1、Lesson 14 Soldiers Heartby Louis Simpson,Questions:,1. Why does the author say that he only has a vague recollection of what he did at the university? 2. How did the author describe the hospital he was sent to and the doctors, nurses, and guards working there ? Did he have a general favorable impres
2、sion?3.What did the author decide to do after he was discharged?4. How did the author become a writer? 5. What is the authors general attitude toward war?6. What was his general opinion of the men and women he was working with at the university? Why?,About the Author,Louis Simpson (1923- ) was born
3、in Jamaica, West Indies. The son of a lawyer of Scottish descent and a Russian mother, he emigrated to the United States when he was 17 and went to study at Columbia University in New York city. He served in the Second World War on active duty in France, Holland, Belgium and Germany. When the war wa
4、s over, he returned to Columbia University to finish his studies. After that he became a teacher at that school and later at the University of California, Berkeley, and the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Louis Simpson has published 17 books of poetry and is widely acclaimed as a litera
5、ry critic.,Introduction to the Text,War, this complex phenomenon in our life, has been one of the most favorite subjects in art and literature as well as in serious academic studies. And although we have now entered the third millennium, we do not see any reason why it will not remain so. In literat
6、ure, war has been described as a conflict between justice and evil; a battle of wits and a demonstration of military powers; a display of noble patriotism and encourage as well as a revelation of human wickedness, cruelty and stupidity. The text, however, does not deal with any of this. It is a firs
7、t-person narration of a World War veteran about his personal experience , his feelings and sufferings during the war and the physical and psychological scars the war left him with.,The essay begins with a three-paragraph description of his war memories in France in the summer of 1944. The use of the
8、 present tense in this part shows the vividness of the memory and how he relieves the war every night in his dreams.,Then the narrator goes on to describe his life immediately after the war, how he goes back to the university to continue his education and how he breaks down and is diagnosed as suffe
9、ring from “soldiers heart”, a mental illness resulting from being shot at and shelled for months on end.,The author does not attempt to discuss the problem of war in all its complexity. Although the ugliness of the war does come through clearly in his narration, his purpose is not to condemn war, bu
10、t to tell people why he keeps writing about it. The author believes that wars should be remembered because the people who have so bravely borne the hardships, sufferings and sacrifices of war should be remembered. For him, these common people are people who deserve our respect and admiration.,Detail
11、ed Discussion,.If the sounds continue, the men will be seen scraping the surface of the earth with shovels and burying themselves in it until, like a species of animal, they vanish from sight. (Para1)Obviously the soldiers are being bombarded. If the sound of planes does not stop, that is, if the pl
12、anes do not drop their bombs, the men will be seen digging in until they disappear into the foxholes. to scrape: to remove sth from a surfaceto vanish: to disappear suddenly,There is a brief purring sound, then a rhythmic drumming.(Para2) This is description of the sound of the planes dropping bombs
13、 or guns firing shells rhythmically.to purr: to make a low, vibrating soundto drum: to make a sound like that of a drum,the life and death of an infantry soldier(Para2)infantry: In the old days, the armed forces were usually composed of the infantry, the cavalry and the artillery. In modern times, h
14、owever, the military organization is much more complicated. It consists of the army, the air force, the navy, and the marines as well as many subdivisions.Q : Why is the present tense used in the first three paragraphs?,it was the course for upper division students known as the Colloquium. (Para4),i
15、t was the course for students at a more advanced level.upper division: higher grade Note that the author “returned” to the university, which implies that his college education was disrupted by the war. Colloquium: a conference at which scholars or other experts present and discuss papers on a specif
16、ic topic. It refers to a seminar here.,One person had it that(Para5),to have it that: to say that sth is true, e.g.One story had it that the rebel leader was never caught. He had disguised himself as a monk and escaped.We dont know for sure what caused the accident. One rumor has it that the princes
17、s was trying too hard to get rid of the photographers.Compare:To have it in sb: (of sb) to have a particular ability, skill or quality, e.g.I never knew he had it in him. His speech was brilliant. Im sure that she has it in her to be a great teacher. All she needs is some experience.,A friend would
18、inform me and picked up by the police,(Para5),Here the word would is NOT used to show a repeated or habitual action. It is the past tense form of will, denoting the future in the past.Compare to another common usage of would:Occasionally she and Philip would go out and paint pictures. Whenever somet
19、hing serious happened he would try to cover it up.(In these examples, would is used to denote to repeated or habitual actions.),as a result of being shot at and shelled for months on end? (Para7),That is why the affrication is also known as shell shock.to be shot at: Make sure that students do not m
