HittheNailontheHead教案.doc

(完整版)HittheNailontheHead教案
Text I Hit the Nail on the Head
I. Teaching objectives
1. Understanding the various aspects related to the usage of words。
2. Cultivating a sense of appropriateness in style
3. Learning to use analogy as an expository means。
II. Warm-up questions
1. Does the title strike you as a bit unusual?
2. Have you ever heard of the English proverb “Hit the nail on the head”? What does it mean？
3. Whose job involves hitting nails? Is the text concerned about the carpenter？ Then, what’s the major concern of the author?
4. What similarities does the author recognize in the job of a carpenter and the work of a writer？
5. How much do you know about style？ Do you find it an interesting topic？
6. How do you like the text? Do you find it difficult or easy？ Did it take you long to prepare before you come to the class？ Are there many new words in the text?
III. Organization of the text
Section I （paragraph 1-3）:
Raising the subject:Importance of choosing the right word
Para 1: Introducing the topic by drawing an analogy between the carpenter hammering a nail and the writer using words.

Para 2—3: Elaborating on the importance of choosing the right word –It is a process of realizing， defining and clarifying your thought.

Section 2 （paragraph 4–10）： Explaining the various aspects in the profile of a word

Para4—7:I Illustrating how words with common roots have different meanings (Semantic aspect)

Para 8: Illustrating how words with similar meanings may have different associations （Connotational aspect)
Para 9: Illustrating how words with similar meanings may have stylistic differences. (Stylistic/situational aspect）
Para 10： Pointing out that a general notion may be expressed by a variety of specific words (Variation in expression )

Section 3 （paragraph 11）： Conclusion： Quality is more important than quantity in learning vocabulary (with an analogy to echo the beginning）

IV. Textwork and language points
Section I （paragraph 1-3）

Paragraph 1:
1。 Call students’ attention to the use of analogy by asking questions such as
l How does the author introduce the subject?
l What expository means is used in the first paragraph？
l Can you explain the difference between “comparison" and “analogy”？

2。 Ask students to read the passage on page7 with the following questions in mind：
l WHAT is the purpose of drawing an analogy?
l WHEN is it often used？
l HOW is it different from “comparison"?

3。 Ask students to identify the use of comparison and the use of analogy in para.。 1
Comparison：
A clumsy man a skillful carpenter
A good writer a skillful carpenter
Analogy:
A writer choosing the right word

A carpenter hammering a nail

4。 Sum up the main points:
Analogy is a special kind of comparison and a more concrete way to explain things. The purpose of analogy is to explain something abstract and remote. With analogy， of the two things being compared, one is usually a familiar subject, which helps to explain the other， which is usually a difficult and abstract subject， something hard to define.

Paragraph 2-3
1. Ask questions to check students’ understanding of the text
a) How is paragraph 2 linked to the previous one? What does the word “this” refer to?
b) Is it easy to find the word that expresses precisely what a writer wants to express？ Why? Do you have this problem in writing？
i. Words are many in number
ii. Words may have subtle differences in them （semantic， stylistic）
c) Does a big vocabulary guarantee the ability of using the right word? Why？
d) Do you agree with the author that there is a great deal of truth in the seemingly stupid question “How can I know what I think till I see what I say?”
［The question sounds irrational， but is true。 Unless we have found the exact words to verbalize our own thoughts, we can never be very sure of what our thoughts are。 Without words, our thoughts can not be defined or stated in a clear and precise manner.]
defining your thought
Choosing words is a process of clarifying what you mean.
realizing your meaning
2. Call students’ attention to the author's generalization （line 11- 16： “Words are many and various …those who hear or read our words。”； （line 19—21）“It is hard work …we are dealing with") Ask them to read aloud. Remind students the importance of generalization after illustrations.

Language points

1) （line 4） drive something home： force （the nail) into the right place； make something unmistakably clear。 e。g。

n The person who wins the argument is the one who drives home his points。
n Advertisers keep repeating the names of the product in order to drive the message home.
（also： drive home to sb, sth。)
n You must drive home to John where the difficulty lies.
n You must drive it home to John that we don't have enough money.

