新编英语教程4Unit

Unit One1.Movie ClipWatch the movie clip and answer the following questions.1.What is Ingrid’s first New Year’s resolution? Did she accomplish it?Her first New Year’s resolution is to quit her job. Yes, she did.2.Why did Ingrid buy the man for the whole day?Because she wanted him to help make her other New Year’s resolutions come true by midnight.Discussion:Why do New Year’s resolutions rarely work? In your opinion, how can we succeed in achieving them?(This is an open question.)Script（From New Year’s Eve）- All right. Working on those resolutions, huh?- No.- Okay. I have a delivery here for Mr. Jonathan Cox.- Do you work here?- No. I work for a courier(快递员) service. I’ve been delivering packages to you for about, I don’t know, a year now. But I think this is maybe the first time you’ve ever looked me in the eye. How are you doing?- Sorry. That’s actually an old resolution. Make more eye contact.- So those were New Year’s resolutions, huh? Looks like a long list. You gotta get on it.- I don’t know, maybe next year.- Whoa. Jeez! Are you serious? That is a hot ticket.- Really?- It’s amazing. They have the best food, the best music. They have so many single girls. And it’s a masquerade（化妆舞会）, so you don’t even have to worry about their faces. You kind of just, you know, use your imagination. If anybody tries to kick you out, or even asks who you are, you just straight-up lie. What are they gonna do? It’s brilliant. It’s like Facebook, but real.- I remember who you are now.- Right, exactly. Anyways, I would give my left... Well, maybe next year.- Ms. Withers? Did you call in a delivery of something?- Ingrid.- Ingrid.- And actually, I’m your next job. I bought you for the day.- Bought me for the day, huh? Oh, Ms. Withers. I think I should be offended（得罪，冒犯）, but I’m just too intrigued（好奇的，被迷住的）.- My New Year’s resolutions. I just took care of the first one.- You quit your job? All right.- If you can make the rest of these come true by midnight, you get these.- For me? Holy shi... Whoa. Whoa, okay. Put these down. Put these down. Don’t flash those around. Everybody can see them. Seriously, You called the right guy. I’m in. Let me see No. Two. What is it? Whew. Go to Bali. Breakfast at Tiffany’s. You wanna save a life. Are you kidding me? It’s physically impossible. I don’t understand what you’re talking about. All right?I don’t understand what you want me to do here.- Use your imagination.- We’re gonna need a bigger boat.- You know, you don’t have to sit like that. You can put your legs around me, or you can hold onto me.- No, I’m okay.- All right.- This is it. This is as close to the ball dropping as I can get you. Hey, good luck with that last one, all right?- No. I figured that was a long shot going in.- A long shot? What are you talking about? Going to Bali? That was kind of a long shot.- Let’s get this out of here, okay?- Man, I don’t even know whose this is, bro. I’m just saying.- Thanks. Make a list of your own. Don’t wait as long as I did.- Pow, pow, shwing.- Thank you. Mm.- Goodbye.- Goodbye.- Have a great time.- You too. Happy new year, Ingrid.2.QuotesRead the following quotes and tell your classmates which one is your favorite. State your reasons.Sometimes we know the best thing to do, but fail to do it. New year’s resolutions are often like that. We make resolutions because we know it would be better for us to lose weight, or get fit, or spend more time with our children. The problem is that a resolution is generally easier to break than it is to keep.— Peter SingerNo one’s ever achieved financial fitness with a January resolution that’s abandoned by February.— Suze OrmanI have no way of knowing how people really feel, but the vast majority of those I meet couldn’t be nicer. Every once in a while someone barks at me. My New Year’s resolution is not to bark back.— Tucker CarlsonMy New Year’s Resolution List usually starts with the desire to lose between ten and three thousand pounds.— Nia VardalosIf you asked me for my New Year Resolution, it would be to find out who I am.— Cyril CusackMay all your troubles last as long as your New Year’s resolutions.— Joey AdamsI think in terms of the day’s resolutions, not the years’.— Henry MooreMaking resolutions is a cleansing ritual of self assessment and repentance that demands personal honesty and, ultimately, reinforces humility. Breaking them is part of the cycle.—Eric ZornI made no resolutions for the New Year. The habit of making plans, of criticizing, sanctioning and molding my life, is too much of a daily event for me.