Unit Six Section A

Life in a Violin Case

Teaching Plan

Ⅰ. Objectives

Ⅱ. New Words and Phrases

Ⅲ. Lead-in

Ⅳ. Cultural Notes

Ⅴ. Language Points and Sentence Explanation

Ⅵ.Assignments

Ⅰ. Objectives

After studying this text, students are expected to be able to:

1. talk about their dreams;

2. talk about the relations between dreams and reality;

3. realize what they should and shouldn’t do in order to make their dreams come true;

4. master new words, phrases, language points, and understand the text.

Ⅱ. New Words and Phrases1.disapprove  vi. have an unfavorable opinion 不赞成；不同意

She will not go to the party if her mother disapproves. 要是她妈妈不同意，她就不会去参加晚会。Do you disapprove of advertisements for cigarettes? 你反对香烟广告吗？

disapprovaln. not approving (of sb/sth) He shook his head in disapproval. 他摇头表示反对。disapproving a. approven. 1. approve (of sb/sth) say, show or feel that sth is good

or acceptable or satisfactoryI approve of your trying to earn some money, but don’t

neglect your studies. 我同意你赚钱，可是不能影响学习。

2. confirm (sth), acceptThe auditors approved the company’s accounts. 审计员核准了公司的帐目。approval n.2.economical a. careful in the spending of money, time, etc and in the use of resources; not wasteful 节俭的 , 省时的economy; economics; economisteconomize vi. ~(on sth) save(money, time, resources, etc); spend less than before 节省 , 节约economize on water/ electricity3.consequence  n. 1.[C] something that follows from an action or set of conditions; a result 结果；后果You must accept the consequences of your own decisions. 你必须承担你自己的决定所带来的后果。

2.(fml) importanceIt is of no consequence. 这无关紧要。consequent n. ~ (on/upon sth)(fml) following sth as a result or an effect 由某事物引起的，随之发生的his resignation and the consequent public uproar. 他的辞职以及由此引起的公众的哗然。consequently adv. as a result; therefore 所以，因而consequential a. (fml) 1. following as a result or an effect (esp indirect) 随之发生的（尤指间接发生的）2. of far-reaching importance 有深远重要性的3. (derog)(of a person) self-important; pompous 自高自大的，自负的4.mention  n. (usually singular) a short remark about something or the naming of somebody 提及；说起

There is nothing worthy of special mention. 没什么值得特别一提。vt. tell about something in a few words, without giving details; say the name of 提及；说起 He's very sensitive about being small; so don't mention it. 他对自己个子矮小很敏感，所以别提这个话题。 5. existence  n. 1. (singular) life; way of living 生活；生存方式Environmental pollution threatens the existence of wild animals. 环境污染对野生动物的生存造成了威胁。2. [U] the state of existing 存在Do you believe in the existence of ghosts? 你相信有鬼魂存在吗？

exist v. 1. be real or actual; have being 存在，有Dose life exist on Mars? 火星上有生命吗？2. be found; occur 被发现；发生This plant exists only in Australia. 这种植物只产于澳大利亚。3. continue living, esp with difficulty or with very little money; survive 生存；活下来；幸存We can’t exist without food or water. 没有食物或水我们就不能生存。existent a. existing; actual 存在的；现有的；现存的6.satisfaction  n. [C; U] (something that gives) a feeling of happiness or pleasure 满意；愉快；令人愉快的事物Nothing is to your satisfaction. 什么事都不能让你满意。

satisfy v. give (sb) what he wants, demands or needs; make contented 使满意或满足Nothing satisfies him: he’s always complaining.satisfying; satisfied; satisfactory7.seek  (sought; sought)v. make a search (for); try to find or get (something) 寻找（某物）；寻求；追求 We are seeking the truth. 我们正在查找真相。8.condition  vt. train to behave in a certain way in certain conditions 使适应；使习惯于It didn't take the kid long to become conditioned to the new environment. 那个孩子没花多长时间就适应了新环境。n.1. [C] the state of being or existence 状况；状态

As the patient was in critical condition, the ambulance sped away in a hurry. 由于病人的状况危急，救护车疾驰而去。2. [C] something that is stated as necessary in order for something else to happen or exist 条件；先决条件 He'll accept your offer on the condition that you are sincere. 只要你诚心，他会接受你的出价的。9.keep the wolves/wolf at bay/from the door  earn just enough money to eat and live 仅够免于挨饿；勉强维持生计 With six family members to provide for, he earns hardly enough to keep the wolves at bay. 由于他要供养 6 口人 , 因此他挣的钱仅够糊口。

The couple was laid off and the family could only just keep the wolf from the door. 夫妇俩都下岗后，全家只能勉强维持生计。10.pass somebody by/over  pay no attention to; take no notice of 对……不予理会；无视；忽略 If you work hard and play a role in society, life will never pass you by. 如果你勤奋工作，为社会服务，生活总会眷顾你的。When the boss considered his employees for promotion, John was passed over. 老板在考虑职员升职问题时把约翰忽略了。

Ⅲ. Lead-in

Students are encouraged to discuss the following questions:

2.What factors are the most important in realizing your dream?

