A place in society 5
Unit 5 A place in society
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Teaching suggestions and answer keys
Starting point
1 Work in pairs and discuss the quotations. Which one do you agree with most?
A nation as a society forms a moral person, and every member of it is personally responsible for his society. Thomas Jefferson, US President
G enerally, we agree with this becau it shows that society and individuals have a reciprocal relationship, to some extent they depend on each other. The nation or society forms a moral person and has a good influence on people. But there are also people who are influenced by negative aspects of society. Meanwhile, it is also the responsibility of every individual to protect the society, becau it is everyone’s interests that they are protecting, not the interests of someone el.
(☞ Ask Ss to discuss Confucius’ idea of the individual, the family, the country and the world, in relatio
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n to this quotation. It appears that Confucius’ idea emphasizes the contribution of individuals to society.)
T here is no such thing as society: There are individual men and women, and there are families. Margaret Thatcher, UK Prime Minister
T o the prime minister, the concept of society is probably a myth, and in its place, we actually have a collection of disparate individuals. But of cour, there are individuals and families, there is also society. We really don’t agree with this. Maybe she was trying to emphasize that individuals are responsible for their own actions and that they should not blame society when things go wrong.
儿童睡前故事大全2 Work in pairs. Read the proverbs from different languages and discuss the kind of individual or social values they suggest.
•When the cat’s away, the mice will play.
The mice will not play when the cat is there becau they are afraid of it. This shows fear of authority, or a lack of trust becau the mice will only behave when the cat is there.
•Let sleeping dogs lie.
Dogs can be dangerous so do not wake them up when they are sleeping. This means do not stir up trouble unnecessarily. It shows a value of stability.
•Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.
If there is a problem, all of the eggs will be affected becau they have been kept in one place. This shows the value of prudence or the virtue of taking precautions – some of the eggs should be kept in another safe place.
• One swallow doesn’t make a summer.
The swallow is a migrant bird that comes to Europe in summertime, but if you e only one that does not necessarily mean that summer has arrived. A single ca does not confirm a phenomenon; we need more evidence.
• There’s no smoke without fire.
Smoke is a sign of fire, so if you e smoke there must be a fire somewhere nearby. This shows the value of being aware of caus and connections.
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• Don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched. If you count the eggs, that does not necessarily mean every egg will hatch out to become a chicken. Something may happen to some of them. This shows the value of being cautious and having patience until we can be justifiably confident about an outcome.含风的成语
• Too many cooks spoil the broth. Too many people working on a single task, like making thick soup, may mean they have different ways to do it or interfere with each other, so the result may be ruined. This shows the value of having an appropriate number of people for a task, not too many.
• Many hands make light work. When many people help, the work will be easy. This shows the value of cooperation and mutual help. • A chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Each link in a chain is important, becau the chain will break at its weakest point. This shows that each individual matters, and that all individuals should be strong and competent, or their weakness will affect everybody el.
• A hou divided against itlf cannot stand. If a family or group is divided, it will fall becau conflict will make it weak. This shows the value of unity, solidarity and cooperation.
• Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt. People may think you are foolish if you say nothing. But if you speak, it will confirm that you are foolish. This shows the
value of having few words and being cautious in speech.
• Don’t upt the apple-cart. If a cart full of apples is upt, the apples will go everywhere and it will be chaotic. This shows the value of caution and avoiding foolish actions which may have dramatic effects.
• Good fences make good neighbours. Fences are partitions between hous and gardens. You will have good neighbours if you respect the boundaries between hous and property, which shows the value of respecting other people’s privacy and of their respect for yours.
• The best defence is a good offence. In a conflict, a good defence is to attack your opponent, who will have to defend himlf and will find it difficult to attack you. This shows the value of aggression under certain circumstances.
• Tho who sleep with dogs will ri with fleas. Dogs sometimes have fleas on them and you can catch the fleas if you sleep with the dogs. This shows the value of avoiding bad company or the wrong friends becau something bad will rub off on you. • Speak softly but carry a big stick. The big stick would only be ud if necessary. This shows the value of using power carefully, and of first treating other people politely and carefully.
• You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. Flies will be attracted by honey but not by vinegar. This shows the value of politeness and being agreeable to others becau this will bring better results.
Unit 5 A place in society
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Now decide if you have similar proverbs in Chine.
