New College English

New College English

Unit Two

I Preparation II Reading Activities

III Further Development IV Translation & Writing

Part I Preparation

1. An argument about the sun

2. Who are they?

Activity 1 An argument about the sun

Directions: Read the fable and discuss in groups the questions below.

When Confucius was traveling in the eastern part of the country, he came upon two children in a heated arfument, so he asked them to tell him what it was all about.

“ I think,” said one child, “that the sun is near to us at daybreak and far away from us at noon.”

The other contended that the sun was far away at dawn and nearby at midday.

“When the sun first appears,” said one child, “ it is as big as the can

opy of a carriage, but at noon it is only the size of a plate or a bo

wl. Well isn’t it true that objects far awat seem smaller while thos

e nearby seem bigger?”

“When the sun comes out, “ pointed out the other, ‘”it is very cool, but

at midday it is as hot as putting your hand in boiling water. Well is

n’t it true that what is nearer to us is hotter and what is farther off

is cooler?”

Confucius was unable to settle the matter for them. The two children l

aughed at him, “Who says you are a learned man?”

Activity 1 An argument about the sun

Questions:

1. How would you answer the chidren’s question?

2. Why couldn’t Confucius settle the matter?

3. What is the lesson of the fable?

Activity 1 An argument about the sun

In every culture, there are some myths and classic tales

whose appeal never fades, especially those beloved charac

ters will always exist in people’s minds. Look at the picture

s of six immortal characters. Discuss in groups about thei

r names and stories.

Activity 2 Who are they?

Activity 2 Who are they?

Chang-er, the moon Goddess

Sheung Ngo Dashing to the Moon Chang Er is Hou Yi’s Wife. She swallowed the pill of immor

tality and rose upwards towards the palace in the moon. She was committed to eternity alone in the moon because she had abandoned her husband.

Each year on the 15th day of the eighth month, when the moon is at its fullest and brightest, people look at the moon and try to see in it the image of a beautiful maiden.

Activity 2 Who are they?

Part II Reading Activities

1. Pre-reading Questions

2. Text Organization

3. Sentence Study

4. Words & Phrases

1. What characteristics come to your mind when you think of a tortoise?

Pre-reading Questions

Usually a tortoise doesn’t have a good teputation. A tortoise is very slow, very foolish. It is ugly but it has a long life. It is often the symble of longevity. But we have a story named “Tortoise and Hare”. Which depicts the tortoise as clever and determined, in the story, the tortoise has a race with the hare, Even though the hare runs much faster than the tortoise, the tortoise doesn’t give up and finally wins the race because the hare is too proud and takes a nap while the tortoise is crawling along.

Pre-reading Questions

2. Can you guess why the shell of the tortoise is not smooth? Give a brief explanation.

I think his shell was smashed by something very hard. One day he was so hungry that he wanted to get into a castle to find some food. The place was very dangerous and because it was at night, he didn’t see that there were some traps. When he was approaching a piece of a pig’s liver, which he like very much, a big iron bar fell off and hit him. His shell was broken into piece. Some kind-hearted mice brought him to a witch, who mended his shell.

,

Text OrganizationText Organization

Ekwefi, the favorite and most skillful storyteller, told folk stories.

Why the tortoise’s shell is not smooth?

Para.1

Para.2-21

Why the tortoise’s shell is not smooth?

Para.2

Para.2

Para.3

All the birds were invited to a feast in the sky

Tortoise planned how he would go to the sky with all the birds.

Para.4-8Tortoise made all the birds agree that he was a changed man, and they all gave him a feather, with which he made two splendidly colorful wings

Para.9-16Tortoise’s selfish words and deeds at the feast in the sky.

Para.17-21

The birds’ revenge and Tortoise’s result.

