研究生读说写第一册第八单元Unit 8 Europeans Just Want to Have Fun
师徒结对徒弟总结-天津中考时间
Unit 8 Europeans Just Want to Have Fun
Background Information
1. About the
author and the text
Michael Elliot is a
TIME columnist who frequently writes TIME’s lead
stories. He
worked as the editor of the TIME
Canada edition and now is the TIME Asia‟s editor.
He is a regular commentator on television,
especially with CNN and CNN
International, and
with the Charlie Rose Show on PBS-TV.
2.
Work hours in Europe and in America
In the
early seventies hours worked per person were about
the same in the U.S.
and in Western Europe.
Today they are almost 50 percent less in Europe
than in the
U.S. Americans average 25.1
working hours per person in working age, Italians
16.7,
French 18.0 and German 18.7. The average
employed American works 46.2 weeks
per year;
the average French 40.5; the average Swede 35.4.
3. The overworked American
In the last
twenty years the amount of time Americans have
spent at their
jobs has risen steadily.
Americans report that they have only sixteen and a
half
hours of leisure a week, after the
obligations of job and household are taken care
of.
Working hours are already longer than they
were forty years ago.
The rise of work time
was unexpected. For nearly a hundred years, hours
had
been declining. When this decline abruptly
ended in the late 1940s, it marked the
beginning of a new era in work time. U.S.
manufacturing employees currently
work 320
more hours — the equivalent of over two months —
than their
counterparts in West Germany or
France.
How did this happen? In part, the
answer lies in the difference between
the
markets for consumer products and free time. The
legendary American
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market is
a veritable consumer's paradise, offering a
dazzling array of products
varying in style,
design, quality, price, and country of origin.
Marketing experts and
advertisers spend vast
sums of money to make these choices appealing even
irresistible. And they have been successful.
In cross-country comparisons,
Americans have
been found to spend more time shopping than anyone
else. They
also spend a higher fraction of the
' money they earn. It seems that Americans came
to be caught up in the cycle of work-and-
spend.
Notes
1. Boulevard St. Michel, the
Place des Vosges, and the Marais District (Para.
I):
The historical sites and major tourist
attractions near Left Bank, the south bank
of
the Seine River in Paris frequented by artists,
writers, and student.
2. ... who told me he
was taking up the tango. (Para. 1):… who told me
he began
to dance tango in his spare time.
take up: adopt sth as a hobby or pastime
以某事作为爱好或消遣
e.g. I began to take up
painting last year.
She took up tango when she
was in Brazil.
3. A drop-dead-gorgeous crowd
was tangoing away in a makeshift, open-air
amphitheater. (Para. 2): A group of fabulously
dressed-up people wag tangoing in
a circular
area which was used as a dance floor temporarily.
makeshift: (thing that is) used temporarily
until sth better is available 临时凑合的
e.g. He
had to take a makeshift measure.
They made a
makeshift table from boxes.
4. Nearby a
multiethnic group was doing the meringue. (Para.
2): Nearby people
from different ethnic groups
were dancing meringue together
5. An estimated
500,000 kids descended on Berlin for the annual
Love Parade.
2
(Para. 3):
About 500,000 young people came unexpectedly to
Berlin to take
part in the Love Parade, a
musical festival held every year in the city.
annual: yearly 一年一度的
e.g. the annual
celebration
an annual fee
Love Parade: The
Love Parade is a popular festival and parade that
originated in
1989 in Berlin, Germany. It was
first celebrated 4 months before the demolition
of the Berlin Wall as a political
demonstration for peace and international
understanding through music.
descend on:
visit sbsth unexpectedly or inconveniently 突然到来
e.g. My sister is descending on us this
weekend.
Letters of application descended on
them like snowflakes.
6. Europeans seem
to be throwing themselves into fun and festivity
with
unprecedented zeal. (Para. 3): It seems
that the Europeans are busy enjoying
themselves with enthusiasms for fun-seeking
which they never had before.
throw oneself
into: work very busily at 投身于，积极地做起某事来
e.g.
Beith threw himself enthusiastically into the
task.
They threw themselves into the
celebrations, a temporary release from
the
daily routine, but the problems would still be
there once the party was
over. unprecedented:
never having happened before 空前的
e.g. We
had the unprecedented rainfall last summer.
China is undergoing an unprecedented change.
zeal: eagerness, keenness 热诚
e.g. He
shows great zeal for knowledge.
The teacher
tried everything to awaken my zeal.
