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Unit 7
Today's Youth
After-Class Reading
PASSAGE I Me, Stuart, Mum and Dad
On Saturday, I introduced my parents to Stuart. After he'd left I went back into the kitchen to ask my parents what they thought of him. Perhaps I'm old fashioned[1], or maybe I'm just looking for criticism, but I always like my parents to meet my boyfriends. I think it's good for both parties. If nothing else, it enables me to see the guy from a different point of view and it tells me whether I'm onto a good thing or not.[2]
Boys tend to divide into two categories where my parents are concerned. They either shrink into themselves[3] and leave me to do the talking, or else they'll be really outgoing and confident and stand up well to the interrogation. On the whole I like the second type best, especially those who aren't afraid to give their own opinions. I haven't subjected many shy ones to the torture[4], because I like boys who have something to say for themselves, and anyway, it's embarrassing.
Stuart definitely falls into category two. He's very outspoken, offensive even, and he'll argue about anything just for the sake of arguing. He also criticizes, and with my parents he picked on private education. My sister's at a private school and he challenged my parents on it. I thought my mother was going to die on the spot. Still, he likes his opinions to be known and I don't think he really upset anyone.
Although he was a bit rude to my parents, I didn't feel angry with him, because, as I said, I like people to be confident in that way, and also because, for some perverse reason, I like it if my parents don't like the people I associate with. I'm not quite sure why I feel like this, perhaps I unconsciously try to widen the gap between my parents and me. I do, I think, do things which I know they disapprove of because it makes me feel more free from them. My parents represent everything that is ordinary about life, and I want to be different from them. I'll probably grow out of it[5].
I'm not saying that I'm entirely motivated by a desire to displease my parents, but it does come into a lot of things,[6] for instance I go on a lot of political demonstrations. I don't just go to annoy them. I believe very strongly in the causes, but it's a way of showing my parents that I can look after myself. I like the feeling that I have a voice of my own, and that hundreds of people share my opinions. The last march I went on[7] was in October, and it was the biggest ever in Britain. It'll go down in history and I was there. That's really fantastic, a lovely feeling of power.
But I'm getting off the subject, Stuart and my mother and father, ma and pa or whatever[8].
They didn't actively dislike him, but they kind of[9] warned me about him. They said not to take anything he said too seriously, especially his political views. That annoyed me because I like to feel that nobody influences me, especially someone like Stuart. (I have always been slightly suspicious of people who are completely, in every respect, radically left-wing[10]. I don't think they ever consider their ideas and their implications properly.) Anyway, I told my parents that nobody influences me, but I know it was a lie because every person you're close to influences you in some way, especially when you're young and the other person is like Stuart, a very strong character.
They were careful not to be too critical. They hedged delicately[11] and did not mention anything which I would say was irrelevant (like his appearance). Although they didn't like his views, I think, in a way, they liked how he talked. He's very articulate and I know he's clever.
So they'll let me carry on seeing him, and like everything else, he'll be an escape for me, he'll stand for what I'd like to be. I don't admire his principles and motives, but I admire his courage because I can never really break away from my comfortable, safe, boring family. If I associate with people who have broken away, do things that they do, maybe I'll convince someone that I am different. Maybe one day I'll really get away. But I'll more likely just, as I said, grow out of it. I'll probably get married, have kids, and I'll watch them and try to shelter them the way my parents do for me. But maybe they'll be all right.[12] Perhaps they'll be the ones that change the world and all that. We've got the right ideas but we haven't got the will power. It's not important enough. Perhaps my kids will be different. I hope so. Because I just don't care.[13] (797 words)
Proper Name
Stuart
(男子名)斯图尔特
New Words
articulate
adj. expressing or able to express thoughts and feelings clearly and effectively 表达力强的
e.g. I) The assistant manager was bright and articulate.
II) The most articulate interviewees are not necessarily the best people for the job.
displease *
v. annoy somebody or make somebody angry or upset 使不愉快;使生气
e.g. I) Nothing displeases me more than loud talking.
II) By failing to obey your mother you displeased her.
embarrassing *
adj. making you feel ashamed, nervous, or uncomfortable 令人为难的
e.g. I) He said something that would be embarrassing for me to repeat.
II) This incident put the Americans in an embarrassing position.
interrogation
n. the act or process of questioning someone closely and thoroughly for a long time, sometimes using threatening behavior 讯问;审问
irrelevant*
adj. not relevant 不相干的;离题的
e.g. I) Your own personal wishes are irrelevant to us; the decision is ours.
II) The complaints raised against the proposal were really irrelevant, so we ignored them.
motive
n. something that causes a person to act in a certain way 动机，目的
e.g. I) This appears to be a crime without a motive.
II) Do you have any reason to suspect her motives?
mum
n. (informal) mother
pa
n. (informal) father
perverse
adj. willfully determined not to do what is expected or desired 违反常情的
Phrases and Expressions
and (all) that
and so on; and all such things 等等，诸如此类
e.g. I ) Poverty compelled him to sell his house, clothes, and all that.
