新視野大學(xué)英語(yǔ)第四冊(cè)部分課文原文

1、UNIT2 Charlie ChaplinHe was born in a poor area of South London. He wore his mothers old red stockings cut down forankle socks. His mother was temporarily declared mad.Dickens might have created Charlie Chaplinschildhood. But only Charlie Chaplin could have created the great comic character of the T

2、ramp, thelittle man in rags who gave his creator permanent fame.Other countriesFrance, Italy, Spain, even Japanhave provided more applause (and profit) whereChaplin is concerned than the land of his birth.Chaplin quit Britain for good in 1913 when he journeyedto America with a group of performers to

3、 do his comedy act on the stage, where talent scouts recruitedhim to work for Mack Sennett, the king of Hollywood comedy films.Sad to many English people in the 1920s and 1930s thought Chaplins Tramp a bit, well, crude.Certainly middle-class audiences did; the working-class audiences were more likel

4、y to clap for acharacter who revolted against using his wicked little cane to trip it up, or aiming the heel of hisboot for a well-placed kick at its broad rear. All the same, Chaplins comic beggar didnt seem all thatEnglish or even working-class.English tramps didnt sport tiny moustaches, huge pant

5、s or tail coats: European leaders and Italian waiterswore things like that. Then again, the Tramps quick eye for a pretty girl had a coarse way about it thatwas considered, well, not quite nice by English audiencesthats how foreigners behaved, wasnt it? Butfor over half of his screen career, Chaplin

6、 had no screen voice to confirm his British nationality.Indeed, it was a headache for Chaplin when he could no longer resist the talking movies and had tofind the right voice for his Tramp. He postponed that day as long as possible: In Modern Times in 1936,the first film in which he was heard as a s

7、inging waiter,he made up a nonsense language which soundedlike no known nationality. He later said he imagined the Tramp to be a college-educated gentleman whodcome down in the world. But if hed been able to speak with an educated accent in those early shortcomedies, its doubtful if he would have ac

8、hieved world fame. And the English would have been sure tofind it odd. No one was certain whether Chaplin did it on purpose but this helped to bring about hishuge success.He was an immensely talented man, determined to a degree unusual even in the ranks of Hollywoodstars. His huge fame gave him the

9、freedomand, more the moneyto be his own master.He already had the urge to explore and extend a talent he discovered in himself as he went along. It cantbe me. Is that possible? How extraordinary, is how he greeted the first sight of himself as the Tramp onthe screen.But that shock roused his imagina

10、tion. Chaplin didnt have his jokes written into a script in advance;he was the kind of comic who used his physical senses to invent his art as he went along. Lifeless objectsespecially helped Chaplin make contact with himself as an artist. He turned them into other kinds ofobjects. Thus, a broken al

11、arm clock in the movie The Pawnbroker became a sick patient undergoingsurgery; boots were boiled in his film The Gold Rush and their soles eaten with salt and pepper like primecuts of fish (the nails being removed like fish bones). This physical transformation, plus the skill withwhich he executed i

12、t again and again, is surely the secret of Chaplins great He also had a deep need to be and a corresponding fear of being betrayed. The two werehard to combine and sometimesas in his early the collision between them resulted indisaster. even this painfully-bought self-knowledge found its way into hi

13、s comic creations. The Trampnever loses his faith in the flower girl wholl be waiting to walk into the sunset with him; while the otherside of Chaplin makes Monsieur the French wife killer, into a symbol of hatred for women.Its a relief to know that life eventually gave Charlie Chaplin the stability

14、 and happiness it had earlierdenied him.In Oona ONeill Chaplin, he found a partner whose stability and affection spanned the 37 years agedifference between them, which had seemed so threatening, that when the official who was marryingthem in 1942 turned to the beautiful girl of 17 whod given notice

15、of their wedding date, he said, Andwhere is the young man? Chaplin, then 54, had cautiously waited outside. As Oona herself was thechild of a large family with its own problems, she was well prepared for the battle that Chaplins lifebecame as many unfounded rumors surrounded them both and, later on,

16、 she was the center of calm inthe quarrels that Chaplin sometimes sparked in his own large family of talented children.Chaplin died on Christmas Day 1977. A few months later, a couple of almost comic body thievesstole his body from the family burial chamber and held it for The police recovered it wi

17、th moreefficiency than Mack Sennetts clumsy Keystone Cops would have done, but one cant help feelingChaplin would have regarded this strange incident as a fitting memorialhis way of having the last laughon a world to which he had given so UNIT3 Longing for a New Welfare SystemA welfare client is sup

18、posed to cheat. Everybody expects it. Faced with sharing a dinner of raw pet foodwith the cat, many people in wheelchairs I know bleed the system for a few extra dollars. They tell thegovernment that they are getting two hundred dollars less than their real pension so they can get a littleextra welf

19、are Or, they tell the caseworker that the landlord raised the rent by a hundred dollars.I have opted to live a life of complete So instead, I go out and drum up some business anddraw cartoons.I even tell welfare how much I make! Oh, Im tempted to get paid under the table. But even if I yielded totha

