人教版英语选修六课文原文

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Unit 1A SHORT HISTORY OF WESTERN PAINTING

Art is influenced by the customs and faith of a people. Styles in Western art have changed

many

times.

As

there

are

so

many

different

styles

of

Western

art,

it

would

be

impossible

to

describe

all

of

them

in

such

a

short

text.

Consequently,

this

text

will

describe

only

the

most

important ones. Starting from the sixth century AD.

The Middle Ages(5th to the 15th century AD)

During

the

Middle

Ages,

the

main

aim

of

painters

was

to

represent

religious

themes.

A

conventional artistof this period was not interested in showing nature and people as they really

were. A typical picture at this time was full of religious symbols, which created a feeling of respect

and love for God. But it was evident that ideas were changing in the 13th century when painters

like Giotto di Bondone began to paint religious scenes in a more realistic way.

The Renaissance(15th to 16th century)

During the Renaissance, new ideas and values gradually replaced those held in the Middle

Ages. People began to concentrate less on religious themes and adopt a more humanistic attitude

to

the

same

time

painters

returned

to

classical

Roman

and

Greek

ideas

about

art.

They

tried to paint people and nature as they really were. Rich people wanted to possess their own

paintings, so they coule decorate their superb palaces and great houses. They paid famous artists

to

paint

pictures

of

themselves,

their

houses

and

possessions

as

well

as

their

activities

and

achievements.

One

of

the

most

important

discoveries

during

this

period

was

how

to

draw

things

in

perspective.

This

technique

was

first

used

by

Masaccio

in

1428.

When

people

first

saw

his

paintings, they were convinced that they were looking through a hole in a wall at a real scene. If

the rules of perspective

had not been discovered, no one would have been able to paint such

realistic

pictures.

By

coincidence,oil

paints

were

also

developed

at

this

time,

which

made

the

colours used in paintings look richer and deeper. Without the new paints and the new technique,

we would not be able to see the many great masterpieces for which this period is famous.

Impressionism(late 19h to early 20th century)

In the late 19th century, Europe changed a great deal,from a mostly agricultural society to a

mostly industrial one. Many people moved from the countryside to the new cities. There were

many new inventions and social changes also led to new painting styles. Among the painters who

broke away from the traditional style of painting were the Impressionists, who lived and worke in

Paris.

The Impressionists were the first painters to work outdoors. They were eager to show how

light and shadow fell on objects at different times of day. However, because natural light changes

so quickly, the Impressionists had to paint quickly. Their paintings were not as detailed as those of

earlier painters. At first, many people disliked this style of painting and became very angry about

it. They said that the painters were careless and their paintings were ridiculous.

Modern Art(29th century to today)

At

the

time

they

were

created,

the

Impressionist

paintings

were

controversial,

but

today

they

are

accepeted

as

the

beginning

of

what

we

call

art

This

is

because

the

Impressionists encouraged artists to look at their environment in new ways. There are scores of

modern art styles,but without the Impressionists, many of these painting styles might not exsist.

On

the

one

hand,

some

modern

art

is

abstract;

that

is,

the

painter

does

not

attempt

to

paint

objects as we see them with our eyes, but instead concentrates n certain qualities of the object,

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using colour, line and shape to represent them. On the other hand, some paintings of modern art

are

so

realistic

that

they

look

like

photographs.

These styles

are

so

different.

Who

can

predict

what painting styles there will be in the future?

The Best of Manhattan

’

s Galleries

The Frick Collection(5

th

Avenue and E.70

th

Street)

Many art lovers would rather visit this small art gallery than any other in New York. Henry Clay

Frick,

a

rich

New

Yorker,

died

in

1919,

leaving

his

house,

furniture

and

art

collection

to

the

American people. Frick had a preference for pre-twentieth century Western paintings, and these

are well-represented in this excellent collection. You can also explore Frick

’

s beautiful home and

garden which are well worth a visit.

Guggenheim Museum(5

th

Avenue and 88

th

Street)

This museum owns 5,000 modern paintings, sculptures and drawings. These art works are not all

displayed

at

the

same

exhibition

is

always

changing.

It

will

apeal

to

those

who

love

Impressionist

and

Post-Impressionist

Guggenheim

Museum

building

is

also

world-famous.

When

you

walk

into

the

gallery,

you

fell

as

if

you

were

inside

a

fragile

,white

seashell. The best way to see the paintings is to start from the top floor and walk down to the

bottom. There are no stairs, just a circular path. The museum also has an excellent reaturant.

Metropolitan Museum of Art(5

th

Avenue and 82nd Street)

The reputation of this museum lies in the variety if its art collection. This covers more than 5,000

years of civilization from many parts if the world, including America, Europe, China, Egypt, other

African countries and South museun diaplays more than just the visual delights of

introduces you to ancient ways of living. You can visit an Egyptian temple, a fragrant Ming

garden, a typical room in an 18

th

century French house and other special exhibitions.

