1、Developing ideas Henry David Thoreau(1817-1862)was an American essayist,poet,and philosopher.He began writing nature poetry in his early twenties,with poet Ralph Waldo Emerson as a mentor and friend.In 1845,he began his famous two-year stay at Walden Pond,which he wrote about in his masterwork,Walde
2、n.Born into a poor aristocratic family in the Eastern Jin Dynasty,Tao Yuanming(365-427)was one of Chinas greatest poets and a noted recluse.A master of the five-word line,Tao has been described as the first great“poet of fields and gardens.”Read the short introductions to Tao Yuanming and Henry Davi
3、d Thoreau and share what else you know about them with the class.Learning to learnA comparative essay compares,contrasts and evaluates two or more topics.There must be enough similarities and differences between the topics so that they can be discussed in a meaningful way.A number of points should b
4、e discussed within a comparative essay.Read the passage and find out what Tao and Thoreau learnt from nature.Both of them got inspiration from nature for their literary works.Both of them lived simply in nature with few material desires,which helped them to attain their personal fulfillment.Although
5、 Tao and Thoreau lived in different countries,and their lives were separated in time by nearly 1500 years,yet they were both poets,who shared an intense respect for nature,which made them each an influential figure of their time.The reason for going back to nature Tao went back to nature because he
6、felt conflicted over life at court.His return to nature was a reaction to a lifestyle he was opposed to.Thoreaus return to nature was a personal decision to transform the way he lived.Their lives of fields and gardens He spent the next 22 years since 405 until his death,working the land in a poor,ru
7、ral area.From his poetry,we can learn that although his life was arduous,he succeeded in finding contentment in its simplicity and in drawing pleasure from nature.Thoreau had a decent quality of life,but he wanted to live in a simpler way.For two years,two months and two days,he lived in a cottage i
8、n the forest on the edge of Walden Pond,focusing on himself and his writing.He explained his reason for doing so in Walden:“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately,to front only the essential facts of life.”Nature described in their works and their aims Tao s nature is a place of f
9、ields and villages,in other words,rural,and his animals are domestic ones,such as chickens and dogs.The calm and peaceful life he wrote about is in contrast to and critical of the depressive court life:Beyond the dark and distant lies a village,The smoke above reluctant to depart.A dog is barking so
10、mewhere down the lane,And chickens sit atop the mulberry tree.归园田居（其一归园田居（其一）陶陶渊明渊明少少无适俗韵，性本爱丘山无适俗韵，性本爱丘山。误落尘网中，一去十三年误落尘网中，一去十三年。羁鸟恋旧林，池鱼思故渊羁鸟恋旧林，池鱼思故渊。开荒南野际，守拙归园田开荒南野际，守拙归园田。方宅十余亩，草屋八九间方宅十余亩，草屋八九间。榆柳荫后檐，桃李罗堂前榆柳荫后檐，桃李罗堂前。暧暧远人村，依依墟里烟暧暧远人村，依依墟里烟。狗吠深巷中，鸡鸣桑树颠狗吠深巷中，鸡鸣桑树颠。户庭无尘杂，虚室有余闲户庭无尘杂，虚室有余闲。久在樊笼里，复得返自
11、然久在樊笼里，复得返自然。Thoreaus descriptions of nature emphasised the beauty and purity of the wild areas around him.Devoting himself to observations of the natural phenomena,he recorded his detailed findings in his journals.His writing aimed to convince people that animals and plants had a right to live and
12、prosper,as we do.We should live with them in harmony and enjoy natures gifts,as he describes in his journals:好好度过每一个季节，好好度过每一个季节，呼吸新鲜的空气，呼吸新鲜的空气，畅饮美酒，品尝水果畅饮美酒，品尝水果，尽情享受这一切。尽情享受这一切。让生活中只有饮食和草药。让生活中只有饮食和草药。Thoreau 梭罗梭罗 Live in each season as it passes;breathe the air,drink the drink,taste the fruit,an
13、d resign yourself to the influences of each.Let them be your only diet,drink and botanical medicines.Their similaritiesThey went back to nature.Both made dramatical transformations to their lives in order to reconnect with nature.Both were happy to withdraw from contemporary life,seeking a harmoniou
14、s relationship with nature in the quietness of their new lives.Both took considerable courage to reject the easy and familiar and instead try to live closer to nature.Their choices led them to quiet and reflective lives with fewer material desires.Think&Share1 Why did it take Tao and Thoreau great c
