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202321世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇

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21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解1  Acommonmisconceptionamongyoungstersattendingschoolisthattheirteacherswere下面是小编为大家整理的202321世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇,供大家参考。

202321世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解1

  A common misconception among youngsters attending school is that their teachers were child prodigies. Who else but a bookworm, with none of the normal kid"s tendency to play rather than study, would grow up to be a teacher anyway?

  I"ve tried desperately to explain to my students that the image they have of me as an enthusiastic devotee of books and homework during my adolescence was a bit out of focus. On the contrary, I hated compulsory education with a passion. I could never quite accept the notion of having to go to school while the fish were biting.

  But in my sophomore year, something beautiful and exciting happened. Cupid aimed his arrow and struck me right in the heart. All at once, I enjoyed going to school, if only to gaze at the lovely face in English II.

  My princess sat near the pencil sharpener, and that year I ground up enough pencils to fuel a campfire. Alas, Debbie was far beyond my wildest dreams. We were separated not only by five rows of desks, but by about 50 I.Q. points. She was the top student in English II, the apple of Mrs. Larrivee"s eye.

  Occasionally, Debbie would catch me staring at her, and she would flash a smile that radiated intelligence and quickened my heartbeat. It was a smile that signaled hope and made me temporarily forget the intellectual gulf that separated us.

  I schemed desperately to bridge that gulf. And one day, as I was passing the supermarket, an idea came to me. A sign in the window announced that the store was offering the first volume of a set of encyclopedias at the special price of 29 cents. The remaining volumes would cost $2.49 each.

  I purchased Volume I — Aardvark to Asteroid — and began my venture into the world of knowledge. I would henceforth become a seeker of facts. I would become Chief Brain in English II and sweep my princess off her feet with a surge of erudition. I had it all planned.

  My first opportunity came one day in the cafeteria line. I looked behind me and there she was.

  "Hi," she said.

  After a pause, I wet my lips and said, "Know where anchovies come from?"

  She seemed surprised. "No, I don"t."

  I breathed a sigh of relief. "The anchovy lives in salt water and is rarely found in fresh water." I had to talk fast, so that I could get all the facts in before we reached the cash register. "Fishermen catch anchovies in the Mediterranean Sea and along the Atlantic coast near Spain and Portugal."

  "How fascinating," said Debbie, shaking her head in disbelief. It was obvious that I had made quite an impression.

  A few days later, during a fire drill, I casually went up to her and asked, "Ever been to the Aleutian Islands?"

  "Never have," she replied.

  "Might be a nice place to visit, but I certainly wouldn"t want to live there," I said.

  "Why not?" said Debbie, playing right into my hands.

  "Well, the climate is forbidding. There are no trees on any of the 100 or more islands in the group. The ground is rocky and very little plant life can grow on it."

  "I don"t think I"d even care to visit," she said.

  The fire drill was over and we began to file into the building, so I had to step it up to get the natives in. "The Aleuts are short and sturdy and have dark skin and black hair. They live on fish, and they trap blue foxes and seals for their valuable fur."

  Debbie"s eyes widened in amazement.

  One day I was browsing through the library. I spotted Debbie sitting at a table, absorbed in a crossword puzzle. She was frowning, apparently stumped on a word. I leaned over and asked if I could help.

  "Four-letter word for Oriental female servant," Debbie said.

  "Try amah," I said, quick as a flash.

  Debbie filled in the blanks, then turned to stare at me in amazement. "I don"t believe it," she said. "I just don"t believe it."

  And so it went, that glorious, joyous, romantic sophomore year. Debbie seemed to relish our little conversations and hung on my every word. Naturally, the more I read, the more my confidence grew.

  In the classroom, too, I was gradually making my presence felt. One day, during a discussion of Coleridge"s "The Ancient Mariner", we came across the word albatross.

  "Can anyone tell us what an albatross is?" asked Mrs. Larrivee.

  My hand shot up. "The albatross is a large bird that lives mostly in the ocean regions below the equator, but may be found in the north Pacific as well. The albatross measures as long as four feet and has the greatest wingspread of any bird. It feeds on fish and shellfish. The albatross has an enormous appetite, and when it"s full it has trouble getting into the air again."

  There was a long silence in the room. Mrs. Larrivee couldn"t quite believe what she had just heard. I sneaked a look at Debbie and gave her a big wink. She beamed proudly and winked back.

  What I failed to perceive was that Debbie all this while was going steady with a junior from a neighboring school — a basketball player with a C+ average. The revelation hit me hard, and for a while I felt like forgetting everything I had learned. I had saved enough money to buy Volume II — Asthma to Bullfinch — but was strongly tempted to invest in a basketball instead.

  I felt not only hurt, but betrayed. Like Agamemnon, but with less drastic consequences, thank God.

  In time I recovered from my wounds. The next year Debbie moved from the neighborhood and transferred to another school. Soon she became no more than a memory.

  Although the original incentive was gone, I continued poring over the encyclopedias, as well as an increasing number of other books. Having tasted of the wine of knowledge, I could not now alter my course. For:

  "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing:

  Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring."

  So wrote Alexander Pope, Volume XIV — Paprika to Pterodactyl.

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解2

  prodigy

  n. a person who has unusual and very noticeable abilities, usually at an early age 奇才;天才

  child prodigy

  an unusually clever child 神童

  bookworm

  n. a person devoted to reading 极爱读书者;书呆子

  devotee

  n. a person strongly devoted to sth. or sb. 热爱…者;献身于…的人

  adolescence

  n. 青春期

  * compulsory

  a. required by law or a rule 义务的;强制的

  compel

  vt. oblige or force (sb.) to do sth. 强迫;强求

  passion

  n. a strong, deep, often uncontrollable feeling 热情;激情

  gaze

  vi. look fixedly 注视;凝视

  princess

  n. 1. 理想中的女友;心目中追求的女友

  2. (oft, cap.) a female member of the royal family, usually the daughter of a king or queen or the wife of a prince [常大写]公主;王妃

  prince

  n. 1. 少女理想中的未婚者,白马王子

  2. a male member of the royal family, especially the son of a king or queen 王子;亲王

  3. (usu. sing.) (among, of) a very great, successful or powerful man of some stated kind [常单数](喻)大王;巨头;名家

  sharpener

  n. 卷笔刀;卷笔器

  campfire

  n. a wood fire made in the open air by campers 营火,冓火

  quicken

  v. (cause to) speed up 加快

  scheme

  v. make plans (for); plan in a deceitful way 计划;谋划

  n. 1. a formal, official or business plan 计划;规划

  2. a clever, dishonest plan 阴谋,诡计

  volume

  n. 1. one of a set of books of the same kind (一套书的)一册;一卷

  2. (of) 体积;容积

  encyclop(a)edia

  n. a book or set of books dealing with a wide range of information presented in alphabetical order 百科全书

  aardvark

  n. 土豚,非洲食蚁兽

  asteroid

  n. 小行星;海星

  * henceforth

  ad. from this time onwards 自此以后

  hence

  ad. 1. for this reason, therefore 因此,所以

  2. from this time on 今后,从此

  erudition

  n. learning acquired by reading and study 博学;学问

  * cafeteria

  n. a self-service restaurant 自助餐厅

  anchovy

  n. 凤尾鱼

  sigh

  n. the act or sound of sighing 叹息(声);叹气(声)

  reliefn. feeling of comfort at the end of anxiety, fear, or pain (焦虑等的)解除;宽慰

  casually

  ad. in a relaxed way 随便地;漫不经心地

  casual

  a. relaxed; not formal 随便的;漫不经心的;非正式的

  * sturdy

  a. physically strong 强壮的

  seal

  n. 1. 海豹

  2. 印记,印章

  vt. 1. 盖章于

  2. 封,密封

  widen

  v. make or become wider 加宽;变宽

  * browse

  v. casually look or search, e.g. in a shop, in a library, at a book, etc., with no specific aim or object in mind 浏览

  crossword

  n. (= crossword puzzle) 纵横字谜,纵横填字游戏

  frown

  vi. contract the brows, as in displeasure or deep thought 皱眉头

  * stump

  vt. put an unanswerable question to; puzzle 把…难住;使为难

  * oriental

  a. of, from or concerning Asia 东方的

  amah

  n. 阿妈(印度等一些东方国家的奶妈、女佣或保姆)

  glorious

  a. having or deserving glory; very delightful and enjoyable 荣耀的;令人愉快的

  joyous

  a. full of or causing joy 充满欢乐的;令人高兴的

  romantic

  a. 1. (of sth.) beautiful in a way that strongly affects one"s feelings 有浪漫色彩的

  2. (of sb.) showing strong feelings of love 多情的;浪漫的

  3. being unrealistic or unpractical 不切实际的

  * relish

  vt. get pleasure out of; enjoy greatly 从…获得乐趣;很喜爱

  confidence

  n. belief in one"s own or another"s ability 信心

  mariner

  n. (obsolete) a sailor 〈废〉水手

  marine

  a. 1. of ships and their goods and trade at sea 航海的;海事的

  2. of, near, living in, or obtained from the sea 海洋的.;海生的;海产的

  n. 水兵

  albatross

  n. 信天翁

  wingspread

  n. the distance between the tips of a pair of fully spread wings 翼幅

  shellfish

  n. 贝壳类动物

  shell

  n. 1. the hard covering of a sea creature, egg, fruit, seed, etc. 动物的壳(如贝壳、蛹壳等),蛋壳;果壳;荚

  2. the outside frame of a building (房屋的)框架;骨架

  appetite

  n. 1. one"s desire to eat and one"s feeling about how much to eat 食欲,胃口

  2. (for) a strong desire 欲望;爱好

  beam

  vi. shine brightly; smile warmly 照耀;(面)露喜色;满脸堆笑

  n. 1. 微笑;喜色

  2. 光束

  perceive

  vt. notice; be conscious of 注意到;感觉;察觉

  * revelation

  n. the act of revealing sth., usually of great significance 揭示;暴露

  asthma

  n. 气喘,哮喘

  bullfinch

  n. 红腹灰雀

  invest

  vi. put money into sth. with the expectation of profit or other advantage 投资

  investment

  n. 1. 投资;投资额

  2. the spending of (time, energy, etc.) to make sth. successful (时间、精力等的)投入

  * betray

  vt. be disloyal or unfaithful to 出卖,背叛

  * drastic

  a. strong, violent or severe 激烈的;迅猛的

  consequence

  n. (usu. pi.) the result or effect of an action or condition [常复数]结果;后果

  * incentive

  n. encouragement to greater activity; motivating factor; stimulus 鼓励;刺激

  paprika

  n. 红灯笼辣椒

  pterodactyl

  n. 翼手龙

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解3

  out of focus

  not shar* defined 焦点没对准;模糊的

  beyond one"s wildest dreams

  (in a way that is) better than what one expected or hoped for 超过某人所期望的(地);出乎某人意料的(地)

  the apple of sb."s eye

  a person or thing that is the main object of sb."s love and attention 某人的掌上明珠;宝贝

  sweep sb. off his/her feet

  make sb. feel suddenly and strongly attracted to you in a romantic way 使某人倾心

  get sth. in

  manage to say sth. about a subject 设法说完

  play into sb."s hands

  do something which gives sb. an advantage 干对某人有利的事

  file into

  enter in a single line 鱼贯进入

  step up

  (infml) increase the size or speed of 〈口〉加快;增加

  hang on sb."s words

  listen very carefully to 倾听;注意地听

  feed on

  eat habitually 以…为食物;靠…为生

  go steady with

  date sb. regularly and exclusively 仅与(同一异性)经常约会

  invest in

  1. buy (sth.) with the expectation of profit or some other kind of advantage 投资于

  2. (infml) 〈口〉买

  in time

  1. eventually 经过一段时间后;最终

  2. at or before the right or necessary time 及时

  pore over

  study or give close attention to 钻研;专心阅读


21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇扩展阅读


21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇(扩展1)

——21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第8单元内容详解60篇

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第8单元内容详解1

  1. In the famous tale Through the Looking-Glass, Alice finds her way through a mirror to a very strange land. In the scene you"re about to hear, Alice has been sitting under a tree and talking with the Red Queen. Listen to the passage twice and fill in the missing words from the text below.

  Suddenly they began to run.

  Alice never could quite understand how they began: All she remembers is that they were running hand in hand, and the Queen went so fast that Alice could hardly manage to keep up with her. The Queen kept crying " _____! _____!" But Alice couldn"t go faster, though she had no breath left to say so. She felt as if she would never be able to talk again, she was getting so out of breath. And still the Queen cried "_____! _____!" and dragged her along.

  " _____?" Alice managed to gasp.

  " _____?!" the Queen repeated. "Why, _____ten minutes ago! _____!" And they ran on, with the wind whistling in Alice"s ears and almost blowing her hair off her head, she imagined. They went so fast that at last they seemed to hardly touch the ground with their feet. And then suddenly, just as Alice was getting quite exhausted, they stopped, and she found herself sitting on the ground.

  Alice looked around in great surprise. "Why, I do believe _____!"

  "Of course we have," said the Queen. "What would you expect?"

  "Well, in my country," said Alice, "you"d generally _____."

  "_____!" said the Queen. "Here it takes _____."

