unit-7-Things;-The-ThrowAway-Society市公开课一等奖省赛课微课金奖

Unit7Things:TheThrow-AwaySociety1/84Therearemanythingsthatwewouldthrowawayifwewerenotafraidthatothersmightpickthemup.

——OscarWildeThePictureofDorianGrayDiscussion

Doyouknowhowtosortgarbageintorecyclablesandnon-recyclables?Doyouthinkitismuchtroubletodistinguishrecyclablefromnon-recyclables?Why?2/843/844/845/841.Supposesomethinghasgonewrongwithyourwatch,yourMP3,yourcellphone,orwhateverelectronicgadgetyouhave,wouldyoutakethetroubletohaveitrepaired,orwouldyousimplythrowitawayandgetanewone?2.Nowadaysmoreandmoredisposablegoodshavefoundtheirwayintoourlife.Thinkofsomeexamples.Doyouthinkitisawelcometrendofmodern,fast-pacedlife?Ordoyoudisapproveofthisbecauseitcausesagreatwasteofourlimitednaturalresources?6/847/84TheThesisDefinition

Thethesis,themainideaorcontrollingidea,tellswhatyouaretryingtodemonstrateorprove,thatis,whattheessayisallabout.WhatMakesaGoodThesis

Agoodthesisshouldbeaclearstatement,makingtransparentnotonlyyourfocusofdiscussion,butalsoyourstandontheissueraised.

Anexpositorywriter'smainconcernshouldbetopresentorexplainanideaorideasasclearlyaspossible.Toplacethethesisproperlyis

oneofthemanyeffectivewaysthatmayhelpthewriterachievethispurpose.However,thewritermayalsoimpressthereaderwithanideabyrepeatedlystatingit.Toffler'srestatementsofhisideaprovethemselvestobeofgreathelpnotonlyinkeepinghisdiscussioncoherent,butalsoinmakinghisideaemphatic.8/84Location

Manytimes,writersofexpositionprefertheirthesestobearrangedatthebeginningsoastosavethereaderguessworkandenablehimtofollowunambiguouslythedirectiontheyareleadinghimupto.

Butthereisnotafixedformulaastowheretopositionthethesisinanessay.End-positionaswellasmid-positionisjustascommonaspre-position.9/84EvidencefromText

Toffleropenswithanillustration,pointingoutaphenomenonthatexiststodayinhissociety.Hemakeshisideafullyapparentwhenhereacheshisconclusionwherehestates:"This[throw-away]mentalityproduces,amongotherthings,asetofradicallyalteredvalueswithrespecttoproperty."

Thisarrangementmightseempuzzling,atleastattheverybeginning,astothesensetheauthorintendstomake.However,thereaderissoonguidedontotherighttrackwhenhehasfinishedreadingthefirsttwointroductoryparagraphs,whicharepurposedtopreparehimfortheideatofollow.

Inthethirdparagraph,Toffler'sideais,forthefirsttime,directlystated:"…

thatman'srelationshipswiththingsareincreasingly

temporary."

10/84Andthisideaisrepeatedseveraltimesthereafter(forinstance,atthebeginningofPara.7)tillfullyexpressedinhisconcludingparagraph.

Therearesomereasonsthatmightaccountforthisdelayofannouncingthethesis.Onereasonmightbethattheideacannotbemadeclearuntilasufficientnumberofillustrationsand/orexplanationsaregiven.Anotherprobablereasonisthattheideawhenpositionedtowardstheendoftheessaymaygainspecialemphasis.Stillanotherreasoncouldbethatthethesisitselfcanbequitecontroversialandsuchadelaymayenablethewritertowinmoreeasilythereader'sagreementwithhisidea.11/84MoreExamplesfromtheTextThepointTofflerisarguingforinthisessayisveryclear:Theaffluentmodernsocietyisbecomingmoreandmoreathrow-awaysocietyandtheunderlyingcause,asstatedinhisownwords,isthat"man'srelationshipswiththingsareincreasinglytemporary"(SeeendofPara.3).

