packed up and drove out of town. (Para. 2)
She wound up at a motel. (Para. 3)
migrant
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
What were “99ers”? (Para.4)
Tips
They were jobless people who were no longer allowed to claim unemployment insurance benefits which they could only receive for 99 weeks.
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
What did the unemployment benefits mean to the layoffs? (Para. 5)
Tips
Although the unemployment benefits were small in amount, they helped jobless people to survive and to keep their life going.
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
Sue’s ______________________ had expired. (Paras. 4-6)
unemployment benefits
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
Sue was a “99er”. (Para. 4)
Unemployment benefits were her _______. (Para. 5)lifeline
she began to tumble over the ____________. (Para. 6)economic cliff
Sue faced life as migrant because
her unemployment benefits had
expired.
Body: Section 1 (Paras. 2-6)
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
Why does the author say Sue spent each day like a ping pong ball? (Para. 7)
Tips
Because she went back and forth between resolve and despair.
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
Belief and confidence
Shelter
Education
Living standard
How did the economic crisis affect Sue’s life? (Paras. 7-13)
Income
Every aspect of
her life
Self-esteem
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
Every aspect of
her life
The economic crisis damaged every aspect of Sue’s life such as her loss of income, a high living standard, her unfinished education, shelter, belief and confidence in life, and self-esteem.
Body: Section 2 (Paras. 7-13)
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
Why did Sue think the only help she was going to
get was from herself? (Para.14)
TipsShe couldn’t receive effective support from the
government and social organizations.
Furthermore, what she needed was far beyond
what her friends could offer and her sons were
also not in a position to help her. So, she could
only rely on herself.
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
All her food supplies were put on the shelves under the television. They were _______________ she mixed with water in the motel’s ice bucket and heated up in a microwave; peanut butter and jelly; ___________________. For Sue, a person __________ this food was only enough to stay alive. (Para. 15)
rice and noodles
a loaf of white breadin despair
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
What new struggles and obstacles did Sue have
to face when she applied for a job? (Para.16)
Tips
She had to deal with new difficulties like what to
do for an address for job applications, and
worried that calls would not reach her because
her cell phone was cut off for non-payment.
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
This section is about how Sue’s
endeavor to fight the harsh reality
only gave way to feeling of
helplessness and the reality which
got her in a corner.
Body: Section 3 (Paras. 14-16)
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
Do you think Sue’s life will be better and better after her receiving $300 cash from her old friend? (Para.17)
Tips
No. There is no doubt that this was the only hope in her difficult situation, but it was just a temporary remedy. She couldn’t live on that kind of hope very long and her future might be even more brutal.
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
This section is the conclusion of Sue’s story. It reiterates Sue’s continuous struggle for a living, and how she continues to look for a ray of hope, despite her hardship.
Body: Section 4 (Para. 17)
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
Part II (Paras. 2-17)
Part II is the body of the essay,
containing four sections to expose the
severe impact Sue suffered from the
loss of her job.
Main ideas of the partsMain idea & structure
This text is a narrative essay that touches upon the severe impact of the economic crisis on ordinary working-class people through the example of Sue. The author intends to provoke among the readers sympathy for ordinary working people and thoughts about the disastrous consequences of the economic crisis.
Main idea of the textMain idea & structure
Introduction about the great impact caused by the economic crisis
Many people experienced long months of struggles when the economic slump swept across the nation. (Para. 1)
Structure of the textMain idea & structure
Introduction about the great impact caused by the economic crisis
Body—the economic crisis brought about disastrous effects on Sue’s life
Sue faced life as a migrant because her unemployment benefits had expired. (Paras. 2-6)
The economic crisis affected every aspect of her life. (Paras. 7-13)
Sue struggled to fight the harsh reality. (Paras. 14-16)
Sue needed to continue her struggle for a living. (Para. 17)
Structure of the textMain idea & structure
Surviving an economic crisis
The ______________ originated in the United States. The authorities failed to take effective measures to regulate the ________, whose effects soon spiraled into the US job market as _______ and ___________. Consequently, many people experienced long months of struggle just like Sue.
