bk6教师用书unit11

Unit 11

Beauty

Scott Russell Sanders

Structure of the Text

Part I

The author recalls his daughter Eva’s wedding and his feelings at that time. The last Paragraph of this section gives facts about the wedding, pointing out that it took place in Bloomington, Indiana on a sizzling Saturday in July.

Part ?? (Paras. 14-17)

The author compares “the surpassing joy” he felt at the wedding with the wonders of the universe and points out that the sensations he experiences at being in the presence of “the thrill of beauty” is the same in both cases.

1. A transition from the wedding to the wonders of the universe. (Para. 14)

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2. A more specific description of the wonders of the universe. (Para. 15)

3. An answer to the question of why such different things coul d provoke the same “hum of

delight”—beauty. (Paras. 16-17)

Part ??I (Paras. 18-21)

The author tries to answer one key question: Is beauty purely subjective, existing only “in the eyes of the beholder” or does beauty have an objective existence His answer is that beauty is a reflection of the natural order of things. It follows “the grain of the universe” and is also a part of ourselves.

Part IV (Paras. 22-27)

The author states that biology (or our genes) plays a role in our pursuit of beauty but it is not a determining factor.

Part V (Paras. 28-31)

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The author returns to a description of the wedding and his feeling of joy.

Part VI (Paras. 32-36)

In pursuing the laws of nature, people soon encounter beauty. Theories are beautiful because patterns in the universe are beautiful and the theories which reflect such patterns cannot but be beautiful.

Part VII (Paras. 37-39)

In order to perceive beauty, we need training. Training may take the form of paying attention, passing on wisdom from generation to generation. The author thinks there is a deep congruence between the structure of our minds and the structure of the universe.

Part VII? (Para. 40)

The author concludes that there is more to beauty than biology, than cultural convention. “Beauty reassure s us that we are exactly and wonderfully made for life on this glorious planet, in this magnificent universe. I find in that affinity a profound source of meaning and hope.”

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Detailed Study of the Text

1. In memory, I wait beside Eva in the vestibule of the church to play my part as father of the

bride. (Para. 1)

“In memory” is put here to indicate that the description that follows is a recollection.

Note: Since the author is recalling in September a wedding that took place in July, why is the present tense used here

The use of the present tense conveys vividness. This is called “the dramatic present” (or “the historical present”).

2. She hooks a hand on my elbow while three bridesmaids fuss over her, fixing the gauzy veil,

spreading the long ivory train of her gown... (Para. 1)

fuss: to bustle about or worry, esp. over trifles

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Question: Why is the word “ivory” used here Does it indicate the material

No. It describes the gown’s creamy white color.

3．... tucking into her bun a loose strand of hair, which glows the color of honey filled with sunlight. (Para. 1)

bun: hair worn in a roll or knot

tuck into her bun a loose strand of hair: to thrust dangling hair into the hair knot

Note: This is in inverted order. The normal order should be “tucking a l oose strand of hair into her bun”. The reason for the inversion is to place the “which” clause closer to the noun (“hair”) it modifies.

Question: What is the color of the hair

It is the yellow of honey and it shines in the sunlight.

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4. Clumsy in my rented patent leather shoes and stiff black tuxedo, I stand among these

gorgeous women like a crow among doves. (Para. 1)

Questions:

(1)How does the author feel in his formal dress

He feels uncomfortable and awkward.

(2)Did he buy the shoes

No, he rented them.

(3)Why does he rent them, do you think

He rarely wears such fancy shoes. He has no use for them, so he rents them.

(4)By “in stiff black tuxedo”, does the author mean the suit is very stiff or that he feels stiff

in such clothes

Both, because a tuxedo is worn on formal occasions and carefully pressed, while the shirt worn with it is starched. At the same time, he is not accustomed to such dress.

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Note: Two rhetorical devices are used in this statement: One is inversion with the adverbial element “clumsy” at the begi nning of the statement for emphasis; the other is the simile in which he compares himself to a crow among doves.

