全大學英語綜合教程第二冊授課課文

全新版大學英語綜合教程第二冊

Unitl

WaysofLearning

TextA

HowardGardner,aprofessorofeducationatHarvardUniversity,reflectsonavisitto

ChinaandgiveshisthoughtsondifferentapproachestolearninginChinaandtheWest.

LEARNING,CHINESE-STYLE

HowardGardner

Foramonthinthespringof1987,mywifeEllenandIlivedinthebustlingeasternChinese

cityofNanjingwithour18-month-oldsonBenjaminwhilestudyingartseducationin

Chinesekindergartensandelementaryschools.ButoneofthemosttellinglessonsEllen

andIgotinthedifferencebetweenChineseandAmericanideasofeducationcamenotin

theclassroombutinthelobbyoftheJinlingHotelwherewestayedinNanjing.

Thekeytoourroomwasattachedtoalargeplasticblockwiththeroomnumberonit.

Whenleavingthehotel,aguestwasencouragedtoturninthekey,eitherbyhandingitto

anattendantorbydroppingitthroughaslotintoabox.Becausethekeyslotwasnarrow,

thekeyhadtobepositionedcarefullytofitintoit.

Benjaminlovedtocarrythekeyaround,shakingitvigorously.Healsolikedtotrytoplace

itintotheslot.Becauseofhistenderageandincompleteunderstandingoftheneedto

positionthekeyjustso,hewouldusuallyfail.Benjaminwasnotbotheredintheleast.He

probablygotasmuchpleasureoutofthesoundsthekeymadeashedidthosefewtimes

whenthekeyactuallyfounditswayintotheslot.

NowbothEllenandIwereperfectlyhappytoallowBenjamintobangthekeynearthekey

slot.Hisexploratorybehaviorseemedharmlessenough.ButIsoonobservedan

interestingphenomenon.AnyChinesestaffmembernearbywouldcomeovertowatch

Benjaminand,notinghislackofinitialsuccess,attempttoassist.Heorshewouldhold

ontoBenjamin'shandand,gentlybutfirmly,guideitdirectlytowardtheslot,repositionit

asnecessary,andhelphimtoinsertit.The"teacher"wouldthensmilesomewhat

expectantlyatEllenorme,asifawaitingathankyou-andonoccasionwouldfrown

slightly,asifconsideringustobeneglectingourparentalduties.

IsoonrealizedthatthisincidentwasdirectlyrelevanttoourassignedtasksinChina:to

investigatethewaysofearlychildhoodeducation(especiallyinthearts),andtothrowlight

onChineseattitudestowardcreativity.AndsobeforelongIbegantointroducethe

key-slotanecdoteintomydiscussionswithChineseeducators.

TWODIFFERENTWAYSTOLEARN

WithafewexceptionsmyChinesecolleaguesdisplayedthesameattitudeasthestaffat

theJinlingHotel.Sinceadultsknowhowtoplacethekeyinthekeyslot,whichisthe

ultimatepurposeofapproachingtheslot,andsincethechildisneitheroldenoughnor

cleverenoughtorealizethedesiredactiononhisown,whatpossiblegainisachievedby

havinghimstruggle?Hemaywellgetfrustratedandangry-certainlynotadesirable

outcome.Whynotshowhimwhattodo?Hewillbehappy,hewilllearnhowtoaccomplish

thetasksooner,andthenhecanproceedtomorecomplexactivities,likeopeningthe

doororaskingforthekey—bothofwhichaccomplishmentscan(andshould)indue

coursebemodeledforhimaswell.

