新编英语教程 6 Unit 3 教案

Unit Three

TEXT I

WALLS AND BARRIERS

Eugene Raskin

Objectives: To discuss the different functions of different kinds of walls.

To identify in the text the contrasts between walls as barriers and walls as screens.

To write an essay on the different conceptions of money in the past and now by using the technique of making comparisons and contrasts.

Pre-reading Discussion

The questions discussed in this section concern with the major points or the general ideas of the text. The purpose is to see how well students have prepared the text as well as to stimulate students’ interest.

1. Walls are seen everywhere, around a school campus or a hospital compound, around a small park or even a small private garden. We have the (city) wall around the Jingjiang Palace /Chamber, which was the ancient wall.

From the title, what do you think of the relation between walls and barriers? Do walls all serve as barriers? Give some examples.

In the old days, walls were erected as barriers against danger from without, and the Great Wall of China can serve as a typical example of this.

The Great Wall of China was first built following the unification of China by the First Emperor of the Qin Dynasty in 221 B.C. It was renovated and rebuilt in succeeding dynasties. In its present form, it substantially dates from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). It stretches from Gansu Province to Shanhaiguan, Hebei, winding continuously across northern China and totaling 6,7000 kilometers in length. The wall was erected to protect China from

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northern tribes.

Most walls in China function as barriers (an obstruction or an obstacle). The wall of a park serves to enclose; the wall of a prison to prevent communication; the wall of a castle to check (e.g., the advance of an enemy); the wall of a kindergarten to keep away from danger/to guarantee security; the wall of a residence to protect privacy, etc.

2. A wall is usually a solid structure of stones, bricks, concrete, etc. in China. What other materials can be used to build a wall? What if it is built with glass or very thin metal materials, or shrubs or fence as it is more and more commonly seen nowadays? Does this kind of wall also serve as barrier? What is the function?

In Singapore, not as many walls as in China are seen. If there are any, they are mostly shrubs' walls / green walls, a continuous and vertical structure of iron bars/wire meshes/wire netting with shrubs stretching in all directions. These are open walls, I would like to call. Everything inside is open to the outsiders. You can see everything inside as far as your eyesight can reach. E.

g., NUS, SP, condominiums, etc. These walls just serve to divide off other places, such as town, house, room, field, etc. There is nothing to do with security.

The walls of many companies, supermarkets, malls, restaurants are walls of glass. Even the bank where security must ensure is walled with glass. Is the bank not afraid of robbery or burglary? E.g. Dahua Bank.

Cash is now rarely used. Money, in most of the time, takes the form of credit cards, a book-keeping banking matter.The bank functions more as a service than a safe for money.

These glass walls seem unsafe, but modern architects prefer this kind of walls. Since every inside place is air-conditioned, these glass walls only function to separate the outside air from the inside controlled temperature and

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humidity. And at the same time, people can have adequate screening inside.

Philip Johnson even goes to the extreme. The Glass House for his residence in Connecticut has glass walls everywhere around except the walls in the bathroom, where the only real privacy is found.

It seems that the walls in modern times serve more as separations than as barriers.

3. Is the new function of walls in modern times the result of advanced technology? Why? If not, what is the real reason?

The new architectural design of walls nowadays is not the result of advanced technology, but the change of mental conceptions of ourselves and of the world. We feel safe. We are not always in fear of danger as in the primitive society. We think we are powerful to conquer the nature as well as the world. We need more inter-communication. Therefore, we don’t need the heavy walls to protect ourselves from danger, to confine ourselves tightly/closely. We don’t need any barriers to separate ourselves from the outside world.

So, walls are not barriers in our modern time.

In-reading interpretation

Comp. 1 - Main Idea:

B. Architecture is an expression of people’s mentality; therefore, changes in their view of the world and of themselves are bound to be mirrored in architecture.

In other words, changes in people’s view incur changes in architectural designs of walls and in the functions the walls serve as well.

So, contrasts in people’s mentality, in wall designs, and in its functions are made in this text.

Step one

--- To specify the paras. in which contrasts between walls as barriers and walls

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as screens are found.

Paras. 3 - 5: The change in people’s notion of money, in the function of the bank, and in its architectural features.

Paras. 6: Classical and new criticism of architecture

Paras. 7 - 10: Attitude toward privacy and possible hostility from without in primitive and modern world

--- To organize group work, listing the contrasts of all the above, and then make class presentations with necessary explanations.

Paras. 3 - 5:

The change in people’s notion of money, in the function of t he bank, and

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Necessary explanation

--- of money:

1. What is the meaning of ‘custom’ in line 10? (comp. 2-2)

It means ‘regular patronage’, business patronage, regular support given to a tradesman by those who buy his goods. In other words, it means the frequent, or constant, or regular purchase of the customers.