Topresenthisargument,Tofflerusesan

example

inthefirstthreeparagraphsofthistext,theexampleoftheBarbiedoll,whichisobviouslyawell-chosenexampleforitswide-spreadpopularitythroughoutthecountry.Tofurtherdevelophispoint,Tofflerprovidesmore

examplesandillustrations

inPara.7,Para.9,andParas.10-12respectively.12/84

Para.7providesalonglistofthrow-awayobjectsfordailyusetoillustratethethrow-awaycultureinwhichtheyoungergenerationare

embedded.

Para.9givesexamplesofotherindustrializedcountriesinwhichthethrow-awayculturehasbeengraduallyfosteredsincethelate1950s.

Paras.10-12givetheexampleoftheintroductionofpaperclothesproductstoshowpeople'spsychologicalneedforthrow-awaythingsandthetrendtomaintainatransientrelationshipbetweenmanandman-madeobjects.13/84

InPara.6themethodof

comparisonandcontrast

isusedtoshowthedifferencebetweentwogenerationsintheirvaluejudgments.Itisnotjustasimple,superficialdifferenceinbehavior,butitisthebasicdifferencebetweentwovaluesystems,twocontrastingviewsoflife.InPara.9theUnitedStatesandSweden,etc.arecontrastedtoshow

howthelatter,followinginthefootstepsoftheformer,wasgraduallytransformedfromamoretraditionalsocietyintoathrow-awaysocietyinthe1950s–1960s.14/8415/84atwelve-inchplasticteenageraplasticteenagedolltwelveinchestallNotethatinanadjectiveconsistingofanumberandanoun,thenumberandthenounarehyphenated,andwhenthenumberisintheplural,thenounformremainsunchanged,e.g.afive-year-oldchild,aten-daytrip,a200book.16/8417/84eminentlydress-upableabletobedressedupinaperfect/elegantwaydressupputondifferentclothesorformalclothesdress-upableThesuffix

-able

isaddedtodressup,meaning"abletobedressedup".Theadjectiveeminentnormallymeans"distinguished,"e.g.aneminentstatesman.Theadverbeminentlymeans"elegantly"inthiscontext.18/8419/841.WhatisthefunctionoftheBarbiedollexamplecitedatthebeginningoftheessay?Whyisthisnotanisolatedexample?

Itisusedtointroduceandillustratethethesis,whichoccursattheendofthethirdparagraph:"man'srelationshipswiththingsareincreasinglytemporary."

Thisisnotanisolatedexamplefortworeasons:1)Thethesisitillustratesisrepeatedlyillustratedandsupportedbymoreexamplesintherestoftheessay.2)ThelittlegirlwhotradesinherBarbiedollis

referredtoagaininthe7thparagraph.20/84thenewversionthenewmodel,thenewformVersion

hasdifferentmeaningsindifferentcontexts.e.g.Severalversions(styles)ofclothesforoutingareondisplay.Whathesaidisacompletelydifferentversion(account)fromwhatwereadinthenewspaper.Amodernversion(rendering)oftheShaoxingOperaattractedalargeaudience.IwasonlyabletoreadtheEnglishversion(translation)ofGoethe'sworks.21/84makeshermorehumanoidthanevermakesherhavemorehumancharacteristicsthaneverHumanoidisanadjectiveformedbythenoun

