大学英语之基础英语综合教程第二册Unit 2 language work

Text I The Virtues of Growing Older Carol Siskin 1     Our society worships youth. Advertisements convince us to buy Grecian Formula and Oil of Olay so we can hide the gray in our hair.1 Middle-aged folks work out in gyms and jog down the street, trying to delay the effects of aging. 2     Wouldn’t any person over thirty gladly sign with the devil just to be young again?2 Isn’t aging an experience to be dreaded? Perhaps it is un-American to say so, but I believe the answer is “No.” Being young is often pleasant, but being older has distinct advantages. 3     When young, you are apt to be obsessed with your appearance.3 When my brother Dave and I were teens, we worked feverishly to perfect the bodies we had. Dave lifted weights, took megadoses of vitamins4, and drank a half-dozen milk shakes a day in order to turn his wiry adolescent frame into some muscular ideal. And as a teenager, I dieted constantly. No matter what I weighed, though, I was never satisfied with the way I looked. My legs were too heavy, my shoulders too broad, my waist too big. When Dave and I were young, we begged and pleaded for the “right” clothes. If our parents didn’t get them for us, we felt our world would fall apart.5 How could we go to school wearing loose-fitting blazers when everyone else would be wearing smartly tailored leather jackets? We would be considered freaks. I often wonder how my parents, and parents in general, manage to tolerate their children during the adolescent years. Now, however, Dave and I are beyond such adolescent agonies. My rounded figure seems fine, and I don’t deny myself a slice of pecan pie if I feel in the mood. Dave still works out, but he has actually become fond of his tall, lanky frame. The two of us enjoy wearing fashionable clothes, but we are no longer slaves to style6. And women, I’m embarrassed to admit, even more than men, have always seemed to be at the mercy of fashion7. Now my clothes are attractive yet easy to wear. We no longer feel anxious about what others will think. As long as we feel good about how we look, we are happy. 4     Being older is preferable to being younger in another way. Obviously, I still have important choices to make about my life, but I have already made many of the critical decisions that confront those just starting out.8 I chose the man I wanted to marry. I decided to have children. I elected to return to college to complete my education. But when you are young, major decisions await you at every turn. “What college should I attend? What career should I pursue? Should I have children?” These are just a few of the issues facing young people. It’s no wonder that, despite their carefree fa?ade, they are often confused, uncertain, and troubled by all the unknowns in their future. 5     But the greatest benefit of being forty is knowing who I am. The most unsettling aspect of youth is the uncertainty you feel about your values, goals, and dreams. Being young means wondering what is worth working for. Being young means feeling happy with yourself one day and wishing you were never born the next. It means trying on new selves by taking up with different crowds.9 It means resenting your parents and their way of life one minute and then feeling you will never be as good or as accomplished as they are. By way of contrast, forty is sanity. I have a surer self-identity now. I don’t laugh at jokes I don’t think funny. I can make a speech in front of a town meeting or complain in a store because I am no longer terrified that people will laugh at me; I am no longer anxious that everyone must like me. I no longer blame my parents for my every personality quirk or keep a running score of everything they did wrong raising me. Life has taught me that I, not they, am responsible for who I am. We are all human beings — neither saints nor devils. 6     Most Americans blindly accept the idea that newer is automatically better. But a human life contradicts this premise. There is a great deal of happiness to be found as we grow older. My own parents, now in their sixties, recently told me that they are happier now than they have ever been. They would not want to be my age. Did this surprise me? At first, yes. Then it gladdened me. Their contentment holds out great promise for me as I move into the next — perhaps even better— phase of my life.10  Paragraphs 1-2 Words and Expressions 1. aging n. the process of becoming old e.g. People want to figure out whether doing sports can influence aging in the body. Comparison: elderly a. a polite word meaning old e.g. The building has now been converted into a retirement home for the elderly. senior citizen a polite expression meaning old people 2. dread vt. feel great fear or anxiety about e.g. The little girl dreads sleeping alone. The staff in this company dread to think what will happen if the financial crisis comes. Derivation: dreadful a. Synonym: fear, frighten 3. distinct a. noticeable, unmistakable e.g. The footprints are quite distinct; they must be fresh. Collocation: distinct from sth. different in kind; separate e.g. Mozart’s style is quite distinct from Haydn’s. Astronomy, as distinct from astrology, is an exact science. 天文学是一门严谨的科学，与占星术完全不同。 