北京大学博士录取名单-动物的语言
我们只不过是人
劳拉．施莱辛格
Pre-class Work
1. Explain the following.
1) free will (Para. 1): the ability to make your own decisions about what to do rather than being controlled
by God or fate
自由意志
2)
the
product
of
causation
(Para.
1):
behavior
is
a
response
to
external
stimulation,
and
therefore is genes-determined.
某种原因造成的结果
3) fateful night (Para. 9): the night that had an important bad effect on future events
那个决定性的夜
晚
4) honor his commitment (Para. 10): to do what he has committed to do to others; to do his duty; to
respect his obligations to
others
履行义务或实践许诺
5) clause (Para. 20): a separate division of a written legal document with its own separate and complete
meaning
条款
6) absorbing (Para. 26): interesting; enjoyable; gripping
吸引人的
2. Paraphrase.
1) Human beings have no free will, they are all victims of these external causes as a group.
2) As if the fact we are human were a kind of detailed plan which determines how we react to situations.
This reaction is instinctive and
natural just like with all animals, insects,
birds.
3) The 3 C's are Character, Courage, and Conscience, without these qualities, we cease to be human
and will be just like big ants which
live out their lives in a way that is determined
by their natural instincts.
4) Only managing to live in a vegetable state.
5) If you want to live a good and energetic life, you need the ability to make decisions and take action
without
waiting
for
someone
to
tell
you
what
to
do;
you
should
be
brave
enough
to
take
risks;
you
should
take
continued
action
against
difficulties;
you
should
be
ready
to
lose
life
for
ideals
and
you
should
have an instance of accepting or trusting in
something that cannot be readily seen or trusted.
6) Courage is as important to life as broth is to soup.
7) In order to be excused, we often try hard to twist things and put the blame on others or try to justify our
actions in
various ways in our speaking as well as in our
thinking.
8) Relating to what we have mentioned, pleasure is something that just happens; happiness is a series of
things
that
involved.
Pleasure
is
a
finishingpoint;
happiness
is
a
long
process.
Pleasure
is
something
related
to
the
real
world
and
physical
objects;
happiness
is
something
related
to
your
spirit.
Pleasure
is
something related to yourself;
happiness is something related to others and the
world.
3. Learn to use reference books.
Check in a Chinese- English dictionary for the translations of the following Chinese collocations of
开
开门
to open the door;
开口
to open one,s mouth (or start to talk);
开火
to open fire;
开刀
to have
an operation;
开发
to open up... (or to develop; to exploit);
开工
(of a factory, etc.) to go into operation;
开花
to blossom;
开会
to have a meeting;
开胃
to whet (or stimulate) the appetite;
开心
to feel happy;
开玩笑
to crack ajoke (to make fun of)
4. Learn rules of word-building. Enrich
and enlarge your vocabulary.
1) Give the corresponding nouns of the following.
(1) devastation
(2) exhilaration
(3) conformity
(4) procreation
(5) invocation
(6) sustenance
(7) projection
(8) derivation
(9) criticism
(10) restoration
2) Give the corresponding verbs of the following.
(1) to contort
(2) to rationalize
(3) to transgress
(4) to condemn
(5) to abort
(6) to emphasize
(7) to seduce
(8) to gratify
(9) to destroy
(10) to indulge
(11) to oblige
(12) to motivate
(13) to cause
(14) to survive
More Work on the Text
II
Vocabulary
1. Translate
1) into English.
(1) to shape one's mind
(2) to honor one's commitment
(3) to sustain life
(4) to raise a family
(5) to make a judgment
(6) to focus one's attention
(7) to devastate the country
(8) to blame the weather
(9) to avoid sacrifice
(10) to demand justice
(11) to criticize the theory
(12) to condemn the war
(13) to emphasize education
(14) to acknowledge defeat
(15) to sustain economic growth
(16) to restore the building
(17) to cause trouble
(18) to resist the temptation
2) into Chinese.
(1)
动物界
(2)
某种原因造成的结果
(3)
自由意志
`
(4)
条件反射
(5)
由生物本能决定的
(6)
自然选择
(7)
高级动物；万物之灵
(8)
适者生存
(9)
固有欲望
(10)
利他的行为
(11)
社会地位
(12)
一个关键的晚上
(13)
正当的地位
(14)
眼前一时痛快
(15)
蛮力
(16)
思想斗争
(17)
良心不安；良心有愧
(18)
对未经证实之事物的信仰
(19)
合同的例外条款
(20)
植物人的状态
(21)
长期目标
(22)
十分吸引人的电影
(23)
全心全意和孩子相聚的时间
(24)
价值观念体系
2. Give synonyms and antonyms of the
following.
1) Give synonyms.
(1) example
(2) lonely, alone
(3) to look, to gaze
(4) properly, appropriately
(5) natural, inborn, instinctive
(6) to gain, to obtain
(7) deeply, extremely
(8) to give up
(9) idea, thought, theory, notion
(10) mutual, shared
(11) to shape, to form
(12) fortress, love, emotional attachment
(13) decisive, decisively important, critical, fatal
(14) duty, responsibility
(15) responsibility, obligation
(16) honesty, virtue, uprightness
(17) satisfaction, pleasure, enjoyment
(18)
to
struggle,
to
fight,
to
deal
with,
to
tackle
(19) delighted, in high spirits
(20) to agree with, to comply with, to follow, to adhere to
(21) very great
(22) damaging, very destructive, shocking
2) Give antonyms.
(1) construction
(2) former
(3) outer
(4) selfish
(5) to deny
(6) unsteady, shaky, unstable
(7) physical, material, bodily
(8) immeasurable
(9) deep, in-depth, profound
(10) imbalance
(11) long, long-lived, lasting, enduring, permanent, eternal
(12) immoral, amoral
(13) required, compulsory
(14) unwilling
(15) positive
3. Translate.
1) As the saying goes: All roads lead to Rome.
2) That wrong line led to a serious setback of the revolution.
3) The discovery of a knife on his body led the police to suspect that he was the murderer.
4) We are leading the world in the production of rice, cotton, hogs, and coal.
5) Lack of exercise can lead to all kinds of health problems.
6) Some political scientists in the West believe that a balance of power could lead to world peace.
7)
Most
of
the
leading
economic
powers
in
the
world
are
committed
to
global
environmental
protection.
8) Those traces of water led many scientists to believe that there might be some forms of life on that
planet.
9) It's amazing how she Can balance herself on that ball.
10) For most Chinese people, the unification of our country is a serious/solemn commitment.
11) Yes, I taught her once. She struck me as quite a committed student.
12) Many things in this world require a good balance. Once you lose balance, troubles begin.
13) Mr. Smith said that it was his honor to be our business partner, and he assured us that his company
is committed to help China with
her modernization effort.
14) This treaty commits all member nations to develop their cooperation.
15) Some European countries have not been able to balance their budgets.
16) It's a matter of honor to repay my debts on time. But right now my total balance in the bank is only 20
dollars.
17) The banking system of that country is in a terrible state.
18) It was said that the Russian state- owned enterprises were privatized almost overnight.
19) During the talks, he made an official statement that his government will not adopt a two-China policy.
4. Fill in the blanks with the
appropriate word.
1) of
2) for
3) out
4) out
5) up
6) of
7) up
8) down
9) at
10) out of
ll) up
12) to, away from
13) on, in
14) on, by, of
15) In, instead of, to
16) to, on, at
17) in, By
18) with, For, on, In
5. Correct mistakes in the following
sentences.
1) I have not been informed about this meeting. (Or: I have not been informed that I should attend the
meeting.)