Unit 10 American literature
step ⅳ speaking
t:have you ever heard of a famous american writer named mark twain?(show a picture of mark twain on the screen.)can you say something about him?
s9:ok.mark twain was born in the early 19th century.his real name was samuel clemens.“mark twain” was his pen name.he is well-known in the world as a humorist,a frontier and a philosopher.his famous works include the adventures of tom sawyer,life on the mississippi,jumping frog and so on.
(bb:mark twain,the adventures of tom sawyer,life on the mississippi,jumping frog)
t:perhaps you’ve heard about other american writers and their works.now look at the screen and match the writers with their works.
(teacher writes the following on the blackboard and then asks a student to come to the blackboard.)
writers
1.alex haley
2.thomas jefferson
3.harriet beecher stowe
4.henry wordsworth longfellow
5.ernest hemingway
6.jack london
works
a.the slave’s dream
b.sea wolf
c.uncle tom’s cabin
d.the declaration of independence
e.roots
f:the old man and the sea
suggested answers:1.e 2.d 3.c 4.a5.f 6.b
t:the major themes in the literature of a country reflect important events or periods in the history of that country.therefore,important themes in american literature are native americans,pioneers and the civil war,and the relations between america and europe.now choose one theme and discuss what type of story you would like to read.you can use the questions on the screen to help you.
(teacher shows the following on the screen.)
1.what would be an interesting story?
2.what would be an exciting plot?
3.what characters would likely appear in it?
4.what would the characters be like?
5.where would the story take place?
6.when would the story take place?
7.would you like to read a story or a novel?
8.do you want to read for pleasure or for school?
(teacher asks students to work in pairs and lets them have discussions.a few minutes later,teacher asks students to present the outcome of their discussion to the class.)
t:are you ready?
ss:yes.
t:ok.i’ll ask some students to present the outcome of your discussion to the class.wang bin,will you please try?
s10:i’m glad to.i like to read both stories and novels.i read stories for school and novels for pleasure.i think an interesting story should have an exciting plot.as we know,a plot is a plan or outline of the events in the story of a play or novel.only when a story has an exciting plot can it attract readers.for example,i’ve read some works of mark twain.“the adventures of tom sawyer” is one of them.it describes a boy named tom sawyer,who lives with his younger brother aid and aunt polly in a remote town on the banks of the mississippi river.sid is a “model” boy.he is obedient,demure and sneaky.but tom is quite the opposite of his brother.he disobeyes the cruel and unjust teacher,mr dobbins and is busy with outside matters at the lessons.one night tom sawyer,together with his friend huck finn,has an adventure and finally becomes rich.