unparallel英美概况名词解释、简答题

2021年1月20日发(作者：手雷英文)

名词解释

British Isles
(1)The British Isles lie northwest of Europe in the Atlantic Ocean. (2)They consist of two large
islands, Britain and Ireland and several small islands.

Highlanders
(1)They are the Scots who live in the mountains regions of the Highlands in Northern Scotland.
(2)They
are
a
proud,
independent
and
hardy
people
who
maintain
their
strong
cultural
identity.

(3)They mainly live by farming sheep in mountain areas or fishing on the coasts and islands.
Westminster Parliament
(1)It
refers
to
the
British Parliament.
(2)Westminster
Palace
in
London
was
built
between
1840
and 1860, and became the meeting place for Parliament.
al Eisteddfod
(1)Eisteddfod is the Welsh word for
“
sitting
”
. National Eisteddfod is the most famous festival of
music and verse in Wales.(2)it takes place each August and lasts for about a week.(3)the highlight
of
the
Eisteddfod
is
a
competition
for
the
best
epic
poem
about
Wales
written
and
read
in
Welsh.(4)the winner is crowed Bard, considered the supreme honor in Wales.
Protestant Reformation
(1)It was a religious reform movement that started in 1517, when the German monk Martin Luther
posted
for
debate
a
series
of
these
that
challenged
Roman
Catholic
teaching.
(2)those
who
separated
themselves
from
Catholic
Church
were
called
Protestants.(3)most
of
the
Protestants
stress
the
Bible
as
the
source
and
their
norm
of
teaching
instead
of
the
Pope
as
the
source
of
authority.
Ulster Unionists
(1)The Ulster Unionists refer to the ruling Protestant party in Northern Ireland.(2)They are also
called Loyalists.(3)They remain loyal to the UK.
Harold
The
Saxon
king
who
was
defeated
and
killed
at
the
Battle
of
Hastings
in
1066,
when
the
French-speaking Normans under William the Conqueror invaded England from France.
the Great
He was a fine Saxon king who successfully defeated the invading Danes.
Magna Carta
(1)The
Magna
Carta
(or
Great
Charter)
was
a
document
signed
in
1215
by
King
John
under
compulsion
by
the
powerful
barons.
(2)The
purpose
of
the
Charter
was
to
make
King
John
to
recognize the rights to the barons. (3)The Magna Carta is now in the British Museum, London.
Hundred Year
’
s War
(1)A war between England and France which lasted, on and off, for a hundred years from 1337 to
1453. (2)it was fought entirely in France, and the whole of France very nearly fell into English
hands in the famous battles of Crecy and Agincourt. (3)eventually, partly through the inspiration
of the brave girl Joan of Arc, and partly through the effective use of guns, the French drove the
English from their land for food.
Wars of the Roses
(1)It is the name given to the struggle for throne of England between two branches of the English
royal family(2)the houses of Lancaster, whose badge was a red rose, and York, whose badge was a
white rose.(3)the wars weakened both the nobility and the monarch.


Mary
(1)It was the nickname given to Mary I, Henry III
’
s elder daughter. (2)She was a devout Catholic,
and had so many Protestants burnt to death that she is remembered less by her official title Mary I
than by her nickname Bloody Mary. (3)She was succeeded by Elizabeth I.
Elizabeth Age
(1)It refers to the period during the reign of Elizabeth I in British history. (2)it was an age of real
literary achievement, especially that of Shakespeare(3)it was an age of adventure on the sea.
Gunpowder Plot
(1)It
refers
to
the
most
famous
of
a
number
of
Catholic
conspiracies
in
English
history
which
occurred in the reign of James I. (2)It was the plot to blow up the King and Parliament, in which a
man called Guy
Fawkes was caught in the cellars of the House of Commons in the very act of
preparing the explosives. (3)Guy Fawkes
’
night is still celebrated on November 5
th
each year.
15.
the Provisional IRA
(1)IRA,
the
Irish
Republican
Army,
is
a
nationalist
organization
dedicated
to
the
unification
of
Ireland.
(2)It
was
organized
in1919.
(3)The
IRA
refused
to
accept
a
separate
Northern
Ireland
under British rule. (4)In 1969 it split into an official majority, which disclaimed violence, and a
terrorist
pro-visional
wing,
whose
attacks
on
British
troops
in
Northern
Ire-land,
random
bombings, and others acts of terror in England kept tensions high.
peace people
(1)In the summer of 1976 Betty Williams, a protestant house-wife, was so horrified at the killing
of
two
children
by
a
running
IRA
car
that
she
decided
to
organize
the
women
of
Ulster,
both
protestant and Catholic, into a pressure group. (2)It is a pres-sure group working for peace and
reconciliation in Ireland. (3)Williams and her catholic partner, Corrigan, soon gathered thousands
of followers despite threats and intimidation from both sides. (4)They continued to pursue their

