BK6 教师用书 Unit 9

Unit 9 The One Against the ManyArthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.Structure of the TextPart I (Para. 1)The author raises the issue of the American experience in achieving rapid national development.Part II (Paras. 2-6)The factors that facilitated the rapid social and economic development of the United States.1The traditional analysis of the factors that contributed to Americas rapid development. (Paras. 2-5)2.The authors view of the key factorthe nations rejection of dogmatic preconceptions about the nature of the social and economic order. (Para. 6) Part III (Paras. 7-10)The authors definition of ideology and the difference between ideology and pragmatism. (Para. 7)(The authors definition of ideology, and the introduction of the concept of “hedgehogs” vs. “foxes”.)1. The author points out that Americans have not been immune to the temptation of ideology, and the reason for that. (Para. 8)2.Yet, most of the time, Americans have accepted pragmatism, which has made America a nation of innovation and experiment. (Para. 9)3.The author uses the American Revolution to illustrate the distinction between ideology and pragmatism. (Para. 10)Part IV (Paras. 11-12)The author uses Thomas Jefferson as an example showing the difference between ideals and ideology.Part V (Paras. 13-14)The author points out the problem with ideology: the confusion of abstraction from reality for reality.Part VI (Paras. 15-19)The authors analysis of the difference between the ideologist and the pragmatism in their views of history and in their approaches to issues of public policy.1.The difference between the views of history. (Paras. 15-16)2.The difference between their approaches to issues of public policy. (Paras. 17-19)Part VII (Paras. 20-22)Conclusion: 1.The conflict of our times: the one vs. the many. (Para. 20)2.The goal of the ideologists: to make the world over in the image of their dogmatic ideologies. (Para. 21)3.The goal of free men. (Para. 22)Detailed Study of the Text1. In an epoch dominated by the aspirations of new states for national development, it is instructive to recall that the United States itself began as an underdeveloped country. (Para. 1)Question: From this statement, can you guess when the essay was written?It is likely that the essay was written in the late 1960s or early 1970s because many countries in Asia and Africa won independence in this period and wanted to develop their countries.Compare “period”, “epoch”, “era” and “age”.“Period” is a general term for any portion of historical time. “Epoch” and “era” are often used interchangeably but, strictly speaking, “epoch” applies to the beginning of a new period marked by radical changes, new developments, etc., and “era” applies to an entire period.e.g.: The steam engine marked a new epoch in transportation.The 20th century was an era of war and revolution.“Age” is applied to a long period identified with a dominant or distinctive characteristic.e.g.: “the Stone Age”; “the Victorian Age”2. Every country, of course, has its distinctive development problems and must solve them according to its own traditions, capacities, and values. (Para. 2)Questions:(1) What role does this sentence play?It is a transitional sentence.(2) What do you think of this statement?This statement makes good sense. The development problems and solutions vary from country to country. To try to apply a single model to different problems and situations is to invite disaster. But there are also certain rules that are applicable in all situations and these rules should not be ignored.capacity: ability to do things3. The American experience was unique in a number of ways. (Para. 2)Translation: 美国的经验在许多方面都是独特的。4.The country was blessed by notable advantagesabove all, by the fact that population was scarce in relation to available resources. (Para. 2)bless: to favorTranslation: 这个国家有着得天独厚的优势主要是人口相对稀少而资源十分丰富。5. Had that been so, the Indians, for whom the ratio was even more favorable, would have developed the country long before the first settlers arrived from over the seas. (Para. 2)Note:(1)This statement is in the subjunctive mood. (2)The first settlers generally referred to were the founders of Jamestown (Virginia) in 1607 and/or the 102 passengers who sailed on the Mayflower in 1620 to establish the first colony at Plymouth in what today is southeastern Massachusetts.Paraphrase:Had that been so.: If the favorable ratio between population and resources had been the only factor.6. What mattered equally was the spirit in which these settlers approached the economic and social challenges offered by the environment. Several elements seemed fundamental to the philosophy which facilitated the rapid social and economic development of the American continent. (Para. 2)approach: to begin dealing with; to adopt a method for attaining a goal or purposeQuestion: What were the challenges mentioned in the statement?The challenges might refer to the hunger and disease the settlers faced after their landing in the New World, to their relationship with hostile neighboring Indian tribes and their dream of building a “city on the hill”.7. One factor was the deep faith in education. The belief that investment in people is the most essential way for a society to devote its resources existed from the earliest days of the American colonies. (Para. 3) Question: Why does the author say this belief existed from the earliest days of the American colonies?The author probably makes this statement based on the following facts: Harvard University was founded in 1636, William and Mary in 1693, and Yale University in 1701. A public school system was set up in Massachusetts in 1647 so that “Satan could not keep people from knowledge of the Scriptures”. “. the Puritan tradition involved a