文档介绍：School of Continuing Education
大学英语第二册网络课程
By School of Foreign Languages
2011
Unit 2 The Dinner Party
Men are braver than Women??...
◆ Pre-reading Activities
1
◆ Text Analysis
2
◆ Expressions & Patterns
3
◆ Exercises
4
Pre-reading Activities
Background info
A heated discussion about whether men are braver than woman is settled in a rather unexpected way.
Background info
The setting of the story was in India. A young girl and a major had a heated discussion about how women would react to a crisis at a dinner party, which is given by a colonial official and his wife. Then one of the guests noticed a strange e over the face of the hostess and wondered what was happening. It so happened there was a cobra in the room and it was crawling across the feet of the hostess! In the end, the crisis was tackled in a perfect way. The crisis showed that women are able to face a crisis with perfect calmness and great self-control.
Background info
Background info --- India
India used to be a British colony
There lived many British officers and their families
On one hand, they were familiar with their living environment already.
On the other hand, they still led a British social life ---- parties, social activities were never ignored.
Background info ---Table setting
At a formal party, the order of the seats were stressed to show politeness to the guests.
L M L M L ImM
H HS
ImL M L M L M
L M L
H (8, 12, 16, 20, 24) ImM
ImL M HS
Background info --- cobra
Snakes usually feed on small mammals, birds, reptiles or fish. Some snakes, like cobra, are poisonous and can kill with a single bite. Boas(蟒) suffocate (使窒息) their prey by wrapping tightly around it.