aims and at the end of1976 the two leaders were awarded the Nobel Prize for peace.
Norman conquest
(1)In AD1066, William of Normandy landed his army in England. (2)He defeated the Saxon king
Harold and the English soldiers, and became the king of England the same year. (3)French was
made the official language and the feudal sys-tem was firmly established in England.
English Civil War
(1)One of the most important events in the whole of British history. (2)It's a bitter power struggle
between
the
monarchy
and parliament.
(3)The
victory
of
the
parliament
led
to
the execution of
Charles I and the temporary overthrow of the monarchy. (4)The country became for more than 10
years a sort of republic founded by Oliver Cromwell.
Cromwell
(1)Oliver was the Roundhead leader during the English Civil War. (2)He defeated King Charles I
and condemned him to death. (3)The monarchy was overthrown, and the country became for more
than ten years a republic.

Glorious Revolution
(1)It refers to the event of 1688 in the English Revolution, when the Catholic king James II was
forced to flee with his baby son to France.(2)the throne was offered to his protestant daughter and
her husband Dutch king William. (3)The Bill of Rights was passed by parliament to restrict the
power of the monarchy. (4)This was the beginning of the Constitutional Monarchy in Britain.

English


(1)
also
called
Anglo-Saxon,
it
is
the
first
period
of
the
English
language
from
the
time
of
the
Anglo-Saxon invasion of Britain in AD 450 to the Norman Conquest in 1066. (2)old English used
both
Latin
and
Germanic
scripts.
(3)old
English
is
the
ancestor
of
Modern
English.
It
is
quite
different from today
’
s English.
Industrial Revolution
(1)It refers to the period in Britain history from 1750 to 1850.(2)Great changes took place with the
invention
of
the
steam
engine.
(3)More
factories
and
big
towns
were
built.
(4)It
made
Britain
stronger and richer, and at the same time it also created an entirely new social class, the industrial
workers.

Victorian Age
(1)It
refers
to
the
monarch
of
Britain
under
the
Great
Queen
Victoria
from
1837
to
1901,the
longest
reign
in
British
history.
(2)The
Victorian
age
was
an
age
of
national
development
and
national optimism. (3)The Victorians were very religious and conservative in family life. (4)It was
also, in its later stages, an age of imperialism.

Venerable Bede
(1)venerable Bede(673-735) was one of the best-known Old English scholar- monks. (2)he wrote
the

Ecclesiastical History of the English people, which is one of the main sources of information
about the history of Anglo-Saxon England.
English
(1)Middle English is the name of the English language in use from the Norman Conquest of 1066
to
the
introduction
of
the
printing
press
in
England
in
1476.
(2)Middle
English
is
the
blend
of
Anglo-Saxon, Latin and French. (3)The difference between old English and middle English lies
mainly in the abandonment of the system of grammatical inflexions
tutional Monarchy
(1)The Constitutional Monarchy is one in which the Monarch respects the Constitution. (2)in law,
the
monarch
is
head
of
the
executive,
an
integral
part
of
the
legislature;
head
of
the
judiciary;
commander in chief of all the armed forces and head of the Church of England. In practice, the
real power of monarchy has gradually been reduced and today the Queen acts solely on the advice
of
her
ministers.
(3)In
the
Glorious
Revolution,
William
and
Mary
became
the
joint
rulers
of
Britain, and the Constitutional Monarchy began. (4)The Bill of Rights which was passed in 1689
restricted the power of the monarchy.

British Constitution
(1)It's
unwritten.
(2)Its
components
include
Acts
of
Parliament,
the
Prerogative
of
the
Crown,
Conventions of the Constitution, Common Law and Parliamentary Privilege. (3)It's more flexible
than the written ones in other countries.