respect for learning, which opportunities for learning thus created, and the pressures for widespread education that equalitarian values implied, led to a wide distribution of literacy.” (The First New Nation by Seymour Martin Lipset (1963), P.108)8. It arose originally from a philosophical rather than an economic commitmentfrom a faith in the dignity of man and from the resulting belief that it is the responsibility of society to offer man the opportunity to develop his highest potentialities. But at the same time, it also helped produce the conditions essential to successful modernization. (Para. 3)philosophical commitment: dedication to abstract, thought-out principlesdignity of man: 人的尊严Notes: (1) Thomas Jefferson held that the state-supported education of all citizens is a basic requirement for democracy. He wrote in 1816, “If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be.” Education was seen as the means to enable the public to make “right choices” (those consistent with democratic values) and maintain stability within the republic. (From American Public Policy by Clarke E. Cochran, and others.)The United States adopted a number of laws on education:The Morrill Land Grant Act of 1862;The G.I. Bill of 1944;The National Defense Education Act of 1958;The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965;The Higher Education Act of 1965.In the academic year 19931994, 44.9 million students were enrolled in public elementary and secondary schools and another 5.5 million attended private schools.Between 1990 and 1995, over 8.5 million students enrolled every year in colleges and universities.(2) But, at the same time, it also helped produce the conditions essential to successful modernization.In spite of the fact that economic commitment was not the major reason for respect for learning, wide literacy became a necessary condition for modernization. This statement also lends itself to a smooth transition to the next Paragraph.Max Weber points out that the Protestant ethic paved the way for the development of capitalism.It arose originally from a philosophical rather than an economic commitment.Translation: 它源于对思想原则的信仰，而不是出于对经济利益的追求9. Modern industrial society must be above all a literate society. (Para. 4) Question: Do you think that this concept is applicable to China?Yes. The national policy of “科教兴国” is based on this concept.Note: This sentence, which is linked with the last sentence of Para. 3, forms a smooth transition. Students are advised to pay attention to this kind of transition between paragraphs.10. J. K. Galbraith has rightly observed that “a dollar or a rupee invested in the intellectual improvement of human beings will regularly bring a greater increase in national income than a dollar or a rupee devoted to railways, dams, machine tools, or other tangible capital goods”. These words accurately report the American national experience. (Para. 4)intellectual improvement: 智力提高report: to recount; to give an account ofNote: Galbraiths observation is correct, but a dollar or a rupee invested in construction may bring tangible results in a relatively short period of time, while the results of investment in intellectual improvement will become evident only in the long run. So it takes decision-makers with a long-term perspective to really grasp the significance of Galbraiths observation. When China decided to shift its priority to national construction, one of the first measures taken was the reintroduction of the national college entrance examination in 1977. Although China has made development in the areas of education and science and technology its major means of building China into a modern, industrialized country, education has nonetheless been given a secondary role in many instances. So there is still a long way to go in China before decision-makers at all levels will have fully grasped Galbraiths observation. 11. Another factor in the process of American development has been the commitment to self-government and representative institutions. We have found no better way than democracy to fulfill mans talents and release his energies. (Para. 5)Notes:(1) Self-government is the principle that the people are the ultimate source of governing authority (“of the people, by the people, for the people”) and that their welfare is the only legitimate purpose of government. (Chinese policies such as “nothing is trivial when it concerns the interests of the people”, “to govern for the people”, and “to represent the greatest interests of the largest number of people”, are expressions of this same spirit.) This is correct in theory but, in the United States, the welfare of the people is not necessarily always the federal governments chief concern. For example, according to certain American economists, the “Bush tax cuts” (initiated by George W. Bush) were not in the interest of low-income citizens. (2) representative institutions: 代议制政府机构This refers to a system of US government institutions that give citizens the opportunity to vote for representatives who will work on their behalf. Every four years, voters elect members of the Electoral College, which, in turn, elects the president. Every two years, voters elect members of the House of Representatives and one third of the members of the Senate. In theory, these people, once elected, work in the interests of the majority of the people. Currently, low voter turnout, lobby groups, provisions regulating campaign financing, etc., cast doubt on the efficacy of this system. fulfill: to develop to the full We have found no better way than democracy to fulfill mans talents and release his energies. 我们发现民主是使人的才智得到充分施展、人的能量得以充分发挥的最好方式。