Unit 6-Assignment Studnet

Unit Six Women, Half the Sky
Text A
A Woman Can Learn Anything a Man Can
Watch the video “Obama’s Speech on American Women”. Please answer the questions and then fill in the blanks:
✦Vocabulary:
peaks and valleys 高潮和低谷upward 向上的
daring 大胆的
indomitable不屈不挠的ridicule 嘲笑, 奚落assumption 臆断crack 裂缝reflect on 思考statistics 统计数据victim 受害人domestic 家庭的bend 弯曲
✦Questions
1.In Obama’s opinion, what does the story of America look like?
The story of America is one of hope and progress, of an upward journey.
2.Wha t is the reality of American women’s life at present?
It is a reality marked by unfairness, by hardship for too many wom en.
3.What is the fundamental truth reflected by the facts and figures?
The fundamental truth is that full gender equality has not yet been achieved.
4. Can you mention some famous women in Chinese history?
5. What is the reality of Chinese women’s life at present?
The story of America’s women, like the story of America itself, has had its peaks and valleys.But as one of our great American educators once said, if you drew a line through all the valleys and all the peaks, that line would be drawn with an upward curve. That upward curve—what we call 1progress —didn’t happen by accident.
It came about because of 2daring , indomitable women. Women like Abigail Adams, who brought on the ridicule of her husband John by advising him to “remember the ladies” in our founding documents. Women like the 3pioneers and settlers who, in the words of one, said, “I thought where he could go, I could go.”Women like Dorothy Height and Sylvia Mendez and Betty Friedan and Gloria Steinem and Sandra Day O’Connor and Madeline Albright, upending assumptions and changing laws and tearing down 4barriers . Women like Hillary Rodham Clinton, who, throughout her career, has put millions of cracks in America’s glass ceiling (玻璃天花板；玻璃顶棚。

指在公司企业和机关团体中，限制某些人口群体（女性、少数民族）晋升到高级职位的障碍). It’s because of them —and so many others, many who aren’t 5recorded in the history books — that the story of America is, ultimately, one of hope and one of progress, of an 6 upward journey .
But even as we reflect on the hope of our history, we must also face squarely the reality of the present — a reality marked by 7 unfairness , marked by hardship for too many women in America. The statistics of inequality are all too familiar to us — how women just earn 77 cents for every dollar men make; how one in four women is the victim of domestic violence at some point in her life; how women are more than half the population, but 8make up only 17 percent of the seats
in Congress, and less than 3 percent of Fortune 500 CEOs.
These, and any number of other 9 facts and figures, reflect the fundamental truth that in 2010,
10 full gender equality has not yet been achieved; that the task of perfecting America goes on; and tha t all of us, men and women, have a part to play in bending the arc in America’s story upward in the 21st century.
Background Information
✦Two Famous Feminists：Betty Friedan & Bella Abzug
Betty Friedan
Betty Friedan is often called “the mother of
the modern women’s liberation movement.” Her
famous book, The Feminine Mystique, changed
America. Some people say it changed the world.
It has been called one of the most influential
nonfiction books of the twentieth century.
Friedan re-awakened the feminist movement
in the United States. That movement had helped
women gain the right to vote in the nineteen
twenties. Modern feminists disagree about how to describe themselves and their movement. But activists say men and women should have equal chances for economic, social and intellectual satisfaction in life.
Fifty years ago, life for women in the United States was very different from today. Very few parents urged their daughters to become lawyers or doctors or professors. Female workers doing the same jobs as men earned much less money. Women often lost their jobs when they had a baby. There were few child-care centers for working parents.
Betty Friedan once spoke to ABC television about her support for sharing responsibility for the care of children. “If child-rearing was considered the responsibility of women and men or women and men and society, then we really could pull up our skirts and declare victory and mo ve on.”
Friedan completed more studies. She talked to other women across the country. She met with experts about the questions and answers. She combined this research with observations and examples from her own life. The result was her book, The Feminine Mystique, published in nineteen sixty-three.
The book attacked the popular idea of the time that women could only find satisfaction through being married, having children and taking care of their home. Friedan believed that women wanted more from life than just to please their husbands and children.
The book said women suffered from feelings of lack of worth. Friedan said this was because the women depended on their husbands for economic, emotional and intellectual support.
The Feminine Mystique was a huge success. It has sold more than three million copies. It was reprinted in a number of other languages. The book helped change the lives of women in America. More women began working outside the home. More women also began studying traditionally male subjects
like law, medicine and engineering.
Bella Abzug
Today, we tell about Bella Abzug. She was a member of the United
States Congress in the nineteen seventies. She also was a well-known
activist for civil rights and women’s rights. Bella Abzug was well kno wn for many reasons. She was a lawyer and activist. She represented New York City in Congress. She spoke in a loud voice. And she always wore large hats.
Mir Abzug supported women’s rights and civil rights. She had strong opinions on many issues. She opposed the American involvement in the war in Vietnam. She made public her opinions on most important issues. In fact, she was called one of the most outspoken members of Congress.
Bella Abzug also acted on her beliefs. She wrote legislation to prevent unfair treatment of women. She presented the first bill for equal rights for homosexuals. She often denounced the majority of the members of Congress who were white males. She said they did not know about the lives and problems of most people in America.
Warming – up
✦Comprehension Questions about the Text
For Part 1
Questions and Answers
1.What toys did the author have in her childhood?
She had a complete miniature kitchen, a herd of toy ponies and several Barbie and Ken dolls.
2.What did the author experience in order to get her college degree?
She had to take a lot of math and science classes. She also had to work with a team of students as a part of a national competition.
3.How were her school performances?
She got A’s in all her classes, including multivariable calculus and differential equations.
4.What was the summer program mainly for?
The summer program was mainly to interest girls in engineering.
5.Why did the author apply for the summer program?
The author for the summer program because she wanted to be away from her parents and be independent for a while.
6.What do some of the studies say about women?
Studies say that in the aspect of math, women are inferior to men.
For Part 2
True or False
1.The author was educated to do what she is best at.
T
2.The author’s experience showed that people could learn better if they are good at it.
F
The author found out that if a subject is difficult to learn, she would try her best to be good at it, and she would enjoy it more.
3. The algebra teacher in middle school often judged students by their academic performance.
F
The teacher didn’t judge students by their scores and he considered bad scores as indications that students should learn more.
4. The author felt comfortable while sitting in the engineering library.
F
The author often felt panic and worried.
For Part 3
Blank Filling
(Directions :) In this part, there are several comparisons or contrasts. Fill in the blanks with necessary information to make logic sentences showing comparison or contrast.
1. Little girls loving dolls is just the same to _little boys loving videogames_________.
2. Some people favor the right side of the brain, while others _the left side____________.
3. We should ignore _hard and fast conclusion about the human brain____________. Instead, incredible flexibility should be focused on.
4. In spite of agreeing that women can’t learn physics well, _the possibility that our brains are more powerful than imagined_______ should be considered.
Difficult Sentences
✧ 1. (Para. 1) We did have a Wiffle-ball set, but you would have been hard-pressed to find it in our playroom.
1.Translate this sentence into Chinese.
我们确实有一套空心棒球，但是很难在我们的游戏室找到。