English
(1)Modern English
is
the
English
language
since 1476.
(2)With
the
introduction of
the
printing
press in1476 spelling and written forms of the English language began to become standardized.
(3)The changes from middle English to modern English involve mainly pronunciation, vocabulary
and spelling.
Bill of Rights in 1689
(1)It was the bill passed by the parliament in 1689 after the Glorious Revolution. (2)It laid down a
number of things that future Monarchs could not do. (3)It marked a sharp decline in powers of the
Monarch. (4)It marked the beginning of the British Constitutional Monarchy.



h Parliament
(1)It includes three elements: the Crown, the House of Lords and the House of Commons. (2)It's
the supreme law making authority in Britain. (3)The real center of parliamentary power is in the
House of Commons. (4)Other functions include: to control and criticize the executive government;
to control the raising and the spending of money.

rd English
(1)The form of English as written and spoken by educated speakers of language .(2)The style of
speech of BBC announcers is usually recognized as Standard English.(3)Standard English is also
the most appropriate variety of English for a foreigner learning English to copy.
House of Lords
(1)It's
an
important
part
of
parliament.
(2)Its
members
are
peers,
most
of
whom
are
hereditary.
(3)Its
powers
have
been
severely
reduced
by
the
Parliament
Acts
of
1911
and 1949.
(4)It
must
pass all financial legislation sent to it from the House of Commons, and can delay other Bills for
only one year. (5)It has a special judicial function.

House of Commons
(1)It consists of 635 elected Members of Parliament. (2)MPs have a number of privileges, eg. the
freedom
of
speech
in
Parliament.
(3)It's
by
far
the
most
powerful
and
important
element
in
Parliament, therefore plays the key role in the activities of Parliament as a whole.

n's Industrial Revolution
(1)The
Industrial
Revolution
took
place
first
in
Britain
in
the
18th
century.
(2)The
Industrial
Revolution
owed
a
great
deal
to
the
invention
of
the
steam
engine.
Factories
came
into
being
because
they
brought
about
more
benefits
to
the
owners.
(3)The
Revolution
brought
many
economic advantages to Britain and made Britain an exceedingly rich and powerful nation, but it
also
caused
some
social
problems.
(4)The
successes
and
achievements
of
industrialization
were
founded on the exploitation of working people.

ianity
(1)Christianity refers to all doctrines and religious groups based on the teaching of Jesus Christ. It
was founded in the 1st century in Palestine. (2)Jesus Christ is accepted by Christians as the son of
God,
and
his
teaching
is
contained
in
the
Bible,
the
holy
book
of
Christianity.
(3)In
Europe,
Christianity
is
divided
into three
major
groups,
Roman
Catholic Church, Protestant Church
and
Orthodox Eastern Church.

Christ
(1)Jesus Christ was a Jew who lived in Palestine 2000 years ago and is accepted by Christians as
the son of God. (2)He was born to a virgin named Mary. (3)His teaching was based on love: love
of
God,
and
love
of our
neighbor.
(4)His
teaching
and accounts
of
his
life
are
contained
in
the
New Testament of the Bible.

BBC and its program
(1)It does all sound broadcasting, in which news reporting is excellent. (2)It also puts out two TV
programs. (3)For sound broadcasting, it has four channels. (4)There's no AD on any BBC program.
(5)It is financed by payments which must be made by all people who possess TV receiving sets.
(6)It has a Board of Governors, appointed by the Government.

38. New England
(1)New
England
refers
to
the
north-eastern
six
states:
Maine,
New
Hampshire,
Vermont,
Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, an area running from the Canadian shore to New