economic slump
mortgage
layoffs
To be continued
terminations
Summary of the textMain idea & structure
After being ___________ her apartment, Sue packed up her belongings and drove out of town. She finally __________ at a motel where she had to pay a deposit of $260 which she had managed to _______ ________ from friends and from selling her living room set. Sue became “99er” because she had exhausted the maximum 99 weeks of ____________________________ insurance benefits.
evicted from
wound up
scrape
unemployment insurance benefits
To be continued
together
Summary of the textMain idea & structure
She lost her income, the life of comfort and respect, the opportunities for an education. Even worse, a municipal council gave her 10 days to leave her apartment _______ because she was ____________ by bureaucracy for her not paying the rent. The sudden worsening _____________ made Sue lose her belief and confident in life. Her endeavor to fight the harsh reality only gave way to a feeling of ____________.helplessness
for goodcaught up with
living conditions
Summary of the textMain idea & structure
Practical Phrases Specific Meanings
1. pack up 把 ······ 打包;2. wind up 以 ······ 告终3. scrape sth. together/up 勉强筹集,凑足4. a roof over one’s head 栖身之所;住处5. catch up with sb. 抓住并惩罚(某人)6. for good 永远
Language focus
Practical phrases
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把 ······ 打包
We arrived too late for the concert, just as the
musicians were already packing up their
instruments.
pack up短语逆译
短语应用音乐会我们到场太迟了,音乐家们都已经在收拾乐器了。意群提示(too late for / pack up /instrumen )
Language focus
Practical phrases
46
以 ······ 告终
In extreme sports (such as parachuting), you take the risk that you may wind up seriously injured or even dead.
wind up短语逆译
短语应用在极限运动(比如跳伞)中,你可能会冒严重受伤甚至赔上性命的风险。意群提示(extreme sports/parachute jump/take the risk/wind up )
Language focus
Practical phrases
勉强筹集,凑足
They hardly scrape up enough money for the train fare.
scrape sth. together/up短语逆译
短语应用他们几乎连火车票的钱都凑不齐。
意群提示(hardly/scrape up/train fare)
Language focus
Practical phrases
栖身之所;住处
Finding a roof over their head has become a real problem for thousands of young people seeking a home of their own.
a roof over one’s head 短语逆译
短语应用对成千上万想有一个家的年轻人来说,找到可以栖身的房子实在是一个难题。意群提示
(a roof over one’s head/thousands of/seek a home)
Language focus
Practical phrases
抓住并惩罚(某人)
The law caught up with him for 10 years of
failing to pay child support to his ex-wife for his
two children.
catch up with sb.短语逆译
短语应用他由于有十年都未支付给前妻和两个孩子的抚养费而受到法律的制裁。意群提示(catch up with sb. /fail to/ pay child support)
Language focus
Practical phrases
永远
The injury may keep him out of football for good.
短语逆译
短语应用这次受伤可能会使他永远告别足球。
意群提示
for good
( keep out of/ for good)
Language focus
Practical phrases
Functional Patterns Functions & Usages
1. Sb. knows that in all likelihood…
用于表达“某人对事情的判断”。
2. Sb. wonders if he/she will ever again do sth.
用于表达“某人是否能达到从前的状态”。
3. Sb. worries about what will happen when...
用于表达“某人对事情的担心”。
Language focus
Functional patterns
苏明白自己最终很可能以车为家。
原句译文
逆译练习
Sue knew that in all likelihood, she would end up living in her car. (Para. 4, L1)
句型提炼
Language focus
Functional patterns
Sb. knows that in all likelihood…
句型提炼
应用提示用于描述“某人对事情的判断”。
句型应用
Language focus
Functional patterns
典型例句权威人士们明白如果物价继续攀升,消费者极有可能会勒紧裤腰带而更加谨慎地购物。
意群提示
The authorities knew that in all likelihood, consumers would be more careful about their purchases and tighten their belts if prices keep climbing.