Welistenedtosuchexplanationssympatheticallyandexplainedthat,firstofall,wedidnot

muchcarewhetherBenjaminsucceededininsertingthekeyintotheslot.Hewashaving

agoodtimeandwasexploring,twoactivitiesthatdidmattertous.Butthecriticalpoint

wasthat,intheprocess,weweretryingtoteachBenjaminthatonecansolveaproblem

effectivelybyoneself.Suchself-relianceisaprincipalvalueofchildrearingin

middle-classAmerica.Solongasthechildisshownexactlyhowtodosomething一

whetheritbeplacingakeyinakeyslot,drawingahenormakingupforamisdeed—he

islesslikelytofigureouthimselfhowtoaccomplishsuchatask.And,moregenerally,he

islesslikelytoviewlife-asAmericansdo-asaseriesofsituationsinwhichonehasto

learntothinkforoneself,tosolveproblemsonone'sownandeventodiscovernew

problemsforwhichcreativesolutionsarewanted.

TEACHINGBYHOLDINGHISHAND

Inretrospect,itbecamecleartomethatthisincidentwasindeedkey-andkeyinmore

thanonesense.Itpointedtoimportantdifferencesintheeducationalandartisticpractices

inourtwocountries.

Whenourwell-intentionedChineseobserverscametoBenjamin'srescue,theydidnot

simplypushhishanddownclumsilyoruncertainly,asImighthavedone.Instead,they

guidedhimwithextremefacilityandgentlenessinpreciselythedesireddirection.Icame

torealizethattheseChinesewerenotjustmoldingandshapingBenjamin'sperformance

inanyoldmanner:InthebestChinesetradition,theywerebazheshoujiao—"teaching

byholdinghishand"一somuchsothathewouldhappilycomebackformore.

Theideathatlearningshouldtakeplacebycontinualcarefulshapingandmoldingapplies

equallytothearts.Watchingchildrenatworkinaclassroomsetting,wewereastonished

bytheirfacility.Childrenasyoungas5or6werepaintingflowers,fishandanimalswith

theskillandconfidenceofanadult;calligraphers9and10yearsoldwereproducing

worksthatcouldhavebeendisplayedinamuseum.Inavisittothehomesoftwoofthe

youngartists,welearnedfromtheirparentsthattheyworkedonperfectingtheircraftfor

severalhoursaday.

CREATIVITYFIRST?

Intermsofattitudestocreativitythereseemstobeareversalofpriorities:young

Westernersmakingtheirboldestdeparturesfirstandthengraduallymasteringthe

tradition;andyoungChinesebeingalmostinseparablefromthetradition,but,overtime,

possiblyevolvingtoapointequallyoriginal.

OnewayofsummarizingtheAmericanpositionistostatethatwevalueoriginalityand

independencemorethantheChinesedo.Thecontrastbetweenourtwoculturescanalso

beseenintermsofthefearswebothharbor.Chineseteachersarefearfulthatifskillsare

notacquiredearly,theymayneverbeacquired;thereis,ontheotherhand,no

comparablehurrytopromotecreativity.Americaneducatorsfearthatunlesscreativityhas

beenacquiredearly,itmayneveremerge;ontheotherhand,skillscanbepickeduplater.

However,Idonotwanttooverstatemycase.Thereisenormouscreativitytobefoundin

Chinesescientific,technologicalandartisticinnovationspastandpresent.Andthereisa

dangerofexaggeratingcreativebreakthroughsintheWest.Whenanyinnovationis

examinedclosely,itsrelianceonpreviousachievementsisalltooapparent(the"standing

ontheshouldersofgiants"phenomenon).

ButassumingthatthecontrastIhavedevelopedisvalid,andthatthefosteringofskills

andcreativityarebothworthwhilegoals,theimportantquestionbecomesthis:Canwe

gather,fromtheChineseandAmericanextremes,asuperiorwaytoapproacheducation,

perhapsstrikingabetterbalancebetweenthepolesofcreativityandbasicskills?

