资源描述
Unit 12
Text A
The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street
Rod Serling
I Introduction
1 Background
1. Genre
This text is written in the tradition of science fiction. Science fiction usually describes imaginary future developments in science. But unlike Round the World in 80 Dabys Jules Verne, today’s science fiction often tries to give a moral message. Therefore, they are more “fiction” than “science” . The present text is a good example.
2. Elements of drama
This is a short two-act play. In reading a play, first we should learn about the setting or background, and get to know the characters and their relations to each other; then we must find out what is happening (the plot and the dramatic conflict), and understand how the drama leads to the climax or how the dramatic conflict is resolved.
3. Language
Plays are particularly good for learning spoken English. Students should pay particular attention to the pronunciation and intonation, as well as such special features of oral English as contractions, ellipses and colloquial expressions. Students are strongly advised to act out the whole play.
4. Theme and thesis
In the title of the play, the “monsters” seem to refer to those ETs (extraterrestrial beings) who are out to destroy us human beings on earth (the earthlings or earth people). When we finish the play, however, we realize that monsters actually live in our own hearts. Because of our weaknesses or wicked ways, we tend to destroy each other or seek our own destruction. This, and not the ETs, is our real enemy and real danger.
In this play, the author seems to emphasize three fatal human weaknesses: our deep suspicion and distrust of one another, our eagerness to find a scapegoat, and our readiness to turn into a mob. It implies that if we human beings want to be really safe, we must kill those monsters in our hearts: we should try to understand and trust each other, to be less eager to assign blame, and to resist the kind of group (mob) mentality
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which too often results in violence and tragedy.
2 Structure
The teleplay can be divided into five parts on the basis of plot development, most of which can be further divided into several sections.
Part I The introduction/exposition: The residents on Maple Street desperately try to understand what is happening in the neighborhood. (paras. 1–29)
A. One late afternoon the residents on Maple Street hear a tremendous roar and see a flash of light cross the sky. (paras. 1–2)
B. Strange things begin to happen and the residents try to figure out what is happening and some of them decide to go downtown to find out. (paras. 3–29)
Part II The rising action: The conflict develops into one between the residents of Maple Street. (paras. 30–102)
A. Tommy stops them saying all the strange things have been caused by monsters from outer space. (paras. 30–56)
B. Les Goodman is suspected of being an alien sent from outer space earlier, and when people move in on Goodman’s house for action, they turn into a mob. (paras. 57–86)
C. Steve Brand begins to be suspected for trying to speak for Goodman. (paras. 87– 102)
Part III The crisis/climax: The conflict further intensifies when they use a shotgun. (paras. 103–111)
A. An approaching figure frightens the residents. (paras. 103– 107)
B. Charlie fires and he shoots a neighbor dead. (paras. 108– 111)
Part IV Falling action: The residents begin to quarrel and accuse each other. (paras. 112–134)
A. Suspicion falls on Charlie, who puts all the blame on Tommy. (paras. 112– 121)
B. People start to accuse each other. (paras. 122– 134)
Part V Resolution: The two creatures in the spacecraft forecast the destruction of the people on Maple Street, not by the monsters, but by themselves. (paras. 135– 141)
3 Teaching Tips
1. Oral work
1) Have the students summarize the teleplay.
2) Ask them to make a character analysis of one of the following characters: Charlie, Steve, Tommy, or any other character.
3) Here are a few topics for discussion.
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■ What message do you think Rod Serling intends to get across to the audience?
■ What destroys the people of Maple Street?
■ What do you think is the most dangerous human weakness?
2. Follow-up activities
1) Ask the students to perform the whole play or act out major events.
■ Have a play reading session in the class.
II Detailed Discussion of the Text
1. The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street(title)
Question: Who are the monsters? Are they really responsible for all the troubles that happen on Maple Street? Where are the real monsters?
are due: to be expected to happen or arrive at a particular time
eg The train is due in exactly 25 minutes.
Their baby is due in October.
She is due to arrive at 5:30.
