Unit 5

1. Unit 5 Text I The Light at the End of the Chunnel Text II Traveling

2. Text I • Text II • Oral Work • Guided Writing • Listening

3. Text 1: The Light at the End of the Chunnel • Pre-reading Activity • Structure • Vocabulary Acquisition • Intensive Reading

4. Text I Pre-reading Activity The Light at the End of the Chunnel • How did English and the French people look at the Chunnel, joyously or resentfully? Why do you think so? • How do you visualize the breakthrough ceremony? Exercise your imagination.

5. Text I Background Information The English Channel 英吉利海峡 • 英吉利海峡是欧洲大陆与大不列颠岛之间的水道和连通大西洋和北海的航运要道。 • 英吉利海峡是世界上最繁忙的海峡，年过往船量逾20万艘。战略地位重要，历史上曾在此发生多次军事冲突和海战。 • 英吉利海峡平均深度为60米，最深处172米。西南最宽达240公里，东北最窄处直线距离33．8公里 。平均水温13.6摄氏度。

6. Text I Background Information The English Chunnel 英吉利海峡隧道 • 英法两国自1987年开始动工在海底建设长达50公里的英吉利海峡隧道。1994年，这项浩大的隧道工程终于完工，把英伦三岛与欧洲大陆联系在一起，实现了两岸人民几百年来的梦想。 • 英吉利海峡隧道工程被誉为20 世纪七大建筑奇迹之一。它不仅仅是一条水下通道，而且是一个庞大的铁路穿梭运输系统：三条平行的隧道穿过海床下的泥灰岩，其中两条主隧道用于列车行驶，另一条用于隧道服务。它是西欧国家力保的战略要域，也是驻欧美军以及北约国家军队实施全球部署、全球到达的海上要道。

7. Text I Pre-reading Activity Hundred Years’ War 英法百年战争 从1337年到1453年，英法两国为争夺王位和土地，残酷厮杀。战争持续了一百年，哭声也持续了一百年。 自11世纪“诺曼征服”以后，英国通过联姻和继承关系，占有了大量的法国领地，这在同样梦想称霸欧洲的法国看来，简直就是耻辱，一直寻求机会收复这些领地。14世纪初，英法的矛盾越来越尖锐，已经到了不通过武力无法解决的地步。 1328年，法王查理四世去世，他没有男嗣，法国贵族会议便推举他的侄子腓力为王，称腓力六世。一心想控制法国的英王爱德华三世凭借自己是法王腓力四世的外孙，向法国发难，声称自己才是法国王位的合法继承人。1337年5月24日，经过一番准备的腓力六世宣布收回英属领地基恩，英国自然无法接受。同年10月，爱德华三世不顾法国的反对，自称身兼法王，并率部队进攻法国。于是，法国王位继承争端终于演变为一场旷日持久的战争。

8. Text I Vocabulary Acquisition Read the text once and Try to write down the meaning of following words that best fits the context. A feeling of coming trouble • foreboding (L.6) __________________________________ • ketchup (L.15) __________________________________ • hitched (L.18) __________________________________ • rift (L.21) __________________________________ • moat (L. 28) __________________________________ • screeches (L. 36) __________________________________ • quirk(L.40) __________________________________ • chic (L.42) __________________________________ Sauce made from tomato juice Joined or connected to each other Breach, split, disagreement Deep, wide ditch filled with water round a castle as a defense Makes a harsh, piercing sound Peculiar behavior Stylish, fashionable in style

9. Text I The Light at the End of the Chunnel • 1 In a hotel lobby in Sandgate, England, not two miles from the soon-to-be-opened English Channel Tunnel, stiff upper lips trembled. For the first time since the last ice age, England was about to be linked to France. • 2 “ I’d rather England become the 51st state of the U.S.A. than get tired up to there,” said a retired civil servant with a complexion the color of ruby port. He nodded toward the steel gray Channel out the window, his pale blue eyes filled with foreboding.