—Anaïs NinText I1.Pre-Reading QuestionsThe hero of the story, who is married and has four children, is talking about his New Year’s Resolution in the text. In the first paragraph, he says “This year it’s going to be different”.Why does he say so? What sort of resolutions did he make in the previous years? How do his New Year’s resolutions for this year differ from previous ones? Make a few guesses.For your reference:When a person makes New Year’s resolutions, he makes up his mind to do or not to do certain things in the coming year. Of course, different people make different New Year’s resolutions. For example, a student may decide to work harder at his studies and not go to the cinema so often; a teacher may decide to improve his/her teaching; a heavy smoker may decide to stop smoking altogether. Some people may be able to carry out their New Year’s resolutions, but some may not. For most people, it’s often easier to make New Year’s resolutions than to carry them out.2.General ReadingYou are given five minutes to read the text rapidly once to get the main idea.Now decide which of the following statements best sums up the main idea. Put a tick by it.__ 1. Some of his family members were pleased while others were not when the writer tried to please everybody in the family on New Year’s Day.__ 2. The writer tried to be a better husband and a better father in the new year, and his family members appreciated this.√ 3. The writer carried out his New Year’s resolutions faithfully to improve himself, but the results all went contrary to his expectations.Key（点击答案按钮，上述第三句前面横线上出现√）3.Background Notes(1) escapement（卡子，擒纵机）An escapement is a device in mechanical watches and clocks that transfers energy tothe timekeeping element and allows the number of its oscillations（振荡，振动）to be counted. The escapement is driven by force from a coiled卷spring弹簧or a suspended悬挂暂停weight, transmitted through the timepiece’s时钟座钟gear 齿轮排挡train. The amount of stored energy, energy loss and efficiency of transfer to the timekeeping element determines the time a clock will run after it has been wound.(2) small talkSmall talk is meaningless conversation in terms of content, but is often seen as socially important in certain situations, or context. In many English-speaking countries, it can be viewed as rude or unfriendly not to participate in it. Non-personal comments about non-controversial subjects are usually considered as appropriate for this type of conversation.4.TextThis Year It’s Going to Be Different(1)New Year’s resolutions are like anything else — you get out of them what you put in. Judging from results of other years, I had never put enough in, but this year was going to be different. I read books on self-improvement before I wrote my list. Find some beauty in everything. ... Make the other fellow feel important. ... About thirty like that. Pretty clearly, (2)anyone who followed my collection of rules would be blessed with a richer life, (1)boundless无穷的无限的love from his family, and the admiration of the community. I could hardly wait until New Year’s Day.When I came downstairs Maggie, my wife, was at the kitchen sink水池. I (2)tiptoed over 踮着脚尖走and kissed her on the back of the neck. (Resolution No.1: Be (3)spontaneous自发的无意识的自然的in showing affection.) She (4)shrieked尖叫and dropped a cup. “Don’t ever (5)sneak up悄悄来临鬼鬼祟祟on me like that again!” she cried.“You’re looking lovely this morning,”I said. (A sincere (6)compliment称赞恭维is worth its weight in gold.)(3)“Look,” she said, “it wasn’t my idea to stay out until four a.m.”I took some aspirin and coffee into the living room. I’d just started reading the paper when Sammy, our five-year-old, came in. He was wearing the watch he’d received for Christmas. (4)“Say, Dad,” he said, “what makes a watch run?”In the old days I would have told him to ask his mother. Instead, I got a pencil and drew a (7)sketch草图素描of the escapement (8)mechanism结构机械装置机能. (Always encourage your child’s curiosity.) It took about fifteen minutes, and Sammy wandered off several times, but I kept calling him back. “There,”I said, “that’s what makes your watch run.”(5)“Then how come it doesn’t?” he asked.His brother Roy walked by. “You have to wind上发条it,” said Roy. Sammy wound it and held it to his ear. He smiled. “Roy sure is smart,” he said.Our daughter Gretchen came in with her doll, Mrs. Robinson. “Good morning, Gretchen,” I said. “Happy New Year, Mrs. Robinson.” (Meet your child at his own level.)(6)“It isn’t either happy,” said Gretchen. “Mrs. Robinson is sick. Probably a coronary冠状动脉血栓形成.”“Why don’t you take her to see Dr. Sammy?” I suggested. “He can use his new doctor’s kit.”The phone rang, and I answered it. It was a friend of our daughter Kit. “Happy New Year, Marilyn,” I said. “What have you been doing over the holidays?” (Show an interest in your children’s friends.) She said she hadn’t been doing anything much. “(7)Come now, a pretty girl like you,”I said (9)jovially—(8)“I’ll bet the fellows are(10)swarming蜂群挤满涌往around.… What’s that? Yes, of course you can speak to Kit. Certainly.”Kit was in her room with the record player going very loud, I (11)rapped敲击on the door. She called out something, and I went in. She was in her pajamas睡衣裤. “I didn’t say you could come in!” she (12)yelled, grabbing抓住a robe睡袍and holding it in front of her. At fourteen, she has become extremely aware of being female.