(authorities/tighten one’s belts/ keep climbing)
Language focus
Functional patterns
她不知道自己还能否重温那舒适而又受人尊敬的生活。
原句译文
逆译练习She wondered if she would ever again be able to reclaim that life of comfort and respect. (Para. 11, L1-2)
句型提炼
Language focus
Functional patterns
Sb. wonders if he/she will ever again do sth.
句型提炼
应用提示
用于表达“某人是否能达到从前的状态”。
句型应用
Language focus
Functional patterns
典型例句曾经辉煌的球队不知道他们还能否再次赢得世界杯的比赛。意群提示
The soccer team, which used to grow into its glory,wondered if they would ever again win the World Cup.
(grow into the glory/ win the World Cup)
Language focus
Functional patterns
她还担心要是手机因为欠费停机了怎么办?别人拨打她的号码,就如石沉大海,她无法接听。
原句译文
逆译练习She worried about what would happen when her cell phone was cut off for non-payment, and calls to her number would disappear into an invisible world she could not reach. (Para. 16, L2-4)
句型提炼
Language focus
Functional patterns
Sb. worries about what will happen when...
句型提炼
应用提示用于描述“某人对事情的担心”。
句型应用
Language focus
Functional patterns
典型例句年迈而贫穷的老人担心要是自己像寄生虫一样的儿子回家找他要钱怎么办?
意群提示
The poor aging man worried about what would happen when his son returned to him asking for money like a parasite.
(aging man / like a parasite)
Language focus
Functional patterns
许许多多的人正经历的这场经济萧条
发端于美国。对抵押贷款监管不力,致使当时的风险评估远低于现在的最
终结果。 a. The economic slump so
many people
suffered
through originated in the
United States, with a
regulatory failure
of
mortgages rated less risky
than they turned out to be.
(Para.1, L1)
Language focus
Language appreciation
些许的失业救济金对那些失去工作的人来
说可是救命钱,这使他 们 不 至 于形貌落魄,无立锥之地;不
至于无钱加油,缴不起电话费。
b. Modest payments of
unemployment benefits were a
lifeline that enabled people who
were out-of-work to maintain at
least an appearance of normalcy,
keeping a roof over their heads,
putting gas in their cars, paying
electric and phone bills. (Para.5,
L2)
Language focus
Language appreciation
当苏收到最后一笔失业救济支票时,阵阵悲凉涌上心头。
c. When Sue received her last
unemployment check, she felt
a wave of profound grief.
(Para.7, L1)
Language focus
Language appreciation
每天,苏就像乒乓球一样在信心和绝望之间起落不定。
d. Each day, lik
e a ping pong
ball, Sue went back and forth
between resolve and despair.
(Para.7, L4)
Language focus
Language appreciation
苏 连日来 都 在网上查找各种工作指南,四处求职:但一 次次 无声的拒绝让她陷于无助。
e. Sue’s days were spent
surfing Internet job indexes,
applying for jobs where the
silent “No.” “No.” “N
o.” gave
way to a feeling of
helplessness. (Para.15, L4)
Language focus
Language appreciation
1. Who suffer the most severe impact in an economic downturn? How?
2. In what sense is the establishment of a social security system important to economic development?
3. What initiatives should the government undertake to save people like Sue from feeling despaired?
Tips
Tips
Tips
4. Which do you think is important for the government, to regulate economic activities, or to allow the market complete freedom?
Tips
Critical thinking
Theme exploration
Women and children suffer most: Women are among the first to lose job;
having to work harder to seek additional
income; spending less on nurture and
care. Women and children lack voice and power
which contribute to abuse and exploitation.