2. Analyze the sentence pattern，then give the examples
This sentence is a concessive clause with an emphatic “did”.
✧ 2. (Para. 3) The car I drove needed some work but I was afraid to take it to the mechanic.
1.What does “work” he re refer to?
It refers to necessary repair or maintenance the car needed
2. Why was the author afraid to do so?
Because she didn’t know anything about engineering, not to mention how to fix a car.
✧ 3. (Para. 6) I can't help shuddering when I hear about studies that show that women are at a disadvantage when it comes to math.
1.Translate this sentence into Chinese.
研究表明女性学数学处于劣势，我不禁不寒而栗
2. Why did the author shudder?
Because the studies clearly indicate that a normal woman can’t beat a man in the aspect of math, only abnormal ones could do well in math, but the author is really good at math.
✧ 4. (Para. 7) Once you do, there's a strong chance you will enjoy it more than anything else.
1.What does “once” mean here? Give the examples.
once “一旦…”,表示时间和条件。

2.Translate this sentence into Chinese.
一旦你学好了，你就很可能喜欢上它，从中得到无与伦比的乐趣。

3. In your opinion, what kind of enjoyment could the author gain from this process?
open-ended
✧ 5. (Para. 9) I had moments of panic while sitting underneath the buzzing fluorescent lights in the engineering library on Saturday afternoons, when I worried that the estrogen in my body was preventing me from understanding thermodynamics.
1.What does the part “the estrogen in my body was preventing me from
understanding thermodynamics” refer to?
This part means being a woman may prevent the author from understanding a subject which is usually regarded as a male subject.
2. Translate this sentence into Chinese.
星期六下午坐在工程图书馆吱吱作响的荧光灯下学习时，我也有过恐惧的时候，担心我体内的雌激素妨碍我理解热动力学。

✧ 6. (Para. 9) No man is an island. No woman is, either.
1.What does “No man is an island” refer to?
this statement was said by an English poet named John Donne, which means no one can live an isolated life without being affected by others.
2.What does “No woman is, either” mean?
in this sentence, by changing the famous quotation, the author consciously ignores the fact that “man” refers to all the human beings, the author focuses on “woman”.
3. Can you make an example by using this technique?
Open-ended.
For example: There is no perfect man in the world, not to mention a perfect woman.
✧7. (Para. 9) So I reminded myself that those studies, …that she has received since she was an infant.
1.What does “cultural cues” refer to?
Cultural cues refer to indirect suggestions as to how to behave appropriately picked up through observing others, in short,
exterior atmosphere or nurture.
2.What do the studies indicate?
They indicate that a woman’s ability is dependent on her nature, not on her nurture or her efforts.
3. Translate the sentence into Chinese.
因此我提醒自己，宣称男性天生更能学好数学的研究是基于一个错误的前提，那就是认为人们可以脱离一个人从孩提时代就受到的社会的文化熏陶而径直判断她的能力。

✧8. (Para. 10) I'm not denying that most little girls love dolls and most little boys love videogames, and it may be true that some people favor the right side of their brain, and others the left. But how relevant is that to me, or to anyone, as an individual?
Analyze the sentence structure:
I’m not denying that…but…这个句型意思是“不能否认…但是…
✧9. (Para. 11) No one was ever born knowing calculus.
Translate the sentence into Chinese.
没有人知道微积分出世。

✧10. (Para. 11) A woman can learn anything a man can, but first she needs to know that
she can do it, and that takes a leap of faith. It also helps to have selective hearing.
1.What does “takes a leap of faith” mean?
It refers to “taking the risk of being wrong”
2.What does “selective hearing” mean?
It means that when people give your advice, you should decide by yourself on which one you would follow or ignore.
3. Translate the sentence into Chinese.
但是女人首先需要知道她能学会，而这需要有敢冒风险而为的精神，同时听别人的话也得有所选择才行。