Unit 2 Myths and Legends
In-Class Reading Why the Tortoise’s Shell Is Not Smooth
为什么乌龟的背壳凹凸不平
1 从远处他妻子们的那些小木屋里传来的低声细语，时不时地被歌声打断，但是奥康瓦还是听到了，这是妻子们同各自的孩子在讲民间故事。爱克蔚菲和她的女儿爱金玛坐在一块小地毯上。现在，轮到爱克蔚菲讲故事了。霎时，低声细语静了下来，所有的眼睛都转向她们最喜欢的故事能手。 2 “很久以前”，她开始讲道，“所有的鸟儿都被邀请到天上赴宴。它们非常高兴，开始为这盛大的日子做准备。它们用颜料把自己的身体涂成深红色并画上漂亮的图案。
3 “乌龟看到了所有这些准备活动，并很快了解了事情的来龙去脉。动物界里发生的任何事都逃不过他的眼睛，（因为）他狡黠无比，诡计多端。他一听说这一天上的盛宴，不禁垂涎三尺。那些日子正在闹饥荒，乌龟已经有两个月没好好吃一顿饭了。他的身体就像一段枯柴棍在空荡荡的躯壳里咔咔作响。于是他稳扎稳打地开始计划如何能到天上去。” 4 “但是他没有翅膀呀，”爱金玛说。 5 “别性急，”她母亲回答道，“故事（的关键）就在这里。乌龟没有翅膀，但他去找鸟儿们，请求能跟他们一起去。” 6 “‘我们太了解你了，’鸟儿们听了他的请求后说道。‘你诡计多端并且忘恩负义。如果我们答应你，你马上就会施展诡计。我们老早就把你看透了。’ 7 “‘你们不了解我，’乌龟说。‘我已经脱胎换骨了，不再是你们以前所知道的那个捣蛋鬼了。相反，我现在既体贴又善良。我已经认识到，给别人制造麻烦的人就是在给自己制造麻烦。放心吧，我保证不给你们增添任何麻烦。’
8 “乌龟巧舌如簧，没过多久，所有的鸟儿都一致认为，他确实已经脱胎换骨了，于是每只鸟儿都给了他一根羽毛，用这些羽毛，乌龟做了两只色彩绚丽的翅膀。
9 “最后，这盛大的日子终于来到了，乌龟第一个到达了集合地点。等所有的鸟儿都来齐了，他们就一块儿动身。乌龟飞在鸟儿们中间，非常高兴，而且由于他擅长演说，很快就被推选为大伙儿的发言人。 10 “‘有件重要的事我们绝不能忘记，’他在飞行途中说道。‘当人们被邀请参加类似于这样的盛宴时，要特意给自己取个新名字。天上的主人们一定也希望我们能遵循这一古老习俗。’
11 “鸟儿们谁也没听说过这一习俗，但他们知道，尽管乌龟在其它方面不怎么样，却到过许多地方，知晓不同民族的风俗习惯。于是他们每人都取了一个新名字。等他们全都取好了，乌龟也取了一个。他的新名字叫‘你们大家’。
12 “最后群鸟飞到了天上，那儿的主人们见到他们非常高兴。乌龟穿着他那五彩的羽衣，起身对主人们的邀请深表谢意。他的讲话如此得体，所有的鸟儿都很庆幸把他带了来，对他所说的一切都点头赞同。主人们把他当成了鸟儿们的国王，尤其是因为他看起来有那么点儿与众不同。 13 “精选出来的各种果仁呈上来吃完之后，天上的人们在客人们面前摆上了乌龟从未见过或梦到过的美味佳肴。汤刚从炉子上烧好就连着罐子热气腾腾地端上来了，里面全是肉和鱼。乌龟开始很响地嗅气。有甜薯泥以及用棕榈油和鲜鱼一起煮成的甜薯汤，还有一坛坛棕榈酒。等所有的菜肴在客人们面前摆好后，有一位天上的人走上前来，把每样菜肴都尝一口。然后他请鸟儿们进餐。但这时乌龟一跃而起，问道：‘你们是为谁准备的这个宴会？’ 精品文档