II ) There were lots of sandwiches and pies and that but I wasn't really hungry.
break away from
end one's connections with a group, organization, way of thinking, etc.摆脱，放弃;脱离(团体、组织、某种思想体系)
e.g. I) Can't you break away from old habits?
II) He broke away from his family and all they stand for and has gone to live in Japan.
carry on
continue 继续做;坚持
e.g. I ) They ignored me and carried on with their conversation.
II) She intends to carry on studying after the course has finished.
disapprove of
have an unfavorable opinion of someone or something 不赞成，不同意
e.g. I ) Her mother disapproved of her fiance.
II ) His parents strongly disapproved of him leaving college before he had finished his course.
get off the subject
start talking about something else instead of what you were supposed to be talking about 离题
e.g. Somehow they got off the subject of foreign trade altogether.
go down in history be remembered 裁入史册
e.g. I) They will go down in history for their brave deeds.
II) Let the twenty-first century go down in history as the century of planning.
kind of
to some extent; in some ways 有几分
e.g. I) I kind of hoped he'd dance with me.
II) I guess they're kind of mad at me for getting them up so early.
on the whole
everything considered; in general 总的看来;大体上，基本上.
e.g. I) On the whole, I agree with you.
II) On the whole our stay there was quite enjoyable.
or else
otherwise; if not 否则，如果不
e.g. I) Hurry up or else you'll be late.
II) You'd better go to bed now or else you'll be tired in the morning.
pick on (informal)
choose somebody or something for punishment, blame, or an unpleasant job, especially repeatedly and unfairly 选择(某人或某物)作受罚(受责备，干不愉快工作)的对象
e.g. I) He always picked on small points to criticize.
II) The examiner can pick on any student to answer questions.
stand for
represent; symbolize 代表
e.g. I) They differ from us, they stand for capitalism.
II) Oxford dictionaries stood for accuracy throughout the world.
stand up to
meet (danger, difficulty, etc.) without fear 敢于面对，勇敢地对待
e.g. I) A soldier must stand up to danger.
II) Anna stood up to the snarling (吠叫的) dog that leaped toward her.
where ... is concerned
as far as ... is concerned 就......来说，就......而论
e.g. I) Where money is concerned, I always try to be very careful.
II) They seem to be very casual where school discipline is concerned.
PASSAGE II College Pressures
Dear Carlos: I desperately need a dean's excuse for my chemistry midterm which will begin in about 1 hour.[1] All I can say is that I wasted this week. I've fallen incredibly, inconceivably behind.
Carlos: Help! I'm anxious to hear from you. I'll be in my room and won't leave it until I hear from you. Tomorrow is the last day for...
Carlos: Probably by Friday I'll be able to get back to my studies. Right now I'm going to take a long walk. This whole thing has taken a lot out of me.
Who are these miserable people making urgent requests for help, scribbling notes so laden with anxiety? They are men and women who belong to Branford College, one of the twelve residential colleges at Yale University, and the messages are just a few of hundreds that they left for their dean, Carlos Hortas-often slipped under his door at 4 A. M.
But students like the ones who wrote those notes can also be found on campuses from coast to coast. Nobody could doubt that the notes are real. In their urgency and their gallows humor[2] they are authentic voices of a generation that is panicky to succeed.
My own connection with the message writers is that I am master of Branford College. I live on the campus and know the students well. If they went to Carlos to ask how to get through tomorrow, they come to me to ask how to get through the rest of their lives.
Mainly I try to remind them that the road ahead is a long one and that it will have more unexpected turns than they think. There will be plenty of time to change jobs, change careers, change whole attitudes and approaches. They don't want to hear such liberating news.[3] They want a map-right now-that they can follow unswervingly to career security, financial security. Social Security[4] and, presumably, a prepaid grave.
What I wish for all students is some release from the threatening grip of the future. I wish them a chance to savor each segment of their education as an experience in itself and not as a grim preparation for the next step. I wish them the right to experiment, to trip and fall, to learn that defeat instructive as victory and is not the end of the world.
My wish, of course, is naive. One of the few rights that America does not proclaim is the right to fail. Achievement is the national god, worshipped in our media- the million-dollar athlete, the wealthy executive-and glorified in our praise of possessions.[5] In the presence of such a potent state religion, the young are growing up old.[6]
"In the late 1960s," one dean told me, "the typical question that I got from students was ' Why is there so much suffering in the world?' or ' How can I make a contribution?' Today it's ' Do you think it would look better for getting into law school if I did a double major[7] in history and political science, or just majored in one of them?'"
Note the emphasis on looking better. The transcript has become a sacred document, the passport to security. How one appears on paper is more important than how one appears in person. A is for Admirable and B is for Borderline, even though, in Yale's official system of grading, A means "excellent" and B means "very good". Today, looking very good is no longer good enough, especially for students who hope to go on to law school or medical school.[8] They know that entrance into the better schools will be an entrance into the better law firms and better medical practices where they will make a lot of money. They also know that the odds are harsh.[9] Yale Law School, for instance, accepts 170 students from an applicant pool of 3,700; Harvard enrolls 550 from a pool of 7,000.
