1、1Chapter 8 Bifocal Visions 双重聚焦Figure of speech Meaning of the root / affixparadox para-: beside, adjacent to; dox: opinion oxymoron oxy-: sharp; moron: foolish; - pointedly foolish irony simulated ignorance 8.1 ParadoxExamples: More haste, less speed. One has to be cruel to be kind. The heavier the
2、 burden, the closer our lives come to death, and the more real and truthful they become. Conversely, the absolute absence of a burden causes man to be lighter than air, take leave of the earth and his earthly being. (by Milan Kundera, The Unbearable Lightness of Being 生命不可承受之轻 ) The glacial period (
3、冰河时期), which threatened to destroy the human race, became its greatest teacher because it forced man to use his brain. Safety will be the sturdy child of terror, and survival the twin brother of annihilation. Winston Churchill安全是恐怖的健壮婴儿，生存是毁灭的孪生兄弟。 A man travels the world over in search of what he n
4、eeds and returns home to find it. George Moore 人们总是走遍世界寻找自己需要的东西，最后回到家却发现它就在家里。 More examples in Chinese: 大成若缺（大的成就像有缺陷） 大直如诎/屈（极其正直像弯曲） 大巧如拙（极其灵巧像笨拙） 守柔曰强（坚守着柔弱叫做坚强） 信言不美，美言不信（诚实的言谈不动听，动听的言谈不诚实） 善者不多，多者不善（善良的人显得不充裕，显得充裕的人不善良） 夫慈，故能勇（因有慈柔，所以才能勇敢） 不敢为天下先，故能为成事长（因不敢为天下先，所以才能成为天下的首长）老子Definition: Parad
5、ox is a figure of speech consisting of a statement which on the face of it seems self-contradictory, absurd or contrary to established practice, but which on further thinking may prove to be true / really makes sense. 意料之外,情理之中Exercise: Identify the examples of paradox. Then point out in what way th
6、ese examples of paradox help to reveal about us humans?2One Small Step Back to Where We StartedThe Apollo missions were supposed to reveal the truth about the Moon. In fact, they taught us about the Earth and ourselves.Mark Mason1 In July 1969, soon after their return from the moon, Neil Armstrong a
7、nd Buzz Aldrin were shown footage of the worlds reaction to the lunar landing. They saw the US newscaster Walter Cronkite wiping away his tears; people gathered around televisions from China to Brazil; pavements outside TV shops crammed as people watched in awe. Aldrin turned to Armstrong. “Neil,” h
8、e said, “we missed the whole thing”.2 That comment reveals the surprising truth about the Apollo missions: they werent about the Moon. They were about the Earth.3 The clues had been there from the start, when the crew of Apollo 8 became the first humans to leave their home planets orbit. Orbiting th
9、e Moon on Christmas Eve 1968, fulfilling dreams as old as mankind itself, their real wonder was not at the dead grey planet beneath them, but at the vibrant blue globe in the distance. The first three men to see the Moon up close soon realised with a much deeper sense of reverence that they were the
10、 first three men to see the Earth from a distance. Witnessing an earthrise made them feel humble. They read the opening chapters of Genesis (创世纪) to a world-wild audience of millions, signing off with, “Merry Christmas, and God bless all of you, all of you on the good Earth.”4 Over the next four yea
11、rs, Apollo taught us what it means to be human: in a word, restless. Curiosity is never satisfied, it merely finds new targets. Quite how quickly the shift can occur was learnt by Pete Conrad, the third man to walk on the Moon (and the first to fall over on it). Once Armstrong and Aldrin had claimed
12、 the prize, no one was interested in Apollo 12. Conrad later appeared in an American Express advert of famous Americans nobody recognized. (Others included Mel Blanc, the voice of Bugs Bunny.) Yet in many ways Conrads was the most interesting Apollo mission of all. His fellow moonwalker, Al Bean, ne
13、ver the most naturally gifted astronaut, compensated with sheer hard work. Finally standing on the lunar surface, he threw his silver Nasa badge (徽章) into the distance, knowing that the moonwalk had earned him a gold one. But as they flew back to Earth, he turned to Conrad and admitted disappointmen
14、t in the moon itself: “Its kind of like the song Is That All There Is?” 3Another timeless truth: achievements themselves arent what count, its the fact that you worked for them.5 When Ben returned to Earth he would sit in shopping malls, simply to marvel at the variety of human life. And he has neve
15、r again complained about the weather: “Im just glad there is weather.” As so often, a journey into the unknown had revealed more about the travelers home than about the destination.6 Virtually every Apollo astronaut came back with a deep sense of the Earths fragility. Ed Mitchell, Moonwalker No 6: “
16、When we see ourselves in this bigger perspective call it the ET (外星人) point of view, the God point of view a shift takes place in your perception and you start to think quite differently.” Apollo16s Charlie Duke describes Earth as “hanging in space like a jewel”. People are always asking what we dis