(1182words)

NewWordsandExpressions

style

n.mannerofdoingthings行為方式，風格

bustling

a.fullofbusyactMty繁忙的，熙攘的

kindergarten

n.幼兒園

elementary

a.基本的，初級的，基礎的

telling

a.impressive;effective難忘的；有力的

lobby

n.(旅館的)大堂，(公共場所入口處的)大廳

attach

vt.fastenorjoin(onethingtoanother)系，貼,連接

attendantA

n.服務員；侍者，隨從

slotA

n.anarrowopening狹縫，狹槽

vigorously

ad.energetically用力地；精力充沛地

vigorousa.

tender

a.young;gentleandloving年幼的；溫柔的

notintheleast

notatall

findone'sway

reachadestinationnaturally;arriveat至U達；進入，流入

bang

v.(causeto)makeasuddenloudnoise,esp.byhittingtwothingstogether猛敲,猛擊

exploratory

a.doneinordertofindoutsth.探索的

phenomenon(plphenomenaorphenomenons)

n.現(xiàn)象

staff

n.全體職工，全體雇員

initial

a.oforatthebeginning,first開始的，最初的

assist

v.help幫助

reposition

vt.改變…的位置

insert

vt.put,fit,place(in,into,between)插入，嵌入

somewhat

ad.tosomedegree,alittle有點，稍微

expectantly

ad.期待地

await

vt.(fml)waitfor等待，等候

occasion

n.aparticulartimewhensth.happens時亥!J,場合

onoccasion

nowandthen有時，間或

frown

v.,n.皺眉

slightly

ad.輕微地

slighta.

neglect

vt.givetoolittleattentionorcareto忽視

parental

a.ofaparentorparents父的，母的；父母的

relevant

a.directlyconnectedwiththesubject有關的，切題的

investigate

v.trytofindoutinformationabout調(diào)查；探究

creativity

n.theabilitytomakenewthings倉U造力

anecdoteA

n.ashortamusingstoryaboutaparticularpersonorevent趣聞，軼事

exception

n.例外

colleague

n.apersononeworkswith同事

action

n.動作；行動

onone'sown

withoutanyone'shelp;alone獨立地；獨自地

desirable

a.worthwanting值得向往的；稱心的

accomplish

vt.managetodo(sth.)完成(某事)

activity

n.活動，行動

accomplishment

n.skill;successfulcompletion本領，技藝；完成，成就

induecourse

atthepropertime在適當時機

sympathetically

ad.同情地

sympathetica.

critical

a.veryimportant;veryseriousordangerous至關重要的；危急的

effectively

ad.有效地

effectivea.

self-reliance

n.actingwithoutaskingforsupportfromothers依靠自己，自力更生

principal

a.(ratherfml)main,chief主要的，首要的

rear

vt.lookafteruntilfullygrownup養(yǎng)育，撫養(yǎng)

makeupfor

repaywithsth.good,compensatefor補償，彌補

misdeed

n.awrongorwickedact不端行為

view

vt.(fml)regard,consider看待，考慮

creative

a.resultingfromnewnessofthought獨創(chuàng)的

solution

n.(theactoffinding)ananswertoaproblem解決(問題的辦法)；解答

inretrospect

回顧

artistic

a.relatingtoart藝術的

well-intentioned

a.havinggoodintentions好意的

intention

n.purpose意圖

observer

n.觀察者，觀察員

clumsily

ad.awkwardlyandungracefully笨拙地

clumsya.

extreme

a.verygreat極度的，極端的

n.thefurthestpossiblelimit,anextremedegree極端，過分

facility

n.(fml)abilitytodosth.easilyandwell;(pl)equipment,aids,etc.whichmakeiteasytodo

things熟練，靈巧；設備，設施

mold

vt.make(sth.)intoaparticularshapeorform塑造

performance

n.表現(xiàn)，行為；演出，表演

tradition

n.傳統(tǒng)

