Unit 1 Thinking for Yourself

1、Thinking For YourselfUnit 1 Thinking For YourselfWarm-up History is pushed ahead faster because there have lived men who think for themselves. In the following are shown some of them: Socrates (470B.C.-399B.C.) was the first of the great three of ancient GreeksSocrates, Plato, and Aristotlewho laid

2、the philosophical foundations of western culture. As Cicero said, “Socrates brought down philosophy from heaven to earth.” Living during the chaos of the Peloponnesian War, with its loosening of moral values, Socrates felt it was his duty to support ethical life by the advice to “know yourself” and

3、to teach people to think for themselves. In 399 B.C. Socrates was accused of impiety (不敬神灵), corruption of the young Athenians, neglect of the gods the city worshiped and practice of religious novelties. He was sentenced to death by drinking poison hemlock. Giordano Bruno (1548-1600) was an Italian

4、philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician whose theories paved the way for modern sciences. He rejected the traditional geocentric (earth-centered) astronomy and even went beyond Copernicus heliocentric (sun-centered) theory. He was sentenced to death and put at the stake by the Inquisition (宗教裁判所)

5、. Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) was an Italian philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician, who made great contributions to sciences of motion, astronomy and to the development of the scientific method. His discoveries with the telescope revolutionized astronomy. He accepted and supported Copernican he

6、liocentric system, which made angry Roman Catholic Church that brought an Inquisition charge (指控) against him. For his teaching of Copernicus theory, Galileo was arrested. Unlike many less famous prisoners, he was allowed to live under house arrest in his house outside of Florence（佛罗伦萨）till his deat

7、h in 1642.Text And Language PointsMajor thrust of Para. 2 Thinking for yourself has brought about progress in society, but it is something unpopular to do in society. People regard it with doubtfulness.Key sentence But in most circles, particularly in places that shape our livesfamilies, schools and

8、 most workplaces The idea behind this sentence is that our lives are significantly influenced by families or social institutions.Key words and phrasesshape v, to determine or direct the course of; n, outward form; the figure or outline of the body of a personshape the body mind character world manne

9、rsin good (bad) shape; take shapeMajor thrust of Para. 3 The author shows peoples dislike of thinking for yourself by citing a dialogue between the author and a high-rank official, the fourth-generation president of a large company.Key sentenceI later found out that he is the fourth-generation presi

10、dent of one of the largest oil companies. By the sentence the author means to show that it is hard for people to accept “thinking for yourself”, however high a social status they have and however well educated they are.Words and phrasesfind (realize, be aware) that; find out (discover) that; find (r

11、etrieve, get back) something; find out a thingIve looked everywhere for my pen and finally found it and it has stayed seated on my ear.After years spent with the pack of wolves, the scholar found out the secret of the social ladder there.The sudden wide spread emergence of the support of the environ

12、mental protection is the result that many Americans have found (out) that there is a limit to growth.Major thrust of Para. 4 People have ignored for a long time what they say in their company mission statement. It is a long time since you saw a vision statement encouraging “thinking for yourself”.Ke

13、y sentenceFor that matter, when was the last time somebody asked you, “What do you really think, really?” and then waited for you to answer at length. “For that matter” is used to emphasize that sth else is also true. Lets try to address the same matter in the following manner: Isnt it a very long t

14、ime ago since people were interested in asking you about your real thinking and in waiting for your answer in great detail?Words and phrasesdevelop sth into sth else; turn sth into sth else; build sth into sth elseWeve managed to develop our country into a second biggest economy in the world.The lea

15、dership that rule the northeastern neighboring country have turned it into a land of beggars.The staff members of the Eden Project have built a china clay pit into a world-known site with two indoor biomes. Major thrust of Para. 5 People have seldom been trained or taught to think for themselves. Th

16、ey show respect for those who do, but they recoil (withdraw) at the thought that those who think for themselves suffer greatly or even lose their lives.Words and phrases We use should frequently to indicate, besides obligation, speculation, for example: You should do it.He should be in at the moment

17、.An individual human existence should be like a small river. Hardly has anyone been encouragedis a sentence of inverted order. In English sentences should be put in the inverted order when they start withHardly, Never, Seldom, Scarcely, Only and etc.Only when they got free from the trouble, did they

18、 tell me what had occurred.Hardly do I think his version of the story is credible. Scarcely can we expect to hear this spoken in the daily use of the language.Never in my life have I met a more interesting man. bosses werent either ; And neither were theirs are special sentence constructions we will

19、 use when two negative clauses appear together, for example:Students of Class 1 wont take any more assignments this semester; students of Class 2 wont, either. (or Neither will students of Class 2) not unmitigated encouragement carries two negatives that may amount to an affirmative, an emphatic and

