Unit 3

Book 3

Unit 3

Famous

Brand

Names

Title

I.Introduction

II. Text

III. Language Points

IV. Exercises

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II

Passage A

Bathtub Battleships from Ivorydale

American mothers have long believed that

when it comes to washing out the mouths of

naughty (1) children, nothing beats Ivory Soap

(a registered trademark of the

Proctor & Gamble Company).

This is because its reputation

for being safe, mild, (2) and

pure is as solid and spotless (3) as the

marble of the Lincoln Memorial. It doesn’t

even taste all that bad. And should you drop

it into a tubful of cloudy, child - colored water,

not to worry --- it floats.

Ivory Soap is an American

institution, about as wildly recognized

as the Washington Monument and far

more well respected than Congress.

It had already attained this noble

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status (4) when Theodore Roosevelt was

still a rough- riding cowboy in North Dakota.

Introduced in 1879 as an inexpensive white soap

intended to rival (5) the quality of imported (6)

soaps, it was mass marketed by means of

(7) one of the first nationwide

advertising campaigns. People

were told that Ivory was

“so pure that it floats,”

and the notion (8)

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took hold. As a result, (9) at least half a

dozen generations of Americans have gotten

themselves clean with Ivory.

So many hands, faces, and baby bottoms

have been washed with Ivory that their numbers

Beat the imagination. Not even

Proctor & Gamble knows how

many billions of bars (10)

of Ivory have been sold.

The company keeps a precise count,

however., of the billions of dollars it earns. Annual sales of Ivory Soap, Ivory Snow, Crest toothpaste,

Folger’s coffee, and the hundreds of other products

now marketed under the Proctor& Gamble umbrella exceed (11) thirty billion dollars.

The company has grown a bit since it was founded

in 1837 in Cincinnati, Ohio, by a

pair of immigrants named William

Proctor and James Gamble, each of

whom pledged $3596.47to the enterprise.

For decades Proctor & Gamble

manufactured (12) candles and soap in relatively

modest (13) quantities. It took more than twenty

years for sales to top one million dollars, which

they did shortly before the Civil War. The company’s

big break came with the introduction of its floating

soap and the realization that an

elaborate (14) advertising

campaign could turn a

simple, though high- quality,

Product into a phenomenon. (15)

The soap’s brand name was lifted from “ out of

ivory palaces,” a phrase found in the Bible. So

successful was this new product and the marketing

effort that placed it in the hands of nearly every

American that the company soon built an enormous

new factory in a place called Ivorydale.

Proctor & Gamble never

forgot the advertising lessons

it learned with Ivory. For

instance, it was among the first

manufacturers to use radio to reach consumers

nationwide. In 1933 Proctor & Gamble’s Oxydol

soap powder sponsored (16) a radio serial

called Ma Perkins, and daytime dramas were

forever after known as “ soap operas.” Over the

years the company added

dozens of new product lines

such as Prell shampoo, Duncan

Hines cake mixes, and the

ever- present Tide, “new and

improved” many a time. To this day, however, Ivory

Soap remains a Proctor & Gamble backbone product.

Ivory remains a favorite among consumers,

too, and no wonder. With a bar of Ivory Soap

in your hand, you are holding a chunk of American

history. If you like, you can

even wash your hands and face

with it and be assured (17)

that it is “ninety- nine and

forty- four – one – hundredths

percent pure.” And it floats.

The latter (18) quality of Ivory Soap

is especially attributive to children. Generations of

little boys armed with toothpicks, miniature (19)

flags, or leftover parts from model ships--- there

are always a few--- have converted bars of Ivory

Soap into bathtub battleships.

A note of warning for any

small boys who may be

reading this: mothers tend

to frown on (20) the practice.

III. Language points

(1). naughty: adj.(esp. of children) behaving badly and not being obedient; (of behavior) bad

eg. A ~ boy; It was rather ~ of you to deceive the tax inspector.

(2). mild: adj. gentle, not violent

eg. She can’t accept even ~ criticism

of her work.