  2. The Queen"s final statement is very often quoted(引用)as a comment on modern society. What aspects of life does it make you think of?

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第8单元内容详解2

  Johanne Mednick

  I have a wonderful bicycle. My family refers to it as "that piece of junk" —an ancient piece of metal, the likes of which can be found in the dump or, if you"re lucky, at garage sales. But I have confidence in my bike. It gives me power, and I cherish its simplicity.

  What intrigues me, in this age of technological innovation (which is nowhere more apparent than in the bicycle world), is the number of people who stop me and comment on my bike. It"s a real conversation piece. "Where did you get that thing?" "I haven"t seen one of those in ages." "What a great bike." I get all kinds of comments — the best one being from a motorcycle gang who cornered me while I was locking it up. They politely suggested that I should wear gloves while riding to protect my hands. Maybe I should also put on a leather jacket.

  But really, what is it that people are admiring? Are they admiring me for resisting the lure of mass bicycle consumerism? I must look like an eyesore pedaling behind my family, who all ride the latest model of mountain bike. (To them, I"m some sort of odd person, an embarrassment not fit to be on the road.) On the other hand, maybe people are just genuinely curious, as they would be if confronted with a dinosaur bone. I never get the feeling that they think I"m crazy for riding something so old when I could be fussing with gears and having a presumably easier time of things. My bike seems to touch a sensitive chord in people, and I"m not quite sure what or why that is.

  Perhaps my bike is representative of a world gone by: the world before gimmicks and gadgets, accessories and attachments. A time when people thought in terms of settling into a cushioned seat, stopping the movement with their heel and travelling a bit slower than we are travelling now. My bike is certainly not built for speed, but who needs speed when I can coast along the streets, hold my head high and deliciously feel the wind on my face? My bike is built for taking time. It makes people feel relaxed.

  When I"m riding my bike, I feel as though I have control. And I don"t feel that way about most things these days. I don"t deny that my com*r and my microwave make my life a lot easier. I use these things, but they also make me feel rather small and, in a strange way, inadequate. What if I press the wrong button? What if something goes wrong? Maybe if I learned to understand these appliances I"d feel better — more secure about my relationship with technology. But frankly, I"m not comforted by manuals and how-to courses. Of course there are always "experts" I could go to who seem to know everything about anything. Relatives, friends, salespeople — people who seem at ease with all the latest inventions and who delight in ingenuity.

  I just don"t get excited over the idea of yet another thing I could do if I pulled the right lever or set the right program. Nervous and unsure in the beginning, I eventually adapt to these so-called conveniences and accept them as a part of life, but I"m not entirely convinced of their merit. I hunger for simplicity and I have a sneaking suspicion that many people feel the same way. That"s why they admire my bike. It comforts them and gives them a sense of something manageable, not too complicated.

  I"m not suggesting that we all go back to a pioneer-village attitude. But I do think it"s important to respect that which is simple and manageable — no doubt difficult in a time when more means better and new means best. I"m proud that my "piece of junk" makes me and others feel good. It allows me the opportunity to relax and, when I"m heading down the road, to escape what I don"t understand.

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第8单元内容详解3

  garage sale

  宅前出售(在出售人住所进行的清宅旧货出售)

  * intrigue

  vt. excite interest or curiosity 激起…的兴趣

  * innovation

  n. the creation or introduction of new ideas, methods, etc.; a new invention, idea or method 革新;新方法

  nowhere

  ad. not anywhere; in/at/to no place 无处

  conversation piece

  sth. that stimulates conversation between people 话题;可作话题的东西

  motorcycle

  n. 摩托车

  gang

  n. a group of people associated together in some (often criminal) way 群;帮

  glove

  n. 手套

  * lure

  n. attraction; temptation 诱惑

  vt. attract, tempt 引诱;诱惑

  consumerism

  n. the consumption of goods and services 消费

  eyesore

  n. something ugly to look at 刺眼的东西

  * pedal

  v. 骑(自行车);踩动踏板

  n. 踏板

  genuinely

  ad. authentically; truly 真地;确实地

  genuine

  a. authentic; real, not pretended 真的;真心的

  fuss

  vi. behave in an unnecessarily anxious or excited way over small * 忙乱;小题大做

  n. unnecessary, useless expression of excitement, anxiety, anger, etc. 忙乱;大惊小怪

  gear

  n. 齿轮;排档

  * chord

  n. two or more musical notes played at the same time; a feeling or emotion thought of as being played on like a musical instrument 和弦;心弦

  representative

  a. typical; being an example of 典型的;代表的

  n. a person acting on behalf of another person or a group of people 代表;代理人

  gimmick

  n. an unusual action, object or device which is intended to attract attention or publicity (为引人注意而搞的)小革新,小发明;巧妙的小玩意儿

  * accessory

  n. (oft. pl) an extra part which makes sth. more effective or beautiful 附属物;附件

  attachment

  n. something that is fixed to something else 附属物

  cushion

  n. a soft pillow or pad to rest on; protection from harm, esp. from impact 软垫;缓冲

  vt. reduce the force of; protect from hardship or sudden change 缓和…的冲击;使免受打击

  deliciously

  ad. very pleasantly 美美地;怡人地

  deny

  vt. 1. declare as untrue; refuse to accept as true 否认

  2. refuse to give or allow 拒绝给予

  appliance

  n. a machine for use in the home 器具;装置

  ingenuity

  n. skill and cleverness in arranging things, solving problems, etc. 灵巧;精巧

  * ingenious

  a. having or showing cleverness at making or inventing things 灵巧的,善于创造发明的

  * lever

  n. 杠杆;控制杆

  convenience

  n. the quality of being convenient; something that makes sth. easier, quicker, more efficient, etc. 方便;提供方便的用具

  convenient

  a. 1. (for) near; easy to reach 近处的,近便的

  2. suited to one"s needs 方便的;合适的`

  merit

  n. value; worth 价值,优点

  suspicion

  n. belief or feeling (usually) that sth. is wrong, or that sb. has done wrong, etc. 怀疑;疑心

  manageable

  a. easy to control or deal with 易操纵的;易处理的

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第8单元内容详解4

  refer to... as

  speak about sb./sth. as...; call sb. something 把…称为…;把…叫做…

  the likes of which/whom

  sth./sb. of the same kind 诸如此类的人或物

  corner sb.

  get sb. into a place or situation difficult to escape 缠住某人;将某人逼入困境

  lock sth. up

  fasten sth. with a lock 锁住

  fuss with sth.

  concern oneself with sth. unimportant (因小事而)惴惴不安

  touch a chord

  call up one"s feelings about sth. 触动(人的)心弦

  be representative of

  be an example or type of (a certain class or kind of thing) 代表…的

  think in terms of sth./doing sth.

  give primary consideration to sth./doing sth.; emphasize sth./doing sth. in one"s thinking; have sth./doing sth. as one"s priority 首先考虑(做)某事;认为(做)某事是最首要的

  go wrong

  turn out badly; make a mistake 坏掉;出错

  be at ease with sth./sb.

  feel confident and comfortable with sth./sb. 自在,不拘束

  hunger for sth.

  want sth. very much 渴望得到

  have a sneaking suspicion

  暗自认为;暗中怀疑


21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇(扩展2)

——21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第5单元课文详析60篇

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第5单元课文详析1

  1. As you listen to the passage, write down the idioms and expressions that match each definition below. Warning: One of the definitions fits two expressions that you"ll hear.

  ______ a) a child who learns to survive by observing life on city streets

  ______ b) competitive strategies used in business

  ______ c) 100% American

  ______ d) unhealthy food

  ______ e) a popular American dessert

  ______ f) an activity, decision, problem, etc., that concerns only family members

  2. How would you answer Li"s last question?

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第5单元课文详析2

  Michael Dobbs

  America can be a strange experience for a foreigner. My wife and I arrived in the United States in January after seven years overseas — four in France, three in Poland. From the jumble of first impressions, we compiled an A-to-Z explanation of why America can be such a foreign country to those who arrive here from Europe.

  I should explain at the outset that I am from Britain, but my Florida-born wife Lisa is as American as apple pie. In our list, however, A doesn"t stand for apple pie. It stands for:

  Ambition. In the Old World, people are taught to hide it. Here it"s quite proper to announce that you"re after the boss"s job or want to make a million dollars by the age of 30.

  Breakfast. The American habit of conducting business at breakfast has reached Europe, but I doubt it will ever really catch on. In France and Britain, breakfast is a family affair. Here, it"s become part of the power game.

  Credit Cards. You really can"t leave home without them. It"s interesting, and somewhat frustrating, to discover that bad credit is better than no credit at all: I was refused a VISA card on the grounds that I didn"t have a credit profile.

  Dreams. The American Dream is still very much alive. Dreaming great dreams is what keeps American society going — from the waitress who wants to become a car dealer to the street kid who wants to become a basketball star. Europeans dream dreams too, but don"t seem to believe in them so much.

  Exercise. A couple of years ago I came to Washington with some French journalists. As our bus passed a health club on the way to the hotel, the French visitors cheered at the sight of body-conscious Americans bending, stretching and leaping around. America"s obsession with physical fitness really amuses — and puzzles — Europeans.

  First names. In Europe, people progress in a natural and orderly way from the use of last names to the use of first names. Here, it"s first names at first sight. This can cause confusion for Europeans. With everyone on a first-name basis, how can you tell your acquaintances from your friends?

  Gadgets. These can be addictive. It"s difficult to imagine now how we survived for so long without automatic ice machines and microwave ovens.

  Hardware Stores. If I were in charge of arranging the programs of visiting delegations from lessdeveloped countries, I"d include a compulsory visit to a hardware store. These temples of American capitalism reveal a whole range of American values, from the do-it-yourself pioneer spirit through a love of comfort that absolutely astonishes most foreigners.

  Insurance. Americans have policies to cover every possible risk, no matter how remote. So far, we"ve refused supplementary insurance for our car radio, death insurance for our mortgage and accident insurance for our cat. It gives us a feeling of living dangerously.

  Junk food. Anyone who wants to understand why Americans suffer from higher rates of cancer and heart disease only has to look at what they eat.

  Ketchup. I had to come to America to discover that it can be eaten with anything — from French fries to French cheese.

  Lines. American lines — beginning with the yellow line at immigration control — are the most orderly in the world. The British queue, once internationally renowned, has begun to decay in recent years. The French queue was never very impressive, and the Italian line is sim* a mob.

  Money. In Europe, everybody likes money, but no one shows it off. Unless it"s been in the family for several generations, there"s often an assumption that it was acquired dishonestly. In America, no one cares how you got it.

  No smoking. No longer just a polite request in America, this phrase has become the law. Nobody would dare ask a Frenchman to put out his Galoise in a restaurant.

  Oliver North. What other major Western democracy lets army officers take over foreign policy? A hero for some, a traitor for others, Ollie (see First Names) is an example of an American recklessness that awes and alarms Europeans.

  Patriots. They exist everywhere, of course, but the American version is louder and more self-conscious than the European. In Britain, it"s taken for granted that politicians love their country. Here, they"re expected to prove it.

  Quiet. American cities are quieter than European cities — thanks to noise controls on automobiles and to recent environmental legislation. This was a major surprise for someone brought up to assume that America was a noisy place.

  Religion. The idea of putting preachers on TV is alarming to Europeans. It"s even more alarming to see them in action.

  Sales. Ever since arriving in Washington, we"ve been hurrying to take advantage of this week"s unrepeatable offer, only to discover that it"s usually repeated next week. We"re just catching on that there"s always an excuse for a sale.

  Television. That grown-ups can watch game shows and sitcoms at 11 AM amazes me — but the national habit, day or night, is contagious. I recently found myself nodding in agreement with a professor who was saying that American kids watch too much television. Then I realized that I was watching him say this on television.

  Ulcers. See Work.

  Visas. Americans don"t need visas to visit Britain (or most European countries, for that matter). To enter the United States, I had to sign a document promising that I would not overthrow the government by force and had no criminal record. One wonders if many terrorists and criminals answer "yes" on these questionnaires.

  Work. People in less developed countries often imagine that they can become rich sim* by emigrating to America. But America became a wealthy society through work, work and more work. It"s still true.

  X-rated movies. We have them in Europe too, but not on motel-room TVs.

  Yuppies. The European counterpart remains a pale shadow of the all-American original. The animal seems more ambitious, and more common, on this side of the Atlantic.

  Zillion. What other nation would invent a number that"s infinitely more than a billion? America may not always be the best, but it certainly thinks big.

