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Lesson 24 A skeleton in the cupboard
We often read in novels how a seemingly respectable person or family has some terrible secret which has been concealed from strangers for years. The English language possesses a vivid saying to describe this sort of situation. The terrible secret is called ‘a skeleton in the cupboard’. At some dramatic moment in the story, the terrible secret becomes known and a reputation is ruined. The reader’s hair stands on end when he reads in the final pages of the novel that the heroine, a dear old lady who had always been so kind to everybody, had, in her youth, poisoned毒死 every one of her five husbands.
It is all very for such things to occur(=happen) in fiction. To varying degrees, we all have secrets which we do not want even our closest friends to learn, but few of us have skeletons in the cupboard. The only person I know who has a skeleton in the cupboard is George Carlton, and he is very proud of the fact. George studied medicine in his youth. Instead of没有 becoming a doctor, however, he became a successful writer of detective stories. I once spent an uncomfortable weekend which I shall never forget at his house. George showed me to the guestroom which, he said, was rarely used. He told me to unpack my things and then come down to dinner. After I had stacked装 my shirts and underclothes in two empty drawers, I decided to hang one of the two suits I had brought with me in the cupboard. I opened the cupboard door and then stood in front of it petrified. A skeleton was dangling before my eyes. The sudden movement of the door make it sway slightly and it gave me the impression印象 that it was about to即将 leap out at me. Dropping my suit, I dashed downstairs to tell George. This was worse than ‘a terrible secret’; this was a real skeleton! But George was unsympathetic. ‘Oh, that,’ he said with a smile as if仿佛 he were talking about an old friend. ‘That’s Sebastian. You forget that I was a medical student once upon a time.’
New words and expressions
skeleton 骷髅，素描
seemingly 表面上地
respectable 受人尊重的
conceal 隐藏
vivid 生动的
dramatic 扣人心弦的
ruin 毁坏(名誉等)，使破产
heroine 女主人公
fiction 小说
varying 不同的
medicine 医学的
guestroom 客房
unpack 取出
stack (整齐地)堆放
underclothes 内衣
drawer 抽屉
petrify 使惊呆
dangle 悬挂
sway 摇摆
unsympathetic 无动于衷的
medical 医学的
Notes on the text
A skeleton in the cupboard(英)
=closet(美)家丑
Don’t wash your dirty linen(内衣).别自爆其丑
seemingly important表面重要
l The ② young man respects the ③ old man.
①respecting(无此型)
②respectful尊重他人的
③respectable受人尊重的
He concealed the fact that he was married.
l flesh-and-blood有血有肉的
├realistic真实的
├vivid生动的
├colorful多彩的
├lively /ai/ 鲜活的，生动的
└active活泼的
live broadcasting现场广播
picturesque活灵活现的
l dramatic扣人心弦的
└drastic急剧的
We often read in novels how a poor man succeeded in getting rich.
The English language possesses a vivid saying to describe this sort of situation.
hair stands on end竖立恐惧
My hair stands on end at the news of his death.
in my youth=when I was young
l 经典口语
1. Just be yourself. = relax放松点
2. They are playing house.= cohabit同居
3. No cutting in our conversation
= Don’t interrupt me别打断我
4. He is out with flu. 感冒没上班
5. The TV play is just a waste of time.
电视剧浪费我的时间
6. You look a little down.你的情绪不高
7. Are you going to be around.你想出去走走吗
How nice of you.你真好
It’s very nice of you to say so.你一张好嘴
l ruin sb. reputation毁…名誉
hero, Negro, potato, tomato复数需加“es”
┌detective story侦探小说
├essay散文
├novel小说
├poem诗
├article未发表的文章
└fiction小说
l various各种各样的
├varying不同的
├variable变化多端的
└varied不同的，已经变的
medicine药品，医学，医生
┌guesthouse宾馆
├inn客栈
├motel汽车旅馆
└Holiday Inn假日酒店
┌underwear内衣
├underclothes
└brief(男)内衣，简单明了
l panic惊慌的
├dismay惊愕的
├shocked震惊的
└petrify惊呆了
I’m in panic.
To one’s dismay.
l Don’t keep me dangling.别吊我胃口
dangle悬挂
sway ┐
swing ┴摇摆
l indifferent ┐
├I don’t care ┴不在乎
└unsympathetic(强烈)无动于衷的
┌intimate friend ┐
└closest friend ┴密友
I’m proud of you all.为你自豪
Let me show you around.到处转转
show sb. to+地点=参观
l stay to dinner表目的to
└come down to dinner
┌pile堆(无规律)
└stack堆放(整齐)
I arrived in Shanghai excited / exhausted.补充主语状态(分词)
He stood in the rain bare-headed and bare-footed.
l impression印象
I was deeply impressed by your perfect performance.很深印象
It gave me an impression that the guy is kind to everybody.表示给我一种印象，实际并非
leave sb. an impression留下真实的印象
He always lives under the impression that he is a saint(圣徒).
l shoot at瞄准某人
├shoot sb.射死
├be mad at对…生气
└aim at目的
He said with a smile as if仿佛 he were talking about his old friend.
You forget现在时 that I was your classmate.
l 文化：Traveling in the U.S.A
1. Air Travel: “round ticket”往返票 “one-way ticket”单程票
2. airlines: Northwest西北 /
Unite联合
3. Check in: smoking /
unsmoking seat
4. City-buses: tokeas辅币 /
transfers转换证
5. long-distance Bus: Grey hound (toilet) transfer for free免费转换 |
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发表于 2016-7-11 23:03:26