by Qin TianyiForeign Languages Institute Sichuan Normal U

niversity

Key Points Warm-up Questions About the Author Cultural Background Text appreciation

– Text summary– Structure analysis– Topic discussion

Language Study – Sentence paraphrases– Words and expressions– Writing techniques

Warm-up QuestionsWhat association of ideas does

the word Christmas bring to you?How do people in the West

usually celebrate Christmas?What do you think the story tells

us about?

About the Author Floyd Dell (1887-1969), U.S. versatile and prolific writer and an editor for several newspaper and magazines. “Christmas” is an excerpt from his Homecoming—

An Autobiography (1933). His father, Anthony Dell, found it difficult to find regular work and the family experienced a great deal of poverty.

Dell believed that the everyday life of the middle and working classes provided subjects worthy of serious literary treatment.

Cultural BackgroundThe Great Depression

the worst economic disaster in American history

beginning with the dramatic crash of the stock market on "Black Thursday", October 24, 1929

industry badly shaken factories closed mills and mines abandoned fortunes lost

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at the height of the Depression in 1933, nearly 25% of the Nation's total work force unemployed

Wage income fell almost 43% between 1929 and 1933

Thousands went hungry Children suffered long term effects fro

m a poor diet and inadequate medical care

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Christmas

Christmas is a Christian holiday on December 25 to commemorate the birth of Jesus.

The tradition of gifts given each other presents on Christmas Day seems to have started with the gifts that the wise men( the Magi) brought to Jesus. However, no one was really in the habit of exchanging elaborate gifts until late in the 1800s. The Santa Claus story combined with the amazing retail promotion has made gift giving a focus of the Christmas tradition.

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"Sunday School" is the generic name for many different types of religious education pursued on Sundays. It is the place to teach biblical principles and godly living to people at every age and stage of life, especially to children.

Text Appreciation Text Summary The story is about how a little boy, who at fi

rst had no idea what poverty meant, gradually begins to realize that his family is very poor, how he comes to understand the social and psychological consequences of such a state, and how he grows mature in mind.

Structure

Analysis

Part I (Lines 1-30) Those were hard times, poor children did not have e

nough to eat. The boy brought food and money to Sunday school a

s he was told.

.

Part II (Lines 31-46 )

The boy did not go to school.Christmas was approaching, but

there was no mention of Christmas at home.

The boy was frightened and anxious.

Part (Lines 47-58)Ⅲ It was Christmas Eve. The boy asked his parents

about Christmas, the parents’ response was queer.

.

Part (Lines 59-74)Ⅳ The boy began to be aware of the family’

s plight.

Part (Lines 75-84)Ⅴ The boy felt the cold emotion of renuncia

tion.

Part (Lines 85-89)Ⅵ Meager presents

in a stocking were found on Christmas morning, but the boy no longer desired anything.

Topic Discussion

How did the child react to what the Sunday School superintendent said?

Can you tell how old the child was then and which grade he was in?

Why wouldn’t the child’s mother let him write his name on the envelope as he was told to do so?

Why didn’t the child's parents say anything about Christmas as the day approached?

What are your impressions of the child?

Language Study: Sentence Paraphrases As the day approached, my chest grew tighter

with anxiety. As the day drew near, I became more and

more uneasy as I didn’t know why my parents kept silent about Christmas.

I waited in painful bewilderment. I waited in pain and confusion. I was stunned –with finding out the truth. I was shocked when I found out about the

truth.

.

I lay there in the dark, feeling the cold emotion of renunciation.

It was dark. Lying in bed, I had an indifferent feeling of surrender—I didn't want anything any more.

The tendrils of desire unfold their clasp on the outer world of objects, withdraw, shrivel up. Wishes shrivel up, turn black, die.

A longing for things, like a threadlike part of a climbing plant, uncurls, reaches out towards the things desired, draws back, curls up again , and dies. All longings dry out, turn black and finally vanish into thin air.