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第5单元课文详析3

  jumble

  n. a confused or untidy group of things 杂乱的一堆

  * compile

  vt. produce by putting together many pieces (e.g., of information) 汇编;编制

  outset

  n. beginning 开始;起始

  ambition

  n. strong desire for success, power, money, etc. 对(成功、权力、金钱等的)强烈欲望,野心;雄心

  profile

  n. 1. a short article or programme which describes a person"s life and character 传略,人物简介

  2. a side view, esp. of sb."s head; a shape of sth. seen against a background 侧面,侧影;轮廓

  vt. 1. 写…的传略

  2. 给…画侧面像;描…的轮廓

  * dealer

  n. a person whose business involves buying and selling 商人;证券经纪人

  journalist

  n. a person who works on a newspaper or magazine and writes articles for it 新闻记者;报纸撰稿人

  journal

  n. 1. a magazine for people with a particular interest 杂志,期刊

  2. an account which one writes of one"s daily activities 日志;日记

  leap (leapt or leaped)

  vi. jump high in the air or jump a long distance 跳跃

  n. a sudden jump or movement; a sudden increase in number, amount, etc. 跳跃;激增

  * obsession

  n. a fixed idea from which the mind cannot be freed 着迷;困扰

  physical fitness

  healthy body conditions 身体健康

  amuse

  vt. make (sb.) laugh; cause to spend time in a pleasant way 逗乐;给…提供娱乐或消遣

  amusing

  a. (of sth.) that makes people laugh 有趣的;逗笑的

  orderly

  a. well arranged or organized 有条理的;整齐的

  confusion

  n. 1. the state of being mixed up, more difficult to understand 辨别不清;混淆

  2. disorder 骚乱;混乱

  confuse

  vt. make more difficult to understand; cause to be mistaken; mix up 使模糊不清;混淆;使混乱

  acquaintance

  n. 1. a person you know, but who is not a close friend 相识的人;熟人

  2. knowledge of or familiarity with sb./sth. 了解;认识

  gadget

  n. (infml) a small machine or device 小巧的机械;精巧的装置

  addictive

  a. (使人)入迷的;(使人)上瘾的

  microwave

  n. 微波;微波炉

  oven

  n. 烤炉,烤箱

  microwave oven

  n. 微波炉

  delegation

  n. 代表团

  delegate

  n. 代表;会议代表

  vt. 1. appoint as one"s representative 委派…为代表

  2. entrust (duties, rights, etc. to sb.) 授权;把…委托给(某人)

  * capitalism

  n. 资本主义(制度)

  do-it-yourself

  n. & a. (the activity of) making or repairing things oneself 自己动手(的),自行维修(的)

  * supplementary

  a. additional 补充的,增补的

  * mortgage

  n. 抵押;抵押贷款

  vt. use (one"s land or house) as a guarantee to the lending institution in order to borrow money from it 抵押

  ketchup

  n. (= catchup) 调味番茄酱

  fry

  n. (see French fry)

  v. cook (food) in hot fat or oil 油煎,油炸

  French fries

  (美)法式炸薯条

  immigration

  n. the coming of people into a country in order to work or settle there 移居;移民

  queue

  n. a line of people waiting (for a bus, to be served, to enter a place, etc.) (排队等候的)一队人

  vi. form or join a line 排队(等候)

  * renowned

  a. famous; well-known 有名的;享有声誉的

  impressive

  a. 给人以深刻印象的;感人的`

  * mob

  n. (often derog.) a large, disorganized and often violent crowd of people [贬]人群;乌合之众

  assumption

  n. 1. sth. that is taken as true without proof 假定;臆断

  2. the taking (of power or responsibility) 夺取;篡夺

  democracy

  n. a country or a system of government in which the people choose their government or make important decisions by voting 民主;民主国家;民主政治

  traitor

  n. a person who is disloyal, esp. to his country 卖*,叛徒

  recklessness

  n. 不顾后果,鲁莽

  * reckless

  a. (of a person or one"s behaviour) not caring about danger or the result of one"s actions 不顾后果的,鲁莽的

  * patriot

  n. a person who shows love for and loyalty to his or her country *

  patriotic

  a. having or expressing the quality of a patriot 爱国的;有爱国心的

  legislation

  n. l. laws 法律,法规

  2. the act of making laws 立法,法律的制定

  preacher

  n. 传道士,牧师

  * preach

  v. 1. make known (a particular religion) by speaking in public 布道

  2. advise or urge others to accept (a thing or course of behaviour) 竭力劝说;说教

  grown-up

  n. 成年人

  sitcom

  n. (infml) situation comedy 情景喜剧

  contagious

  a. 1. (of a feeling or attitude) spreading quickly from person to person (情绪等)感染性的

  2. (of a disease) that can spread from person to person (疾病)传染的

  ulcer

  n. 溃疡

  * visa

  n. 签证

  document

  n. a paper that gives information, proof or support of sth. 文件

  vt. 1. 为…提供文件(或证据等)

  2. (在影片、小说中)纪实性地描述

  * overthrow

  vt. defeat; remove from official power 推翻;打倒

  criminal

  a. of or related to crime 犯罪的;犯法的

  n. a person who is guilty of a crime 罪犯

  * questionnaire

  n. a written list of questions to be answered by a number of people in order to get information for a survey, etc. 调查表,问题单

  * emigrate

  vi. leave one"s own country to live in another one 移居国外

  X-rated

  a. (电影等)X级的,禁止(十六岁以下)儿童观看的

  * motel

  n. hotel specially built for people traveling by car 汽车旅馆

  yuppie

  n. 雅皮士(Young Urban Professional的缩写,即城市职业阶层中的年轻人士)

  * ambitious

  a. having a strong desire for success, power, riches, etc. 有野心的,有抱负的

  zillion

  n. (sl.) 无限大的数目,无法计算的大数目

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第5单元课文详析4

  the ABCs

  the most basic facts about a subject (学科等的)基本知识;入门

  at the outset

  at the beginning 首先,一开始

  stand for

  represent; mean 代表;意味着

  be after sth.

  in search of sth.; with a desire for sth. 追求

  catch on

  1. become popular 流行起来

  2. understand 懂得,理解

  on (the) ground(s) that

  because 根据,以…为理由

  at the sight of

  as soon as seeing (sth. or sb.) 一见之下;立即

  leap around

  jump about 跳来跳去

  at first sight

  when seen or examined for the first time 乍一看,一见之下

  be on a first-name basis [with sb.]

  call (sb.) by his or her first name (因关系亲密而)相互直呼其名

  tell A from B

  distinguish A from B 辨别,分辨

  be in charge of sth.

  be responsible for 管理,负责

  so far

  up to the present 迄今为止

  put out

  cause (sth.) to stop burning 熄灭

  bring up

  nurture and educate (a child) 养育;教育

  take advantage of

  make use of; profit from 利用

  in agreement with

  赞同,同意

  by force

  by fierce or violent means 用武力或强迫手段

  think big

  have ambitious ideas 野心勃勃,好高骛远


21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇(扩展3)

——21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解 (菁选3篇)

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解1

  A common misconception among youngsters attending school is that their teachers were child prodigies. Who else but a bookworm, with none of the normal kid"s tendency to play rather than study, would grow up to be a teacher anyway?

  I"ve tried desperately to explain to my students that the image they have of me as an enthusiastic devotee of books and homework during my adolescence was a bit out of focus. On the contrary, I hated compulsory education with a passion. I could never quite accept the notion of having to go to school while the fish were biting.

  But in my sophomore year, something beautiful and exciting happened. Cupid aimed his arrow and struck me right in the heart. All at once, I enjoyed going to school, if only to gaze at the lovely face in English II.

  My princess sat near the pencil sharpener, and that year I ground up enough pencils to fuel a campfire. Alas, Debbie was far beyond my wildest dreams. We were separated not only by five rows of desks, but by about 50 I.Q. points. She was the top student in English II, the apple of Mrs. Larrivee"s eye.

  Occasionally, Debbie would catch me staring at her, and she would flash a smile that radiated intelligence and quickened my heartbeat. It was a smile that signaled hope and made me temporarily forget the intellectual gulf that separated us.

  I schemed desperately to bridge that gulf. And one day, as I was passing the supermarket, an idea came to me. A sign in the window announced that the store was offering the first volume of a set of encyclopedias at the special price of 29 cents. The remaining volumes would cost $2.49 each.

  I purchased Volume I — Aardvark to Asteroid — and began my venture into the world of knowledge. I would henceforth become a seeker of facts. I would become Chief Brain in English II and sweep my princess off her feet with a surge of erudition. I had it all planned.

  My first opportunity came one day in the cafeteria line. I looked behind me and there she was.

  "Hi," she said.

  After a pause, I wet my lips and said, "Know where anchovies come from?"

  She seemed surprised. "No, I don"t."

  I breathed a sigh of relief. "The anchovy lives in salt water and is rarely found in fresh water." I had to talk fast, so that I could get all the facts in before we reached the cash register. "Fishermen catch anchovies in the Mediterranean Sea and along the Atlantic coast near Spain and Portugal."

  "How fascinating," said Debbie, shaking her head in disbelief. It was obvious that I had made quite an impression.

  A few days later, during a fire drill, I casually went up to her and asked, "Ever been to the Aleutian Islands?"

  "Never have," she replied.

  "Might be a nice place to visit, but I certainly wouldn"t want to live there," I said.

  "Why not?" said Debbie, playing right into my hands.

  "Well, the climate is forbidding. There are no trees on any of the 100 or more islands in the group. The ground is rocky and very little plant life can grow on it."

  "I don"t think I"d even care to visit," she said.

  The fire drill was over and we began to file into the building, so I had to step it up to get the natives in. "The Aleuts are short and sturdy and have dark skin and black hair. They live on fish, and they trap blue foxes and seals for their valuable fur."

  Debbie"s eyes widened in amazement.

  One day I was browsing through the library. I spotted Debbie sitting at a table, absorbed in a crossword puzzle. She was frowning, apparently stumped on a word. I leaned over and asked if I could help.

  "Four-letter word for Oriental female servant," Debbie said.

  "Try amah," I said, quick as a flash.

  Debbie filled in the blanks, then turned to stare at me in amazement. "I don"t believe it," she said. "I just don"t believe it."

  And so it went, that glorious, joyous, romantic sophomore year. Debbie seemed to relish our little conversations and hung on my every word. Naturally, the more I read, the more my confidence grew.

  In the classroom, too, I was gradually making my presence felt. One day, during a discussion of Coleridge"s "The Ancient Mariner", we came across the word albatross.

  "Can anyone tell us what an albatross is?" asked Mrs. Larrivee.

  My hand shot up. "The albatross is a large bird that lives mostly in the ocean regions below the equator, but may be found in the north Pacific as well. The albatross measures as long as four feet and has the greatest wingspread of any bird. It feeds on fish and shellfish. The albatross has an enormous appetite, and when it"s full it has trouble getting into the air again."

  There was a long silence in the room. Mrs. Larrivee couldn"t quite believe what she had just heard. I sneaked a look at Debbie and gave her a big wink. She beamed proudly and winked back.

  What I failed to perceive was that Debbie all this while was going steady with a junior from a neighboring school — a basketball player with a C+ average. The revelation hit me hard, and for a while I felt like forgetting everything I had learned. I had saved enough money to buy Volume II — Asthma to Bullfinch — but was strongly tempted to invest in a basketball instead.

  I felt not only hurt, but betrayed. Like Agamemnon, but with less drastic consequences, thank God.

  In time I recovered from my wounds. The next year Debbie moved from the neighborhood and transferred to another school. Soon she became no more than a memory.

  Although the original incentive was gone, I continued poring over the encyclopedias, as well as an increasing number of other books. Having tasted of the wine of knowledge, I could not now alter my course. For:

  "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing:

  Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring."

  So wrote Alexander Pope, Volume XIV — Paprika to Pterodactyl.

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解2

  prodigy

  n. a person who has unusual and very noticeable abilities, usually at an early age 奇才;天才

  child prodigy

  an unusually clever child 神童

  bookworm

  n. a person devoted to reading 极爱读书者;书呆子

  devotee

  n. a person strongly devoted to sth. or sb. 热爱…者;献身于…的人

  adolescence

  n. 青春期

  * compulsory

  a. required by law or a rule 义务的;强制的

  compel

  vt. oblige or force (sb.) to do sth. 强迫;强求

  passion

  n. a strong, deep, often uncontrollable feeling 热情;激情

  gaze

  vi. look fixedly 注视;凝视

  princess

  n. 1. 理想中的女友;心目中追求的女友

  2. (oft, cap.) a female member of the royal family, usually the daughter of a king or queen or the wife of a prince [常大写]公主;王妃

  prince

  n. 1. 少女理想中的未婚者,白马王子

  2. a male member of the royal family, especially the son of a king or queen 王子;亲王

