第二课

一、课文原文

Thirteen Equals One

Our vicar is always raising money for one cause or another, but he has never managed to get enough money to have the church clock repaired. The big clock which used to strike the hours day and night was damaged many years ago and has been silent ever since.

One night, however, our vicar woke up with a start: the clock was striking the hours! Looking at his watch, he saw that it was one o'clock, but the bell struck thirteen times before it stopped. Armed with a torch, the vicar went up into the clock tower to see what was going on. In the torchlight, he caught sight of a figure whom he immediately recognized as Bill Wilkins, our local grocer.

'Whatever are you doing up here, Bill?' asked the vicar in surprise.
'I'm trying to repair the bell,' answered Bill. 'I've been coming up here night after night for weeks now. You see, I was hoping to give you a surprise.'
'You certainly did give me a surprise!' said the vicar. 'You've probably woken up everyone in the village as well. Still, I'm glad the bell is working again.'
'That's the trouble, vicar,' answered Bill. 'It's working all right, but I'm afraid that at one o'clock it will strike thirteen times. There's nothing I can do about it.'
'We'll get used to that, Bill,' said the vicar. 'Thirteen is not as good as one, but it's better than nothing. Now let's go downstairs and have a cup of tea.'

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二、核心词汇与词组精讲、拓展及例句

1. Cause

• 英文释义：A principle, aim, or movement that, because of a deep commitment, one is prepared to defend or advocate.
• 中文释义：事业；目标；原因。
• 核心词组：for one cause or another（出于某种原因/为了这样或那样的事业）。
• 词汇拓展与例句：
  • reason（理由，原因）：He didn't give a clear reason for his absence.
  • campaign（运动，活动）：She joined the campaign to protect the environment.
  • mission（使命，任务）：His mission in life is to help the poor.

2. Manage

• 英文释义：To succeed in doing or achieving something, especially something difficult.
• 中文释义：设法做到；管理；经营。
• 核心词组：manage to do sth.（设法做成了某事，强调结果成功）。
• 词汇拓展与例句：
  • attempt（尝试，企图，不一定成功）：He attempted to escape but failed.
  • strive（努力，奋斗）：We must strive for excellence.
  • succeed（成功）：Did you succeed in finding a job?

3. Strike

• 英文释义：To hit or knock against something; (of a clock) to indicate the time by sounding a bell.
• 中文释义：敲（钟）；打；罢工；突然想到。
• 词汇拓展与例句：
  • beat（连续打，敲击）：The rain beat against the window.
  • hit（击中，碰撞）：The car hit the tree.
  • knock（轻敲，敲门）：Someone is knocking at the door.
  • chime（鸣响，报时）：The church bells chimed at noon.

4. Recognize

• 英文释义：To identify someone or something from having encountered them before. - No one recognized him because he made himself up as a tourist (or he was disguised as a tourist)
• 中文释义：认出；识别；承认。
• 词汇拓展与例句：
  • identify（确认身份，鉴定）：The witness identified the thief in the lineup.
  • acknowledge（承认，认可）：He acknowledged his mistake.
  • spot（发现，认出）：I spotted her in the crowd immediately.

5. Torch

• 英文释义：A small portable electric lamp (British English); a stick with burning material at one end (American English: flashlight vs. Torch).
• 中文释义：手电筒；火炬。
• 词汇拓展与例句：
  • flashlight（手电筒，美式英语）：Don't forget to bring a flashlight for the camping trip.
  • lantern（提灯，灯笼）：They lit a lantern to guide the way.
  • beam（光束）：A beam of light cut through the darkness.

6. Figure

• 英文释义：The human shape or form; a person seen from a distance so that only the outline is visible.
• 中文释义：人影；轮廓；数字；人物。
• 词汇拓展与例句：
  • silhouette（剪影，轮廓）：We saw the silhouette of a tree against the sky.
  • shape（形状，身形）：A dark shape moved in the shadows.
  • outline（轮廓，外形）：The outline of the mountains was clear.

7. Get used to

• 英文释义：To become familiar with or accustomed/ə'kʌstəmd/ to something.
• 中文释义：习惯于……（注意：to 是介词，后接名词或动名词）。
• 词汇拓展与例句：
  • be accustomed to（习惯于，更正式）：He is accustomed to working late.
  • adapt to（适应）：It took time to adapt to the new environment.
  • adjust to（调整以适应）：Your eyes will adjust to the dark.

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三、特别语法点拨（长难句）

过去完成进行时

• 原句：I've been coming up here night after night for weeks now.
• 解析：这里使用了现在完成进行时（have been doing），强调动作从过去开始，一直持续到现在，并且可能还在继续，同时带有强烈的感情色彩（强调“辛苦”、“坚持”或“频繁”）。在口语中，这种时态常用来解释原因或表达抱怨/自豪的情绪。
• 对比：如果用 I came here for weeks（一般过去时），则表示动作已经结束，与现在无关。

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四、智慧版写作指导

1. 巧用“伴随状语”增强画面动感

• 写作指导：在描写连续动作时，不要只用 and 连接。将次要动作变为现在分词（-ing）放在句首或句尾，作为伴随状语，能让句子更有电影镜头感，主次分明。
• 课文示范：Armed with a torch, the vicar went up into the clock tower...（“带着手电筒”是伴随状态，“走上塔楼”是主要动作。）
• 实战仿写：
  • Holding an umbrella, she walked through the rain.（撑着伞，她走过雨中。）
  • Surrounded by fans, the singer smiled confidently.（被粉丝簇拥着，歌手自信地微笑。）

2. 幽默对话中的“欲扬先抑”与“反转”

• 写作指导：在记叙文或对话描写中，制造幽默感的关键在于预期违背。先建立一个严肃或正常的预期，然后用一个荒诞或无奈的事实打破它。
• 课文示范：
  • 预期：修好了钟，一切完美。
  • 反转：It's working all right, but I'm afraid that at one o'clock it will strike thirteen times.（钟是好了，但一点钟会敲十三下。）
• 实战技巧：在写作中，可以用 Still, ... 或 However, ... 来引出这种无奈的幽默。例如：The cake looks beautiful. Still, it tastes like salt.

3. 用“具体细节”代替“抽象形容”

• 写作指导：不要只说“他很惊讶”或“他很努力”，要描写动作和神态。
• 课文示范：... Our vicar woke up with a start.（不说 He woke up suddenly/surprisedly，而是用 with a start 这个动作细节来表现惊醒的状态。）
• 实战替换：
  • 表示“生气”：He slammed the door.（他摔门而去。）
  • 表示“紧张”：She kept checking her watch.（她不停地看表。）
  • 表示“高兴”：He whistled a tune.（他吹着口哨。）

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WARNING

以上内容由AI生成，请自主辨明是否存在问题。