1. His body rattled like a dry stick in his empty shell. (Line 13)

Sentence Study

本句采用了明喻的修辞手法，非常形象地说明了乌龟饥饿的程度。 like 是介词，表示“像……一样”，是这个比喻句的比喻词， his body 是本体， a dry stick 是喻体。明喻（ simile ）就是两个不同类对象之间的相似点进行比喻。明喻中常用 like 做比喻词，此外还有 as, as if, as though, as … as, similar to 等等。

他的身体就像一段枯柴棍在空荡荡的躯壳里咔咔作响。【译文】

【句型】

Sentence Study

【例句】

It rained as if the flood-gates of Heaven were opened, and it lighted awfully.

Her happiness vanished like the morning dew.

2. Slowly but surely he began to plan how he would go to the sky. (Line 14)

Sentence Study

【句型】 slowly but surely: carefully in order to avoid problems 稳扎稳打地

【例句】 Slowly but surely the great ship glided into the water.

于是他稳扎稳打地开始计划如何能到天上去。【译文】

Sentence Study

3. And there he stood in his hard shell full of food and wine but without any wings to fly home. (Line 69)

全句的主要结构是 he stood there, there 一词置前倒装。 full of food and wine 和 without any wings to fly home 两个短语作方式状语，说明乌龟现在酒足饭饱，但是却没有翅膀回家的窘迫状况。

【译文】他们宁可空着肚子飞回去。

【句型】

Words & Phrases

1. approval n. 同意 , 批准 approve v. 同意

【例句】

Our teacher gave her approval to our plans for a graduation party.

We will have to submit this plan for approval by the managing director.

Words & Phrases

2. eloquent adj. (1) 雄辩的 , 有说服力的 (2) 清楚表明的

【例句】

Susan gave an eloquent speech to her graduating class.

Her enthusiasm made her quite eloquent.

Words & Phrases

3. mischievous adj. 调皮的 , 恶作剧的 mischief n. 调皮 , 恶作剧

【例句】

Gabby looked at him with a mischievous grin.

He needs a hobby to keep him busy and stop him from getting into mischief.

Words & Phrases

4. faithfully adv. faithful adj. be faithful (in sth.) to sb./sth. 1) 忠实的，忠诚的，可信赖的 2) 如实的，准确可靠的 3) 忠贞的，贞洁的

【例句】He is faithful in word and deed.

He will be faithful to you if you marry him.

Do you think the film adaptation was faithful to the book?

Words & Phrases

5. deliver v. 1) 送递 2) 生产 3) 演讲【例句】Our company will deliver your order to your door .

Anna delivered a healthy set of twins.

She delivered a talk on philosophy to the society.

1. Group Discussion

2. To Be a Good Storyteller

Part III Further Development

Group Discussion

Directions: Discuss in groups the following questions.

1) What is the moral of “Beauty and the Beast”?

2) What is the moral of “The Monkey King”?

A good heart is more important than appearance. Although the Beast is very ugly, he loves Beauty and has a kind heart. In the end he wins the heart of beauty and the spell is broken by Beauty’s love.

Nothing can be gained without any effort or hardship. If you want to succeed or make achievement, you have to face and overcome difficulties, or even great dangers. Tang Seng, Monkey and others had gone through eighty-one great dangers or hardships before they could obtain the authentic version of the Buddha’s teachings.

Group Discussion

Sample

Directions: Prepare a fairytale or a legend and tell it to your class. The following titles are for your reference:” Pinnochio”, “Sleeping Beauty”, “ The Ugly Duckling”, “ Snail Girl”, “ Hua Mulan” and “ Lotus Lantern”.

To Be a Good Storyteller

His Spear Against His Shield In the state of Chu there was a man who had a spear and a shield for sale. He was loud in pr

aises of his shield. “My shield is so strong that nothing can pierce it through.” He also sang praises of his spear. “My spear is so strong that it can pierce through anything.” “What would happen,” he was asked, “if your spear is used to pierce your shield?” He was unable to give an answer.

Moral: It is impossible for an impenetrable shield to coexist with a spear that finds nothing impenetrable

All the Good Things

Sample

1. Translation Skills

2. Writing Practice

Part IV Translation & Writing

Translation Skills

如何处理英语否定句

Translation Skills

英语否定句的复杂性主要体现在英语否定词的多样性和否定词位置以及相互搭配的灵活性上。因此，译者可以将英语否定句划分为五个类型分类处理，即 :

完全否定不完全否定双重否定否定转移意义否定

e.g.