  3. (usu. sing.) (among, of) a very great, successful or powerful man of some stated kind [常单数](喻)大王;巨头;名家

  sharpener

  n. 卷笔刀;卷笔器

  campfire

  n. a wood fire made in the open air by campers 营火,冓火

  quicken

  v. (cause to) speed up 加快

  scheme

  v. make plans (for); plan in a deceitful way 计划;谋划

  n. 1. a formal, official or business plan 计划;规划

  2. a clever, dishonest plan 阴谋,诡计

  volume

  n. 1. one of a set of books of the same kind (一套书的)一册;一卷

  2. (of) 体积;容积

  encyclop(a)edia

  n. a book or set of books dealing with a wide range of information presented in alphabetical order 百科全书

  aardvark

  n. 土豚,非洲食蚁兽

  asteroid

  n. 小行星;海星

  * henceforth

  ad. from this time onwards 自此以后

  hence

  ad. 1. for this reason, therefore 因此,所以

  2. from this time on 今后,从此

  erudition

  n. learning acquired by reading and study 博学;学问

  * cafeteria

  n. a self-service restaurant 自助餐厅

  anchovy

  n. 凤尾鱼

  sigh

  n. the act or sound of sighing 叹息(声);叹气(声)

  reliefn. feeling of comfort at the end of anxiety, fear, or pain (焦虑等的)解除;宽慰

  casually

  ad. in a relaxed way 随便地;漫不经心地

  casual

  a. relaxed; not formal 随便的;漫不经心的;非正式的

  * sturdy

  a. physically strong 强壮的

  seal

  n. 1. 海豹

  2. 印记,印章

  vt. 1. 盖章于

  2. 封,密封

  widen

  v. make or become wider 加宽;变宽

  * browse

  v. casually look or search, e.g. in a shop, in a library, at a book, etc., with no specific aim or object in mind 浏览

  crossword

  n. (= crossword puzzle) 纵横字谜,纵横填字游戏

  frown

  vi. contract the brows, as in displeasure or deep thought 皱眉头

  * stump

  vt. put an unanswerable question to; puzzle 把…难住;使为难

  * oriental

  a. of, from or concerning Asia 东方的

  amah

  n. 阿妈(印度等一些东方国家的奶妈、女佣或保姆)

  glorious

  a. having or deserving glory; very delightful and enjoyable 荣耀的;令人愉快的

  joyous

  a. full of or causing joy 充满欢乐的;令人高兴的

  romantic

  a. 1. (of sth.) beautiful in a way that strongly affects one"s feelings 有浪漫色彩的

  2. (of sb.) showing strong feelings of love 多情的;浪漫的

  3. being unrealistic or unpractical 不切实际的

  * relish

  vt. get pleasure out of; enjoy greatly 从…获得乐趣;很喜爱

  confidence

  n. belief in one"s own or another"s ability 信心

  mariner

  n. (obsolete) a sailor 〈废〉水手

  marine

  a. 1. of ships and their goods and trade at sea 航海的;海事的

  2. of, near, living in, or obtained from the sea 海洋的.;海生的;海产的

  n. 水兵

  albatross

  n. 信天翁

  wingspread

  n. the distance between the tips of a pair of fully spread wings 翼幅

  shellfish

  n. 贝壳类动物

  shell

  n. 1. the hard covering of a sea creature, egg, fruit, seed, etc. 动物的壳(如贝壳、蛹壳等),蛋壳;果壳;荚

  2. the outside frame of a building (房屋的)框架;骨架

  appetite

  n. 1. one"s desire to eat and one"s feeling about how much to eat 食欲,胃口

  2. (for) a strong desire 欲望;爱好

  beam

  vi. shine brightly; smile warmly 照耀;(面)露喜色;满脸堆笑

  n. 1. 微笑;喜色

  2. 光束

  perceive

  vt. notice; be conscious of 注意到;感觉;察觉

  * revelation

  n. the act of revealing sth., usually of great significance 揭示;暴露

  asthma

  n. 气喘,哮喘

  bullfinch

  n. 红腹灰雀

  invest

  vi. put money into sth. with the expectation of profit or other advantage 投资

  investment

  n. 1. 投资;投资额

  2. the spending of (time, energy, etc.) to make sth. successful (时间、精力等的)投入

  * betray

  vt. be disloyal or unfaithful to 出卖,背叛

  * drastic

  a. strong, violent or severe 激烈的;迅猛的

  consequence

  n. (usu. pi.) the result or effect of an action or condition [常复数]结果;后果

  * incentive

  n. encouragement to greater activity; motivating factor; stimulus 鼓励;刺激

  paprika

  n. 红灯笼辣椒

  pterodactyl

  n. 翼手龙

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解3

  out of focus

  not shar* defined 焦点没对准;模糊的

  beyond one"s wildest dreams

  (in a way that is) better than what one expected or hoped for 超过某人所期望的(地);出乎某人意料的(地)

  the apple of sb."s eye

  a person or thing that is the main object of sb."s love and attention 某人的掌上明珠;宝贝

  sweep sb. off his/her feet

  make sb. feel suddenly and strongly attracted to you in a romantic way 使某人倾心

  get sth. in

  manage to say sth. about a subject 设法说完

  play into sb."s hands

  do something which gives sb. an advantage 干对某人有利的事

  file into

  enter in a single line 鱼贯进入

  step up

  (infml) increase the size or speed of 〈口〉加快;增加

  hang on sb."s words

  listen very carefully to 倾听;注意地听

  feed on

  eat habitually 以…为食物;靠…为生

  go steady with

  date sb. regularly and exclusively 仅与(同一异性)经常约会

  invest in

  1. buy (sth.) with the expectation of profit or some other kind of advantage 投资于

  2. (infml) 〈口〉买

  in time

  1. eventually 经过一段时间后;最终

  2. at or before the right or necessary time 及时

  pore over

  study or give close attention to 钻研;专心阅读


21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇(扩展4)

——21世纪大学英语读写教程第4册单元2课文详析60篇

21世纪大学英语读写教程第4册单元2课文详析1

  First Listening

  Before listening to the tape, have a quick look at the following words.

  fare

  乘客

  buck

  (俚)(一)元

  trace

  找到

  glare

  盯视

  gratitude

  感激

  gracefully

  得体地

  Second Listening

  Listen to the tape again and choose the best answer to each of the following questions.

  1. How did the man who had lost his wallet react to it being returned?

  A) He acted hostile towards the cabdriver.

  B) He took it without a word, but smiled his thanks.

  C) He gave the driver some money, but no thanks.

  D) He thanked the driver, but gave him no reward.

  2. What does the story of the cabdriver show?

  A) Cabdrivers are usually honest people.

  B) People need to be shown gratitude.

  C) You should always give a tip for good service.

  D) It"s not worthwhile to help other people.

  3. Which of the following is NOT an example of expressing gratitude?

  A) returning a wallet someone has left behind

  B) gracefully receiving an act of kindness from another person

  C) thanking and praising coworkers, family, and friends

  D) making a small gesture of appreciation

  4. Why does the author consider gratitude so important?

  A) It keeps people from getting angry.

  B) It helps you to get what you want.

  C) It makes others like you more.

  D) It makes the world a more pleasant place to live.

21世纪大学英语读写教程第4册单元2课文详析2

  A.J. Cronin

  On a fine afternoon in New York, I got into a taxi. From the driver"s expression and the way he slammed in his gears, I could tell that he was upset. I asked him what was the trouble. "I"ve got good reason to be sore," he growled. "One of my fares left a wallet in my cab this morning. Nearly three hundred bucks in it. I spent more than an hour trying to trace the guy. Finally I found him at his hotel. He took the wallet without a word and glared at me as though I"d meant to steal it."

  "He didn"t give you a reward?" I exclaimed.

  "Not a cent. But it wasn"t the dough I wanted..." he fumbled, then exploded, "If the guy had only said something..."

  Because his helpful, honest act had not been appreciated, that cabdriver"s day was poisoned, and I knew he would think twice before rendering a similar service. The need for gratitude is something we all feel, and denial of it can do much to harm the spirit of kindness and cooperation.

  During World War II a mother in Cincinnati received a letter from her son in the army in which he spoke of a woman in a village in Normandy who had taken him into her home when he was wounded and hungry, and hidden him from the Germans. Later on, unhappily, the boy was killed in the Ardennes offensive. Yet the mother was moved by an irresistible intention. She saved up for two years, crossed the Atlantic and located the village referred to by her son. After many inquiries, she found the woman who had sheltered her son—the wife of an impoverished farmer—and pressed a package into her hand. It was the gold wristwatch her son had received on his graduation, the only object of real value the boy had ever possessed. The mother"s act of gratitude so touched people"s hearts that it has become something of a legend in and around the village. It has done more than fine speeches to foster good feeling toward Americans.

  Gratitude is the art of receiving gracefully, of showing appreciation for every kindness, great and small. Most of us do not fail to show our pleasure when we receive hospitality, gifts and obvious benefits, but even here we can perfect our manner of showing gratitude by making it as personal and sincere as possible. Recently, when touring in southern Italy with my wife, I sent to a friend in Connecticut several bottles of a local wine which had taken our fancy. It was a trifling gift, yet to our surprise, instead of the conventional letter of thanks, we receive a phonograph record. When we played it, we heard our friend"s voice speaking after dinner, describing how he and his guests had enjoyed the wine and thanking us for our thoughtfulness. It was pleasant to have this unusual proof that our gift had been appreciated.

  Gratitude is sometimes more than a personal affair. My son, studying medicine at McGill University, told me of a patient brought into hospital in Montreal whose life was saved by a blood transfusion. When he was well again he asked: "Isn"t there any way I can discover the name of the donor and thank him?" He was told that names of donors are never revealed. A few weeks after his discharge he came back to give a pint of his own blood. Since then he has returned again and again for the same purpose. When a surgeon commented on this splendid record of anonymous service, he answered sim*: "Someone I never knew did it for me. I"m just saying "thanks"".

  It is a comforting thought that gratitude can be not merely a passing sentiment but a renewal which can, in some instances, persist for a lifetime. A husband who recalls appreciatively some generous or unselfish act on his wife"s part, or a wife who never forgets the gifts her husband has given her, does much to keep the domestic wheels spinning smoothly. W.H. Hudson, British author and naturalist, has written: "One evening I brought home a friend to share our usual evening meal. Afterward he said to me:‘You are fortunate to have a wife who, despite ill health and children to look after, cooks such excellent meals." That tribute opened my eyes and taught me to show gratitude for my wife"s day-to-day heroism, which I had hitherto taken for granted."

  It is, above all, in the little things that the grace of gratitude should be most employed. The boy who delivers our paper, the milkman, the mailman, the barber, the waitress at a restaurant, the elevator operator—all oblige us in one way or another. By showing our gratitude we make routine relationships human and render monotonous tasks more agreeable.

  A patient of mine in London who worked as a bus conductor once confided to me, "I get fed up with my job sometimes. People grumble, bother you, haven"t got the right change for their tickets. But there"s one lady on my bus morning and evening, and she always thanks me in a particularly friendly way when I take her ticket. I like to think she"s speaking for all the passengers. It helps me to keep smiling."

  Arnold Bennett had a publisher who boasted about the extraordinary efficiency of his secretary. One day Bennett said to her, "Your employer claims that you are extremely efficient. What is your secret?" "It"s not my secret," the secretary replied. "It"s his." Each time she performed a service, no matter how small, he never failed to acknowledge it. Because of that she took infinite pains with her work.

  Some persons refrain from expressing their gratitude because they feel it will not be welcome. A patient of mine, a few weeks after his discharge from the hospital, came back to thank his nurse. "I didn"t come back sooner," he explained, "because I imagined you must be bored to death with people thanking you."

  "On the contrary," she replied, "I am delighted you came. Few realize how much we need encouragement and how much we are helped by those who give it."

  Gratitude is something of which none of us can give too much. For on the smiles, the thanks we give, our little gestures of appreciation, our neighbors build up their philosophy of life.

21世纪大学英语读写教程第4册单元2课文详析3

  gratitude

  n. being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness 感激;感谢的心情

  slam

  vt. shut loudly and with force; push, move, etc., hurriedly and with great force 猛然关上;猛力推移

  sore

  a. painful or aching; angry, esp. from feeling unjustly treated 疼痛的;恼怒的"

  growl

  v. make a deep, angry sound; complain angrily 咆哮;怒冲冲地抱怨

  fare

  n. a paying passenger (esp. in a taxi) (尤指出租车)乘客

  trace

  vt. find or discover 查出,找到

  glare

  vi. look fiercely or fixedly 瞪着眼看

  dough

  n. (sl.) money (俚语)钱

  fumble

  v. speak in a clumsy and unclear way支支吾吾地说,笨嘴拙舌地说

  render

  vt. 1. give (esp. help) 给予;提供(帮助等)

