Unit 4

Aesop’s Fables

Deborah Soong

Teaching Activities Index

Teaching Activities1st period 1. Warm-up

2. The Vocabulary, and Idioms & Phrases within Paragraphs 1-2

3. Reading – Paragraphs 1-2

2nd period 1. The Vocabulary, and Idioms & Phrases within Paragraphs 3-11

2. Reading - Paragraphs 3-113. Post-reading

3rd period 1. Word File2. Sentence Patterns3. Expansion4. Writing Practice

4th period Review: Oral & Listening – Unit 1-3Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3

Warm-upVocabulary Idioms & PhrasesReading-Paragraphs 1-2

Warm-up

Morals:(A)Persuasion is better than force.(B)Please all, and you will please none.(C)Not everything you see is what it appears to be.(D)There is no believing a

liar, even when he speaks the

truth.

1.( )A

Morals:(A)Persuasion is better than force.(B)Please all, and you will please none.(C)Not everything you see is what it appears to be.(D)There is no believing a liar, even when he speaks the truth.2.( )D

Morals:(A)Persuasion is better than force.(B)Please all, and you will please none.(C)Not everything you see is what it appears to be.(D)There is no believing a liar, even when he speaks the truth.3. ( )C

Morals:(A)Persuasion is better than force.(B)Please all, and you will please none.(C)Not everything you see is what it appears to be.(D)There is no believing a liar, even when he speaks the truth.4.( )BBack

Listen to paragraphs 1- 2.

Skip

Now,answer the following questions.

____ Aesop is a person ______. (A) who had insight into human nature (B) of whom we know a great deal (C) who studied animal behavior (D) who wrote about the kinds of trouble we often experience

A

____ When the fox found the grapes, he ______. (A) thought they were sour (B) decided to get some (C) knew he couldn't reach them (D) was dying of hunger

B

Little is known about Aesop.

little 置於倒裝句句首，為加強語氣用，常與動詞 know, think, care, dream, imagine 或 expect 等動詞連用。例：• Little did I know that he was ill.• Little did I dream that Helen accepted my invitation.

The Introduction of Aesop

Aesop was a marvelous storyteller and lived long ago in Greece. Legends say that he was an ugly man, perhaps deformed. But he had a brilliant mind, and he enjoyed telling stories in which animals acted like human beings. In those days, stories were shared mostly by word of mouth. Aesop's stories were not written down until at least 200 years after he died. Since then, they have been translated from Greek into almost every language in the world.

The Introduction of Aesop

Little is known about Aesop.

Little is known about Aesop.→ We know very little about Aesop.

He seems to have lived and died in Greece some five hundred years before the birth of Christ.

some : about 大約 ( 後接數詞 )• In the past three years, Mark has read some hundred books.• Some thirty of our class came to the party.• There are some twenty houses along the street.

Next

He seems to have lived and died in Greece some five hundred years before the birth of Christ.

before the birth of Christ→ before Jesus Christ was born 簡寫為 B.C. ，表「西元前」之意。 Rome was begun in 753 B.C.

Aesop’s fables always use animals to tell their stories.

原句＝ Aesop uses animals to tell stories (and teaches lessons about human nature).此種寫作技巧稱為personalization: Personalization allows writers to give human characteristics to animals and to nonliving things.

Sometimes the fables also have human characters.

Whether the characters in a fable are animals or humans, they have a weakness or a temptation that gets them into trouble.

原句＝ Whether a fable uses animals or human beings to tell its story, the characters in it always have a weak point or a feeling to do something that causes them trouble.

Next

In “The Fox and the Grapes,” the temptation is the bunch of purple grapes. In “The Frog and the Ox,” overreaching herself could be the weakness of the mother frog.

其他表「不自量力」 (overreach oneself) 的用語尚有：• Not measure one's own strength.• Go beyond one's depth.• Bite off more than one can chew.• Throw straws against the wind.• Kick against the pricks.（相當於中文成語「螳臂擋車」）

Reading about their troubles, we gain wisdom and insight into human nature.

gain/have/get an insight into... 　洞察…，深刻了解…• Julian seems to have a special insight into people.原句＝→ When we read about their troubles, we become wise and have a better understanding of human nature.→ Reading their troubles makes it possible for us to become wise and understand human nature better.

