全新主题大学英语2 U2 S.doc

Unit Two True LoveSection APre-reading Questions1. Whats the most moving love story youve ever heard? How did it end?2. Whats your opinion on true love? Will it last forever?3. In your opinion, what makes or breaks a couple?Love is an eternal theme of mankind. Perhaps we all know Stephen Hawking as a genius physicist, who is famous for his book A Brief History of Time. But this text will let you see another side of Hawkings, and his love story with a woman called Jane wilde.Wildes Love for Hawking1 When Jane Wilde married a young research student named Stephen Hawking in 1965, she already knew he was seriously ill. A school friend broke the news a couple of years before, saying that Stephen was suffering from “some terrible, paralyzing, incurable disease.” This is probably a fair illustration of what was known then about motor neurone disease, long before the worldwide success of A Brief History of Time and Stephens battle against the illness combined to raise its public profile.2 There is little doubt that Jane Wildes appearance on the scene was a major turning-point in Stephen Hawkings life. The two of them began to see a lot more of one another and a strong relationship developed. It was finding Jane that facilitated him to break out of his depression and regenerate some belief in his life and work. For Hawking, his engagement to Jane was probably the most important thing that ever happened to him. It changed his life, gave him something to look forward to and made him determined to survive. Without the help that Jane gave him, he would almost certainly not have been capable of carrying on or had the will to do so.3 They married in July of 1965. Hawking himself has said that what really made a difference was that he got engaged to a woman named Jane Wilde. This gave him something to live for.4 In the memoirs, Music to Move the Stars, written by Jane Hawking, what is striking about her account of their courtship is her readiness to marry someone with such a grim diagnosis, whose physical condition was deteriorating before her eyes. In a frank way, Stephens father told her that his sons life would be short, as would his ability to fulfill a marital relationship, and advised her to have children quickly. His mother tried to warn her about the horrifying symptoms to expect, but Jane declined the offer of information.5 “I replied that I would prefer not to know the details of the prognosis,” she writes, “because I loved Stephen so much that nothing could deter me from wanting to marry him. I would cook and wash and shop and make a home for him, dismissing all my own previous ambitions which were now insignificant by comparison with the challenge before me.” It is hard to avoid the conclusion that Jane, who had not yet graduated from college, did not know what she was taking on. Although Stephen defied the coming up death sentence passed upon him, and is still alive today, the details of his physical decline are relentless.6 Janes determination to care for him, and to create an environment in which he could continue his groundbreaking work on black holes, takes up many more pages than her account of their eventual separation. If Stephens struggle to keep his mind clear is heroic, so is her determination to balance his escalating needs and those of their three children. Jane emerges as decent and honest, even if her prose sometimes resembles the summaries of family news that fall out of cards at Christmas.7 Hers is the story of a marriage based on a pairing of male ego and female submissiveness, the worldly expressions of which she finds disturbing. In Cambridge, and at conferences all over the world, physicists gather in excited groups, while their wives are relegated to the status of second-class citizens. This is an early cause of dissent in the Hawking household, making Jane feel she has become “little more than a drudge, effectively reduced to that role which in Cambridge academic circles epitomized a womans place”.8 In spite of this, she manages to bring up their children and even complete her own Ph.D. Cruelly, her husbands fame and his disease seem to progress in tandem, his body ever more wasted as his celebrity increases. Jane is gradually