英语国家概况复习内容

III. Term Explanation

1、Standard English

Standard English is based on the speech of the upper class of southeastern England. It is preferred by the educated and is widely used in the media and taught at schools. It has developed and has been promoted as a model for correct British English. It is also the norm carried overseas. Today, Standard English is codified to the extent that the grammar and vocabulary are much the same everywhere in the world where English is taught and used.

2、Bill of Rights (in U.S.)

When the Constitution was first drawn up in 1787, nothing was mentioned about the rights of individuals. Then , in 1791, the first 10 amendments were created. This is the well-known Bill of Rights, which guarantees freedom of religion, speech and the press, the right of peaceful assembly and petition, the right to keep and bear arms, and freedom against unreasonable search and seizure, among others. Altogether, 27 amendments have been added to the Constitution since 1789.

3、Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving is celebrated in the U.S. on the fourth Thursday in November and became an official holiday in 1863. In 1620, when the Pilgrims first arrived, they had met a very cold winter and many of them died. Native Americans showed them how to plant crops, so next year they had a good harvest. They held a big celebration to thank God and the Native Americans for helping them survive the harsh winter. Today people celebrate Thanksgiving to remember the early days. The most important part of the celebration is a traditional dinner with foods that come from North American. 4、Norman Conquest

On September 27, 1066, William crossed the English Channel with a formidable army. On October 14, 1066, William and his army defeated the English army, killing Harold at the battle of Hastings. On Christmas Day, 1066, William was crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey. It is believed that the Norman Conquest of England marked the establishment of feudalism in England.

5.British Parliament

It includes three elements: the Crown, the House of Lords and the House of Commons. It is the Supreme law-making authority in Britain. The real center of parliamentary power lies in the House of Commons. Its functions include: to draft new laws; to scrutinize the actions of the goverment;to influence future government policy.

6. Lost generation

After World War I，many novelists produced a literature of disillusionment. F.scott Fitzgerald and Erbest Hemingway are the spokensmen for the Lost Generation,which

refers to the yong American writers caught up in the war and cut off from the old values, yet unable to come to terms with the new era when civilzation has gone mad.

7. Melting potIt

It meant that as immigrants from different regions and cultures came to live in the United States, their old ways of life melt away and they became part of the American culture.However,the melting pot metaphor was doomed to lose its credibility because its anglophilic values no longer held for the majority of the American people.

8.Renaissance

The word “Renaissance” means “rebirth”. It meant the reintroduction into Western Europe of the full cultural heritage of Greece and Rome. The essence of the Renaissance is Humanism. The real mainstream of the English Renaissance is the Elizabethan drama.

9.the Commonwealth of Nations

The Commonwealth of Nations is a free association of independent countries that were once colonies of Britain. Member nations are joined together economically and have certain trading arrangements, It has no special powers. The decision to become a member of the Commonwealth is left to each nation. At present there are 50 member countries within the Commonwealth(1991)

10.A-level

A-level means General Certificate of Education Advanced Level.the A Level—is an academic qualification offered by educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the British Crown dependencies to students completing secondary or pre-university education.The qualification is generally studied for over two years and split into two parts, with one part studied in each year.

IV. Questions and discussions.

1.What made the United States a powerful country by the end of World War II?

In the early days of World War II, the U.S. government adopted a sit-on-the-fence policy. The American capitalists wanted to continue their profitable trade with the warring countries, including the aggressors. Therefore, they not only retained their military forces, but also accumulated great wealth. When American entered the wars, it was almost at the end of the wars. By sharing the fruit of victory with other allies, American greatly strengthened its power and became a powerful country by the end of World War II.

2.How is the American President voted into office?

Each party holds its national convention every four year to choose a candidate for the presidency. To win a presidential election, a candidate has to spend millions of dollars, travel all over the country to make speeches and debate on television with the rival. The general election is technically divided in two stages. During the first stage, presidential electors for each state will be chosen. In the second stage the electors meet and vote a President. Since the second stage is only a kind of formality, everyone knows who will be the next President as soon as the first stage is over.

3.How does an American university choose its applicants?

In American, there is no annual college entrance examination. College applicants are chosen on the basis of :a) their high school records. Once a student has reached high school, they are very conscious of the need to obtain good marks on their schoolwork if they wish to go on to a competitive university. b) recommendations from their high school teachers; c) the impression they make during interview at the university; d) their scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). Of all the high school graduates, more than 60% continue college after graduation.

4.What were the major causes of Britain’s relative economic decline in the postwar period?

for several reasons:first,britain suffered great losses in the two world war and had gone heavily into debt to finance the war. second, the era of the british empire was over. india and other british colonies, which provided raw material and large market fot british goods, gained their independence. third, britain was forced to mainrain an expensive military presence in many overseas locations until the end of 1960s.fourth,britain had to make substantial financial contributions to NATO and UN security council. finally,britain failed to invest in industry after world war II whereas ote competitors like germany and japan caught up with britain by investing in the most modern equipment and means of priduction.

5.Elaborate the rise and fall of the British Empire.

Colonization of Newfoundland in 1583 marked the beginning of the British Empire. By 1837, Britain had been an empire which included the colonies in Canada, India and many small states in the West Indies. During the mid-19th century, the British government consolidated the existing colonies by bringing them under the direct control of the government. By the end of 19th century, the British Empire included about a quarter of the global popu lation and a quarter of the world’s landmass. Before World War I, Britain was the largest colonial empire in the world. However, Britain suffered a great loss of its manpower in the two World Wars and exhausted its reserves of gold, dollars and overseas in vestment. Most of Britain’s colonies gained independence as a result

of World War II, which inevitably led to the fall of the British Empire.

6. What was the cause of the American Civil War?

The Southern planters of America needed a large number of black African slaves to manage their plantations and they regarded the slaves as their property. In the North, with the development of industry, there was a growing demand for free labor. What’s more, the Northerners demanded a law to protect tariffs and asked the government to finance the building of railways and roads. But the Southerners were against it and advocated free trade so as to purchase cheaper goods from foreign countries. The accumulating conflicts led to the division of the North and the South and finally the American Civil War.