York.
(2)This
area
resembles
old
England
in
many
ways.
(3)Some
of
the
earliest
settlement
in
American
history
was
in
this
area.
(4)In
general,
this
part
of
the
country
is
small-scale,
long-established and urban.
39. New York City
(1)It is the commercial capital of the United States. (2)It
’
s at the southernmost tip of the New York
State. (3)It
’
s composed of five boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Richmond and Queen
’
s,
with Manhattan Island as its center. (4)It is well- known for such places as Wall Street, the Empire
State Building, Harlem and Central Park.
40. Manhattan Island
(1)It
’
s at south-east part of New York City. (2)It is the centre of the City and includes things that
are
famous
to
the
world:
Wall
Street,
Fifth
Avenue,
Broadway,
the
Empire
State
Building,
Rockefeller Centre, the United Nations Building, Central Park, Harlem and so on.
41. the Appalachian mountains
(1)The range of the Appalachian mountains runs behind and through the eastern states, beginning
far south in Georgia and continuing northwards to Vermont and Canada. (2)Sections of the range
have different names, but rounded hills and forests are the main feature. (3)The mountains were a
barrier to early westward movement in American history.
42. the Middle West
(1)It describes the north-eastern part of the central plain, or the north-eastern quarter of the United
States
except
for
the
states
close
to
the
Atlantic.
(2)In
terms
of
political
geography,
it
refers
to
these
states:
Illinois,
Michigan,
Indiana,
Wisconsin
and
Ohio
and
so
on.
(3)First
developed
in
farming,
these
states
include
huge,
sparsely-populated
open
spaces.
(4)Chicago
and
Detroit
are
two of the big industrial cities in this area.
43. the search for the California dream
(1)California is blessed with attractive scenery and mild climate. (2)It has the fertile land for the
growing of oranges and grapes. (3)And more important still are the electronics industry, aeroplane
factories,
defence
plants
of
many
kinds,
and
a
whole
new
industrial
complex
in
this
area.
(4)Therefore, California is regarded as the promised land by many people to fulfill their dreams.
44. Hollywood
(1)Hollywood, a place famous for its film industry, is in California. (2)It is an important institution
for conveying images and myths about American to every corner of the world.
45. the Pilgrims
(1)In England, there had been a group of people called Puritans who had broken away from the
Church
of
England
and
formed
their
own
churches.
Later
they
fled
to
Holland
to
escape
the
persecution
in
their
native
land.
(2)Several
years
passed
when
they
were
again
threatened
by
religious
suppression,
they
thought of
moving,
and
this time
to
America.
(3)They
began
to
call
themselves Pilgrims because of their wanderings in search of religious freedom. (4)In 1620, they
crossed the Atlantic in the ship Mayflower and settled at Plymouth, Massachusetts.
46. the Second Continental Congress
(1)After the first shot of the American War of Independence was fired at Lexington on April 19,
1775, the Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia in May 1775. (2)It began to assume
the
functions
of
a
national
government.
It
founded
a
Continental
Army
and
Navy
under
the
command of George Washington, and began to print paper money and opened diplomatic relations
with
foreign
powers.
It
adopted
on
July
4,
1776
the
Declaration
of
Independence
which
was


drafted by Thomas Jefferson.
47. the American War of Independence
(1)After
British
parliament
passed
the
Intolerable
Acts,
tensions
were
again
created
between
colonists and British government. (2)On April 19, 1775, the first shot was fired at Lexington and
American War of Independence began. (3) In May 1775, the Second Continental Congress met in
Philadelphia and began to assume the functions of a national government. It founded a Continental
Army and Navy under the command of George Washington and declared independence on July 4,
1776. (4)In 1781, British General Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown, Virginia and soon British
government
asked
for
peace.
(5)The
Treaty
of
Paris,
signed
in
September
1783,recognized
the
independence of the United States.
Bill of Rights
(1)In order to insure individual liberties, ten amendments
—
the Bill of Rights were added to the
Constitution in 1791. (2)It guaranteed freedom of religion, a free press, free speech, the right of
citizens to bear arms, protection against illegal house searches, the right to a fair trial by jury and
protection against
“
cruel and unusual punishments.
”

49. George Washington
(1)He was a Virginia planter and veteran of the French and Indian War. (2)In 1775, he became the
commander of the Continental Army in the American War of the Independence. (3)He was one of
the
three
delegates
who
drafted
the
Constitution
in
the
Constitution
Convention
in
1787.
(4)He
was the first president of the United States and governed in a Federalist style. He put down the
“
Whiskey Rebellion
”
during his administration.
50. Uncle Tom
’
s Cabin
(1)It
was
a
sentimental
but
powerful
antislavery
novel
written
by
Harrier
Beecher
Stowe
of
Massachusetts. (2)It converted many readers to the abolitionist cause.
51. the American Civil War
(1)In
19
th
-century
America,
the
issue
of
slavery
had
become
the
central
point
of
contention
in
politics, economics and cultural life. (2)After Lincoln won the election in 1861, 11 Southern and
border
states
seceded
from
the
Union
and
formed
the
Confederate
States
of
America.
The
American Civil War began. (3)Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863.
Southern General Lee surrendered to General Grant in April 1865 and all oher Confederate forces
soon
surrendered.
Lincoln
was
assassinated
on
April
14,
1865.
(4)The
Civil
War
was
the
most
traumatic
episode
in
American
history.
It
devastated
the
South
and
subjected
that
region
to
military
occupation.
American
lost
more
soldiers
in
this
war
than
in
any
other.
(5)The
war
resolved two fundamental questions. It put an end to slavery, which was legally abolished by the
13
th
Amendment to the Constitution in 1865. It also assured the integrity of the integrity of the
United States as an indivisible nation.
52. Abraham Lincoln
(1)As the Republican candidate, he won the election and became president in soon the
Civil War began. (2)He issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, which granted
freedom to slaves in areas still controlled by the Confederacy. (3)Right after the North won the
War in 1865, he was assassinated by a sympathizer with the Southern cause.
53. cowboys
(1)During the Westward Movement, cowboys, or hired horsemen managed cattle on the plains of
Texas and other western states. (2)Most of them were former Southern soldiers or former slavers.