12.A related factor has been the conviction of the importance of personal freedom and personal initiativethe feeling that the individual is the source of creativity. (Para. 5) the individual is the source of creativity: 创新来自个人13. Another has been the understanding of the role of cooperative activity, public as well as voluntary. (Para. 5)Note: The author wants to show that emphasis on personal freedom and personal initiative does not preclude cooperative activity. Americans believe in freedom, democracy, and individual enterprise, but that does not mean that they are selfish or without compassion and a sense of responsibility to their fellow citizens, communities, and nation. Community service and local community spirit are instances of this. Moreover, voluntary organizations, staffed by part-time, unpaid members, are widespread; much of the charitable activity in the country is carried out by these organizations.14. But fundamental to all of these, and perhaps the single most important explanation of the comparative speed of American development, has been the national rejection of dogmatic preconceptions about the nature of the social and economic order. (Para. 6)Note:. the national rejection of dogmatic preconceptions about the nature of the social and economic order.As a nation, America has refused to cling to rigid principles concerning social and economic development. According to the author, America has been adaptable and flexible.Americans, in general, are not dogmatic. They believe in the value of experience and are not afraid of making mistakes. They consider that experimentation, trial and error are necessary aspects of a search for the best means to a desired end. This is similar to the Chinese view that “Practice is the ultimate test of truth.”dogmatic preconceptions: 教条式的偏见preconception: 事先在头脑中形成的看法或观念 (先入为主的观念)15.America has had the good fortune not to be an ideological society. (Para. 6)Paraphrase: Americans are fortunate in not being inclined to follow a body of rigid ideas or theories in their social, economic and political activities.Note: It is true that America is not an ideological society. But in American history, there have been times of aberration. The McCarthyism of the early 1950s, for example, was an aberration. However, this kind of aberration did not last long because it was incompatible with Americas fundamental pragmatism.Translation: 幸运的是，美国不是一个意识形态很浓的国家。16. By ideology I mean a body of systematic and rigid dogma by which people seek to understand the worldand to preserve or transform it. (Para. 7)Question: What elements make up the definition of ideology?The definition includes two elements: one is a group of doctrines (beliefs), which are precise and not flexible, and which form a system; the other is the use of these doctrines to understand, preserve, or transform the world.Note: “By ideology I mean” is a way of introducing a definition.17. In the record of this conflict, ideology has attracted some of the strongest intelligences mankind has producedthose whom Sir Isaiah Berlin, termed the “hedgehogs”, who know one big thing, as against the “foxes”, who know many small things. (Para. 7)Questions:(1)What is the one big thing hedgehogs know?When hedgehogs encounter danger, they invariably curl themselves up into a ball with sharp spines sticking out as a defense. This is the only protective strategy they know. The hedgehog is being compared here to the ideologist, who blindly follows the dogma he believes in.(2)What is the characteristic of foxes?Foxes do not confine themselves to one way of protecting themselves. They use many different methods of deceiving their pursuers. In the record of this conflict, ideology has attracted some of the strongest intelligences mankind has produced.Translation: 在意识形态体系与经验主义斗争的历史上，意识形态体系曾吸引了人类历史上一些聪明绝顶的人物intelligence: a bright, perceptive person18. Nor can one suggest that Americans have been consistently immune to the ideological temptationto the temptation, that is, to define national goals in an ordered, comprehensive, and permanent way. (Para. 8) Paraphrase: No one can say that Americans have never been tempted by the alternative of understanding, preserving or transforming the world according to a rigid dogma. to define national goals in an ordered, comprehensive, and permanent way.以一种有序、全面、永恒的方式来确定国家目标。19. After all, the American mind was conditioned by one of the noblest and most formidable structures of analysis ever devised, Calvinist theology, and any intellect so shaped was bound to have certain vulnerability to secular ideology ever after. (Para. 8)mind: way of thinking 思维方式condition: to affect, modify or influenceformidable: strikingly impressive; commanding respectstructures of analysis: 分析问题的理论体系Note: French Protestant theologian John Calvin (1509-1564) encouraged Christian self-consciousness. God would have every reason to condemn all humans to hell as sinners, Calvin believed, but in his mercy God has chosen to save a few. To ensure that one was among the saved required constant attention to ones inner motivation and also attentive reading of the Bible. Calvinism promoted literacy (necessary for reading the Bible) but also material success as a means of indirectly confirming an individuals salvation. Though Gods predestined plan could not be known with certainty, it came to seem unreasonable that God would let a person profit in this world only to condemn him to hell in the next world. It is perhaps no accident that Calvins influence was greatest in the most economically developed parts of Europe (Holland, England, France) and then in New England. Calvinism inspired people to seek profit and worldly success as a probable foretaste of Gods grace and eternal salvation. Work was no longer tied simply to material needs, but to spiritual uncertainties, a potentially limitless motivation.After all, the American mind was conditioned by one of the noblest