Unit 4
American
Dream
Text A Tony Trivisonno’s American
Dream
Part I
Part II
Part III
Pre-reading
While-reading
Post-reading
Warm-up questions
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What is the American Dream in your opinion?
Einstein gave us a formula about how to succeed:
success=hard work+right direction+seldom
indulging in idle talk. What do you think is the
key to success?
Keys to Success
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talent
hard work
persistence
determination
opportunities
sense of responsibility
sense of teamwork
ambition
eloquence
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independence
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confidence
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ability to work under
pressure
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communication skills
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professional
excellence
Cultural Background
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American Dream
American Dream is the belief that
everyone in the United States has
the chance to achieve success
and
prosperity.
For
ordinary
people, it means a happy family,
an ideal job, and a nice house. For
minorities and immigrants, it also
includes freedom and equal rights.
•Log cabin: shabby
•White house: magnificent
From log cabin to
white house:
Rise from poor to
rich; from rags to
riches; from ordinary
to powerful; from
failure to success
While-reading
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Words and Expressions
Turn away
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refuse to help (sb.) or to allow (sb.) to enter a place
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He’s my son after all, I can’t just turn him away when he
is in trouble.
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The lecture hall was already full and many of the
students were turned away.
与turn相关的动词短语
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Turn on: start the flow of
liquid, gas or current by a tap
or other control)
Turn off: stop …
Turn up: increase the flame
etc; make one’s appearance
Turn down: reduce …; refuse
to consider an offer
Turn out: prove to be;produce
Turn to sb: ask sb. for help
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Who would you …… when
you are in trouble?
Would you please …. it …
when you leave the room.
She
did
not
…
until
afternoon. All were waiting
for her.
President …. our suggestion
without even having a look
at it.
The case … to be wrong.
He is innocent.
… …
the TV, Baby is
sleeping.
assume
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suppose, presume
Before hearing the evidence
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against him, you assume his
innocence/him to be
innocent/that he is innocent.
assume sth.
assume sb. to be
assume that…
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pretend
Andy assumed an air of
indifference whenever her
name was mentioned.
start to do a job, esp. an
important one
The new president usually
assumes his new
responsibilities in January.
presume, resume, consume
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presume: suppose, take for granted
From the way they talked I presumed them to be
married.
Resume: go on after stopping for a time
They were silent, then Billy resumed his story.
Consume: use up
The project consumed most of my time and energy.
work out
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solve, calculate, come up with, think up
My mother allowed me to take the trip, but asked
me to work out the total cost first
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He worked out some coded messages.
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—How will you keep in touch with me?
—We haven’t work that out yet.
Capacity: the ability to understand or do sth. (often followed
by for or infinitive to)
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Not everyone has a capacity
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for/to learn languages.
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Those math problems were
beyond my capacity.
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I don’t think it’s within a 5year-old boy’s capacity to
spread computer viruses.
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容量; 容积
The hall has a capacity of 500.
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The stadium has a seating
capacity of 40,000.
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The tank has a capacity of 12
gallons.
turn down
1. refuse
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2. 关小调低（音量， 煤气）等；
I thanked him for the offer but turned it down.
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It is hot here; could you please turn down the heater?
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他得到了那份工作，但是他拒绝了，因为那工作需要经常外出。
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He was offered the job but he turned it down because it
involved too much traveling.
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请你把音量调小点好吗？音乐声太大了。
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Could you please turn down the volume? The music is too loud
to bear.
call on/upon sb.
visit sb. for a short time
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I’d like to call on my former professor while I am on
business in Beijing.
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他想下班后去见他的女朋友然后和她一起去看电影。
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He wanted to call on his girlfriend after work, and then
to see a movie with her.
其它与call常用的搭配
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call at a place: go to sb.
House, office, etc.
They call at Mr. Green’s
house every month.
call for: demand, require
The ceasefire resolution
calls for the release of all
prisoners of war.
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call off: cancel
The football match was
called off on account of
the weather.
Call up: telephone
Mary called you up twice
yesterday.
confidence
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We have every confidence
in your abilities.
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The young girl is confident
If students have
confidence in themselves,
they are less likely to
cheat.
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confident adj.
We are confident that next
year’s profit will be higher.
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Build up your confidence
and you will overcome stage
fright.
about her future career.
amaze
cause someone to be extremely surprised
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amazed
You've done all your homework in
hour?:extremely
You amaze me.
surprised
It amazes me that she's got the energy for all those parties.
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She was amazed at how
amazement: extreme surprise
calm she felt after the
accident.
She stared in amazement.
 I was
To my amazement, he ate the whole
pie.absolutely amazed to
hear that he‘d been
promoted.
 amazing: extremely
surprising
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The new theatre is going to
cost an amazing amount of
money.
