第三十七讲
Contents
Section II Maintaining a Sharp Eye
Passage 1 Punctuality and Keeping Promise
1.Lead-in (In this step, some related information will be provided for the students.)
Punctuality
Punctuality is important in social activities because nobody likes to be kept waiting. A punctual person is usually considered reliable and responsible. Lack of punctuality implies that the person does not have consideration for other people’s time.
Make an Appointment
Many people schedule their time carefully so it’s polite to make an appointment first if you need to see anybody. It’s usually necessary to make a phone call well in advance to make an appointment with a doctor, dentist, lawyer, manger etc. You’d better call off or postpone your appointment if you can’t make it. Try not to break an appointment without a notice in advance.
2. Comprehension Questions (The students will be asked some compression questions after they have skimmed the passage to help them develop reading strategies.)
(1)What is emphasized in social activities?
(2) How will a foreigner feel if you are late in getting to the airport to meet him?
(3) When should the guests come to a social activity?
(4) If you are late for a social activity, what should you do?
(5) What should you do if you cannot inform the person concerned of the change of an appointment?
3. Explain the passage in detail
Passage I Punctuality and Keeping Promises
Warm-up questions
1. If you were late for class, what would you say to the teacher and your classmates?
2. What do you think of people who are not punctual? Why?
She always keeps me waiting!!!
I’m coming, darling!
Come on, baby. We’re late!
Punctuality and Keeping Promises
Reading of the passage
(para.1) In social activities it is always emphasized to be punctual, to have a strong conception of time. If you fail to keep your promise or do not come on time and thus keep your host waiting, that is very impolite. It’s hard to imagine what will happen if there is such an activity as a banquet, interview, or meeting, yet all people concerned do not come on time. If you are asked to meet a foreign guest at the airport or at the railway station and you go so late that the guest has come before you arrive, how anxious and embarrassed he will be when he, as a stranger to the place, sees no person meeting him! The same is true with the activity of seeing off a foreign guest. If you arrive so late at the airport or railway station to find the guest has gone already, what’s the use of your going there?
(para. 2) So, as a host, whenever there is an activity, you should come to the place ahead of schedule so as to wait for the guests to come. Don’t let the guests wait for you. It’s very impolite. Those who are to help entertain the guests should also come earlier than the guests. But for a guest, at what time is it proper to come?
(1) Explanations of Difficult Sentences
①(Para. 1) --how anxious and embarrassed he will be when he, as a stranger to the place, sees no person meeting him!
Analysis: This is an exclamatory sentence with when-clause as an adverbial of time. As means “being”, used here to introduce an adverbial of manner. Meeting is a present participial modifying “person”.
Translation: 他来到一个陌生的地方，看到没有人来接他，他会是多么焦急和尴尬！
Example: How happy and delighted she will be when she, as a foreigner, sees a friend meeting her at the airport.
②(Para. 1) --The same is true with the activity of seeing off a foreign guest.
Analysis: “The same is true with…” is a sentence pattern which means “…也是如此” in Chinese. “With” is a preposition introducing the kind of thing which has the specific feature(s) mentioned in the previous sentence(s).
Translation: 给外国人送行也是如此。
Example: a. 庆祝新年的风俗也是如此。The same is true with the custom of celebrating New Year.
b. 学习电脑科学也是如此。The same is true with the learning of computer science.
③(Para 2) --So, as a host, whenever there is an activity, you should come to the place ahead of schedule so as to wait for the guests to come.
Analysis: “Whenever” introduces an adverbial clause of time. In the main clause “ahead of schedule” is an adverbial of time while “so as to” introduces an adverbial of purpose.
Translation: 所以说，主人办活动要提前到场, 等客人光临。
Example: So, as a freshman, whenever there is a fire, you should come to the place at once so as to put the fire under control.
④(Para 2) --Anyone, guest or host, who is really late for a social activity, should apologize to those who have already been there.
Analysis: “Guest or host” is a reduced form of “whether he is a guest or a host”. Note that here singular forms are used with no articles at all. The two who-clauses are used to modify “anyone and those respectively”.
Translation:在社交活动中，不论是客人还是主人，如果迟到了，都应该向已经到场的人道歉
Example: a. 他们有困难的时候，你应当尽力帮忙。Anyone, adult or child, who is really tired, should relax themselves.
b. 不论老师还是学生，犯了错误都要改正。Anyone, teacher or student, who has made a mistake, should correct it.
(2) Useful Words and Expressions
①. punctuality: n. being punctual 严守时间
e.g. Mary got a prize for punctuality.
Our teacher insists on punctuality.
②.punctual a. being on time 准时的，守时的。
e.g. She is punctual to the minute.
John is always punctual for class but this morning he was late.
③. emphasize v. to place emphasis on 着重，强调
e.g. Our teacher emphasized how important it was to study English.
I must emphasize that they ate just children.
The speaker emphasized the important of education.
④. concerned a. anxious, worried; involved 焦虑，担心的，有关的
e.g. I was very concerned about my mother’s illness.
All the people concerned attended the meeting.
⑤. embarrass v. to cause to feel ashamed, uncomfortable 使窘迫，使难堪
e.g. He embarrassed everyone by saying that the picture was terrible.
She was embarrassed when they asked about her age.
⑥. whenever conj. at whatever time 无论何时；每当
e.g. Come whenever you have time.
Whenever I go to Beijing, I visit the Great Wall.
⑦. entertain v. to amuse and interest; to give a party for ; to provide food and drink for 使高兴，使感趣；款待，请客
e.g. A teacher should entertain as well as teach.
He entertained his guests generously.