the tail of fame text a, unit 1. book Ⅳ unit 1 pre-class task checking background information text...
TRANSCRIPT
The Tail of Fame
Text A, Unit 1
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Pre-class Task Checking
Background Information
Text Understanding
Difficult Sentences
Useful Expressions
Summary
Writing
Post-class Tasks
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Pre-class task checking
1. Why does the writer compare an artist who seeks fame to a dog chasing its own tail?
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Because like a dog chasing its own tail, when the artist captures the fame, he does not know what else to do but to continuechasing it.
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2. What will happen to artists if they become bored?
Their work begins to show a lack of continuity in its appeal and it becomes difficult to sustain the attention of the public.
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3. Why is it possible for artists to lose support from the audiences if they make changes to their style?
Because the public discounts styles other than those for which the artists have becomefamous.
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4. What do famous writers, painters and moviemakers have to give up in order to maintain their fame and fortune, according to the writer?
KeyKey
Their freedom to express themselves with other styles or forms.
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5. In which way is the performer similar to the politician, according to the writer?
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They have to please their audiences by saying things they don’t mean orfully believe.
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6. What does the writer want to show by giving an example of Oscar Wilde’s uncompromising behavior?
KeyKey
Artists pay a heavy price for remaining true to themselves.
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7. What explanation may failed artists give to themselves for their failure?
KeyKey
Their genius is too sophisticated for contemporary audiences.
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8. Why are Thomas Wolfe, Beethoven, Pestalozzi, and Thomas Edison mentioned in Paragraph 8?
KeyKey
To show that failure has motivated some famous people to work even harder to succeed.
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Look at the following pictures.
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Topics for Discussion 1. Do you want to get famous? Why
or why not? 2. What do you think about their
success?
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2. See the movie Looking for dust and redefine the meaning of fame.
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Background Information
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Tennessee Williams (1911-1983) was an
American writer whose plays are mainly about people with emotional problems and are set in the Southern States. His plays include The Glass menagerie, A Streetcar Named Desire, and Cat on Hot Tin Roof.
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Ernest Hemingway (1899-1861) was
one of the most famous American novelist, short story writers and essayist, whose deceptively simple prose style has influenced a wide range of writers.
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Robert Frost (1874-1963)was
one of America’s leading 20th-century poets and a four-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize.
Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening (1923)Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening (1923)
Whose woods these are I think I know. His house is in the village though; He will not see me stopping here To watch his woods fill up with snow. My little horse must think it queer To stop without a farmhouse near Between the woods and frozen lake The darkest evening of the year. He gives his harness bells a shake To ask if there is some mistake. The only other sound’s the sweep Of easy wind and downy flake. The woods are lovely, dark, and deep, But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep.
雪夜林畔小驻 ( 译 ) 余光中 雪夜林畔小驻 ( 译 ) 余光中
想来我认识这座森林， 林主的庄宅就在邻村 ,
却不会见我在此驻马， 看他林中积雪的美景。
我的小马一定颇惊讶： 四望不见有什么农家， 偏是一年最暗的黄昏， 寒林和冰湖之间停下。
它摇一摇身上的串铃， 问我这地方该不该停。 此外只有轻风拂雪片， 再也听不见其他声音。
森林又暗又深真可羡， 但我还要守一些诺言， 还要赶多少路才安眠， 还要赶多少路才安眠。
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The road not taken
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,And sorry I could not travel bothAnd be one traveler, long I stoodAnd looked down one as far as I couldTo where it bent in the undergrowth.
Then took the other, as just as fair,And having perhaps the better claim,Because it was grassy and wanted wear;Though as for that the passing thereHad worn them really about the same.
And both that morning equally layIn leaves no step had trodden black.Oh, I kept the first for another day!Yet knowing how way leads on to way,I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sighSomewhere ages and ages hence:Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--I took the one less traveled by,And that has made all the difference.