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14 “‘为你们大家啊，’那个人回答道。 15 “乌龟转向鸟儿们说：‘你们该记得，我的名字就是“你们大家”。这儿的习俗是先请发言人吃，然后才轮到其他人。我吃完以后，他们会请你们吃的。’
16 “他开始大吃起来，鸟儿们则私下里生气地抱怨着。天上的人还以为把所有的食物让国王吃是鸟儿们的习俗。就这样，乌龟吃掉了最好的食物，还喝了两坛棕榈酒，于是酒足饭饱了，他的身体胀得胖鼓鼓的，把整个龟壳都撑圆了。
17 “鸟儿们围拢来吃些残羹剩饭，啄着他扔在地上的骨头。有一些鸟儿气得什么都没吃，他们宁可空着肚子飞回去。但是离开前，每只鸟儿都向乌龟要回了各自借给他的那根羽毛。乌龟站在那儿，身上只剩了一个硬壳，里面满是佳肴美酒，却没了可飞回家的翅膀。他请求鸟儿们捎个口信给他的妻子，但被大家拒绝了。最后，最生乌龟气的鹦鹉，突然改变了主意，同意替他带个口信。 18 “‘告诉我的妻子，’乌龟说道，‘把家里所有软的东西都拿出来，铺在地上，这样我就可以从天上跳下去，而不至于摔伤了。’
19 “鹦鹉满口答应一定把这个口信带到，然后窃笑着飞走了。然而，当他飞到乌龟家时，却告诉乌龟的妻子把家里所有硬的、尖的家伙都拿出来。于是乌龟的妻子就尽心尽责地把丈夫的锄头，刀子，长矛，枪甚至他的大炮都搬了出来。乌龟从天上往下看，看到他的妻子正往外搬东西，但相距太远了看不清是些什么。当一切似乎都已准备妥当时，他就纵身一跳。他掉啊，掉啊，掉，直到他开始担心自己会这样一直不停地掉下去。然后，他重重地摔到了地上，那声响就跟他的大炮轰鸣一样。” 20 “他死了吗？”爱金玛问道。 21 “没有，”爱克蔚菲回答说。“他的背壳摔成了好几百块碎片。不过，那附近有一个医术高明的行医者。乌龟的妻子就派人把他请来，这位行医者把所有的碎片捡拢来，粘在一起。这就是为什么乌龟的背壳凹凸不平的原因了。”
After-Class Reading Beauty and the Beast
美女与野兽
1 从前有一位非常富有的商人，他有六个孩子，三个儿子和三个女儿。他满足女儿想要的一切，但是，除了小女儿，两个大女儿都非常自高自大，被宠坏了。小女儿名叫“美女”。 她既美丽又温柔，两个姐姐为此嫉妒得不得了。 2 在一个倒霉的日子里，商人得知自己损失了所有的钱，全家人被迫从城里的豪宅搬到乡下一个小房子去住。三个儿子立即帮助父亲张罗外面的琐事。可怜的美女，向来都是仆人照料她的起居。现在她不得不在日出前起床，生火、做饭、打扫屋子。但是她很快适应了这种生活。她说：“哭不会改善现状。我必须努力让自己快乐起来。”然而，她的两个姐姐则每天睡到正午，并且还为美女不像她俩一样痛苦而生气。
3 一年后，这位父亲收到一封信，告知他有一艘失综的船已被找到，并已满载货物而归。全家人都很高兴，因为他们又要变得富有了。在商人离家前，两个大女儿恳求父亲给她们带回各种各样珍贵的首饰和漂亮衣服。“那么我的美女想要什么呢?”父亲问道。“哦，我什么都不需要，但是如果您能带给我一朵玫瑰，我会非常感激的，”她说。当然，美女并不需要玫瑰，只是她想，为了不使自己看上去似乎在批评两个姐姐的贪婪，她最好得要点什么。 4 商人来到了港口，但是天哪，船已经沉没了，结果他依然贫穷如前。回家时他在森林里迷了路，并且天开始下起雪来。“我会冻死的，或者被狼吃掉，再也看不到我亲爱的孩子们了，”他伤心地想着。突然，他看到一所富丽堂皇的豪宅，里面灯火通明。他敲了敲门，但精品文档
