泛读第11课

泛读11课

一、 课文主旨要义

Main Idea:

For the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the expedition undertaken by Lewis and Clark, the author tells a story about the two men with regard to their cooperation and their influence on American history.

二、 语篇分析

(1) 课文结构分析

Text Organization

The text can be roughly divided into two parts.

Part I (Paragraph 1)

The author briefly introduces the Lewis and Clark Expedition and its significance.

Part II (The rest part of the text)

The author depicts the two great explorers and their expedition in detail. In

the last line of this article the author gives his commentary words on the expedition.

三、 课文导读

1. 生词

1. buffalo (L. 5) n. oxlike mammals in North America, 美洲野牛

2. teepee (L. 5) n. A portable dwelling of certain Native American peoples, especially on the Great Plains, consisting of a conical framework of poles covered with skins or bark., 印第安人的圆锥形帐篷

3. enlightenment （L. 22）The act or means of giving spiritual or intellectual insight to, 启迪，启蒙

4. trek (L. 36) v. To make a slow or arduous journey, 艰难跋涉

5. buddy (L. 43) n. A good friend, 伙伴

6. CEO (L.61) abbr. Chief Executive Officer, 执行总裁

7. dress (L. 99) v. To apply medication, bandages, or other therapeutic materials to (a wound), 清创，敷药，包扎伤口

8. blizzard (L. 109) n. A very heavy snowstorm with high winds. 大风雪伴随有

大风的大雪

9. broiling (L. 109) n. very hot, heating, 酷热的, 炽热的

10. yardstick (L. 118) n. A graduated measuring stick one yard in length, 码尺， 准绳

11. appal (L. 122) v. frighten, horrify, 惊骇

12. trunkload (L. 131) n. The quantity that is or can be carried in a trunk at one time一箱之量

2. 短语

1. play off against (L. 13): to oppose someone against someone else for

one’s own advantage， in contrast to 同……相反

The boss would interview them and would play off one against the other. 2. in common (L. 17) : equally with or by all 一样，同样与所有的都相同地

The people in the two countries have a great deal in common: they both love the peace in the world and hope to promote the friendship between them, etc. 3. in fairness （L. 28）: speaking justly 公平地说

In fairness, he did much better than I did. 4. in a pinch （L. 87）: if necessary 在紧要关头，必要时

They trusted each other and would help each other in a pinch. 5. forge ahead （L. 90）: go ahead 前进

The army forged ahead through the snowfield. 6. strike out ahead (L.93) : go ahead 前进

The swimmers stroke out ahead to cross the English channel.

7. contend with (L. 109) struggle against, 同……搏斗

Many lower-class people in the developing countries are contending with poverty. 8. in view (L.113) : in sight 被看到

We stood in full view of the crowd. 9. not to mention (L. 130): without mentioning, even if not including 更不要

说，更谈不上

They decided to buy the house, for it had quiet neighbourhood, convenient facilities for the old, not to mention the central location in the town. take over (L. 152): to accept duty, responsibility or something from

10.

someone else. 接收， 接管

The company has promised to take over the responsibility for paying the victims of the accident. in bold type (L. 161): boldface 黑体字的，粗体的

11.

The title of this article must be printed in bold type. leave out (L.155): do not include (something or someone) as in a list 不

12.

包括；漏掉

Please complete this cheque properly; the date has been left out. make of (L. 175) understand 理解

13.

I could make nothing of the chairman’s remark. 3． 难句改写

1. Paraphrase the following Difficult Sentences

1) They were both fearless spellers. (L. 24)

Neither of them were afraid of making spelling mistakes.

2) But now, leaving George in his family’s care, William accepted “chearfully,” and “with much pleasure”—just in time to prevent Lewis from signing up his backup choice, an Army lieutenant named Moses Hooke. (L. 53-56)

If William had accepted Lewis's invitation a little bit later, Lewis would have officially issued the appointment to his alternative, an Army lieutenant named Moses Hooke. .

