1、Early Autumn by Langston HughesWhat will you think of when you see the word“autumn”?It is a harvest season.Fallen leaves.It is sad.It is cooler and cooler.Hot days are leaving and autumn is coming soon.Today we are going to read a short story titled“early autumn”.It was written by Langston Hughes.Ab
2、out the authorLangston Hughes was an _ black poet,playwright and novelist.He wrote a lot of works.He was a p_ writer.His works are so popular that they have been t_ into more than 25 languages.American rolificranslatedAmong his short stories,Early Autumn is very famous.In the story,Bill and Mary wer
3、e in love at first.But later they broke up.Why did they break up?Something not very important had come between them,and they didnt speak.What did Mary do?Impulsively,she had married a man she thought she loved.How did Bill feel?Bill felt bitter about women.Many years later,they met in Washington Squ
4、are.Find out the following information according to their dialogue（对话）（对话）.Mary Billfirst reactionappearanceattitude to each other careerfamilywilling to mention their husband or wife?how they feltFirst reaction1.Mary recognized him as soon as she saw him.2.Bill _ her.Why?Their appearance 1.Mary loo
5、ked _.2.Bill was _.so oldstill youngdidnt recognizeWhat did her old appearance imply?1.Unconsciously,Mary _as though wanting a kiss.2.But Bill _ his hand and smiled politely.lifted her faceheld outTheir attitudeWhat do the two words“unconsciously”and“politely”imply?Unconsciously:When they were in lo
6、ve,Bill would always kiss Mary when they met.So Mary lifted her face as a habit.In Marys mind,Bill was still her lover.Politely:Bill treated her as if they had not been lovers.What do the two words“unconsciously”and“politely”imply?1.Mary work in the bursars office at Columbia(University).2.Bill was
7、a lawyer in a nice firm,way downtown.Career:Family lifeMary had three children and lived on Central Park West.Bill had two kids.And his wife was called Lucille.Detailed Unclear:no name of the firmNo information about her husband.No information about his address.1.“And your husband?”he asked her.“we
8、have 3 children.I work in.”2.Lucille and Id love to have you.Attitude to their husband or wifeMary was unwilling to talk about her husband.Bill was very glad to mention his wife.1.Mary felt a little sick.2.“You ought to see my kids.”he grinned.How they felt:grin:smile broadly so as to show the teeth
9、,expressing his delightsick:Mary was sad.“Always wondered what happened to you,Bill.”She forgot to tell him that her youngest boy was named Bill,too.What do the two sentences imply?Mary never forgot Bill.She still loved Bill.There is a lot of environmental description(环境描写）环境描写）in this story.Find ou
10、t the environmental description in it.environmental description(环境描写）环境描写）1.A great many people went past them through the park.People they didnt know.It was late afternoon.Nearly sunset.Cold.2.The leaves fell slowly from the tree in the Square.Fell without wind.Autumn dusk.She felt a little sick.3.
11、Suddenly the lights came on up the whole length of Fifth Avenue,chains of misty brilliance in the blue air.4.The lights on the avenue blurred,twinkled,blurred.5.The bus started.People came between them outside,people crossing the street,people they didnt know.Space and people.The story is sad.It was
12、 time for leaves to fall in autumn./normal/naturalIt was time to say goodbye.It was late.There were tears in Marys eyes.They were not close any more.There is space and people between them.The environmental description helps to show the feelings of characters in the story.What is the function of the
13、environmental description?What can we learn from the story?1.It is difficult for women to forget the past love.2.As a saying goes，“Marry in haste and repent at leisure.”(Dont do things impulsively.)3.What is past is past.Value what is in your hand now.be in lovebreak upimpulsivelybitterunconsciously
14、hold outpolitelyfrowndowntownpull offutter a wordplaywright a prolific writerMy friend Shawn read the story and he felt very sorry for Mary.He thought that Mary should not be sad any more,so he added an ending to the story.Read his ending.What does the new ending imply?Mary stared outside,leaning he
15、r head to the window.Space and people.“At least I know he is happy now.”She wiped her eyes,smiled,wiped and smiled.She suddenly understood that what was past was past.She should forget the past love.Bill didnt belong to her life any more.He was happy and that was enough.The most important thing was that she herself should live happily and well without Bill.What can we learn from this ending?
