EightThingsaBurglarWon’tTellYo-优题课

Literature is a term used to describe written as well as spoken material．Generally speaking, it is often used to describe anything from creative imagination, including works of poetry, drama and fiction．
Then why read literature, since it is often imaginary and seems unconnected with real life?
A lot of us read literature for pleasure and relaxation．It’s always pleasant to read some interesting books, such as comedies and novels, in our spare time．In a modern life full of pressure, it is our common desire to read some imaginary works and seek relaxation from the stress in life．
Reading literature is more than fun; it also enables us to acquire knowledge．As a general rule, literature represents a language or a people, and it often gives us an insight（洞察力）into the traditions, customs, beliefs, attitudes and values of the age in which it was written．
Sometimes literature can even offer us new, creative ways to have a better understanding of the world．It helps us make sense of the world around us．It introduces us to new worlds of experiences．We enjoy the comedy and the tragedy of poems, stories and plays; and we may even grow through our literary journey with books．Eventually, we may discover meaning in literature by looking at what the author says and how he/she says it．In a sense, we explore the human condition and analyze how and why people think the way they think and feel the way they feel．Literature enables us to think analytically and promotes open minds．We see the world through the eyes of different cultures and in turn learn the ways to deal with things that happen around．
So we can definitely say literature is of great importance to us．Why not get going with one poem, drama or fiction at once?

Topic	___________ should we read literature?
__________ of literature	It describes anything, whether written or spoken, by using creative imagination．
Types	, drama and fiction
_of reading literature	▲To get pleasure and relaxation to get _______ of pressure in life． ▲To gain to make us learn about traditions, customs, beliefs, attitudes and values of the age in which it was written． ▲To offer people ways to more of the world, to appreciate literary works, to grow through the literary journey, to discover meaning in literature, and even explore ________ humans think and feel． ▲To help us think analytically and make us _________our minds．
___________	Why not start to read literature right now?

To err is human．To blame the other guy is even more human．
Common sense is not all that common．
Why tell the truth when you can come up with a good excuse?
These three popular misquotes （戏谑的引语） are meant to be jokes, and yet they tell us a lot about human nature．To err, or to make mistakes, is indeed a part of being human, but it seems that most people don’t want to accept the responsibility for the problem．Perhaps it is the natural thing to do．The original quote about human nature went like this, “ To err is human, to forgive, divine（神圣的）．” This saying mirrors an ideal: people should be forgiving of others’ mistakes．Instead, we tend to do the opposite --- find someone else to pass the blame on to．However, taking responsibility for something that went wrong is a making of great maturity．
Common sense is what we call clear thought．Having common sense means having a good general plan that will make things work well, and it also means staying with the plan．Common sense tells you that you take an umbrella out into a rainstorm, but you leave the umbrella home when you hear a weather forecast for sunshine．Common sense does not seem to be common for large organizations, because there are so many things going on that one person cannot be in charge of everything．People say that in a large company, “the right hand does not know what the left hand is doing．”
And what is wrong with a society that thinks that making up a good excuse is like creating a work of art? One of the common problems with making excuses is that people, especially young people, get the idea that it’s okay not to be totally honest all the time．There is a corollary（直接推论）to that: if good excuse is “good” even if it isn’t honest, then where is the place of the truth?
According to the author, what is a sign of a man’s maturity?

A．Doing things his own way．

B．Bearing responsibility for his mistakes．

C．Making as few mistakes as possible．

D．Thinking seriously about his wrongdoing．

Which of the following is N0T based on common sense?

A．A man tries to take charge of everything in a large company．

B．A student goes out with an umbrella in stormy weather．

C．A company’s next move follows a good plan．

D．A lawyer acts on fine judgments．

What is the author’s opinion about a good excuse?

A．Making a good excuse is sometimes a better policy．

B．Inventing a good excuse needs creative ideas．

C．A good excuse is as rewarding as honesty．

D．Bitter truth is better than a good excuse．

What would be the best title for his passage?

A．A Mirror of Human Nature	B．To Blame or to Forgive
C．A Mark of Maturity	D．Truth or Excuse

Beginning college is exciting: new ideas to explore, new challenges to meet and many decisions to make．Your future begins here．
However，you will find college life is different from your previous school environment．Many of us can be easily overwhelmed（压垮）by the details of running a well-balanced life．While some of us may have the know-how, I guess there are more of us who can benefit from learning about the experiences of others who have walked the college halls before you．
The following you may find of use about life on campus．
* Plan well．There are so many new things to do at a new college or university．Give yourself time to make new friends and become familiar with the campus, but don’t forget why you are there．Give some time for social activities and manage your time wisely．
* If you don’t have a “system” for planning your time now （like a day timer, a computer data book）, get one．Most of all, don’t depend on your memory．
* Don’t miss the guidelines．The restrictions, rules and regulations of all kinds can usually be found in your student handbook．Consider them well-balanced food for thought．What dates are important? What pieces of paper need to be handed in? What can/ can’t you do in class? What can/ can’t you do in your student residence（住处）? Who has right for what? What do you need to complete to graduate?
* Write the word “STUDY” on the walls of our bedroom and bathroom, and maybe it will help to write it on a piece of paper and stick it on the telephone, TV and the kitchen table．Consider this—you are paying thousands of dollars for your courses．You pay every time you have to repeat or replace a course．
* Build your identity．This is the time for you to decide what to do and what not to do．Take as much time as you need to explore new ideas．Do not be afraid of the beyond．This is learning to make good choices．
What is the main purpose of the passage?