20、t temptation, big magazines are not going to get involved in some sticky situation. They keep myrecords, and that information goes right into the governments computer. Very high-profile.As a welfare client Im expected to bow before the caseworker. Deep down, caseworkers know thatthey are being made

21、fools of by many of their clients, and they feel they are entitled to have clients bowto them as compensation. Im not being bitter. Most caseworkers begin as college-educated liberals withhigh ideals. But after a few years in a system that practically requires people to lie, they become like theone

22、I shall call Suzanne, a detective in shorts.Not long after Christmas last year, Suzanne came to inspect my apartment and saw some new posterspasted on the wall. Whered you get the money for those? she wanted to know.Friends and family.Well, youd better have a receipt for it, by God. have to report a

23、ny donations or gifts.This was my cue to beg. Instead, I talked back. I got a cigarette from somebody on the street theother Do I have to report that? Well, Im but I dont make the rules, Mr. Callahan.Suzanne tries to lecture me about repairs to my wheelchair, which is always breaking down becausewel

24、fare wont spend money maintaining it know, Mr. Callahan, Ive heard that you put a lotmore miles on that wheelchair than average.Of course I do. Im an active worker, not a vegetable. I live near downtown, so I can get around in awheelchair.I wonder what shed think if she suddenly broke her hip and ha

25、d to crawl to work.Government cuts in welfare have resulted in hunger and suffering for a lot of people, not just me. Butpeople with spinal cord injuries felt the cuts in a unique way: The government stopped taking care of ourchairs. Each time mine broke down, lost a screw, needed a new roller beari

26、ng, the brake wouldnt work,etc., and I called Suzanne, I had to endure a little lecture.Finally, shed say,Well, if I can find time today,Ill call the medical worker.She was supposed to notify the medical worker, who would certify that there was a problem. Then themedical worker called the wheelchair

27、 repair companies to get the cheapest bid. Then the medical workeralerted the main welfare office at the state capital. They considered the matter for days while I lay in bed,unable to move. Finally, if I was they called back and approved the repair.When welfare learned I was making money on my cart

28、oons, Suzanne started visiting every fortnightinstead of every two months. She looked into every corner in search of unreported appliances, or maids,or a roast pig in the oven, or a new helicopter parked out back. She never found anything, but there wasalways a thick pile of forms to fill out at the

29、 end of each visit, accounting for every There is no provision in the law for a gradual shift away from welfare. I am an independentbusinessman, slowly building up my market. Its impossible to jump off welfare and suddenly be makingtwo thousand dollars a month. But I would love to be able to pay for

30、 some of my living and not have togo through an embarrassing situation every time I need a spare part for my wheelchair.There needs to be a lawyer who can act as a champion for the rights of welfare clients, because thesystem so easily lends itself to abuse by the welfare givers as well as by the cl

31、ients. Welfare sent Suzanneto look around in my apartment the other day because the chemist said I was using a larger than usualamount of medical supplies. I was, indeed: The hole that has been surgically cut to drain urine hadchanged size and the connection to my urine bag was leaking.While she was

32、 taking notes, my phone rang and Suzanne answered it. The caller was a state senator,which scared Suzanne a little. Would I sit on the governors committee and try to do something about thethousands of welfare clients who, like me, could earn part or all of their own livings if they were allowedto do

33、 so, one step at a time?Hell, yes, I would! Someday people like me will thrive under a new system that will encourage them, notseek to convict them of cheating. They will be free to develop their talents without guilt or or justhold a good, steady job.UNIT4 Telecommunications RevolutionA transformat

34、ion is occurring that should greatly boost living standards in the developing world. Placesthat until recently were deaf and dumb are rapidly acquiring up-to-date telecommunications that will letthem promote both internal and foreign investment. It may take a decade for many countries in Asia,Latin

35、America, and Eastern Europe to improve transportation, power supplies, and other utilities. But asingle optical fiber with a diameter of less than half a millimete can carry more information than a largecable made of coppe wires. By installing optical fiber, digital switches, and the latest wireless

36、transmission systems, a parade of urban centers and industrial zones from Beijing to Budapest arestepping directly into the Information Age. A spiders web of digital and wireless communication linksisalready reaching most of Asia and parts of Eastern Europe.All these developing regions see advanced

37、communications as a way to leap over whole stages ofeconomic development. Widespread access to information technologies, for example, promises tocondense the time required to change from labor-intensive assembly work to industries that involveengineering, marketing, and design. Modern communications

38、 will give countries like China and Vietnama huge advantage over countries stuck with old technology.How fast these nations should push ahead is a matter of debate. Many experts think Vietnam is goingtoo far by requiring that all mobile phones be expensive digital models, when it is desperate for an

39、yphones, period. These countries lack experience in weighing costs and choosing between technologies,says one expert.Still, theres little dispute that communications will be a key factor separating the winners fromthelosers. Consider Russia. Because of its strong educational system in mathematics an

40、d science, it shouldthrive in the Information Age.The problem is its national phone system is a rusting antiqu that dates fromthe l930s. To lick this problem, Russia is starting to install optical fiber and has a strategic plan to pump$40 billion into various communications projects.But its economy