(5) A crow with black feathers among white doves presents a sharp contrast. The author is

in black, feels stiff and awkward, and may even appear quite out of place among these women dressed in silk and bright colors. The contrast is as sharp as the contrast between a crow and doves.

5. I realize they are gorgeous not because they carry bouquets or wear silk dresses, but

because the festival of marriage has slowed time down until any fool can see their glory.

(Para. 1)

bouquet: a bunch of cut flowers

Paraphrase: ... but because the festival of marriage has slowed time down until any fool can see their glory.

... but because in a wedding ceremony, time seems to pass slowly so that everybody, even a fool, can observe things clearly and see how splendid they are.

Question: What is implied in this statement

The implication is that we usually fail to observe the beauty around us. It takes a special occasion, such as a marriage ceremony, to grant us the necessary awareness.

Can the “festival of marriage” slow time down

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A festival cannot slow time down except psychologically; the phrase is used metaphorically.

It is people’s attentiveness that makes the m feel that time passes more slowly than usual.

6. I fear that I will stagger along beside my elegant daughter like a veteran wounded in

foreign wars. (Para. 4)

stagger: to move unsteadily as from a blow, fatigue, drunkenness; characterized by a loss of balance and failure to maintain a fixed course

Paraphrase: I am afraid that I will walk unsteadily beside my graceful daughter like an old, demobilized soldier wounded in wars fought overseas.

Question:What makes the author think of “a veteran wounded in foreign wars”

He might be thinking of patriotic parades in which war veterans march even though crippled by their wounds. If he were to appear that way, it would mar the elegance of the marriage ceremony.

7. Eva, meanwhile, seems blissfully confident, not only of being able to walk gracefully, as she

could do in her sleep, but of standing before this congregation and solemnly promising to share her life with Matthew Allen, the man who waits in thinly disguised turmoil at the far

end of the aisle. (Para. 5)

blissful: full of spiritual joy or happiness

…

congregation: a gathering of people, especially in a church

as she could do in her sleep: She could walk gracefully and effortlessly even if she were sleepwalking. (A sleepwalker is in no position to watch her steps.)

Question: How does Allen feel

Allen is very nervous but he tries to hide it, though not very successfully. That is to say, people can still see that he is nervous.

8. Poised on the dais, wearing a black ministerial robe and a white stole, is the good friend

whom Eva and I know best as our guide on canoe trips through the Boundary Waters. (Para.

5)

Note:This is an inverted sentence. Inversion is used here so that “friend”, the word the “whom” clause modifies, can be close to that clause. A lso the inversion helps surprise the reader at the shift from the wedding scene to “canoe trips”.

9. “There is one happy preacher”, Eva says. (Para. 6)

Note: “There”, in this case, is not being used together with “is” as in “there is”; instead, it is being used as an adverb.

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“One” is used here as an intensifying substitute for the indefinite article.

10. Love may last, I want to say, but do not, feeling unsure of my voice. (Para. 10)

Question: Does the father speak out Why not

No, because he is afraid that he may be unable to speak due to strong emotion.

1.... in her left hand she holds a Belgian lace handkerchief, also borrowed from Ruth...

(Para. 10)

Question: Eva is wearing a string of pearls (mentioned in Paragraph 9) and a Belgian lace handkerchief, both borrowed from her mother Why

The reason is a traditional custom connected with weddings: The bride must wear “something borrowed (and) something blue” to bring good fortune on her wedding day. The author may also want to link his daughter’s w edding with his own, thirty years before.

"

12. The organ strikes up Bach’s “Jesus, Joy of Man’s Desiring” for the bridesmaids entrance...

(Para. 11)

Translation: 管风琴奏起巴赫的“基督，人们期望的欢乐”，预示着伴娘即将进入大厅……

13. ... down the aisle they skim, those gorgeous women in midnight blue. (Para. 11)

Questions:

(1)What is the proper word order of this part of the sentence

It is an inversion. The normal word order would be “they skim down the aisle”.