humanandthesuffix

-oid

meaning"like",hencehumanlike.22/84trade-inallowancetheamountofmoneyashopdeductsfromthepriceofanewitemwhichacustomerbuyswhenheturnsintotheshopanolditem23/84super-industrialworldveryadvancedindustrialworldsuper-isaprefixmeaning"above,beyond,larger,greater,morepowerfulthanusual,etc."e.g.supermarket,superpower,superman,superhighway24/84Theoceanofman-madephysicalobjectsthatsurroundsusissetwithinalargeroceanofnaturalobjects.Therearemanymorenaturalobjectsthanman-madephysicalobjectsintheworld.25/84itisthetechnologicallyproducedenvironmentthatmattersfortheindividualitisthelifesurroundedbyman-madethingsthatisofimportancetopeoplematterv.beofimportancee.g.Doesitmatterwhetheryourparentsagreetoyourspendingtheweekendwithus?Asaseniorprofessor,whathewouldsaycertainlymattersalot.26/84thestaggeringvisionofacityscapetheunbelievableandstunningmentalpictureoftheviewofthecitystaggeringadj.unbelievable,shockinge.g.Desktopcomputersusedtocostastaggeringsumofmoney.27/84Man-madethingsenterintoandcolorhisconsciousness.Hismindisfilledwithandinfluencedbyartificialthings.consciousnessn.(one's)mindandthoughtse.g.Doubtsabouthistrustworthinessneverenteredmyconsciousness.Asaresultofseriousbraindamage,hewillneverbeabletorestorehisconsciousness.28/84Theirnumberisexpandingwithexplosiveforce,bothabsolutelyandrelativetothenaturalenvironment.Thenumberofman-madethingsisgrowingatanincrediblyfastspeed,whichisoutrageousbyitselfandoutofproportiontothephysicalsizeofournaturalenvironment.29/84Howdoyouunderstandthephrase"intimaterealitiesofhisexistence"inPara.4?

Thingsthatareclosestandmostimmediatetohislife.30/84anti-materialistsMaterialistsinthiscontextrefertothosewhohavegreatinterestinpersonalpossessionsandmaterialwealth.Anti-materialists,ontheotherhand,refertothosewhodespisematerialwealth.31/84deridev.laughatormakefunof(sth.consideredworthless),scoffat,jeerate.g.Theyderidedhisnotionthatmancanconquerspace.32/84psychologicalimpactastronginfluenceonone'swayofthinkingandbehavingimpactn.astronginfluencecausedbyanidea,event,etc.e.g.Informationtechnologyhasmadeagreatimpactonmodernlife.Theimpactofcomputersontheyoungergenerationisfargreaterthanwethink.33/84theforeshorteningofourrelationshipswiththingsacceleratesthepaceoflifetheattempttomakeourrelationshipswiththingstransientcausesourlifetomoveonfaster34/84Indisagreeingwiththeanti-materialists,whichtwofunctionsofthingsdoesTofflerspecify?Whichofthemdoesheemphasizethroughouttheessay?(Para.5)

Functionalutilityandpsychologicalimpact.Heemphasizesthelatter.35/84valuejudgmentsjudgmentsaboutthequalityofsth.,basedonopinionratherthanfactse.g.Peopleofdifferentculturalbackgroundshavedifferentvaluejudgments.Theyoungaremuchmorereadytoacceptnewvaluejudgmentsthantheold.36/84clutchlingeringlyandlovinglytothesamedollholdontothesameolddollfaithfully/devotedly/persistently/withdevotionandlovelingeringTheliteralmeaningofthiswordis"slowtodisappear,"e.g.alingeringillness,alingeringhope.Inthiscontext,lingeringlymeans"clingingtowithdevotionorclaspingwithlove".37/84itdisintegratesfromsheerageitfallsapartjustbecauseitissuchanolddollSheermeaning"utter,mere,neithermorenorlessthan"mustbeusedwithcare.e.g.Hewonthefirstprizebysheerluck/sheerchance.Whatshesaidwassheernonsense.It'sasheerwasteoftimetryingtoarguewithSteve.38/84betweensocietiesbasedonpermanence,andthenew,fast-formingsocietybasedontransience"Permanence"and"transience"areapairofantonyms,theformersignifies"long-lastingnessorforalongtime"andthelatterisjusttheopposite.Transientandtemporaryaresynonyms,buttheyaredifferentinthattemporarysignifies"lastingforashorttime"whiletransientmeans"existingonlyforthemoment."39/84KleenexsofttissuepaperusedasahandkerchiefwiththetrademarkKleenex40/84ruthlesslyeliminateddoneawaywith/thrownoutcompletelyThenormalmeaningof

ruthlessly

is"cruelly,mercilessly".e.g.Theinvaderskilledtheinnocentresidentsruthlessly.Inthiscontext,itmeans"firmlyandcompletely."Adecisionwasmaderuthlesslytocarrythroughthereform.eliminatev.getridoforremovecompletelyWehopetoeliminateilliteracythroughoutthe