Words and Expressions

wear sth. through/ out: cause sth to become useless, threadbare or exhausted through use

我徒步旅行，穿坏了两双靴子。 I wore out two pairs of boots on the walking tour. Heavy traffic and changeable weather can wear out the

surface of a road. 繁忙的交通和多变的天气会磨损路面。

wear sb. out: cause sb. to become exhausted 两夜没睡，我已疲惫不堪。 Two nights without sleep have worn me out.

clear (adv.): completely The mentally ill man got clear away just

as his family was about to take him to hospital.

slept clear through the night

睡了一整夜 read the book clear to the end

把书从头到尾全读完

Hard times

time: period of time associated with certain conditions, experiences, etc.

失业者的日子很难熬。 Times are hard for the unemployed. 最好忘掉不愉快的岁月，只记住美好的日子。 It’s best to forget the bad times and just remember t

he good ones.

in times of danger, hardship, prosperity, etc.

Times: a particular period in history E.g. Roman/Greek/ancient times

During Medieval times, women thought to be witches were burnt at the stake.

中世纪时期，人们把被认作为女巫的女人烧死在柱子上。

人们普遍认为他是现代最好的作家之一。He is widely regarded as one of the best writers of mo

dern times.

Distribute

To give sth such as food, medicine, books etc to a large group of people, especially in a planned way

Distribute sth to/among sb/sth: 衣服和毯子已经分发给了受飓风袭击的新奥尔

良的灾民。 Clothes and blankets have been distributed to the affl

icted people in the hurricane-stricken New Orleans. 你对那些在街边向路人散发传单的人感到厌烦

吗？ Are you worn out by those people distributing leaflets

to the passers-by by the street?

Each little boy and girl was …

每本书和没张报纸都摆放得井井有条。 Each book and paper was in proper place. 没有一个老师和学生出席。 No teacher and (no) student was present. He listened carefully, but no sound and no voic

e was heard.他仔细地听，但是没有听到一点声音。

out of :with/from ( a material)

Scarlet made herself a pretty dress out of the curtain material.The stool was made out of the bits of

wood the furniture factory had disposed of.

(saying) You cannot make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.

Out of: without

The enemy surrendered as they ran out of rice, water and ammunition.

He was out of breath when he climbed to the top of the mountain without stopping.

我们没咖啡喝了 . We're out of coffee. 我们受骗，把积蓄都花光了 . We were tricked out of our savings.

Out of: because of

Just out of curiosity, why did you take that job?

我只是有点好奇，你为什么接受了那份工作？

她开那小书店不是为了赚钱，只是因为兴趣所致。

She opened the book store just out of interest without intention to make money.

have sth/sb (all) to oneself

to be the only person or people in a place, using something, talking to someone else etc.

e.g. He couldn’t wait to have Betty all to himself.

他恨不得马上就和贝蒂单独待在一起。 The visitors have left, so I can have the qui

et living room all to myself. 客人们都走了，这样我就可以一个人在

客厅里安静地待一会了。

press something against/to something push something firmly against something 那些小男孩把他们的鼻子紧贴在玻璃上。 The little boys pressed their noses against the gl

ass. 我得尽量往后贴紧墙壁好让他们过去。 I have to try to press myself back against the wal

l to let them pass. 他用手帕捂着鼻子。 He pressed a handkerchief to his nose.

feel like… seem like when touched E.g. On Christmas Day my uncle gave me a parcel whi

ch contained something that felt like bars of chocolate. E.g. In pitch darkness when the wounded soldier touch

ed the ground, it felt like water everywhere. Early next morning, his comrades-in-arms found him lying in a pool of blood.

feel like a boiled rag 觉得非常不舒服 feel like a fish out of water 感到生疏 [ 不适应 ]

felt like (doing something) to be inclined to do something 彼特得了麻疹，啥都不想吃。 Peter is down with measles. He doesn’t feel like e

ating anything. Let’s have a walk round the campus after supper,

if you feel like it. 他这么粗鲁无礼，我恨不得找着他那张蠢脸掴

一巴掌。 He was so rude that I felt like slapping his stupid f

ace.

distressed: extremely upset and shocked

看到事故对自己的车造成的损害，他十分心痛。

He was greatly distressed to see the damage that the accident had done to his car.