7. Each
weekend, central London is one great bacchanal.
(Para. 3): Each
weekend, central London is
just like a big party where people flock to seek
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pleasure and get drunk.
8. Cities that for reasons of politics or
religion were once gloomily repressive
—
Madrid, say, or Dublin — now rock to the small
hours. (Para. 3): For
political or religious
reasons, cities like Madrid or Dublin used to be
under tight
control, with little entertainment
available. Now people in these cities keep
entertaining themselves until early in the
morning.
9. In Prague the foreign visitors who
get talked about are not the earnest
young
Americans who flocked there in the early 1990s,
but British partygoers
who have flown in for
the cheap beer and pretty girls. (Para. 3): In
Prague in
the early 1990s, when they talked
about foreign visitors they referred to the
young Americans who went there in large
numbers. Now when foreign
visitors are
mentioned, they refer to the streams of British
young people who go
there for parties, cheap
beer, and pretty girls.
10．The place that
British historian Mark Mazower once called the
true dark
continent — and from whose curdled
soul the horrors of fascism sprang —
has
become Europa ludens, community at play. (Para.
3): The European
continent was called the true
dark continent British historian Mark Mazower,
because it was from there that the terrifying
fascism originated. Now this continent
has
become a paradise for pleasure-seekers.
at
play: engaged in recreation; engaged in the
function 玩乐；起作用
e.g. He sat there silently,
watching the other kids at play.
Several
factors are at play when determing the value of a
house.
11. This is how the U. S. was supposed
to be. (Para. 4): This is how the U.S. was
believed to be.
be supposed to: be
believed to be, though without much proof
应该
e.g. She is supposed to be
wealthy.
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You are supposed to
have handed in your homework by now.
12．...
how the decline of the Protestant small-town ethic
had unhinged
American capitalism from its
moral foundation in the intrinsic value of
work. (Para. 4): The Protestant moral values
that used to flourish in American
small towns
are no longer popular now. Without this moral
ethic to base on,
American capitalism put less
emphasis on the intrinsic value of work.
unhinge: remove (a door or the like) from
hinges; detach or separate from
something;
unsettle or disorder (a person's mind, etc) 使分手
e.g. Although Kazrik survived, the
experienced has unhinged him
somewhat.
We've unhinged her from her original faith,
intrinsic: belonging to a thing by its very
nature 内在的，实在的
e.g. intrinsic factors;
intrinsic motivation; intrinsic value
Watson
discusses the meaning of work and separates
motivation to
work into intrinsic and
extrinsic satisfactions.
13. The cultural
justification of capitalism (had) become hedonism.
(Para. 4):
American capitalism had gone so far
in its attempt to change the Protestant
culture that it promoted the belief in
pleasure as the only objective of life.
14.
... the good, godless, gregarious pursuit of
pleasure is what California is all
about.
(Para. 4): Life in California is just like this:
people seek pleasure together
without any
religious repression.
15. what... is all about
(Para. 4): The way it goes
e.g. Going to
lectures, sitting tests, that's what college is
all about.
16. But the American future didn't
turn out as we expected. (Para. 5): But the
life Americans are living is actually not like
what Bell predicted.
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turn
out: prove to be the case, result 结果
e.g. His
words turned out to be true.
We shall wait and
see how things turn out.
17. ... you could be
happy only if you work hard and play hard. (Para.
5): ...
you could not be happy until you work
hard and play hard.
18. ... filling a day off
with one appointment after another, as if it were
no
different from one at the office. (Para.
5): ... when they have a day off, they
arrange
so many activities that the schedule is as full as
their work schedule.
19. ... Europeans'desire
to devote themselves to the pleasures of life ...
in
any event, end in economic tears. (Para.
5): Europeans just want to enjoy life
and have
fun. This would eventually lead to an economic
depression.
20. First, the crowded confines of
Western Europe and the expansive space of
North America have led to varied consumer
preferences. (Para 6): First, Europeans
and
Americans favor different products because of
their different geographical
environment:
Western Europe is crowded due to the space limits,
while North America is
very spacious.
confines: limits, borders 界限
e.g. During
the time of peace, troops usually do not stop
outside the confines
of the country.
He
does nothing beyond the confines of his own work.
expansive: having a wide range or extent;
comprehensive; extensive
e.g. It is such an
open and expansive society that races live in
harmony and
cultures flourish side by side.
The game was set for 10:30 in the morning on
the expansive lawn.