20、ix it up with to be shot, which means to be shot dead.on end: (of time) without a break; continuously; successively; e.g.The rain went on for days on end.She would wit in front of the TV for hours on end if I did not shut it up.In what desert you ca drive for miles on end without seeing a single sou
21、l., they were spared a long engagement. (Para7),they were lucky that they did not have to fight a long war ( The Gulf War started in January 1991 and ended in February the same year.)to be spared sth: to be allowed not to experience sth difficult or unpleasant, e.g.He was happy that he was spared th
22、e shame of having to appear in court.I think she should be spared the pain of seeing her sons torn body.engagement: (technical) a battle between two armies or navies, e.g.Although it was a short engagement, we destroyed a whole enemy division.,This, he gave me to understand, was why he had been excu
23、sed from military service.(Para9),He made me believe that this (the cutting off of his trigger finger) was the reason why he was able to escape being drafted into the army.to give sb to understand: (fml) to make sb believe that sth will happen or is true, e.g. The doctor gave me to understand that m
24、y fathers days were numbered.to excuse sb from sth: to free sb from sthThe guard was obviously a draft dodger. He had used dishonest methods (cutting off his finger deliberately) to avoid serving in the army.,I watched as the current passed through and the body convulsed. (Para10),I watched as the f
25、low of electricity ran through the body and the body shook violently.current: a flow of electricity through a wire or circuit; a steady and continuous flowing movement of the water in a river, lake, or seato convulse: to shake violently and in an uncontrollable way,Speaking only for myself, I think
26、they brought me out of the fog in which I has been walking.(Para10),As far as Im concerned, I think the shock treatment was effective and it helped me to regain my senses and become normal.fog: Used metaphorically, it means a state of mental confusion or unawareness.to speak for sb/sth: to express t
27、he thoughts, opinions, etc. of sb/sth, e.g.What others think I do not know, I can only speak for myself.I believe Im speaking for many others present at this meeting when I say that we will never forget the things you have done for us in the past two years.,I would keep and peeled for an enemy posit
28、ion.(Para13), I would be on the alert, watching carefully for an enemy position.Although the war was long over, his war habits still trying to spot an enemy position.to keep an eye peeled/ open/ our for: (infml) to look or watch carefully for; to be on the lookout for,I had to be cleared by their do
29、ctor.(Para14)I had to go through examinations by their doctor to prove that I was capable of resuming my studies at the university.to be cleared by sb: to get an official permission from sb,I had seen the common man his guts spilled in a road, his limbs strewn in a field.(Para14),Notice that when th
30、e author and the doctor referred to the “common man”, they did not mean the same thing. Few people understood the veterans mental disturbance or psychological scar.guts: the bowels 肠子It is interesting to note that in informal English, guts can also mean courage because people in that culture once be
31、lieved that the human bowels is the seat of courage. limbs: arms and legsto be strewn: to be covered with; to be scattered with; to be spread over with,I slipped in by a side door, wasnt so particular about whom they let in. (Para16),to slip: to move smoothly, secretly, or unnoticed, e.g.He slipped
32、out before the lecture was over.she slipped away without being seen.,What have we to complain of who have only know “soldiers heart”? (Para19),Compared with those who died or were seriously maimed in the war, we, who only suffered a “soldiers heart” really have no right to complain.Notice that the r
33、elative clause “who have only known soldiers heart ” is separated from its antecedent we and placed at the end to avoid top-heaviness. More examples:The older soon came that all civilians should evacuate the village.A terrible thought came to him that maybe the child had been kidnapped.,It was hell
34、on earth, but the men who went through it consoled themselves with a thought(Para21),Although the situation was extremely unpleasant and hard to bear, the man who were suffering it tried to make themselves feel better with the thoughhell on earth: a metaphorical expression to describe a place or exp
35、erience that is very unpleasantto go through: to suffer or to experience sth unpleasant, e.g. Francis, who had gone through so many hard struggles, was not a rebel by nature.Youll have to go through many hard tests to qualify as a member of the special forces.,The men and women I worked with in univ
36、ersities were pale and unreal in comparison. They were hollow and filled with words.(Para22),Compared to the people with whom I fought side by side during the war, the people I worked with in universities were pale and unreal. They talked a lot, but their words were empty and meaningless because the
37、y had not experienced real life.to be pale in comparison: to seem small or unimportant compared to sb/sth else hollow: without substance or character; empty, shallow, and superficial,Writing skills,oxymoron: It was hell on earth. Metaphor: I slipped into the university by a side door. Simile: The ro
38、tating red light was like a campfire in the wild. Satire: I didnt have the fascination with gossip that a reporter needs to have whether it is about a quarrel between nations or about a politician and his mistress. Sarcasm: He seemed to think that it was a joke I would like to share. Hyperbole and rhyme: If you should happen after dark Frankly, youll be safer there.,References:,http:/www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/86(An introduction to Louis Simpson) http:/ww2.vet.org/(World War II veteran websites),World War II veterans,