10. Text I • 3“Awful; place,” added his wife, lifting a teacup to her lips. “they drink all the time, and the food is terrible. When I go to the Continent, I take my own bottle of English sauce.” • 4 “We don’t care much for the French,” her husband concluded. “But the French…” Here a pause, a shudder, as the gull-wing eyebrows shot upward. “The French don’t care for anybody.” • 5 On the other side of the Channel, the entente was scarcely more cordiale. InVieux Coquellers, a village a beet field away from the French terminal near Calais, Clotaire Fournier walked into his farmhouse.

11. Text I 6 “I went to England once,” he said, sinking into a chair in the dining room. “Never again! All they eat is ketchup.” A tiny explosion of air from pursed lips, then the coup de grace. “You can’t even get a decent glass of red wine!” 7 Well, by grace of one of the engineering feats of the century, for richer or poorer, better or worse, England and France are getting hitched. On May 6, 1994, Queen Elizabeth of Britain and President Francois Mitterrand of France are scheduled to inaugurate the English Channel Tunnel (“Chunnel” for short), sweeping aside 200 years of failed cross-Channel-link schemes, 1,000 years of historical rift, and 8,000 years of geographic divide.

12. Text I 8The 31-mile-long Chunnel is really three parallel tunnels: two for trains and a service tunnel. It snakes from Folkestone, England, to Coquelles, France, an average of 150 feet below the seabed. Drive onto a train at one end; stay in your car and drive off Le Shuttle at the other 35 minutes later. Later this year (i.e., 1994) Eurostar passenger trains will provide through service: London to Paris in three hours; London to Brussels in three hours, ten minutes. 9The Chunnel rewrites geography, at least in the English psyche. The moat has been breached. Britain no longer is an island.

13. Text I 10It’s June 28, 1991, and I’m packed into a construction workers’ train along with several dozen other journalists. We’re headed out from the English side to the breakthrough ceremony for the south running tunnel – the last to be completed. 11 The Chunnel is a work in progress. The concrete walls await final installation of the power, water, and communication lines that will turn it into a transport system. White dust fills the air. The train screeches painfully. “Makes you appreciate British Rail,” someone jokes.

14. Text I 12Finally we reach the breakthrough site. The two machines that dug this tunnel started from opposite sides of the Channel and worked toward the middle. Now we’re staring at the 30-foot-diameter face of the French tunnel boring machine (TBM), “Catherine.” 13 In one of those vive la difference quirks that color the project, the French gave women’s names to their machines. On the British side, it’s by the numbers – like TBM No. 6. Another difference: French workers wear chic, well-cut, taupe jumpsuits with red and blue racing stripes down the sleeves. The British uniform is pure grunge: baggy, bright orange.

15. Text I 14Looking up, I imagine 180 feet of Channel above my head — ferries, tankers, a Dover soleor two… 15The grating of the TBM interrupts my reverie. Its cutterhead – a huge wheel with tungsten-tipped teeth – chews into the last trace of rock separating England from France. 16 Music blares, and lights glare. Several Frenchmen scramble through. Thunderous applause erupts as dozens more follow. Strangely moving, this connecting of countries. Champagne corkspop, and French workers hug British counterparts.

16. Text I 17“I might have opposed it 30 years ago, but now it’s my tunnel, ” an Englishman says. 18 French tunnelers are still climbing through. “So many, ” I say, turning to a French official. 19 “And there are 56 million more behind them,” he replies.

17. Text I 20Apres le tunnel, le deluge? Eurotunnel hopes so. It predicts eight million passengers a year by 1996. the flow will be lopsided. Only 30 percent of the traffic will be headed to Britain. “The French don’t take holidays in England, ” explains Jeanne Labrousse, a Eurotunnel executive. 21Hmmmm. Why do the French visit Britain? For the food? The weather? Fashion?