17、covered when we went to the Moon,” says Dick Gordon, of Apollo 12. “What we discovered was the Earth.”7 The discovery gave a big boost to the nascent (刚刚出现的) Green movement. Sir Jonathan Porritt cites the “deep and lasting effect” that Apollo had on “many environmentalists including me”. Friends of
18、the Earth was founded in the same year that man first walked on the Moon. The inaugural Earth Day happened a year later. Everyone seemed to agree with Michael Collinss thought as he splashed back down into the Pacific with Armstrong and Aldrin: “Nice ocean you got here, planet Earth.”8 Politically,
19、too, there was a shift. The Earth from space looks just like a map except without the national borders. Colins remembers people of every nation saying to him, “ We did it it was a wonderful thing. ” Ed Mitchell, on his way back from the Moon, realized that “the molecules of my body and of the spacec
20、raft and of my partners were manufactured in some ancient generation of stars and that was an overwhelming sense of oneness and connectedness”. Inspired by the landings, Rene Dubos coined the phrase “Think globally, act locally”. T minus zero for Apollo was T plus one for globalization.9 Yet despite
21、 the astronauts protestations that the Moon itself was l letdown, which of us, given the chance, wouldnt want to go there? The Chinese are planning missions of their own, and the commercial investment being ploughed into space tourism proves just how much we yearn for new experiences. So much so tha
22、t we resent anyone who dampens our excitement.10 Pete Conrad used to say he was prouder of his work on the Skylab missions than his walk on the Moon. “Some people even get mad,” he said. “ What do you mean, the Moon isnt the biggest thing in your life? I say: Well, it isnt. They think, Well, it shou
23、ld be. I say: Why? Im the guy that did this. ” Maybe life is one long “wet paint” sign: you dont believe it until you reach out and touch.411 Certainly, Dave Scott, of Apollo 15, thought so. Standing on the Moon, he voiced his thoughts to Houston: “I realise theres a fundamental truth to our nature:
24、 man must explore.” Home is never far from our thoughts, though. How many times have you looked forward for months to a holiday, only to find that on day three youre already dreaming of your own bed? But when you return, the process starts all over again. This idea of life as a perpetual cycle seems
25、 particularly comforting in a recession. Even though weve overreached (and overborrowed), and been reminded of some home truths, we know that one day well reach out once more. 12 When Bean retired from Nasa he became an artist. His painting of the lunar landscape, which fetch tens of thousands of do
26、llars, bear the lessons of his time as an astronaut. Just as he worked hard to reach the Moon, now he works hard to perfect his painting. “Thats what I tell myself when the colours dont come out right or it hasnt worked like I thought it would: Thats why they call it art.”13 Another of Beans thought
27、s sums up the very essence of the Apollo missions, indeed of all human travel: that it isnt about where youre going, its about who you are. “Everybody came back just more like I knew them. I think maybe success doesnt change you as much as reveal you.”14 Which is why the greatest reason to celebrate
28、 this 40th anniversary isnt scientific or environmental or political; its personal. The next time you go down a footpath just to see where it leads, or when the only thing that will stop your baby crying is taking it for a drive, remember the 12 men who stood on the Moon and looked at Earth. As T. S
29、. Eliot put it:We shall not cease from explorationAnd the end of all our exploringWill be to arrive where we startedAnd know the place for the first time.8.2 OxymoronExamples: bitter-sweet memories; tearful joy; living death; cruel kindness; laborious idleness; painful pleasure;8.2.1 Definition: An
30、oxymoron is also called “abbreviated paradox” or “compressed paradox”, formed by the conjoining of two contrasting, contradictory or incongruous terms.8.2.2 The classification of oxymoron:1) adj. + nounDo the matching work: Find in Column B the appropriate word for the word in 5Column A.Column A Col
31、umn Bcruel silencewise joyvictorious kindnessbusy fooltearful stillnessthunderous defeataudible idleness It (New York) has the poorest millionaire, the littlest great men, the haughtiest beggars, the plainest beauties, the lowest skyscrapers, the dolefulest pleasures of any town I ever saw. - O. Hen
32、ry这座城市里有的是心灵最空虚的百万富翁，人格最渺小的伟人，最目空一切的草包，最使人瞧不上眼的美女，最卑鄙龌龊的摩天大楼，和最令人悲哀的娱乐，比我所见到的任何城市都有过之而无不及。 The book advances the authors view of genes as “selfish cooperators” being selected in an “environment” of fellow genes. 本书深化了作者的这一观点：基因是“自私的合作者” ，在与其他同类基因共存的环境中物竞天择 2) adj. + adj.Do the matching work: Find in
33、 Column B the appropriate word for the word in Column A.Column A Column Bpoor -good newsbitter -sweet memoriesbad -rich guys3) adv. + adj.bitterly happy 苦涩地愉快 conspicuously absent 引人注目的缺席 a mercifully fatal blow 慈悲为怀的致命打击 At ten he went up to his bedroom. He was deliciously tired. 他很疲倦，但心里美滋滋的。 4) v