transformed from his wife into his nurse, her functions becoming “maternal rather than marital.” That this development might be fatal to the marriage is obvious, although Jane hopes in vain for a new kind of relationship, based on intellectual companionship. Astonishingly for a woman with her conventional background and Christian beliefs, she responds by finding a friend and lover, a musician who is accepted into the household. This unusual arrangement is disrupted not by Janes decision to leave Stephen for her lover, which she insists was never her intention, but her husbands eventual abandonment of her for one of his nurses.9 Her answer, that she still loved her husband, may be enough for some readers. What is suggestive, however, is her overwhelming need to believe in something either God, whose existence is denied by Stephen, or that form of authority represented by her genius husband. Just before their marriage breaks down, she reveals to a journalist that her role no longer consists of promoting his success but of “telling him that he was not God.”10 Jane Hawking is a Christian. She made the statement in 1986, “Without my faith in God, I wouldnt have been able to live in this situation;” namely, the deteriorating health of her husband. “I would not have been able to marry Stephen in the first place because I wouldnt have had the optimism to carry me through and I wouldnt have been able to carry on with it.”11 When Jane reflects on her life since the separation and divorce, she sounds a little directionless in spite of her own happy second marriage. She loved Stephen and still loves him. She is always willing to devote all her energies to him. She has strived to support his academic career by sacrificing academic interests of her own. Maybe this depressing ending turned out to be what she doesnt deserve. But when it comes to love, it is very complicated and it is very hard to distinguish right from wrong. (965 words)New Words7paralyze /pQRE;LaIz/ vt. 1 make someone lose the ability to move their body or a part of it 使瘫痪 2 render powerless; cripple 使无力；使丧失活动能力illustration /;ILEstreISn/ n. 1 C/U explanatory example 例证，实例 2 C picture in a book etc. 书中的图画 combine /kEmbaIn/ vi. join together 结合；联合n. C group of companies or organizations that work together, esp. in business （尤指业务上的）联合企业 profile /prEUfaIl/ n. C 1 public image of a person or organization, and attention that they get from the public or journalists （人或组织的）形象，姿态 2 short article or programme in which someones life and character are described 简介，概况turning-point /tC:nIN ;pXInt/ n. C point at which a decisive change occurs 转折点；转机 facilitate /fEsILEteIt/ vt. ease ( a process etc.) 使(过程等)容易；使便利depression /dIPReSn/ n. 1 U being depressed; low spirits消沉；忧郁；沮丧 2 C/U long period of slump长期萧条；不景气generate /dZenE;ReIt/ vt. produce; bring into existence 使发生；产生；引起 regenerate /rIdZenE;ReIt/ vt. generate again重新产生determined /dItC:mInd/ a. showing determination; resolute已下定决心的；决意的capable /keIPEBL/ a. 1 having the ability, fitness, etc. for 具有能力的，适合于的 2 competent, able, gifted 能胜任的，有能力的，有才能的memoir/mem;wA:/ C (pl.) account of someones experiences written by that person 见闻录；回忆录striking /straIkIN/ a. impressive; attracting attention 印象深刻的；突出的；引人注目的courtship /KO:tSIP/ n. C time when two people have a romantic relationship before they get married 求爱期；追求期 readiness /redinEs/ n. U 1 willingness or eagerness 愿意；乐意 2 state of being ready or prepared 准备就绪grim /GRIm/ a. 1 unpleasant and depressing 令人不快的；令人沮丧的 2 of stern or forbidding appearance （面容）严厉的；冷峻的diagnosis/;daIEGnEUsIs/ n. C identification of a disease from its symptoms诊断deteriorate /dItIERiE;ReIt/ vi. become worse 恶化；变坏 frank /frQNK/ a. outspoken直率的；坦白的；直言不讳的fulfil /FULFIL/ vt. 1 carry out (a task, prophecy, promise, etc.) 完成（任务）；使（预言）应验；履行（诺言）等2 satisfy (conditions, a desire, prayer, etc.) 满足(条件、愿望、祈求等)marital /mQRItl/ a. of marriage or marriage relations婚姻的；婚姻关系的horrifying /HXRI;FaIIN/ a. shocking or disgusting 使恐惧的，使惊骇的symptom /sImptEM/ n. C 1 physical or mental sign of disease 症状；症候2 sign of the existence of something征候；征兆decline /dIklaIn/ vt. politely refuse (an invitation, challenge, etc.) 