“I’m sorry. I couldn’t understand you,”I said apologetically. To ease the situation, I picked up her (13)brand-new全新的sweater毛衣运动衫from the floor and put it over a chair.“I was going to pick it up,”she said defensively, “You don’t always put your things away.”There was a series of shrieks down the hall. I found Gretchen in tears. Roy and Sammy were about to perform open-heart surgery外科手术on Mrs. Robinson with a scou搜索侦察跟踪t knife. “She told us Mrs. Robinson was sick,” Roy said.(9)I suggested that they carve切雕something for their mother — like a salad spoon. (Encourage creativity in the young.)In the kitchen, Maggie wanted to know what was wrong with Gretchen. “Mrs. Robinson had a coronary,” I told her.“I know you’re not feeling your best after last night,” she said, “but I’m getting a little tired of these smart remarks. Would you mind taking the garbage out?”“I’d be happy to,” I said. (The most (14)trivial琐碎的平常的(15)chore零星工作令人讨厌的工作can prove rewarding if approached with (16)zest热情兴趣.)“Do you have to be so (17)sarcastic讽刺的挖苦的?” she said.It seemed that my resolutions weren’t working the way the books had said. I didn’t quit, though. I helped the boys build a snowman — only Sammy got his feet wet and Roy lost his mittens露指手套and they went inside. I played jacks玩游戏with Gretchen, but she said I didn’t do it right. I (18)struck up 开始a conversation with Kit, trying to establish some kind of (19)rapport友好关系融洽和谐. I touched on hippies, pop music, dating, (20)morality and so on. She contributed very little. Anybody else (10)would have thrown in the sponge, but I kept trying. For example, Maggie always (21)dreads 害怕担心taking down拿取the Christmas tree, so I thought I’d do it for her. (Take over接管帮忙one of your wife’s chores, she’ll love you for it.)I was about two thirds done when Maggie came in. “Oh, no!” she cried. “I wanted it left up for the party tonight. Can’t you just sit and watch a football game, please? It’s what you usually do on New Year’s.”“This year is different,” I said.“Yes, isn’t it?”She shook her head. “I swear I don’t know. The kids have been impossible all day. I found the boys (22)whittling切削on my best salad spoon, and then(12)they had the nerve to say you suggested it. And Kit has been (12)in a poisonous mood. She said that Marilyn phoned and you didn’t tell her. And that you (23)cross-examined盘问Marilyn about her boyfriends.”(13)“Hold it!” I said. “I was only making small talk.” By now the kids were in the room, drawn by the commotion混乱喧闹.“You never bothered with small talk before. Why start now?”“Because it’s New Year’s,”I said. I explained to the assembled gathering about the books and the resolutions and what I’d been trying to accomplish. Silence. The kids stood there looking uneasily at each other. “A man wants to improve himself,” I said. “He wants to be a better husband, a better father —”“We all want to be better,”Maggie said. “Except that when you’re so considerate it doesn’t seem natural. (14)If the kids do something and you get mad, they know where they stand. But when you’re so (24)even-tempered性情平和的沉重的稳重的—”“Yeah,” Kit said. “You didn’t say a word about my clothes on the floor. You just smiled.(15)It made me sick.”Roy said, “(16)I been in more trouble today.…”Gretchen said, “I think it was better when you didn’t play jacks.”“(17)And yelled,” Sammy said, “and said ‘damitall（damn it all 口语表达愤怒的式）’.”“All right,” I (25)snarled咆哮吠, “I make every effort to be a good father, and this is the thanks I get. The fact is, you don’t deserve the father you’ve got.”I was illustrating 说明表明my points with gestures. “You’re the ones who’d better start making resolutions. Like doing your homework, cleaning your rooms, (18)letting the spoons alone. And when I tell you to do something,(19) jump!”I reached out to steady a lamp I had brushed with my sleeve. “Furthermore —” At this moment, I realized suddenly that the atmosphere had changed. The kids were sprawled四肢伸展坐着on the floor, relaxed. I turned to Maggie.“Why is everybody smiling? What’s the big joke?”“No joke,” she said. “We’re just happy to have you back again.”Words and phrases: (点击文中红色单词或词组，出现该红色部分及e.g.字样，再单击e.g. ，出现例句)(1) boundless: a. having no limit or ende.g. Have you ever experienced a time in your life when you have boundless energy?The Internet occupies little space and has a boundless storing capacity.(2) tiptoe:v. walk quietly and carefully on your toes, so that nobody hears youe.g. He tiptoed quietly around the house to avoid waking the children.The constitutional right to bear arms is seen by many Americans as set in stone,and even after mass shootings, politicians have tiptoed around specific steps.