-
Unit 7 The Fun They Had
Main
idea
:
This
narrative story is a science fiction telling a
story happening in the year of 2157. Margie
and
Tommy
found
a
book
in
21st
century
and
they
know
something
from
the
book
about
education in 21
st
century.
Also, from the
dialogue between Margie and Tommy, we, the people
in
21
st
century
know something of the education in the future
predicted and imagined by the author.
Structural Analysis
This text can be divided into three
parts.
Part I (paragraph 1):
This paragraph, which
serves as the background of the story, tells us
the time, characters, and the
real book
around which the story evolves.
Part II (paragraphs 2-30):
This part tells the story: Margie’s
school life and school life of hundreds years ago
she got from a
book.
Part III (paragraphs
31
—
35):
This part tells
Margie
’
s schoolroom, the
mechanical teacher and
Margie
’
s psychological
activities
Text Explanation
head
1) lead; be at the front of; be at the
top of
E.g.: The
president
’
s car
headed
the procession.
This canyon
heads
the list of natural attractions.
2) be
in charge of; take charge of
e.g.: The
sales director
heads
a team
of 20 representatives.
crinkly
having many thin folds; (of
hair) curly
e.g.: My shirts were all
crinkly
when I got them out
of the suitcase.
Her hair is a
bit
crinkly
, which makes her
look much prettier.
be supposed to
1) have a duty or responsibility to do
sth.
E.g.: Everybody
is
supposed to
bring a bottle to the
party.
You are not
supposed
to
smoke in here.
2) be
generally considered to be; have the reputation of
being
E.g.: I
haven
’
t seen it myself, but
it
is supposed to
be a very
good film.
…and it was
awfully funny to read words that stood still
instead of moving about the way
they
were supposed to
—
on a screen
…and it was
very
amusing to read words that were motionless instead
of moving the way they
ought to
–
on a screen
When
you’re
through
with
the
book,
you
just
throw
it
away,
I
guess.—
When
you
have
finished
reading the book, you merely throw it away, I
believe.
When you have finished reading
the book, you merely cast it away, I believe.
through
1) in at one side,
end, or surface, and out at the other; all the way
e.g.: The guard at the gate wouldn’t
let us
through
.
Does this train go right
through
to London?
1
2) from the
beginning to the end; to completion
e.g.: Have you read the letter right
through
?
You should read
the article
through
before
you translate it.
scornful
showing contempt for;
e.g.: His
scornful
laugh greatly embarrassed me.
His
scornful
dismissal of the
democratic process showed that he did not support
it.
What's there to write about school?
This is a rhetorical
question, which calls for no answer. A positive
rhetorical question is negative
in
meaning. The rhetorical question here means: There
is nothing at all to write about school.
mechanical
1) of or moved,
worked, or produced by machinery
e.g.:
That factory manufactures a variety of
mechanical
products.
Being a mechanical genius, that man is
at home in
mechanical
applications.
2) Done without thought
or feeling; (done) from habit rather than will
e.g.: He greeted me in a mechanical way
by using
mechanical
compliments.
superior:
1) of a higher rank or class; better in
quality or value
e.g.: Of the two
books, this one is
superior
to that one
2) of high quality
e.g.: This is a very
superior
make of car.
Superior
goods are very
popular among the customers.
regular:
1)
happening or appearing with the same amount of
time or space between each one and the next;
not varying
e.g.: Plant the
seed at
regular
intervals.
2) happening,
coming
or
doing
something
again
and
again
at
the
same
times
each
day,
week,
month, etc
e.g.: We keep
regular
working hours.
Mr. Smith is a
regular
customer of the
small store.
nonchalantly
:
indifferently, coldly, not feeling
excited
e.g.: He reacted
nonchalantly
to my
suggestion.
He
treated me
nonchalantly
when
I visited him.
tuck
v 1 (a) ~ sth into sth;
~ sth in/up, push or fold or turn the ends or
edges (of cloth, paper, etc) so that
they are hidden or held in place; draw
(sth) together into a small space
将（布、
纸等）的端部
或边缘掖好、
叠拢或卷起（使之看不见或固定住）
;
将（某物
）缩拢起来塞入狭小空间
:
e.g.
tuck
your trousers into your
boots.
He
tucked
up his shirt-sleeves.
The nurse
tucked
her hair (up) under her cap.
dispute
2