continual

a.happeningagainandagain,repeated不斷的，一再重復的

apply

vi.適用；申請

calligrapher

n.書法家

workno/at

從事

craft

n.skill,esp.withone'shand工藝

reversal

n.acompletechangeoforder,direction,orposition顛倒

priority

n.sth.thatonemustdobeforeanythingelse;sth.thatholdsahighplaceamong

competingclaims優(yōu)先考慮的事；重點

bold

a.braveandconfident勇敢的，無畏的

departure

n.actiondifferentfrom(whatisusualorexpected);anactofleaving背離；出發(fā)，離開

inseparable

a.impossibletoseparatefromsth.else不可分離的

evolve

v.(causeto)developgradually(使)逐步發(fā)展

summarize

vt.makeashortaccountofthemainpoints(ofsth.)總結，概述

originality

n.新穎；獨創(chuàng)性

independence

n.thestateofbeingfreeornotcontrolledbyanotherperson,country,etc.獨立；自主

contrast

v.對比

culture

n.文化

harbor

vt.keep(sth.)secretlyinone'smind懷有

fearful

a.(fml)afraid害怕的，擔心的

(ontheonehand)...ontheotherhand

一方面...，另一方面…

comparable

a.thatcanbecomparedwithsth.比得上的；可比的

promote

vt.helptogrowordevelop推進

emerge

vi.comeout出現(xiàn)

pickup

gain;learn獲得；學會

overstate

vt.statetoostrongly把…講得過分,夸大

enormous

a.extremelylarge巨大的；極大的

technological

a,技術的，工藝的

innovationA

n.(anexampleof)theintroductionofsth.new革新；新事物

exaggerate

v.make(sth.)seemlarger,better,etc.thanitreallyis夸大，夸張

breakthroughA

n.animportanteventordiscovery突破

relianceA

n.dependence依靠，依賴

achievement

n.成就；成績

valid

a.basedontruthorsoundreasoning有根據(jù)的

fosterA

vt.helpthegrowthanddevelopmentof培養(yǎng)

worthwhile

a.worthdoing,worththetroubletaken值得的

superior

a.betterthanaverageorthanothersofthesametype優(yōu)良的；較好的

ProperNames

HowardGardner

霍華德?加德納

Ellen

埃倫(女子名)

Nanjing

南京

Jinling

金陵飯店

UNIT4

TheVirtualWorld

TextA

MaiaSzalavitz,formerlyatelevisionproducer,nowspendshertimeasawriter.Inthis

essaysheexploresdigitalrealityanditsconsequences.Alongtheway,shecomparesthe

digitalworldtothe"real"world,acknowledgingtheattractionsoftheelectronicdimension.

AVIRTUALLIFE

MaiaSzalavitz

AftertoolongontheNet,evenaphonecallcanbeashock.Myboyfriend'sLiverpool

accentsuddenlybecomesimpossibletointerpretafterhiseasilyunderstoodwordson

screen;asecretary'sclippedtoneseemsmorerejectingthanI'dimagineditwouldbe.

Timeitselfbecomesfluid—hoursbecomeminutes,orsecondsstretchintodays.

Weekends,onceahighlightofmyweek,arenowjusttwoordinarydays.

Forthelastthreeyears,sinceIstoppedworkingasatelevisionproducer,Ihavedone

muchofmyworkasatelecommuter.Isubmitarticlesandeditthemviaemailand

communicatewithcolleaguesonInternetmailinglists.MyboyfriendlivesinEngland,so

muchofourrelationshipisalsocomputer-assisted.

IfIdesired,Icouldstayinsideforweekswithoutwantinganything.Icanorderfood,and

managemymoney,loveandwork.Infact,attimesIhavespentaslongasthreeweeks

aloneathome,goingoutonlytogetmailandbuynewspapersandgroceries.Iwatched

mostoftheendlesssnowstormof'96onTV.

Butafterawhile,lifeitselfbeginstofeelunreal.IstarttofeelasthoughI'vebecomeone

withmymachines,takingdatain,spittingthembackout,justanotherlinkintheNet.

Othersonlinereportthesamesymptoms.Westarttofeelanaversiontooutsideformsof

socializing.WehavebecometheNetcritics'worstnightmare.

Whatfirstseemedlikealuxury,crawlingfrombedtocomputer,notworryingabouthair,

andclothesandface,hasbecomeaformofescape,alackofdiscipline.Andonceyou

startreplacingrealhumancontactwithcyber-interaction,comingbackoutofthecavecan

bequitedifficult.

