Advanced English
Lvhong
English Department R-516
Lhong9904@yahoo.com
82066873
Unit 12
?The Discovery of What It Means to
Be an American
?
? by James Baldwin
Teaching Points
? I,Background knowledge
? II,Introduction to the passage
? III,Text Analysis
? IV,Rhetorical devices
? V,Questions
I,Background Knowledge
? 1,About the author
? James Baldwin,and his major works
? --a leading Negro novelist and essayist
in the 50’s
? --a major spokesman for his race in the
civil rights movement of the 60’s
I,Background Knowledge
? James Arthur Baldwin was born in
Harlem,New York City,Aug,2,1924
and died on Nov,30,1987.,
Background Knowledge
? The eldest of nine children,his
stepfather was a minister,
? At age 14,Baldwin became a preacher
at the small Fireside Pentecostal
Church in Harlem,
? After he graduated from high school,he
moved to Greenwich Village,
Background Knowledge
? In the early 1940s,he transferred his
faith from religion to literature,
Background Knowledge
? Go Tell It on the Mountain (1953)
? Notes of a Native Son (1955)
? Another Country (1962)
? Going to Meet the Man (1965)
? Nobody Knows My Name (1961)
? Tell Me How Long the Train's Been
Gone (1968)
Background Knowledge
? From 1948,Baldwin made his home
primarily in the south of France,but
often returned to the USA to lecture or
teach,
? In 1957,he began spending half of each
year in New York City,
Background Knowledge
? In 1983 Baldwin became Five College
Professor in the Afro-American Studies
department of the University of
Massachusetts at Amherst.
? He spent his latter years in St,Paul de
Vence on the Riviera,France,where he
died of stomach cancer on November
30,1987,
II,Introduction to the Passage
? 1,Type of literature:
? --- a piece of expository writing
II,Introduction to the Passage
? 2,The thesis expressed by the title of
the essay,
? --- The Discovery of What It Means to
Be an American
II,Introduction to the Passage
? 3,A brief discussion about the title of
this essay:
? --The Discovery of What It Means to Be
an American or
? --The Discovery of What It Means to Be
an American Writer or
? --The Discovery of What It Means to Be
an American Negro Writer
II,Introduction to the Passage
? 4,Discoveries made in Europe,
? --- five points
II,Introduction to the Passage
? 1,American is different from the European,
? 2,It is a complex fate to be an American.
? 3,All Americans,white or black,loved their
country and were not at home in Europe.
? 4,Americans knew more about each other
than any European ever could.
? 5,Europe was part of their identity and part of
their inheritance.
II,Introduction to the Passage
? 5,A profound impact of Europe on
Baldwin:
? -- he was free of being a discriminated
Negro.
? -- he was forced to reassess and
reconsider many things he had always
taken for granted.
? -- the acceptance of his Negro origins
Words and expressions
? Fate,lot or fortune
? n.天数,命运,运气
? vt.注定,送命
? fated
? adj.宿命的,受命运支配的,命中注定的
? fateful
? adj,宿命的,重大的,决定性的,致命性的,预言
性的
? Fates
? n.〈 希神 〉 命运三女神
Words and expressions
? Beginning an essay with a quotation
lends authority and force to what one
intends to say.
? But be effective the quotation must be
well-chosen as this one is.
Words and expressions
? Extremely controversial proper noun---
? People give very different definitions or
interpretations of the word,America”,
They fail to agree and quarrel over the
different definitions and interpretations.
Words and expressions
? Motley,having or composed of many
different or clashing elements
? motley
? adj.
? 杂色的,五颜六色的,穿染色衣的,混杂的
? n.
? 杂色,杂色衣服,混杂,小丑
Words and expressions
? It was borne in on me ---I was made to
realize
Words and expressions
? pockets --- a small area or group of a
specified type
Words and expressions
? maverick
? n.没打烙印的动物
? vi.闹独立的人
Words and expressions
? At odds with her time and place ---
whose thoughts and actions were out of
harmony with her time and place in
society.
III,Text Analysis
? Organization of the text:
? Part 1
? Part 2
? Part 3
IV,Rhetorical Devices
? 1,metaphor
? 2,simile
? 3,transferred epithet
Special Difficulties
? 1,Some methods of developing ideas:
? --a point by point analogy
? --simultaneous comparison
? --alternating comparison
Special Difficulties
? 2,Distinguishing synonyms:
? --complex/complicated
? --delusion/illusion
? --intellectual/intelligent/clever
? --probable/likely/possible
Special Difficulties
? 3,Paraphrasing some sentences
Special Difficulties
? 4,Identifying figures of speech
V,Questions
? 1,How did Baldwin discover,what it
means to be an American?”
? 2,Why did the writer leave America for
Europe?
? 3,Why did the writer go to Switzerland?
How did Bessie Smith help him?
V,Questions
? 4,Is the title well chosen? Could you suggest
a more fitting title?
? 5,Comment on the first sentence of the
essay,Is it an effective way of beginning this
essay? Give your reasons,
? 6,What is the paradox in paragraph 13?
How does the writer explain this paradox?