  2. cause to be 使得;使成为

  denial

  n. the act of denying 否认;否定;拒绝

  offensive

  n. a planned military attack involving large forces over a long period 军事进攻;攻势

  intention

  n. sth. one proposes or plans to do 意图;目的;打算

  inquiry

  n. the act of inquiring; an investigation or examination 查询;调查

  wristwatch

  n. a small watch worn on a strap around the wrist 手表

  foster

  vt. help the growth and development of; encourage or promote 培养,促进;鼓励,助长

  gracefully

  ad. in a graceful way 优雅地;优美地;得体地

  appreciation

  n. gratefulness; gratitude 感激;感谢

  hospitality

  n. friendly reception; generous treatment of guests or strangers 款待;好客

  sincere

  a. free from pretense or deceit; genuine 真诚的;真挚的

  trifling

  a. of slight importance; of little value 微不足道的;没什么价值的

  conventional

  a. of the usual type; commonly used or seen 惯常的;通常的

  phonograph

  n. an instrument that reproduces the sounds from records 留声机;电唱机

  thoughtfulness

  n. the quality of being careful or considerate of others 关心;体贴

  proof

  n. 1. (piece of) evidence that shows that something is true or is a fact 证据; 证物

  2. testing of whether something is true or a fact; demonstration or proving 验证;证明;证实

  transfusion

  n. the transfer of blood from one person or animal to another 输血

  discharge

  n. act of giving somebody permission to leave the army, hospital, etc. 允许离开;退伍;出院

  pint

  n. a measure for liquids (and some dry goods) equal to about 0.57 of a litre 品脱

  surgeon

  n. a doctor who performs operations 外科医生

  sentiment

  n. a mixture of thought and feeling 感情;情绪

  renewal

  n. the act of renewing or fact of being renewed 更新;恢复;重新开始;(中断后的)继续

  appreciatively

  ad. gratefully; thankfully 感激地

  generous

  a. showing readiness to give money, help, kindness, etc. 慷慨的,大方的

  unselfish

  a. not selfish; caring for others 无私的;为他人着想的

  naturalist

  n. a person who studies plants or animals, esp. outdoors 博物学家

  tribute

  n. a thing said or done or given as a mark of respect or affection, etc. 表示尊敬或赞美的言辞或举止;称赞;礼物

  hitherto

  ad. until this/that time 迄今;至今

  barber

  n. a person whose work is cutting men"s hair and shaving them 理发师

  elevator

  n. a moving platform or cage to carry people and things; up and down in a building, mine, or the like 电梯

  elevate

  vt. lift up; raise to a higher place or rank; improve (the mind, morals, etc.) 举起,提高;提升…的职位;提高(思想修养、道德品质等)

  operator

  n. a person who works a machine, apparatus, etc. 操作人员

  monotonous

  a. lacking in variety; boring through sameness 单调的;乏味的

  agreeable

  a. giving pleasure, pleasant 愉悦的;愉快的

  confide

  vt. tell (a secret) to sb. 吐露(秘密)

  boast

  vi. talk too proudly 吹牛,自夸

  employer

  n. a person or firm that employs others 雇主

21世纪大学英语读写教程第4册单元2课文详析4

  think twice

  think carefully; reconsider; hesitate 仔细考虑;重新考虑;踌躇,犹豫

  save up

  put aside (money) for future use 储蓄;存(钱)

  refer to

  mention 提及

  something of a

  rather a; to some degree 有点儿;有几分;可以说是一个

  take /catch sb."s fancy

  attract or please sb. 吸引住某人;令某人喜欢

  on sb."s part/on the part of sb.

  made or done by sb. 某人所做的;某人有责任的

  in one way or another

  by some means or method 以某种方式(或方法)

  be /get fed up with /about

  be(come) tired or bored; be(come) unhappy or depressed 厌倦;厌烦;沮丧

  boast about /of

  talk too proudly about /of 自吹;夸耀

  take pains with

  make an effort to do 努力;下功夫

  refrain from

  hold oneself back from; avoid 克制;避免


21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇(扩展5)

——21世纪大学英语读写教程第一册第3课内容讲解60篇

21世纪大学英语读写教程第一册第3课内容讲解1

  When Stevie Morris was born, on May 13, 1950, the doctors shook their heads and told the mother that her son was born blind and likely would always be that way. She broke into tears.

  Blind and black and poor — what kind of life could this new infant have? In her wildest dreams, Mrs. Morris could never have imagined that her new baby would become a famous musician called Stevie Wonder. At the time, all she could do was pray — and worry.

  Stevie himself didn"t worry at all. Life was too full. He was brought up among church-going people whose faith helped them bear the poverty. He loved music and would pound spoons or forks on any surface that faintly resembled a drum.

  He even ran and played with sighted children. "I didn"t realize I was blind until I was about four," he says. That might sound strange. To a small child just learning about the world, it wasn"t strange at all. Stevie heard and smelled and touched. As far as he knew, that was all anyone could do. That was life.

  When Stevie"s mother got tired of her tables being used for drums, she bought him a toy set. He played so hard that he had actually worn the toy out within a few weeks. Other toy sets followed; then an uncle added a toy harmonica, and Stevie learned to play it so quickly that everyone was amazed.

  Stevie taught himself to play the piano as quickly as he had once learned the harmonica. With friends, he began playing rock and roll music. They performed on the front porch of Stevie"s apartment building, drawing crowds of neighbors to watch and listen and clap time to the beat.

  "I loved that beat," Stevie says. He not only loved the beat, he was very good at making it.

  Ronnie White, of the Miracles singing group, heard Stevie and promptly took him down to his recording company, Motown Records.

  "Give him an audition," Ronnie said. They did. All the top people at Motown got together to hear a little blind boy who wasn"t even ten years old yet. At first, they were being nice. Poor kid. They didn"t want to hurt his feelings.

  Then they heard Stevie sing and play, and nobody said "poor kid" anymore. They were too busy congratulating themselves on finding a youngster who could be the musical talent of the decade. "He"s a wonder boy," somebody said as they watched little Stevie dart from one instrument to the next, playing each one with ease.

  "Wonder," somebody else said, "Little Stevie Wonder."

  The new name stuck and Stevie Morris became Little Stevie Wonder. He had his first hit when he was twelve years old. It was called "Fingertips" and it was a smash.

  Over the following years, Little Stevie Wonder became one of the top recording artists at Motown, producing one hit after another. But as he grew into *hood, Stevie began to get tired of the way the Motown company controlled all aspects of his career. He wanted to write and produce his own songs, but the Motown company thought it was unwise to change a winning formula.

  When he turned 21, Stevie finally got his freedom. Against Motown"s wishes he started exploring: he made records that combined gospel, rock and roll, and jazz and which used African and Latin American rhythms. To the record company"s surprise, Stevie"s new albums such as "Music of My Mind" and "Innervisions" were even more popular than his early ones. Stevie Wonder had become a mature man and an independent musical artist.

  Just after this success, however, tragedy struck. In August of 1973, Stevie was involved in a serious car accident. For nearly a week he lay in a coma, unable to speak or walk. "We don"t know when he"ll be out of danger," the doctor said. Everyone waited and prayed. Suddenly, it didn"t matter that Stevie was a musical genius or that he had conquered blindness and poverty. All he had left was his faith and strong will.

  That turned out to be enough. Stevie fought back from the shadow of death as he had once fought out from the shadow of blindness. He went on to give more performances, make more hit records.

  The car accident changed Stevie by making him reevaluate his goals in life. He still loved to make music, but he also started to pay more attention to the world outside. He worked to create a national holiday to honor the civil rights leader Dr.Martin Luther King, Jr.. He recorded songs urging racial harmony and raised money to end world hunger. Recently, Stevie was honored by South African president Nelson Mandela for his work against that country"s system of racial apartheid.

  Stevie Wonder has faith and fame, wealth and love. He has not only conquered his own darkness, but through his music and his social activities he has been able to bring sunshine to the shadow of many other lives.

21世纪大学英语读写教程第一册第3课内容讲解2

  sunshine

  n. the light and heat of the sun 阳光

  infant

  n. a very young child 婴儿

  musician

  n. a person who performs on a musical instrument, or who writes music 乐师,作曲家

  pray

  vi. (for, to) speak to God in order to give thanks or to ask for help 祈祷,祈求

  spoon

  n. 匙,调羹

  faintlh

  ad. slightly; mildly 轻微地;微弱地

  resemble

  vt. look or be like 像,类似

  drum

  n. 鼓

  tire

  v. (使)感到疲劳;(使)厌倦,(使)厌烦

  harmonica

  n. 口琴

  amaze

  vt. fill with great surprise; cause wonder in 使惊奇;使惊羡

  *porch

  n. (建筑物前有顶的)门廊,入口处

  apartment

  n. 公寓大楼;一套公寓房间

  clap

  vi. applaud 拍手

  miracle

  n. 奇迹

  promptly

  ad. immediately and without any delay 迅速地,及时地

  audition

  n. (对志愿艺人等的.)面试(指试读、试唱、试奏等)

  kid

  n. a child 小孩

  congratulate

  vt. speak to (a person) with praise and admiration for a happy event or sth. successfully done 祝贺

  youngster

  n. a young person, esp. a boy 年轻人;男孩

  talent

  n. 1. a special ability or skill 天才,天资;超常智能

  2. people of such ability 人才

  decade

  n. a period of 10 years 十年(期)

  *dart

  vi. move suddenly and quickly 猛冲,飞奔

  instrument

  n. 乐器;仪器;器具;器械

  ease

  n. 1. freedom from difficulty 容易

  2. freedom from discomfort, pain or worry 安适;悠闲;无痛苦;无忧虑

  fingertip

  n. the end of a finger 指尖

  smash

  n. 轰动的演出,巨大的成功

  v. (cause to) break into pieces violently 打碎,粉碎

  *hood

  n. 成年

  aspect

  n. a particular part or feature of sth. being considered 方面

  career

  n. a profession or occupation with opportunities for advancement or promotion 职业;生涯

  formula

  n. 公式,程式;准则,方案

  explore

  v. 探索;探测;勘探

  gospel

  n. (= gospel music) 福音音乐(美国黑人的一种宗教音乐,具有爵士音乐和美国黑人伤感歌曲色彩)

  jazz

  n. 爵士音乐

  rhythm

  n. 节奏;韵律

  *album

  n. 1. a long-playing record with several items by the same performer (同一表演者的)集锦密纹唱片

  2. a book with blank pages for stamps, photographs, etc. 集邮册,相册

  mature

  a. fully grown or developed mentally or physically 充分发育的;(智力或体力)成熟的

  independent

  a. 独立的,自主的

  tragedy

  n. 1. a terrible event that causes great sadness 惨事,灾变

  2. a serious play with a sad ending 悲剧

  involve

  vt. 使陷入,使卷入;牵扯,连累

  coma

  n. 昏迷

  musical

  a. of or for music 音乐的

  genius

  n. 天才;创造能力;天才人物

  conquer

  vt. gain control over (sth. unfriendly or difficult) 征服;克服(困难等)

  performance

  n. the acting of a play, the playing of a piece of music, the doing of a dance, etc., in front of an audience 演出,表演,演奏

  reevaluate

  vt. 重新评价

  goal

  n. 1. an end; objective 目的;目标

  2.(足球等的)球门;得分进球

  hunger

  n. state of not having enough to eat; lack of food 饥饿

  urge

  vt. 力劝;恳求;敦促

  racial

  a. characteristic of race; due to or resulting from race 种族的;由种族引起的

  harmony

  n. agreement (of feelings, interests, opinions, etc.) 和睦,融洽,一致

  apartheid

  n. (南非的)种族隔离

  fame

  n. the condition of being known or talked about a lot 名声,名望

  activity

  n. 活动;行动

  Phrases and Exgressions

  break into

  begin suddenly (to cry, sing, laugh, etc.) 突然(哭、唱、笑)起来

  bring up

  take care of during infancy and childhood; nurse and educate 抚养;养育

  as far as

  to the degree that 就…;尽…;至于

  get tired of

  be no longer interested in 厌倦,厌烦

  wear out

  make useless by use 把…用坏;把…穿破

  with ease

  without difficulty 容易地,无困难地

  grow into

  become gradually with the passage of time 成长的

  congratulate oneself on /that ...

  因…而暗自庆幸

21世纪大学英语读写教程第一册第3课内容讲解3

  When Stevie Morris was born, on May 13, 1950, the doctors shook their heads and told the mother that her son was born blind and likely would always be that way. She broke into tears.

  Blind and black and poor — what kind of life could this new infant have? In her wildest dreams, Mrs. Morris could never have imagined that her new baby would become a famous musician called Stevie Wonder. At the time, all she could do was pray — and worry.

  Stevie himself didn"t worry at all. Life was too full. He was brought up among church-going people whose faith helped them bear the poverty. He loved music and would pound spoons or forks on any surface that faintly resembled a drum.

  He even ran and played with sighted children. "I didn"t realize I was blind until I was about four," he says. That might sound strange. To a small child just learning about the world, it wasn"t strange at all. Stevie heard and smelled and touched. As far as he knew, that was all anyone could do. That was life.

  When Stevie"s mother got tired of her tables being used for drums, she bought him a toy set. He played so hard that he had actually worn the toy out within a few weeks. Other toy sets followed; then an uncle added a toy harmonica, and Stevie learned to play it so quickly that everyone was amazed.

  Stevie taught himself to play the piano as quickly as he had once learned the harmonica. With friends, he began playing rock and roll music. They performed on the front porch of Stevie"s apartment building, drawing crowds of neighbors to watch and listen and clap time to the beat.

  "I loved that beat," Stevie says. He not only loved the beat, he was very good at making it.

  Ronnie White, of the Miracles singing group, heard Stevie and promptly took him down to his recording company, Motown Records.

  "Give him an audition," Ronnie said. They did. All the top people at Motown got together to hear a little blind boy who wasn"t even ten years old yet. At first, they were being nice. Poor kid. They didn"t want to hurt his feelings.

  Then they heard Stevie sing and play, and nobody said "poor kid" anymore. They were too busy congratulating themselves on finding a youngster who could be the musical talent of the decade. "He"s a wonder boy," somebody said as they watched little Stevie dart from one instrument to the next, playing each one with ease.

  "Wonder," somebody else said, "Little Stevie Wonder."

  The new name stuck and Stevie Morris became Little Stevie Wonder. He had his first hit when he was twelve years old. It was called "Fingertips" and it was a smash.

  Over the following years, Little Stevie Wonder became one of the top recording artists at Motown, producing one hit after another. But as he grew into *hood, Stevie began to get tired of the way the Motown company controlled all aspects of his career. He wanted to write and produce his own songs, but the Motown company thought it was unwise to change a winning formula.