3) He brokered the crucial early compromise that ended a staredown with the Teton Sioux. (L. -67)

He negotiated the most critical early agreement with the Teton Sioux that ended a confrontation.

4) He could speak fluently and learnedly on all subjects, but his inveterate disposition against the British stained, at least in our eyes, all his eloquence. (L. 73-75)

He could speak fluently with good knowledge on all subjects, but his rooted tendency to go against the British made a mess of his skilful speaking,

at least as far as we could see.

5) We are in the canoe with Clark when he writes, “Ocian in view! O! the joy,” straining to hear the waves breaking on the shore he had sought for so long. (L. 112-115)

When we read the part where Clark writes about their final arrival at the ocean, we seem to be there with him and try with all our might to hear the waves breaking on the seashore he had been looking for all the time.

四、 课后练习

1. 解释词义

Guess the meanings of the following with the help of the context clues.

1. pull (L.11) ____________________

2. played off against (L. 13) ___________________

3. strike out ahead (L.93) ___________________

4. dressed (L.99) ____________________

5. overruled (L.103) ____________________

6. boiling rapids (L. 110) ________________

7. in view (L.113) _______________________

8. not to mention (L. 131) _______________

9. left out (L.155) ____________________

10. bringing the saga to life (L. 181) _______________

2．细节问答

1. How do you react to the title Leading Men? What do you expect of the relationship between the two leaders of the expedition?

2. What is implied in the first paragraph about the relationship between the co-CEOs?

3. By fearless spellers, Jones, the devoted author, refers to the two leaders' many creative spellings of their own. Can you guess the right forms of those misspelled words?

4. Can you make a list of the similarities and differences of Lewis and Clark?

5. How does the author build up the main idea that Lewis and Clark are among the few effective co-CEOs in organizational history?

6. Did the expedition fulfil the objective designated by President Jefferson? Why or why not?

3．改写长难句

1． In fairness, even the best-educated Americans displayed erratic spellings until Noah Webster’s dictionary standardized spelling two decades later. (L. 28-30)

2． He is a youth of solid and promising parts, and as brave as Caesar. (L. 37-38)

3． Nothing reveals the captains more than their treatment of Sacagawea. (L. 78-79)

4． The press run was a paltry 1,417 copies. (L. 1)

5． Finally they settled for saluting “their perilous services (that) endear them to every American heart.”

4．翻译长难句

Put the following into Chinese 1. All that evidence notwithstanding, the more we learn about the two captains who gave their names to the Lewis and Clark Expedition, the more

powerful becomes their pull on our imagination. (L.8－11)

2. When Clark’s anticipated commission as a captain instead came through as second lieutenant—a misstep that still rankled years later—they never told their men and treated each other as equals-placing them among the few effective co-CEOS in organizational history. (L.57－61)

3. If nothing else, later traders and settlers, appalled by the expedition’s experience, learned where not to go and found a friendlier route along the Platte River across Nebraska and over South Pass in Wyoming. (L.122－125)

4. But beset by administrative battles in his new job as Governor of Louisiana Territory, frustrated in his romantic aspirations and sinking into a depression fueled by alcohol and possibly disease, Lewis developed one of history’s monumental cases of writer’s block. (L. 136－140)

5. Prominently marked on Clark’s map were the names of dozens of tribes that lived there, in bold type that continues to undermine the notion that the West was ever an unpopulated wilderness. (L. 160－163)

6. They shared with their friend Thomas Jefferson a passion for such Enlightenment sciences as ethnology, paleontology, zoology and botany. （L. 21-23）

7. The two were living together on a point of land overlooking the Ohio River

just below Louisville when William received an astonishing letter from his old Army buddy. (L. 41-43)

8. Lewis told Clark that Jefferson had placed him in charge of a mission to explore “the interior of the continent of North America, or that part of it bordering on the Missourie & Columbia Rivers.” Moreover, Lewis wanted Clark to be his co-commander. (L. 47-51)

9. But the less formal Clark nicknamed her “Janey” and treated her warmly. (L. 82-83)

10. We can look over their shoulders as they and their party of 31 contend with hunger, disease, blizzards, broiling sun, boiling rapids, furious grizzly bears and unrelenting plagues of tormenting “mosquitos.” (L. 108-111)

课后练习答案

1. 解释词义

1) pull influence, power (Their influence on our imagination becomes more powerful when we learn more about them.)