1. I don’t know what course others may take, but, as for me, give me freedom or give me death!

我不管别人采取什么途径，对我而言，不自由，吾宁死。2. I know you want a bigger house, but that’s neither here nor

there, we can’t afford it now.

我知道你想要一幢大一点的房子 , 但你说了也没有用 , 因为我们现在买不起。

Translation Skills

完全否定一般只用一个否定词对意义的表达进行全面或完全否定，这类否定词标志明显，较容易掌握，比如： not, no, never, nobody, no one, nothing, neither … nor 等。

英语否定词与 all, both, every, always 等词连用时，就构成意义部分否定，即不完全否定。译者需要谨慎处理汉语的表达形式，以免造成歧义。e.g.

1. In this opinion both parties may be right, but they cannot both be wrong.

据此看来，双方都可能对，但不可能双方都错。

2. The good and the beautiful do not always go together.

善同美并非始终相连。

Translation Skills

Translation Skills

双重否定句既可以指意义的双重否定，同时也指句中含有两个标志明显的否定词，如 no (not) … no (not), not … without, not … until 等。就逻辑而言，双重否定一般是意义肯定的加强形式。因此译者可以译成汉语的肯定句，也可以根据实际情况保留双重否定的形式，加强语气。e.g.

There is no grammatical rule that has not exceptions.

没有一条语法规则没有例外（每条语法规则都有例外）。

Translation Skills

当英语否定词落在 think, feel, believe, suppose 等这些动词上，一般需要让英语的否定词转移到汉语句中肯定的陈述部分，即否定对象转移。

e.g.

I don’t believe in letting children do whatever they like.

我认为不能让孩子为所欲为。 ( 比较 : 我不赞成让孩子为所欲为。 )

Translation Skills

有些英语句中没有使用标志明显的否定词，但是句中却使用了一些含有否定意味的词。这类词多为副词性质，对全句进行修饰，比如： hardly, barely, scarcely 等，这种情况可视为意义否定，译者应注意酌情处理汉语句的否定程度。

e.g.

Easily was a man made an unbeliever, but hardly might he be turned to be another faith.

一个人可以轻易地变为不信宗教的人，但几乎不可能转而相信另外一种信仰。

Directions: Write a composition on the topic: Campus Superstitions. Your composition should be no less than 180 words according to the outline given below in Chinese:

Writing Practice

1) 现代科技突飞猛进，但个别大学生有时会产生迷信念头；

2) 造成个别大学生产生迷信想法的原因；

3) 如何消除个别大学生的迷信心理。

Writing Practice

With the development of science and technology, we are able to control our own fate better than ever before. However, a few students are still superstitious. Some students try to find out their future on network fortune-telling games. Some are willing to pay all kinds of money just for a mobile phone number containing such “lucky” digits as 6, 8 or 9. Some students prefer to do every exam paper with the same pen or pencil with which they got high scores on previous tests. Some graduating students even go to the Buddhist temple to pray for a high score on graduate entrance exam or to find an ideal job.

Campus SuperstitionsSample

Writing Practice

Why does superstition have such a firm hold on campus life? There are various reasons. First of all, college students are curious about what their future holds, and online fortune-telling games could satisfy their curiosity. Secondly, like many Chinese, a lot of students believe lucky numbers can bring them good luck and fortune. Thirdly, college students face quite a lot of pressure in their study, so they seek safety and feel confident in superstitions. Last but not least, some students attribute their failure to bad luck and view their setback as “Fate would have it” (命里注定 ), meanwhile, they wish “Buddha could bless me” on tests or in job-hunting.

Writing Practice

To break down campus superstitions, joint efforts must be made. School authorities should keep their eyes wildly open for the phenomenon. In addition, teachers, parents as well as friends or classmates should offer help to solve the problem. As for students themselves, it is crucial for them to develop healthy life styles both physically and psychologically. In short, if all sides concerned try their best, superstitions will not play such a wide role on campus.