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高级英语blackmail课文解析示例文章篇一：《<高级英语“Blackmail”课文解析>》哎呀，今天咱们就来说说高级英语里的那篇“Blackmail”吧。
这篇课文可真是像一场超级刺激的电影一样呢！一、故事中的人物课文里有好几个特别鲜明的人物呢。
首先就是那个公爵夫人，哇，她可真是个厉害的角色。
她就像是一只高傲的孔雀，穿着华丽的衣服，带着那种贵族特有的傲慢。
你看她，在面对事情的时候，总是想着怎么维护自己家族的名声，就像守着宝藏一样，这宝藏就是他们家族几百年来的声誉呀。
她说话的时候那种高高在上的感觉，真的让人觉得有点讨厌，可是又不得不佩服她的那种冷静。
然后就是那个叫奥格尔维的侦探。
他呀，就像一只狡猾的狐狸。
他知道公爵夫人和公爵的秘密，就想着从这个秘密里捞一笔。
他那胖胖的身体，看起来有点滑稽，可是他的眼睛里却透着那种精明的光。
他和公爵夫人的对话就像是一场激烈的战斗，两个人都在互相试探，互相揣摩对方的心思。
他说的每一句话都像是在给公爵夫人下套，想让她乖乖地把钱交出来。
还有公爵呢，虽然课文里对他描写得没有公爵夫人那么多，可是他就像一个影子一样，一直在背后影响着整个事情的发展。
他的错误就像一颗定时炸弹，随时都可能把他们家族的名声炸得粉碎。
二、情节的起伏这篇课文的情节就像坐过山车一样。
一开始，奥格尔维发现了公爵夫妇的秘密，然后他就大摇大摆地去见公爵夫人。
这时候，公爵夫人还不知道他的来意呢，还以为他只是来汇报一些普通的事情。
可是当奥格尔维慢慢地把秘密透露出来的时候，气氛一下子就紧张起来了。
就像突然有一片乌云遮住了阳光，房间里变得阴森森的。
公爵夫人一开始还试图用自己的身份来压奥格尔维，她觉得自己是贵族，这个小侦探肯定不敢对她怎么样。
她就像一只母狮子在保护自己的领地一样，充满了攻击性。
可是奥格尔维根本不吃这一套，他继续说着那些威胁的话。
这时候，公爵夫人开始慌了，她知道这个秘密要是被传出去，那可就不得了了。
Lesson sixBlackmailThe First Period (3 hours)I. Teaching Objectivesintroduction to the excerptfrom the beginning to the second paragraph on page 97II. Difficult and important pointbackground knowledgestylistic meaning of English vocabularywords for psychological statedifficult sentencesIII. Classroom Activitiesexplaininganswering questionstranslatingDetaild Study of the Text1. The chief house officer, Ogilvie, who had declared he would…took twice that lime: The chief house officer, Ogilvie, gave the Croydons a mysterious telephone call telling them he would pay lit an hour later,but actually he appeared 81 their suite1) chief house officer: Hotels in the U. S. employ detectives to take care of hotel security, celled ‘house dicks’, dignified appellation—house officer.2) suite: a set of rooms. A suite in a hotel is usually expensive. The suite the Croydons are staying in is St. Gregory Hotel's largest and most elaborate, called the Presidential Suite, which has housed, according to the book, a succession of distinguished guests, including visiting presidents and royalty.3) cryptic telephone call: The message over the phone was brief and with mysterious implications.4) actually took twice that time: He was slow in coming because he wanted to create the impression that he was a busy and important man and to keep the Croydons on tenterhooks.2. the Duke: (in Britain) a nobleman, whose rank is just below that of a prince. Below the duke are the marquis, earl, viscount and baron.3. the Duchess: wife or widow of a duke, or a woman with a rank equal to that of duke4. the nerves of both the Duke and Duchesswere excessively frayed: the nerves of both the duke and duchess were worn out by the long wait, were over-strained. Both the Duke and Duchess were extremely nervous. More examples with the word fray:Clothes frayed at the neck, knees, etc.Frayed cuffs, button-holes, etcTempers become frayed.the muted buzzer: muted to render the noise of the bell less harsh and stridentshe had dispatched her maid on an invented errand: they sent her out to get her out of the way; the ‘errand’ being just an excuse, a trip which was not necessary. Obviously the talk between Ogilvie and the Croydons had to be kept a secret.the moon-faced male secretary: The use of male before secretary is to avoid possibility of the reader’s assuming otherwise, for is to avoid possibility Note: male nurse, man servant, but woman doctors, woman pilot. ‘Moon-faced’ means having a round face. The young man’s appearance is in keeping with his timid character( fear of pet animals).cruelly instructed: ‘cruel’ because they knew the secretary was terrified of dogs. They could easily have found some other errand for him.to exercise the Bedlington terriers: to walk the dogs, to take the dogs out and give them some exercise. The bedlington terrier is a breed of blur or liver-colored, woolly-coated, active, typically small dogs. The terriers are a status symbol showing that that the Duchess is no ordinary dog owner. And the fact that they can keep dog in a hotel suite proves they are very important people.10. Her own tension was not lessened…: Ogilvie had telephoned to say that he would be at the suit in an hour. The Duchess made arrangement for the maid and the secretary to be away when he called. But he was an hour late, and the maid and the secretary might return at any moment. The Duchess knew this and it made her nerveous.11. A wave of cigar smoke accompanied Ogilvie in: to smoke a cigar in the presence of a lady without asking for permission is impolite and the being familiar. He comes into the room smoking his cigar. Ogilvie is a coarse, vulgar, and uneducated fellow and because he thinks he has the Croydons under his thumb theDuchess ‘looked pointedly’, that is, directly and sharply at the cigar, trying to intimidate him with her superior social position.12. Would you kindly put that out.: a period in stead of a question make, indicating it is said in a falling tone, meant to be a command, not a polite request13. piggy eyes: small, narrow eyes lost in the mass of flesh. Ogilvie is one if the ‘bad guys’ in this novel. He has piggy eyes, a gross jowled face, an obese body, speaks in falsetto, is vulgar, unscrupulous, ill-mannered, to the point of throwing his cigar on the carpet. Some examples, to the point of throwing his cigar on the carpet. Some examples with the word pig: Don’t be a pig. ( Don’t be greedy.)He is a pig. ( He is a dirty, greedy or ill-mannered