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没人答应。他走进去，却发现壁炉里炉火正旺，一张桌子上摆满美味佳肴。他等了很长时间，等着主人露面，但是没有人来。他饿极了，于是他最后（忍不住）吃了一点食物。然后他找到一间卧室，并很快在那儿睡着了。第二天早晨他惊讶地发现一套崭新的衣服摆在他面前，一顿新做的早餐等着他去享用。“这儿一定是仙女们住的城堡，” 他想，因此他大声喊了声“谢谢你们”，然后离开了。他惊讶地看到雪已经消失得无影无踪，面前有一个可爱的花园，里面长满了玫瑰花丛。“我只摘一朵玫瑰，给我的美女，”他说，但当他折下玫瑰时却听到了一声很可怕的声音。他看到一头丑陋的怪兽对他说，“忘恩负义的人！我救了你的命，你却偷我的玫瑰来报答我。你必须死!”但是商人乞求野兽看在他孩子们的份上不要杀他。野兽在听说了美女和她要求得到一朵玫瑰的故事之后似乎有了兴趣。“那么你必须叫她到这儿来代替你。给你三个月的时间。回家去，如果她不愿来，那你必须回来。但是我不会让你空着手离开的。到你房间去，你会发现一箱金子，”野兽说。“好吧，如果我必须得死，至少我不会让我的孩子们身无分文，”这位父亲想，于是他带着一箱金子回到了家。 5 “给，美女，”他说，“给你这朵玫瑰。你不知道这朵玫瑰将怎样使你不幸的父亲丢掉性命。”于是他把遭遇野兽的事说了一遍。
6 美女立刻坚持要去野兽家，以此来救她父亲一命,而且不愿听任何劝阻。在离开家的那一天，她的姐姐们用洋葱抹眼睛，为她的离开并且很可能丢掉性命而假装悲伤。 7 当商人和美女到达那所宫殿时，灯火依旧通明。火旺旺地烧着，桌子上摆满了精美佳肴。“哦，野兽想先把我养肥了再杀死我，”美女想。尽管害怕，为了父亲她仍然表现得振作而又勇敢。突然他们听到一个可怕的声音，野兽出现了。“你是心甘情愿到这儿来的吗?”野兽问。“是的，”美女哆嗦着说。“好，那就和你的父亲道别吧。”悲痛欲绝的商人就这样被迫离开女儿回家了。
8 美女肯定野兽会在那天晚上把她吃掉。（因此）当她发现卧室门的上方有一块刻着“美女房间”的金牌子时非常惊讶。房间里到处是华丽的家俱，书架上排列着所有她爱看的书。还有一架钢琴供她弹奏。在有一本书里还写着： 欢迎美女，不要害怕，
你是这儿的王后、这儿的主人。 说出你的愿望，说出你的意愿， 你的心愿，马上就会实现。
9 “这一切都这么豪华，我想野兽不会很快吃掉我的，”她说，于是她不太害怕了。 10 第二天晚上野兽来到餐桌前说，“美女，让我看着你吃饭，好吗? 如果我在场会打扰你，我就离开。告诉我，你是否觉得我很丑?” 美女说，“是的，”因为她不会说谎，但她补充说：“但我认为你心地非常善良。”他们交谈着，美女开始感觉镇定多了。这时，野兽说，“美女，你愿意嫁给我吗?”尽管美女不想让野兽生气，但她还是说，“不愿意”。野兽开始哀号并且伤心地说，“那么，再见，美女，”然后离开了。
11 三个月的时间里，每天吃晚饭时都发生同样的事情。美女开始期待这些见面，而且因野兽的丑陋所引起的恐惧感也消失了，但是每天晚上，在离开之前，野兽都问同样的问题：“美女，你愿意嫁给我吗?”