 The amazing thing is that it
was kept secret for so long
diet
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food and drink usu.
taken 日常饮食
Most people don’t have
enough fiber in their diet.
定期锻炼和均衡的饮食能确保
健康。
Regular exercises and
balanced diet assure
good health.
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be/ go on a diet: 进规定的
饮食； 节食
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Charlie is more than a
little overweight so the
doctor put him on a special
diet.
“Would you like some more
beef steak?”
“No, thanks. I am on a
diet.”
hunt
search thoroughly
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We have been hunting all over the town for the right
carpet.
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At one time man had to hunt to survive.
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大多数大学生在大四的时候开始找工作.
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The majority of college students start hunting for a job in
the fourth year
property
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land, buildings or both
together
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With more and more
people purchasing
houses, property prices
have been on the rise.
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A lot of property in
the downtown area was
destroyed in the war.
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sth. which is owned
That is my personal
property! Leave it alone!
Policeman searched the
criminal’s home, and
found weapons and stolen
property in the basement.
pass away
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Die
pass away, He’s gone, depart from the world for ever, he’s at
rest, be no more, go west, go to heaven, be with God, pay one’s
debt to nature
go to the toilet
I would like to be excused.
I have to retire for a moment.
Where’s the restroom?
May I wash my hands?
I would like to powder my nose.
Sorry, nature is calling.
euphemism
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bankrupt: out of game
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prison: correctional center
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prostitute: call girl, street walker, fallen angel
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prostitution: the oldest profession in the world
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illegitimate child: love child
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undertaker: grief therapist
garbage collector: sanitary engineer
euphemism
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ugly: plain, homely
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fat: on the heavy side, overweight, plump, stout
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thin/skinny/bony: slender, slim, willowy, lean
crippled: physically handicapped, disabled
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Old: elderly, senior, past one’s prime, advanced in age
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funeral: memorial service
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graveyard: memory garden, memorial park
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poor: needy, underprivileged, disadvantaged
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slum: substandard housing
Handle
manage, control
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You must learn how to handle your feelings.
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To tell the truth, I don’t know if I can handle the job.
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She could not handle the pressures of her new job. She
had to quit it.
Text organization
Part One (Paras 1-29): With determination, and
with help from Mr. Crawford, Tony achieved his
dream of owning his own farm.
Part Two (Paras 30-33): Tony’s career set the
author thinking about why and to what extent he
had been successful.
Part I
Steps Tony had taken to fulfill his American Dream
1)
Tony worked as a gardener at Mr. Crawford’s house.
2)
Tony got a job clearing snow at Mr. Crawford’s factory
3)
Tony learned to become a skilled worker.
4)
Tony bought a house with Mr. Crawford’s help.
5)
Tony bought a farm and sent for his family in Italy.
6)
Tony died, leaving his family a prosperous farm and his children
educated.
Paras 1-10
Tony worked as a gardener at Mr. Crawford’s house.
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Where did Tony come from?
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Were Mr. Crawford and Tony familiar to each other?
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Give a description of his physical appearance. What can we
learn about him from his appearance?
He came from a rocky farm in Italy, somewhere south of
Rome.
immigrants
Percentage of main ethnic groups
in the USA
Year
whites
blacks
Hispanics
Asians
Indians
1995
72.7%
12.6%
10.3%
3.5%
0.9%
2000
75.1%
12.3%
12.5%
3.6%
0.9%
The melting pot, a pot of stew, mosaic, salad bowl,
symphony, rainbow, kaleidoscope
“I mow your lawn”, he said. It was hard to comprehend his broken
English.
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How many times is the
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English” mean?
sentence -- “I mow your
lawn. ” -- repeated in the
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text?
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Why did Tony repeat the
sentence repeated so
many times?
What does “broken
What would you say
if you were Tony?
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What can we know
about Tony from his
broken English?
I went into my house unhappy.
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=I went into my house and
I was unhappy.
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Every day, the kids came
home from school (and
they were) dusty and
hungry.
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Jenny opened the door
quietly (because she was)
afraid of waking the baby
up.
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Do exercise on page 105.
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Why was the author
unhappy?
…, these Depression days were
difficult, …
The Great Depression is
considered the most severe
economic crisis in the
industrialized world. It began
when American stock market
fell on Friday, Oct. 24, 1929,
and continued the following
Tuesday, known as Black
Tuesday, with a greater fall.
The Depression struck many other countries as
well, particularly Germany, Japan, and Britain. In
the early 1930s millions of people lost their jobs,
and millions of businesses and banks failed.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal
policies improved the situation, but the Great
Depression did not come to an end until World
War II when industrial production for the war
increased.
… but how could I turn away a person who had come to me for help?
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What can we know about Mr. Crawford from this sentence?