  When he turned 21, Stevie finally got his freedom. Against Motown"s wishes he started exploring: he made records that combined gospel, rock and roll, and jazz and which used African and Latin American rhythms. To the record company"s surprise, Stevie"s new albums such as "Music of My Mind" and "Innervisions" were even more popular than his early ones. Stevie Wonder had become a mature man and an independent musical artist.

  Just after this success, however, tragedy struck. In August of 1973, Stevie was involved in a serious car accident. For nearly a week he lay in a coma, unable to speak or walk. "We don"t know when he"ll be out of danger," the doctor said. Everyone waited and prayed. Suddenly, it didn"t matter that Stevie was a musical genius or that he had conquered blindness and poverty. All he had left was his faith and strong will.

  That turned out to be enough. Stevie fought back from the shadow of death as he had once fought out from the shadow of blindness. He went on to give more performances, make more hit records.

  The car accident changed Stevie by making him reevaluate his goals in life. He still loved to make music, but he also started to pay more attention to the world outside. He worked to create a national holiday to honor the civil rights leader Dr.Martin Luther King, Jr.. He recorded songs urging racial harmony and raised money to end world hunger. Recently, Stevie was honored by South African president Nelson Mandela for his work against that country"s system of racial apartheid.

  Stevie Wonder has faith and fame, wealth and love. He has not only conquered his own darkness, but through his music and his social activities he has been able to bring sunshine to the shadow of many other lives.

21世纪大学英语读写教程第一册第3课内容讲解4

  sunshine

  n. the light and heat of the sun 阳光

  infant

  n. a very young child 婴儿

  musician

  n. a person who performs on a musical instrument, or who writes music 乐师,作曲家

  pray

  vi. (for, to) speak to God in order to give thanks or to ask for help 祈祷,祈求

  spoon

  n. 匙,调羹

  faintlh

  ad. slightly; mildly 轻微地;微弱地

  resemble

  vt. look or be like 像,类似

  drum

  n. 鼓

  tire

  v. (使)感到疲劳;(使)厌倦,(使)厌烦

  harmonica

  n. 口琴

  amaze

  vt. fill with great surprise; cause wonder in 使惊奇;使惊羡

  *porch

  n. (建筑物前有顶的)门廊,入口处

  apartment

  n. 公寓大楼;一套公寓房间

  clap

  vi. applaud 拍手

  miracle

  n. 奇迹

  promptly

  ad. immediately and without any delay 迅速地,及时地

  audition

  n. (对志愿艺人等的)面试(指试读、试唱、试奏等)

  kid

  n. a child 小孩

  congratulate

  vt. speak to (a person) with praise and admiration for a happy event or sth. successfully done 祝贺

  youngster

  n. a young person, esp. a boy 年轻人;男孩

  talent

  n. 1. a special ability or skill 天才,天资;超常智能

  2. people of such ability 人才

  decade

  n. a period of 10 years 十年(期)

  *dart

  vi. move suddenly and quickly 猛冲,飞奔

  instrument

  n. 乐器;仪器;器具;器械

  ease

  n. 1. freedom from difficulty 容易

  2. freedom from discomfort, pain or worry 安适;悠闲;无痛苦;无忧虑

  fingertip

  n. the end of a finger 指尖

  smash

  n. 轰动的演出,巨大的成功

  v. (cause to) break into pieces violently 打碎,粉碎

  *hood

  n. 成年

  aspect

  n. a particular part or feature of sth. being considered 方面

  career

  n. a profession or occupation with opportunities for advancement or promotion 职业;生涯

  formula

  n. 公式,程式;准则,方案

  explore

  v. 探索;探测;勘探

  gospel

  n. (= gospel music) 福音音乐(美国黑人的一种宗教音乐,具有爵士音乐和美国黑人伤感歌曲色彩)

  jazz

  n. 爵士音乐

  rhythm

  n. 节奏;韵律

  *album

  n. 1. a long-playing record with several items by the same performer (同一表演者的)集锦密纹唱片

  2. a book with blank pages for stamps, photographs, etc. 集邮册,相册

  mature

  a. fully grown or developed mentally or physically 充分发育的;(智力或体力)成熟的

  independent

  a. 独立的,自主的

  tragedy

  n. 1. a terrible event that causes great sadness 惨事,灾变

  2. a serious play with a sad ending 悲剧

  involve

  vt. 使陷入,使卷入;牵扯,连累

  coma

  n. 昏迷

  musical

  a. of or for music 音乐的

  genius

  n. 天才;创造能力;天才人物

  conquer

  vt. gain control over (sth. unfriendly or difficult) 征服;克服(困难等)

  performance

  n. the acting of a play, the playing of a piece of music, the doing of a dance, etc., in front of an audience 演出,表演,演奏

  reevaluate

  vt. 重新评价

  goal

  n. 1. an end; objective 目的";目标

  2.(足球等的)球门;得分进球

  hunger

  n. state of not having enough to eat; lack of food 饥饿

  urge

  vt. 力劝;恳求;敦促

  racial

  a. characteristic of race; due to or resulting from race 种族的;由种族引起的

  harmony

  n. agreement (of feelings, interests, opinions, etc.) 和睦,融洽,一致

  apartheid

  n. (南非的)种族隔离

  fame

  n. the condition of being known or talked about a lot 名声,名望

  activity

  n. 活动;行动

  Phrases and Exgressions

  break into

  begin suddenly (to cry, sing, laugh, etc.) 突然(哭、唱、笑)起来

  bring up

  take care of during infancy and childhood; nurse and educate 抚养;养育

  as far as

  to the degree that 就…;尽…;至于

  get tired of

  be no longer interested in 厌倦,厌烦

  wear out

  make useless by use 把…用坏;把…穿破

  with ease

  without difficulty 容易地,无困难地

  grow into

  become gradually with the passage of time 成长的

  congratulate oneself on /that ...

  因…而暗自庆幸


21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇(扩展6)

——21世纪大学英语综合教程第三册第6单元课后答案下载60篇

21世纪大学英语综合教程第三册第6单元课后答案下载1

点击此处下载☞☞☞21世纪大学实用英语综合教程第三册第6单元课后答案☜☜☜

21世纪大学英语综合教程第三册第6单元课后答案下载2

  《21世纪大学实用英语综合教程(第3册)》为《综合教程》第三册,共8个单元,每个单元均包括听说、读写和实用技能训练三大板块的内容。听说部分围绕每单元的主题,并结合高职高专学生学习生活和毕业后实际工作的"需要,进行听力与口语方面的专门训练。读写板块包括Text A(精读),Text B(泛读)和Text C(扩展阅读),并配有相应的练习。实用技能训练部分根据高职高专教育的特点,提供以提高职业技能和素质为目标的实用训练,包括Grammar Review,Practical Writing和Basic Reading Skills等内容。


21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇(扩展7)

——21世纪大学英语读写教程第四册Unit1课文讲解60篇

21世纪大学英语读写教程第四册Unit1课文讲解1

  First Listening

  Before listening to the tape, have a quick look at the following words.

  genetics

  遗传学

  psychiatry

  精神病学

  persistent

  坚持不懈的

  Second Listening

  Listen to the tape again and then answer the following questions.

  1.What question did professor Simonton"s research project seek to answer?

  2.What three personality traits of great people are mentioned?

  a) __________________________________________________________.

  b) __________________________________________________________.

  c) __________________________________________________________.

  3.What negative trait of "great" people is mentioned?

  4. Does professor Simonton believe that great people are more often mentally ill than other people?

21世纪大学英语读写教程第四册Unit1课文讲解2

  Michael Ryan

  As a young boy, Albert Einstein did so poorly in school that teachers thought he was slow. The young Napoleon Bonaparte was just one of hundreds of artillery lieutenants in the French Army. And the teenage George Washington, with little formal education, was being trained not as a soldier but as a land surveyor.

  Despite their unspectacular beginnings, each would go on to carve a place for himself in history. What was it that enabled them to become great? Were they born with something special? Or did their greatness have more to do with timing, devotion and, perhaps, an uncompromising personality?

  For decades, scientists have been asking such questions. And, in the past few years, they have found evidence to help explain why some people rise above, while others—similarly talented, perhaps—are left behind. Their findings could have implications for us all.

  Who is great? Defining who is great depends on how one measures success. But there are some criteria. "Someone who has made a lasting contribution to human civilization is great," said Dean Keith Simonton, a professor of psychology at the University of California at Davis and author of the 1994 book Greatness: Who Makes History and Why. But he added a word of caution: "Sometimes great people don"t make it into the history books. A lot of women achieved great things or were influential but went unrecognized."

  In writing his book, Simonton combined historical knowledge about great figures with recent findings in genetics, psychiatry and the social sciences. The great figures he focused on include men and women who have won Nobel Prizes, led great nations or won wars, composed symphonies that have endured for centuries, or revolutionized science, philosophy, politics or the arts. Though he doesn"t have a formula to define how or why certain people rise above (too many factors are involved), he has come up with a few common characteristics.

  A "never surrender" attitude. If great achievers share anything, said Simonton, it is an unrelenting drive to succeed. "There"s a tendency to think that they are endowed with something super-normal," he explained. "But what comes out of the research is that there are great people who have no amazing intellectual processes. It"s a difference in degree. Greatness is built upon tremendous amounts of study, practice and devotion."

  He cited Winston Churchill, Britain"s prime minister during World War II, as an example of a risk-taker who would never give up. Thrust into office when his country"s morale was at its lowest, Churchill rose brilliantly to lead the British people. In a speech following the Allied evacuation at Dunkirk in 1940, he inspired the nation when he said, "We shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end...We shall never surrender."

  Can you be born great? In looking at Churchill"s role in history—as well as the roles of other political and military leaders—Simonton discovered a striking pattern: "Firstborns and only children tend to make good leaders in time of crisis: They"re used to taking charge. But middle-borns are better as peacetime leaders: They listen to different interest groups better and make the necessary compromises. Churchill, an only child, was typical. He was great in a crisis, but in peacetime he was not effective—not even popular."

  Timing is another factor. "If you took George Washington and put him in the 20th century he would go nowhere as a politician," Simonton declared. "He was not an effective public speaker, and he didn"t like shaking hands with the public. On the other hand, I"m not sure Franklin Roosevelt would have done well in Washington"s time. He wouldn"t have had the radio to do his fireside chats."

  Can you be too smart? One surprise among Simonton"s findings is that many political and military leaders have been bright but not overly so. Beyond a certain point, he explained, other factors, like the ability to communicate effectively, become more important than innate intelligence as measured by an IQ test. The most intelligent U.S. Presidents, for example—Thomas Jefferson, Woodrow Wilson and John F. Kennedy—had a hard time getting elected, Simonton said, while others with IQs closer to the average (such as Warren G. Harding) won by landslides. While political and economic factors also are involved, having a genius IQ is not necessary to be a great leader.

  In the sciences, those with "genius level" IQs do have a better chance at achieving recognition, added Simonton. Yet evidence also indicates that overcoming traditional ways of thinking may be just as important.

  He pointed to one recent study where college students were given a set of data and were asked to see if they could come up with a mathematical relation. Almost a third did. What they did not know was that they had just solved one of the most famous scientific equations in history: the Third Law of Planetary Motion, an equation that Johannes Kepler came up with in 1618.

  Kepler"s genius, Simonton said, was not so much in solving a mathematical challenge. It was in thinking about the numbers in a unique way—ap*ing his mathematical knowledge to his observations of planetary motion. It was his boldness that set him apart.

  Love your work. As a child, Einstein became fascinated with the way magnets are drawn to metal. "He couldn"t stop thinking about this stuff," Simonton pointed out. "He became obsessed with problems in physics by the time he was 16, and he never stopped working on them. It"s not surprising that he made major contributions by the time he was 26."

  "For most of us, it"s not that we don"t have the ability," Simonton added, "it"s that we don"t devote the time. You have to put in the effort and put up with all the frustrations and obstacles."

  Like other creative geniuses, Einstein was not motivated by a desire for fame, said Simonton. Instead, his obsession with his work was what set him apart.

  Where such drive comes from remains a mystery. But it is found in nearly all creative geniuses—whether or not their genius is acknowledged by contemporaries.

  "Emily Dickinson was not recognized for her poetry until after her death," said Simonton. "But she was not writing for fame. The same can be said of James Joyce, who didn"t spend a lot of time worrying about how many people would read Finnegans Wake."

  Today, researchers have evidence that an intrinsic passion for one"s work is a key to rising above. In a 1985 study at Brandeis University conducted by Teresa Amabile, now a professor of business administration at Harvard University, a group of professional writers—none famous—were asked to write a short poem. Each writer was then randomly placed in one of three groups: One group was asked to keep in mind the idea of writing for money; another was told to think about writing just for pleasure; and a third group was given no instruction at all.

  The poems then were submitted anonymously to a panel of professional writers for evaluation. The poetry written by people who thought about writing for money ranked lowest. Those who thought about writing just for pleasure did the best. "Motivation that comes from enjoying the work makes a significant difference, "Amabile said.