(3) spontaneous:a. not planned or organized, but happening by itself, self-generatede.g. Both sides burst into spontaneous cheers at the magician’s skillful tricks.The activities may be spontaneous or at the suggestion of the teacher.(4) shriek:v. make a very high loud sound, especially because one is afraid, angry, excited, orin paine.g. Everyone is shrieking with excitement and jumping up and down.People sometimes shriek because of terror, anger, or pain.(5) sneak:v. go somewhere secretly and quietly in order to avoid being seen or hearde.g. How did you sneak off in the middle of the meeting without being noticed?His son grabbed his running shoes and sneaked out this morning.(6) compliment:n. a remark that shows one admires someone or somethinge.g. Receiving a compliment can lead to a great friendship or help a day be better.They have discovered that the same area of the brain is activated when a person isrewarded a compliment or cash.(7) sketch:n. a simple, quickly-made drawing that does not show much detaile.g. The sketch should be centered horizontally on the canvas.With this program you can get not just black and white sketch, but a color picture.(8) mechanism:n. part of a machine or a set of parts that does a particular jobe.g. Removing the hands from a battery-operated clock mechanism is an easy job thatrequires no special tools.A regenerative brake is an energy recovery mechanism which slows a vehicle orobject down by converting its kinetic energy into another form.(9) jovially:adj. happilye.g. He also resumed smoking, jovially asking an interviewer what he would do if he onlyhad a month to live.The girl was feeling very insignificant when she heard someone laughing jovially behind her.(10) swarm:v. go to a place as a large, uncontrolled groupe.g. By midday skiers will swarm over the slopes of this popular winter resort.The passionate students swarm into the auditorium to attend a lecture by thecelebrated professor of Cambridge University.(11) rap:v. hit or knock something quickly several timese.g. He rapped sharply on his son’s head with his knuckles.He shouted and rapped with his walking stick on the door.(12) yell:v. shout or say something very loudly, especially because one is frightened, angry,or excitede.g. If you ask children how they feel about being yelled at, they will all tell you theydon’t like it.He yelled out the wrong answer in class and now he looks like a moron.(13) brand-new: a. new and not yet usede.g. Waving in the day of snow, we greeted a brand-new year again.More importantly, users will enjoy a brand-new experience while interactingtogether on the multi-touch table.(14) trivial:a. not serious, important, or valuablee.g. Please don’t omit any details, no matter how trivial they may seem.Cool down! There’s no need to lose your temper over such a trivial matter.(15) chore:n. a task such as cleaning, washing, and ironing that has to be done regularly athome; something one has to do that is very boring and unpleasante.g. The calories burned while you’re doing household chores can really add up.It’s a real chore for me to write a book review because it’s like a contest.(16) zest:n. eager interest and enjoymente.g. Romance in its broader meaning refers to a zest for life.A leader must have zest if people are to follow him and achieve the corporatemission.(17) sarcastic:a. saying or doing things that are the opposite of what one means, in order tomake an unkind joke or to show that he or she is annoyede.g. The state trooper was obviously being sarcastic when he asked if myspeedometer was working.I don’t always send a sarcastic text—but when I do, it gets completelymisinterpreted.(18) strike up a conversation with: start talking withe.g. I struck up a conversation with the girl sitting next to me.All of them find it difficult to strike up a conversation with a stranger.(19) rapport:n.a friendly relationship of mutual understanding or trust and agreementbetween peoplee.g. Building rapport is important in interpersonal relationships.He always tried to maintain a rapport with his customers.(20) morality:n.beliefs or ideas about what is right and wrong and about how peopleshould behavee.g. The traditional culture and morality goes down generation by generation.Wisdom without morality is like a ring without a gem.(21) dread:v.feel anxious or worried about something that is going to happen or mayhappene.g. He was late for his English lesson that morning as he dreaded having to speak inpublic.Have you ever dreaded a conversation with a co-worker, a boss or even a client?(22) whittle:v. cut a piece of wood into a particular shape by cutting off small pieces with aknife; gradually make something smaller by taking parts awaye.g. Make this plug smaller for me, but do not whittle away too much wood.Your article is too long, try to whittle it away to half its length.