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He was in dilemma/in two minds. He was kind and willing to
help but he himself was also in difficulty during the
Depression days.
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The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.
When I got home from work the next evening, the lawn had
been mowed, the garden weeded, and the walks swept.
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What can we know
about Tony from this
sentence?
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strong determination
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unbending will
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optimistic
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Diligent/hardworking
The next two days were busy, and I forgot about Tony. We were trying
to rebuild our business and bring some of our workers back to the
plants.
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What can we know about the author and the people in that
difficult period from this sentence?
Paras 11-13
Tony got a job clearing snow at Mr. Crawford’s factory.
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How did Tony get his job
at the factory?
Paras 11-13
Tony got a job clearing snow at Mr. Crawford’s factory.
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“…, snow pretty
soon,”…”When winter come,
you give me job clearing
snow at the factory?”
“it’s going to snow
very soon,”… “When winter
comes, please give me the
job of clearing snow at the
factory.”
Paras 11-13
Tony got a job clearing snow at Mr. Crawford’s factory.
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Well, what do you do
with such a determination
and hope?
It is hard to refuse a
person who is determined
and hopeful to get a job.
Paras. 14-16
Tony learned to become a skilled worker.
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How did Tony become a
skilled worker?
Did Mr. Crawford believe
that Tony could become a
skilled worker at that
moment? Why or why not?
How did Mr. and Mrs.
Crawford feel about what
Tony had achieved ?
Was Tony satisfied
with what he had
achieved?
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Paras. 14-16
Tony learned to become a skilled worker.
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Tony took a cut in pay to
become an apprentice.
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Tony had his pay
reduced to be an
apprentice.
Paras. 14-16
Tony learned to become a skilled worker.
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My wife and I were
delighted with what we
felt was a satisfying end
of the story.
My wife and I were
delighted with what Tony
had achieved, and
thought that the whole
thing had thus been
settled.
Paras. 17-21
Tony bought a house with Mr. Crawford’s help.
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Why did Tony come to see
Mr. Crawford again a year or
two later? Was Mr. Crawford
of help this time? How?
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What did the author think of
the house Tony intended to
buy?
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What can we learn about
Tony from this detail?
Paras. 17-21
Tony bought a house with Mr. Crawford’s help.
 Why did Tony take
home the discarded
odds and ends? What
can we learn about him
from this detail?
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Frugal, diligent, downto-earth attitude.
Paras 22-27
Tony bought a farm and sent for his family in Italy.
Describe the change of Tony’s
appearance.
• How did Tony feel about selling
his house? Why did he feel that
way?
• What was Tony’s lifelong dream?
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How was Tony’s newly bought
farm? What can we learn about
Tony from this detail?
Paras 28-29
Tony died, leaving his family a prosperous farm and his children
educated.
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Did Tony do a good job of
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running his farm? Give
examples.
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I asked our people to
check on his family …
check on: make sure
that someone is safe, has
everything they need, etc.
Honey, can you go
upstairs and check on
the kids?
Part Two (Paras 30-33): Tony’s career set the author thinking about
why and to what extent he had been successful.
Describe the change of Tony’s social status in
Mr. Crawford’s mind.
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Why did Mr. Crawford compare Tony with the
greatest American industrialist?
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Tony did not begin on the bottom rung of the ladder. He began in the
basement.
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What does “ladder” refer to?
And what does
“basement” refer to?
• “Ladder” refers to the way
to success. “Basement”
refers to Tony’s starting
point. He was worse than
ordinary people. He had
nothing to help him seek his
American Dream.
Post-reading
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In your mind, what had contributed to Tony’s
success?
If you were Tony, with no money and poor English,
but in hope of a better life, what would you do?
In many people’s eyes, Tony’s dream is too small
to mention, why is it chosen here to illustrate（阐
述） American Dream?
After reading Tony’s story, what is your
understanding of success?
Useful Expressions
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结结巴巴的英语
大萧条时期
夏去秋来
人事部门
精密加工工作
减薪水
没门
人品端正
首付
从那以后
零星杂物
穿戴整齐
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broken English
the Depression days
summer passes into fall
personnel department
precision work
take a cut in pay
no sale
a man of character
down payment
from then on
odds and ends
be neatly dressed
Dreams 梦想
---Langston Hughes
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Hold fast to dreams,
For if dreams die,
Life is a broken-winged
bird
That can never fly.
Hold fast to dreams,
For when dreams go,
Life is a barren field
Frozen only with snow
紧紧抓住梦想，
梦想若是消亡
生命就象鸟儿折了翅
再也不能飞翔
紧紧抓住梦想，
梦想若是消丧
生命就象贫瘠的荒野，
雪覆冰封，万物不再生长
Writing: Hold Fast to
Your Dreams
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1．坚持梦想才有可能实现
梦想。
2．举例说明。