Unit 6 Women, Half the Sky Text A I’m Going to Buy the Brooklyn Bridge

b Pre-reading activities Pre-reading activities Pre-reading activities b Cultural notes Cultural notes Cultural notes b Text organization Text organization Text organization b Language points Language points Language points b Text B Text B Text B

Pre-Reading Activities: Read the text and then think over the following questions: b 1. Why can’t women be ignored? b 2. What price have women had to pay for their wisdom? b 3. What happens to them if you try to break their will? b 4. How women realized their dreams?

Cultural Note Feminism In the 1960s feminism (=the belief that women and men are equal in abilities and should have equal rights and opportunities) became the subject of intense debate when the women’s liberation movement encouraged women to reject their traditional supporting role and to demand equal status and equal rights with men in areas such as employment and pay.

b Since then the gender gap between the sexes has been reduced. However the battle between feminist and traditional views of a woman’s role continues. It is widely accepted by younger people that women should, if they wish, be allowed to develop their careers and not give develop their careers and not give up work when they have a family. up work when they have a family.

b Feminism has brought about many changes in the English language. Many words for job titles that included “man” have been replaced, for example, “police officer” is used instead of “policeman” and “chairperson” for “chairman”. “He” is now rarely used to refer to a person when the person could be either a man or a woman. The title “Ms” is used for women instead of “Miss” or “Mrs”, since it does not show whether a woman is married or not.

Text Organization

Language points: b 1. item n. b 1) a single piece of news b e.g. There is a fascinating news item in b Today’s China Daily. b 2) a single article or unit on a list or among a set b e.g. There are at least 50 items on her b Christmas shopping list.

b 2. draft n. a rough outline or version b e.g. My student ed the first draft of his thesis to me yesterday. b This is only the first draft of my speech, but what do you think of it?

b 3. undo v. b 1) (fml) disturb or upset greatly b e.g. My daughter’s idea about wealth undid me. b 2) untie, open b e.g. Would you please undo this knot for me?

b 4.hit/strike home b (of marks, etc.) have the intended effect b e.g. His criticism hit home. I was really selfish. b I could see from her expression that his comments had hit home.

b 5. incredible adj. unbelievable b e.g. It seemed incredible that people would still want to play soccer during a war. b There has been an incredible amount of interest in the information highway during the last few years.

b 6. consume v. b 1) eat or drink b e.g. Michael consumes nearly a pound of cheese per day. b 2) use up b e.g. The human body consumes energy in the form of carbohydrates.

b 7. care for b 1) take care of b e.g. The college students volunteered to care for the elderly in their community. b 2) like or love b e.g. She had two sons and didn’t care for either.

b 8. corporation n. b a large business or company b e.g. Several multi-national corporations are located in the new district of Pudong. b It’s easier for students graduating from well-known universities to get positions in large multinational corporations.

b 9.rarely adv. not happening often b e.g. Rarely have I seen a student who is so absorbed in history. b He very rarely wears a raincoat because he spends most of his time in a car. b It’s strange that the couple were rarely seen together.

b 10. decorate v. add (sth.) in order to make a thing more attractive to look at  e.g. They are going to decorate the classroom for Christmas. b The boy decorated his room with pictures of his favorate sports figures.

b 11. client n. b a person who buys goods or service b e.g. Our company is CITI Bank’s most valued client. b The company requires clients to pay substantial fees in advance.

b 12. lap n. b 1) the flat area formed by your thighs when you are sitting down b e.g. Sitting on her mother’s lap, the little girl was quiet. b 2) a part of long journey, between two points where you stop b e.g. The first lap of our trip is from New York City to Boston.

b 13. theory n. b a formal idea or set of ideas that is intended to explain sth.  e.g. Einstein formulated the theory of relativity in 1905.

b 14. harmony n. b 1) pleasant combination of different notes of music played at the same time b e.g. The kids are singing in harmony. b 2) a state or condition of agreement, cooperation, or peacefulness b e.g. Since they moved to this community they have lived in harmony with their neighbors.

b 15. by nature b as a result of inborn or inherent qualities; innately b e.g. He is by nature rather an aggressive person. b I’m not by nature a violent man, but these insults were more than I could bear.

b 16. get one’s act together (infml) b organize oneself and one’s activities so that one does things in an effective way b e.g. Steve will have to get his act together if he is going to pass the exam. He can’t just sit about doing nothing all day.