12 “哦，野兽，我要是能同意嫁给你就好了。我会永远把你当作我很要好的朋友，但是我并不爱你。”
13 “但是你能答应永远不离开我吗?”野兽问。
14 “哦，野兽，我非常担心我亲爱的父亲，我也非常想他。” 15 “啊，那你会离开我，而我这个野兽会伤心死的。” 16 “哦，不，”美女说道，“如果你让我去看望我父亲一次，我一定会回来和你永远生活在一起。” 精品文档
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17 “你明天就会在家里了，”野兽说。 “但是记住，当你想回到我这儿时，你必须在上床睡觉前把戒指放在桌子上。”
18 第二天早晨，当美女醒来时，发觉自己已在父亲家里，而且房间里满是一箱箱的金子和漂亮高雅的绸缎礼服，都是野兽送给她的。除了两个狠心的姐姐，所有人见了她都十分高兴。两个姐姐嫉妒难耐，却装作非常高兴，请求妹妹能住多久就住多久。第十天晚上美女做了一个梦，梦中她看见野兽躺在花园里，快要死了。她从梦中哭醒过来。“哦，我多么忘恩负义啊！他长得丑陋是他的错吗? 他一直对我那样温和，那样慷慨。原先我为什么不同意嫁给他呢?” 于是她下床，把戒指放到桌上，然后又回到床上睡着了。第二天早晨醒来时她已在野兽的城堡里了。她穿上最漂亮的礼服，等待野兽到来。晚饭过后，野兽仍然没有露面，这时她想起了那个梦，急忙跑到花园里，发现野兽躺在地上，就要死了。她俯身伏在他身上，抱着他大哭。“哦，野兽，请不要死! 活下来做我的丈夫。”她一说完这些话，只见眼前光芒闪耀，还有音乐声，她看到的不是丑陋不堪的野兽，而是她所能见到的最英俊的王子。王子被一个邪恶的女巫用可怕的符咒把他镇住，美女把它解除了，王子向她表示感谢。接着，出现了一位拿着魔杖的仙女，然后是美女的全家人。仙女微笑着说，“美女，你做了一个聪明的选择，（因为）你选取了美德而不是美貌。从今以后，你要和王子一起幸福地生活了。” 然后仙女转向美女的两个姐姐说，“你们两个满心嫉妒的人，你们将变作两个石像但却仍具有思考能力。你们将站在美女城堡的门前，看着她每天幸福地生活，直到你们死去的那一天，这是对你们的惩罚。”
课内阅读练习答案
Part One Preparation
1. An Argument about the Sun
Sample
1) Both the children are wrong. The sun gives out almost the same amount of heat at any time of
the year. We feel sometimes it is hotter, and sometimes it is cooler only because the angle between the sunlight and the surface of the earth varies constantly.
That the sun seems bigger at daybreak is an optical illusion. When it appears on the horizon, only a small part of the sky is bright enough to be seen against it. This makes the sun seem bigger. But when it’s high up in the sky, it seems smaller with the huge bright sky against it. That it is cooler in the morning than at midday is not because of the change of the distance
between the sun and the earth. It is because of the change of the angle between the sunlight and the surface of the earth. We don’t feel very hot in the morning because less sunlight is received per unit of area when the angle is smaller. But as time passes, more and more sunlight per unit of area penetrates the atmosphere and reaches us, so we feel hotter at midday.
2) Confucius was knowledgeable, but not a genius. We can’t expect him to know everything.
Everyone has his or her limitations. Another reason is that at that time science was not as developed as it is today and people didn’t have advanced equipment to do research on the sun and the earth. So it was difficult to understand or explain many natural phenomena.
3) ―I think Confucius was honest. He didn’t pretend to know the answer. 精品文档
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―No one is perfect. One may be an expert in one field, but a novice in other fields.
―The children were very curious, a good quality of theirs. But they only saw one side of the
phenomenon and then jumped to conclusions. One should consider different aspects before drawing any conclusions.
―Children seldom pretend. They do what they want and they say what occurs to them. The
two children in the story laughed at Confucius because he could not answer their questions though he was supposed to be a wise man. Adults are less likely to do these kinds of things.
2. Chinese Fables
Three at Dusk and Four at Dawn
In the state of Song there was a man who was very fond of monkeys and kept a large number of them. He could understand the monkeys and they could understand him. In order to satisfy the monkeys’ demands, he reduced the food consumption of his family.
After a while his family did not have enough to eat, so he wanted to limit the food for his monkeys. But he was afraid the monkeys would not submit to him. So he played a trick on them.
“If I give you three chestnuts in the morning and four in the evening, would that be enough?” he asked the monkeys.
All the monkeys rose up in a fury.
After a short time he said, “If I give you four chestnuts in the morning and three in the evening, would that be enough?”
All the monkeys lay on the floor, happy and satisfied with this proposal.
Moral of the story:
I think that we can learn two things from the story. First, we should look at the whole picture when we are dealing with a problem, instead of just one side of the problem. If we can’t have a whole view of the problem, we might be fooled by something superficial and can never find the truth. Second, we should be consistent in what we are doing. We should not change our attitude, manner or method from time to time when we are doing a particular job.
His Spear Against His Shield
In the state of Chu there was a man who had a spear and a shield for sale. He was loud in praises of his shield.
“My shield is so strong that nothing can pierce it through.” He also sang praises of his spear.
“My spear is so strong that it can pierce through anything.”
“What would happen,” he was asked, “if your spear is used to pierce your shield?” He was unable to give an answer.