Ifindmyselfshyer,morecautious,moreanxious.Or,conversely,whensuddenly

confrontedwithreallivehumans,Igetoverexcited,speaktoomuch,interrupt.Iconstantly

worryifIamdressedappropriately,thatperhapsI'veactuallyforgottentoputonaskirt

andwalkedoutsideintheT-shirtandunderwearIsleepandlivein.

Attimes,Iturnonthetelevisionandjustleaveittotalkawayinthebackground,

somethingthatI'dneverdonepreviously.Thevoicesoftheprogramsarecomforting,but

thenI'mjarredbythecommercials.Ifindmyselfsuckedinbysoapoperas,orneedingto

keepupwiththelatestnewsandtheweather."Dateline,""Frontline,""Nightline,"CNN,

NewYork1,everypossibleangleofeverystoryoverandoverandover,evenwhenthey

areofnopossibleusetome.Workmovesintothebackground.Idecidetocheckmy

email.

Online,Ifindmyselfattackingeveryoneinsight.Iambad-tempered,andeasilyangered.

Ifindeveryoneonmymailinglistinsensitive,believingthatthey'veforgottenthatthereare

peopleactuallyreadingtheirwoundingremarks.Idon'trealizethatI'mprojectinguntil

afterI'vebeenembarrassedbysomeonewhopolitelypointsoutthatI'veattackedherfor

agreeingwithme.

WhenI'minthisstate,Ifightmyboyfriendaswell,misinterpretinghisintentionsbecause

ofthelackofemotionalcuesgivenbyourtypeddialogue.Thefighttakeshours,because

thesystemkeepscrashing.Isayaline,thenhedoes,thencrash!Andyetwekeepon,

doggedly.

I'dneverrealizedhowimportantdailyroutineis:dressingforwork,sleepingnormalhours.

I'dneverthoughtIreliedsomuchonco-workersforcompany.Ibegantounderstandwhy

long-termunemploymentcanbesodamaging,whylifewithoutanexternallysupported

dailyplancanleadtohigherratesofdrugabuse,crime,suicide.

Torestorebalancetomylife,Iforcemyselfbackintotherealworld.Icallpeople,arrange

tomeetwiththefewremainingfriendswhohaven'tfledNewYorkCity.Itrytoatleastget

tothegym,soastosetaparttheweekendfromtherestofmyweek.Iarrangeinterviews

forstories,doctor'sappointments—anythingtogetmeoutofthehouseandconnected

withothers.

Butsometimesbeingfacetofaceistoomuch.Iseeafriendandherringinglaughteris

intolerable-thenoiseofconversationintherestaurant,unbearable.Imakemyexcuses

andflee.Ire-entermyapartmentandruntothecomputerasthoughitwereaplaceof

safety.

Iclickonthemodem,theonce-annoyingsoundoftheconnectionnowaspleasantasmy

favoritetune.Ientermypassword.Therealworlddisappears.

(820words)

NewWordsandExpressions

virtual

a.虛擬的；實質(zhì)上的

accent

n.口音

interpret

v.理解；解釋；(作)口譯

clipped

a.withashortclearpronunciation發(fā)音快而清脆的

tone

n.語氣，口氣，腔調(diào)

fluid

a.notstable,likelytochange不穩(wěn)定的，可變的

n.液體

stretch

v.(causeto)becomelonger,wider,etc.withoutbreaking拉長，伸展

telecommuter

n.onewhoworksfromhome,communicatingwiththeworkplaceusingacomputer

terminal遠程工作者

submit

vt.give(sth.)tosb.sothatitmaybeformallyconsidered提交，呈遞

edit

vt.reviseorcorrect編輯

email

n.電子郵件

vt,給…發(fā)電子郵件；用電子郵件發(fā)

communicate

vi.通信，交往

Internet

n.互聯(lián)網(wǎng)，因特網(wǎng)

