1、1,Progressive ReadingRevised Edition,2,Lesson One,World English: A Blessing Or A Curse?,3,Catalogue,Background InformationWarm-up QuestionsMain IdeaLanguage PointsDifficult SentencesKeys to the Exercises,4,Background Information,Dr Tom McArthur is founder editor of the Oxford Companion to the Englis
2、h Language (1992)and the quarterly English Today: The International Review of the English Language (Cambridge,1985-). His more than 20 published works include the Longman Lexicon of Contemporary English (1981), Worlds of Reference: Language, Lexicography (辞典编纂学) and Learning,5,Background Information
3、,from the Clay Tablet to the Computer (1986), and The English Languages (1998). He is currently Deputy Director of the Dictionary Research Centre at the University of Exeter(埃克赛特大学).,6,Background Information,International Languages and History and DevelpmentInternational languages include both exist
4、ing languages that have become international means of communica-cation and languages artificially constructed to serve this purpose. The most famous and widespread artificial international language is Esperanto(世界语); however, the most widespread international languages are not artificial.,7,Backgrou
5、nd Information,In medieval Europe, Latin was the principal international language. Today, English is used in more countries as an official language or as the main means of international communication than any other language. French is the second most widely used language, largely due to the substant
6、ial number of African countries with French as their official language.,8,Background Information,Other languages have more restricted regional use, such as Spanish in Spain and Latin America, Arabic in the Middle East, and Russian in the republics of the former USSR.From Microsoft Encarta,9,Backgrou
7、nd Information,English as International LangauageInternational English often refers to English as it is actually being used and developed in the world; as a language owned not just by native speakers, but by all those who come to use it. It is certainly also commonly used in connection with the acqu
8、isition, use, and study of English as the worlds lingua franca, and especially when the language is con-sidered as a whole in contrast with British English, American English, South African English, and thelike.,10,Background Information,Vocabulary and Context The context of a word consists of the ot
9、her words surrounding it and the situation in which it is used.In the situation of hospital, the word operation means removal of a diseased part; in military or business it means a planned military movement or an activity.,11,Background Information,Vocabulary and Context Another typical instance is
10、the words, such as Chinese, Japanese and English. They can mean the inhabitants in a certain country or a language spoken by the indigenous people, for example:French are very romantic.French is really hard to learn.,12,Context always determines meaning; quite often it also reveals meaning. So, neve
11、r forget context and keep in mind context while reading and whenever you have problem with unfamiliar words or proper nouns. Usually context is your first option rather than dictionaries or encyclopedia.,Background Information,Context and Meaning,13,Arabic, Chinese, Greek, Latin, and Sanskrit(梵语),Fo
12、r good or for ill, there has never been a language quite like English. There have been many world languages, such as Arabic, Chinese, Greek, Latin, and Sanskrit.1. They are proper nouns which mean languages.2. From previous ones, you can tell Sanskrit is a language at least if you are not familiar w
13、ith it. 3. They used to get potential to be world languages.,Background Information,14,Background Information,Cumbric, Cornish, Norn and Manx,For English is a killer. It is English that has killed off Cumbric（坎布里亚王国使用的凯尔特语）, Cornish（康沃尔人说的凯尔特语）, Norn and Manx. There are still parts of these islands
14、where sizeable communities speak languages that were there before English. 1. They are proper nouns which also mean languages.2. The dead languages. 3. The languages that used to be spoken in the British Isles.,15,Background Information,Yet English is everywhere in everyday use and under- stood by a
15、ll or virtually all, constituting such a threat to the three remaining Celtic languages, Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Welsh. that their long-term future must be considered.very greatly at risk. 1. They are proper nouns which still mean languages. 2. They all belong to the group of Celtic Languages.3.