(3)They were American
’
s proletarian heroes, and were not so violent as movies later represented
them to be. (4)They had become most celebrated and romanticized figures in American culture.
54. the Red Scare
(1)The results of WWI had disillusioned many Americans. They became suspicious of and hostile
towards
foreigners.
In
1919,
a
series
of
terrorist
bombings
started
the
Red
Scare.
(2)Under
Attorney General Palmer, raids of political meetings were conducted, arrests were made and many
foreign-born
political
radicals
were
deported.
In
1921,
two
Italian
anarchists
were
executed
as
murderers on very dubious evidence. (3)In 1921, 1924 and 1929, Congress enacted and tightened
immigration limits favoring only immigrants from Anglo-Saxon and Nordic stock.
55. characteristics of the 1920s
(1)The 1920s were an extraordinary and contradictory decade: a) It was the age of Prohibition but
illegal bars existed everywhere. b) The Ku Klux Klan revived and terrorized blacks but there was
at the same time the Harlem Renaissance. c) There was corruption in government administration
but Charles Lindbergh reaffirmed the importance of individual heroism. (2)The 1920s were golden
years
of
prosperity
of
business.
Henry
Ford
was
one
of
the
most
admired
men
of
the
decade.
(3)Fatal flaws existed in the prosperity of the 1920s. Farmers suffered and workers did not have
enough
purchasing
power.
(4)At
the
end
of
the
decade,
Americans
confronted
the
Great
Depression.
56. Franklin D. Roosevelt
(1)A former Democrat governor of New York state, he was elected president in 1932. (2)Within
the
historic
“
Hundred
Days
”
,
he
launched
the
New
Deal
program
to
deal
with
the
Depression.
(3)He explained his policies to the public in a series of
“
fireside chats
”
. (4)Though the New Deal
did
not
end
the
Depression,
many
Americans
considered
him
as
one
of
the
most
respected
presidents in American history.
57. government at various levels
(1)The Federal government has three branches
—
executive (the President), legislature (Congress)
and
judicial.
The
three
elements
are
checked
and
balanced
by
one
another.
(2)In
each
state
government, power is also divided between three agencies
—
legislature (usually of two houses,
elected
for
fixed
terms),
executive
(the
governor)
and
the
judges
of
the
State
Supreme
Court.
(3)Each state is divided into counties, which have their own powers. (4)Within the countries the
towns
have
their
own
local government,
mainly
as
cities.
These
city
governments,
with
elected
mayor, council and judges, reproduce the state pattern on a smaller scale.
58. the role of the US Congress
(1)It
is
the
law-making
body.
(2)No
federal
taxes
can
be
collected
or
money
spent
without
the
approval of both Houses. (3)If the President refuses to sign the laws, his veto can be over- ridden
by
a
two-thirds
majority
in
both
Houses.
(4)All
treaties
and
all
the
President
’
s
appointments
to
high offices, are subject to the Senate
’
s approval.
59. federalism
(1)The states give up their rights to conduct separate relations with each other and with outside
world, but each state kept the basic powers of government for itself within its own territory. (2The
Federal
government
should
have
only
the
powers
which
are
necessary
for
providing
for
the
matters which are of common interest to them all.
60. Montesquieu
(1)He
was
an
18
th

century
French
philosopher.
(2)He
claimed
that
the
best
safeguard
against
a