Museum of Modern Art(53

rd

Street, btween 5

th

and 6

th

Avenues)

It

is

amazing

that

so

many

great

works

of

from

the

late

19

th

century

to

the

21

st

century

are

housed in the same museum. The collection of Western art includes paintings by such famous

artists as Monet, Van Gogh, Picasso and Matisse. Afew words of warning:the admission price is

not cheap an the meseum is often very crowded.

Whitney Museum of American Art(945 Madison Avenue, near 75

th

Street)

The Whitney holds an excellent colection of comtemporary painting and sclpture. There are no

permanent

displays

in

this

museum

and

exhibitions

change

all

the

time.

Every

two

years,

the

Whitney holds a special exhibition of new art by living artists. The museum also shows videos and

films by comtemporary video artists.

Unit2A FEW SIMPLE FORMS OF ENGLISH POEMS

There

are

various

reasons

why

people

write

poetry.

Some

poems

tell

a

story

or

describe

something

in a way

that

will

give

the

reader

a

strong

impression.

Others

try

to

convey

certain

emotions. Poets use many different forms of poetry to express themselves. In this text, however,

we will look at a few of the simpler forms.

Some of the first poetry a young child learns in English is nursery rhymes. These rhymes like

the one on the right (A) are still a common type of children's poetry. The language is concrete but

imaginative, and they delight small children because they rhyme, have strong rhythm and a lot of

repetition. The poems may not make sense and even seem contradictory, but they are easy to

learn and recite. By playing with the words in nursery rhymes, children learn about language.

A Hush, little baby, don't say a word,

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Papa's going to buy you a mockingbird.

If that mockingbird won't sing,

Papa's going to buy you a diamond ring.

If that diamond ring turns to brass,

Papa's going to buy you a looking- glass.

If that looking- glass gets broke,

Papa's going to buy you a billy-goat.

If that billy-goat runs away,

Papa's going to buy you another today.

One of the simplest kinds of poems are those like B and C that list things. List poems have a

flexible line length and repeated phrases which give both a pattern and a rhythm to the poem.

Some rhyme (like B) while others do not (like C).

I saw a fish-portal all on fire

I saw a fish-pond all on fire,

I saw a house bow to a squire,

I saw a person twelve-feet high,

I saw a cottage in the sky,

I saw a balloon made of lead,

I saw a coffin drop down dead,

I saw two sparrows run a race,

I saw two horses making lace,

I saw g girl just like a cat,

I saw a kitten wear a hat,

I saw a man who saw these too,

And said though strange they all were true.

Our first football match

We would have won ...

if Jack had scored that goal,

if we'd had just a few more minutes,

if we had trained harder,

if Ben had passed the ball to Joe,

if we'd had thousands of fans screaming,

if I hadn't taken my eye off the ball,

if we hadn't stayed up so late the night before,

if we hadn't taken it easy,

if we hadn't run out of energy.

We would have won ...

if we'd been better!

Another simple form of poem that students can easily write is the cinquain, a poem made

up of five lines. With these, students can convey a strong picture in just a few words. Look at the

examples (D and E) on the top of the next page.

Brother

Beautiful, athletic

Teasing, shouting, laughing

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Friend and enemy too

Mine

Summer

Sleepy, salty

Drying, drooping, dreading

Week in, week out

Endless

A fallen blossom

Is coming back to the branch.

Look, a butterfly!

( by Moritake)

Snow having melted,

The whole village is brimful

Of happy children.

(by Issa)

Haiku is a Japanese form of poetry that is made up of 17 syllables. It is not a traditional form

of English poetry, but is very popular with English writers. It is easy to write and, like the cinquain ,

can give a clear picture and create a special feeling using the minimum of words. The two haiku

poems (F and G) above are translations from the Japanese.

Where she awaits her husband

On and on the river flows.

Never looking back,

Transformed into stone.

Day by day upon the mountain top,

wind and rain revolve.

Should the traveller return,

this stone would utter speech.,

(by Wang Jian)

Did

you

know

that

English

speakers

also

enjoy

other

forms

of

Asian

poetry

-

Tang

poems

from China in particular? A lot of Tang poetry has been translated into English. This Tang poem (H)

is a translation from the Chinese.

With so many different forms of poetry to choose from, students may eventually want to

write poems of their own. It is easier than you might think and certainly worth a try

Unit 3 A Health Life

It is a beautiful day here and I am sitting under the big tree at the end of the garden. I have just

returned

from

a

long

bike

ride

to

an

old

castle.

It

seems

amazing

that

at

my

age

I

am

still

fit

enough

to

cycle

20

kilometres

in

an

's

my

birthday

in

two

weeks'

time

and

I

'll

be82years old! I think my long and active life must be due to the healthy life I live.

This brings me to the real reason for my letter, my dear grandson. Your mother tells me that you

started smoking some time ago and how you are finding it difficult to give it up. Believe me, I

know how easy it is to begin smoking and how tough it is to stop. You see, during adolescence I

also smoked and became addicted to cigarettes.

By the way, did you know that this is because you become addicated in three different ways. First,

you can become physically addicated to nicotine, which is one of the hundreds of chemicals in