2) played off against in contrast to, opposed to (It's obvious that played off against means about the same as contrasting in the first part of the sentence.)

3) strike out ahead set out, go ahead (In the foregoing context, Lewis

forged ahead to save the party. This time Clark took a similar action. So forge ahead means about the same as strike out ahead.)

4) dressed bandaged (What you do after cleaning a wound is bandage it.)

5) overruled decided against, dismissed (The party made a decision about the direction of the river, but the captains dismissed their judgement.)

6) boiling rapids violent fast-flowing parts of a river (The author is listing the hardships they went through and it is reasonable to guess that boiling refers to some bubbling water.)

7) in view in sight (At last they saw the ocean which was the targeted destination assigned by the President.)

8) not to mention without mentioning, even if not including (The achievements of the expedition were not only the examining of truckloads of plant and animal specimens but more importantly the understanding of numerous Indian tribes.)

9) left out did not include (It is mentioned at the beginning that the total of their journals equals 13 volumes. But the first publication was only 2 volumes so most of their discoveries was not included here.)

10) bringing the saga to life making the long legendary account of their

expedition vividly known to the public (After being buried for a century the story of the expedition was brought back to life and known to us.)

2．细节问答

1. How do you react to the title Leading Men? What do you expect of the relationship between the two leaders of the expedition?

The title shows the author's focus on looking at the historic event. Judging from many stories about human jealousy and hatred, we are inclined to expect a tension between the two leaders and even conflicts and grudges.

2. What is implied in the first paragraph about the relationship between the co-CEOs?

The first paragraph presents some hard facts of the expedition. The fact that Lewis and Clark spent almost a thousand days and nights together and finally came up with such substantial fruits testifies unquestionably to their harmonious co-operation.

3. By fearless spellers, Jones, the devoted author, refers to the two leaders' many creative spellings of their own. Can you guess the right forms of those misspelled words?

looner observations --- lunar observations; water millions --- water

melons

bearfooted --- barefooted; Untied States --- United States

chearfully --- cheerfully; butifull --- beautiful

ocian --- ocean; wher --- where

waight --- weight; herd --- heard

releaf --- relief

4. Can you make a list of the similarities and differences of Lewis and Clark?

They were both Virginians, Army officers, six-footers, experienced outdoors men, lovers of nature and Enlightenment sciences. As to their contrastive personalities, see Characterization in Part I.

5. How does the author build up the main idea that Lewis and Clark are among the few effective co-CEOs in organizational history?

The first point is their complementary personalities which enabled them to deal with crises and all kinds of personalities. The second point is their capacity to assume sole leadership if necessary. The third point is their mutual care and support as is shown in the stories of their injuries respectively. Most importantly

their devoted partnership is demonstrated in the publishing of their journals, particularly in Lewis' full trust in Clark's coming to his relief in his final moments of life.

6. Did the expedition fulfil the objective designated by President Jefferson? Why or why not?

Apparently the expedition did not find the most direct and practicable communication across the continent as Jefferson had expected. Yet Jefferson acknowledged their success in understanding of numerous Indian tribes and the examining of plants and animals in the vast territory of the west.

3．改写长难句

1. To be just and honest, even those Americans who had received best education did not consistently spell words correctly until Noah Webster’s dictionary set the standard spellings of words 20 years later.