• 猫儿不在，老鼠造反。 • 孤燕不报春。 • 众人拾柴火焰高。
• 不要惹事生非。 • 鸡飞蛋打。 • 牵一发而动全身。 • 无风不起浪。
Active reading (1)
1 Look at the photo and answer the questions.
1 How would you describe this restaurant?
It looks like a high-quality, expensive restaurant.
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2 Who do you think might eat here?
People who can afford it, probably rich or maybe famous people, or tho who work in business.
3 What sort of things do you think they might talk about?
They would probably talk about business or social events.
4 What sort of things can go wrong in such a restaurant?
Perhaps there would be an unexpected mistake with the rvice or food.
Now read the passage and find out what sort of restaurant Joanne’s is.
It is a top restaurant in which most of the customers are celebrities and famous people.
Dinner at Joanne’s
Culture points
A white Christmas means that there is snow on the ground when Christmas comes. The Christmas spirit refers to the general or real meaning of Christmas – joy, happiness, peace and reconciliation.
DC refers to the District of Columbia, short for Washington DC, the at of the American government which is located in a special district rather than in one of the states.
In a political election, a deputy campaign manager is the assistant or cond person in charge of managing a ries of actions intended to maximize the chances that a candidate will be elected.
The Chief of Staff is a nior officer, official or administrator in charge of the people who work in an organization. Here, the Chief of Staff is in charge of tho who work for the President.
Language points
1 It was snowing heavily … not just to track down the last-minute prents, but to escape the bitter
cold … (Para 1)
方脸短发发型图片彩票黑幕To track down means to find something or someone after a long arch.
At Christmas many people give a lot of thought to find the right gift and buy prents well in advance, others wait and buy something at the last opportunity on Dec 24th to buy the last-minute prents.
A place in society Unit 5 2 He was not yet enjoying the Christmas spirit ... albeit a working dinner at Joanne’s. (Para 2)
The word albeit is ud for introducing a comment that slightly changes or reduces the effect of a previous remark, like even if it is / although …
3 He was from a hard-working family in upstate Virginia … (Para 2)
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The word upstate means the place is in the northern part of a particular state in the US.
4 But his demeanor concealed a Harvard law degree and an internship in DC with a congressman, a
junior partnership in a New York law firm, along with a razor-sharp intellect and an ability to think on his feet. (Para 2)
Partnership refers to the position of being one of two or more people who own a company as partners.
A junior partner is a newer or younger partner who has less responsibility or fewer shares than a nior
partner.川柳
A razor-sharp intellect is a very intelligent mind, which is quick to think and react; it is as sharp as a razor.
The ability to think on one’s feet means being able to think quickly in unexpected situations.
5 Senator Rogers was a Democrat … who knew Capitol Hill inside out but who had nevertheless
managed to keep her credibility with her voters as a Washington outsider. (Para 3)
To know something inside out means to know something very well.
A Washington outsider refers to someone who is outside the central groups or members of political circles
in Washington and is therefore possibly independent.
Senator Rogers was in her third term of office (ie she had been a nator for at least eight years) and she knew the Senate and the government institutions in Washington thoroughly. Still, she had kept an image
with voters that she was an outsider (ie she had not been affected negatively by knowing Washington too
well or by becoming too much like other politicians).
6 She was pro-abortion, anti-corruption, pro-low carbon emissions and anti-capital punishment, as
fine a progressive liberal as you could find this side of the Atlantic. (Para 3)
The prefix pro- means in favour of something or someone. The prefix anti- means against. Pro-abortion, anti-corruption, pro-low carbon emissions and anti-capital punishment, all of the examples have been en as important political issues in the US, which are debated in political campaigns and therefore politicians are generally expected to take a position on them. For example, Senator Rogers was in favour
of reducing carbon emissions – the output of CO2 into the atmosphere, becau she was aware of the negative effect of high emissions on climate change.
A progressive liberal is someone who believes in social or political change if most people want it, especially change that makes a system fairer.
The expression this side of the Atlantic refers to North America. The other side of the Atlantic would be in Europe, and vice versa for speakers in Europe.
7 It was election time in the following year, and the word was she was going to run for the Democratic
nomination. (Para 3)
The expression the word was means there was some talk that …, or people were saying that …
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