The meeting is due to start in 5 minutes.
2. porch (para. 1)
(AmE) a structure attached to the entrance of a house that has a roof and that may or may not have walls
Collocations: a front/back porch, an enclosed porch (=a porch that has walls)
3. Steve Brand polishes his car parked in front of his house. (para. 1)
parked in front of his house: past participle phrase used as an attributive qualifier More examples:
a book written by Mark Twain
memory sticks made in Canada
an IMAX cinema opened last week
a 3-D movie produced in the US
4. A Good Humor man (para. 1)
a man who sells Good Humor products
Good Humor: an American brand of ice cream sold from ice cream trucks as well as stores. The Good Humor Company started in Youngstown, Ohio during the early 1920s and covered most of the country by the mid 1930s. At its peak in the 1950s, the company operated 2,000 “sales cars” .
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5. ... and is just stopping to sell some ice-cream... (para. 1)
stop to do sth: to stop (doing what you are doing in order ) to do sth else More examples:
She was working. When she saw me, she stopped to talk to me.
I worked the whole day. I only stopped to eat my meals.
I had to stop to ask direction many times.
6. a couple of (para. 1)
two of the same kind or a small number of
More examples:
a couple of days/weeks/months/years, a couple of people, another/first/next/last couple of hours/weeks, etc
7. gossip (para. 1)
to spend time talking to somebody about other people’s behavior and privat e lives or about other things that do not concern oneself
8. Another man waters his lawn. (para. 1)
Like “water”, the following nouns can also be used as verbs:
land, screw, face, back, grade, score, question, fish, book, ship, paper, truck, bike, dust, etc
More examples:
The workers are loading goods from a ship.
She slowly backed the car into the garage.
Before we move in we have to paper the room first.
Would you please book a ticket for me?
9. a tremendous roar (para. 2)
a terrible continuous loud noise, especially made by animals like lions, or by a man or a machine
10. A flash of light plays on his face... (para. 2)
A flash of light shines on and moves about on his face...
11. ... the man... stands there speechless. (para. 2)
“Speechless” here is used as the subject complement denoting the state “the man” is in. It is not used to modify the verb “stands” .
More examples:
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The sun was burning hot.
He was lying there, fast asleep.
Three months later, she came back home, penniless.
12. from across the street (para. 2)
The preposition “from” can be followed by another preposition. Draw students’ attention to the use of such double prepositions.
More examples:
He jumped from behind the tree.
She drew a gun from inside the drawer.
I came from beyond the mountains.
13. Guess it was a meteor, honey. Came awful close, d(ipdaa’.7t) it? Ellipsis is common in speaking. In both of the sentences above, the subject is dropped. “Guess it was...” should be “I guess...” and “Came awful close...” should be “It came awful close...”
14. We see a man screwing in a light bulb on a front porch... (para. 8) Let students imagine themselves reporting to the police what they have seen or heard in a serious fight which finally led to a murder case.
They may use the following expressions:
I saw sb do/doing sth
I heard sb do/doing sth
I found sb doing sth
15. ... finding that nothing happens. (para. 8)
... finding that the light is not on.
nothing happens: used to say that what you do does not bring about a result you expect
More examples:
I knocked at the door for five minutes, but nothing happened. (=There was no answer.)
I shut my eyes and was ready for a good beating, but nothing happened.
16. A Man working on an electric power mower plugs in the plug. (para. 8) A Man who’s going to mow his lawn put the plug of an electric power mower into the socket.
work on: (phrasal verb) to be in the process of doing sth
More examples:
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The boy’s working on a math problem.
The director’s working on a new movie.
17. He turns on the switch, on and off, but nothing happens. (para. 8) on and off/off and on: starting, stopping, and starting again
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eg
It rained off and on for a week.
The man worked in a restaurant on and off. She’s had headaches on and off for a couple of
years.
18. ... a Woman is seen dialing her phone. (para. 8)
sb is seen doing sth: the passive form of “people see sb doing sth”
More examples:
The man was seen putting his hand into a women’s bag.