Lvhong
English Department R-516
Lhong9904@yahoo.com
82066873
Unit 12
?The Discovery of What It Means to
Be an American
?
? by James Baldwin
Teaching Points
? I,Background knowledge
? II,Introduction to the passage
? III,Text Analysis
? IV,Rhetorical devices
? V,Questions
I,Background Knowledge
? 1,About the author
? James Baldwin,and his major works
? --a leading Negro novelist and essayist
in the 50’s
? --a major spokesman for his race in the
civil rights movement of the 60’s
I,Background Knowledge
? James Arthur Baldwin was born in
Harlem,New York City,Aug,2,1924
and died on Nov,30,1987.,
Background Knowledge
? The eldest of nine children,his
stepfather was a minister,
? At age 14,Baldwin became a preacher
at the small Fireside Pentecostal
Church in Harlem,
? After he graduated from high school,he
moved to Greenwich Village,
Background Knowledge
? In the early 1940s,he transferred his
faith from religion to literature,
Background Knowledge
? Go Tell It on the Mountain (1953)
? Notes of a Native Son (1955)
? Another Country (1962)
? Going to Meet the Man (1965)
? Nobody Knows My Name (1961)
? Tell Me How Long the Train's Been
Gone (1968)
Background Knowledge
? From 1948,Baldwin made his home
primarily in the south of France,but
often returned to the USA to lecture or
teach,
? In 1957,he began spending half of each
year in New York City,
Background Knowledge
? In 1983 Baldwin became Five College
Professor in the Afro-American Studies
department of the University of
Massachusetts at Amherst.
? He spent his latter years in St,Paul de
Vence on the Riviera,France,where he
died of stomach cancer on November
30,1987,
II,Introduction to the Passage
? 1,Type of literature:
? --- a piece of expository writing
II,Introduction to the Passage
? 2,The thesis expressed by the title of
the essay,
? --- The Discovery of What It Means to
Be an American
II,Introduction to the Passage
? 3,A brief discussion about the title of
this essay:
? --The Discovery of What It Means to Be
an American or
? --The Discovery of What It Means to Be
an American Writer or
? --The Discovery of What It Means to Be
an American Negro Writer
II,Introduction to the Passage
? 4,Discoveries made in Europe,
? --- five points
II,Introduction to the Passage
? 1,American is different from the European,
? 2,It is a complex fate to be an American.
? 3,All Americans,white or black,loved their
country and were not at home in Europe.
? 4,Americans knew more about each other
than any European ever could.
? 5,Europe was part of their identity and part of
their inheritance.
II,Introduction to the Passage
? 5,A profound impact of Europe on
Baldwin:
? -- he was free of being a discriminated
Negro.
? -- he was forced to reassess and
reconsider many things he had always
taken for granted.
? -- the acceptance of his Negro origins
Words and expressions
? Fate,lot or fortune
? n.天数,命运,运气
? vt.注定,送命
? fated
? adj.宿命的,受命运支配的,命中注定的
? fateful
? adj,宿命的,重大的,决定性的,致命性的,预言
性的
? Fates
? n.〈 希神 〉 命运三女神
Words and expressions
? Beginning an essay with a quotation
lends authority and force to what one
intends to say.
? But be effective the quotation must be
well-chosen as this one is.
Words and expressions
? Extremely controversial proper noun---
? People give very different definitions or
interpretations of the word,America”,
They fail to agree and quarrel over the
different definitions and interpretations.
Words and expressions
? Motley,having or composed of many
different or clashing elements
? motley
? adj.
? 杂色的,五颜六色的,穿染色衣的,混杂的
? n.
? 杂色,杂色衣服,混杂,小丑
Words and expressions
? It was borne in on me ---I was made to
realize
Words and expressions
? pockets --- a small area or group of a
specified type
Words and expressions
? maverick
? n.没打烙印的动物
? vi.闹独立的人
Words and expressions
? At odds with her time and place ---
whose thoughts and actions were out of
harmony with her time and place in
society.
III,Text Analysis
? Organization of the text:
? Part 1
? Part 2
? Part 3
IV,Rhetorical Devices
? 1,metaphor
? 2,simile
? 3,transferred epithet
Special Difficulties
? 1,Some methods of developing ideas:
? --a point by point analogy
? --simultaneous comparison
? --alternating comparison
Special Difficulties
? 2,Distinguishing synonyms:
? --complex/complicated
? --delusion/illusion
? --intellectual/intelligent/clever
? --probable/likely/possible
Special Difficulties
? 3,Paraphrasing some sentences
Special Difficulties
? 4,Identifying figures of speech
V,Questions
? 1,How did Baldwin discover,what it
means to be an American?”
? 2,Why did the writer leave America for
Europe?
? 3,Why did the writer go to Switzerland?
How did Bessie Smith help him?
V,Questions
? 4,Is the title well chosen? Could you suggest
a more fitting title?
? 5,Comment on the first sentence of the
essay,Is it an effective way of beginning this
essay? Give your reasons,
? 6,What is the paradox in paragraph 13?
How does the writer explain this paradox?
