The Delicate Art of the Forest 讲解

Lesson One

The Delicate Art of the Forest

林中高招 Mark Twain

Text

1 Cooper's gift in the way of invention was not a rich endowment; but such as it was he liked to work it, he was pleased with the effects, and indeed he did some quite sweet things with it. In his little box of stage-properties he kept six or eight cunning devices, tricks, artifices for his savages and woodsmen to deceive and circumvent each other with, and he was never so happy as when he was working these innocent things and seeing them go. Cooper

COOPER

Grammar As it was = as it was not rich = though it was not rich

Vocabulary

delicate Marked by sensitivity of discrimination: a critic's delicate perception.

invention the act of producing something new for the first time endowment /en`daumEnt/ n. 1. The act of supplying with income, or a talent. 2.Funds or property donated to an institution, an individual, or a group as a source of income. 3. A natural gift, ability, or quality. stage-property things, objects used on stages except scenery, costumes cunning Marked by or given to artful subtlety and deceptiveness device A plan or scheme, especially a malign one. artifice skillful tricks savage Not civilized; barbaric

circumvent outwit; to defeat or outwit by cleverness or stratagem; to surround or encircle with enmity

moccasin A soft leather slipper traditionally worn by Native Americans twig Any small, leafless branch of a woody plant

handy Readily accessible

vessel A craft, especially one larger than a rowboat, designed to navigate on water

steer a. To direct the course of. b. To maneuver (a person) into a place or course of action.

skipper The master of a ship

undertow The seaward pull of receding waves after they break on a shore. sailorcraft

cannon A large, mounted weapon that fires heavy projectiles. Cannon include guns, howitzers, and mortars. promptly immediately

daisy Slang One that is deemed excellent or notable.

trail A mark or trace left by something that has moved or been dragged by.

stump To clear stumps from; To bring to a halt; baffle slush Soft mud; slop; mire.

vacate To cease to occupy or hold; give up 译文

库伯的发明天份并不怎么样，虽然如此，他却不厌其烦地运用它，而且还自鸣得意。他还真的用它干了几件十分惬意的事。在他的舞台道

具盒里，只有七八个高招、秘诀和妙计，能够让他的土人和林子中的人相互蒙来蒙去。他最大的快事就是摆弄这些天真的把戏，看（欣赏）它们起作用。

Key words

Cooper's gift (invention/ endowment) was not rich; but he liked to work it, and did some quite sweet things with it. His stage-properties (for his savages and woodsmen to deceive and circumvent each other with) are only six or eight cunning devices (tricks, artifices), and he was happy to work them and see them go. Text

A favorite one was to make a moccasined person tread in the tracks of the moccasined enemy, and thus hide his own trail. Cooper wore out barrels and barrels of moccasins in working that trick. 译文

其中一个他喜欢的，就是让一个穿鹿皮鞋的人踩着另一个也穿鹿皮鞋的敌人的脚印，借以掩盖自己的行踪。干这个让库伯不知磨烂了多少双鹿皮鞋（靴筒）。 Text

Another stage-property that he pulled out of his box pretty frequently was his broken twig. He prized his broken twig above all the rest of his effects, and worked it the hardest. It is a restful chapter in any book of his when somebody doesn't step on a dry twig and alarm all the reds and whites for two hundred yards around. Every time a Cooper person is in peril, and absolute silence is worth four dollars a minute, he is sure to step on a dry twig. 译文

另一个他常常从他的盒子里拿出来的道具就是他的断树枝。他比什么都喜欢干树枝，所以不遗余力地使用它。他的书要是有哪一章没有人踩上干树枝，惊动周围二百码内的印地安人和白人，那就谢天谢地了。每回库伯笔下的人碰到危险，而一分安静一分金的时候，他保准要踩上一根干树枝。 Text

There may be a hundred handier-things to step on, but that wouldn't satisfy Cooper. Cooper requires him to turn out and find a dry twig; and if he can't do it, go and borrow one. In fact, the Leatherstocking Series ought to have been called the Broken Twig Series. 译文

III. Ideas (the best topic/title)

IV. Organization (topic sentence, supporting details, controlling ideas) V. Style (ad, public speaking, lecture, news report, legal document, etc.) VI. Tones (angry, complaint, ironic, sober, playful, humorous, etc.) VII. Attitude of the writer

VIII. Points of view (expert, housewife, children, etc.) IX. Purpose (to inform, instruct, entertain, persuade, argue, etc.)

Underline the keywords 要想读得快，必须划关键词。

Keywords are the words that carry new information.

How to Underline the Keywords Two methods:

1. Only read the subject, verb and object of the main clause. If they make sense, go on to the next sentence, dropping all the rest in the main clause and all the subordinate parts.

2. Just pick up the words important to you, or important to the subject or purpose, and then reorganize in your own way, caring nothing about grammar.

The following article is very difficult, if you don't use the method of underlining the keywords. Now let's read it.

The speaker made the point that although there were many good reasons in favour of equality for women in all spheres , and particularly perhaps in the sphere of political activity where they needed a voice and above all needed to be able to influence others on their behalf, there were reasons against this as matters stood at the present time. He was asked whether any matters, regardless of how far they seemed to be in the interests of government and leaving aside the question of the popularity or otherwise of the move, could be more important than the liberty of a large section of the population of what was a so-called \had repeated before that the moral issue was a clear one; however, emotional appeals and the use of words like \avoided the most practical aspect of the affair. No government in its senses, however enlightened its leader, however large its majority, however secure in the favour of the people was going to be able to introduce a motion such as \controversy flaring up. How much less were they going to be able to introduce it with a government on the brink of falling, the nation on the edge of war and the country radically opposed to any move which would seem to the electorate to threaten the long established traditions of the British way of life.

Let's underline the keywords.

The speaker made the point that although there were many good reasons in favour of equality for women in all spheres , and particularly perhaps in the sphere of political activity where they needed a voice, and above all needed to be able to influence others on their behalf, there were reasons against this as matters stood at the present time. He was asked whether any matters, regardless of how far they seemed to be in the interests of government and leaving aside the question of the popularity or otherwise of the move, could be more important than the liberty of a large section of the population of what was a so-called \He replied that he had repeated before that the moral issue was a clear one; however, emotional appeals and the use of words like \\ of the affair. No

government in its senses, however enlightened its leader, however large its majority, however secure in the favour of the people was going to be able to introduce a motion such as \considerable controversy flaring up. How much less were they going to be able to introduce it with a government on the brink of falling, the nation on the edge of war and the country radically opposed to any move which would seem to the electorate to threaten the long established traditions of the British way of life.

It becomes much easier if we only read the keywords.

Although there were many good reasons in favour of equality for women in political activity where they needed a voice, and needed to be able to influence others, there were reasons against this. He was asked whether any matters could be more important than the women's liberty. He replied that the moral issue was a clear one; \most practical aspect (内心的那杆称就是一个；说说还可以，防碍到既得利益是不会干的). No government was able to introduce \Women\able to introduce it with a government on the brink of falling, the nation on the edge of war, and the long established traditions threatened.

本课必须掌握：

一、作文三要素：Unity, coherence （五种方法）, and variety （短句，圆周句）。

二、阅读要能理解九个问题：作者，读者，内容，结构，写作角度，文章口吻，作者态度，写作特点，宗旨等。

三、读关键词的方法：只读主句的主语，动词，宾语。意思清楚了就往下读。如果意思不清楚，比如 he said that + 宾语从句，或者 it is he that 之类强调句，则适当调整。

四、翻译要达意，要读懂吃透后再译，不要一字一句死译。

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