Contemporary College English
Book One
Unit 7
Mandela’s Garden
A Brief Biography
► Mandela's
words, "The struggle is my life,"
are not to be taken lightly. Nelson Mandela
personifies struggle. He is still leading the
fight against apartheid with extraordinary
vigor and resilience after spending nearly
three decades of his life behind bars. He has
sacrificed his private life and his youth for
his people, and remains South Africa's best
known and loved hero.
► Mandela
has held numerous positions in the
ANC: ANCYL secretary (1948); ANCYL
president (1950); ANC Transvaal president
(1952); deputy national president (1952)
and ANC president (1991).
► He was born at Qunu, near Umtata on 18
July 1918.
► In
1944 he helped found the ANC Youth
League, whose Program of Action was
adopted by the ANC in 1949.
► Mandela was elected national volunteer-inchief of the 1952 Defiance Campaign. He
traveled the country organizing resistance to
discriminatory legislation.
► When
the ANC was banned after the
Sharpeville massacre in 1960, he was
detained until 1961 when he went
underground to lead a campaign for a new
national convention.
► In
1962 Mandela left the country for military
training in Algeria and to arrange training for
other MK members.
► On his return he was arrested for leaving the
country illegally and for incitement to strike. He
conducted his own defence. He was convicted
and jailed for five years in November 1962.
While serving his sentence, he was charged, in
the Rivonia trial, with sabotage and sentenced
to life imprisonment.
► 1993
Nobel Peace Prize Laureate
Excerpt from the Nobel Peace Prize
acceptance speech
"We stand here today as nothing more than
a representative of the millions of our
people who dared to rise up against a social
system whose very essence is war, violence,
racism, oppression, repression and the
impoverishment of an entire people."
► In 1994, he was elected President of South
Africa
► It
is significant that shortly after his release on
Sunday 11 February 1990, Mandela and his
delegation agreed to the suspension of armed
struggle.
► Mandela has honorary degrees from more than
50 international universities and is chancellor of
the University of the North.
► He was inaugurated as the first democratically
elected State President of South Africa on 10
May 1994 - June 1999
► Nelson Mandela retired from Public life in June
1999. He currently resides in his birth place Qunu, Transkei.
Warming-up questions
► 1.How
much do you know about Nelson
Mandela?
► 2. What do you think is his greatest
contribution to his country and whole
human being?
► 3. What personality do you find about
Mandela from the text?
► 4. Do you find any charisma of him as a
leader and husband?
Structure:
► Part
1: Description of his gardening
experience (para. 1- 8 )
► The gardening gives him satisfaction, offers
The and mentally.
a taste of freedom, and makes him strong
physically.
► Part
2: Significance of his gardening
experience (Para. 9 - the end)
► It has become a metaphor and gives him
inspiration on how to be a good
revolutionary leader and how to nourish
important human relationship
Questions for Text Appreciation
► 1.
“one can feel fulfilled by washing one’s
clothes ….” what is meant by “feel fulfilled…” in
this sentence, and why does he say so? (Para. 2)
► 2. What does the important tasks outside of prison
refer to? How can he feel the sane pride in doing
small things inside prison? (Para.2)
► 3. Why do people say that Mandela “was a miner
at heart”? (Para.4)
► 4. “in some way, I saw the garden as a metaphor
for certain aspects of my life.” what is being
compared? (Para.9)
► 5. Why does he have a mixture of feelings when
he writes to Winnie?
Language understanding
► The
end of manual work is liberating.
► I felt liberated from the manual work.
► I found Dickens’s novel very interesting. I
was ____.
► The news was very disappointing. I felt
terribly ______.
► The result is a bit surprising. Everybody was
______.
► The whole experience was exciting. We all
got extremely ______.
Language understanding
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survive 比……活得长， 幸存
vi. to remain alive or in existence:
----Few survived after the flood.
----Books have survived from the time of the Egyptians.
vt. to live longer than; outlive:
----He survived his wife for many years.
to live or persist through
----The house survived the storm.
----He did not long survive his humiliation.
the survival of the fittest, hopes of survival
the only survivor of the shipwreck
send help to the survivors of the earthquake
One must develop ways to take satisfaction in one’s daily life.
take satisfaction in (doing) sth.
to learn to enjoy sth.
More Phrases:
find satisfaction in
feel satisfaction at
►
to sb.'s satisfaction (to the satisfaction of sb.)
►
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satisfy, satisfied, satisfying, satisfactory satisfaction
► I had a feeling of _____ when the work was finished.
► Mr. Knight give a _____ smile.
► All the information was not enough to ___ me.
► I am not ____ with the present situation.
► After a ____ meal, you no longer feel hungry.
► That certainly seems a ____ explanation.
►
Language understanding
► He
is an enthusiastic reformer _at_ heart.
