新概念第三册第29课

In the same way, a Russian might fail to see anything amusing in a joke which would make an Englishman laugh to tears.
同样的道理（方式/情况），一则可以令英国人笑 出泪来的笑话（定从），俄国人听了可能觉得没 有什么可笑之处(未发现有趣之处)。 fail to do失败；未做成 never fail to do 从未做不到 ; 双重否定表示肯定





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The man took heart and, sure enough, on New Year’s Eve he was able to hobble along to a party. 那人听后振作了精神。果然，除夕时他可以一 瘸一拐地去参加晚会了。 -- I hurt my foot while getting off the bus, and had to hobble home. 我在下公共汽车时脚受了伤, 只好一拐一拐地 走回家。 hobble n.困难, 窘惑 -- be in (get into) a hobble 陷于窘境




Most funny stories are based on comic situations. In spite of national differences, certain funny situations have a universal appeal. No matter where you live, you would find it difficult not to laugh at, say, Charlie Chaplin’s early films.





It is called ‘sick humour. Comedians base their jokes on tragic situations like violent death or serious accidents. 它被叫作“病态幽默”。喜剧演员 根据悲剧情节 诸如暴死，重大事故等来编造笑话。 base A on B ：把A建立在B的基础上 humour n. 幽默（等于humor） ill humour 情绪不佳 good humour 愉快的心情 black humour （= dark comedy）黑色幽默 cold humour 冷笑话 crack a joke开玩笑 beyond a joke并非戏言




To compensate for his unpleasant experiences in hospital, the man drank a little more than was good for him. 为了补偿住院这一段不愉快的经历，那人喝 得稍许多了一点。 compensate v.补偿 to表示目的性in order to to compensate sb. for 为…向某人赔偿 in the process of… 在...的过程中




Your success will largely depend upon what you do and how you do it. 你的成功主要取决于你做的事情和做的方式。

The sense of humour is mysteriously bound up with national characteristics. A Frenchman, for instance, might find it hard to laugh at a Russian joke.


Though the doctor did his best, the patient’s recovery was slow. On Christmas Day, the man still had his right leg in plaster. He spent a miserable day in bed thinking of all the fun he was missing. 尽管医生竭力医治，但病人恢复缓慢。圣诞 节那天，他的右腿还上着石膏，他在床上郁 郁不乐地躺了一天，想着 他错过的种种欢 乐。
Lesson 29 Funny or Not

Whether we find a joke funny or not largely depends on where we have been brought up.
我们觉得一则笑话是否好笑(名词性从句，作主语 )，很大程度取决于我们是在哪儿长大的。 Whether the pop star will come (or not) is not decided.


Many people find this sort of joke distasteful. The following example of ‘sick humour” will enable you to judge for yourself. 许多人认为这种笑话是低级庸俗的。下面 是个“病态幽默”的实例，你可据此自己 作出判断。
幽默感与民族（性格） 有着神秘莫测的联系。譬 如，法国人听完一则俄国笑话可能 很难发笑。 The failure of the housing market is bound up with the debt crisis. He has become used to the idea that how he will be judged as prime minister is bound up with what happens in Iraq.

universal adj.普遍的 universal agent n.全权代理人 universal time n.(= Greenwich Time)世界时间,格 林尼治时 universal wheel n.万向轮 universality n.普遍性, 一般性, 多方面性, 广泛性 universally adv.普遍地, 全体地, 到处



In the process, he enjoyed himself thoroughly and kept telling everybody how much he hated hospitals. He was still mumbling something about hospitals at the end of the party when he slipped on a piece of ice and broke his left leg. 在晚会上(过程中) 他尽情娱乐，一再告诉大家他 是多么讨厌医院。晚会结束时，他嘴里还在嘟哝 着医院的事，突然踩到一块冰上滑倒了，摔断了 左腿。 He mumbled a few words. He could hear the low mumble of Navarro's voice.
distasteful adj.讨厌的 （adv. distastefully） unpleasant adj.使人不愉快的, 讨厌的 displeasing adj.使人不愉快的, 令人发火的 I'll give you all the facts so that you can judge for yourself.
大部分令人发笑的故事都是根据喜剧情节编写的。尽管民 族不同，有些滑稽的情节却能产生普遍的效果。比如说， 不管你生活在哪里，你看查理.卓别林的早期电影 很难不 发笑。

be based on/upon… 基于… in spite of （= despite of 不管）


comic 喜剧的 comic book comedy 喜剧 silent comedies comedian 喜剧演员 clown 小丑 tragic adj. 悲剧的 tragedy n.悲剧




He dreaded having to spend Christmas in hospital. 他十分害怕在医院过圣诞。 dread + 名词, 动名词, 动词不定式 -- We were dreading his arrival. -- He dreaded having to meet his parents. -- I dread to think what will happen if he finds out. dreadful adj.令人恐惧的, 令人不快的 -- a dreadful disaster 可怕的灾难 in dread of…. 害怕某人[某事] -- We are in dread of insects.（insect n.昆虫）




However, a new type of humour, which stems largely from the U.S., has recently come into fashion. 然而，近来一种新式幽默 流行了起来，这种幽默 主要来自美国。 stem vi.[美]起源, 发生 n.植物的茎, 干, 花梗, 叶柄 stems from=spring from起源于 = come from 出身于, 由...引起 = arise from 由...而引起, 由...而产生 = originate from 由某人发起(首创) come into fashion = become famous come into power (开始)掌权, 上台 come into being 使产生, 使出现, 建立, 成立
a miserable day = a terrible day





The following day, however, the doctor consoled him by telling him that his chances of being able to leave hospital in time for New Year celebrations were good. 然而，第二天，医生安慰他说，出院欢度新 年的可能性还是很大的。 console v.安慰, 慰问 consolation n. 安慰 consolation letter /spiritual consolation I can console myself with the fact that I'm not alone. 我可以用不只我一个人的这种事实来安慰自己 。




A man who had broken his right leg was taken to hospital a few weeks before Christmas. 圣诞节前几周，某人摔断了右腿 (定从) 被送 进医院。




From the moment he arrived there, he kept on pestering his doctor to tell him when he would be able to go home. 从他进医院那一刻时，他就缠住医生，让医生 告诉他什么时候能回家。 pester v. 一再要求，纠缠(同义词：annoy, worry, bother, disturb, bug, torment, harass) pester sb. to do sth. 麻烦某人做某事 pester sb. with sth. 以某事烦扰某人 pester sb. for sth. 缠住某人讨取某物 The boy kept /kept on asking some silly questions in class.