新视野大学英语第二册unit3

Unit 3

Marriage Across the Nations

Teaching Objectives: 1) To know the meaning and usage of some important words, phrases and patterns 2) To to be familiar with the writing skills of the text and make use of it in writing

Writing skills: A paragraph of denial of some opinions followed by some other opinions. 3) To improve Ss reading skills by studying Section B and passages in the Extensive Reading. Reading skills: Recognizing differences between facts and opinions. 4) To stimulate Ss to think about the difficulties in interracial marriage. 5) To read extensively outside class.

Teaching Procedures: I. Pre-reading Activities I) Meaning Guess

Guess the real meanings of husband, wife and family. For example w-washing i-ironing f-food

e-entertaining

HUSBAND

H — housing 有房子

U — understanding 有心灵相通 S — sharing 有分享的喜悦 B — buying 有钱买想要的东西 A — and 还有 N — never 绝对不

D — demanding 要求太高的

WIFE

W — witch 美女

I — intelligent 聪明伶俐的 F — faithful 忠实的 E — everyday 每一天 FAMILY

F — father A — and M — mother I — I L — love Y — you

II) Role Play

Voiceover: Gail and Mark have been together for 2 years and considered marriage. While when Gail spread the news to her parents, she met with some resistance.

Gail: All right; date him; wrong; marry him; color; problem.

Mom: To start with; admit; harbored reservations about a mixed marriage; prejudices; But; charming; intelligent; any mother; be proud to; son-in-law; color; nothing to do with; some; express shock at; Mark’s color; not the problem; my biggest worry; may be marrying; for the same wrong reason that; saw him as; beloved intelligent charming and caring; on the surface; ours;

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ideal marriage; last forever; realized; only later; didn’t know your father very well.

Gail: But; we; been together; 2 years; been through; together; at our worst; time; confirm; feel deeply; each other. Mom: maybe right; waiting won’t hurt; 25 years old.

Voiceover: Then Gail tried to talk to her dad about her marriage with Mark. Her father asked the same question as Gail’s mother.

Dad: Why the haste? Who is this Mark? What’s his citizenship status? He just tries to stay in US by marrying you! Gail: But Dad, that’s harsh!

Dad: Then why the rush? Buy time, buy time.

Gail: Mark has had problems with citizenship before and has always taken care of them himself. In fact, he made it clear when we were discussing marriage that if I had any doubts about anything, I should not hesitate to cancel our plan. Dad: Have you thought about the hardships your children would go through? Gail: Dad, are you a racist?

Dad: No, of course not. But you have to be realistic.

Gail: Maybe our children will have some problems, but whose children don’t? But one thing they’ll always have : our love and devotioin.

Dad: That’s idealistic. People can be very cruel toward children from mixed marriages.

Gail: Dad, we’ll worry about that when the time comes. If we had to resolve all doubt before we acted, very little would ever get done.

Dad: Remember, it’s never too late to change your mind.

II. Global Study

I) The questions to the understanding of the text:

1). For what two reasons did Gail and Mark live together?

(Gail and Mark lived together for two years before they decided to marry. The following two reasons can best explain why they did so. For one reason, they just wanted to get to know each other and have a better understanding of the weaknesses and strengths of each other’s characters before their marriage. For another, they wanted to marry for the right reasons. Even though they were not sure what the future held for them, they wanted to avoid the mistake made by many other mixed couples.) 2). How did Gail’s father and mother react to the news about the wedding plans?

(On hearing the news of their wedding plans, Gail’s mother, though all along supportive of her daughter’s relationship with the black man, still showed her worry that Gail would marry Mark for the same wrong reasons that she had done with Gail’s father. In response to the matter, however, Gail’s father thought Mark might take advantage of this marriage to obtain American citizenship. He used statistics on mixed marriages, his counseling experience and children’s problems to warn his daughter against rushing into marriage without thinking enough about it. ) 3). In what ways are Gail’s and her father’s views different?

(In response to whether to marry right now or later on, Gail and her father held views contrary to each other. Gail argued they would rather marry now and worry later. She believed if they had to clear up all uncertainty before they married, they could have little to get done. As a contrast, Gail’s father asked his strong-willed daughter to buy time and to be realistic about their marriage. He wanted to persuade her to change her mind by giving examples of mixed marriage and reminding her that it was never too late to change her mind. )

II) Summary

Gail and Mark decided to marry despite their racial and cultural differences after being together for two years and getting to know each other better, but the plan met with opposition from the girl’s parents

III) Text Analysis: Main idea and devices for developing it

Part I (paras. 1-4): Main Idea: Two years of living together, plus racial and cultural differences, enhanced the relationship

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between Gail and Mark so much that they decided to marry even though they did not know what the future would hold for them as a mixed couple.

Devices for developing it : Narration : The story is told in the first person. Through his narrative, the writer, a black man, tells the reader his mixed marriage:

Part II (paras.5-9): Main Idea : Gail’s mother’s reaction to their wedding plan. she reaffirmed that Mark’s color was not the problem. Her biggest worry was that Gail might be marrying Mark for the same wrong reasons as she had. Devices for developing it : Argumentation

Typical example of argumentation by rejecting the first idea and presenting some other idea. 1.Present original ideas: (The mother presents her original opinion.) 2. Reject the ideas: (The mother corrects her original opinion.)

3. Present some other ideas: (The mother presents her opinion and gives an example to support it.)

4.Present others’ opinion : Yes, my friends talk. Some even express shock at what you are doing. (Para. 7) 5. Reject the opinion: But they live in a different world. So, color is not the problem. (Para. 7)

6. Present some other idea: My biggest worry is that you may be marrying Mark for the same wrong reasons that I married your father. (Para. 7)

Part III (paras 10-21): Main Idea : Gail’s father’s reaction to their wedding plans. He quoted statistics and gave examples to persuade his daughter to change her mind. Devices for developing it : Dialogue

III. Detailed Study

I) New Words

1.ups and downs盛衰；浮沉

e.g. Life is full of ups and downs. 人生充满了欢乐与痛苦

e.g. He has seen the ups and downs in the history of the relations between the two countries.他经历了两国关系史上的圆缺阴晴

反义词构成的短语：back and forth 来回的

2.compromise: n. 妥协, 折衷

vt.vi. (1)和解，对...妥协，折衷处理 (2)危及，连累

e.g. We can not compromise on such terms. 我们不能根据这样的条件和解。

e.g. He asked more than I was willing to pay, so we compromised on a price in between the two.

他的要价超出我愿意付的数额,结果我们达成妥协,商定了一个居中的价格

[词组] make a compromise 作出让步；

strike compromise 达成妥协

be compromised by 被...危害［连累］

compromise with sb. on/over sth. 在某方面/就某事同某人妥协 compromise sb.'s reputation 损害某人的名誉

3.subtle adj slight,not obvious,not easy to notice,understand or explain 难于觉察或描述的；精巧的；巧妙的；

诡秘的；狡诈的 e.g. There are subtle differences in meaning between these two words. 这两个词词义有细微的差别。

e.g. Prejudice can take subtler forms than this. 偏见可能表现得比这更隐晦。

4. mutual. adj 1)shared by two or more people共有的，共同的;2)felt or done by each to the other 相互的

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