新世纪综合英语B4-U4

Unit 4 Book 4 Work, Labour and Play

1. An English Song — Career Opportunities

Career opportunities

They offered me the office, offered me the shop They said I’d better take anything they got Do you want to make tea at the BBC?

Do you want to be, do you really want to be a cop?

Career opportunities are the ones that never knock Every job they offer you is to keep you out of the dock Career opportunities are the ones that never knock

I hate all of my school’s rules

They just think that I’m another fool

Career opportunities are the ones that never knock Every job they offer you is to keep you out of the dock Career opportunities are the ones that never knock Hey

Bus driver!

Ambulance man! Ticket inspector!

I don’t understand

They’re gonna have to introduce conscription（征兵） They’re gonna have to take away my prescriptions If they want to get me making toys

If they want to get me, I’ve got no choice

Career opportunities are the ones that never knock Every job they offer you is to keep you out of the dock Career opportunities are the ones that never knock

Career

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Career

Career opportunities are the ones that never knock Oh, no

2. Difficult Sentences

1) (LL6~9) In a society where slavery in the strict sense has been

abolished, whether what a man does has social value depends on whether he is paid money to do it, but a labourer today can rightly be called a wage slave.

Why does the author call a labourer a wage slave?

(=The author calls a labourer a wage slave because a labourer’s social value depends on the money he is paid. To a labourer, the job that society offers him is of no interest to him. He is compelled to take it because he has to earn a living and support his family. )

What is the implied meaning of this sentence?

(=Just like slaves in the past, labourers are compelled to do jobs that they don’t really enjoy. As a result, the only difference between a labourer and a slave is that one is paid while the other is not. )

2) (LL17~20) A man is a worker if he is personally interested in the job

which society pays him to do; what from the point of view of society is necessary labour is from his own point of view voluntary play.

What does “voluntary play” mean in this context?

(=“Voluntary play” in the context means the job one enjoys doing. )

3) (LL22~25) The difference does not, for example, coincide with the

difference between a manual and a mental job; a gardener or a cobbler may be a worker, a bank clerk a labourer.

What can we infer from this sentence?

(=According to the author, whether one is a worker or a labourer does not depend on the kind of job he or she does but on whether he or she really enjoys doing the job. Therefore, a gardener or a cobbler may be a worker if he is interested in his job, while a bank clerk is a labourer if he is bored with his job.)

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4) (LL28~30) He is therefore more likely to take too little leisure than too

much; workers die of heart attacks and forget their wives’ birthdays.

Why is a worker likely to take too little leisure?

(=Because to a worker, leisure means simply the time he needs to relax and rest in order to work more efficiently.)

Translate this sentence into Chinese.

（＝所以，他可能只有少量的闲暇，而不会有大量的空闲。工作者可能会死于心脏病，并会忘记自己妻子的生日。）

5) (LL44~47) It is already possible to imagine a society in which the

majority of the population, that is to say, its labourers, will have almost as much leisure as in earlier times was enjoyed by the aristocracy.

Paraphrase this sentence.

(=We can already imagine a world where the majority of the workforce have as much leisure time as the upper classes used to have in the past.)

Translate this sentence into Chinese.

（＝已经可以想象出这样一个社会：其人口的大多数，也就是其中的劳动者们，将会享受到早期贵族们才能享受到的几乎同样多的休闲。）

6) (LL47~49) When one recalls how aristocracies in the past actually

behaved, the prospect is not cheerful.

What does this sentence imply?

(=If today’s labourers who have almost as much leisure time as aristocracies in the past, should kill their time by indulging in dangerous and meaningless activities, it would have a great negative impact on society. With such a prospect in mind, one cannot but feel worried.)

7) (LL49~51) Indeed, the problem of dealing with boredom may be even

more difficult for such a future mass society than it was for aristocracies.

Translate this sentence into Chinese.

（=的确，在未来这样一个大众社会里，人们要解决“无聊”这个问题，也许比过去的贵族们要困难得多。）

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8) (LL53~55) The masses are more likely to replace an unchanging ritual

by fashion which changes as often as possible in the economic interest of certain people.

Paraphrase this sentence.

(=Unlike the aristocracy, ordinary people spend too much leisure time following fashions that change frequently in the economic interest of certain people. )

9) (LL57~60) For other aristocratic amusements like gambling, dueling,

and warfare, it may be only too easy to find equivalents in dangerous driving, drug-taking, and senseless acts of violence.

What can we infer from this sentence?

(=Unlike aristocracies, labourers cannot afford activities like gambling, dueling, and warfare, yet they may easily find similar amusements available in the modern society by spending their excessive leisure time in driving dangerously, taking drugs, or committing senseless acts of violence. )

10) (LL60~63) Workers seldom commit acts of violence, because they

can put their aggression into their work, be it physical like the work of a smith, or mental like the work of a scientist or an artist.

Why do you think workers can put their aggression into their work?

(=Workers usually enjoy what they are doing, so they are willing to spend most of their time and energy on their jobs. As they are bent on their work, the aggressiveness inside themselves, if any, would naturally turn into the motivation and determination to do their jobs well. )

Translate this sentence into Chinese.

(=工作者很少从事暴力活动，他们可以把自己的“敌对心理”用在工作上，不管是工匠的体力活，还是科学家、艺术家的脑力活。)

3. Words and Expressions

1) (L2) define: vt. state, show or explain clearly

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*New times define new challenges.

*Please listen carefully while I define your duties.

*When boundaries between countries are not clearly defined, there is usually trouble.

把“幸福”界定为“拥有很多钱”是错误的。

(= It's wrong to define “happiness” as “owing lots of money”. )

2) (L4) compel: vt. 1. force or oblige

*You can compel obedience, but not affection.

*You cannot compel good work from unwilling students.

A parent may compel his child to do his lessons by threatening to suspend his allowance.

2. inspire

*Her intelligence and skill compel universal admiration.

cf. compel, force, constrain, & oblige

这些动词均含“迫使”之意。

compel 指在法律、权力、力量或行动等的驱使下被迫而为。

force 指用个人意志、权力、权威或暴力等，迫使他人改变看法或做本不

愿做的事。

constrain 侧重施加约束力或有约束作用的影响，也指环境对人强加的影响

迫使人去做某事，尤指受良心、情感等内在力量驱使去做某事。

oblige 指由于生理上或道德上的需要，促使某人做某事，也指有权威的人

或机构迫使某人做某事，还可指在特定情况下被迫做出的反应。

(Directions:) Fill in the blanks with the words above. Change the form

where necessary.

1. He felt _______ to leave after such an unpleasant quarrel. (=obliged) 2. Wealth is a power usurped by the few, to _______ the many to labour for their benefit. (=compel)

3. I’m by the need to care for my mother. (=constrained)

4. Survivors of the gas explosion are much _______ to the public for their concern and donations. (=obliged)

5. They the child into obedience. (=forced)

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