relationship

n.關系

attimes

sometimes有時

endless

a.havingorseemingtohavenoend無休止的

takein

收進，吸收

data

n.(datum的復數(shù)形式)數(shù)據(jù)，資料

spit

vt.吐出

online

connectedtoorcontrolledbyacomputer(network)聯(lián)機地，在線

symptom

n.征兆；癥狀

aversion

n.astrongfeelingofdislike厭惡，反感

socialize

vi.mixsociallywithothers社交，交際

critic

n.apersonwhojudgesorcriticizes評論家；對…持批評態(tài)度的人

nightmare

n.aterrifyingdream噩夢

crawl

vi.爬，爬行

interaction

n.交往；相互作用

cyber-interaction

n.通過網(wǎng)絡交往

conversely

ad.相反地

appropriately

ad.適當?shù)?，得體地

appropriatea.

T-shirt

n.T恤衫

underwear

n.內(nèi)衣

butthen

yetatthesametime但另一方面，然而

jar

v.使感到不快，刺激（神經(jīng)等）

commercial

n.商業(yè)廣告

a.商業(yè)的

suck

v.drawliquidorairintothemouth吸，吮

suckin吸引，使卷入；吸收

opera

n,歌?。ㄋ囆g）

soapopera

肥皂劇（以家庭問題為題材的廣播或電視連續(xù)?。?/p>

keepupwith

learnaboutorbeawareof（thenews,etc.）；moveatthesamerateas及時了解或是艮上

angle

n.aparticularwayofconsideringanissue,etc.角度，立場

insight

visible;likelytocomesoon可看到的；臨近

bad-tempered

a.havingabadtemper脾氣壞的，易怒的

insensitive

a.notabletofeel,unsympathetictootherpeople'sfeelings感覺遲鈍的，麻木不仁的

sensitive

a.敏感的

remark

n.言辭，話語

v.說，評說

project

v.imaginethatothershave（thesamefeelings,usu.unpleasantones）asyou以為另ij人也

有（與自己同樣的情緒）

misinterpret

vt.understandwrongly錯誤地理解，錯誤地解釋

emotional

a.感情上的；動感情的

cue

n.提示，暗示

doggedly

ad.persistently頑強地，堅持不懈地

routine

n.例行事務，日常工作，慣例

rely

vi.dependconfidently,puttrustin依靠，依賴

unemploymentA

n.失業(yè)

externally

ad.從外面，在外部

external

a.外面的，外部的

abuse

n.wrongorexcessiveuse;crueltreatment濫用，虐待

crime

n.(犯)罪

suicide

n.自殺

restore

vt.bringbacktoaformercondition恢復

arrange

vt.prepareorplan安排

flee

v.runaway(from)逃走；逃離

gym

n.體育館，健身房

setapart

使分離，使分開

interview

n.,vt.接見；面試

appointment

n.約會

laughter

n.笑，笑聲

intolerable

a.toobadtobeendured不能忍受的，無法容忍的

apartment

n.一套公寓房間；公寓

click

v.（使）發(fā)咔噠聲；用鼠標點擊

n.咔噠聲

modem

n.調(diào)制解調(diào)器

annoying

a.討厭的，惱人的

annoy

vt.makeangry,irritate;bother使惱怒，使煩惱

connection

n.連接

tune

n.曲子，曲調(diào)

password

n.口令，密碼

ProperNames

MaiaSzalavitz

邁亞?塞拉維茨

Liverpool

利物浦（英格蘭西部港口城市）

Dateline

美國NationalBroadcastingCompany(NBC)的專題新聞報道節(jié)目

Frontline

美國PublicBroadcastingService(PBS)的專題新聞報道節(jié)目

Nightline

美國AmericanBroadcastingCompany(ABC)的專題新聞報道節(jié)目

CNN=CableNewsNetwork

(美國)有線新聞電視網(wǎng)

UNIT6

WomenHalftheSky

TextA

Howdosomewomenmanagetocombineafull-timejobwithfamilyresponsibilitiesand

stillfindtimefordoingotherthings?AdriennePopperlongstobelikethem,butwonders

whetheritisanimpossibledream.

