Literature Unit 4

Charles Dickens and Oliver Twist

A Tale of Two Cities 双城记 English writer and social critic He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian age. 19世纪英国批判现实主义小说家。狄更斯特别注意描写生活在英国社会底层的“小人物”的生活遭遇，深刻地反映了当时英国复杂的社会现实，为英国批判现实主义文学的开拓和发展做出了卓越的贡献。他的作品至今依然盛行，对英国文学发展起到了深远的影响。 Notable works: 　A Tale of Two Cities 双城记 Hard Times 艰难时世 Great Expectations 远大前程 David Copperfield 大卫 科波菲尔 Oliver Twist 雾都孤儿

Task 01 1. They were orphans and had nobody to support them. 2. Each boy was given only one bowl of gruel for supper and no more; far from enough. 3. The boys were so hungry that they could not bear it anymore. They decided that one of them must ask the master for more gruel. Oliver Twist was chosen by casting lots. 4. He never thought that any boy would dare to ask for more food than the given portion. Therefore, he was both surprised and angry on hearing Oliver’s request. 5. He was struck on the head by the master and pushed out of the room. And for a week Oliver remained a prisoner in the cellar.

Mark Twain and his tall tales

Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910),[1] better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn 《哈克贝里·芬历险记》 The Adventures of Tom Sawyer,1876》《汤姆·索亚历险记》 The Million Pound Note 《百万英磅》

Task 02 A.
1. F
2. F
3. T B. 1.d 2.b

Lewis and Alice

Task 03 A. Name: Lewis Carroll, Occupation: Lecturer in mathematics at Oxford University, Literary works: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, published in the year 1865, Through the Looking-Glass published in the year 1871 B. These stories are about a dream world in which Alice meets strange creatures and has interesting adventures.

Helen and the Trojan War

《荷马史诗》相传由古希腊盲诗人荷马创作的两部长篇史诗《伊利亚特》Iliad和《奥德赛》Odyssey 的统称。 洛伊城又名伊利昂（Ilium），故名《伊利亚特》。史诗以联军统帅阿伽门农和勇将阿克琉斯的争吵为楔入点，集中地描写了战争最后几十天发生的事件。联军围攻特洛伊城十年，一直未能攻克，军中的矛盾逐渐激化，阿喀琉斯愤恨统帅阿伽门农夺其女俘，拒绝再为联军出战，后来他的好友兼爱人（表兄弟与他的爱人，根据某些原始史料)）战死，为了替他报仇才重新出战。特洛伊王子赫克托尔与阿喀琉斯决斗，英勇战死。特洛伊国王普利阿莫斯哀求讨回赫克托尔的尸体，举行葬礼，《伊利亚特》的故事至此结束。 《奥德赛》叙述以撒卡（Ithaca）国王奥德修斯在攻陷特洛伊后归国途中十年漂泊的故事。

Task 04 Many years ago, the Greeks attacked the city of Troy. But the Trojans closed the gates of their city and stayed behind the walls, and the Greeks could not seize the city. Then the Greeks thought of a plan. They built a huge wooden horse so that some soldiers could hide inside it. They took the horse to the gate of Troy. In order to confuse their enemies, they even burnt their camps and pretended to sail away, though in fact they stopped at a place near Troy where the Trojans could not see them, and hid their ships. A Greek prisoner persuaded the Trojans to bring the horse into the city. The next night, all the Trojan soldiers fell asleep after heavy festive drinking. The Greek soldiers climbed out of the wooden horse and opened the city gates to let their army in. Thus the city of Troy was taken.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz 绿野仙踪

Task 05 A. 1.c 2.a B. 1. All the animals thought that he was the king of beasts. Actually he was a coward. He was afraid of human beings and other big animals. He roared only to scare them away and never really hurt them. 2.Dorothy and her dog wanted to get back to Kansas. The Scarecrow wanted some brains and the Tinman wanted a heart. The lion wanted to have courage.