1. What is your dream?

3.What may have to be given up for the realization of your dream?

4. Have you ever given up your dream because of reality? Will you continue your efforts to realize it once you’ve got a chance?

Ⅳ. Cultural Notes

Spring Hill College is the first Catholic (天主教的 ) college in the Southeast of the USA, the third oldest Jesuit (耶酥会会士 ) college in the country and the fifth oldest Catholic college in America. It is a four-year, coeducational (男女同校的 ), liberal arts (文科 ) and sciences institution located near the Gulf Coast in Mobile, Alabama.  

1. Spring Hill College

Columbia University was founded in 1754 as King's College by the Royal Charter of King George II of England, which defined the institution's goal as "the Institution and Education of Youth in the Learned Languages and Liberal Arts and Sciences". After the American Revolution, the College reopened in 1784 with a new name—Columbia—that embodied (体现 ) the patriotic fervor (爱国热情 ) that had inspired (激发 ) the nation's search for independence. Located in the City of New York, it is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York and the fifth oldest in the United States.

2. Columbia University

3.Out of Love VS Out of Need

a job of interest VS a job of a good pay

ideal VS reality

idealism VS realism

Ⅴ. Language Points and Sentence Explanation

1. Life in a Violin Case Meaning: Leading a Life as a Violinist. This text is about the author's life as a musician and how he enjoys this kind of life. It is most probable that he plays the violin, so the title is like this.a violin case: a wooden and leather case for holding a violin 2. In order to tell you what I believe, I must briefly bring up something from my personal history. Meaning: In order to tell you my beliefs, I must first say a few words about what has happened to my family and me. 3. The turning point of my life was my decision to give up a promising career in business to study music.

Meaning: An important change took place in my life when I decided to give up my career in business to study music, though it seemed that I could have achieved great success in business. 4 .My parents, although sympathetic, disapproved of music as an occupation.Meaning: My parents understood my feelings, but they didn't think it was a good choice for me to take up music as a job.Notice here that disapprove is followed by the preposition of. 5. This was understandable, I thought, in view of my family background.Meaning: I could understand why they were against me when my family background was taken into consideration.in view of: considering; take into consideration 考虑到；由于；鉴于

In view of our research, we conclude that we can introduce our new product to the market. 据我们调查，我们能得出结论——可以把新产品推向市场。

In view of the employees' disapproval, the management is not going to continue the program. 由于员工们的反对，管理层将不再继续这个项目。 6. My grandfather taught music for nearly forty years at Spring Hill College. Meaning: My grandfather taught music for almost forty years at Spring Hill College. 7. Despite being greatly respected in the community, he earned barely enough to provide for his large family. Meaning: Though he was greatly respected by other people in his area, he earned so little that he was almost unable to supply his large family with what they needed for life.

8. My father often said that it was only because my grandmother was so economical that the wolves were kept at bay. Meaning: My father often said that they had just enough money to eat and live only because my grandmother knew how to use money carefully and without waste.hold/keep somebody at bay: to keep (an enemy or something unwanted) some distance away 使（敌人）不能迫近She held the gun tightly, trying to keep the stranger at bay. 她紧紧握着枪，试图不让陌生人靠近。Try to keep the gangsters at bay while I call the police. 我打电话报警，你想办法别让歹徒靠近。 9. As a consequence of this example in the family, the very mention of music as a career carried with it the idea of an

uncertain existence.Meaning: Because my grandfather had set a negative example for the family, if anyone ever talked about taking up music as a career, the others would think immediately that it meant you'd have to live without a stable income.10. My parents insisted upon college instead of music school, and so to college I went. Meaning: My parents demanded that I go to college rather than to music school, and so I went to college.insisted (up)on: order or demand (that something must happen or be done) 坚决要求The manager insisted upon having a job done well no matter how much time is required. 经理坚决要求不惜时间地把工作做好。

