普通高中课程标准实验教科书《英语》电子课本
Book 3
Unit 1 Festivals around the world
B3U1P1-3
FESTIVALS AND CELEBRATIONS
Ancient Festivals
Festivals and celebrations of all kinds are held everywhere. The most ancient festivals would celebrate the end of the cold weather, planting in spring and harvest in autumn. Other celebrations were held when hunters could catch animals. They would starve if food was difficult to find, so they celebrated when they had food. They lit fires and made music because they thought these festivals would bring a year of plenty. Festivals of the Dead
Some festivals are held to honour the dead, or satisfy and please the ancestors, who could return either to help or to do harm. In Japan the festival is called Obon, when people should go to clean the graves and light incense in memory of their ancestors. They light lamps and play music because they think that this will lead the ancestors back to earth. In Mexico they have the Day of the Dead in early November. On this important feast day, people might eat food in shape of skulls, and cakes with “bones” on them. They offer food, flowers and gifts to the dead. The festival of Halloween had its origin as an event in memory of the dead. It is now a children’s festival, when they can go to their neighbours’ homes and ask for sweets. They dress up and try to frighten people. If they are not given anything, the children might play a trick. Festivals to Honour People
Festivals can be held as an honour to famous people or to the gods. One of these is the Dragon Boat Festival in China, which honours the famous ancient poet, Qu Yuan. Another is Columbus Day in the USA, in memory of the arrival of Christopher Columbus in America. In India there is a national festival on October 2 to honour Mahatma Gandhi, the leader who helped gain India’s independence from Britain. Harvest Festivals
Harvest and Thanksgiving festivals can be very happy events. People are grateful because their food is gathered for the winter ,and because a season of agricultural work is over. In European countries it is the custom to decorate churches and town halls with flowers and fruit, and people get together to have meals. Some people might win awards for their animals, flowers, fruits and vegetables, like the biggest watermelon or the most handsome rooster. In China and Japan there are mid-autumn festivals, when people admire the moon and give gift of mooncakes. Spring Festivals
The most energetic and important festivals are the ones that look forward to the end of winter and to the coming of spring. At the Spring Festival in China, people eat dumplings, fish and meat, and may give children lucky money in the red paper. There are dragon dances and
carnivals, and families celebrate the lunar New Year together. In some Western countries there are very exciting carnivals, which take place forty days before Easter, usually in February. They might include parades, dancing in the streets day and night, loud music and colourful clothing of all kinds. Easter is an important religious and social festival in Christian countries. It celebrates the return of Jesus for Christians and it also celebrates the coming of spring. In Japan, the Cherry Blossom Festival happens a little later. The country is covered with cherry tree flowers so that it looks as though it might be covered with pink snow.
People love to get together to eat, drink and have fun with each others. Festivals let us enjoy life, be proud of our customs and forget our daily life for a little while. B3U1P4
We think it has always been the custom for people to have festivals. They are a time to enjoy each other’s company and have fun with our friends. We think that long ago people looked forward to the celebrations. Our ancestors would sit round a fire and cook plenty of meat to eat. Then they would be satisfied with their festival. B3U1P7
A SAD LOVE STORY
Li Fang was heart-broken. It was Valentine’s Day and Hu Jin had said she would meet him at the coffee shop after work. But she didn’t turn up. She could be with her friends right now laughing at him. She said she would be there at seven o’clock, and he thought she would keep her word. He had looked forward to meeting her all day, and now he was alone with his roses and chocolates, like a fool. Well, he was not going to hold his breath for her apologise. He would drown his sadness in coffee.
It was obvious that the manager of the coffee shop was waiting for Li Fang to leave－he wiped the tables, then sat down and turned on the TV－just what Li Fang needed! A sad Chinese story about lost love. The seventh daughter of the Goddess of Heaven visited the earth. Her name was Zhinu, the weaving girl, and she was the most lovely of the daughters. While she was on earth she met the herd boy Niulang and they fell in love. (“Just like me and Hu Jin, ”thought Li Fang.) They got married secretly, and they were very happy. (“We could be like that, ” thought Li Fang.) When the Goddess of Heaven knew that her daughter was married to a human, she became very angry and made the weaving girl return to Heaven. Niulang tried to follow her, but the river of stars, the Milky Way, stopped him. Finding that Zhinu was heart-broken, her mother finally decided to let the couple cross the Milky Way to meet once a year. This happens when the stars Vega and Altair meet in the Heaven. Magpies make a bridge of their wings so the couple can cross the river to meet on the seventh lunar month. people in China hope that the weather will be fine on that day, because if it is raining, it means that Zhinu is weeping and the couple won’t be able to meet.