It is impossible for an impenetrable shield to coexist with a spear that finds nothing impenetrable.
Moral of the story:
This story tells us that we should be logical in what we are talking about. One can not 精品文档
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exaggerate too much what he is capable of. Otherwise, he will be laughed at by others. Moreover, one should be honest with other people.
A Matter of Dignity
There was a great famine in the state of Qi. Qian Ao, a rich man in Qi, prepared food by
the roadside for the hungry to come and eat.
Along came a starving man, his sleeves covering his head, his hempen (麻制的) sandals
held together by string, walking as if he did not know where he was going. With food in his left hand and drink in his right, Qian Ao shouted at him. “Hey you! Come and eat!”
The man looked up and stared at Qian.
“I’m reduced to this state just because I refuse to take anything from loud-mouthed (高谈
阔论的, 叽里呱啦的) people giving away food,” he said.
Qian immediately begged his pardon but the man still refused to eat and eventually starved to death.
Moral of the story:
Dignity is more important than anything else. One may lose his life but not his dignity. Today, so many people, in order to reach certain positions or win some titles, give up their conscience or dignity. On the other hand, everyone should respect other people, poor or rich. Only when we are full of respect for other people will we earn other people’s respect. Then the whole society will be in harmony.
3. Matching Pictures
1. Aphrodite 2. Ares 3. Hephaestus 4. Artemis 5. Demeter 6. Dionysus
7. Poseidon 8. Athena 9. Apollo 10. Hermes 11. Hera 12. Zeus
Extra exercise: Bedtime Stories
Directions: Of all the bedtime stories your grandparents or parents told you when you were a
little child, which one was the most interesting? Share your favorite story with the other members in your group.
Sample
Long long ago there were two brothers. The elder brother was rich, but the younger brother was poor. They made a living by cutting wood in the forest. One day when the younger brother was crossing a bridge, his iron axe fell into the water. He was very sad and began to cry. At that time an old man appeared. After he knew what happened, he dove into 精品文档
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the water and brought a silver axe to the younger brother, but the younger brother said, “No, this isn’t mine. Mine is made of iron.” Again the old man dove into the water, and brought a gold axe to him. But again he said this wasn’t his. The old man was very happy with this because the younger brother was honest and not greedy. So he gave the younger brother the gold axe.
After the younger brother got home, he told all this to his elder brother. On hearing the story the elder brother went to the same bridge and dropped his iron axe into the water. The old man appeared too and dove into the water after knowing what happened. He brought a silver axe to the elder brother, but the elder brother said this wasn’t his, his was a gold one. The old man was very unhappy and brought him a gold axe unwillingly.
The elder brother went back home with the gold axe, but as soon as he was home, he became a statue, as a result of the magic power of the gold axe.
Part Two Reading-Centered Activities
In-Class Reading
Post-Reading
Reading Comprehension
1. 1) Because they were invited to a feast in the sky. 2) He saw the birds were busy preparing.
3) He planned to go to the feast/sky with the birds.
4) They didn’t agree because Tortoise was mischievous, cunning and ungrateful. 5) With a sweet tongue, he convinced the birds that he was a changed man. 6) He made two wings with all the feathers he got from each bird. 7) All of You.
8) Nuts, meat and fish soup, pounded yam, yam soup, palm wine, etc. 9) For whom have you prepared this feast?
10) Because he knew the answer would be “For all of you”, which was his new name. So he
could enjoy all the food first. 11) They were very angry.
12) They took back the feathers they had lent him. 13) He asked them to take a message to his wife.
14) Parrot, because he wanted to take advantage of the chance to get revenge.
15) He asked Parrot to tell his wife to bring out all the soft things in his house to cover the
ground with them so that he would be able to land safely. But Parrot told his wife to bring out all the hard and sharp, not the soft, things instead. 16) His shell was broken into hundreds of pieces.
2. Ekwefi is telling a story about Tortoise. Long long ago, all the birds got an invitation from the sky to attend a feast there. Tortoise learned about it and with his sweet tongue he persuaded the 精品文档
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birds to take him with them and so each bird lent him a feather. Tortoise cunningly thought of an idea that enabled him to have all the food before anyone else by naming himself “All of You.” When they reached the sky, they received a warm welcome and soon the food was presented to them. Then he asked one of the people in the sky: “For whom have you prepared all this feast?” The man replied: “For all of you.” So he ate almost all the best food. The birds became very angry and took back their feathers before flying home. Without feathers, he had to jump onto the ground and his shell was broken into pieces.