(23) cross-examine:v. ask someone questions about something that they have just said, tosee if they are telling the truth, especially in a court of lawe.g. Before you cross-examine a witness you need to consider whether the evidencethey have provided in chief is harmful to your case.Under the common law, a party cannot cross-examine its own witness unless thewitness is declared hostile.(24) even-tempered:a. calm and not easily irritatede.g. Dr. Pat discusses why a normally even-tempered pre-teen may become moody orperhaps depressed.An even-tempered dog is a welcome addition to a family.(25) snarl:v. speak or say something in a nasty, angry waye.g. “Shut up,” he snarled.The drunk snarled at the security guard who told him to leave the area.Notes （点击文中蓝色字体，出现该容，再点击，出现下面的注释容）(1)New Year’s resolutionsomething one makes up one’s mind to do at the beginning of a new year in order to be and do better in the year ahead(2)anyone … would be blessed with a richer life …anyone … would be lucky enough to have an interesting and eventful life …The literal meaning of bless is “ask God’s favour or protection for”.Example:The priest blessed the people in the parish.Be blessed with, however, only means “have something such as an ability, a good quality, which is admired or which is an advantage to a person.”More examples:My eighty-year-old grandmother is blessed with good health.His brother is blessed with an inquisitive mind.(3)“Look,” she said, “it wasn’t my idea …”Look in this context is an interjection which is used for emphasizing a point before making a statement, often when one is angry. Sometimes look here is used to expressthe same meaning and feeling.More examples:Look, I don’t mind your opening the window, but you shouldn’t let the child sit in the draught.Look here, where are your manners? How can you talk to your grandmother like that?(4)“Say, Dad,” he said, “what makes a watch run?”Say used in this way is an Americanism. It is used to attract attention or to express surprise.More examples:Say, how come you’re here!Say, what makes the lid of the kettle go up when the water’s boiling?(5)Then how come it doesn’t?Then why doesn’t it run? How come is informally used to ask “how does / did it happen (that) …?” or “why …?”More examples:How come many vegetables, such as cucumbers, tomatoes and green peppers, are still in good supply these days despite the recent downpour?“How come so many foreign visitors went to Harbin last winter?”“Because of the annual ice festival held there. Many overseas tourists wanted to see the famous ice sculptures there.”(6)It isn’t either happy.The normal order of the sentence is: It isn’t happy, either. This is child talk, meaning “It’s really unhappy.”(7)come nowThis is an expression used to encourage the person spoken to, or persuade / convince him or her. It may also express irritation or impatience.More examples:Come now, you can do it yourself.Come now, of course you can come to the lecture.(8)I’ll bet the fellows are swarming around.I’m sure many young men are after you. The literal meaning of bet is “risk (money) on the result of a future event” (打赌).Example:He betted his friend $100 that Team A would defeat Team B in the semi-final.But when informally used, bet means “be certain that something will happen”.Examples:I bet it’ll clear up tomorrow just for the football game.I’ll bet our alumni get-together will be a great success.You bet is used informally as an emphatic way of saying “yes”.Example:“Are you coming to the farewell party for Mrs. Thomson?”“You bet.” (＝Certainly.)(9)I suggested that they carve something for their mother — like a salad spoon.I suggested that they should carve something for their mother, for example, a saladspoon, using the scout knife.Carve is in the subjunctive. A subjunctive verb is often used in the that-clause after such verbs as suggest, request, insist, recommend, etc.This use of the subjunctive is mainly American English. In British English, should＋verb is used in the that-clause.Example:He insisted that Tom should go alone.salad spoon — a big wooden or plastic spoon used to serve or mix a dish of cold, sliced vegetables such as lettuce, cucumber and tomato seasoned with oil(10)w ould have thrown in the spongewould have admitted defeat and given up doing …(11)t hey had the nerve to say you suggested itThey were rude enough to say that … The literal meaning of nerve is 神经, but have the nerve to do something means “shock or anger someone by doing something rude or disrespectful”.Example:How could she have the nerve to say such a thing in public!Nerve may also mean “courage, determination, and self-control”.Examples:I hadn’t the nerve to speak before so many people.What a nerve! means “What impudence! How rude of you!”(12)i n a poisonous moodin a very bad temper(13)“Hold it!” I said, “I was only making small talk.”“Stop talking!” I said, “I was only talking about unimportant matters.”“住嘴！”我说，“我不过在跟她闲聊。