34、erb + adv.changelessly changing 始终如一地变化着 to hasten slowly 慢慢地快起来65) noun + nouna love-hate relationshipa life-and-death matter 生死攸关的事 8.2.3 More examples of oxymoronliquid gas peace force clearly ambiguous long-sleeved T-shirtdiet ice cream non-alcoholic beer non-dairy creamerExercise: Point out fro
35、m the following expressions the ones that are NOT the examples of oxymoron.peace force clearly confused tender colordeafening silence modern history terribly pleasedvirtual reality real potential humanitarian invasionnew classic war games gentle breeze8.3 Irony83.1 Examples:a. (The following example
36、s are taken from Charles Dickenss novel David Copperfield, which is regarded as his autobiography.)(One day, the sister of Davids step-father, Miss Murdstone, paid them a visit. When greeting David, Miss Murdstone showed her disapproval of him in definite terms.)“Generally speaking,” said Miss Murds
37、tone, “I dont like boys. How dye do, boy?”Under these encouraging circumstances, I replied that I was very well, and that I hoped she was the same, with such indifferent grace that Miss Murdstone disposed of me in two words, - “Wants manner!”b. (Another day, when Mr. Murdstones stepfather learned th
38、at David hadnt known his lesson very well, he gave him a good beating. In self-defense, David caught his hand and bit it. As a result, David was sent to a boarding-school, where he was ordered to put on the placard on his back with the words “Take care of him. He bites”.)“And whenever I went afterwa
39、rds, I had the consolation of carrying the board which wrote Take care of him. He bites. What I suffered from that board nobody can imagine.”c. (James Baldwin (1924- ) is a contemporary Afro-American novelist, playwright and essayist. He was born and brought up in Harlem. In his essays, his experien
40、ce of being a black and the problems of the blacks in the racialist America are exposed and well analyzed. The present part is taken from the essay entitled “Fifth Avenue A Letter from Harlem”.)7That hundreds of thousands of white people are living, in effect, no better than the “niggers” is not a f
41、act to be regarded with complacency. The social and moral bankruptcy suggested by this fact is of the bitterest, most terrifying kind.The people, however, who believe that this democratic anguish has some consoling value are always pointing out that So-and-So, white, and So-and-So, black, rose from
42、the slums into the big time. that America is still the land of opportunity and that inequalities vanish before the determined will. It proves nothing of the sort. 我们在面对成千上万的白人和黑人一样受贫穷折磨这一事实的时候绝不能有得意的念头。这说明社会和道德的破产已经到了令人极度痛心和非常可怕的程度。那些看到痛苦面前人人机会均等而感到宽慰的人总是讲某个白人、某个黑人从贫民窟奋斗到了上流社会美国仍然机会均等，有志者能跨越不平等的障碍。事
43、实证明不是那么回事。d. The projects are hideous, of course, there being a law, apparently respected throughout the world, that popular housing shall be as cheerless as a prison. 贫民窟的廉价房样子非常丑陋，全世界的建筑师在盖的时都要遵循一条原则，那就是一定要把房子盖得像监狱一样晦暗、了无生气。8.3.2 The definition of ironyIrony, as a figure of speech, means saying th
44、e opposite of what one says. The discussion of this figure of speech often involves context, for it is in the context that the example of irony can be understood. One key to understand the examples of irony is that they cannot be taken literally.Exercises: Please try to point out the examples of iro
45、ny from the following passages.1. (In an essay entitled “Fear of Dearth” (害怕资源枯竭 ), the author pointed out the reason why people hate jogging while at the same time couldnt do something else as an alternative jogging becomes a sort of penance (赎罪的苦刑 ) for humans greed and waste.)I hate jogging. Ever
46、y dawn, as I thud around New York Citys Central Park reservoir, I am reminded of how much I hate it. Its so tedious. Some claim jogging is thought conducive; others insist the scenery relieves the monotony. For me, the pace is wrong for contemplation of either ideas or vistas. While jogging, all I c
47、an think about is jogging or nothing. One advantage of jogging around a reservoir is that theres no dry shortcut home.From the listless looks of some fellow trotters, I gather I am not alone in my unenthusiasm: bill-paying, it seems, would be about as diverting. Nonetheless, we continue to jog; more
48、, we continue to choose to jog. From a wide range of opportunities, we select one that we dont enjoy and cant wait to have done with. (By Carll Tucker, “Fear of Dearth”)我讨厌慢跑。每个黎明，当我脚步咚咚地绕着纽约中央公园的水库慢跑时，我就知道我有多讨厌慢跑。跑起来简直不知何时才能结束。有些人说慢跑能让人更好地思考，还有些人说周围的风景可以缓解跑步时的乏味。可对我来说，这种步速既不宜于8思考，也不宜于观景。我在跑步时，满脑子想的
49、只是跑步。可是围湖慢跑有一个优点，那就是我没法抄近道回家了。看和我一起跑步的人的表情，他们对慢跑也提不起多少精神来。看起来慢跑和付账一样无趣。可我们每天仍然慢跑，仍然选择慢跑。从那么多可挑选的运动里，我们选择慢跑这项我们不喜欢的运动，然后又迫不及待地想要马上完成。2. Concerning the 2008 economic crisisEating, after all, is one of the cheapest of pleasures. Its certainly a lot cheaper than building a swimming pool in your back garden. Its also a reminder that despite everything thats gone down in recent months, the