谢绝，婉辞（邀请、挑战等） vi. 1 become worse恶化 2 decrease减少n. C/U continuous decrease in value, quantity, importance, or quality, etc. of something (数量、价值、质量等的)减少，下降，衰落，衰退prognosis /PRXGnEUsIs/ n. C forecast, esp. of the course of a disease （尤指对疾病过程的）预测deter/dItC:/ vt. discourage or prevent, esp. through fear （尤其指通过吓唬）使不敢；制止previous /pri:viEs/ a. coming before in time or order （在时间，次序上）前的，先的ambition /QMBISn/ n. 1 C determination to succeed 抱负，志向 2 U strong desire for something 雄心；野心insignificant /;InsIgnIfIkEnt/ a. not large or important enough to be worth considering 不重要的；无意义的；无足轻重的comparison /kEMPQRIsn/ n. C/U process of comparing two or more people or things 比较；对照 defy /dIFaI/ vt. resist openly 公然反抗relentless/RILentlEs/ a. (something bad) never stopping or improving , oppressively constant （不好的事情）不间断的，无休止的determination /dI;tC:mIneISn/ n. U refusal to let anything prevent you from doing what you have decided to do 坚定；决心 groundbreaking /graUnd;breIkIN/ a. making new discoveries创新的eventual /IventSuEl/ a. happening or existing at the end of a process or period of time 最终发生的；结果的separation /;sepEreISn/ n. 1 C decision by a husband and wife not to live together （夫妻）分居 2 U separating or being separated 分离；分开heroic /HIrEUIk/ a. like a hero; very brave 英雄的；神勇的，英勇的escalate /eskE;LeIt/ vi. increase or develop (usu. rapidly) by stages （通常为迅速地）逐步增加；逐步发展decent /di:snt/ a. 1 (of people or behaviour) honest and fair; treating with respect 正派的；合乎礼节的 2 proper; acceptable, good enough 过得去的；合意的；尚可的resemble /rIzembl/ vt. look like or be similar to another person or thing 看起来像；显得像pairing /peErIN/ n. C arranging or being arranged in couple 配对；使成配偶ego /i:gEU/ n. C self; sense of individuality 自我submissiveness /sEbmIsIvnIs/ n. U humbleness, obedience 服从，顺从worldly /wC:ldli/ a. 1 relating to the practical rather than the spiritual aspects of life 世俗的；尘世的 2 (of person) having a lot of experience and knowledge of life 老于世故的；善于处世的relegate /relE;GeIt/ vt. consign or dismiss to an inferior position 把降级，把置于次要地位second-class /;sekEndklA:s/ a. low in quality or importance 二等的；次的dissent /dIsent/ n. U difference, esp. from the established or official opinion 异议（尤指对已确认的观点或官方观点）vi. disagree, esp. openly （尤公开）不同意；持异议drudge /drVdZ/ nC person who does dull, laborious, or menial work 作苦工（吃力、乏味工作）的人effectively /IfektIvli/ ad. in fact, although perhaps not appearing to 实际上，事实上 epitomize /IPItE;maIz/ vt. be a perfect example of something 成为的代表， 作为的典型fame /feIm/ n. U state of being famous 名声；声望；名誉tandem /tQndEm/ n. C bicycle with two or more seats one behind another 串座双人（或多人）自行车wasted /weIstId/ a. looking extremely thin and weak十分瘦弱的celebrity /sELebrEti/ n. 1 U fame名声；名望 2 C well-known person 名人，名流maternal /mEtC:nl/ a. of or like a mother; motherly 母亲的；母亲般的fatal /feItl/ a. 1 ruinous 毁灭性的；灾难性的2 causing or ending in death 致命的vain /veIn/ a. 1 useless无用的，徒劳的2 having too high an opinion of ones looks, abilities, etc; conceited 自负的；自视过高的；爱虚荣的intellectual /;IntElektSuEl/ n. C someone who is well educated 知识分子 a. 1 well educated 知性的，聪明的 2 of or appealing to the intellect 智力的；使用智力的companionship /kEmpQnjEnSIp/ n. U good fellowship 伴侣关系，同伴关系astonishingly /EstXnISINli/ ad. surprisingly令人惊讶地；惊人地Christian /krIstSEn/ a. relating to Christianity 基督教的n. C someone whose religion is Christianity 基督信徒disrupt /dIsrVPt/ vt. 1 interrupt the continuity of 使中断 2 bring disorder to 使混乱abandonment /EbQndEnmEnt/ n. leaving someone, deserting 抛弃，遗弃suggestive /sEdZestIv/ a. hinting (at) 暗示的；引起联想的overwhelming/;EUvEwelmIN/ a. 1 too great to resist or overcome 无法抵抗的；无法克服的 2 by a great number 大多数的genius /dZi:niEs/ n. 1 C highly talented, creative, or intelligent person天才 2 U great ability or skill in a particular subject or activity 天赋；创造能力faith /feIT/ n. U 1 belief, esp. religious belief （尤指宗教）信仰；信念 2 complete trust or confidence 信任；信心 namely /neImli/ ad. that is to say; in other words 即；也就是说optimism /XPtI;mIzEm/ n. U preference to hopefulness and confidence 乐观directionless /dIrekSnlEs/ a. lacking a definite purpose or plan 无目标的；无计划的strive /straIv/ vi. try hard 努力，力争；力求 depressing /dIPresIN/ a. making you feel very sad令人忧愁的，使人沮丧的ending /endIN/ n. C way that a story, film, activity, etc. finishes（故事、 电影、活动等的）结尾，结局complicated /kXMPLI;KeItId/ a. complex; intricate 复杂的，难懂的Phrases and Expressionson the scene break out oflive forby