► I must get this poem _by_ heart.
► The words were spoken _from_ the depths
of her heart.
► He has lost his heart _to_ a very pretty
young girl.
► heart and soul
► heart attack
► break one’s heart
Language understanding
► contact
► Finally
he managed to get into contact with him.
► The journalist has a contact in Paris.
►
► v.
►I
shall contact you by telephone on Friday.
► be in [out of] contact with
► lose contact with
► contact lenses
► Contact person
Language understanding
►
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Decline v.
to slope or move downwards
About 2 miles east, the land begins to decline towards
the river.
to move from a better to a worse position, or from higher
to lower
His power/health/influence has begun to decline now
that he is old.
to refuse, usu. politely; be unwilling
We asked them to come to our party, but they
declined (the invitation).
The minister declined to make a statement to the
newspapers.
Language understanding
► Decline
n.
There is a sharp decline in interest in sports in
our town.
►
She went into a decline and soon died.
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►
► decline,
to refuse politely, formal word
► refuse, to say or show one is unwilling to give or
accept sth. general word.
► reject, to refuse to accept, submit to, believe, or
make use of, strong word
Language understanding
► refuse/decline
an invitation;
►
refuse permissions;
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decline, reject, or turn down a suggestion;
►
refuse, decline, reject, or turn down an
offer;
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reject or turn down a plan or proposal.
► must decline in words:
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The horse rejected/refused the apple.
Language understanding
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Pursue:
He had set his heart on pursuing his studies abroad.
We have always pursued a friendly policy towards the
Japanese people.
He has been pursued by misfortune.
He pursued the river to its source.
closely pursue the enemy
resolutely pursue knowledge
pursue a 4-year course of study at a college
pursue the study of English for five years
prudently pursue the plan
After a pursuit lasting all day we finally caught up with
them.
Language understanding
► fulfill
► The new
cleanser completely fulfilled its
purpose.
► The doctor’s instructions must be fulfilled
exactly.
► She succeeded in fulfilling herself both as an
actress and a mother.
► Fulfill a task ahead of schedule
► fulfill a promise to the letter
► After many years, his plans came to fulfillment.
► The fulfillment of my dream is apparently as far
off as ever.
Language understanding
► Constant
► He
drove at a constant speed.
► A thermostat keeps the temperature constant.
► The machinery requires constant maintenance.
► constant arguments
► under constant attack in the newspapers
► a constant friend
► constancy of temperature
Language understanding
► flourish
► crops
flourish in rich soil.
► He is flourishing in his new job.
► The British Empire flourished in the 19th
century.
► The magazine was in full flourish then.
Language understanding
► endue
► They
vowed their love would endure for ever.
► They had spent three days in the desert
without water, and could not endure much
longer.
► Few of the runners endured to the finish.
► She endures many discomforts without
complaint.
► Cheap cloth has little endurance.
► His cruelty is beyond endurance.
Language understanding
► eliminate
► She
went through the typescript carefully to
eliminate all errors from it.
► We eliminate most of the runners in the
heats; only the best run in the final.
► The platform bridge over the railroad tracks
eliminated danger in crossing.
► He was distressed at the elimination from
the contest.
Language understanding
nourish
► nourish hope in one’s heart
► nourish the baby on healthy mother’s milk
► nourish an infant with milk
► The flowers have withered away/up.
► Older people are complaining that the old ethical
values are withering away.
► The wound is still tender.
► tender meat
a tender heart
► a child of tender years
► She has a tenderness for cats.
Language understanding
► manual
►
manual skill (adj.)
►
a manual worker (adj.)
►
a manual for students (n.)
► Of or relating to the hands
► A small reference book, especially
one giving
instructions.
► Employing human rather than mechanical energy:
► a pocket reference manual
► the service manual
► manual industry manual labor manual
training
Language understanding
► Bar
► The
bar of soap slipped from his grasp.
► Poor health may be a bar to success in life.
► After finishing here legal studies she was called to
the bar.
► He opened a snack bar.
► He barred all the doors and windows of his house.
► My father barred smoking at the dinner-table.
Language understanding
► At
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length
* After some time; eventually:
At length we arrived at our destination.
* For a considerable time; fully:
spoke at length about the court ruling.
► More phrases about length
► *cannot see beyond the length of one's nose
► find [have, get, know, take] the length of sb.'s
foot
► keep sb. at arm's length
Topics for discussion
► What
do you think made Mandela such a
remarkable person? There are quite a few people
who think that he should be considered the man
of the 20th century. Do you agree? Why or why
not?
► In the last paragraph, Mandela wrote, “Sometimes
there is nothing one can do to save something
that must die.” Do you agree? Why or why not?
Homework
► Retell
the story.
► Recite Para.6-8.
► Do all the exercises.