Advanced English YANG JIANHUA SCHOOL OF TRANSLATION & INTERPRETATION JB

Unit 9 Mark Twain----Mirror of America

Teaching Points I. Background information II. Introduction to the passage III. Text analysis IV. Rhetorical devices V. Questions for discussion

I. Background Information 1. Mark Twain 2. Tramp printer 3. Confederate guerrilla 4. Philippine Moros

II. Introduction to the Passage

Introduction to the Passage 2.The purpose of a piece of objective description: ---to record and reproduce a true picture with opinions and emotions of the author excluded

Introduction to the Passage 3. Ways of developing a piece of objective description: ---to begin with a brief general picture, divide the object into parts and organize the detailed description in order of space

III. Effective Writing Skills 1. The requirements of writing a summary 2. Using many elliptical and short, simple sentences to achieve certain effect

IV. Rhetorical Devices 1. Antithesis 2. Alliteration 3. Personification

V. Text Analysis

VI. Special Difficulties 1. Compound nouns and compound adjectives 2. Paraphrasing some sentences 3. Identifying figures of speech 4.Translating some sentences

VII. Questions for Discussion 1. Why is Mark Twain one of America ’ s best- loved authors? 2.Give a brief account of Mark Twain ’ s experience before he became a writer. 3. When did Mark Twain become a pilot on a steamboat? 4. What story did he write that made him known as “ the wild humorist of the Pacific slope ” ?

VIII. Exercises P.