大学英语听说3 Unit 5

Christmas night.

Nora: Our traditional Christmas dinner is a turkey, so gigantic that (2) we eat leftovers for days.

Susan: Chris swears (3) he'll refuse a huge dinner and stick to a healthy meal of tofu and salad.

Nora: No way. He's kidding! Wait till he sees what his mother cooks: roast turkey

with stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, peas and plum pudding for dessert! Susan: (4) We heap up our presents under the tree and open them on Christmas

morning.

Nora: We open one Christmas Eve, more Christmas morning, and the rest the next

day.

Susan: Wow! (5) Your family prolongs the celebration for three days!

Nora: We start by decorating the tree on Christmas Eve, putting ornaments, lights and

artificial snowflakes on it.

Susan: Do you hang stockings by the fireplace and have a star on top of the tree? Nora: Yes. And we have another activity. We also \Susan: That's a peculiar expression. What do you mean by that?

Nora: It's secret giving. We sneak up to the door of somebody we want to give a gift

to, ring the doorbell, and run.

Susan: So, you're not expecting anything; you're just being generous. That's a

kind-hearted gesture.

Nora: (6) Isn't that what the true spirit of Christmas is supposed to be?

MODEL2 The Pilgrims' Thanksgiving lives on.

Script

spirit of

Chris: Will Nora be spending Thanksgiving with us this year?

Susan: No, she's going home to (1) spend the holiday with her mother and brother.

She hasn't seen her family in over a year.

Chris: I know how she feels. Thanksgiving is such a big family holiday in the States. Susan: It began as a celebration by the Pilgrims. (2) They were happy just to have survived their first harsh winter in the new land in 1621.

Chris: But wasn't that harsh winter followed by an abundant harvest? Susan: Yes, (3) that's good reason to celebrate: they had beaten the odds and were

still alive. It was a time to relax and \

Chris: You know, most cultures seem to have some sort of celebration like this--don't

the Chinese have a festival of moon cakes to celebrate the harvest month?

Susan: Yeah, they do. I believe the round moon cakes also (4) symbolize a family reunion.

Chris: Well, today Thanksgiving in the States has developed into a major holiday. Susan: True, it's a very emotional time. Families often travel great distances (5) to be together and share a huge dinner. Jamie's mother will have a turkey and a ham,

corn on the cob, yams, peas and carrots, and to top it all off, pumpkin pie.

Chris: (6) Just thinking about all that food makes my mouth water, and I think I'm

going to gain 10 pounds this year.

Susan: But you have the rest of the year to lose those unwanted pounds. And losing

weight will give you something to be thankful for next Thanksgiving.

MODEL 3 Don't let ghosts frighten you on Halloween

Script

Susan: Hey Kim! (1) Are you OK? You seem badly shaken. Where did you go'? Kim: Just to the corner, but I'm frightened out of my wits, scared silly, terrified. Susan: What happened? You said you were only going to the store for a coke.

Kim: (2) People in funny costumes and masks everywhere! Some in tall, pointed

hats.

Susan: It's October 31st, Halloween, the day for (3) dressing like witches and ghosts. Kim: In the store window is a big vegetable with a carved face and candle inside. Susan: It's a pumpkin. A face and a candle burning inside make it a Jack o' Lantern. Kim: (4) A crowd of children followed me, shouting, \Susan: No, they said, \They were hoping you'd give them candy. Kim: Welt, (6) it's a funny kind of holiday. What's it called? Halloween?

Susan: Yes, it's one of the oldest holidays in the West. Today it's mostly for children. Kim: I myself would never dress like a ghost and shout, \

VI. Further Listening and Speaking

Task1: The Wilsons’ Thanksgiving

Script

Thanksgiving is one of America's most popular holidays. It is a day for expressing thanks for the good things in life. It is also a day for family reunion. On that day many people travel long distances to get together with their families. For many Americans, Thanksgiving is the time when the members of a family gather.