3. Acting out the Story Sample
Bird A: How exciting! All of us are invited to the feast in the sky. Bird B: I just can’t wait. What do you think I should wear? Tortoise: Hello. Good morning. What are you excited about? Bird A: Didn’t you know that we are going to the sky? Bird B: And we are going to have a big dinner. What fun!
Tortoise: How nice it is. What lucky guys. May I go with you? I’m sure we’ll have a lot of fun. Bird A: Yes, we’ll have great fun, but not you. We know you too well. You are full of cunning
and you are ungrateful.
Bird B: If we allow you to come with us, you will soon begin your mischief. Bird A: We know you of old.
Tortoise: You don’t know me now. I’m a changed man. I am not the mischievous man you once
knew. In fact, I am thoughtful and well-meaning. I have learned that a man who makes trouble for others is also making trouble for himself. Rest assured, I promise you I will not cause you any trouble.
Bird A: (Talking to Bird B) Maybe he is a changed man now. Let’s talk to our bird friends and
see if we will take him with us.
(After a brief discussion with all the other birds)
Bird B: OK. Tortoise, now we all agreed to take you to the sky. Each of us will lend you a
feather so that you can have two wings to fly.
(During the flight to the party) Bird A: Tortoise is a great orator!
Bird B: Let’s make him the spokesperson for the party.
Tortoise: Did you know that we need a new name when we are invited to a great feast like this?
It is an age-old custom and our hosts in the sky will expect us to honor it.
Bird A: We haven’t heard of this before. But as you are such a learned man, if you say this, we
will choose a new name. I will call myself Good-Looking.
Bird B: I am Smart-Ass.
Tortoise: And my new name is All of You. (On their arrival at the sky)
Sky people: Welcome to the sky, our dear friends. We are so pleased to see you again. Please
make yourselves at home.
Tortoise: My dear respected friends, thank you so much for inviting us to the sky. Nothing can
make us happier than this. It is our greatest honor to be here and have a good time with you. 精品文档
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Sky people: Thank you for your nice words. Now please help yourselves to the nuts. Bird A: Tortoise is really eloquent, isn’t he? I’m glad we decided to bring him with us. Bird B: Yes. And these are delicious nuts.
Sky people: Now the dinner is ready. Please enjoy the soup, meat, fish and pounded yam. Here
is palm wine, too.
Tortoise: Just a moment. Let me ask you first. For whom have you prepared this feast? Sky people: For whom? Why? For all of you, of course.
Tortoise (To the birds): You remember that my name is All of You. The custom here is to serve
the spokesman first and the others later. They will serve you when I finish.
Sky people (To themselves): Looks like it is their custom to leave all the food to their king first. Tortoise: Mm. Yummy. Mm. I’m full now. You can start to eat.
Bird A: We should never bring him here. I am too angry to eat. I’m going home. Bird B: Wait. I am leaving, too. Take the feather from him with us.
Tortoise: What are you doing? Leave me the feather. Oh, how am I going home without a
single feather? You can’t do this to me!
Birds: Bye.
Tortoise: Could someone take a message for my wife? Tell her to bring out everything soft and
cover the ground…
4. Taking Sides Samples
1) —I don’t admire Tortoise’s cleverness. Actually he was unwise to cheat the birds. After his
mischievous behavior, how could he face them and stay together with them? He would have no friends at all. He was clever in a way, but he was very stupid. For example, when all the birds became so angry, how could he have trusted Parrot? He should have jumped into the sea instead of landing on the ground to avoid being hurt.
— I admire Tortoise’s cleverness. He was a guy who knew where to look for a nice dinner during
time of famine. He knew very well how to have the birds trust him. He was also quick-minded. His only mistake was that he should not be so greedy as not to leave any nice food for the birds.
— I sympathize with the birds. They took Tortoise with them to the sky out of kindness, but after flying such a long distance, they had to fly back home on an empty stomach. They were formally invited, but didn’t enjoy the food prepared for them. On the other hand, Tortoise invited himself, went to the sky with the help of all the birds and selfishly ate almost all the delicious food. I think the birds were very unlucky.