这位母亲听说她儿子被大学录取的消息后愁容满面，因为她付不起高昂的学费。

The mother looked distressed at the news about her son’s admission to the university, for she couldn’t afford the enormous tuition fees.

stay cooped up … to be restricted the freedom by being kept in a too small place

The fresh air felt good after staying cooped up in the house for so long.

在房子中被长时间拘禁以后，呼吸新鲜空气的感觉非常好。

我觉得把动物关在小笼子里是不人道的。 I think it’s inhumane to coop animals up in tiny cages. 在监狱里关了 20 年过后，这个男人终于成功地从黑暗的牢

房墙上挖出的地道逃了出去。 After being cooped up for twenty years in prison, the man final

ly succeeded in escaping from a tunnel dug on the wall of the dark ward.

embarrassed/awkward/stunned etc silence E.g. When the innocent child said that the e

mperor did not wear anything, a strange, awkward silence fell on the crowd.

有一阵子大家都默不作声。 There was a moment’s embarrassed silence. Their suggestion was met with a stony silen

ce. 他们的建议没有引起任何反应。

clear one’s throat Clear the table 收拾餐桌 Clear the streets of snow 清除街道上的积雪 Clear one’s mind of doubt 消除心中疑团 Clear a debt/loan 还清债务 /贷款 Clear a space for 为…腾出地方 Clear the air 消除隔阂 /误解 Clear your head/mind 放松；保持清醒

take on something

Begin to have a particular quality or appearance, etc

His face took on a worried look. 他的脸上开始露出焦虑的神情。 These insects can take on the color of their surro

undings. 这些昆虫能呈现出与其周围环境相同的颜色 Her voice took on a trouble tone. 她的声音里有些不安的语调。

feel/be sorry for

feel pity or sympathy for somebody because sth bad has happened to them

E.g. It’s difficult not to feel sorry when you hear of such a disaster.

It’s no use just feeling sorry for them—do something about the problem.

仅仅为他们感到悲伤时没有用的—着手解决一下这个问题。

It’s no good feeling sorry for yourself. It’s all your own fault.

你为自己鸣冤叫屈是没有用的。这都是你自己的错。

Some expressions and sayings related to poverty live hand-to-mouth eke out a living make both ends meet tighten one's belt Poverty is no sin. Poverty is not a shame, but feeling ashamed of it is. lead a dog’s life be in financial straits be in wretched plight

Writing Techniques The story is told in the first person by the child

himself. It is informal in style and reflects a child’s thinking and manner of expression.

1) The writer uses plain words, simple, unadorned sentences, short paragraphs, simple grammatical structures and clear and straightforward statements. He concentrates on narrating events with a minimum of content and description.

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2) The style is distinctly conversational in tone.

E.g. My father was at home all day long and every day now; and I liked that.

I could write my own name, she said. So I did.

Why didn’t they say anything about it? Was what I had said I wanted too expensive?

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3) A considerable number of sentences begin with And or But to show the boy’s attempts at narrative.

E.g. But there was something queer! And once, when I spoke of it, there was a

strange embarrassed silence. But she didn’t explain why… And as the pain in my body ebbed, the

pain in my mind began.

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The writer skillfully selects a chain of events for the story to let the reader himself gradually draw the conclusion as to the underlying reason for the selection. Each event seems insignificant by itself, but taken together the events produce a strong effect on the mind of the reader.

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The writer produces a certain tension in the narrative by keeping the boy in the dark about his own plight while the reader is all the time being told the truth about it.

An apparent stylistic device the writer employs to make his writing forceful is parallelism.

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