Lesson Seven Spring Sowing

1. Lead in Introduction to the text Some questions to help comprehension Details of the text Oral work: discussion Conclusion Exercises Lesson SevenSpring Sowing ------Liam O’Flaherty

2. What will you think of while speaking of Spring?

3. Introduction to the text • “Spring sowing” is written by Lian O’Flaherty in 1924. the story describes the first day of the first spring planting of a newly-wedded couple against the background of a traditional agricultural country. In Ireland at that time, most people still depended on farming for a living, and the main crop was the potato. Modern science and technology had not yet caught up with the land. There was little machinery. Practically everything was still done by hand. For Mary and Martin Delaney, this was an extremely important day, because it not only would determine the crop they would harvest in autumn, but would also show what kind of wife and husband they would prove to each other and what kind of family they were going to have.

4. Liam O'Flaherty Liam O’Flaherty was born in Ireland in 1896. he wrote in English and Irish. He is considered one of the most important modern Anglo-Irish authors. LIAM O’ FLAHERTY was a child of the nineteenth century, and a man of the twentieth. Born in rural poverty, he died in urban comfort. Passionate in his love of nature, he abhorred everything brutish in man. An exquisite writer of short stories about man and beast on Ireland’s western seaboard.

5. His main works include the novels Thy Neighbour's Wife (London, Jonathan Cape, 1923); The Black Soul (Jonathan Cape, 1924); The Informer (Jonathan Cape, 1925), which was made into a film of the same name by John Ford; The Assassin (Jonathan Cape, 1928); Skerret (1932); Shame the Devil (1934); and Famine (1937). His short story collections include The Short Stories of Liam O'Flaherty (1937); Two Lovely Beasts and Other Stories (London, Victor Gollancz, 1948); Duil (Baile Átha Cliath, Sairseal agus Dill, 1953); and The Pedlar's Revenge and Other Stories (1976). He also published The Life of Tim Healy (Jonathan Cape, 1927). His books have been re-issued in paperback by The Wolfhound Press of Dublin. He was a member of Aosdána, and died in 1984.

6. Are the main characters in the storyengaged industrial or high-tech work, or in traditional farming? What kind of life do they have? Where do they live? what is their staple food ? What kind of clothes do they wear? What kind of tools do they use? Is there any mention of machinery or home electronics or modern conveniences? Some questions to think about: 1

7. what do you know about the young couple? Are they typical or exceptional? Do they love each other? What do you think they regard as the most important qualities in their spouse? What are their life’s ambitions? Why is it that the two of them feel particularly excited this day? Why is it so important? Is it just the fact that it is spring sowing, the day that is going to determine , at least partly, what kind of a harvest they are going to have? Is there anything symbolic about this day? 2

8. 3 How do they do the planting? Can you describe the technical details step by step? Do you know anything about farming ? Do you know how spring sowing is done in our country?

9. 4 What values and moral principles are being idealized here? Is it still the same today? Do you agree that the traditional work ethic is out of date? Are such qualities as hard work, diligence , thrift, responsibility, discipline, simple and honest living, etc still valued?

10. Word Study • rear • 1. The rear of something such as a building or vehicle is the back part of it. • = back * front • Also an adjective. • Manufacturers have been obliged to fit rear seat belts in all new cars. • 2. Your rear is the part of your body that you sit on. (INFORMAL) • I turned away from the phone to see Lewis pat a waitress on her rear. • 3. If you rear children or a young animal, you look after them until they are old enough to look after themselves. • = bring up, raise

11. 4. When a horse rears (up), it moves the front part of its body upwards, so that its front legs are high in the air and it is standing on its back legs. • 5. If you say that something such as a building or mountain rears above you, you mean that is very tall and close to you. 高耸 • 6. If a person or vehicle is bringing up the rear, they are the last person or vehicle in a moving line of them. • 7. If something unpleasant rears its head or rears its ugly head, it becomes visible or noticeable. • The threat of strikes reared its head again this summer.

12. imminent • If you say that something is imminent, especially something unpleasant, you mean it is almost certain to happen very soon. • There appeared no imminent danger. • They warned that an attack is imminent. • imminence • The imminence of war was on everyone's mind.

13. furious • 1. Someone who is furious is extremely angry. • furiously • He stormed out of the apartment, slamming the door furiously behind him. • 2. Furious is also used to describe something that is done with great energy, effort, speed, or violence. • furiously • Officials worked furiously to repair the centre court.

14. dotted • 1.If you sign on the dotted line, you formally agree to something by signing an official document. • Cut along the dotted line(虚线). • 2.If a place or object is dotted with things, it has many of those things scattered over its surface. • The maps were dotted with the names of small towns. • ...a pond that's dotted with water lilies. • 3.If things are dotted around a place, they can be found in many different parts of that place. • Many pieces of sculpture are dotted around the house. • = scattered • 4.You use dotted to describe something that is covered with large dots. • ...a dotted bow tie.

15. Text Structure • Part 1 (1—8): The young couple’s preparations for the first day of their first spring sowing • Part 2 (9—23): A detailed description of the spring sowing. • Part 3 (24—26): The young couple’s good wishes for the future

16. Detailed Study … sleepy and yet on fire with excitement, for it was the first day of their first spring sowing as man and wife. (Para. 3) • Although still not fully awake, the young couple was already greatly excited, because that day was the first day of their first spring planting after they got married.

17. But somehow the imminence of an event that had been long expected, loved, feared and prepared for made them dejected. (Para. 3) The couple had been looking forward to and preparing for this spring planting for a long time, but now that the day had finally arrived, strangely, they felt somehow a bit sad.

18. Difficult points: • Suppose anybody saw us like this in the field of our spring sowing, what would they take us for but a pair of useless, soft, empty-headed people that would be sure to die of hunger?(12) • His eyes had a wild, eager light in them as if some primeval impulse were burning within his brain and driving out every other desire but that of asserting his manhood and of subjugating the earth.(12) • To drive out the sudden terror that had seized her at that moment when she saw the fierce, hard look in her husband’s eyes that were unconscious of her presence.(13)

19. Difficult points: • The hurried trip to the village and the trouble of getting the tea ready had robbed her of her appetite.(17) • It overpowered that other feeling of dread that had been with her during the morning.(17) • Shyly and in silence, not knowing what to say and ashamed of their gentle feelings.(18)

20. Discussion: • Let’s pretend that you are Martin Delaney or Mary living in the 21th century. What kind of a person would you like to have as your wife or husband? What qualities would you like to find in your spouse? What life’s ambitions would you have? What would you be doing on a typical spring morning?

21. The live coals His freckled face Rough homespuns A shrewd woman Rawhide shoes A flash of revellion A crunching sound A fierce hard look A slave master 扒出尚未熄灭的煤 驱散黑暗 给地施肥 在手上吐口唾沫 用桩在两头固定住 表现自己的男人气概 伸直腰板 给火煽风 压倒其他情绪 Exercises:

22. translate: • 他假装在听，其实他的思想已经开了小差. • 你可以看的出来， 学生们有满肚子的问题要问。 • 此人急切地想和他的同车人说他为什么把他的一个小提箱扔出了火车窗外。 • 年轻人更有反传统的倾向。 • 他小时侯就是一个不太顺从的孩子。 • 他宣布说， 所有叛乱分子只要放下武器就能得到赦免。

23. thank you!