—I think the birds are stupid. They knew very well that Tortoise couldn’t be trusted as he was always mischievous. But they persuaded themselves that he was a changed man. At the party they should have let the sky people know Tortoise was not their king and they had the right to enjoy the nice food, as they were the guests the sky people had invited. 精品文档
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2) The story teaches us that a) we should be honest, and shouldn’t cheat others at any time. If we
cheat others, we will be punished in the end; b) we shouldn’t be carried away by sweet words, like the birds; c) a leopard can’t change its spots. Since Tortoise was cunning, he could never change his personality and behave himself.
Vocabulary
1. 1) A. invitation B. invited C. inviting
2) A. prepare B. prepared C. preparation D. preparatory/preparation 3) A. discoveries B. discoverers C. discovered
4) A. approval B. approve C. approved D. approving E. disapprove 5) A. eloquent B. eloquence C. eloquently
6) A. faithful B. unfaithful/faithless C. faith D. faithfully 7) A. occasional B. occasionally C. occasion 8) A. delivery B. delivering C. delivered
9) A. troublesome/trouble B. troubled C. troubled D. troubling 10) A. assurance B. assured C. assure
2. 1) ran/got into trouble 2) no trouble 3) asking for trouble
4) have…trouble 5) The trouble with 6) in serious/deep/big trouble 7) get/getting…into trouble 8) took the trouble 3.
1) with a pattern of roses
2) prepared a wonderful/good meal for us 3) promised faithfully 4) deliver this letter
5) a selection of milk and plain chocolate 6) keep out of mischief/behave themselves 7) the sound of distant thunder
8) received approval from the government 9) in spite of the fact that he drank too much 10) agree whether the drug is safe or not
Part Three Further Development
1. Enriching Your Word Power
1) C
2) C 3) A 4) B 5) A 6) B 7) A 8) B 9) A 10) A
2. Myths and Moral
1) --Virtue will be rewarded. For example, Beauty is a kind-hearted and sweet girl. She
loves her father and is willing to sacrifice herself for him. Finally she is rewarded with a happy marriage and a happy life. On the other hand, the evil sisters are punished by 精品文档
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the fairy. They become two statues that have to observe Beauty’s happiness painfully. --A good heart is more important than appearance. Although the Beast is very ugly, he
loves Beauty and has a kind heart. In the end he wins the heart of Beauty and the spell on him is broken by Beauty’s love. 2) --Nothing can be gained without effort or hardship. If you want to succeed or make
achievements, you have to face and overcome difficulties, or even great dangers. Tang Seng, Monkey and others had gone through eighty-one great dangers or hardships before they could obtain and bring home the authentic version of the Buddha’s teachings. --A person’s strength, skills and judgments are the guarantee of success. Without
Monkey King, Tang Seng couldn’t have fetched the Buddha’s teachings. Unlike Tang Seng’s other followers, Monkey developed his martial arts and skills and became so strong that almost no one could defeat him.
3. Finding Their Similarities and Differences
1) Similarities:
A. Both of them look like animals and are endowed with human intelligence.
B. Both of them have a happy ending. The Beast marries a kind-hearted and beautiful girl and
changes back into a handsome prince; Monkey succeeds in getting the Buddha’s teachings and becomes enlightened. His golden band is gone, and he no longer has to be under other people’s control.
C. Both of them have a bond. The Beast is under a spell cast by a witch, while Monkey is
wearing a golden band which tightens whenever he is mischievous. 2) Differences:
A. The Beast is actually a real human being. He becomes a beast only because of the witch’s spell, while Monkey is still a monkey though he is finally enlightened.
B. They have different personalities. The Beast is gentle, generous, patient, loyal and thoughtful. He was persistent in his love for Beauty. The Monkey is capable, invulnerable, ambitious, brave, and intelligent.
3) A. I like the Beast more, because he is loyal and loving. He is very kind and patient to
Beauty. He loves Beauty so much that he will die for her.
B. I like Monkey more, because he enjoys many magic skills and weapons. I wish I could have those. He is not only brave, but also loyal and obedient to Tang Seng. He goes through eighty-one dangers and helps Tang Seng get the Buddha’s teachings.
4. Completing the Story
1) the true reason why there was no such animal in Guizhou 2) they were of no use at all in this place
3) All of a sudden when he saw the donkey, he thought it was a monster 4) He hid himself in the trees while looking at the donkey
5) What kind of animal is this and why does it look different from other animals that I’ve seen? 精品文档
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6) But one day the donkey stretched its thin neck and cried
7) the tiger discovered that the donkey didn’t have any other skills besides crying/had no other skills than crying
8) But he dared not rush to it or eat it just as he did to other animals
9) This did irritate the donkey/make the donkey angry, who raised its hind leg and kicked the tiger 10)
This time he rushed to it without hesitation and bit/broke its throat
5. To Be a Good Story-teller
The Princess and the Pea
Once there was a prince who wanted to marry a real princess. But he had difficulty telling what a real princess looked like.