1. Who suffer the most severe impact in an economic downturn? How?
Critical thinking
Theme exploration
2. In what sense is the establishment of a social security system important to economic development?
To be a source of income;
To reduce poverty;
To improve the standard of living;
To stabilize society;
To stimulate domestic demand;
To promote economic growth.
Critical thinking
Theme exploration
To extend the period of unemployment
insurance benefits for people;
To create job opportunities to help them
with employment.
3. What initiatives should the government undertake to save people like Sue form feeling despaired?
Critical thinking
Theme exploration
It is important for the government to regulate
economic activities in an economy so as to:
1) protect the environment;
2) help people who may be too young, too old,
too ill or otherwise unable;
3) maintain economic stability.
4. Which do you think is important for the government, to regulate economic activities, or to allow the market complete freedom?
to be continued
Critical thinking
Theme exploration
It is important for the government to allow the market complete freedom:1) Free market economy is driven by individual
innovation and the notion that hard work and creativity will be rewarded by success.
2) It make us strive to do our best, leading to more value creation.
4. Which do you think is important for the government, to regulate economic activities, or to allow the market complete freedom?
Critical thinking
Theme exploration
How do you understand the following quotes “ 农业生产是我们经济建设的第一位。” and “Mercantilism was dominant in ancient Europe which frequently led to war and also motivated colonial expansion.”?
According to Chairman Mao, the mainstream of the economic construction of China was based on the agricultural industry. The agricultural society, which lasted for several thousand years, exerted a strong influence on the development of the Chinese culture. So, the agricultural economy always has a leading role in China.
to be continued
Critical thinking
Culture exploration
But Marx Weber thought ancient Europeans were characterised as ocean civilization.They cannot be self-sufficent in food and therefore creating overseas colonies. They promoted manufacturing through research or direct subsidies and a large working population was encouraged.
How do you understand the following quotes “ 农业生产是我们经济建设的第一位。” and “Mercantilism was dominant in ancient Europe which frequently led to war and also motivated colonial expansion.”?
Critical thinking
Culture exploration
Q1: What is their top priority as a country
according to US president Obama?Tips
Q2: How is Obama calling on Congress to extend
unemployment benefits ?
Watch a video clip and discuss the questions.
Video Watching
Tips
Critical thinking
Back
Critical thinking
1. What is their top priority as a country
according to US president Obama?
According to Obama, their top priority
should be restoring opportunity and broad-
based economic growth for all Americans.
Critical thinking
According to Obama, unemployment
insurance is one of the most effective ways to
boost the economy. If members of Congress don’t
extend unemployment insurance before they
leave on their vocations, 1.3 million Americans will
lose this lifeline. It won’t only hurt families already
struggling, but also harm US economy.
2. How is Obama calling on Congress to extend unemployment benefits?
to be continued
Critical thinking
The evidence shows that unemployment insurance doesn’t stop people from trying hard to find work. Without the ability to feed their families or pay the bills, many people currently looking for work could stop looking for good. The Americans who are desperately looking for work should be given the help they need so that they can keep on looking.
to be continued
2. How is Obama calling on Congress to extend unemployment benefits?
Critical thinking
Finally, he is calling on Congress to make it easier
for business to attract more customers and to
keep doing everything they can to make America
a place where anyone who works hard has a
chance to get ahead.
2. How is Obama calling on Congress to extend unemployment benefits?
Critical thinking
Language application
Writing devices
Essay writing
Paragraph translation
Surviving an economic crisisSection A
Further develop a cause-and-effect essay
When using the writing the technique for cause and effect, we have to consider two strategic points:
(1) Whether we are exploring causes or effects or both;
(2) What is the order of the causes or effects we are going to follow, e.g. from the least to the most important or vice versa.
to be continued
Writing devices
The purpose of cause-and-effect essays
To explain to readers:
the cause of an event or situation;
the effects of an event or situation;
both causes and effects.
to be continued
Writing devices
What should we focus on when writing this type of essay?