b 17. military adj. b relating to the armed forces of a country b e.g. The president has not ruled out the possibility of military action. b Your working day will need to be organized with military precision.

b 18. put pencil/pen to paper b start to write b e.g. The instant he put pencil to paper, his four-year-old son would sit beside him quietly. b When I put pencil to paper yesterday, vivid memories came flooding back of my first day in school.

b 19. at intervals b 1)sth. that happens at intervals happens occasionally b e.g. The interview continued, with Smith breaking off at intervals to consult his notes. b 2) used to state the precise gap in time or distance between things b e.g. There were red warning lights at intervals along the street.

b 20. set aside b put (time or money) away for a special purpose b e.g. I have a little money set aside for emergencies. b My husband set aside half an hour every morning to do sports.

b 21. race the clock b do sth. quickly in order to finish it in the available time b e.g. The deadline will be due tomorrow. We have to race the clock. b The semester is coming to an end. We have to race the clock every day to prepare for our final exams.

b 22. possess v. (fml) have or own b e.g. It is said that Michael possesses a fortune of more than two billion dollars. b The number of nations that possess nuclear weapons in on the rise.

b 23. bide one’s time b wait patiently for a chance b e.g. His political rivals are biding their time until after the election for a chance to attack his policies. b She bided her time, planning revenge.

b 24. charm b 1) v. attract; give pleasure to b e.g. I was charmed by her slim figure and soft voice. b 2) n. pleasing quality; attractiveness b e.g. “Snow-white and Seven Dwarves” has never lost its original charm.

b 25 take in (usu. passive) cheat b e.g. She was so smart that she couldn’t be taken in by her colleagues. b The students played a trick on their teacher. Unfortunately he was taken in completely.

b 26. despite adv. in spite of b e.g. Despite the fact that she fell midway through the race, she won. b They had a wonderful holiday, despite the bad weather. b Despite wanting to see him again, she refused to reply to his letters.

b 27. have sth./little/much/nothing to do with b have some/little/much/no connection with b e.g. I am not sure what her job is, but it has something to do with marketing. b His decision to move overseas has a lot to do with his financial problem.

b 28. achieve/have one’s heart’s desire (s) b get sb. / sth. you want very much b e.g. To achieve her heart’s desires, she had to work from morning to night. b When she agreed to marry him he felt he had achieved his heart’s desire.

b 29. a piece of cake b sth. that is very easy to do b e.g. Getting in tough with his overseas friends via is a piece of cake for the old man. b Shopping on line is a piece of cake for the five-year-old.

b 30. sophisticated adj. b 1) worldly-wise; showing knowledge of the world b e.g. Richard was still young, but he was sophisticated enough to know when people were not telling the truth. b 2) advanced or complicated b e.g. The missile has a sophisticated guidance system.

b 31. move on to b stop doing one thing and begin dealing with the next b e.g. We’re about to move on to the second stage of the project. b She ran this shop for ten years before deciding to move on to the real estate business.

b 32. investment (in) v. putting money in sth. b e.g. More and more people have the desire to buy a house as an investment. b Buying shares in blue-chip companies is always a sound investment. b Total foreign investment in America still constitutes only a small portion of US assets.

Text B b Beginning Anew

Words and Phrases b live for take/get/gain credit (for sth.) b party die of quit reaction b plead temporary renew soak up b at every opportunity weigh down b semester expensive stir plentiful b take back set out to do (sth.) b in control (of sth.) seek after

Comprehension Check b 1. We can infer that the writer used to b prefer ____. b a. Mondays to Tuesdays b b. Wednesdays to Tuesdays b c. Fridays to Saturdays b d. Mondays to Sundays

b 2. The writer did not go to college at the usual age because ____. b a. she was a young mother b b. she had to go to work to earn a living b c. she preferred to train as a journalist b d. she preferred having a good time to study

b 3. The word “snap” (para 8) here means ____. b a. a matter of great importance b b. a very tough job b c. a piece of cake b d. a heartbreaking thing

b 4. Looking back over her decision to leave work and return to college she ____. b a. has no regrets b b. realizes she should have saved more first b c. feels sorry she made no friends b d. wishes she hadn’t broken down under the pressure

b That’s the end. b b Thank you !