I'MGOINGTOBUYTHEBROOKLYNBRIDGE

NotlongagoIreceivedanalumnibulletinfrommycollege.Itincludedabriefitemabouta

formerclassmate:"KateL.teachespart-timeattheUniversityofOklahomaandis

assistantprincipalatCountyHighSchool.Inhersparetimesheisfinishingherdoctoral

dissertationandthefinaldraftsoftwobooks,andshestillhastimefortennisandhorse

ridingwithherdaughters."Fourwordsinthatdescriptionundidme:inhersparetime.A

friendsaidthatifIbelievedeverythinginthereport,shehadabridgeinBrooklynshe'd

liketosellme.

Myfriend'sjokehithome.WhatanidiotI'dbeen!IresolvedtostopthinkingaboutKate's

incredibleaccomplishmentsandtobesuitablyskepticalofsuchstoriesinthefuture.

Butlikeadieterwhodevoursawholeboxofcookiesinamomentofweakness,Ifound

myresolveslippingoccasionally.InweakmomentsI'dcombthepagesofnewspapers

andmagazinesandconsumesuccessstoriesbythepound.Myfavoritesuperwomen

includedapolitician'sdaughterwhocaredforhertwo-year-oldandanewbornwhile

finishinglawschoolandmanagingacompany;apracticingpediatricianwithtenchildren

otherown;andatelevisionanchorwoman,motheroftwopreschoolers,whowasstudying

foramaster'sdegree.

Oneday,however,Iactuallymetasuperwomanfacetoface.JustbeforeChristmaslast

year,myworktookmetotheofficeofawomanexecutiveofanationalcorporation.Like

hersupersisters,shehasahusband,twosmallchildrenand,accordingtoreports,a

spotlessapartment.HerliferunsaspreciselyasaSwisswatch.Sincemyownschedule

rarelysucceeds,heraccomplishmentsfillmewithequalamountsofwonderandguilt.

Onashelfbehindherdeskthatdaywereatleastahundredjarsofstrawberryjam,gaily

tiedwithred-checkedribbons.Theexecutiveandherchildrenhadmadethejamand

decoratedthejars,whichsheplannedtodistributetoherstaffandvisitingclients.

When,Iwonderedaloud,hadshefoundthetimetocompletesuchanimpressiveholiday

project?Ishouldhaveknownbetterthantoask.Theanswerhadafamiliarring:inher

sparetime.

OnthetrainridehomeIsatwithajarofstrawberryjaminmylap.Itreproachedmethe

entiretrip.Otherwomen,itseemedtosay,aremoversandshakers—notonlyduring

officehours,butintheirsparetimeaswell.What,itasked,doyouaccomplishinyour

sparetime?

IwouldliketoreportthatIamusingmyextramomentstocompletepostdoctoralstudiesin

physics,todevelopnewtheoriesoftonalharmonyforpianoandhorn,andtobakecakes

andplaybaseballwithmysons.Thetruthofthematteris,however,thatIambynature

completelyunabletogetmyacttogether.NomatterhowcarefullyIplanmytime,theplan

alwaysgoeswrong.

IfIcreateschedulesofmilitaryprecisioninwhichseveralafternoonhoursaregivenover

tothewritingoftheGreatAmericanNovel,theschoolnurseissuretophoneatexactlythe

momentIputpenciltopaper.Oneofmychildrenwillhavedevelopedastrangeillness

thatrequireshimtospendtheremainderofthedayinbed,callingmeatfrequentintervals

tobringsoup,juice,andtea.

Otherdays,everyitemonmyschedulewilltakethreetimesthenumberofminutesset

aside.Thecleanerwillmisplacemyclothes.Myorderwon'tbereadyatthebutchershop

aspromised.Thewomanaheadofmeinthesupermarketlinewillpayforhergroceries

withacheckdrawnonaMartianbank,andonlythemanager(whohasjustleftforlunch)

canOKthematter."Theyalsoservewhoonlystandandwait,"wrotethepoetJohnMilton,

butheforgottoaddthattheydon'tgettobesuperwomenthatway.