21世纪大学英语读写教程第四册Unit1课文讲解3

  artillery

  n. heavy guns, often mounted on wheels, used in fighting on land, branch of an army that uses these 火炮;大炮;炮兵(部队)

  surveyor

  n. a person whose job is to examine and record the area and features of a piece of land by measuring and calculating (土地)测量员;勘测员

  unspectacular

  a. ordinary; not exciting or special 不引人注意的;不惊人的

  spectacular

  a. (attracting attention because) impressive or extraordinary 引人注目的;出色的;与众不同的

  carve

  vt. 1. form (sth.) by cutting away material from wood or stone 雕刻;雕刻成

  2. build (one"s career, reputation, etc.)by hard work 靠勤奋创(业),靠勤奋树(名声)

  uncompromising

  a. not ready to make any compromise; firm or unyielding. 不妥协的.,坚定的;不让步的

  influential

  a. having a lot of influence on sb./sth. 有影响的;有权势的

  genetics

  n. the scientific study of the ways in which different characteristics are passed from each generation of living things to the next 遗传学

  psychiatry

  n. the study and treatment of mental illness 精神病学;精神病治疗

  compose

  vt. write (music, opera, poetry, etc.) 创作(音乐、歌剧、诗等)

  symphony

  n. a long complex musical composition for a large orchestra, usu. in three or four parts 交响乐

  characteristic

  n. a typical feature or quality 特点

  unrelenting

  a. not becoming less strong or severe; continuous 不松懈的,不放慢的;持续的

  endow

  vt. provide (sb./sth.) with a good quality, ability, feature, etc. 给予,赋予

  super-normal

  a. 超出一般的;超常的;非凡的

  amazing

  a. extremely good; esp. in a surprising and unexpected way 惊人的,令人吃惊的

  cite

  vt. mention (sb./sth.) as an example or to support an argument; refer to 引用,引证;举出

  risk-taker

  n. a person who dares to take risks 敢于冒险的人

  thrust

  vt. push (sth./sb./oneself) suddenly or violently (用力)推;强使

  morale

  n. state of confidence, enthusiasm, determination, etc. that a person or group has at a particular time 士气,精神状态

  brilliantly

  ad. in an outstanding manner 杰出地;才华横溢地

  Allied

  a. of the Allies (a group of countries fighting on the same side in a war, esp. those which fought with Britain in World Wars I and II) (第一次世界大战时期)协约国的;(第二次世界大战时期)同盟国的

  ally

  n. person, country, etc. joined with another in order to give help and support 同盟者;同盟国

  evacuation

  n. leaving a place of danger for a safer place 撤离;撤退

  evacuate

  v. 1. remove (sb.) from a place of danger to a safer place 撤退,撤出

  2. leave or withdraw from (a place) 撤离(某处)

  flag

  vi. become tired or weak; begin to lose enthusiasm or energy 疲乏;变弱;(热情、精力等)衰退,低落

  striking

  a. attracting attention; unusual or interesting enough to be noticed 引人注目的;显著的,突出的

  firstborn

  n. a child born before other children 长子(或长女)

  peacetime

  n. a period when a country is not at war 和*时期

  fireside

  n. part of a room beside the fireplace, esp. considered as a warm comfortable place 壁炉旁

  chat

  n. a friendly informal conversation 闲谈,聊天

  fireside chat

  炉边亲切闲谈;(政治领袖在无线电或电视广播中)不拘形式的讲话

  innate

  a. (of a quality, feeling, etc.) in one"s nature; possessed from birth 天生的

  landslide

  n. (竞选中)压倒多数的选票;一面倒的胜利

  equation

  n. 等式;方程(式)

  boldness

  n. the state or quality of being confident and brave 勇敢,无畏

  bold

  a. confident and brave; daring 勇敢的,无畏的;敢作敢为的

  magnet

  n. a piece of iron or other material that can attract iron, either naturally or because of an electric current passed through it 磁铁

  obsession

  n. the state of being obsessed 着迷

  contemporary

  n. a person who lives or lived at the same time as another, usu. being roughly the same age 同代人;(几乎)同年龄的人

  a. belong to the same time; of the present time; modern 属于同一时代的;当代的;现代的

  poetry

  n. poems collectively or in general [总称]诗

  intrinsic

  a. (of a value or quality) belonging naturally to sb./sth.; existing within sb./sth., rather than coming from outside 固有的;本质的;内在的

  randomly

  ad. without method or conscious choice 任意地,胡乱地

  submit

  vt. give (sth.) to sb./sth. so that it may be formally considered or so that a decision about it may be made 提交,呈递

  anonymously

  ad. without revealing one"s name 用匿名的方式

  evaluation

  n. the act of assessing or forming an idea of the amount, quality or value of sb./sth. 评价,评估

21世纪大学英语读写教程第四册Unit1课文讲解4

  have (sth., nothing, a lot, etc.) to do with sb./sth.

  be connected or concerned with sb./sth. to the extent specified 与某人 / 某事有(一些、毫无、很大)关系

  make history

  be or do sth. so important or unusual that it will be recorded in history 创造历史,影响历史的进程;做出值得纪念(或载入史册的)事情

  rise above

  become successful or outstanding 取得成功;出类拔萃

  leave behind

  cause to lag behind; surpass 把…丢在后面;超过

  focus on

  concentrate on 集中于;着重于

  be endowed with

  naturally have a good quality, ability, feature, etc. 天生具有

  come out of

  originate in or develop from 从…中获得;从…中发展而来

  build...upon

  base ... on; use (sth.) as a foundation for further progress 把…建立在…上

  take charge

  take control (of sth.); be responsible (for sth.) 掌管;负责

  go /get nowhere

  achieve no success or make no progress 不能成功;无进展

  set ... apart

  make (sb./sth.) different from or superior to others 使显得突出,使显得与众不同

  put up with

  tolerate or bear (sb./sth.) 忍受,容忍


21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇(扩展8)

——21世纪大学英语读写基础教程单元七内容讲解60篇

21世纪大学英语读写基础教程单元七内容讲解1

  "Why do I have to learn math? I"ll never use this again in my whole life." This kind of complaining can often be heard among students. Is it true that nobody needs math? Well, the author is going to tell you the story...

  Math, Who Needs It?

  Carlie Vanwilligen

  "That"ll be $6.52," the cashier said. I handed her a $10 bill. She looked at it, then looked at me. As I waited, she started writing on a pad of paper. After what seemed like several minutes, she handed me the change. "$4.52 is your change," she smiled.

  I stared at the change, then at her. "That"s not right," I said. She looked at me, confused. "I gave you a $10, the change would be $3.48." I handed the money back to her.

  "I"m sorry," she replied. "Our com*r is down, and I have to do this by hand. I"m not very good at math." She counted out my change, and I left.

  As I think back on this exchange, I feel sad, sad because it wasn"t the first time it had happened, sad because I know it won"t be the last. I taught high school math for years, and every year, the conversation was the same: "Why do I have to learn this? This isn"t important. I"ll never use this again in my whole life."

  Unfortunately, students don"t see the eventual impact of studying a subject. And when that subject is math, they see the value even less. I no longer teach full-time, but I look back on those conversations and think about how my reactions changed each year. The first year I taught, the question caught me off guard. "Because" was my standard answer. The second year, my response was similar, "If you want to graduate, you learn this stuff." It took me until my third year of teaching to realize that, if I genuinely wanted students to learn, they needed motivation. So, instead of my standard "because" and "if you want to pass" answers, I asked them what they"d like to do when they graduate—or when they "grow up". For each career path, I had "math" that they needed to know in order to be successful. For the construction workers, architects, and engineers, there was the geometry involved in getting a building to stand solidly. For the prospective teacher, it was the statistics involved in seeing if your tests were fair to the students. For the prospective "I want to be a stay-at-home mom", there was the calculating involved in maintaining a household. For the financial wizard wanna-be, there was the understanding of economics that comes with being a successful investor or accountant. For the stubborn, who insisted they didn"t want to be anything, and didn"t need math, a simple role-play involving them being "ripped-off" when they couldn"t make change drove my point home.

  Who needs math? We all do! We use it every day. Not only that, but the problem solving we learned during the days of "if one train leaves Springfield at 6:00pm travelling east at 75mph", can now help us with a myriad of "*" crises. Do I have enough gas to get to work and back without filling the tank? Which bills do I pay and when in order to have enough money in the bank? How much grass seed do I need to cover that 10"×10" bare patch in the front yard?

  For those still teaching, it is using these examples, and developing activities for students that bring the reality of math into their worlds. For parents, the same holds true. When your child complains that he or she "doesn"t get" math, give your child an example. Take your child to the grocery store. Give your child $10. Tell your child to provide a dinner for the family, complete with the four basic food groups and dessert, for that $10. Show your child the importance of thinking mathematically. It will do your child some good—who knows, you might learn something too!

21世纪大学英语读写基础教程单元七内容讲解2

  cashier

  n. a person whose job is to receive and pay out money in a shop, hotel, etc. 出纳员

  pad

  n. 便笺本;拍纸簿

  confused

  a. unable to think clearly; bewildered 糊涂的,迷惑的

  com*r

  n. a machine that stores information and works out answers 计算机;电脑

  conversation

  n. informal talk 交谈;谈话

  eventual

  a. happening at last as a result 最后的;最终的

  full-time

  ad. 全日地;作为专职

  a. 全日的;专任的

  reaction

  n. behavior, a feeling or an action that is a direct result of sth. else 反应,回应

  similar

  a. having a likeness or resemblance 相似的;类似的

  genuinely

  ad. really 真正地

  motivation

  n. 动机,动力,诱因

  construction

  n. the act or process of constructing 建筑

  architect

  n. a (qualified) person who designs buildings 建筑师

  geometry

  n. 几何(学)

  involve

  vt. 1. cause (sb.) to be connected with 牵涉

  2. include or use (sth.) as a necessary part, etc. 包含,含有

  solidly

  ad. firmly 牢固地,坚固地

  * prospective

  a. possible, likely, expected; probable 预期的;未来的;可能的

  statistics

  n. 统计学

  calculate

  vt. determine by mathematics or by reckoning 计算

  maintain

  vt. 1. support (sb.) financially 赡养

  2. continue to have; keep in existence 保持;维持

  financial

  a. concerning money and finance 财务的

  wizard

  n. a person with extraordinary abilities; genius 有非凡才能的人;奇才

  wanna

  v. (口)= want to

  economics

  n. 经济学

  investor

  n. a person who invests money 投资者

  accountant

  n. 会计师;会计员

  * stubborn

  a. unreasonably unwilling to change 顽固的,执拗的

  ripped-off

  a. (俚语)(人)遭劫的;受剥削的;被欺诈的

  pm

  (缩)= afternoon 下午(源于拉丁文 post meridiem)

  mph

  (缩)= miles per hour 英里/小时

  tank

  n. a large container, usu. for liquid or gas (通常盛液体或气体的.)大桶;箱;大容器;油箱

  solve

  vt. find an answer to (a problem, etc.); explain or make clear 解决;阐明;解释

  bare

  a. without covering; empty 光秃的,无遮的;空的

  patch

  n. a small piece of land, esp. one used for growing vegetables (尤指种菜用的)小块土地

  complain

  vt. & vi. speak in an unhappy, annoyed, dissatisfied way 抱怨;发牢骚

  grocery

  n. 食品杂货店

  basic

  a. most simple in nature or level 基本的

  dessert

  n. any sweet dish, (eg. pie, ice-cream) eaten at the end of a meal (饭后的)甜食(如馅饼,冰激凌)

  importance

  n. the quality or state of being important 重要性

  mathematically

  ad. 从数学上

  Phrases and Expressions

  a pad of

  一本(便笺本)

  by hand

  by a person, not a machine 用手

  count out

  count (sth.) one by one, esp. slowly 逐一数出

  think back on

  recall and reconsider (sth. in the past) 回想,回忆

  catch sb. off guard

  surprise sb. by doing sth. that he or she is not expecting and is not ready for 乘某人不备;使某人措手不及

  be involved in

  be part of, included in, mixed with 参与;卷入;牵涉进

  rip off

  cheat (sb.), esp. financially (尤指在钱财上)欺骗

  drive sth. home

  make sth. clearly understood 把…讲得透彻明白,使充分理解

  a myriad of

  an extremely large number of 无数;极多

  do sb. good

  benefit sb. 有益于某人


21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇(扩展9)

——21世纪大学英语读写教程第3册第9单元课文解读 (菁选3篇)

21世纪大学英语读写教程第3册第9单元课文解读1

  1. As you listen to the conversation, note down the answers to the following questions:

  What is the destination of the mission that"s just been approved? _____

  What is the mission expected to cost? ______

  Who lives in that neighborhood? ______

  What does the speaker think would be a better use for the money? _____

  2. Do you know the answer to the last question asked in the dialog?

21世纪大学英语读写教程第3册第9单元课文解读2

  It is expected that the discovery of possible life-forms from the planet Mars will revive public interest in space exploration. But is public support for the international space effort necessary, given that politicians seem determined to press ahead with it anyway?

  The race to the moon, which was won by the Americans in 1969, was driven almost entirely by politics. The rivalry between the U.S. and the former Soviet Union meant that the two countries were determined to be the first to put a man on the moon. President John F. Kennedy promised that America would win this race and, as one of the most popular presidents in American history, he inspired a nation to think of space exploration as the ultimate test of America"s superiority over her Soviet enemy.