The announcer said, “this is the story of Qiqiaojie. When foreigners hear about the story, they call it a Chinese Valentine’s story. It’s a fine day today, so I hope you can all meet the one you love.’’
As Li Fang set off for home, he thought, “I guess Hu Jin doesn’t love me. I’ll just throw these flowers and chocolates away. I don’t want them to remind me of her.’’ So he did.
As he sadly passed the tea shop on the corner on his way home, he heard a voice calling him. There was Hu Jin waving at him and calling, “Why are you so late? I’ve been waiting for you for a long time! And I have a gift for you!”
What would he do? He had thrown away her Valentine gifts! She would never forgive him. This would not be a happy Valentine’s Day! B3U1P44&45
Winter carnival in Quebec
We are sitting in a café in old Quebec, drinking hot coffee to try to warm up. The temperature is 32 degrees below freezing. The windows are covered with steam from the heat inside. Outside, the snow covers the streets and is piled up along the sidewalks and in parking lots. The music and lights of the carnival continue, but we have been watching the parades, riding in horse carriages and listening to the music all day. Our feet are freezing and our noses are red.
Quebec carnival is the biggest winter festival in the world – every year, hundreds of thousands of people come to Quebec to take part in a week of activities. If you come, you must be prepared to keep moving, as it is too cold to stand and watch for long.
Early in the morning, you can watch the snowboarding competitions on the hill overlooking the river. The competitions speed down the track and through the air though they could fly.
If you are brave enough, you can try the canoe race. Five or six men paddle in each canoe across the great St Lawrence River, which is partly frozen. Of course, the river is full of big pieces of ice, and if you were to fall in, you would freeze in less than two minutes.
One of the favourite events is the dog-sled race, in which teams of about 6 Husky dogs pull long sleds at great speeds along a snowy track. One person runs behind the sled, shouting to the dogs to encourage them. The sound of the dogs barking, the calls of the drivers and the shouts of the crowd make an exciting Northern experience. The dogs are beautiful strong animals, with long, thick fur. Many of them have blue eyes.
After admiring the ice sculptures everywhere in the city, much like those in Harbin in China, you can have a cup of tae or coffee in an igloo. It is amazing how warm these ice houses can be!
Late in the evening, you can go to the snow palace, where Bonhomme the snowman is king, and join the crowd. You can dance outside to the music of a band, who are all dressed in heavy clothes – even some of their instruments are dressed up for winter.
Finally we sit down in our café to warm up and to plan tomorrow – perhaps we’ll join the snowmobile races – or perhaps we’ll just sleep in.
Book 3 Unit 2 Healthy eating
B3U2P10
COME AND EAT HERE (1)
Wang Peiwei sat in his empty restaurant feeling very frustrated. It had been a very strange morning. Usually he got up early and prepared his menu of mutton kebabs, roast pork and fried rice. Then by lunchtime they would all be sold. His restaurant ought to be full of people. But not today! Why was it so? What could have happened? He thought of his mutton kebabs and fatty pork cooked in the hottest, finest oil. His fried rice was hot but did not taste of fat. His cola was sugary and cold and his ice cream was made of eggs, milk, cream
and fruit. “Nothing could have been better,” he thought. Suddenly he saw his friend Li Maochang hurrying by. “Hello, Maochang,”he called, “Your usual?” But Maochang seemed not to hear. What was the matter? Something terrible must have happened if Maochang was not coming to eat with him as he always did.
Pengwei followed Li Maochang into a newly-opened small restaurant at the end of the street. There was a sign in the window.
Tired of all that fat? Want to be thinner? Come inside to Yong Hui’s slimming restaurant. Only slimming foods served here. Make yourself thin again.
Curiosity drove Wang Pengwei inside. It was full of people. A very thin lady came forward. “Welcome!” she said, “My name is Yong will take all that fat off you in two weeks if you eat here every day.” Then she gave a menu to Wang Peiwei. There were only two kinds of food and one drink on it: raw vegetables, fruit and water. Wang Peiwei was amazed at this and especially at the prices. It cost more than a good meal in his own restaurant. He could not believe his eyes! He threw away the menu and hurried outside. On his way home he thought about his own menu. Did it make people fat? He wondered if he should go to the library to find out. He couldn’t have Yong Hui getting away with telling people lies! He had better do some research!
After reading, he realised what was wrong with Yong Hui’s restaurant. It was not giving its customers energy-giving food! After eating in her restaurant people would become tired very quickly. Perhaps this was a way to win his customers back! Peng Wei wrote his own sign. It said:
Want to feel fit? Come and eat here!
Our food gives you energy all day!