RacingtheclockeverydayissuchanexhaustingeffortthatwhenIactuallyhaveafew

freemoments,Itendtocollapse.MostlyIsinkintoachairandstareintospacewhileI

imaginehowlovelylifewouldbeifonlyIpossessedtheorganizationalskillsandthe

energyofmysuperheroines.Infact,Iwasteagooddealofmysparetimejustworrying

aboutwhatotherwomenareaccomplishingintheirs.SometimesIthinkthatthesemodern

fairytalescreateasmanyproblemsforwomenastheoldstoriesthathadusbidingour

timeforthedayourprincewouldcome.

Yetsuperwomentalescontinuetocharmme.Despitemyfriend'swarningagainstbeing

takenin,despiteeverythingI'velearned,IfindthatI'mnotonlywilling,butpositivelyeager

tobuythatbridgeshementioned.Why?Isupposeithassomethingtodowiththeappeal

ofanoptimisticapproachtolife-andthefactthatextraordinarydeedshavebeen

accomplishedbydeterminedinpidualswhorefusedtobelievethat"youcan't"wasthe

finalwordontheirdreams.

Menhavegenerallybeenassuredthatachievingtheirheart'sdesireswouldbeapieceof

cake.Women,ofcourse,havealwaysbelievedthatwecan'thaveourcakeandeatittoo

—theoldlow-dreamdiet.Perhapsbecomingasuperwomanisanimpossibledreamfor

me,butlifewithoutthatkindoffantasyisasunappealingasadietwithnotreats.

Iknowtheideaofadmiringaheroineisconsideredsillytoday;weworkingwomenaretoo

sophisticatedforthat.YetthesuperwomenIreadaboutaremyheroines.Whenmyfaithin

myselffalters,itistheywhourgemeon,whispering,"Goforit,lady!"

OneofthesedaysIplantophonemyformerclassmateKateandshout"Welldone!"into

thereceiver.Ihopeshewon'tbemodestaboutherachievements.Perhapsshewillhave

completedherdissertationandhertwobooksandmovedontosomenewworkthat's

excitingordangerousorboth.I'dliketohearallaboutit.AfterthatI'mgoingtophonethe

friendwholaughedatmeforbelievingallthestoriesIhear.ThenHItellherastory:the

taleofawomanwhoboughtherownversionofthatbridgeinBrooklynandfoundthatit

wasawiseinvestmentafterall.

(1097words)

NewWordsandExpressions

alumnus(plalumni)

n.(esp.AmE)a(male)formerstudentofaschool,collegeoruniversity(男)校友

bulletinA

n.簡報，通訊；會刊；公告

item

n.asinglepieceofnews;asinglearticleorunitonalistoramongaset一則(消息);一

條，一項，一件

doctoral

a.博士的

dissertation

n.(博士)學位論文，專題論文

draft

n.aroughoutlineorversion草稿

undo(undid,undone)

vt.disturborupsetgreatly;untie,open使煩惱，使不安；松開，解開

hit/strikehome

(ofremarks￡忙.)havetheintendedeffect(言語等)擊中要害

idiotA

n.(colloq)afool

incredible

a.thatcannotbebelieved難以置信的

skepticalA

a.(inthehabitof)doubtingthatsth.istrue,right,etc.持懷疑態(tài)度的，懷疑的

dieter

n.apersonwhoeatslessfoodoronlycertainkindsoffood節(jié)食者；忌食某些食物的人

devour

vt.eat(sth.)quicklyandinlargequantities狼吞虎咽地吃

cookie

n.(AmE)biscuit餅干

occasionally

ad.happeningsometimesbutnotveryoften偶爾地，間或

occasionala.

consume

v.eatordrink;useup吃；喝；耗盡；消費

superwoman

n.awomanhavingmorethanordinaryhumanpowersandabilities具有非凡才能的女性,

女強人

politician

n.政治家；政客

carefor

takecareof;