  America"s success as the first nation to reach the moon, coupled with continuing Cold War rivalry, created much public support for the space programme and Washington was able to fund many more missions. During the 1970s, the moon was visited again, unmanned missions were sent to Mars and, for the first time, man-made craft were put on paths that would take them out of the solar system.

  But, by the 1980s, public support for space exploration was declining. It faded almost entirely after the Challenger space shuttle disaster of 1986, and the U.S. government was under pressure to scale back its space programme. Politicians reacted by demanding cuts in spending, which put the future of many space missions in doubt.

  In Russia, funding was also a problem. The end of the Soviet Union meant the country could no longer afford to sustain its space programme. In fact, spending became so tight that there was often not enough money to bring home astronauts working on the country"s Mir space station.

  But, in the last few years, politicians seem to have changed their attitude to space exploration, even though there is little evidence that the public have. New missions to Mars are planned, and plenty of money is being spent on other extraterrestrial activities. Last year, for instance, the U.S. spent more on space research and development than on any other area of research, except health and the military.

  And spending is likely to increase in the coming years: currently, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is planning a number of missions to Mars, and it is pressing ahead with the most expensive space-exploration project ever undertaken — the International Space Station. (Three years ago, this project — a collaboration between the U.S., Canada, Russia, Europe and Japan — came within one vote of being canceled by the American House of Representatives.)

  And the Americans are not the only ones spending huge sums on space exploration. The Europeans, Canadians and Japanese are expected to spend $9 billion on their share of the space station, and Europe has already spent huge sums developing its Ariane rockets, the most recent of which — Ariane 5 — blew up shortly after it was launched. The Russians, too, claim they are committed to supporting the International Space Station — an expense that country seems ill able to afford.

  So, if there is little public support for space exploration, where does the impetus to fund these activities come from? Promoting the cause of science is one possible answer. But recently there has been considerable controversy over whether projects like the International Space Station have enough scientific value to merit the billions that have been and will be spent on it.

  NASA"s reasons for building the space station are "to develop new materials [and] technologies that will have immediate, practical applications". However, for such research to be worthwhile, NASA needs private companies to develop (and help pay for) extraterrestrial research. Unfortunately, the cost of sending anything into orbit is so high that most private companies favour improving techniques on Earth. Significantly, NASA has so far not managed to get any substantial private investment to manufacture products in space.

  The result is that the station seems, at present, to have only one concrete objective: research into how people can live and work safely and efficiently in space. But how important is this research? And can it possibly justify the cost of this huge orbiting laboratory?

  The only purpose of studying how humans live and work in space would be to prepare for long-term space missions. At present, none are planned, and this seems unlikely to change in the near future. The main reasons for this are the costs. A manned mission to our nearest planetary neighbour Mars, for example, would cost around $400 billion. This is $50 billion more than Russia"s present Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

  And even if one accepts that this research is important, can it justify building a space station the size of 14 tennis courts, at a cost which is eventually expected to exceed $100 billion? Given the shortage of funds in many other areas of scientific research, it would seem not.

  So why build it? There are good political reasons for doing so. It will provide work for the thousands of unemployed defence workers who depended on the Cold War for their jobs, and who make up a substantial proportion of voters in both Russia and the U.S. It will also help keep American/Russian ties strong — another reason NASA believes the space station is a good investment. (Critics argue that there are far cheaper ways to keep the U.S. and Russia on good terms.)

  And then there is the legacy of the Cold War. The Berlin Wall may have fallen, but NASA and the U.S. government still seem to believe in the ideal of one nation"s superiority in space. Indeed, NASA describes the space station as "a powerful symbol of U.S. leadership".

  It seems that the world"s politicians are caught in a timewarp. They still believe, as they did in the 1960s, that man must conquer space in order to prove he is master of his surroundings. If only it weren"t so expensive.

21世纪大学英语读写教程第3册第9单元课文解读3

  * rivalry

  n. active competition between people 竞争;对抗

  craft

  n. 1. (pl. unchanged) a boat, ship, aircraft, etc. 小船;船;飞机;飞行器

  2. skill and care in doing or making sth. 工艺;手艺

  3. a trade or profession requiring skill and care (需要特种手艺的)行业;职业

  4. 诡计;手腕

  * shuttle

  n. 航天飞机

  v. go from one place to another 穿梭往返

  extraterrestrial

  a. happening, existing or coming from somewhere beyond Earth 地球(或其大气圈)外的;行星际的`;宇宙的

  military

  a. of or for soldiers or an army 军事的

  n. (the ~ ) soldiers or the army; the armed forces 军人;军队;武装部队

  aeronautics

  n. the scientific study or practice of constructing and flying aircraft 航空学

  space exploration

  n. 外层空间探索

  * collaboration

  n. working together with sb., esp. to create or produce sth. 合作,协作

  cancel

  vt. order (sth.) to be stopped; make (sth.) no longer valid 取消;废除

  rocket

  n. 火箭

  vi. move very fast; rise quickly and suddenly 飞速前进;猛涨

  * impetus

  n. a force that encourages a process to develop more quickly 推动力;刺激

  controversy

  n. fierce argument or disagreement about sth., esp. one that is carried on in public over a long period 争论;争议

  worthwhile

  a. worth doing; worth the trouble taken 值得做的;值得花费时间(精力)的

  orbit

  n. a path followed by an object, eg. a spacecraft, round a planet, star, etc. [天]轨道

  v. move in orbit round sth. 环绕(天体的)轨道运行

  planetary

  a. 行星的

  gross

  a. total; whole 总的;毛的

  timewarp

  n. (in science fiction) a situation in which people or things from one point in time are moved to or trapped in another point in time (科幻作品中)时间异常(或间断、暂停)

  warp

  n. 1. a bend or twist 变形;翘曲

  2. a fault or abnormality in a person"s character 反常心理;乖戾


21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇(扩展10)

——21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第6课内容解析 (菁选3篇)

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第6课内容解析1

  Linda Weltner

  My husband and I went to a funeral a few weeks ago. The man we honored had not been ill and will never grow old. He was killed in his car on a Sunday night, driving home along a divided highway.

  It was an ordinary evening, no blacker than any other, when a car coming in the other direction went out of control, broke through the guard rail, and hit two other cars before smashing head on into his. According to the newspaper, the driver, who was returning from a wedding, seemed puzzled. "I only had two bottles of beer and a cocktail," she is reported to have said.

  A wedding.

  Followed by a funeral.

  I wish she could have been there to see all the lives her act has changed forever, the wife, and four children, the extended family, the hundreds and hundreds of friends who sat in painful silence, listening to words which barely touched the depths of their grief.

  Strange to think that, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, this happens in America every 23 minutes.

  Somebody drinks.

  Somebody drives.

  Somebody dies.

  And other lives are altered forever, though sometimes the changes may be invisible to a casual observer. By chance, the day before the funeral I ran into a longtime acquaintance while shopping. He commented on my crutches. I asked if he had ever broken his leg.

  "Uh, I have a long rod in this thigh," he said, "from a car accident two weeks after I came back from Vietnam."

  "That"s ironic. To leave a war zone and then get injured," I teased him. "You"re lucky it wasn"t worse."

  "Well, my wife was killed in the crash and so was the wife of the driver," he said uncomfortably. "We were hit by a drunk."

  I"ve known this man for years, yet suddenly realized there was a whole chapter of his life he"d never mentioned. I asked and discovered he"d remained in the hospital seven weeks, and that all that time he"d known his wife was dead. It was hard to know where to go from there, for there are questions you can"t put to someone in a casual conversation — questions like, "How could you bear it?" or "What did you do about wanting revenge?"

  I wish I knew the answers to those questions. I wish I could offer those answers to the woman who, overwhelmed by grief, could barely walk as she followed her husband"s coffin from the church.

  Every 23 minutes, who dies?

  A mother who will never comfort the child who needs her. A woman who will never know how very much her friends depended on her. A man whose contributions to his community would have made a difference. A wife whose husband cannot picture the future without her.

  Every 23 minutes, who dies?

  A son who involuntarily abandons his parents in their old age. A father who can never acknowledge his children"s accomplishments. A daughter who can never take back her angry words. A sister who will never be her sister"s maid of honor.

  Every 23 minutes, who dies?

  A brother who will not be there to hold his newborn niece. A friend whose encouragement is gone forever. A bride-to-be who will never say her vows. An aunt whose family will fragment and fall apart.

  Every 23 minutes, who dies?

  A child who will never fulfill his early promise. An uncle who leaves his children without guidance and support. A grandmother whose husband must now grow old alone. A lover who never had a chance to say how much he cared.

  Every 23 minutes.

  A void opens.

  Someone looks across the table at a vacant chair; climbs into an empty bed, feels the pain of no voice, no touch, no love. Where there was once intimacy and contact, now there is only absence and despair.

  Every 23 minutes

  A heart breaks.

  Someone"s pain shatters the confines of her body, leaking out in tears, exploding in cries, defying all efforts to soothe the despair. Sleep offers no escape from the nightmare of awakening. And morning brings only the irreversibility of loss.

  Every 23 minutes.

  A dream ends.

  Someone"s future blurs and goes blank as anticipation fades into nothingness. The phone will not ring, the car will not pull up to the house. The weight of tomorrow becomes unbearable in a world in which all promises have been broken by force.

  Every 23 minutes.

  Somebody wants to run. Somebody wants to hide.

  Somebody is left with hate. Somebody wants to die.

  And we permit this to go on.

  Every 23 minutes.

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第6课内容解析2

  funeral

  n. a ceremony of burying or burning a dead person 葬礼

  * cocktail

  n. 鸡尾酒

  painful

  a. causing an upsetting or unpleasant feeling; causing a feeling of discomfort in a particular part of the body 令人痛苦的;疼痛的.

  crutch

  n. T字形拐杖

  rod

  n. a long thin pole or bar 杆;棒条

  * thigh

  n. the top part of the human leg 大腿

  zone

  n. an area of particular qualities 地带,地区

  injure

  vt. hurt; offend 伤害,损害

  injury

  n. (to) harm, damage to a living thing (对生物的)伤害;损害

  drunk

  n. a person who habitually drinks too much alcohol 酗酒者,醉汉

  a. overcome by drinking alcoholic liquor; (fig.) filled with excitement and joy 醉酒的;(喻)陶醉的

  * revenge

  n. (for, on) punishment given to sb. in return for harm done to oneself 复仇;报复

  vt. do sth. to get satisfaction for (an offence, etc.); avenge (sb.) 报…之仇;为…报仇

  involuntarily

  ad. not (done) from choice or intention 非自愿地;非出于本意地

  maid

  n. 1. a female servant 女仆,保姆

  2. (obsolete usage): a girl or (young) woman who is not married 少女,年轻女子

  niece

  n. 侄女;甥女

  vow

  n. a solemn promise or declaration 誓言

  vt. declare or swear solemnly 立誓

  fragment

  vi. break or separate into small pieces 破碎;碎裂

  n. a small piece from a larger whole 碎片

  guidance

  n. guiding or being guided; direction 引导;指导

  vacant

  a. 1. (of a place or space) empty; not filled with anything 空的;未被占用的

  2. (of a job) not at present filled 空缺的

  intimacy

  n. the state of being in a close relationship 亲密;密切

  intimate

  a. 1. (of people) close in relationship 亲密的;密切的

  2. personal; private 个人的;私人的

  despair

  n. complete lack or loss of hope 绝望

  vi. (of) have lost all hope 绝望;失去希望

  * shatter

  vt. break (sth.) suddenly into small pieces; smash (sth.) 粉碎;砸碎

  confines

  n. (fml) limits; borders; boundaries (正式)界限;边界;范围

  leak

  v. 1. (使)渗漏

  2. make known (使)泄露出去

  n. 漏隙;漏出物

  * defy

  vt. disobey; fight against; show no fear or respect for 违抗;蔑视

  * defiance

  n. behaviour showing one"s disobedience to sb. or ignorance of sb. 违抗;蔑视

  * soothe

  vt. make less angry or upset; calm or comfort 抚慰;使*静

  nightmare

  n. an unpleasant and terrible dream 恶梦

  irreversibility

  n. a state of things which cannot be turned back, changed or improved 不可挽回;不可逆转

  fade

  vi. 1. (away) disappear or die gradually 逐渐消失

  2. lose strength, colour, freshness, etc. 衰颓;褪色;凋谢

21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第6课内容解析3

  go out of control

  be no longer under control 失去控制

  smash into

  hit forcefully against 猛地撞在…

  head on

  with the head or front parts meeting violently 迎面地,正面地

  by chance

  by accident; unintentionally 偶然地;意外地

  comment on

  make a remark or give an opinion on 评论;就…发表意见

  make a difference

  有影响;起作用

  take back one"s words

  admit that one was wrong in what one has said 收回说过的话

  maid of honor

  首席女傧相

  [n.]-to-be

  未来的…

  fade into

  gradually disappear and become (sth. of no importance) 逐渐消失而变成(无足轻重的东西)

  pull up [to/at/in front of a place]

  (of vehicles) drive up to and stop at (车辆)到达,驶入

推荐访问:课文 读写 大学英语 21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解60篇 21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册第1单元课文讲解1 大学英语读写教程3第三版课文翻译第五单元

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