18. Text I 22Mme. Labrousse seemed thoughtful. 23“Of course,” she brightened, “we will work on selling the idea.” From National Geographic, May 1994, By Cathy Newman.

19. For the first time since the last ice age… Task: Paraphrase the sentence For the first time since the world began to exist Today we live in a warm period during or just after the Quaternary ice age. 第四纪冰川期 It is believed that all of the early development of humans came during this ice age and civilization has come into existence as its result.

20. foreboding a strong feeling that sth unpleasant or dangerous is going to happen She had a foreboding that she's never see him again. He knew from her face that his forebodings had been justified. 她有个不祥的预感, 飞机要失事. She had a sinister / bad foreboding that the plane would crash.

21. a village a beet field away from the French terminal Task: paraphrase A village which is only a short distance away from the French terminal A beet field is a field where beet, a root vegetable, is planted; it can’t be very big.

22. By grace of Meaning: Grace: God’s kindness By grace of: due to; by the favor of By the grace of God: owing to the favor shown by God We are saved by God's grace. It was only by the grace of God that they survived.

23. …,by grace of one of the engineering feats of the century, for richer or poorer, better or worse, England and France are getting hitched. Task: paraphrase Thanks to one of the remarkable construction achievements of the 20th century, whether one likes it or not, England and France are on the way of getting geographically connected. For richer for poorer, better or worse: whether one likes it or not; whatever happens Implied meaning: on terms of accepting all the results

24. inaugurate ~ sb (as sth): introduce (a new public official or leader) at a special ceremonyHe will be inaugurated as president in January. Vt. mark the beginning of (an organization or undertaking) or open (a building, an exhibition, etc) with a special ceremony inaugurate a conference, an organization, a scheme, etc Translate： 这座城市为庆祝首座世界级大桥的落成举行了摩托车游行活动。 The town inaugurated its first world-class bridge with a motorcycle parade.

25. The Chunnel rewrites geography, at least in the English psyche. The moat has been breached. Britain no longer is an island. Task: paraphrase As far as the British are concerned, the Chunnel has changed the geographical pattern which long separated Britain from Continental Europe. Breach: an action that breaks a law, rule, or agreement, etc. breach ofThis was a clear breach of the 1994 Trade Agreement.They sued the company for breach of contract .a breach of professional duty

26. chic, well-cut, taupe jumpsuits Task: paraphrase Fashionable, well-tailored, one-piece garment combining top and trousers in dark brownish gray 时髦的剪裁合身的深灰褐色的连衣裤

27. …, I imagine180 feet of Channel above my head Task: paraphrase …, I picture the transport scene of the Channel 180 feet above this tunnel

28. French; Origin The grating of the TBM interrupts my reverie. Its cutterhead – a huge wheel with tungsten-tipped teeth Grating: (of a sound or sb's voice) unpleasant and harsh to listen to The sound of his grating voice was driving me crazy. Reverie : ( of French origin) daydream be deep, sunk, lost in reverie 沉浸在﹑ 沉溺於﹑ 陷入幻想中She fell into a reverie about her childhood. Tungsten:chemical element, a hard grey metal used in making steel alloys and the filaments of electric light bulbs 钨

29. …we will work on selling the idea. Task：paraphrase …we will promote the Chunnel transport business by informing people of the benefits that this new means of transport will bring them.

30. Text II Extensive Reading Questions Traveling • What kept Aunt Augusta from traveling as constantly as before? • What were the advantages of going to Istanbul by plane? • Why did Aunt Augusta not take the plane? • what do you think their surname was? • Compare Aunt Augusta and Henry.