1) （line 4) hitting it squarely on the head: directly, used both literally and figuratively, examples:
n The boxer hit his opponent squarely on the jaw.
n We must face the problem squarely。

2) (line 7） clean English： English which is precise and clear （in contrast with vague, slovenly language）

3) （line 10) scrupulous writers： writers who are very careful, paying attention to details 一丝不苟的作家。 “scrupulous" generally means painstaking, meticulous (i。e. paying great attention to small things）. It may be positive or negative in association, e.g.
n He is scrupulous in his business dealings。 （positive， 正派， 谨慎)
n The nurse treated him with the most scrupulous care. （positive）
n The paper is not entirely scrupulous in setting its assumptions. （negative）
n He pays scrupulous attention to style。 （positive）
Compare： “unscrupulous” 不择手段的 （usually negative in association）

4) shades of meaning: slight differences in meaning.

5) Some useful sentence patterns in this section
n (line 13） It is not only a matter of …, it is also …
n （line 19) It is hard work + doing sth
n (line 23） …hesitate doing sth (also 。。 hesitate about doing sth, hesitate to do sth。 hesitate at sth。)

Sentences for paraphrase

1. “A word that is more or less right， a loose phrase, an ambiguous expression， a vague adjective, will not satisfy a writer who aims at clean English.” ： i。e. A writer who is particularly concerned about the precise expression in English will never feel happy with a word which fails to express an idea accurately。
2. “Choosing words is part of the process of realization， … for those who hear or read our words。” ： i.e. The process of finding the right words to use is a process of perfection where you try to search for words that may most accurately express your thoughts and feelings， and words that may most effectively make your listeners and readers understand your thoughts and feelings。
3. “ It is hard work choosing the right words, but we shall be rewarded by the satisfaction that finding them brings.” ： i.e. Finding the most suitable word to use is in no sense easy。 But there is nothing like the delight we shall experience when such a word is found.

Relevant information：

The allusion to Flaubert （Note 7, page 5)

Gustave Flaubert (1821 – 1880)， French novelist, was associated with， though not representative of， the movement of naturalism and known as one of the greatest realists of the nineteenth—century France。 He devoted his life to long hours spent in heavy toil over his work。 His writing is marked by exactness and accuracy of observation， extreme impersonality and objectivity of treatment， and precision and expressiveness in style， or the principle of the mot juste。

Section 2 （paragraph 4 – 10）： The various aspects in word usage

(I） The semantic aspect of words (paragraph 4-7)
1. Ask students to make comments on the three pairs of examples given in this section Compare and contrast their differences in meaning.

human： of， or relating to man,
1） e.g。 human being； human nature； human rights
humane: . characterized by kindness， mercy, or compassion.
e.g a humane judge/officer

human action = action taken by man
humane action = merciful action
human killer = person that kills humans
humane killer =that which kills but causes little pain, esp.
instruments for the painless killing of animals
anxiety: associated with worry/fear
2）
eagerness：full of interest or desire

singularity （of mind）: oddity， peculiarity, sth that singles a person out
from others 思想奇特、古怪
3)
singleness （of mind）： holding steadfastly to the purpose in mind, without
being drawn aside by less worthy objects. 思想专一、坚定

2. Point out what may happen if we confuse words with a similar form. (one possible consequence: malapropism).

Explain: Malapropism is the use of a word in mistake for one sounding similar, resulting in comic effect， e.g。 “allegory" for “alligator”； “delusions” for “allusions”
The word has its origin in Mrs. Malaprop, a famous character in Sheridan’s comedy the Rivals (1775）. She is noted for her blunders in the use of words. “As headstrong as an allegory (alligator) on the banks of the Nile” is one of her grotesque misapplications。 She also requests that no delusions （allusions) to the past be made. She has given us the word malapropism as a name for such mistakes。

Ask students whether they can recall other names of fiction characters that have entered the English dictionary as Mrs. Malaprop， （e。g。 Mr. Micawber, Rip Van Winkle …etc）

3. Ask students to give further examples of confusing words, i。e。 words that look similar in form but different in meaning, such as “credulous” and “credible", etc。

Language points：

1） distinct： adj. A。 different in kind e。g。
n We should keep the two ideas distinct。 将两个概念区别开来
n Donkeys and horses are distinct animals. 不同的动物
B. clearly marked， plain, e.g。
n a distinct improvement 明显的
n a distinct pronunciation 清晰的