Derivation: distinction n. distinctly ad. Sentences 1. Advertisements convince us to buy Grecian Formula and Oil of Olay so we can hide the gray in our hair. (Paragraph 1) Explanation: Grecian Formula and Oil of Olay: Grecian Formula is a popular men’s hair coloring product in the United States, first introduced in 1961 and is still made. One of its main features is that it works gradually so the color change is not noticeable as with dye products. Olay originated in South Africa as Oil of Olay. It was known as Oil of Olay until 1999 in South Africa and North America, and Oil of Ulay in the United Kingdom. It is a brand based around facial moisturizer and skin care products. It claims to have the effect of helping people to stay looking young. Translation: 广告使我们相信，只要购买了希腊处方染发剂和玉兰油就能使我们青春永驻。 3. gladly sign with the devil just to be young again (Paragraph 2) Explanation: Literally, the phrase means to sign a contract with the devil, so that the devil would help you become young again in exchange for your soul. In the text the phrase is metaphorically used to mean be willing to do anything (even bad) to become young again. Paragraph 3 Words and Expressions 4. be obsessed with have an unreasonably strong and continuous interest in particular things or persons e.g. The new president was obsessed with the thought of being watched. 新主席总觉得受人监视而心神不宁。 Derivation: obsession n. obsessive a. Translation: 她童年时一直害怕父母离异。 The fear of her parents’ divorce obsessed her throughout her childhood. Synonym: preoccupy, haunt 5. perfect vt. make sth. perfect e.g. Nowadays, more and more foreigners come to China to perfect their Chinese. Derivation: perfection n. perfectible a. Comparison: improve vt. cause sth. to become better refine vt. improve sth. by removing defects and attending to details 6. turn into change completely and become sth. else e.g. After years’ development, Shenzhen, which used to be a small village, has turned into an international metropolis. Synonym: change into, become Comparison: turn against sb. 与某人反目成仇 turn sth inside out 把里面翻作外面 turn (sb. / sth.) over （使某人/某物）翻身或翻转 7. diet vi. eat less in order to lose weight e.g. The doctor told the patient to diet and take some exercise. n. the type of food that a person regularly eats e.g. Exercise and a well-balanced diet keeps you fit and healthy. Collocation: a diet of sth. so much of sth. that you feel boring or unpleasant e.g. a constant diet of soap operas on TV 多得令人腻烦的电视连续剧 8. be satisfied with feel pleased because you have what you want or because things have happened in the way that you hoped e.g. The CEO of this company is not satisfied with the volume of business. Comparison: satisfactory a. a word for describing a result, situation, etc., that makes one feel satisfied because it is what one was hoping for e.g. The score of her TOFEL was satisfactory. satisfying a. a word for describing a job, activity, or experience that makes one satisfied because one enjoys doing it and results are often very good e.g. There’s something very satisfying about making explorations. Synonym: gratify, content 9. plead vi. make an urgent, emotional statement or request for sth. e.g. The little girl pleaded with her parents not to leave her in her uncle’s home. The criminal pleaded to see his wife once more. Comparison: beg vi. ask sb. very strongly in a way that makes one feel ashamed or makes other people lose respect for him e.g. The unfilial son begged mercy of his mother. Collocation: plead with sb. for sth. make repeated urgent requests to sb. for sth. 10. tolerate vt. be willing to accept sth. unpleasant or difficult, even though one does not like it or approve it e.g. As newcomers, they had to tolerate the awful weather and the tough living conditions. Comparison: stand vt. accept or be forced to accept an unpleasant situation endure vt. accept or be forced to accept an unpleasant situation for a long time bear vt. accept or be forced to accept an unpleasant situation that makes one angry, sad, or upset put up with accept or be forced to accept an annoying situation or unpleasant behavior as part of one’s daily life Derivation: tolerant a. toleration n. 11. beyond prep. outside the range or limit of e.g. Dealing with such a troublesome problem is beyond my capability. The radio is beyond repair. 这台收音机已经不能修理了。 Collocation: be beyond sb. be impossible for sb. to imagine, understand or calculate e.g. It’s beyond me why she wants to marry Burton. 我不明白她为什么想嫁给伯顿。 Antonym: within 12. agony n. extreme mental or physical pain or suffering e.g. The mother was in an agony of losing five sons in the war. He suffered agonies of remorse. 他饱受悔恨的煎熬。 Derivation: agonize v. agonizing a. agonizingly ad. Synonym: distress, anguish 13. deny oneself not do sth. that one enjoys doing or have sth. one desires to have, because he thinks that will be good for him e.g. He denied himself all small pleasures and luxuries in his effort to live a holy life. Comparison: do without be able to manage without sth. one really wants to have e.g. No one can do without drinking water for a long time. Translation: 为了省钱给女儿治病，他戒烟了。 In order to save money for his daughter’s medical treatment, he denied himself smoking. Activity： Fill in the blank in each sentence with a word taken from the box in its appropriate form. plead beyond obsess diet satisfy perfect deny oneself turn into agony tolerate   1. Mozart’s _______ with piano started when he was a baby. (obsession) 2. The shy girl in former days has _________ a pretty lady. (turned into) 3. The _______ toothache tortured me a whole night. (agonizing) 4. Seeing the interesting toys from the window, the little boy _____ with his mother for buying some back home. (pleaded)