One night there was a terrible storm. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. A young girl was standing in the rain. She said she was a real princess but she looked ugly because of the rain dripping from her hair and clothes.
“We’ll see whether she is a real one or not,” the old empress thought to herself. She put a pea on the bed and then put twenty mattresses and twenty padded quilts on it. The princess then slept in this bed.
The next morning, people asked her whether she had a good sleep. She answered: “It was terrible. Who knows what was on the bed? I slept on a very hard thing and I am bruised all over my body.”
Now everybody was sure that she was a real princess, because she could feel the pea under twenty mattresses and twenty padded quilts. Nobody except a princess would have such tender skin. The prince married the girl and they lived happily ever after. The pea is now displayed in the museum.
The Ugly Duckling
Once upon a time down on an old farm lived a duck family, and Mother Duck had been sitting on a clutch of new eggs. One nice morning, the eggs hatched and out popped six ducklings. But one egg was bigger than the rest, and it didn't hatch. But before Mother Duck had time to think about it, the last egg finally hatched. A strange looking duckling with gray feathers that should have been yellow gazed at a worried mother. The ducklings grew quickly, but Mother Duck had a secret worry.
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“I can’t understand how this ugly duckling can be one of mine!” she said to herself, shaking her head as she looked at her last born. Well, the gray duckling certainly wasn’t pretty, and since he ate far more than his brothers, he was outgrowing them. As the days went by, the poor ugly duckling became more and more unhappy. His brothers didn't want to play with him, he was so clumsy, and all the farmyard folks simply laughed at him. He felt sad and lonely, while Mother Duck did her best to console him.
Then one day, at sunrise, he ran away from the farmyard. He stopped at a pond and began to question all the other birds. “Do you know of any ducklings with gray feathers like mine?” But everyone shook their heads in scorn.
Then one day, his travels took him near an old countrywoman’s cottage. Thinking he was a stray goose, she caught him. Then one night, finding the hutch door open, he escaped. Once again he was all alone. One day at sunrise, he saw a flight of beautiful birds wing overhead. White, with long slender necks, yellow beaks and large wings, they were migrating south.
“If only I could look like them, just for a day!” said the duckling, admiringly. Winter came and the poor duckling went to seek food in the snow. He dropped exhausted to the ground, but a farmer found him and put him in his big jacket pocket. The ugly duckling survived the bitterly cold winter at the farmer’s house.
By springtime the duckling saw himself mirrored in the water. “Goodness! How I’ve changed! I hardly recognize myself!” The flight of swans winged north again and glided on to the pond. When the duckling saw them, he realized he was one of their kind, and soon made friends. “We’re swans like you!” they said, warmly. “Where have you been hiding?”
“It's a long story,” replied the young swan, still astounded. Now, he swam majestically with his fellow swans. One day, he heard children on the river bank exclaim: “Look at that young swan! He's the finest of them all!”
And he almost burst with happiness.
Hua Mulan
Long ago, in a village in northern China, there lived a girl named Mulan. One day, she sat at her loom weaving cloth. Click-clack! Click-clack! went the loom. Suddenly the sound of weaving changed to sorrowful sighs. Her mother asked her what troubled her. “Nothing, Mother,” she replied softly.
Mulan’s mother asked her again and again, until Mulan finally told her that invaders were attacking. The emperor was calling for troops. The night before she saw the draft poster and twelve scrolls of names in the market. Her Father’s name was on every one of them.
“But Father is old and frail,” Mulan sighed. “How can he fight? He has no grown son and I have no elder brother. I will go to the markets. I shall buy a saddle and a horse. I must fight in Father’s place.”
From the eastern market Mulan bought a horse. From the western market she bought a bridle, and from the southern market, a whip. At dawn, Mulan was dressed in her armor and bid a sad 精品文档
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farewell to her father, mother, sisters and brothers.
Mulan went to fight in the war for twelve years during which time none of her fellow fighters knew that she was a girl. She was such a great fighter that when the war ended the emperor wanted to name her a high rank official. But she declined the offer and went back home where she received a warm welcome. Her fellow fighters came to visit her and were surprised to learn that she was a girl.
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