The type of essay we write depends on
our topic and main point. If we want to
explain why we moved out of our family
home, our essay would focus on causes. If
we want to tell readers the impact a person
had on our life, our essay would focus on
effects. In this unit, we’d like to draw
students’ attention to effects. to be continued
Writing devices
Four bases checklist for cause-and-effect:
1. About unity
Does the essay have a clearly stated
thesis?
Is there any irrelevant material that should
be eliminated?
to be continued
Writing devices
Four bases checklist for cause-and-effect:
2. About coherence
Have I used transitional words to help
readers follow my train of thought?
Have I provided a concluding paragraph
to wrap up the essay?
to be continued
Writing devices
Four bases checklist for cause-and-effect:
3. About sentence skills Have I used consistent point of view
throughout my essay? Have I used specific rather than general
words? Have I avoided wordiness and used concise
wording? Are my sentences varied? Have I checked for spelling and other
sentence skills?
Writing devices
Let’s look at Paragraph 1 &
Paragraphs 7-13 of Text A to see
how cause-and-effect method is
used to develop ideas:
Writing devices
to be continued
Paragraph I is the introduction of the passage, serving as the root cause why so many people experienced long months of struggles when economic slump swept across the nation.
Cause
Analysis of the text
Her loss of income. (Para.7)
Effects Her loss of high living standard. (Para.8)Her unfinished education. (Para.9)Her loss of shelter. (Para.10)Her loss of belief and confidence in life. (Para.11)Her loss of self-esteem. (Paras.12-13)
Writing devices
Read the sample essay
and see how the effects
are developed.
Writing devices
Topic:
Career opportunities created by the
aging population
Introduction:
Thesis statement: The aging population
in America creates career opportunities.
to be continued
Writing devices
Body:Effect 1: Medical and health professions, as well as other professions, are needed.Effect 2: Lawyers are in need.
Effect 3: Businessmen see huge opportunities.
to be continued
Conclusion:The expansion of America’s elderly population will provided good job opportunities in many areas.
Writing devices
Sample:
Old is suddenly in. By 2050, 25 percent of
all Americans will older than 65, up from 14
percent in 1995. The change poses profound
questions for the government and society, of
course. But it also creates career
opportunities in the medical and health
professions, in law, and in business.
to be continued
Writing devices
Sample: Medical and health professions, as well as other professions, are imperatively needed. “In addition to physicians, we’re going to need more sociologists, biologists, and urban planners,” says professor Edward Schneider of the University of Southern California’s (USC) school of Gerontology ( 老年学 ). Lawyers can specialize in “elder law”, which covers everything from trusts and estate planning to nursing-home abuse and age discrimination.
to be continued
Writing devices
Sample: Businessmen see huge opportunities in
the elder market because the baby boomers,
74 million strong, are likely to be the
wealthiest group of retirees in human history.
“Any student who combines an expert
knowledge in gerontology with, say, an MBA
or law degree will have a license to print
money,” one professor says.
to be continued
Writing devices
Sample: Margarite Santos is a 21-year-old senior at USC. She began college a biology major but found she was “really bored with bacteria”. So she took a class in gerontology and discovered that she liked it. She says, “I did volunteer work in retirement homes and it was very satisfying.”
In short, the expansion of America’s elderly population will provide good job opportunities in many areas.
Writing devices
Writing practice
Directions: Write an essay of no
less than 200 words on one of the
following topics. One topic has an
outline you can follow.
Essay writing
Topic: The effects of getting married in collegeIntroduction: Thesis statement: Getting married in college will bring about dramatic harmful effects on students’ development.Body:Effect 1: Maintaining a marriage would do nothing but disturb students’ pursuit of education.Effect 2: Supposing a family is surely a heavy economic burden to both students and their parents.Effect 3: Raising a child may be difficult for young parents.Conclusion: College students are supposed to achieve academic success, so they should not marry young.