countrybeforeverylong.TeamAwaseliminatedinthesecondroundofthecompetition.41/84Cornmuffinscomeinbakingtinspartiallyraisedcornmuffindoughkeptintinsreadyforbaking42/84TVdinnerafrozenpreparedmeal,usuallypackagedinadisposableservingtray,thatneedsonlytobeheatedbeforeserving43/84sheisinextricablyembeddedinathrow-awaycultureshebecomesapartofthethrow-awaysocietyfromwhichshecannotbreakawayinextricablyadv.inseparablyHighbirthrateandlowlifeexpectancyusedtobeinextricablylinkedinourcountry,butitisnolongersotoday.embedv.fixfirmlyanddeeplyinamassofsurrounding

substanceHeexertedsomuchstrengththathisknifegotembeddedinthechoppingblock.Asplinterwasembeddedinmyfinger.44/84runscountertothegrainofsocietiesorindividualssteepedinaheritageofpovertyconflictswiththebeliefandpracticeofsocietiesorpeoplesousedtopovertyruncountertothegraingoagainstthegrain:benotwhatonewouldnaturallyornormallydo,orwish(todo,know,etc.)45/84disposableproductsthingstobeusedonceandthenthrownaway,e.g.disposablepapercups,disposablebib,disposablenapkinsdisposableismadeupofdispose(of)andthesuffix-able,meaning"abletobegotridof/tobethrownaway".Nowadayspeopletendtousepapercupswhichtheycandisposeofafteroneuse.disposabilityhavingthequalityofbeingdisposedof46/841.WhatisthetopicsentenceofPara.8?Isitadequatelydevelopedbytheevidencethatfollowsintheparagraph?Thefirstsentence.Itisnotadequatelydevelopedbytheexamplegivenintheparagraph.WhiletheFrenchcanberegardedasanationdisposedtokeepingthings,evenoldthings,theyarenottypicallyanationsteepedinaheritageofpoverty.Therefore,thetopicsentenceisonlypartiallydeveloped.47/842.HowdoesTofflerimplythatthedevelopmentofthethrow-awaycultureisentailedby

industrialization?

ThelastsentenceofPara.4impliesthattheexpandingnumberofman-madeobjectsistypicalofahighlyindustrializedsociety.ThelastsentenceofPara.8indicatesthatthemoredevelopedthesociety,thelesstheresistancetothrow-awaythings.Examplesgivenintheessayareallrelatedtohighlyindustrializedcountries.48/84WewerealmostawedWewerealmostamazed/astonishedawev.fillwithafeelingofrespectandamazementmixedwithwonderorfearWewereawedbythespacemenontheTVscreen.49/84loandbeholdThisisanexpressionofsurpriseatsomethingunexpected.e.g.Iwastryinghardtolocateananthologyofmodernpoetryontheshelfwhen,loandbehold,itwasrightonmydeskunderapileofnotes.50/84Dentamaticthrow-awaytoothbrushApparently

Dentamatic

isatradenameusedbythemanufacturer,meaning"havingtodowiththeteeth".51/84therocketsthatpowerspacevehiclestherocketsthatsupplypowertospacecraftssothattheycanoperatepowersupplypowerto;providetheenergythatsomethingneedsinordertoworke.g.Ourheaterispoweredbygas,notbyelectricity.52/84crucialadj.ofdecidingimportance,extremelyimportante.g.Theevidenceheprovidedwascrucialtothesettlingofthedispute.53/84quasi-papern.imitationpaper,syntheticpaperquasiresembling;seeming;e.g.quasi-liberal(近乎自由主义),quasi-justice(近似公正),quasi-contract(准契约)54/8455/8456/8457/84sumptuousadj.grandandexpensive,e.g.sumptuousfurniture/meal/eveningdress58/84A-linedressadressorskirtsilhouettethatisnarroweratthetop,flaringgentlywidertowardthebottomtherebyresemblingtheletterA.Itworkswellonmostfiguretypesandisgoodfordisguisingbottom-heavyfigures.59/84"devil-may-carecellulosefiberandnylon"jaunty,stylishmaterialmadeofrayonandnylondevil-may-careadj.carelessandreckless;notcaringabouttheresultofone'sactione.g.Heassumesadevil-may-careattitudetowardshiswork.60/84asetofradicallyalteredvalueswithrespecttopropertyasetofcompletelychangedprinciplesandbeliefsinone'sviewaboutpropertyvaluesn.standardsorprinciples,ideasabouttheworthorimportanceofcertainqualities,especiallythosegenerallyacceptedbyaparticulargroupmoralvalueswithrespecttoconcerning(usedesp.tointroduceanewsubjectoronethathasbeenmentionedearlier)Withrespecttoyourapplicationforthejob,we'llsoonletyouknowourdecision.61/84WouldyoucharacterizeToffler'sessayassubjectiveandinterpretive,orobjectiveandfactual?Whydoyouthinkso?

