Objectives

1
Unit 3
2
Objectives

• to understand the main idea and structure of the
  text
• to appreciate the basic elements of a play
• to grasp the key language points and grammatical
  structures in the text

3
Preparation

• Task 1 Illustration of Cartoons
• Task 2 What is generation gap?
• a listening
  practice
• Task 3 Interview

4
Task 1 Discussion

• How can you illustrate the cartoons?

5
Task 1 Discussion
How can you illustrate the cartoons?
6
Task 2 A Listening Practice
Whats it in your mind?
See CD
7
Task 3 Interview

• 1. When are your parents birthdays?
• 2. Do your parents celebrate your birthday? How
  about their own birthday celebration?
• 3. In your parents eyes, what are you interested
  in?
• 4. In your eyes, what are your parents interested
  in?
• 5. In what areas do your parents want you to
  improve?
• 6. In what ways do you want your parents to
  improve?
• 7. Do you feel grateful to your parents for
  whatever they have done for you?
• 8. Tell of an instance when your parents and you
  disagree over something.

8
In-class Reading
Father Knows Better
9
Text analysis a brief introduction to plays
3 settings
2 characters
4 conflicts
the major components of a play
1 stage directions
5 climax
6 theme
7 language
10
What does a stage look like?
Up Left Up Right Stage Left Center Stage Stage Right Down Left Down Right Audience
11
Functions of stage directions

• To set up stage properties in the proper place
• To indicate a change in setting
• To direct actors movement, gesture, facial
  expression, tone of voice, etc.

12
Text analysis who are they?

• Scan the play and identify the characters
• The Thompson family
• (father, mother, Heidi, Diane and Sean)
• Restaurant manager, how old is he?
• (In his twenties.)
• Mrs. Higgins, who is she?
• (School official in charge of admitting new
  students to Benjamin Harrison High School.)

13
Text analysis conflict of the play
When a conflict develops to the most intensified
point, it becomes a climax.

• Conflicts are the essence of a play, a clash of
  actions, ideas, desires or wills.
• Three forms of conflicts
• man against man,
• man against environment, or
• man against himself
• The conflict in this play is between ____ and
  _____.
• (Mr. Thompson, his children)

14
Text analysis how is the play organized?

• Scan the play and decide on how many settings it
  comprises.
• Hint Just read the stage directions put in the
  brackets.
• Suggested answer 3 settings
• Setting 1 A fast-food restaurant
• Setting 2 The Thompson family dining room
• Setting 3 An office at a high school

15
Text analysis understanding the main idea
Scenes Main Ideas
Scene 1
Scene 2
Scene 3
Father embarrassed Sean by talking too proudly to
the restaurant Manager.
Father embarrassed Diane by persuading a
work-mate into pressing his son to ask her to the
senior prom.
Father embarrassed Heidi by boasting to an
official of her new school about how bright she
was.
16
Text analysis language style

• On the whole, the style is informal/colloquial
• short sentences
• few complex structures
• sentence fragments / incomplete sentences
• repetitions, pauses and nonsensical words
• familiar everyday words instead of big or
  abstract words and difficult phrases
• phrasal verbs

17
Your assignment

• Role-play (three settings)
• You are going to be divided into three groups.
• Each group should be in charge of one part of
  this play.
• Show your performance next time.

18
Language points in Scene 1

• location n. (line 3) locate v. located adj.
• the edge of the stage (line 6)
• address the audience (line 7)
• end up embarrassing sb. (line 11)
• wait tables (line 12)
• in unison (line 18)
• 1. do sth. at the same time
• 2. if people or organizations work in unison,
  they are working together because they agree with
  each other

19
Language points in Scene 1

• consist of (line 20)
• consist in
• consist, compose, comprise constitute
• a man-to-man talk (line 43)
• ? a talk that takes place between two men, esp.
  two men who need to discuss a serious personal
  talk
• lifes dangerous sea (line 47)
• ? Here the author uses a metaphor. He compares
  life to an arduous sea voyage, which needs hard
  and continuous effort.