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没有走过的路 黄叶林中出条岔路，
无奈一人难于兼顾，顺着一条婉蜒小路，久久伫立极目远眺，
只见小径拐进灌木。 接着选择了另一条，
同样清楚似乎更好，引人踩踏铺满茂草，踏在其间难分彼此，
尽管真有两条道。
清晨里躺着两条路，一样叶被无人踏脏，愿将第一条来日补，但知条条相连远途，怀疑日后怎能回返。
在很久以后某一地，我将叹息诉说于人，两路岔开在树林里，我选的那条足迹稀，而一切差别由此起。
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T.S. Eliot (1888-1965)was a poet, playwright, and a critic. He won the 1948 Nobel Prize for literature. His works include The Cocktail Party (1949), The Waste Land and the Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.
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Text Understanding
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The passage is a piece of argumentation which tries to convince us that seeking fame sometimes leads to one’s own destruction.
Argumentation + Supporting Details + Conclusion
Argumentation
Part 2
Part 3
Conclusion
Part 5
Part 4
Paras. 2~5
Para. 6
Para. 7
Para. 8
Part 1
Para. 9
Supporting Details
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Argumentation: Chasing fame often leads to self-destruction. (Para. 1)
Conclusion: The writer’s advice to those seeking fame and fortune. (Para. 9)
An artist is hard to be both successful and uncompromising. (Para. 6)
The greatest winnersinitially failed in the conquest of fame.(Para. 7)
Examples of those who failed many times before their final success.(Para. 8)
Some negative effects(Paras. 2-5)
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Difficult Sentences
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1.An artist who seeks fame is like a dog chasing his own tail who, when he captures it, does not know what else to do but to continue chasing it.
艺术家追逐成名，如同狗自逐其尾， 一旦追到手，除了继续追逐不知道还能做些什么。
1. chase v. to run after someone or something in order
to catch them
• Police chased the thief and eventually recovered the missing money.
• The kids chased each other in the garden.
e.g.e.g.
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2.The cruelty of success is that it often leads to those who seeks such success to participate in their own destruction.
成功之残酷正在于它常常让那些追逐成功者自寻毁灭。
2. participate in to take part in or become involved in an activity
• 班里的每个人都应该积极参加这些讨论。• 他们希望有机会参与决策制定。
• Everyone in the class is expected to participate actively in these discussions.
• They wanted opportunities to participate in the decision-making process.
TranslationTranslation
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3.“Don’t quit your day job!” is advice frequently given by understandably pessimistic family members and friends to a budding artist who is trying hard to succeed.
对一名正努力追求成功并刚刚崭露头角的艺术家，其亲朋常常会建议“正经的饭碗不能丢！”，他们的担心不无道理。
3. pessimistic a. expecting that bad things will happen in the future or that something will have a bad result
• 我对未来感到极其悲观。 • 这听起来像是本末倒置，是不必要的悲观。
• I am deeply pessimistic about the future.
• This may sound like putting the cart before the horse and being unnecessarily pessimistic.
TranslationTranslation
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4.Still, impure motives such as the desire for worshipping fans and praise from peers may spur the artist on.
尽管如此，希望赢得追星族追捧和同行赞扬之类的不太春节的动机却在激励着他们向前。
4. worship vt. to admire and love someone very much
• 我们都要有崇拜的英雄，无论他们是运动员、 电影明星还是政治家。• 我小时候崇拜我哥哥。
• We all want heroes to worship, be they sportsmen, film stars, or politicians.
• As a child, I worshipped my older brother.
TranslationTranslation
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4. spur vt. to encourage someone or make them want to
do something
• 我们鼓励他们做出更大的努力。• 是当地报纸上一篇文章最终促使他采取了行动。
• We spurred them on to greater efforts.
• It was an article in the local newspaper that
finally spurred him into action.
TranslationTranslation
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5.The lure of drowning in fame’s imperial glory is not easily resisted.
享受成功的无上光荣，这种诱惑不是能轻易抵挡的。
5. drown vt. 1) to have a very strong feeling or a serious problem that is difficult to deal with
• 这个国家债台高筑。• 我们被数据包围，可是却缺乏信息。
• The country is drowning in debt.