Itisobjectiveandfactual.Nowhereintheessaycanwefindanyindicationoftheauthor'spersonalpointofviewonthephenomenon;heappearstobeunbiased,neitherfornoragainstthistrend.62/8463/841.InToffler'sviewtheman-thingrelationshipintoday'ssocietyisbecomingmoreandmoretransient,andthetrendcontinues.Giveatalktopresentyourviewonthisphenomenon,tryingtoexploreitscausesanditsimpact,bothmaterialandnon-material.SentencepatternsforyourreferenceIthasbecomeatrendthat

…Inmyopinion,

…Thereasonsareasfollows.First

…;second,

…64/842.Theoldandtheyounggenerallydisagreewhenitcomestowhattokeepandwhattothrowaway.Supposeyourgrandmahasaroomfulofstuffsincludingthedollsyouplayedwithwhenatoddler,theclothesyouhavelonggrownoutof,thecardboardbox

thefamily'sfirstTVsetcamein,andwhatnot.Nowyoutrytopersuadehertothrowallthesethingsawaytomakemoreroombutsheinsistsonkeepingthemall.Yourdialoguedevelopsintoaheatedargumentconcerningyourdifferentconceptsofvalue.SentencepatternsforyourreferenceAsyoucansee,

…Itisallverywellto

…,butcan’tyou

…Ifyouthrowaway

…,wecan

…65/8466/84Exposition:ComparisonDefinition

Comparisonprovesamosteffectivewayto

explainsomethingthatisunfamiliartothereaderintermsofsomethingthatisfamiliar.ComparisonandContrast

Inacomparativeparagraph,thewriterisfocusingonthesimilaritiesbetweentwoormoreitems,objectsorideasthatbelongtothesamecategory.Inasetofitemsbeingcompared,thereisusuallyanelementofcontrast,whereasthereisnormallysomepointofcomparisoninanycontrast.Thisissosimplybecauseexactlyidenticalitems,objectsorideasmakecomparisonmeaninglessand

evenimpossible.67/84Example

TheAmericansandtheBritishnotonlyspeakthesamelanguagebutalsosharealargenumberofsocialcustoms.Forexample,inbothAmericaandEnglandpeopleshakehandswhentheymeeteachotherforthefirsttime.Thisisoftentrueforwomenaswellasformen.Also,mostEnglishmenwillopenadoorforawomanoroffertheirseattoawoman,andsowillmostAmericans.NeithertheBritishnortheAmericansobjecttostandinginlineatthepostoffice,themovies,thebank,oranywhere.PromptnessisimportantbothinEnglandandinAmerica.Thatis,ifadinnerinvitationisforseveno'clock,thedinnerguesteitherarrivesclosetothattimeorcallsup

toexplainhisdelay.Ofcourse,thesetwopeoplesobserveothercustomsthataredifferent;theAmericanshave"coffeebreaks,"theBritishmoreoften"teabreaks,"forexample.Butthereismuchthattheyhaveincommon.68/84UsingComparison

Logically,intheactualwritingpractice,comparisonandcontrastare,tosomedegree,alwayscombined,asisexemplifiedintheaboveparagraph.Inwritingacomparison,themethodof

paireddevelopment(point-by-pointtechnique)

maybepreferable.Intheexampleparagraphabove,thewriterturnstoonepointfirstandthentheotheralternativelyasheproceedswithhiswriting.Thisisespeciallysuitedtoatopicthatcontainsstatisticsormanysmall

details.69/84WritingPattern

Thewriterofacomparativeparagraphmayfindthefollowingpatternoforganizationhelpful.Thispatternisusedincomparingtwothingsthatarebasicallyalikeinatleastoneaspect.