Whitman

Task 06 A. 1. He lived during the American Civil War and he admired President Abraham Lincoln very much. 2. Whitman was the first American poet who wrote about true equality among all people. 3. “The sight is worse than any sight of battlefields or any collection of wounded, even the bloodiest.” 4. Whitman was the first important American poet to write about ordinary people, using ordinary language. B. 1. d 2. c

Robert Burns 罗伯特 彭斯

Task 07 1. a red, red rose that’s newly sprung in June and a melody that sweetly played in tune 2. He will love her till all the seas run dry, the rocks melt with the sun, and as long as the sands of life shall run. 3. Yes, he is going to leave her. But he will come back no matter how far it is. B. June and tune, I and dry, sun and run, while and mile

Script 1, O, my luve's like a red, red rose, 
That's newly sprung in June. 
O, my luve's like the melodie, 
That's sweetly play'd in tune. 
2.
As fair art thou, my bonie lass, 
So deep in luve am I, 
And I will luve thee still, my Dear, 
Till a' the seas gang dry. 
3.
Till a' the seas gang dry, my Dear, 
And the rocks melt wi' the sun! 
O I will luve thee still, my Dear, 
While the sands o' life shall run. 
4.
And fare thee weel, my only Luve, 
And fare thee weel a while! 
And I will come again, my Luve, 
Tho' it were ten thousand mile! O, my love is like a red, red rose,
That is newly sprung in June.
O, my love is like the melody,
That is sweetly played in tune.

As fair are you, my lovely lass,
So deep in love am I,
And I will love you still, my Dear,
Till all the seas go dry.

Till all the seas go dry, my Dear,
And the rocks melt with the sun!
O I will love you still, my Dear,
While the sands of life shall run.And fare you well, my only Love,
And fare you well a while!
And I will come again, my Love,
Although it were ten thousand mile!

Tall Tales

Task 08 1)Tall stories, that is, unlikely ones. 2)Because he wanted to be a member of a certain club. 3)He went there because he was told that a lion came there each evening to drink water. 4)Sixteen times. 5)He killed sixteen lions.

H. C. Anderson and the Little Mermaid

II. The Little Mermaid went to a witch. I. The Little mermaid fell in love with a young prince who lived on land. A.      Every night, she rose to the surface of the sea and waited for the prince to come to her. B.      But he never came. II.  The Little Mermaid went to a witch. A.      The witch changed her fish’s tail into a pair of human legs. B.      In return, she gave the witch her tongue. III. The Little Mermaid went to live in the prince’s palace. A.      She danced for him, though her feet hurt terribly. B.      The prince didn’t love her. IV. The prince fell in love with a young princess and they got married. A.      On the prince’s wedding night, the little Mermaid dived back into the sea. B.      She didn’t die though, and she became a spirit of the air and lived forever.

Aesop, fables and morals

Task 10 A. 1.b, 2.c, 3.b, 4.a, 5.a B. 1.e 2.b 3.a 4.d 5.c

Swift and Gulliver’s Travels 英（斯威夫特)《格列佛游记》

Task 11 I. How did Gulliver get to on the island? A. The ship in which he was traveling struck a rock and began to break up. B. The boat with which he tried to escape sank too. C. He was the only passenger who had survived. II. What did Gulliver find when he woke up the next morning? A. He could not move, for he was tied very firmly by a large number of fine ropes. B. When he tried to escape, about forty little men shot at him with their arrows, which hurt like needles. C. When he felt hungry and thirsty, the little men gave him all the bread, meat and wine they had. III. How was Gulliver removed to the city? He was carried on a cart which was seven feet by three feet, equipped with twenty-two wheels and pulled by fifteen hundred little horses. 

Aesop

Task 12 Aesop was a very clever man who lived in Greece thousands of years ago. He wrote many good fables. He was known to be fond of jokes. One day, as he was enjoying a walk, he met a traveler, who greeted him and said, “Kind man, can you tell me how soon I shall get to town?” “Go,” Aesop answered. “I know I must go,” said the traveler, “but I should like you to tell me how soon I shall get to town.” “Go,” Aesop said again angrily. “This man must be mad,” the traveler thought and went on. After he had gone some distance, Aesop shouted after him, “You will get to town in two hours.” The traveler turned round in astonishment. “Why didn’t you tell me that before?” he asked. “How could I have told you before?” answered Aesop. “I din not know how fast you could walk.”