41、is stuck in recession and it barely hasthe money to even scratch the surface of the problem.Compare that with the mainland of China. Over the next decade, it plans to pour some $100 billioninto telecommunications equipment. In a Chinas backwardness is an advantage, because theexpansion occurs just a

42、s new technologies are becoming cheaper than copper wire systems. By the end of1995, each of Chinas provincial capitals except for Lhasa will have digital switches and high-capacityoptical fiber links. This means that major cities are getting the basic infrastructure to become major partsof the info

43、rmation allowing people to log on to the most advanced services available.Telecommunications is also a key to Shanghais dream of becoming a top financial center. To offerpeak performance in providing the electronic data and paperless trading global investors expect, Shanghaiplans telecommunications

44、networks as powerful as those in Manhattan.Meanwhile, Hungary also hopes to jump into the modern world. Currently, 700,000 Hungarians arewaiting for phones. To partially overcome the problem of funds and to speed the import of Western Hungary sold a 30% stake in its national phone company to two Wes

45、tern companies.Tofurther reduce the waiting list for phones, Hungary has leased rights to a Dutch-Scandinavian group ofcompanies to build and operate what it says will be one of the most advanced digital mobile phonesystems in the world.In fact, wireless is one of the most popular ways to get a phon

46、e system up fast indeveloping countries. Its cheaper to build radio towers than to string lines across mountain ridges, andbusinesses eager for reliable service are willing to accept a significantly higher price tag for a wirelesscallthe fee is typically two to four times as much as for calls made o

47、ver fixed lines.Wireless demand and usage have also exploded across the entire width and breadth of Latin America.For wireless phone service providers, nowhere is business better than in Latin Americahaving anoperation there is like having an endless pile of money at your disposal. BellSouth Corpora

48、tion, withoperations in four wireless markets, estimates its annual revenu per average customer at about $2,000 ascompared to $860 in the United States. Thats partly because Latin American customers talk two to fourtimes as long on the phone as people in North America.Thailand is also turning to wir

49、eless, as a way to allow Thais to make better use of all the time theyspend stuck in traffic. And it isnt that easy to call or fax from the office: The waiting list for phone lineshas from one to two million names on it. So mobile phones have become the rage among businesspeoplewho can remain in con

50、tact despite the traffic jams.Vietnam is making one of the boldest leaps. Despite a per person income of just $220 a year, all of the300,000 lines Vietnam plans to add annually will be optical fiber with digital switching, rather thancheaper systems that send electrons over copper wires. By going fo

51、r next-generation technology now,Vietnamese telecommunications officials say theyll be able to keep pace with anyone in Asia for decades.For countries that have lagged behind for so long, the temptation to move ahead in one jump is hard toresist.And despite the mistakes theyll make, theyll persistso

52、 that one day they can cruise alongsideAmericans and Western Europeans on the information UNIT5 Choose to Be Alone on PurposeHere we are, all by ourselves, all 22 million of us by recent count, alone in our rooms, some of usliking it that way and some of us not. Some of us divorced, some widowed, so

53、me never yet committed.Loneliness may be a sort of national disease here, and its more embarrassing for us to admit than anyother sin.On the other hand, to be alone on purpose, having rejected company rather than been cast out by it, is onecharacteristic of an American hero. The solitary hunter or e

54、xplorer needs no one as they venture outamong the deer and wolves to tame the great wild areas. Thoreau, alone in his cabin on the pond, his backdeliberately turned to the town. Now, thats character for you.Inspiration in solitude is a major commodity for poets and philosophers.Theyre all for it. Th

55、ey allspeak highly of themselves for seeking it out, at least for an hour or even two before they hurry home fortea.Consider Dorothy Wordsworth, for instance, helping her brother William put on his coat, finding hisnotebook and pencil for him, and waving as he sets forth into the early spring sunlig

56、ht to look at flowersall by himself. How graceful, how benign, is solitude, he wrote.No doubt about it, solitude is improved by being Look at Miltons daughters arranging his cushions and blankets before they silently creep away, so hecan create Then, rather than trouble to put it in his own handwrit

57、ing, he calls the girls to comeback and write it down while he dictates. may have noticed that most of these artistic types went outdoors to be alone. The indoors was fullof loved ones keeping the kettle warm till they came home.The American high priest of solitude was Thoreau. We admire him, not fo

58、r his self-reliance, butbecause he was all by himself out there at Walden Pond, and he wanted to beall alone in the woods.Actually, he lived a mile, or 20 minutes walk, from his nearest neighbor; half a mile from the railroad;three hundred yards from a busy road. He had company in and out of the hut

59、 all day, asking him how hecould possibly be so noble. Apparently the mainpoint of his nobility was that he had neither wife norservants, used his own axe to chop his own wood, and washed his own cups and saucers. I dont knowwho did his laundry; he doesnt say,but he certainly doesnt mention doing hi

60、s own, either. Listen to him:I never found the companion that was so companionable as solitude.Thoreau had his own self-importance for company.Perhaps theres a message here: The larger the ego,the less the need for other egos around. The more modest and humble we feel, the more we suffer fromsolitud