The pressure is almost as heavy on students who just want to graduate and get a job. Long gone are the days when students journeyed through college with a certain relaxation, sampling a wide variety of courses-music, art, philosophy, classics, poetry-that would send them out as liberally educated men and women. If I were an employer I would rather employ graduates who have this range and curiosity than those who narrowly pursued safe subjects and high grades. I know countless students whose inquiring minds excite me. I like to hear their ideas. I don't know if they are getting As or Cs, and I don't care. I also like them as people. The country needs them, and they will find satisfying jobs. I tell them to relax. They can't.
Nor can I blame them. They live in a brutal economy. Today it is not unusual for a student, even if he works part time at college and full time during the summer, to have $ 5,000 in loans after four years-loans that he must start to repay within one year after graduation. How could he not feel under pressure throughout college to prepare for this day of reckoning?
Along with economic pressure goes parental pressure.[10] Inevitably, the two are deeply intertwined.
I see many students taking pre-medical courses[11] with joyless tenacity. They go off to their labs as if they were going to the dentist.[12] It saddens me because I know them in other corners[13] of their life as cheerful people.
"Do you want to go to medical school?" I ask them.
"I guess so, " they say, without conviction, or "Not really."
"Then why are you going?"
"Well, my parents want me to be a doctor. They're paying all this money and..."
Poor students, poor parents. They are caught in one of the oldest webs of love and duty and guilt.[14] The parents mean well; they are trying to steer their sons and daughters toward a secure future. But the sons and daughters want to major in history or classics or philosophy-subjects with no "practical" value. Where's the payoff on the humanities?[15] It's not easy to persuade such loving parents that the humanities do indeed pay off. The intellectual faculties developed by studying subjects like history and classics-an ability to synthesize and relate, to weigh cause and effect, to see events in perspective[16]-are just the faculties that make creative leaders in business or almost any general field. Still, many fathers would rather put their money on courses that point toward a specific profession-courses that are pre-law, pre-medical, pre-business, or, as I sometimes heard it put, "pre-rich[17]".
Peer pressure and self-induced pressure are also intertwined, and they begin almost at the beginning of freshman year.
"I had a freshman student I'll call Linda," one dean told me, "who came in and said she was under terrible pressure because her roommate, Barbara, was much brighter and studied all the time. I couldn't tell her that Barbara had come in two hours earlier to say the same thing about Linda."
The story is almost funny-except that it's not.[18] It's symptomatic of all the pressures put together. When every student thinks every other student is working harder and doing better, the only solution is to study harder still. I see students going off to the library every night after dinner and coming back when it closes at midnight. I hear the clacking of computer keyboards in the hours before dawn. I see the tension in their eyes when exams are approaching and papers are due: " Will I get everything done"
24 Probably they won't. They will get sick. They will get "blocked."[19] Hey Carlos, help! (1280 words)
Proper Names
Branford College
布兰福德学院(耶鲁大学的一个学院)
Carlos Hortas
(男子名)卡洛斯.奥尔塔斯
Linda
(女子名)琳达
Yale University
耶鲁大学(美国一所著名大学)
New Words
admirable *
adj. excellent; praiseworthy 极好的;令人钦佩的
e.g. I) The trains ran with admirable precision.
II) His self-control in such difficult circumstances was admirable.
applicant
n. a person who applies for or requests something; a candidate 申请人
e.g. I) There is a long waiting list of applicants for jobs.
II) As the wages were low, there were no applicants for the position.
clack
v. (cause to) make one or more quick sharp sounds 发出咔嗒声;使咔嗒咔嗒地响
e.g. The big old-fashioned alarm clock was clacking noisily.
gallows
n. the wooden frame on which criminals used to be killed by hanging from a rope 绞架;绞刑
gallons humor humor which makes very unpleasant or dangerous things or people seem funny 黑色幽默
grim
adj.
1) causing great fear or anxiety 严酷的，令人害怕的
e.g. I) There is more grim news from the war zone.
II) The staff now face the grim prospect of redundancy (裁员).
2) (informal) unpleasant; not cheerful (非正式)不愉快的，讨厌的
e.g. I) I've had a grim day.
II) After all this training, it's a bit grim to be told you are not even in the team.
hey
interj. This word is used to call attention or to express pleasure, surprise, bewilderment, etc. 喂，嘿
e.g. Hey, what are you doing here?
inconceivably *
adv. unimaginably 不可思议地
inquiring
adj. showing an interest in knowing about things 爱探索的，好问的
e.g. Teachers should encourage children to have an inquiring mind.
instructive *
adj. giving useful information 有教益的，有启发的
e.g. This was a very instructive experience for her.
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发表于 2016-7-10 09:23:22