(3). spotless: adj. extremely clean

eg. a ~ reputation;

(4).status: n. 1) high social position; recognition and respect by

others

2) one’s legal position, or condition

(5).rival: v. equal; to be as good as

or reach the same standard as

eg. No computer can ~a human brain.

(6).import: v. to buy or bring in from another country

eg. After entering into WTO, China will ~more agricultural products.

(7).by means of: by using, through

eg.The foreigner tried to make himself understood ~body language.

(8).notion: n. an idea, belief, or opinion; concept

eg. Some conservatives reject the

~ that reform is now inevitable.

(9).as a result: consequently, therefore, thus

eg. Sales dropped. ~ , profits declined.

(10). bar: n. 1).a piece of solid material that is longer than it is

wide eg. What’s your favorite chocolate ~?

2). (a place with)a counter where drinks, especially alcoholic

drinks are served

eg. Most ~s in the hotels serve not only drinks but also light meals

(11).exceed: v. to be greater than

eg. The budget of the research project ~s $700 million a year.

(12).Manufacture: v. to make or produce

in large quantities, esp. using machines

eg. TV sets ~d in China are competitive

abroad in price and quality.

(13).modest: adj. not large in quantity, size, value, etc.

eg. They live in a fairly ~ house, considering their wealth.

(14).elaborate : adj. carefully worked out

eg. The company offers an ~ training scheme for new

employees.

(15).phenomenon: n. a remarkable or

unusual person, thing, event, etc.

eg. A child who could play the piano

at the age of two would indeed be a ~.

(16).sponsor: v. to support an activity

by paying for its expenses

eg. The contest was ~ed by an auto manufacturer.

(17).assure: v. to give confidence, to convince

eg. We would like to ~ our customers of the best possible service.

(18). Latter: adj. the second (of two people or things just mentioned)

eg. There are plastic and steel chairs

but the ~ are much heavier.

(19).miniature: adj. very small

eg. The ~ furniture matches the room.

(20). Frown on /upon: to disapprove of

eg. Every teacher would ~ cheating

in examinations.

 

Unit 3

:

I. Introduction:

The passage traces the history of Ivory Soap, first produced in 1879, and discusses the slogans which were used to promote it. These slogans, particularly the idea that the soap is so pure that it floats, proved so successful that they are still used today. The passage also examines the development of P&G itself, from a small-scale operation founded by two immigrants to a multinational empire of today. At the same time we also learn about the origin of the expression “soap opera”, in itself another modern global phenomenon.

Proctor and gamble was founded by William Proctor and James Gamble in 1837.

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The source of “soap operas”:

In 1933, Proctor & Gamble’s Oxydol soap powder

sponsored a radio serial called Ma Prekins, and daytime

dramas were forever after known as “soap operas.”

“Soap operas”

IV. Exercises

4. Fill in the blanks with the words given below.

Make changes where necessary.

1).I don’t think that the amount of studying you

did in high school would be sufficient for you

to __________good marks in university.

2). Because of the impact of poor sales in other

Asian countries, there has been _____ decrease

in house sales in China this year.

3). Some young people find computer games so

attain

modest

___________ that they can hardly pull

themselves away to tend to other matters.

4). The victim was able to give __________ description

of the drunken driver, which was rather helpful to

the police.

5). Some non-governmental organizations are planning

public _______________to awaken people to the

problem of noise pollution.

6). The cost of producing a tube of toothpaste is

about 3 yuan, so we will __________it at 5.50 yuan to

attractive

precise

campaign

market

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to ensure our profits.

7). Mike is now the director of a factory which

__________________canned food.

8).Plenty of football and basketball clubs are

eager to _________ young athletes if they show

great promise.

9). The sweaters are made of wool _______________

from Australia.

10). According to a recent survey, youths are

beginning to have a lot of influence on the

manufactures

sponsor

imported

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a lot of influence on the products and ________

their parents choose.

brands

The important products made in P &G:

1.Ivory Soap 2.Crest toothpaste

3.Folger’s coffee 4.Tide Detergent

5.Prell Shampoo 6.safeguard