15、ourage to walk away from their previous lives?2 Why are their ideas important to our lives today?3 What do you think about living in nature like Tao and Thoreau?Give your reasons.Because it was difficult to reject the easy and familiar life they used to live.Because in todays modern world,we still n
16、eed to live harmoniously with nature,and live a simple life.Fewer material desires lead to better personal well-being and fulfilment.Both passages have the common theme of learning from nature.The first passage focuses on the inspirations people get from nature,while the second focuses more on the n
17、atural way of living that people still need today.The second passage calls upon us to live in harmony with nature,which is an important message for today.4 Compare the two reading passages in this unit.In what ways does each passage contribute to the unit theme?根据课文内容,判断正(T)误(F)。1.Taos descriptions
18、of nature emphasised the beauty and purity of the wild areas around him.2.Tao returned to nature as he hoped,living a closer life to nature.3.Tao and Thoreau lived in the same age of different countries.4.Tao and Thoreau didnt treat nature in quite the same way,but their works show its beauty and va
19、lue.5.In todays modern world,their ideas may take us a step closer to attaining fulfilment.答案:1.F2.F3.F4.T5.T Superficially,Tao Yuanming and Henry David Thoreau shared respect for nature that made them an 1.(influence)figure of their day.Both men made dramatical transformations to their lives in ord
20、er to reconnect 2.nature.As an official,Tao felt 3.(conflict)over life at court and succeeded 4_ finding contentment in its simplicity.Thoreau lived in a cottage in the forest,focusing on 5_(he)and his writing.Thoreaus 6.(describe)of nature emphasised the beauty and purity of the wild areas around h
21、im.7.(devote)himself to observations of the natural phenomena,he recorded his detailed findings in his journals.influential withconflicted in himselfdescriptionsDevoting直击高考直击高考 We should live with them in 8.(harmonious)and enjoy natures gifts.It takes considerable courage 9_(reject)the easy and fam
22、iliar and instead try to live closer to nature,10.both Tao and Thoreau did.Their choices led them to quiet and reflective lives with fewer material desires.harmonyas to rejectWriting about a lesson from natureRead the story and answer the questions.1 What does a butterfly do to get out of its pupa?2
23、 Why did the man think he needed to help the butterfly?The butterfly struggles to force its body through the little hole.Because the butterfly couldnt get out.The struggle seemed too hard for its weak body.We need struggle to grow strong and survive.3 What happened to the butterfly after the man enl
24、arged the hole in the pupa?4 What is the lesson behind this story?What else can you learn from it?The butterfly dragged itself around weakly,and then died.Learning to learnAn extended metaphor refers to a comparison between two things that is developed at length over many lines of text,or throughout
25、 an entire work of literature.For example,in the butterfly story,the struggle of the butterfly illustrates lifes struggles.While the story appears to be about a butterfly,it is really about us.Look at the pictures and think what you can learn from nature.Work in pairs.Plan your writing.Consider the
26、following:the topic you wish to write about whether you will use an extended metaphor what lesson it teaches us,and how we can apply this lesson to daily life a suitable title for your storyNow write your story.A Lesson from Ants One day,I was resting in my grandparents garden when I saw that the sk
27、y was covered with dark clouds;this being a sure sign of rain.All of a sudden,an ant came into my sight.The tiny creature was trying hard to carry a tiny piece of bread to its nest,but its efforts were in vain.Each time the ant picked up the piece of bread,it rolled down its body and fell onto the g
28、round.While I was wondering why the ant was trying so hard to achieve the impossible,it was joined by more ants.This group of ants worked together,and eventually they managed to carry the piece of bread to their nest.Similarly,we need cooperate and collaborate in order to achieve what seems impossible for us to do as individuals.In order to achieve our goals,we should work together.