2. Clark is a young man with reliable and good abilities for a successful future. He is also very brave like the Roman general and dictator Caesar.

3. Their different ways of treating Sacagawea shows most clearly the different attitudes of Lewis and Clark.

4. The copies of the first publication was worthlessly as few as 1417 ones.

5. Eventually, they had to accept to drink to the dangerous services done by Lewis and Clark. American people dearly loved them.

4．翻译长难句

1. 撇开这些有明确记载的史实不谈，我们对以路易斯和克拉克名字命名的探险的两位队长了解越多，他们就益发强烈地激发着我们的想象力。

2. 当克拉克预期的任命由上尉变成少尉时—这是一着多年以后仍让人耿耿于怀的错棋—他们从未告诉过手下，并且始终平等相待，这使他们跻身管理史上少数几位卓有成效的合作首席执行官之列。

3. 就算这次探险毫无成果，它至少使后来的商人和拓荒者受益匪浅，他们被探险队的经历吓坏了，知道了这条路不能走。他们找到了一条更好走的路，即沿着普拉特河穿越内布拉斯加州，再从怀俄明州的南通道翻过去。

4. 但是担任路易斯安那地区地方长官这一新职务使他深受政务繁忙之苦，他的种种不切实际的抱负无法实现，加之酗酒或许还有疾病造成的抑郁，刘易斯成了历史上写作障碍的典型案例。

5. 克拉克地图上显著地标出了几十个居住在那儿的部落的名称，以黑体字标明，它们不断地打破了西部曾无人居住的旷野这一观念。

6. 他们与托马斯·杰斐逊一样，酷爱人种学、古生物学、动物学及植物学这一类启蒙科学。

7. 兄弟两个当时正住在能俯瞰位于路易（斯）维尔南部的俄亥俄河的一块土地上，威廉收到了老战友写来的令他吃惊的信件。

8. 路易斯告诉克拉克说，杰斐逊总统派他执行探索“北美内陆地区，或者位于密苏里河与哥伦比亚河之间的地带。”此外，路易斯想让克拉克和他一起作探险队长。

9. 但是克拉克平易近人，亲切地称她“简妮”，待她挺热情的。

10. 当他们和31名队员与饥饿、疾病、大风雪、烈日、急流、狂暴的灰熊以及无情的“蚊虫”叮咬的折磨搏斗时，我们就在他们身边。

七、课后测验

Do the following multiple-choice questions. 1. Who wrote the journals of the Expedition?

A. Meriwether Lewis

B. William Clark

C. George Clark

D. Lewis and Clark

2. Who edited the raw journals into the two-volume final form?

A. Gary Moulton

B. John Goodman

C. William Clark

D. Meriwether Lewis

3. In Line 138 the word “aspiration” means .

A. a strong desire for high achievement

B. expulsion of breath

C. a creative ideas

D. a love affair

4. In line 58 the word “anticipated” means . A. opposed

B. looked forward to

C. shared in

D. agreed

2. What made Lewis and Clark popular again a century later?

A. The exploration led by John Charles Fremont.

B. The Exploration led by John Wesley Powell.

C. The republication of the journals of the Lewis and Clark expedition.

D. The publicity of the exploration by Fremont and Powell.

3. In Line 126 the word “devised” means .

A. designed B. denied

C. changed D. advised

7. Charles McKenzie did not like Lewis at Fort Mandan because . A. Lewis talked too much

B. Lewis tended to dislike the British

C. Lewis knew everything well

mainly

D. Lewis had an offensive character.

8. In Line 116 the word “unambiguous” means .

A. unimaginable B. practical

C. clear D. tough

9. In Line 79 the word “dismissing” means .

A. rejecting B. discharging

C. believing D. approving

10. How long time did the exploration take?

A. a quarter. B. a year.

C. two years. D. three years.

课后测验答案：

1. D, 2. C, 3. A, 4. B, 5. C, 6. A, 7. B, 8. C, 9. A, 10. D