• We were drowning in data but starved of information.
TranslationTranslation
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5. drown vt. 2) to die from being under water for too long,
or to kill someone in this way
• 他们的船在暴风雨中翻了，淹死了 48 个人。• 昨夜有一个男孩在河里淹死了。
• Forty-eight people have drowned after their boat overturned during a storm.
• Last night a boy was drowned in the river.
TranslationTranslation
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6.Those who gain fame most often gain it as a result of exploiting their talent for singing, dancing, painting, or writing, etc.
成功者之所以成名， 大多是因为发挥了自己在唱歌、舞蹈、绘画火写作等方面的特长。
6. exploit vt. to use something well in order to gain as much from it as possible
• 你可以利用已有的才能。• 我们需要确保尽可能充分地利用资源。
• You can exploit a talent which you already possess.
• We need to make sure that we exploit our resources as fully as possible.
TranslationTranslation
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7.Artist cannot remain idle, though. 尽管如此，艺术家仍然不能闲下来。
7. idle a. not working or producing anything
• 一半的工厂在停工。• 汽车厂的关闭使数千人无事可做。
• Half these factories are now standing idle.
• Thousands of workers are idle now that the car factories have closed.
TranslationTranslation
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8.When the performer, painter or writer becomes bored, their work begins to show a lack of continuity in its appeal and it becomes difficult to sustain the attention of the public.
若表演者、画家或作家感到厌烦，他们的作品就难以继续保持以前的吸引力，也就难以保持公众的注意力。
8. sustain vt. 1) to make something continue to exist for a
period of time
• 他发现自己无法维持对那份工作的兴趣。• 这位演讲者成功地使听众的注意力保持到了最后。
• He found that he couldn’t sustain his interest in the job.
• The speaker succeeded in sustaining the listeners’ attention right to the very end.
TranslationTranslation
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8. sustain vt. 2) to give someone strength, energy or hope
• 一顿丰盛的早餐能维持我们一天的精力。• 整个审讯过程中，他家人的支持使他得以支撑下去。
• A good breakfast will sustain us through the day.
• Throughout the trial he was sustained by the support of his family.
TranslationTranslation
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9.Artists who do attempt to remain current by making even minute changes to their style of writing, dancing or singing, run a significant risk of losing the audience’s favor.
有些艺术家为了不落伍，会对他们的写作、跳舞或唱歌的风格稍加变动，但这将冒极大的失宠的危险。
9. minute a. very small
• 擦痕很轻微，几乎看不清。• 不应让他们被这些琐碎的事压垮。
• The scratch was almost too minute to see.
• They shouldn’t be loaded down with minute and unimportant details.
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Useful expressions
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1 、崭露头角的艺术家
2 、不纯洁的动机3 、激励艺术家前进4 、保持公众注意力5 、微小的变化6 、热带丛林
a budding artist impure motives spur the artist on sustain public attention minute changes a tropical jungle
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7 、显著的风格8 、污染人类心灵9 、不妥协的行为10 、起诉某人11 、控告某人做某事
distinct stylescontaminate men’s souluncompromising behaviorsue sb.accuse sb. of (doing) sth.
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Summary
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Have you ever known anyone famous? If so, you may have found that they are remarkably similar to the rest of us. You may have even heard them ________ to people saying there is anything different about them. “I’m really just a normal guy,” ________ an actor who has recently rocketed into the spotlight. There is, of course, usually a brief period when they actually start to believe they are as great as their __________ fans suggest. They start to wear ______ clothes and talk as if everyone should hear what they have to say. This period, however, does not often last long. They fall back to reality as fast as they had ________ risen above it all.
object
originally
fancyworshipping
protests
What will it feel like to soar to such _______ and look down like an eagle from up high on everyone else? And what will it feel like to have flown so high only to ______ from your dream and realize you are only human? Some only see the _______ in losing something they had gained. They often make _________ attempts to regain what they lost. Often these efforts result in even greater pain. Some become _________ financially and emotionally. The only real winners are those who are happy to be back on the ground with the rest of us.
desperate
bankrupt
crueltywake
altitude
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Writing
One of the writing techniques we can learn in Section A is to write a paragraph of a general statement supported by details.