But not everyone can spend Thanksgiving with his or her family. Today we'll introduce you to a couple, Joan and Sandy Wilson, who could not afford to take long distances to visit their parents. They regretted not being able to celebrate Thanksgiving with all their family members. But soon they met other people who also were separated from their families. So the Wilsons began holding a yearly Thanksgiving dinner for what they called their \family\This included people in their community. All the guests brought food to share for Thanksgiving dinner.

The group has grown over the years. To accommodate all the guests, Mr. and Mrs.

Wilson now have to add small tables to their large one in the big dining room. At first, many of their friends brought their babies and young children. Now some of the first guests are grandparents.

Like other Americans, Mr. and Mrs. Wilson and their visitors enjoy a long day of cooking, eating and talking. The traditional meal usually includes a turkey. Other traditional Thanksgiving foods served with turkey are sweet potatoes, cranberries and pumpkin pies.

Question and key

1. What is true of a typical Thanksgiving Day? A) It is a day for family reunion.

2. Who are included in the \D) People in the neighborhood.

3. How many generations of people does the Wilson’s party include? C) Three.

4. Which of the following is NOT mentioned as traditional Thanksgiving food? B) Roast duck.

5. What is the passage mainly about?

C) A couple who spend Thanksgiving with people other than their family members.

Task3 St.Valentine’s Story

Script

Let me introduce myself. My name is Valentine. I lived in Rome during the third century. At that time, Rome was ruled by an emperor named Claudius. He wanted to have a big army, and he expected men to volunteer to join. Seeing many men did not want to leave their wives and families, Claudius had a crazy idea. He thought that if men were not married, they would not mind joining the army. So he passed a law to forbid any more marriages. I thought it was preposterous! I certainly wasn't going to support that law!

I was a priest, and one of my favorite activities was to marry couples. I kept on performing marriage ceremonies, secretly. One night, we heard footsteps and shouts of soldiers outside. It was scary! The couple I was marrying escaped in time, but I was caught. I was thrown in jail and told that my punishment was death.

Then wonderful things happened. Many young people came to the jail to visit me. They threw flowers and notes up to my window. They wanted me to know that they, too, believed in love.

One of these young people was the daughter of the prison guard. Sometimes we would sit and talk for hours. She helped me to keep my spirits up. On the day I was to die, I left my friend a little note thanking her for her friendship and loyalty. I signed,

\

I believe that note started the custom of exchanging love messages on Valentine's Day.

Key

1. He thought he was that if men were not married, they would not mind joining the army. So he passed a law to forbid any more marriages. 2. He kept on performing marriage ceremonies, secretly.

3. They came to the jail to visit him. They throw flowers and notes up to his window. 4. She was one of those young people and the daughter of the prison guard.

5. Before he was killed, Valentine left the girl a little note thanking her for her friendship and loyalty. He signed, “Love from your Valentine.” That note started the custom.

Viewing and speaking

A Famous Christmas Market

1. Script and key

Receiving Christmas presents is always (1) fun, but buying them can be a (2) headache. This is why many Christmas shoppers around Europe are now going to the German city of Nuremberg to visit its famous Christmas market, Christkindlesmarkt.

The 400-year-old market is a child's paradise. Its (3)150 stalls sell all kinds of toys, gifts, and special foods. A staggering (4) two million people visit the market annually.

The old city and market add a special (5) feeling to Christmas. As one British tourist, Mivart Thomas, explains, “There's something quite, sort of, medieval about the (6) atmosphere here. There are quite a lot of old stalls—(7) traditional-looking stalls--and the cathedral in the background with (8) lights all around, and just a few minutes ago, the brass band was playing...playing Christmas carols. The whole atmosphere is wonderful.\

The market maintains its Old World atmosphere with (9) regulations saying what can and can't be sold. Not surprisingly, the focus is on the (10) family. The market's tourist officer, Gerd Lauterbauch, points out that the market's name (11) translates as \child's market\and the idea behind it is to offer presents for (12) children on Christmas.

Christmas markets are found in many German cities, but Nuremberg's is the (13) most famous. It gives a very (14) different impression from the one tourists expect, considering the city's Nazi past. And as word of the market (15) spreads around Europe, the market is becoming a tourist center.