Uint 7 Text 1 How America Lives文档格式.docx

1、America is worried about its schools. If I had a child today, I would send her or him to a private school for the sake of safety, for the discipline that would be enforced and for the rigorous academic requirements. But I would doubt that the child would get any better education than l did in my goo

2、d public school. The problem is that good public schools are becoming pitifully rare, and I would not want to take the chance that the one I sent my children to was inadequate.Some Americans must live on welfare. Since it seems obvious that our nation can produce all its needs with only a part of th

3、e available work force, some kind of social welfare assistance must be doled out to those who cannot find jobs. When I think of a typical welfare recipient I think of a young neighbor woman whose husband was killed in a tragic accident, leaving her with three young children. In the bad old days she

4、might have known destitution, but with family assistance she was able to hold her childrentogether and produced three fine, tax-paying citizens. America is essentially a compassionate society.America cannot find housing for its young families. I consider this the most serious danger confronting fami

5、ly life in America, and I am appalled that the condition has been allowed to develop. For more than a decade, travelers like me have been aware that in countries like Sweden, Denmark, Russia and India young people have found it almost impossible to acquire homes. In Sweden the customary wait was 11

6、years of marriage, and we used to ask, “what went wrong?” It seemed to us that a major responsibility of any nation would be to provide homes for its young people starting their families. Well, this dreadful social sickness has now overtaken the United States, and for the same reasons. The builders

7、in our society find it profitable to erect three-bathroom homes that sell for $220,000 with a mortgage at 19 percent but find it impossible to erect small homes for young marrieds. For a major nation to show itself impotent to house its young people is admitting a failure that must be corrected.Our

8、prospects are still good. We have a physical setting of remarkable integrity, the worlds best agriculture, a splendid wealth of minerals, great rivers for irrigation and an unsurpassed system of roads for transportation. We also have a magnificent mixture of people from all the continents with varie

9、d traditions and strengths. But most of all, we have a unique and balanced system of government.I think of America as having the oldest form of government on earth, because since we started our present democracy in 1789, every other nation has suffered either parliamentary change or revolutionary ch

10、ange. It is our system that has survived and should survive, giving the maximum number of people a maximum chance for happiness.Glossarydivorce claimconservative enforceSenate rigorousinsofar pitifullyrestraint inadequatebinge welfarereaffirmation dolepornography recipientlegislation destitutioncour

11、tship compassionateradically appallsuspicion customaryrepression dreadfulPuritanism overtakehusky erectreservation marriedsapplaud impotentsue prospectallege irrigationdiscriminate unsurpassedathletic uniquebudget parliamentaryjustice maximumNotes1. About the author James Albert Michener（1907-1997）,

12、American writer,became known for the voluminous research he incorporates and makes accessible and interesting in his writings.His books typically provide a detailed discussion of the history and geography of specific regions.His wide ranging writing career began when his experiences during World War

13、 provided the material for a book of short stories,Tales of the South Pacific（1947）;for which he received the 1984 Pulitzer Prize in fiction.His other works include Sayonara（1954）;Hawaii（1959）;Chesapeake（1978）;The Covenant（1980）;Poland（1982）;Texas（1985）;and Alaska（1988）;The Novel（1991）;Recessinal（19

14、94）;A Miracle in Seville（1995）;The Bridge at Andau（1957）;Iberia:Spanish Travels and Reflections（1968）;A Michener Miscellany:1950-1970（1973）;Micheners memoir,The World Is My Home（1992）.2. The 1980 electionsignaled a decided turn to the right （Paragraph 2） The results of the 1980 election indicated th

15、at public attitudes and idologies were definitely beginning to favour a return to traditional arrangements. In this sentence, the right refers to beliefs characteristic of Right Wing, political groups or ideologies favoring mainrenance of the current distribution of power and wealth or a return to t

16、raditional arrangements.Right-wing groups are apt to be more aligned with the military and the church than other groups.Within a group,Right Wing is sometimes applied to be more conservative members,while liberal members are known as Left Wing.3. Puritanism （Paragraph 3） the practices and doctrines

17、of the Puritans who were members of a group of Protestants in 16th and 17th century England and 17th-century America who believed in strict religious discipline and called for the simplification of acts of worship.The movement was an attempt to remove Roman Catholic influences from the Church of Eng

18、land.4. In Sweden the customary wait was 11 years of marriage（Paragraph 7） In Sweden,newly married couples will have to wait for 11 years before they can have their own homes.5. balanced system of government （Paragraph 8） The concept refers to the three branches of the United States government-the l

19、egislative,the executive,and the judicial-that restrain and stabilize one another through their separated functions.The legislative branch,represented by the Congress,must pass bills before they can become law.The executive branch-namely,the president-can veto bills passed by the Congress,thus preve

20、nting them from becoming law.In turn,by a two-thirds vote,the Congress can override the presidents vote.The Supreme Court may invalidate acts of the Congress by declaring them contrary to the Constitution of the United States,but the Congress can change the Constitution through the amendment process

21、.Text comprehension.Which of the following is Not a major aspect of the American life discussed by the author?A. Agriculture and transportation.B. Marriage and womens social status.C. Social welfare and education.D. Family value and housing.Judge ,according to the text,whether the following statemen

22、ts are true or false.1. Young people still get married,but the divorce rate is higher than the remarriage rate because many dont want to raise children.2. The author welcomes the freer patterns of todays courtship and marriage because many young kids of his time suffered bitterly.3. Today still very

23、 few women in universities are going up to the athletic programs and demanding a just share of the physical education budget.4. American public schools today are inferior to those decades ago.5. Builders seem not willing to erect small homes for young married couples because it is not very profitabl

24、e.Answer the following questions.1. How does the author compare the American life at present and in the past in terms of similarities and differences?2. What old ways do Americans still follow?3. What dose the author imply in the phrase“put the brakes on”?4. To what extent are American women changin

25、g the rules?5. What aspects of a school would be author consider when sending kids to school?6. What does the author intend to tell with the case of his young neighbor?7. What conclusion does the author draw about the prospects of the American people?Why?.Explain in your own words the following sentences taken from the text.1. The 1980 electionsignaled