16、 Their future existence has been threatened by English.,16,Background Information,Again, if history had been somewhat different, todays world language might have been Arabic, a powerful language in West Asia and North Africa that currently affects many smaller languages, including Coptic（埃及古语）and Be
17、rber（柏柏尔语）.1. They are proper nouns which again mean languages.2. They are smaller languages which has been affected by a dominant languageArabic.,17,ApartheidTen years ago, South Africa ceased to be governed on principles of racial separateness, a system known in Afrikaans (a language derived from
18、Dutch) as apartheid. Based on this sentence as context, we can tell apartheid was a system ten years ago in South Africa notorious for its principles of racial separateness.,Background Information,18,Background Information,There are today eleven official languages in South Africa English, Afrikaans,
19、 and nine vernacular languages that include Zulu（非洲东南部班图族的一支）； 祖鲁语 ）, Ndebele（恩德贝莱语）, and Setswana.1. They are proper nouns which over again mean languages.2. They are languages different from English and Afrikaans. Those languages are cataloged into vernacular languages with others, totally nine of
20、 them.3. You may also guess meaning of vernacular from context.,19,Background Information,Arabic, Chinese, Greek, Latin, and SanskritFor good or for ill, there has never been a language quite like English. There have been many world languages, such as Arabic, Chinese, Greek, Latin,and Sanskrit. By a
21、nd large, we now view them as more or less benign, and often talk with admiration and appreciation about the cultures associated with them and what they have given to the world. And it is fairly safe to do this, because none of them now poses much of a threat.,20,Warm up Questions,1. Listen to the s
22、hort lecture about whether or not English is a global language. 2. While listening, try to give some reason(s) why English should be considered as a global language and some reason(s) why it should not. 3. In your opinion, do you think English is a global language? Click the following and watch.,21,
23、1.English, a globle language? 2. why do you learn English? 3.Do you think English will replace the other languages?,22,Main Idea,There is a threat in the world not only of a loss of languages, but also to the diminishing importance or loss of the unique way peoples of different languages view their
24、world.In the article Tom McArthur begins with a quotation about the threat of language extinction that comes with one world language. He also brought out the danger of,23,Main Idea,pride and racism. He gave three categories of countries; where English is a native language, where its a second languag
25、e and where its a foreign language. He stated that in history there had been other world languages including Chinese. Now we cannot judge and it may take several centuries before we know if this was the right thing to do.McArthur used Australia as an example. At one time the early settlers used Lati
26、n and there,24,Main Idea,were hundreds of languages among the indigenous people. Any settler language could have been chosen. And any widely used language threatens smaller (used by fewer people) languages. In South Africa English was a blessing when viewed as used in politics, justice and establish
27、ing equality. A blessing to one and a curse to another. Yet knowing the dangers, McArthur suggested we think of yin and yang and seek the benefits while staying away from the curses.,25,Language Points,1. blessing n c 1) sth good that you are grateful for 河流对于一个农业国家来说是一种恩赐。 Rivers are a blessing for
28、 an agricultural country. 我祝你健康长寿，万事如意！I wish you a prolonged life and every blessing.2) n u someones approval or encouragement for a plan, activity, idea etc,26,Language Points,领导正式批准了这个计划。The leaders gave their formal blessing to the plan.3) a blessing in disguise: sth that causes problems and dif
29、ficulties at first but later you realize that it was the best thing that could have happened去年12月份贸易谈判中止可能因祸得福。The failure to conclude the trade talks last December could prove a blessing in disguise.,27,Language Points,4) a mixed blessing: sth that has disadvantages as well as advantages 对普通的意大利人民来
30、说，星期天的新闻可以说是 利弊参半。For ordinary Italians, Sundays news probably amounts to a mixed blessing.,28,Language Points,5）to count ones blessings: you are saying that theyshould think about how lucky they are instead of complaining这事实上算不上什么负担，她应该想想自己有多幸运。This was no burden in fact, and that she should counth
31、er blessings.,29,Language Points,2. curse n 1) sth that causes trouble, harm etc他的财富成了祸根。His wealth proved a curse to him. 冷漠是英国地方民主制度长期以来难以推广的祸根。The apathy is the long-standing curse of British local democracy.,30,Language Points,2) vt to say or think bad things about someone or sth because they ha
32、ve made you angry他骂自己怎么那么不小心。He cursed himself for having been so careless. 3) to complain angrily about it, especially use rude language 我们一面抱怨延误了时间，一面又朝西出发了。We set off again, cursing the delay, towards the west.,31,Language Points,3.assertion n (line 2 , para.1) emphatic statement: a strong statem