AandBarebasicallyalikeinthisaspect..Therearesomeminordifferences:

Aislikethis

…

Bislikethis

…

However,theyareessentiallythesameinthattheyboth

…70/84ModelParagraphParentsandtheirchildrenshareonecommonvalue.Theybotharematerialistic.Thereareminordifferences,ofcourse,inhowthismaterialismisexpressed.Parentsaremorelikelytobeconcernedaboutacquiringhouses,cars,andelegantclothing.Theirchildrenworrymoreaboutgettingmoneyforstereoequipment,newrecordsandcassettes,andcolortelevisions.Butthebasicdriveisallthesame.Theobsessiveconcernisforbuyingandacquiringthethingsoflife,forstoringupanddisplayingmaterialwealth.

71/841.Writeacomparativeparagraphbasedononeofthefollowingtopicssuggested.1.LifeintheCityandtheSuburbforTeenagers2.Parents'andChildren'sFavoritePastimes3.TelevisionandtheMovies4.MusicofthePastDecadeandofThisDecade72/84Hints

For“LifeintheCityandtheSuburbforTeenagers”,youcanfocusontheirdifferences,suchasconvenienceandbetteropportunitiesinthecityversusfreedomandfreshairinthesuburbs.For“Parents'andChildren'sFavoritePastimes”,youcanfocusontheirdifferences,suchastravelingandmeetingfriendsforparentsversusplayingcomputergamesforchildren.For

“TelevisionandtheMovies”,youcanfocusontheircommonnesssuchasformofentertainment.For“MusicofthePastDecadeandofThisDecade”,youcanfocusontheirdifferencesintermsofstyleorstarsinger.73/84Despitesomedifferences,writingdiaries(onapaperdiarybook)andwritingblogshavemuchincommon.Writeanessayofabout300wordsbymakingacomparisonofwritingdiariesandwritingblogs.

HintsFirst,youshoulddecidewhatissharedbybothformsofwriting,e.g.waysofexpressingyourfeelings,usingalmostthesamestyleoflanguage,etc.Thenthinkaboutwhatmakesthemdifferent,e.g.mainlykeepingittooneselffordiariesandshowingittoothersforcommentforblogs.Thefollowingisareferenceoutlinefortheessay.74/841.Whatisincommonforwritingdiariesandwritingblogs.2.However,therearesomedifferencesbetweenthetwo.(forreference)2.1Writingdiariesiswritingtooneselfforself-expressionorrevelation.2.2Writingblogsiswritingtoothersforcommentorinterest.3.Despitethedifferences,bothformsofwriting

…75/8476/841.ThereasonwhyBarbieappealssomuchtolittlegirlsisthatshelooksextremelylikearealpersoninreallife,whocanbedressedupinawayastheywish.2.Materialobjectsthatarenotmadebymanoutnumberedmaterialobjectsthataremadebyman.Butman-madeproductshavemoreandmoreformedanimportantandindispensableparttothelivesofpeople.3.Therehasbeenatremendousincreaseininmachine-produceditemsintermsoftheiractualamountaswellastheirphysicalsizeinproportiontoournaturalenvironment.4.Thisdifferencegiverisetoamostinterestingsceneofcontrastwheremodernthrow-away-orientedgirlsaredelightedinhavingtheirout-of-dateBarbiesreplacedforup-to-datemodels,whereastheirold-fashionedcounterparts,liketheirmothersandgrandmothers,hatetopartwiththeirdearlittledollsuntiltheyaretimewornandbroken/untiltheyfallapart.5.Thepracticewher