Here are two of Aesop’s fables. What morals are they trying to teach us?

The Fox and the Grapes One hot dry summer’s day, a fox was passing through a large orchard, lined with vines loaded with ripe, juicy grapes.

原句＝→ a large orchard which was lined with vines that were loaded with ripe, juicy grapes→ loaded with ripe, juicy grapes, vines lined up in a large orchard→ vines lined up in a large orchard and they bore ripe, juicy grapes

As the fox passed under one of the vines, he spied a beautiful bunch of purple grapes hanging from it.

spy/notice/see + O + V-ing• I spied/noticed/saw a shiny object flying across the sky.原句＝ he noticed/saw a beautiful bunch of purple grapes that hung from the vine

The fox was very thirsty, and he thought how good a few sweet grapes would taste just then.

how + Adj + S +V 感嘆句句型• How delicious the pizza looks!• How difficult the test was!原句＝ Since the fox was very thirsty, he thought that some sweet grapes would taste great just at that time.

Although the grapes were out of the fox’s reach, he was determined to get those grapes one way or another.

原句＝ Although the grapes were beyond the fox's reach/in the place where the

fox couldn't get, he made up his mind/decided to get them in every possible way/by any means.

The fox walked a little way from the vine.

a little way : a little distance 一小段距離• It is a long way to the village.• He can swim quite a way. 　（游很遠）• My uncle lives a little way off.• Christmas is a long way off. 　（還早）

He turned toward the vine and ran as fast as he could until he was almost directly under the grapes; then he leaped into the air—just missing the bunch.

directly : exactly ; straight 正 表“地方”• The sun was almost directly overhead.directly : immediately ; shortly 立刻 表 “時間”• Please have a seat. She will be here directly.

Next

He turned toward the vine and ran as fast as he could until he was almost directly under the grapes; then he leaped into the air—just missing the bunch.

he leaped into the air just missing the bunch→ he jumped up and almost got the bunch of grapes, but he just missed it

The fox landed with a loud crash.

crash : v. ( 飛機 ) 墜毀， ( 汽車 ) 相撞， 發出巨響 ＊ The lightning flashed and thunder crashed. n. ( 飛機 ) 墜毀， ( 汽車 ) 相撞跌落聲， 重擊聲，爆裂聲 ＊ a crash of thunder the crash of breaking glass

Next

The fox landed with a loud crash.

The fox landed with a loud crash.→ The fox fell down to the ground with a sudden loud noise.

He got up and tried to run and jump for the grapes again—and again—and again—each time with no success.

with no success→ not succeeding in reaching the grapes→ failing to get the grapes

The juicy fruit hung safely out of his reach. Finally, the fox had to give it up, and as he walked away with his nose in the air, he was heard to say, “You are too sour. I wouldn’t eat you even if you fell right into my mouth.

with his nose in the air 高傲地• Jack has been walking with his nose in the air since he won the prize. Next

含 nose 的有趣用語：count noses 數人數cut off one's nose to spite one's face 一時氣憤而做出對自己不利的事follow one‘s nose 直走；憑直覺行事have (got) one‘s nose in 認真地讀…keep one‘s nose clean 不惹事生非lead a person by the nose 使某人依著自己的意志行事，牽著某人的鼻子走look down one‘s nose at 鄙視thumb one's nose at 鄙視，嘲笑

The juicy fruit hung safely out of his reach. Finally, the fox had to give it up, and as he walked away with his nose in the air, he was heard to say, “You are too sour. I wouldn’t eat you even if you fell right into my mouth.

he was heard to say→ people heard him say

Next

The juicy fruit hung safely out of his reach. Finally, the fox had to give it up, and as he walked away with his nose in the air, he was heard to say, “You are too sour. I wouldn’t eat you even if you fell right into my mouth.

原句＝ You do not fall into my mouth. Even if you fell right into my mouth, I wouldn't eat you.

Who cares for sour grapes?” care for 有三意義 :1. 表「想要，喜歡」之意，用於否定 句、疑問句或條件句。 Who cares for sour grapes?”2. 表「照料，照顧」之意。 The girl cared for her sick mother.3. 表「在乎」之意。 He cares little for my advice.原句＝ Nobody wants to/likes to eat sour grapes. Back