(2)What is the role of “those gorgeous women in midnight blue”

It is in appositio n to “they”. Bridesmaids usually wear identical dresses chosen specially for the occasion. In this case their color is dark blue, to contrast becomingly with the bride’s white dress.

s kim: to move along swiftly and lightly over a surface

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14. Overawed by the crowd, the flower girls hang back until their mother nudges them

along... (Para. 11)

until their mother nudges them along: until their mother pushes them gently to start them walking

15. ... and then they dash and skip, carrying their fronds of flowers like spears. (Para. 11)

dash: to move swiftly

skip: to hop on alternate feet

Note:This description is unlikely to be literal, but is intended to show the children’s excitement.

1.But how can I walk slowly while my heart races (Para. 12)

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Paraphrase: But how can I walk slowly when I am in such an excited mood

2.I want events to pause so I can practice the step, so we can go canoeing once more in

the wilderness, so we can sit on a boulder by the sea and talk over life’s mysteries, so I can make up to my darling for anything she may have lacked in her girlhood. (Para. 12)

Note: This is a sentence using a parallel structure.

so I can

so we can

so we can

so I can

I want events to pause: This is the expression of a wish. The author wishes that time would

pause so that he could do a number of things.

Question: What does he want to do

)

He wants to go boating with his daughter in the wilderness; he wants to discuss the meaning of life with his daughter, sitting on a smooth rock by the sea; he wants to compensate his daughter for anything she may feel she has missed in her earlier life.

Paraphrase:

... so I can make up to my darling for anything she may have lacked in her girlhood.

My daughter might feel there was something she failed to experience as she was growing up.

If so, I wish I could make compensation to her now, before she is married.

18. … our cue to show ourselves. (Para. 12)

Paraphrase: The music signals us that it is time to make our entrance.

19. ... two hundred faces turn their lit eyes on us. (Para. 12)

Paraphrase: Two hundred people look back and fix their eyes, lit up with anticipation, on us.

“Face” is used here to stand for people. In rhetoric this is called metonymy, where a part stands for the whole.

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20. And so, lifting our feet in unison, we go. (Para. 12)

Question: What is the effect of this statement How is such an effect achieved

It is vivid and humorous. The effect is achieved through inversion and choice of words, such as “lifting”, “in unison”.

Paraphrase: And so we start moving down the aisle, in step and at the same pace.

21. The wedding took place in Bloomington, Indiana, hometown for Matthew as well as Eva,

on a sizzling Saturday in July. (Para. 13)

Question: When and where did the wedding take place

It took place in Bloomington, Indiana on an extremely hot Saturday in July. Both Matthew and Eva come from Bloomington.

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22. ... I can summon up hundreds of details from that radiant day, but on the day itself I was

aware only of a surpassing joy. (Para. 13)

summon (up): to call forth; to make an effort (to recall the details of that day)

Paraphrase: I can now recall many, many, small things about the wedding but at that time I was so overwhelmed with joy that I did not notice any details.

23. The glow of happiness had to cool before it would crystallize into memory. (Para. 13)

Paraphrase: With the passing of time, the author felt more detached from this happy event and could recall details more clearly; these details will then remain in his mind as memories.

Question:

(1)How is the idea presented

It is presented as truth.

(2) What is the rhetorical device used here

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Metaphors are used; the basic concept is the cooling of something formerly hot.

crystallize: to make a liquid take on a solid form

24. ... if we trace the universe back to its origins in the Big Bang, we find the multiplicity of

things fusing into greater and greater simplicity, until at the moment of creation itself there is only pure undifferentiated energy. (Para. 14)

creation: the birth of the universe and everything in it 创世

Translation: ……如果我们追溯宇宙的起源到原始大爆炸，我们就会发现众多的事物逐渐合并成简单的事物，而且越往前追溯，事物就变得越简单，最后到创世那一刻时，就只剩下那一片浑然一体的能量了。