31. Text II Practice Workbook, Page 66, Comprehension

32. Oral Work • It is the first time Zhou has met her penpal Jenny. Jenny has only five days to spend in China, so she asks Zhou’s opinion as to how to make the best use of the time. Expressions that might be used: • I was wondering if you’d ever thought of … • Might it be a good idea to…? • Have you ever thought of …? • Don’t you think it might be a good idea to …? • If I were you, I would… • Why don’t you…? • You’d better…

33. Guided Writing • Précis Writing • Paragraph Writing • Letter Writing

34. Précis Writing First, choose the topic sentence from among the following ( SB, page 61). • The channel, as it is known, was to open at last after seven long years of construction. • The Chunnel is a 31-mile-long tunnel running from England to France. • The Chunnel, as it is known, had been a subject talked over by England and France for nearly two hundred years.

35. Précis Writing Practice: write précis of The Light at the End of the Chunnel. Essential points to be put in: --General atmosphere of apprehension: The English and the French show strong sentiments against one another --Inauguration ceremony --Journalist participated in the breakthrough ceremony

36. Listening • Listening Comprehension • Dictation 1 • Dictation 2 Key Key

37. Listening Workbook Page 73 • Alice Springs 2. Cape York Peninsula • 3. Great Sandy Desert 4. Gulf of Carpentaria • 5. Lake Eyre 6. Melbourne • Newcastle 8. Perth • 9. Simpson Desert 10. Sydney

38. Listening Useful Words and Expressions of Dictation 1 henpecked adj. 怕老婆的, 妻管严的 henpeck vt. : To dominate or harass (one‘s husband) with persistent nagging 管治（丈夫）;对丈夫罗嗦：唠唠叨叨以管制 或烦扰（丈夫） living-room客厅, 起居室 lottery n. 奖券, 彩票 a lottery ticket彩票, 奖券

39. Listening Useful Words and Expressions of Dictation 1 a great lottery 虚无缥缈的事 delightedly adj. 喜欢地, 高兴地 a delighted look 高兴的神情 pull a long face 拉下脸来 have a smiling face 笑脸 have a face to say that 脸皮厚得竟能讲出这种话

40. Listening Dictation 1 A Henpecked Husband and His Wife There was once a large, fat woman who had a small, thin husband. He had a job in a big company and was given his weekly wages every Friday evening. As soon as he got home on Fridays, his wife used to make him give her all his money, and then she used to give him back only enough to buy his lunch in his company every day. One day, the small man came home very excited.

41. Listening Dictation 1 He hurried into the living-room. His wife was listening to the radio and eating chocolates there. “You will never guess what happened to me today, dear,” he said. He waited for a few seconds and then added, “I won ten thousand dollars on the lottery!” “That is wonderfully!” said his wife delightedly. But then she pulled a long face and added angrily, “But how could you afford to buy the ticket?”(148words)

42. Listening Useful Words and Expressions of Dictation 2 suffer vt. 遭受, 经历, 忍受 suffer from a headache 经受头痛之苦 suffer death 丧生 suffer heavy casualties 伤亡惨重 suffer from ill health 身体不好 fierce adj. 凶猛的, 猛烈的 a fierce wolf 一头凶猛的恶狼

43. Listening Useful Words and Expressions of Dictation 2 the fierce glare his face 他那种凶狠的目光 poetic adj. 诗情画意的, 浪漫的 poetic diction 诗般的词句 a poetic romance 诗一般浪漫的经历 poetic insight 诗人般的洞察力 postscript n. 附言, 后记

44. Listening Dictation 2 A Young Man’s Promise One day a young man was writing a letter to his girl friend who lived just a few miles away in a nearby town. He was telling her how much he loved her and how wonderful he thought she was. The more he wrote, the more poetic he became. Finally, he said that in order to be with her he would suffer the greatest difficulties, he would face the greatest dangers that anyone could imagine.

45. Listening Dictation 2 In fact, to spend only one minute with her, he would swim across the widest river, he would enter the deepest forest, and he would fight against the fiercest animals with his bare hands. He finished the letter, signed his name, and then suddenly remembered that he had forgotten to mention something quite important. So, in a postscript below his name, he added： “By the way, I’ll be over to see you on Wednesday night, if it doesn’t rain.” (154 words)