Unit 7
Hoping for the better
Understanding and Learning
Overview
This unit discusses the issue of ethics and etiquette, and the seriousness of
the issue. Seemingly, newspapers and TV news are telling us that some virtues are vanishing, honesty is going out of style, especially in the academic community, and people are ruder and more insensitive to others in many aspects. Is honesty really out of date? What rude behavior do people have? What forms of dishonesty exist on campus? Is the phenomenon on the rise? What other ethical and etiquette problems are there on and off campus?
Text A shows how honesty is not valued as much as before across all layers of society. There are also different kinds of dishonest behaviors in school, for example, cheating and plagiarism. Students should realize those acts are totally wrong and unethical and they should not do so.
Text B discusses various forms of poor etiquette and the reasons behind them. It also calls on us to practice kindness and strive for a better, brighter world for us all.
Class activities can be designed to make students review cheating and rude behaviors on and off campus. The teacher may ask students to reflect on whether they have ever engaged in cheating or rude behaviors. Class discussion about bad behaviors and role-playing are recommended.
Before reading Text A, ask students to list dishonest phenomena on campus, and comment on the causes and consequences of each phenomenon. Second, ask students to explore the reasons why cheating is common at college. Third, ask students to discuss some well-known scandals in academia. Finally, let them think about what teachers and students can do respectively to improve the situation.
Before reading Text B, students can enumerate the rude deeds that they have observed. Then they may discuss possible causes and severe consequences for such
deeds. Finally, students should try to provide solutions to today’s etiquette problems. As suggested in the Unit project, ask students to write short plays about rude behaviors and do a role-play.
Section A
When honesty disappears
Background information
1. Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) was the 16 president of the United States from 1861 to 1865. He led the country through the American Civil War, preserving the Union, ending slavery, and promoting economic and financial development.
Brought up in a poor family on a farm in Kentucky, Lincoln was mostly self-educated. Though without a formal education, his speaking skills and practice in debates won him national recognition. He was elected the US president in 1860.
The Civil War began in April 1861when the Southern states declared to withdraw from the Union. In 1863, Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation (《解放宣言》) and the 13 Amendment to the US Constitution that declared all slaves free men. In 1864, Lincoln was re-elected president for a second term.
On April 14, 1865 at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., Lincoln was shot and killed by John Wilkes Booth, who was a stage actor and strongly opposed the abolition of slavery in the United States.
Among American heroes, Lincoln continues to have a unique appeal for his fellow countrymen and also for people of other lands. Lincoln has been consistently regarded as one of the greatest US presidents. The Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., was dedicated to him on May 30, 1922.
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Detailed study of the text
1. As numerous accounts of cheating, lying, and fraud crowd our newspaper pages and TV news, it seems that honesty is a rapidly vanishing value. (Para.1)
Meaning: From our newspapers and TV news, we read countless reports about people cheating, lying, and deceiving. Honesty as a valuable merit seems to be disappearing
quickly.
★fraud: n. [C, U] the crime of deceiving people in order to gain sth. such as money or goods 欺诈；诈骗
They said that it was the temptation of money that led them to commit the fraud. 他们说正是受到金钱的诱惑他们才去行骗的。
★crowd: vt. If people or things crowd a place, there are a lot of them there 挤满；塞满
Thanksgiving shoppers crowded the department store. 那家百货大楼里挤满了感恩节的购物者。
2. And the reports indicate that, around the globe, corruption and dishonesty are so widespread that the health and well-being of society are at risk. (Para.1) Meaning: And the reports show that immoral and dishonest behaviors are so common worldwide that the world may become less healthy and less comfortable to live in. ★corruption: n. [U] dishonest, illegal, or immoral behavior, esp. from sb. with power (尤指有权势者的) 贪污，贿赂，受贿，腐败
We think all governments should serve their people and seek to end corruption. 我们认为所有的政府都应该服务于人民，并且力求消除腐败。
★well-being: n. [U] a feeling of being comfortable, healthy, and happy 舒适；健康；幸福
Being fully employed can do wonders for your sense of well-being. 整日忙忙碌碌能神奇地让你有一种幸福感。
3. Those reports include stories such as the students who faced criminal charges for selling in advance copies of a university final exam, a student who was expelled when he turned in a term paper with the purchase receipt for it still inside the pages, and a clerk who ran his own Christmas cards through the office postage meter and was found out when he sent one of the cards to the company treasurer! (Para. 1)
Meaning: These reports contain the following stories: the students were accused because they sold copies of a university final exam paper before the final exam; a student was forced to leave university permanently because he bought a term paper
新视野大学英语第三版电子教(学)案Book1Unit7