comparison (with)take ontake upin tandem in vain no longerin the first placecarry sb. throughturn outwhen it comes to (doing) sth.present 出现，到场，在场get rid of 摆脱 consider someone or something as so important that they are your main reason for living 为而活used for talking about the ways in which two things are different （与）比较而言undertake something 承担某事fill or occupy (the specified space or time) 填满, 占据（某空间或时间）together and at the same time 同时地 without success in spite of efforts 没有成功，徒劳not any more不再in the beginning起初，从一开始do or complete something, often in spite of difficulties使度过难关或麻烦等be discovered to be; prove to be结果是；证明是 when it is a matter of (doing) something 涉及到，一谈到Proper NamesJane Wilde /;dZeIn waIld/Stephen Hawking /sti:fEnhO:kIN/A Brief History of TimeMusic to Move the Stars简王尔德 （霍金的第一任妻子）史蒂芬霍金（19422009，英国著名理论物理学家）时间简史（霍金的代表作，1988年出版发行）感动星星的音乐（简王尔德于1999年出版的回忆录）ExercisesReading Aloud and MemorizingI. Read the following paragraphs. Pay special attention to sense groups and the sentence stress. Try to memorize them by heart.Her answer, that she still loved her husband, may be enough for some readers. What is suggestive, however, is her overwhelming need to believe in something either God, whose existence is denied by Stephen, or that form of authority represented by her genius husband. Just before their marriage breaks down, she reveals to a journalist that her role no longer consists of promoting his success but of “telling him that he was not God”.Jane Hawking is a Christian. She made the statement in 1986, “Without my faith in God, I wouldnt have been able to live in this situation;” namely, the deteriorating health of her husband. “I would not have been able to marry Stephen in the first place because I wouldnt have had the optimism to carry me through and I wouldnt have been able to carry on with it.”Comprehension of the TextII. Answer the following questions. 1. How did a school friend describe Stephens disease?2. Why was Jane Wildes appearance on the scene a major turning-point in Stephen Hawkings life?3. Why did Jane decline Stephen Hawkings parents kind offer of information and prefer not to know the details about his disease?4. What is the title of Jane Wildes book? And what is striking about her account of their courtship? 5. What is an early cause of strong disagreement or dissatisfaction in the Hawking family?6. What kind of transformation might be fatal to their marriage?7. How did Jane respond to the crisis of her marriage?8. According to the text, what seems to be the major reason that leads to their divorce?9. What is Janes overpowering need?10. What gives Jane courage and optimism to get through all the difficulties?VocabularyIII. Complete the following explanations or definitions with an appropriate word from the box. Change the form where necessary. illustrationfacilitatedepressiondecentintellectualdeterioratefulfillambitionresemblegeniussubmissivenesssymptomdeclineoptimismcomplicated 1. A(n) is someone who spends a lot of time studying and thinking about complicated ideas. 2. If you have a(n) to do or achieve something, you want very much to do it or achieve it.3. A(n) is a person who has an exceptionally high intelligence, and is highly talented, or creative. 4. To an action or process, especially one that you would like to happen, means to make it easier or more likely to happen. 5. A(n) of an illness is something wrong with your body or mind that is a sign of the illness. 6. If something , it becomes worse, diminishes or impairs in quality, value or condition in some way. 7. If is your personality, you are always willing to obey someone and never disagreeing with them, even if they are unkind to you. 8. A(n) _ is an example or a story, event, action, etc that shows the truth or existence of something very clearly. 9. If one thing or person _ another, they look like or be similar to each other.10. To a task, role, or requirement means to do or be what is required, necessary, or expected. 11. _ people following moral standards that are acceptable to society are honest and behave in a way that most people approve of. 12. _ is the feeling of being hopeful about the future or about the success of something in particular. 13. is a mental state in w