英美概况部分大题及名词解释(个人整理)

Terms (American Part)

The legislative branch

The Congress, known as the legislative branch, is the law-making body of the United States.

The U. S. Congress includes two chambers: the Senate and the House of Representatives.

The Boston Tea Party

The East India Company, a vital source of British wealth, was allowed to export tea to the

colonies

without

paying

any

import

duty.

Thus

the

company

could

easily

undersell

the

independent tea merchants who had to pay import duties, which caused colonial tea merchants

’

opposition. They declared

“

no taxation without representation

”

. On the night of December 16,

1773, a band of men, disguised as Indians and led by Samual Adams, boarded three British ships

lying

at

an

anchor

in

Boston

harbor

and

dumped

the

tea

cargo.

This

late

。

r

became

known

as

“

Boston Tea Party

”

, which finally led to the outbreak of the American Independence War.

The first continental congress

After the incident of the Boston Tea party, relations between England and colonies continued

to deteriorate. In the face of such a grave situation ,colonial delegates from 12 colonies (Georgia

did not send its delegates) met in Philadelphia on September 5 ,1774,

“

to consult upon the present

unhappy state of the colonies

”

. This meeting has been known as the First Continental Congress.

After heated debate and repeated compromise, the First Continental Congress drew up a formal

document known as Declaration of Rights and Grievances.

The Emancipation Proclamation

The

changed

military

situation

prompted

Lincoln

to

take

his

decisive

step.

He

had

been

considering the advisability

of liberating the black slaves in the South. After the Federal troops

won big victories, Lincoln believed the time had come and on September 22, 1862, he issued the

famous

Emancipation

Proclamation

which

would

become

effective

on

January

1,

1863.

It

provided that all the black slaves in the rebelling states were freed and they were welcome to join

the armed forces of the union. As a result, abolition of slavery became an objective of the war in

addition to the declared objective of saving the Union.

The Cabinet in the United State

The cabinet is a nucleus of leadership under the President in the administrative branch. It is

made

up

of

heads

of

the

major

departments

and

other

persons

chosen

by

the

President.

They

advise the President on important problems concerning the administration of national affairs.

A sheriff

Sheriff is the chief law enforcement officer of a county. His duties, limited to areas outside

cities in the county, include collecting taxes, enforcing orders, maintaining the jail, serving legal

papers,

and

patrolling

on

country

highways.

Most

sheriffs

are

elected by

local

voters.

They

are

usually paid through fees for each job performed rather than on a regular salary basis.

Terms (The Britain Part)

The Hundred Years

’

Wars

It referred to the intermittent war between France and England that last from 1337 to 1453.

The

causes

were

partly

territorial

and

partly

economic.

When

Edward

III

claimed

the

French

Crown but the French refused to recognize, the war broke out. At first the English were successful,

but in the end, they were defeated and lost almost all their possessions in France. The expelling of

the English was a blessing for both countries.

The Black Death

?

Black Death

swept

through

England

in

the

summer

of

1348.

It

killed

between

1/2

and 1/3 of the population of England.

?

As a result of the plague, much land was left untended and there was a terrible shortage of

labor.

?

Villeins struggled for freedom, but the parliament passed

“

statutes of laborers

”, which

provided ideological preparation for the labor movement.

The War of the roses

1. Rival groups:

the House of Lancaster & the House of York

2. The name of the war:

The Lancastrians wore the badge of the red rose and the Yorkists wore the badge of the

white rose, so the war got such a name.

3. Nature of the war:

Feudal civil war, for power and wealth, for the possession of the Crown

4. Reason:

In the Hundred Years

’

War, the loss was great. So the war-like nobles wanted to recoup

for the loss, thus they all wanted to get power. The English nobles began to be divided and began

to

support

different

groups,

in

such

a

situation,

the

war

broke

out.

At

that

time,

the

House

of

Lancaster was in power and Henry VI(1422-1461) was the king and the House of York wanted to

displace the House of Lancaster.

5. Result:

The Yorkist got complete victory, but a third House, the House of Tudor got the power.

Henry VII became the king. So a new important Dynasty began in English history.

6. Consequence

Although the Wars of the Roses were waged intermittently for 30 years, ordinary people were

little affected. From these wars feudalism received its death blow. The great medieval nobility was

much weakened and discredited. The king

’

s power now became supreme. This war shook off

much of the feudal burden, so it paved way for the development of capitalism.

Elizabeth I

One

of

the

greatest

monarchs

in

British

history.

She

reigned

England,

Wales

and

Ireland

for

45

years

and

remained

single.

Her

reign

was

a

time

of

confident

English

nationalism and of great achievements in literature and other arts, in exploration and in

battle.

1. Her attitude toward Catholic Church and Protestants

a.

Finished establishing the Church of England

b.

Defender of faith in England

c.

Common Prayer Book and the English selection of the Book

d.

Appointed Clergyman and bishops

2. Her policy with Spain

a. She encouraged English adventurers to make explorations in America and Africa

1.

Explorers: Drale; Raleigh; Hawkins

2.

East Indian Company

b.

A war with Armada

—

the Invincible Fleet

c.

Elizabeth was the foundation layer of the English Empire

The jury

A legal system established in England since king Henry II. The jury consists of ordinary,

independent citizens summoned by the court: 12 persons in England, Wales and Northern

Ireland, and 15 persons in Scotland. In criminal trials by jury, the judge passes sentence

but the jury decide the issue of guilt or innocence.

Public Schools

Fee-

paying

secondary

schools

which

are

long

established

and

have

gained

a

reputation for their high academic standards, as well as their exclusiveness and snobbery.

The boys’ public schools include such well

-

known schools as Eton and Harrow, and girls’

famous schools include Roedean. Most of the members of the British Establishment were

educated at a public school.

Questions (The American Part)

1. What are American

’

s particular conditions which complicate the class structure in the

United States?

First, America is the world

’

s richest industrial country where even common workers

have rich and good life.

Secondly,

the

many

different

ethnic

groups

and

long-standing

racial

discrimination

often obsure the fact that not all the rich people are white people and not all the blacks are

poor

.

Thirdly,

most

of

the

middle-class

Americans,

despite

their

high

income

and

comfortable life, are also

”

workers

”

, or white-collar workers.

Fourthly, American society is said to be a

“

fluid

”

or

“

mobile

”

society in which people

change their positions frequently and few privileged households can hold their privileged

positions for generations.

Fifthly, many Americans, about 50 million, are shareholders of different kinds. And

most farmers are the owners of large farms. They might occasionally employ farm laborers ,

but they do not make up the exploiting class.

Lastly,

the

meaning

of

the

“

affluent

”

,

“

”

,

“

under- privileged

”

has

changed a lot because the standard of living is relative.

2. Describe roughly the regional differences in weather and climate in the United States.

The

Atlantic

Seacoast

and

the

Appalachian

Mountains

in

the

east;

the

great

Mississippi River Basin in the middle, and the Rockies west to the Pacific Oceans. These

three areas are rough divisions, with each having its own diversity in geography.

1. The Atlantic Seacoast and the Appalachian Mountains

*the Atlantic Seacoast a coastal plain

*the first settlement for the early immigrants

*known as the tide-water region

*have all kinds of farms

*on the west side is the Fall Line

2. The Great Mississippi River Basin

*the larges area walled in by the Appalachian Mountains on the east and the Rocky

Mountains on the west

*the north of it reaches the border of Canada

，

the south it borders on the Gulf of