20
Language points in Scene 1
(followed by that or to do) be wise , well
informed, or well-mannered enough to avoid
(specified behavior)

• Father, you know better than that. (line 56)

e.g. You ought to know better than to ask that.
(See Page 84 for more exercise.)
21
Language points in Scene 1

• The lights quickly fade to black (line 57)
• e.g. 1. The colour had faded.
• 2. His voice faded to a whisper.
• 3. Hopes of reaching an agreement seem to
  be fading away.
• 4. In the last weeks of her life she
  simply faded away.
• once in a while (line 60)
• overall (line 61)
• trade my dad for anyone elses. (line 61)

22
Language points in Scene 2

• be seated around the dining room table (line 67)
• keep (sb.) in suspense (line 73)
• ? suspense n. a feeling of worry or excitement
  that you have when you feel sth. is going to
  happen, etc.
• break the suspense
• hold sb. in suspense
• be in suspense over

23
Language points in Scene 2

• Ill bet. (line 79)
• distract v. (line 81)
• distracting adj. distracted adj.
  distraction n.
• My treat. (line 103)
• ? Here it means that Father is going to invite
  Dan to dinner and pay for it as a friendly act.
• Similar expression
• Dinner is on me.
• Dutch treat an occasion at which everyone
  pays their own bill
• go Dutch (with sb.) to share the cost, esp.
  of a meal

24
Language points in Scene 2

• Very short with her (line 109)
• ? If you are short with sb., you speak briefly
  and rather rudely to them because you are
  impatient or angry.
• hand down (line 117)
• ? If possessions, skills, or knowledge are handed
  down, they are given or left to people who are
  younger or belong to a younger generation.
• hand in
• hand on
• hand out
• hand over

25
Language points in Scene 2
You use at any rate to indicate that the
important thing is what you are going to say now,
and not what was said before.

• at any rate (line 122) whatever may happen in
  any case
• e.g. 1. At any rate, you survived the car
  accident.
• 2. Well, at any rate, let me thank you for
  all you did for me.

at this/that rate birth/death rate
first-rate rate of exchange

• rate, speed pace

26
Language points in Scene 2

• narrow down (to) (line 125)
• e.g. Weve narrowed down the list to four
  candidates.
• What has come over you? (line 133)

If a change or feeling comes over you, it affects
you or happens to you, perhaps making you behave
in an uncharacteristic way.
e.g. 1. A great change had come over me since the
previous night. 2. He has never been so
rude to me. Whats come over him?
27
Language points in Scene 2

• Why, back in my day(line 134)
• ? Well, when I was young (we didnt behave like
  that)
• (It implies a gap between the younger generation
  and the older generation)
• Get this over with, more likely. (line 138)

It is more likely to get this over with.
get sth. over (with) (informal) to complete
sth. unpleasant but necessary get over sth.
28
Language points in Scene 2
interfere in sth. interfere with sth.

• Swallowing hard (line 151)
• an honor student (line 163)
• And its not just one of us whove felt the heavy
  hand of interference. Oh, no, all three of us
  live in constant dread knowing that at any time
  disaster can strike because (line 166-168)

e.g. 1. I had a constant headache for three
days. 2. She is my constant companion.
3. The price of the product is not constant
but varies with supply and demand.
29
Language points in Scene 3

• in charge of (line 172)
• take charge of
• in ones charge
• exceptional (line 181)
• Fine out the synonyms or synonymous phrase for
  exceptional in Scene 3.
• bright (L.183)
• got her brains (L.185)
• talented (L.192)

30
Post-reading Tasks

• Character analysis
• Father
• shows great respect for Mother
• ? pulled the chair for her before dinner,
• and obeyed her commands (like do go on, do
  get on with)
• quick to realize his blunder when finding his
  efforts were not appreciated
• ? I do? Yes, yes, I guess I do. Ive done it
  again, havent I?

31
Post-reading Tasks

• Character analysis
• Mother
• 1) How does Mother address Father and the
  children? Does it help reveal her character?
• 2) What is the role of Mother in the Thompson
  household?
• 3) How does she deal with the conflicts between
  Father and the children?

32
Post-reading Tasks

• Suggested answers
• 1) She uses quite a number of dos and donts,
  pleases, dears and sweethearts.
• 2) She is the real head, giving out commands to
  her children as well as her husband.
• 3) She is the peacemaker or the mediator.
• maintains Fathers dignity by telling the
  children Dont interrupt, Dont distract your
  father, etc.
• tries to divert the conversation by talking
  about her dessert

33
Post-reading Tasks

• How do you understand the title Father Knows
  Better?
• (It tells us about the mixed feelings the
  Thompson children have for their father. On the
  one hand, they realize their father is a nice
  man, a dear that they would not trade for
  anyone else On the other hand, they hate the
  heavy hand of interference from him )

34
Post-reading Tasks

• Now can you sum up the main idea of the play in
  one sentence?
• Father interfered / meddled in childrens
  affairs with _______ intentions, but only to find
  his efforts _______.
• (good, unwelcome)
• What do you think causes the generation gap?
• ( misunderstanding of love, ineffective
  communication between the father and his
  children)