The girl was seen playing with her pet dog.
19. Operator, something’s wrong with the phone.(para. 9)
Operator, my phone is not working properly.
operator: someone who works for a telephone company, whom you can call for help when you have problems with your phone
something’s wrong with... / there’s somethingwrong with...
More examples:
There seems to be something wrong with the computer, but I don’t know what it is. There is nothing seriously wrong with you. You just have a little cold.
20. ... the power’s off. (para. 10)
There is no power; power is no longer connected.
off: (adv especially of machines, electrical devices, lights, etc) not operating because it’s not switched on
More examples:
The light was off, and the room was pitch dark
The heat was off and it was terribly cold.
on: (adv) the opposite of “off”
21. I can’t get anybody on the phone, either.(para. 11)
I can’t get anybody to answer the phone. 没人接电话。
22. Phone won’t work. (para. 13)
The phone refuses to work.
This is another elliptical sentence, in which the definite article “the” is missing.
won’t: here, not an auxiliary verb (助动词) indicating future action. It is a modal verb (情态动词) used to describe a situation that is continuing.
More examples:
He won’t stop asking for permission to start a garden in prison. (=He keeps asking... / He refuses to stop asking...)
The door won’t open. (=It’s impossible to open the door.)
work: (of a machine or device) to do what it is supposed to do; to operate without failure
More examples:
Our air-conditioner is working beautifully.
This Xerox machine doesn’t work. We have to get it fixed.
23. I’ll cut through the back yard... see ifthe power’s still on on Cherry Street. I’ll be right back. (para. 16)
cut through (a place): to go through a place because it is the shortest route to another place
More example:
To get home before dark, the boy decided to cut through the wood.
I’ll be right back: I’ll be back in a minute.
the power is still on on Cherry Street: The first “on” goes with “is still”, the second one with “Cherry Street” .
24. Doesn’t make sense. (para. 17)
There doesn’t seem to be a good reason or explanation for all this.
(sth) make sense:
1) to have a clear meaning and be easy to understand eg The instructions don’t make any sense at all.
2) to be a sensible thing to do
eg It makes sense to leave early to avoid traffic jams.
3) there seems to be a good reason or explanation for sth
eg Why did she turn down the job? It doesn’t seem to make sense.
25. Why should the power and the phone line go off all of a sudden? (para. 17) should: (modal verb) used after “why” when giving or asking the reason for sth More examples:
Why should anyone want to eat dog meat?
Why shouldn’t she buy an expensive bag if she can afford it?
all of a sudden: suddenly
26. Maybe it’s an electrical storm or something. (para. 18)
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or something: (informal) used to suggest another name, choice, etc that is not specified More examples: Sit down and let me get you a cup of tea or something? Maybe we can go to the movies or something. 27. Well, why don’t you go downtown andcheck with the police? (para. 21) Why don’t you/we do sth: a way of making a suggestion More examples: Why don’t you ask Harry for help? He’s something of computer expert. Why don’t we all sit down and have a cup of tea?
downtown: (chiefly US) the main or central part of a city or town; the part of a city or town where there are tall buildings, stores, offices, etc
check with sb: to ask sb; to talk with sb in order to get information, approval, etc, about sth More examples: You’d better check with your doctor to find out whether you can make this long trip. I’ll check with my lawyer and see what he has to say about this.
28. A little power failure and right away we get all excited. (para. 21) As soon as anything goes wrong, we’ll get nervous/make a fuss. Pay attention to the structure of the sentence.
noun phrase + and + a clause indicating result
More examples:
A few nice words and he will do anything for you. (=If you say a few nice words, he will do anything for you.)
One step forward and you are dead! (=As soon as you take one step forward, you’ll be dead.)
One more mistake and you are fired! (=If you make one more mistake, you’ll be fired.)
29. We’ll get this all straightened out.(para. 23)
straighten sth out: (phrasal verb) to solve a problem or to deal successfully with a confusing situation.
More examples:
It will take a while before the two countries can straighten out their differences. We
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