A．To offer advice on college life．

B．To explain why college life is exciting．

C．To describe the importance of college life．

D．To persuade you to go to college．

According to the passage, why is it exciting to begin college life?

A．Because you will have more freedom at college．

B．Because you will no longer be afraid of the beyond．

C．Because you prepare for your future career and life there．

D．Because professors there will provide you with many new ideas．

The underlined word “know-how” refers to ．

A．an understanding of how things are going at college

B．practical knowledge about how to behave and what to do at college

C．college halls where rules and regulations are presented

D．an environment completely different from the one you’re used to

According to the passage, college students ________ ．

A．needn’t learn from those who went to college before them

B．spend as much time as possible on social activities

C．should know what they have fought for on campus

D．are supposed to repeat or replace at least one course

Britons Learn to Forgive
LEEDS, England ─ A Leeds University psychology （心理学） professor is teaching a course to help dozens of Britons forgive their enemies．
“The hatred we hold within us is a cancer,” Professor Ken Hart said, adding that holding in anger can lead to problems such as high blood pressure and heart disease．
More than 70 people have become members in Hart’s first 20-week workshop in London ─ a course he says is the first of its kind in the world．
These are people who are sick and tired of living with a memory．They realize their bitterness is a poison they think they can pour out, but they end up drinking it themselves, said Canadian-born Hart．
The students meet in groups of eight to ten for a two-hour workshop with an adviser every fortnight．
The course, ending in July, is expected to get rid of the cancer of hatred in these people．“People have lots of negative attitudes towards forgiveness,” he said, “People confuse forgiveness with forgetting．Forgiveness means changing from a negative attitude to a positive one．”
Hart and his team have created instructions to provide the training needed．
“The main idea is to give you guidelines on how to look at various kinds of angers and how they affect you, and how to change your attitudes towards the person you are angry with,” said Norman Claringbull, a senior expert on the forgiveness project．
Hart said he believes forgiveness is a skill that can be taught, as these people “want to get free of the past”．
From this passage we know that _________．

A．high blood pressure and heart disease are caused by hatred

B．high blood pressure can only be cured by psychology professors

C．without hatred, people will have less trouble connected with blood pressure and heart

D．people who suffer from high blood pressure and heart disease must have many enemies

In Hart’s first 20-week workshop, people there can ________．

A．meet their enemies	B．change their attitudes towards bitterness
C．enjoy the professor’s speech	D．learn how to quarrel with others

If you are a member in Hart’s workshop, you’ll ________．

A．pay much money to Hart	B．go to the workshop every night
C．attend a gathering twice a month	D．pour out everything stored in your mind

The author wrote this passage in order to ________．

A．persuade us to go to Hart’s workshop

B．tell us the news about Hart’s workshop

C．tell us how to run a workshop like Hart’s 　

D．help us to look at various kinds of angers

It was a Sunday and the heavy storm had lasted all night．The morning after the storm, though, was beautiful: blue skies, warm air and a calm, inviting sea touching the shore gently．
My father realised it was a good day for fishing and invited my sister and me to go with him．I was only 14 and fishing had never been my thing, but I decided to go all the same．I' m so glad I did．
On the way to the harbour we could see the terrible destruction on the coast, but the harbour itself was in fairly good shape．After all, it was protected by the arms of a bay that had only one tiny channel to the sea．As we got on board, we noticed two big humps （脊背） in the distance．
On approaching them, we saw it was a mother whale with her baby．We couldn't believe it — there aren't any whales along the coast here．The storm must have driven them across the ocean into the bay, in which the still water was so badly polluted that nothing could survive．
The little baby whale —actually as big as our boat — was obviously stuck and could not move．The mother dived under the water and came up suddenly, making big whirlpools （漩涡） and waves．"She's trying to help her baby, but on the wrong side," my father said．At this point, my father moved our boat in a semicircle to the other side and, heading the boat towards the baby whale, pushed it gently．With our several gentle pushes the big hump turned over and disappeared under water．Then it swam up right beside its mum．They struggled in their desperate attempts to escape but missed the exit and started heading in the wrong direction．We hurried up to the whales and tried to lead them towards the bay channel．Slowly, they let us lead them, sometimes rising from the water right beside us to breathe -- and to give us a trusting look with those huge eyes．Once they hit their first part of clean water flowing straight from the sea, the mum gave us a wave with her tail and off they swam into the distance．
In the excitement it had felt like only a few minutes, but we had been with those wonderful animals for almost an hour and a half．That was the simple and lasting beauty of the day．Nearly four decades later, I still look back fondly to that golden day at sea．
The author says "I' m so glad I did．" （ in Para．2） because _________．

A．he witnessed the whole process of fishing

B．he enjoyed the beauty of the calm sea

C．he experienced the rescue of the whales

D．he spent the weekend with his family

The mother whale failed to help her baby because __________．

A．she had stayed in the polluted water for too long

B．the whirlpools she had made were not big enough

C．she had no other whales around to turn to for help

D．the waves pushed her baby in the wrong direction

What is the theme of the story?

A．Saving lives brings people a sense of happiness．

B．Fishing provides excitement for children．

C．It's necessary to live in harmony with animals．

D．It's vital to protect the whale in the ocean．

A．kids’ room	B．sock drawer
C．medicine cabinet	D．safe