The competition between the two restaurants was on! B3U2P12
Daisy wished to be ＿＿＿so that she could wear all the latest, cool clothes designed for the young. She decided to do some ＿＿＿into what foods should be eaten to become thinner. She learned that one of the ＿＿＿of not eating enough was to become very tired quickly. When she went to the doctor, he told her she could be thinner as well as healthy if she ate more vegetables like beans,＿＿＿ and ＿＿＿.So she did. She felt very fit when she started eating more ＿＿＿ foods as well as her usual energy–giving foods. She even began to enjoy eating all the vegetables＿＿＿ rather than cooked. She soon looked like a model! B3U2P14&P15
COME AND EAT HERE (2)
The next day Wang Pengwei’s restaurant was nearly full and he felt happier. Perhaps he would be able to earn his living after all and not have to close his restaurant. He did not look forward to being in debt because his restaurant was no longer popular. He smiled .But the smile left his face when he saw Yong Hui walking in. She did not look happy but glared at him as she moved round the customers. “May I ask what you were doing in my restaurant yesterday? I thought you were a new customer and now I find you came only to spy on me and my menu,” she shouted. “Please excuse me,” he calmly explained,“I wanted to know where all my customers had gone yesterday. I followed one of them and found them in your restaurant. I don’t want to upset you but I found your menu so limited that I stopped worrying and started advertising the benefits of my food. Why don’t you sit down and try a meal?”
Yong Hui agreed to stay and soon they were both enjoying the dumplings, fatty pork and cola.
When they were served the ice cream Yong Hui began to look ill. “I feel sick with all this fat and heavy food,”she said,“I miss my vegetables and fruit.”Wang Pengwei was just enjoying a second plate of dumplings so he sighed.“yes,”he added,“and I would miss my dumplings and fatty pork. But don’t you tired quickly?” “Well, now you mention it. I do have to rest a lot, ”
admitted Yong Hui. “But don’t you think it would be better if you were a bit thinner?” she asked Wang Pengwei. “I’m sure you would feel much healthier.”
They began chatting about menus and balanced diets. “My research has shown me that neither your restaurant nor mine offers a balanced diet,”explained Pengwei,“I don’t offer enough fibre and you don’t offer enough body–building or energy–giving foods. Perhaps we ought to combine our menus and provide a balanced menu with foods full of energy and fibre. ”So that is what they did ,They served raw vegetables with the hamburgers and boiled the potatoes rather than fried them .Then they served fresh fruit with ice cream. In this way they cut down the fat and increased the fibre in the meal. Their balanced menus became such a success that before long Wang Pengwei became slimmer and Yong Hui heavier. After some time the found that their business cooperation had turned into a personal one .Finally they got married and lived happily ever after! B3U2P52-53
THE TOWN HAS TO DECIDE
(At the meeting that evening there are two speakers: one for and one against building a McDonald’s restaurant.)
FOR BUILDING A MCDONALD’S
I was excited when I heard that our community(社区) was to have its own McDonald’s restaurant. I thought about all those young people who would not have to go to the next town to buy their favourite burgers and chips. McDonald’s cares about healthy eating too and works with scientists to provide food that is of high quality,safe and healthy. It is also cheap .They often provide salads as well as burgers and chips. You can also choose between cola and milk shakes(奶昔). Of course it also means more work for our area that needs jobs badly. McDonald’s say they are interested in doing what is right for the community and being a good neighbour. So I think they will be concerned about providing parking for the cars in our main street. Many of our young people will be only too happy to work for it. They make a promise to the people that work for them. They say,“We value you, your growing skills and your help to the company.”I can see nothing but good if this company comes to build its restaurant in our town. AGAINST BUILDING A MCDONALD’S
I am very worried about McDonald’s building a restaurant in our hometown. We are a small community and we enjoy our local dishes. I am not sure if McDonald’s food is as healthy as they say in their advertisements. When scientists look at it carefully they find high levels of fat, sugar and salt. This is very worrying. Too many young people are getting fat through eating too much fatty food. McDonald’s is not giving young people a good idea of what a healthy diet should be. Local Chinese food ,on the other hand, is full of fresh vegetables and fresh meat and fish. The food at a McDonald’s restaurant is always the same so I wonder if it is made or brought in from elsewhere. Although it is freshly cooked ,it must be less healthy than our own locally grown and cooked Chinese food.
I also worry about all those cars bringing people to buy food in McDonald’s. First, there would be petrol fumes(气体),which would make our clean air dirty. Second, there’s the problem of all those cars that try to park and prevent other cars from moving quickly through our town. Third, what will happen to all the food containers if people decide to eat on the side of the road just out of town? Will they just throw them on the ground?
高中英语：人教版必修电子课本版