I. Structured Writing
Sample
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1. A SampleCuriously enough, it is those who fail that reap
the greatest reward: Freedom! ①They enjoy the freedom to express themselves in unique and original ways without fear of losing the support of fans. ②Failed artists may find comfort in knowing that many great artists never found fame until well after they had passed away or in knowing that they did not sell out. ③They may justify their failure by convincing themselves their genius is too sophisticated for contemporary audiences.
—① ② ③ Details
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2. Your TaskWrite a composition of no less than 120 words with a general statement supported by details on the following topic:
Reference
Parents Differ from Children in Their Career Choi
ce
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Parents differ from children in their career choice.The question of who should be responsible for planning their career often causes problems for many children. Parents think that they know their children well enough to decide what kind of job suits them. They are afraid that their children are too young to decide their future on their own. However, many children would argue that theyshould be left free to make their own choices.
Parents Differ from Children in Their Career Choi
ce
(To be continued)
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The other aspect of career choice is that parents and their children are often different in their opinions of the ideal profession. Parents would prefer children to choose some professions that are stable and could bring prestige and economic benefits. But some children would rather choose professions that are challenging and requireindependent and creative thinking.
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When you have problems with faulty goods or services, it is often a good idea to put the details of your complaint in writing.
II. Practical WritingLetters of Complaint
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Letters of complaint usually include the following stages:
Background – describe the situation
Problem – cause and effect
Solution
Warning (optional)
Closing
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General Tips: Try to make sure your letter is sent to the right person or department. Try and keep your letter short. Be polite as sarcasm or rudeness will not help your cause! Say what you want for your complaint to be resolved. Give a reasonable timetable for action to be taken before you will consider other options. Keep a copy of letters you write.
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Now that you have learned tips of writing letters of complaint, the following are general templates and sample letters.
You may get more details of writing this kind of letters by learning them.
Complaint Letter Templates & Sample Letters:
Complaint letter Templates:
Sample Letters:
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Sample 1
Dear Mr. Chang:On September 10, our order for 280 women S cotton sweaters was duly received, but we regret to say that 40 cotton sweaters in white color were seriously soiled.We had the case investigated immediately, and the result shows the damage was due to improper packing, for which the suppliers are definitely responsible.Needless to say, we have suffered a great loss from this, as we cannot sell the sweaters in this condition to our customers. We ask you to conduct investigation at your end and reply to us.
(Addresses are omitted)
Sincerely yours,Sunny LeeManager
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Sample 2
Dear Sir, I am writing to let you know the deplorable attitude of one of your staff member. I received my telephone bill for the previous month from you and thought there were some errors in calculation: I had been overcharged for two overseas calls. However, when I called your Complaints Department, the girl who answered my phone was very rude. For one thing she interrupted me continually, for another she even said that the fault was my own. Needless to say, such a way of dealing with customers is unacceptable. I would like to suggest that the girl in question should be disciplined, and instructed on the proper way to deal with clients. And I hope she can make formal apology to me. An early response will be appreciated.
(Addresses are omitted)
Sincerely yours, Donna
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You bought a color TV from the Department Store yesterday. But when the TV set was sent to your home, you found there was no image in it. And the receptionist claimed that they wouldn’t be responsible for it.
Now you write a letter to the sales manager requiring to replace the TV set within 7 workdays.
Your Task
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Post-class Tasks
Task 1: Reading and discussion:
Read more stories about artists who are obscure when living but famous after death, and then have a discussion with your classmates.
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Task 2: Textbook Exercise1. Finish the exercise on your textbook from
P 9-16;2. Preview Text B and finish the exercise
from P24-26;