33、ent that sth is true 断言；断定；主张 独立宣言提出这一主张，即所有的人都毫无疑问 拥有不可剥夺的权利。The assertion that all men have certain unalienable rights is set forth in the Declaration of Independence. Synonyms: affirmation, avouchment, avowal, claim, declaration, insistenceAntonyms: disavowal,32,Language Points,4. kill off v adv
34、( line 3 , para.1) to kill (things or people) one at a time; to destroy抗生素应能杀死这种细菌。Antibiotics should kill off the bacteria. 目前所有血液制品均经过热处理，以防止各种感染。All blood products are now heat treated to kill off any infection.,33,Language Points,5.sizeable adj ( line 4, para.1 ) fairly large哈里继承了这座房子以及相当大的一片土地。
35、Harry inherited the house and a sizeable chunk of land.在大学入学生中，半工半读的学生占了相当大的 比例。Part-time students make up a sizeable proportion of the college population.,34,Language Points,sizeable amount/number sizeable proportion/portion/minority (of sth),35,Language Points,6. at risk (line 7&8 , para.1) in a s
36、ituation where you may be harmed他冒着极大的生命危险救了那个孩子。He saved the child at considerable risk to himself. 我的工作保不住了,我可能是要被裁掉的那个。My job is at risk, I may be made redundan.,36,Language Points,7.academic n c ( line 9 , para.1) 1) a teacher in a college or university2) adj relating to education, especially at
37、 college or uni- versity level处理这个问题需要学术上的严谨。There is a need for academic rigour in approaching this problem. 他们的著作在学术界有巨大的影响力。Their writings took powerful hold of academic circles.,37,Language Points,8. linguistic adj (line 10, para.1) related to language, words, or linguistics她在从事语言学的研究。She is pur
38、suing her linguistic researches.写作能力是来自对语言能力的最高形式的测试。The ability to write is a supreme test of linguistic competence.,38,Language Points,linguistics n u the study of language in general and of particular languages, their structure, grammar, and historylinguist n c someone who is good at foreign lang
39、uages, especially someone who speaks several,39,Language Points,9.aggrandizement n ( line 12, para.1) when a person or country tries to increase their power or importance - used to show disapproval自我膨胀；自我扩张 self-aggrandizement 经济扩张 economic aggrandizement 领土扩张 territorial aggrandizement,40,Language
40、Points,aggrandize vt 1) to make someone or sth seem richer, more powerful, and more important than they really are该市由陆路和水路贸易而兴盛起来。The city was aggrandized by land and sea trade.新的独裁者企图通过新的征服来扩大自己的权势。The dictator sought to aggrandize himself by new conquest.,41,Language Points,2) to enlarge or extend
41、 sth; to increase the size or scope of sth这些是扩充该大楼的计划。These are the plans to aggrandise the building.,42,Language Points,10. parallel to ( line 13, para.1) two lines, paths etc that are parallel to each other arethe same distance apart along their whole length该公路与铁路平行。The road and the railway are pa
42、rallel to each other.他固然谨慎，也同样热心。His prudence is parallel to his zeal.,43,Language Points,11. default n u ( line 15, para.1) 1 ) law failure to do sth that you are supposed to do according to the law or because it is your duty到8月30日为止，那份关于教育的合同未予履行。The contract for education went up into default up
43、to August 30. 他完全由于疏于职责而丢掉了工作。He lost this job by sheer default of duty.,44,Language Points,被告昨天未到庭。The defendant made default yesterday.他因不出场而输了网球赛。He lost the tennis match by default. 2) u c fml failure to pay money that you owe at theright time 因为拖欠按月应付的分期付款，他的汽车被收回 了。,45,Language Points,His car
44、was repossessed because of default of monthly installment. 3) vi to fail to pay money that you owe at the right time信用卡业务出现了下滑，而且越来越多的借款者都 不按期还款。The credit card business is down, and more borrowers are defaulting on loans.,46,Language Points,12.hegemonic adj ( last line but 2 ,para. 1) being a situa
45、tion in which one state or contry controls others美国一直在追求网络空间的“霸权统治”。 The United States was pursuing “hegemonic domi-nation” in cyberspace.他们对邻国采取霸权政策。They adopted a hegemonic policy toward the neigh-bouring countries.,47,Language Points,hegemony nauthority or control; control or dominating influence
46、 by one person or group, especially by one political group over society or one nation over others 霸权，霸权主义，领导权Synonyms: sdominance, domination, dominion, supremacy, predominance, predominancy, preeminence, reign, sovereignty,48,Language Points,13. point up v adv ( line 2, para. 2) to make sth seem mo
47、re important or more noticeable这些案例进一步显示出政府有些部门的无能。These cases point up the incompetence of some govern-ment departments.近来工资的增加进一步显示出本届政府和上届政 府的不同。The recent wage increases point up still further the difference between this government and the last.,49,Language Points,to the point: dealing only with
48、 the important subject or idea, and not including any unnecessary discussionsbeside the point: irreleventmake a point of doing sth: to do sth deliberately, even when it involves making a special effort,50,Language Points,14. take in v prep ( last line of para. 2 ) it is big enough to include the oth
49、er thing within it 在这片国土上生活着 4,000 多万人口。The territorial area takes in a population of more than 40 million people.,51,Language Points,15. for good or ill ( line 1, para. 3 ) whether the effect of a situation is good or harmful 在这里发生的一切，无论是好还是坏，都将 影响到世界民主的发展进程。 What happens here, for good or ill, will affect the process of democracy worldwide.,52,Language Points,16. much of ( last line of para. 3 ) a large amount of sth 我记得你并不太迷电视的。Youre not much of a TV addict, as I remember. 他承认我见识广。He accepted me as having seen the much of the world.,