21. At least in the
puritanical version of Christianity that has
always appealed to
Americans, religion comes
packaged with the stern message that hard work is
good
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for the soul. (Para.
6): Americans have always shown interest in
Puritanism, which
advocates that hard work is
good for the soul.
22. Modern Europe has
avoided so melancholy a lesson. (Para. 6): Modern
Europe doesn't need to suffer this religious
repression.
23. Whatever the explanation, the
idea of a work-life balance is a staple of
European discourse, studied in think tanks,
mulled over by policymakers. (Para.
7): No
matter what the explanation is, the concept of a
work-life balance is the main
part of European
life. It is studied by researchers and considered
by policymakers.
24. In the U.S., the term,
when it's used at all, is said with the sort of
sneer
reserved for those who eat quiche.
(Para. 7): The term is seldom used in the U.S.,
and when it is mentioned, it is treated as if
it is not worthy of serious notice, in an
ironic way.
Key to Exercises
I.
Reading Comprehension
1. People dancing and
having fun.
2. Kids going to Berlin for
carnival, families trekking to the warm south,
people in London and other cities enjoying
themselves on weekends, British
partygoers in
Prague.
3. They are pleasure seekers.
4.
The decline of the Protestant small-town ethic had
unhinged American
capitalism from its moral
foundation in the intrinsic value of work, and
this cultural justification of capitalism had
become hedonism.
5. No. They work longer
hours, and fill a day off with one appointment
after
another.
6. No. This is for two
reasons. First, the crowded confines of Western
Europe
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and the expansive
space of North America have led to varied consumer
preferences. Second, America's sense of itself
as a religious nation has revived.
7. Hard
work is good for the soul.
8. It is usually
ignored or sneered at.
II. Structure of the
Text
1. Introduction (Paras. 1-2)
Following the suggestion of a friend in Paris,
I took a stroll along the left
bank and found
people enjoying themselves at parties.
2. Body
(Paras. 3-6)
1) The different attitude toward
work and leisure between Europeans and
Americans. (Paras. 3-5)
A. Europe is
enjoying itself (Para. 3)
B. Americans were
supposed to pursue pleasure, but they didn't
turn out as we expected (Paras. 4-5):
2)
The reason for the different attitudes. (Para. 6)
A. The crowded confines of Western Europe and
the expansive space of
North America have led
to varied consumer preferences.
B. America's
sense of itself as a religious nation has revived.
3. Conclusion (Paras. 7-8)
Though the
staple of European discourse, work-life balance,
is sneered at in
America, it might still catch
on.
VIII. Translation
A.
1. Nowadays
what get talked about is not how to enjoy life on
the campus, but
how to have a paper published,
or how to find a good job.
2. Campus life is
supposed to be happy and relaxed, full of fun
activities, but
my life is under great
pressure.
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3. If you're still
wondering what this internship program is all
about, check out
the company website, where
the director of the program, John Brown, gives
a more detailed description.
4. Many young
people believe that one could be happy only if one
work hard
and play hard.
5. My new
life as a postgraduate student didn't quite turn
out as I hoped, but I
tried to adapt myself to
it, and enjoyed meeting every unexpected
challenge.
6. The boss often talks about work
plans for the weekends as if they were no
different from the ones for weekdays.
7.
Can we conclude that we are in a society which
values sports more than
research and education
just because the professional athletes are paid
much more than even Nobel Prize winning
scientists?
8. The root of the fierce
competition in the present job market, when it is
mentioned at all, is the booming population.
9. After a brief period in the employment of
others, I set up my own company,
but the
venture ended in tears.
10. Prof. Smith, the
leading researcher in this field, studied all the
factors at
play for the change.
B．
真是可笑! 这本该是美国的模样嘛！丹尼尔.贝尔1976 年出版《资本主义文
化矛盾》一
书，书中收录的一系列著名文章，他描述了新教徒小镇式道德观的衰
落怎样动摇了美国资本主义的道德基
础和对工作内在价值的认识。20世纪60年
代，贝尔声称，“资本主义文化经过拨乱反正已变成了享乐
主义文化，享受成了
生活的一种方式。”1969年《时代周刊》一篇名为《加利福尼亚；充满刺激之州
》
的封面故事中写道，“追寻美好的、非宗教的、交际性的快乐已经成为了加利福
尼亚的全部。
每个刚去过加州的人说，„我看到了未来，自由自在的娱乐在发挥
作用。‟”当时绝大多数美国人对报道
中提及的情况都是有目共睹的。
Key to Further Reading: C D A A
C
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