20、, of course, ironic way of saying that the authorities treatment of someone like Socrates who thinks for himself is not encouraging at all.Major thrust of Para. 6 The author relates to his personal experience of his math teacher having all the students thinking for themselves by writing on the paper

21、 the sum of a number.Words and phrases malign v. speak ill of, defame or slenderWe maligned him dreadfully when you come to think of it.You malign a generous person when you call him stingy.Major thrust of Para. 8 The author describes the whole class as at a loss at the request of the teacher: some

22、having their heads looking down and pencils starting up; some leaning forward to try to look at the paper of the boy before her.Words and phrasesgather v. come together; collect; think as a result Beads of sweat gathered on his forehead as the critical moment approached.It was quite some time before

23、 he was able to gather his strength and put himself on his feet again.We should spend a lot of time gathering information for the initiation of the new project.I gather that you want to leave. Major thrust of Para.s 9-12 In the several para.s the author tells the reader how not to act (the only one

24、not writing) and how not to think for himself by copying the answer from somebody else (So I wrote “7” on my paper) and, lastly, how the pain in the author is fully shown when the teacher tells everyone the truth.Words and phrases look in “look busy and confident” is a link verb （联系动词） and it can al

25、so be a notional verb (实义动词）, a very useful one in collocation with other words.look up (down, at, out, into, onas)look hungry (confident, irritated, pale, strong)Major thrust of Para. 19 In the last para. the author tells the reader that he took the message from the teacher that “thinking for yours

26、elf” is a valuable thing to do, although he and all his classmates could have done much better in class had the teacher encouraged them to think for themselves.Key sentence In “I was too scared around that teacher for the rest of my young life to think very well in her presence.” , the sentence is p

27、ut in “tooto” construction, by which the author tries to let the reader know that whenever the teacher was nearby, he wasnt able to think clearly. More examples are shown in the following：He is too old to do physical labor.He is a bit too immature to undertake such demanding task. A special “nottoo”

28、 construction to share with you:You cant come too often to see me.You cant be too careful in matters like this. Language in useA Rewrite the sentences using not think much of.1a I didnt think that lesson was very good.1b I didnt think much of that lesson.2a None of us likes the timetable.2b None of

29、us thinks much of the timetable.3a Im afraid Ive got strong doubts about what Ive written.3b I dont think much of what Ive written.4a Our professor is always criticizing this book.4b Our professor doesnt think much of this book.5a I dont like the theme of this weeks essay.5b I dont think much of thi

30、s weeks essay.6a I dont agree with Honey and Mumfords ideas about learning types.6b I dont think much of Honey and Mumfords ideas about learning types.B Rewrite the sentences using much less.1a I cant even say two words in Chinese, so I definitely cant speak the language.1b I cant even say two words

31、 in Chinese, much less speak the language. 2a Basic study skills are often not taught here, and certainly not practiced.2b Basic study skills are often not taught here, much less practiced.3a Nobody has even started the essay, let alone finished it.3b Nobody has even started the essay, much less fin

32、ished it.4a Hardly did anyone in the room hear what the lecturer was saying, and so of course they didnt understand him.4b Hardly did anyone in the room hear what the lecturer was saying, much less understood him.5a I havent got a PC in my room, so obviously I havent got an Internet connection.5b I

33、havent got a PC in my room, much less an Internet connection.6a I didnt dare to say anything after the lesson, let alone criticize what he said.6b I didnt dare to say anything after the lesson, much less criticize what he said.C Rewrite the sentences using subject-verb inversion.1a If I had known wh

34、at this weeks lecture was about, I wouldnt have gone.1b Had I known what this weeks lecture was about, I wouldnt have gone. 2a I would have corrected the work, if I had noticed the mistake.2b I would have corrected the work, had I noticed the mistake.3a If you had thought about this a little earlier

35、, you wouldnt be in trouble now.3b Had I thought about this a little earlier, you wouldnt be in trouble now.4a If he had shared his ideas with us, we would have made some progress.4b Had he shared his ideas with us, we would have made some progress.5a They would have improved the facilities, if they

36、 had received more money from the government.5b They would have improved the facilities, had they received more money from the government.D Complete the sentences about yourself using the inversion structure Had I + verb.1a I would have enjoyed myself more, _.1b I would have enjoyed myself more, had

37、 I stayed behind to listen to light music.2a _, I would have made different arrangements for the weekend.2b Had he told us what had happened, I would have made different arrangements for the weekend.3a I wouldnt have worked so hard _.3b I wouldnt have worked so hard, had I known it was important to

38、save up my money. 4a _, I would have gone to a different college.4b Had I done a better job in the National Higher Learning Entry Examinations, I would have gone to a different college.E Rewrite the sentences using the verbs in brackets.1a I have a memory of the teacher pointing at me and asking me to explain. (remember)1b I remember the teacher pointing at me and asking me to explain. 2a Its a good idea to