11. Before my graduation from Columbia University, my family ran into some money problems... Meaning: Before I graduated from Columbia University, my family was having difficulty paying all the bills… 12. Before I knew it, I had begun my career in business—a time in my life that I feel was wasted. Meaning: I had already taken up business as a career before I realized it, and now I feel that the period of time I spent doing business was wasted. 13. Now, I do not for a moment mean to speak poorly of business; my whole point is that it was just not for me.Meaning: Now, I do not at all want to say that business is something bad; I just want to say that business does not suit me.Notice that here "now" does not mean "at the present time";

instead, it is used to draw attention to a particular statement or question. 14. ... and aside from the satisfaction of being able to help the family, money is all I got out of it. Meaning: ... and except for the feeling of happiness that came from helping the family, the only thing I got from working in business was money. 15. I felt that life was passing me by. Meaning: I felt that I was not really living the life I was meant to.16. My aim was to save enough money to quit and go to Europe to study music. Meaning: My goal was to save enough money so that I didn't have to do the job any more and could go to Europe to study music.

17. I used to get up at dawn to practice before I left for "downtown". Meaning: I used to get up when the day just broke and practiced music before I went to work in the downtown area. Notice that here a quotation mark is used for the word downtown. It might suggest that the author does not like the place—the business center. 18. Instead of lunching with my coworkers, I would seek out some cheap café and order a mean meal. Meaning: I would not have lunch with my fellow workers, but would try to find a cheap café and order a simple meal. 19. I continued to make money, and finally, little by little, I saved enough to go abroad.

Meaning: I continued to make money and gradually saved enough money to go to a foreign country in the end. 20. At that time, my family no longer needed my help, and so I gave up my position and sailed for Europe. Meaning: At that time, my family no longer needed me to earn money to help them, so I quit my job in business and went to Europe by sea. 21. I stayed four years, worked harder than I had ever dreamed of working before, and enjoyed every minute of it. Meaning: I stayed in Europe for four years, worked harder than I had ever thought I would, and enjoyed every minute of my life when I was studying music. 22. "Enjoyed" is too mild a word, really...

Meaning: The word "enjoyed", as used in the previous sentence, is really not strong enough to express my feelings... 23. ... I walked on air. Meaning: ... I was extremely happy.walk on air: be extremely happy [非正式 ] 极其高兴I walked on air when I learnt that I'd won the prize. 得知自己得了奖，我高兴极了。24. I really lived. Meaning: Life was really meaningful to me. 25. I was a free man and I was doing what I loved to do and what I was meant to do. Meaning: I was a free man and I was doing what I loved to do and what I was supposed to do. 26. If I had stayed in business, I might be a really wealthy man today.

Meaning: If I had continued to work in business, I might be a really rich man now.This sentence, and a number of the following sentences, are in the subjunctive mood, as the situations described in these sentences are pure supposition and do not exist in reality. The first part of this sentence is opposite to what happened in the past—that is, "I did not stay in business"; and the second part is opposite to the current situation —that is, "I am not a really wealthy man today." Similar examples are:If I had been taller, I would have joined the army. 如果我再高一点的话，我就参军了。(I was not tall enough, so I did not join the army.)If I had started earlier, I would be at the station now. 如果我早点出发的话，我现在已经到车站了。(I did not start early, so I am not at the station now.)

27. I do not believe, however, I would have made a success of living. Meaning: But I don't think I would have lived a successful life if I had stayed in business. (In fact, I have lived a successful life because I did not stay in business.) 28. I would have given up a happiness that money can't buy—something that is all-too-often done when one's primary goal is making money. Meaning: I would have lost a happiness that money can't buy. When people's main purpose in life is making money, they always give up a happiness that money can't buy. (Fortunately, I did not give up a happiness that money can't buy because I did not stay in business.)

29. When I broke away from the business world, it was against the advice of practically all of my friends and family. Meaning: When I quit my job and left the business world, almost all of my friends and family advised me not to. 30. So conditioned are most of us to the idea that success is money—so much so that the thought of giving up a good salary for happiness seems foolish. Meaning: Most of us are used to thinking that a person is successful only if he has money. We are so convinced of this that we think it foolish to give up a well-paid job just for happiness. 31. If so, all I can say is "Gee, it's great to be foolish!"Meaning: If a person is said to be foolish just because he/she gives up a good salary for happiness, I can only say,

"Gee, it's great to be foolish!"gee: interj. an expression of surprise [非正式，尤美 ] （表示惊讶）哎呀！啊！哇！Gee, here's my book! I thought I'd lost it. 啊！我的书在这儿！我还以为丢了呢。 32. Money is a wonderful thing, but now I know that it is possible to pay too high a price for it. Meaning: Money is very useful, but now I know that some people may have to give up too much for money.

Ⅵ.Assignments

Ⅰ.Students are required to finish the exercises after the text.

P105-P109

Ⅱ.Presentation

Students are divided into 6 groups, and each group will select two representatives to make presentations on their ideals and ambitions.