2） afield： adv。 away from one's home or usual environment. e.g。
n Don’t go too far afield。
In the text, it may be interpreted as： There is no need for us to make an effort to find proof of bad carpentry in language.” Namely， “ You can find examples of bad usage everywhere around you.”
3) rife: （predicative only） widespread， common， increasingly prevalent. e.g.
n Superstition is still rife in the country. （Not: rife superstition)
n The country was rife with rumors of war。
n Crime and violence were rife in this city before liberation.
n Disease used to be rife in this country。

(II） The connotational aspect of a word （paragraph 8)

1. Ask students to sum up the main point of the paragraph。

2. Call attention to the cohesive link in the topic sentence (from “malapropism” to move to a new point -- inappropriateness resulting from an ignorance of the word’s connotation ）

3. Discuss the different connotations in each of the following:

— imprisoned – force, coercion， compulsion， against will
— contained – more general， neutral
— epitomized – literary， formal
- summed up-general
- distilled ——- more formal，

Illustrate the usage with further examples， e。g。
n The charter includes some conditions that imprison (限制） the industrial workers today。
n He epitomizes （概括、凝聚）the good qualities of his family。 （be a perfect example ， typify）
n Water can be made pure by distilling it。（提炼）

4. Give further examples to illustrate that words with similar or same meaning may have different connotations， e.g.

happiness
joy
delight
rapture
ecstasy

5. Call attention to the generalization （line 56-60） which well sums up what's been discussed in the paragraph.

Language points：

Coercion: to do sth。 under coercion； to get sth。 by coercion
Coerce： to coerce sb。 into doing sth。
n He paid the money under coercion.被迫
n The terrorists got what they wanted by coercion. (Longman）
n The terrorists coerced the pilot into accepting their demand not to land. 胁迫（Longman）

（III） The situational aspect of words (paragraph 9）_
1. Introduce to students the concept of register， and level of formality （e.g. Martin Joo’s Five Clocks: frozen – formal – consultative –casual – intimate)

2. Ask students to comment on the stylistic differences in the two pairs of examples given in the text。

3. Ask students to give further examples to illustrate the differences in style, such as: :
— poor - face — begin
- poverty—stricken - mug — commence
— penniless — visage — inaugurate
- broke — initiate

4. Discuss：
n What are the factors that decide the style? (subject matter， participants, circumstances etc.)
n Is it right to consider a style as more superior to another？ (e。g. formal style is better than informal style。) What criteria should we use when evaluating the style?

Refer to Randolph Quirk’s A Grammar of Contemporary English：
— A scale of styles exists in all our use of English。 Each of us works not just with one style but different styles.
- A haphazard knowledge of several styles may be worse than useless if
we do not know the occasions when we are shifting from one to another.
- It is the height of naivety to go round with a single yardstick, measuring English as “good” or “bad”

(IV） Variation in expression： generic vs. specific (paragraph 10）
1. Ask students to sort out the specific verbs for “walk” according to the different connotation or manner involved. Classify them into sensible categories， such as
- walking without making a noise （creep …)
- walking in a showy way (strut， stalk…）
- walking without a definite aim (loiter, ramble…
- walking with leisure （stroll, saunter, meander, lounge )
- walking with big steps (stride, march， …）
- walking with difficulty （plod， tramp, trudge， …）
- … etc.
2. Refer students to the exercise on page 8-9 (Workbook） for practice。

Summary： Profile of a word—the various aspects

Grammatical Semantic

Connotational WORD Situational
（Stylistic)

Cultural

Section 3: Conclusion

1. Call students’ attention to the analogy used in the last paragraph。 Identify the two subjects being compared and the parallel elements.
2. Paraphrase the concluding sentence “A good carpenter is not distinguished by … cleanly on the head。”

To judge whether a carpenter is good or bad, we would not just see how many tools he has。 What counts is his skills. In the same way, a writer is not judged by the number of words he knows， but by his ability in using such words。 In other words, quality is more important than quantity in learning vocabulary。

Language points

1) alliteration in discouraged and dismayed …（line 87)
to have a good control and command over … （line 93）
similar to “safe and sound"

2) take courage： be brave， be confident e。g。
n It’s a challenging job, but take courage and work hard at it， and you’ll be rewarded。
V. Classroom discussion
1. What have you learned from the