2. A deficit economy accompanied by huge expansion, has led us to think of money as a product of the creative imagination.

A deficit economy largely results from huge expansion. As we see from the Asian currency crisis, over expansion, or over development, or over investment in real estate brought about the economy crisis or the devaluing in currency, esp. in Thailand. Because of the deficit economy, the government has to loan money from the World Bank, or others.

--- of the architectural designs of banks:

1. If a building’s design made it appear impregnable, the institution was necessarily sound, and the meaning of the heavy wall as an architectural symbol dwelt in the prevailing attitude toward money, rather than in any aesthetic theory.

If a building was made to look sturdy / invulnerable, it would be accordingly regarded as reliable, and the significance of the thick walls would be measured not by their architectic value, but by their seeming ability to provide a safe location for money.

Or, if a building was designed to appear unattackable, it would be regarded as safe, and the reason for the architectural feature of the heavy walls lay in people’s attitude toward money, i.e. money, such tangible commodity, should be kept in a very safe place. The heavy walls were not designed to meet the needs of aesthetics, or for the purpose of showing the beauty or the taste.

--- of the function of the bank:

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1. a service in which the most valuable elements are dash and a creative flair for the invention of large numbers.

a service in which money including coins and banknote becomes active and vigorous as far as the invention of money is concerned. In other words, money is not always kept in a bank for security; rather, it is in active and vigorous circulation, being used to buy and sell commodities.

2. this bank by its architecture boasts of its imaginative powers.

the bank in this kind of architectural design, i.e. with glass walls, window-display doors, has its imaginative powers.

3. it is hard to say where architecture ends and human assertion begins.

it is hard to tell the division between architectural design and people’s mentality, for the former is the product or the reflection / expression of the latter.

Paras. 6:

1. It is in the understanding of architecture as a medium for the expression of human attitudes, prejudices, taboos, and ideals that the new architectural criticism departs from the classical aesthetics.

From the contrasts given in the last few paras., architecture is a medium for the expression of human attitudes, prejudices, taboos, and ideals. This is the point that R wants to illustrate by dealing with the changes in paras. 3 - 5.

If you understand this point, you can separate the new architectural criticism or theory from the classical one. Or, you will come to know the difference between the new architectural criticism or theory and the classical one.

2.How does R contrast ‘classical’ and ‘new’ theories of architecture? (comp. 3-4)

The latter relied upon pure proportion, composition, etc., as bases for artistic judgment. In the age of sociology and psychology, walls are not simply walls but physical symbols of the barriers in men’s minds.

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composition: arrangement into proper proportion or relation and esp. into artistic form

Classical aesthetics holds that constructions in pure proportion are regarded as the most beautiful, the excellent. Most of the ancient constructions in China are in pure proportion, e.g. the Forbidden City and the folk residence in Beijing.

The new theory of architecture claims the function of architecture as a manifestation of human mentality.

Paras. 7 - 10:

Attitude toward privacy and possible hostility from without in primitive and modern world. These are the two aspects of life R contrasts the modern men and their predecessors. (comp. 3-8)

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--- Attitude toward possible hostility from without:

1. In a primitive society, for example, men pictured the world as large, fearsome, hostile, and beyond human control.

People in a primitive society, for example, saw the world as an enormous planet full of fear, hatred and disorder.

2. Can you illustrate attitude toward possible hostility from without in your own words? or, why did primitive people need heavy walls?

They thought themselves not powerful enough to control the nature, to control the outside world. They had great fear that they might be attacked or aggressed by others. So they needed heavy walls to confine themselves within their own cages, and to protect themselves against the possible hostility from without. They felt quite safe inside of their cages surrounded with heavy walls.

3. The principal function of today’s wall is to separate possibly undesirable

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outside air from the controlled conditions of temperature and humidity which we have created inside.

Today a wall serves mainly as a physical means to protect the desired atmosphere inside from being disturbed by anything unwelcome outside.

Inside, it is air-conditioned, and the temperature and the humidity is controlled. Surrounding is therefore needed to prevent the outside air from coming inside. This is the main function of the walls today.

--- Attitude toward privacy:

1. Why did they do so?

They believed that the beauties and values of life lay within itself rather than in the outer appearance. You could find them if you got close to a personal life rather than a public life. The primitive decorative arts, as well as its philosophies, were as rich and intricate as the walls themselves, so intricate and rich that it is difficult to understand, to see the inside, the privacy. (para. 7) 2. Why are glass walls becoming popular in architecture? (comp. 3-9)

The traditional functions of walls have changed, and glass walls can perform the functions walls are expected to perform in modern architecture. What’s more, glass walls adequately express the beliefs of the modern man. Step two To go through the rest of the paras.

