Unit 15
Text I
A Fable for Tomorrow
Objectives:
1. Characteristics of fable
2. Environmental problems
3. Vocabulary and structures
Teaching Tasks and Process
Pre-reading Questions
Some of the problems relating to the future that
people are concerned about are:
1. pollution
2. energy crisis
3. population explosion
4. terrorism
5. World War III
6. rapidly growing population of the aged
Background information—
The Author
Rachel Carson (1907-1964)
American scientist and writer. She is best known
for her popular books about oceanography, Under
the Sea Wind (1941) and The Sea Around Us (1951)
and for Silent Spring (1962), which made people
aware, for the first time, of the dangers of
pollution by insecticides and chemical fertilizers.
In other words, it fired one of the first shots in
what has come to be called the environmental
movement.
Silent Spring
The Main Ideas
Part 1 (lines 1-14) All life in harmony with its
surroundings
Part 2 (lines 15- 34) The coming of a strange
blight
Part 3 (lines 35-39) The stricken world silenced
by people themselves
Part 4 (lines 40-44) Warning against a grim
spectre / a stark reality
Why is this passage called a fable?
A fable is usually a fictitious story meant to teach
a moral. The writer uses a story of her own
invention in an effort to warn us of the dangers of
pollution. If man does not control the massive
use of chemical insecticides, the imagined
tragedy will become a stark reality. This is why
this passage is called a fable.
A brief summary of the use of lie
1) The town lay in the midst of a checkerboard
of prosperous farms…
lay --- was situated
More examples:
The small village lies at the foot of the mountain,
surrounded by rivers on three sides.
The new capital of Brizil, Brasilia, lies 600 miles
northwest of the old capital.
2) …and contained shady pools where trout lay.
lay --- was kept and remained in a certain state
More examples:
The fields lay thickly covered with weeds because of
Shaka’s orders for mourning.
That winter was one of the worst in living memory: snow
lay thick on the ground, the river was frozen solid.
3)… only silence lay over the fields and marsh.
lay --- hung, hovered
More examples:
Deep sorrow lay over the whole country at the death
of the great military leader.
Total devastation lay over the Zulu nation after two
months of intensive mourning over Nandi’s death.
4)I lay there in the dark, feeling the cold emotion of
renunciation. (Unit 13)
lay --- was in a flat, resting position
More examples:
Peter has been lying on the lawn for nearly one hour,
enjoying the warm sunshine.
After the death of her son, she became deranged.
Finally she was found lying dead in the gutter.
5)For the next three months the whole countryside
lay in a grip of iron. (Unit 12)
lay --- was
More examples:
The bank manager reassured the marketing manager
of the firm by saying that he would do everything
that lay in his power to help.
Rachel Carson regards it her duty to do everything
that lies in her power to warn people of the danger
of the irrational use of chemical fertilizers.
The cause of Benny Paret’s death lies in the
prevailing mores that regard prizefighting as a
perfectly proper enterprise and vehicle of
entertainment.
countless birds came to feed on the berries and
on the seed heads …
numberless birds came to eat the berries and the
seed heads …
feed on --- take as food. Examples:
Spiders feed chiefly on insects just as cattle feed
chiefly on grass. Lions, tigers, and wolves are
beasts of prey because they feed on other
animals.
So it had been from the days many years ago when
the first settlers raised their houses, sank their
wells…
raised --- built
The Monument to the People’s Heroes in Beijing was raised in
commemoration of those who died a heroic death for the
Chinese revolution.
Have you ever been to some of the beautiful castles in Scotland
raised in the 18th century?
The farmers complained that they were unable to raise any
pigs.
raise --- breed
He was glad to be assigned to raise horses on the farm.
The village people in that area are good at raising cattle.
What made the first settlers raise their houses, sink
their wells and build their barns in that locality?
It was a place of beauty throughout the year.
The countryside was rich in vegetation.
There was an abundance and variety of bird
life. The streams abounded in fish. All these
attracted many anglers to visit the place.
And these are some of the factors that
make the early settlers make their homes
there.
a strange blight crept over the area
a strange pestilence or disease came to the
area slowly and quietly without people’s
knowing. Creep means “move slowly and
quietly”.
We crept into the room in order not to attract
attention.
Old age is creeping up on her.
What are the different words that the writer uses to
repeat the concept of blight in the third paragraph?
1) evil spell
2) mysterious maladies
3) sickened and died
4) a shadow of death
5) much illness
6) new kinds of sickness
7) sudden and unexplained death
8) would be stricken suddenly
… children, who would be stricken suddenly
while at play
children who would suddenly fall ill when they were
playing
this stricken world --- this world that has been
ruined
Stricken is an adjective meaning “seriously affected
by illness, trouble, etc.” or “experiencing the
effects of illness, trouble, etc.”.
Explain the sentence: On the mornings that had once
throbbed with the dawn chorus of robins, catbirds,
doves, jays, wrens and scores of other bird voices
there was now no sound; …
On the mornings that used to be vibrating with the
singing in chorus of a great many different birds,
everything was now silent.
white granular powder
white granular powder --- referring to chemical
fertilizers and pesticides
What is the implied meaning of “… white granular
powder still showed a few patches, …”?
Its implied meaning is that chemical fertilizers had
been used excessively, so much so that even
several weeks afterwards, traces could still be
seen here and there.
Explain the sentence: A grim spectre has crept upon
almost unnoticed, and this imagined tragedy may
easily become a stark reality we all shall know.
A frightful and ghastly shadow has slowly and quietly
dominated us without being noticed by us and this
imaginary disaster may naturally become a harsh
reality that will affect us all.
Comments on the Text
The text, which is taken from the introduction to
Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring is short but
forceful. The voice behind it is clear and
authoritative, which suggests that the writer has
thought about this subject profoundly, therefore
she is able to express herself clearly and incisively.
the characteristics of this passage
1. The content of the whole passage is organized in
a pattern of comparison and contrast.
2. The passage is unique in its presentation of the
subject matter and in its writing style in the fable
tradition.
3. other techniques
1). The writer creates some vivid and colorful images
by using simple and poetic words.
2). The writer successfully repeats the concept of
blight in her well-thought-out third paragraph.
TEXT II The Year 2000
Questions
1. Which part of the globe, the north or the south, is
more concerned about the problem of overpopulation?
2. What is the proper way, according to the author,
to stop over-population?
3. How do you understand “But clearly if we do
nothing, nature will solve the problem for us. But
at what cost! (If we do nothing, people may die of
starvation in large numbers. This cost is too high.)”
Discussion/Exercises
Role-play
City Transport
Life in the Year 2050
1. Transport and travel
Optimistic view: People might travel wings that
scientists have invented
Pessimistic view: Too crowded. It might take
several hours to travel from one end of the city to
the other.
2. Food and drink
Optimistic view: There will be enough food and
drink to provide people with adequate
nourishment.
Pessimistic view: Not enough food and drink to
divide among an evergrowing population.
3. Family life
Optimistic view: Happy and pleasant life in the
nuclear family; father, mother and one child
Pessimistic view: Dull and boring, with the family
members sittings in front of TV all day long
4. Education
Optimistic view: Higher education for everyone, TV
teaching and computerized teaching in every
school.
Pessimistic view: Lack of interest in schooling; too
many distractions outside the school.
5. Pollution
Optimistic view: Water purified, air cleaned and
noise eliminated
Pessimistic view: Water black and foul-smelling; air
full of soot and dirt; noise deafening.
Assignments
Exercises on the Work Book