Essay writing
You may adopt the following expressions.
take time and commitmentstrike a balance between study and familyyield negative consequence on their future
career and lifebe not financially independentbe psychologically immature to some
extentbe beyond their capability to handlehave catastrophic effects on their children’s
growth and development
Essay writing
More topics:• The effects of peer pressure• The effects of excessive
packing of products
Essay writing
Translate a paragraph based
on a summary of the text by
using the expressions from
the text.
Paragraph translation
当经济萧条在全国范围内爆发之后,许多普通工薪阶层的人们几个月来都在苦苦挣扎,正如苏 .约翰逊一样。苏是失业群体的一份子,因为无钱支付房租,她不得不打包收拾自己的东西,离城而去。她即将面临流浪的生活,这在以前是很难想象的,而她在不久前还有着体面的工作,不错的收入,并在商学院攻读研究生。
economic slump
a group of jobless people
life of migrant
pack up
To be continued
decent job
Paragraph translation
失业保险救济金可以使失业人员不至于形貌落魄,无立锥之地。 可一旦收不到失业救济支票,哪怕是像苏这样曾经过着体面富足生活的人,也会日益跌入经济窘迫的深渊。苏一直在不断地努力以摆脱困境,但她还不得不面临失去自己所拥有的一切的残酷事实。尽管困难重重,她仍继续苦苦挣扎着,寻求一缕希望。
a roof over their heads
a ray of hope
tumble over
harsh reality
Samples
Paragraph translation
Many ordinary working-class people, like Sue Johnson, experienced long months of struggles when the economic slump swept across the nation. Sue was part of a group of jobless people and she had to pack up her belongings and drove out of town for not having money to pay the rent. She faced life of migrant, a previously unimaginable situation for a woman who, not that long before, had had a decent job and a respectable income and been a student in a graduate business school.
Paragraph translation
Unemployment insurance benefits enabled jobless people to maintain/keep at least an appearance of normalcy, keeping a roof over their heads. But without the checks, people like Sue, who once lived a decent and rich life, began to tumble over the economic cliff. Sue was making great efforts to fight obstacles, but she had to face the harsh reality of losing everything she possessed before. She continued to struggle for a living and to look for a ray of hope, despite her hardship.
Paragraph translation
Thematic study
Summary
Revision of the useful
expressions
Revision of the functional
patterns
Surviving an economic crisisSection A
1 偿还贷款2 巨额亏损3 面临着被驱逐的境地4 在一家汽车旅馆落脚5 失业保险救济金
6 不至于形貌落魄
7 立锥之地 / 栖身之所8 前途未卜9 跌入经济窘迫的深渊10 在信心和绝望之间起落不定
repay the loans
drastic losses
face tenant eviction
wind up at a motel
unemployment insurance benefits
maintain at least an appearance of normalcy
a roof over one’s head
face unsure futures
tumble over the economic cliff
go back and forth between resolve and despair
Revision of the useful expressions Language points—Useful expressions
11 一落千丈
12 通过各种渠道求职
13 不断骚扰 14 只有遵从 15 起薪干起的零活 16 医疗保障体系
17 被看成是寄生虫
18 工作指南 19 石沉大海 20 一缕希望
sickening plunge
apply for every possible job in the employment spectrumconstant harassment
job indexes
have no choice but to comply
minimum-wage retail jobs
healthcare safety net
be seen as a parasite
disappear into an invisible world
a ray of hope
Revision of the useful expressions Language points—Useful expressions
Functional Patterns Functions & Usages
1. Sb. wonders if he/she will ever again do sth.
用于表达“某人是否能达到从前的状态”。
2. Sb. worries about what will happen when...
用于表达“某人对事情的担心”。
3. Sb. knows that in all likelihood…
用于表达“某人对事情的判断”。
Revision of the functional patterns Language points—Useful patterns
The end
Surviving an economic crisisSection A