Para. 1

1. Why didn’t R.’s father want to put money in the bank at 43rd Street and 5th Avenue? (comp.2-1)

Because he did not trust a bank with glass walls.

2. Why does R. begin his essay by quoting his father? Do you think this is an effective opening? (Org. &Devl.- 2)

His father is made to represent the earlier generation. His is a voice from the past. R’s is a voice of the present. He begins by quoting his father and then proceeds to contrast the old views with the modern ones. This is an effective opening.

Para. 2

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1. Of course, my father is a gentleman of the old school, a member of the generation to whom a good deal of modern architecture is unnerving; but I suspect --- I more than suspect, I am convinced --- that his negative response was not so much to the architecture as to a violation of his concept of the nature of money.

Brought up in the old tradition, my father is naturally not prepared to accept the idea of modern architecture; his objection to it, I would assume, indeed I should say I am pretty sure, is not a result of his strong dislike of the physical building itself, but rather that of his refusal to change his attitude towards money.

Para. 11

1. To repeat, it is not our advanced technology, but our changing conceptions of ourselves in relation to the world that determine how we shall build our walls.

Again, the decisive factor that can influence the design of a wall is not the advancement of science and technology, but our ever-changing attitude towards our place in this world.

2. The ‘open plan’ and the unobstructed view are consistent with his faith in the eventual solution of all problems through the expanding efforts of science.

Such architectural design as ‘open plan’ and unobstructed view (referring glass walls) is the result of people’s faith that all the problems can be solved through the advanced science and technology.

3. What general conclusion can you draw with regard to the relation between the form and function of architecture from R.’s article? (comp. 3-10) The form of architecture is determined by its function. Function goes first.

3. R. concludes his essay with a reference to a proverb. In what way does it resemble his reference to his father at the beginning? (Org. & Devl. 3) The proverb: People who live in glass houses should not cast stones. (meaning ‘People whose conduct is open to criticism should not criticize the

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conduct of others, who may retaliate by accusing their accusers.)

The last sentence means the modern man studies ‘the fear of the cast stone’ with the result that he dismisses the fear.

Both references illustrate how traditional wisdom is substituted by a new wisdom of the new generation.

Post-reading activities

1. To check the comprehension by doing Comp. 1, 2, 3.

TEXT II

BARRIER SIGNALS

Desmond Morris

Step one

1. What is a Barrier Signal as defined by Morris?

It is a trivial action a person performs unconsciously to fend off any potential threat.

2. What is the posture ‘Body-cross’? (3)

The hands or arms are brought into contact with one another in front of the body. It is done unconsciously.

3. Read the article and try to memorize as many examples as possible.

Step two

One tells the examples and another performs.

--- childhood hiding (1): if... if... if...

--- a special guest on a gala occasion? (4, 5, 6)

His right hand reaches across his body and makes a last-minute adjustment to his left cuff-link.

A female reaches across her body with her right hand and slightly shifts the position of her handbag, which is hanging from her left forearm.

A male may finger a button or the strap of a wristwatch instead of his cuff.

A female may smooth out an imaginary crease in a sleeve, or re-position a scarf or coat held over her left arm.

All these Examples are to illustrate the various ways in which Body-cross, the most popular form of Barrier Signal, is disguised.

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--- in the restaurant: (8)

As he walks across the open space, he rubs his hands together, as if washing them. Or he advances with them clasped firmly in front of him.

--- when edged too close? What is the message it conveys? (11) Arm-fold, in which the left and right arms intertwine themselves across the front of the chest. It transmits a ‘come-no-farther’ message.

--- when seated with the companion approaching too close? (12)

A crossing of the legs away from the companion; to press the tightly clasped hands down on to the crotch and squeeze them there between the legs, as if protecting the genitals; the desk.

Step three

Further comprehension

1. Who is most likely to make the Barrier Signals / body-cross movement in greeting situation? And why? (9)

The new arrival, because it is him who is invading the home territory of the greeters. The greeters are on their own ground or, even if they are not, they were there first and have at least temporary territorial ‘rights’ over the place. This gives them an indisputable dominance at the moment of greeting. However, if they are extremely surbordinate to the new arrival, they are likely to take the body-cross role.

2. What is the message that the body-cross movement conveys? (10)

I am nervous but I will not retreat.

3. Does an adult have the Barrier Signals in some social occasion? (2)

Yes. The fears are still there, but their expression is blocked. The fearful actions are transformed into less obvious movements and postures.

4. What is the thesis statement of the article?

The first sentence of the essay.

5.. Are there any other Body-cross movement?

Open to discussion.

TEXT 1 Unit 3

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The change in people’s notion of money, in the function of the bank, and in its architectural features

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TEXT 1 Unit 3

Attitude toward the world of nature and of men in primitive and modern world.

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