person.)I’ve made a pig of myself. (I’ve eaten too much)14. surveyed her sardonically: He looked her up and down scornfully because he had evidence of their crime up his sleeve and felt sure that in moment he would be able to humble her and bring her to her knees. Note the different meanings of the following words:sardonic: being scornful, cynicalsardonic: intending to hurt the feelings, to inflict pain by deriding, tauntingsardonic: intending to make a person or thing appear foolish or absurdironical: a humorous or sarcastic form of expression in which the intended meaning of what is said is directly opposite to the usual sense.15. to sweep the spacious, well-appointed room: His glance passes swiftly over the big, excellently furnished and arranged room.16. who faced them uncertainly: Besides having a weak character, the Duke is over fond of liquor and other men’s wives, and so is submissive to the Duchess, herself a woman of strong character, a known public figure and cousin of the queen. After the road accident, it was the Duchess who masterminded the cover-up and the Duke wasn’t quite sure of what to say to Ogilvie or what to do, he was afraid of messing things up.17. “Pretty neat set-up you folks got: Ogilvie’s language is ungrammatical, vulgar and slangy. Neat is slangy, meaning nice fine;a general term of approval. Set-up, a noun,meaning arrangement of furniture, etc. A better educated person might say: “This is a pretty nice room that you have got.”For Ogilie’s ungrammatical language, see Note 4 to the text.Here are some more examples form the text: Whether they got fancy titles neither-whether they had fancy title or notI seen you come in –I saw you come inthe kid and the woman was hit—were hit‘f she’d have drove—if she had driven, etc.18. an ornamented fireplace: a fake one, not for use. It is there to add to the decor of the suite.cf. an ornamented fireplace: a highly decorated one19. He missed: His cigar butt did not fall inside the fireplace as he had intended it to.20. I imagine you did not come here to discuss decor: I suppose you did not come here merely to discuss the arrangement of the furniture and other decorations of this suite, what she meant was “Speak your mind. Don’t waste time.” She purposely used the word decor, imagining Ogilvie would be awed. Unlike Ogilive, the Duchess always speaks the Queen’s English, using strictly grammatical structures and shoosing her words carefully, sometimes to the extent of being pompous.21. an appreciative chuckle: mainly self appreciative. When hotel employee goes to a guest’s room, usually he goes there on business and no familiarity is allowed. But here Ogilvie was enjoying the fact that he could afford to do whatever he liked. He love being in a position of temporary supremacy. Also he appreciated the fact that the Duchess was no fool. She knew why he had come.22. He lowered the level of his incongruous falsetto voice: He had an unnaturally high-pitched voice. When he spoke now, he lowered the pitch.incongruous: This falsetto voice sounded funny coming from a thickset man like Ogilvie.23. Jaguar: a brand of very expensive British made sports car24. "Aah" : Now the Duke knew what the man was there for. The sound escaping his lips showed that the Duke was startled and perhaps a bit relieved that things had now come out into the open.25. a warning glance: The Duke had made a blunder the night before by mentioning the car in front of the hotel's assistant general manager when his wife was Trying hard to establish something of an alibi. Now the wile was warning him not to blunder again.26. “In what conceivable way does our car concern you?” : I can hardly imagine how our car could in any way concern you. Why are you so interested in our car?27. "Who else is in this place?": first indication that he did not come with an honest purpose, for why should he desire secrecy28. It was the Duke who answered: The Duke realized that Ogilvie had found them out as soon as he heard that the latter was coming to talk to them. He didn't think what the Duchess had done or would do could improve the situation. So he was eager to cooperate with Ogilvie.29. We sent them out: another blunder, as good as admitting that they knew what Ogilvie had come for and that they had things to hide 30. it pays to check: to be profitable or worthwhile to check. Oilier examples:1) it pays to think before you speak. 2) It’ll pay in keep a diary in English.31. surprising speed- surprising because you wouldn't expect a fat man like him lo move quickly32. "Now then": used lo call attention or lo express a warning or protest33. "You two was in that hit-'n-run": You tow are guilty of that hit-and-run accident. Hit-and-run is usually used to describe a driver who flees from the scone of an accident in which he is involved.34. She met his eyes directly: to pretend that she was innocent of what he accused her of and therefore dared to take up the challenge 35. "This in for r eal.”: I'm no t joking. This is something serious. for real: (slang) meaning real, really36. bit off the end: In order to light up a fresh cigar one end of it has to be clipped. Coarse people like Ogilvic just bit it off.37. "There's been plenty on radio, too. ": There have been a lot of reports about the accident on the radio, too.38. Two high points of colour: The Duchess' cheeks flushed, not evenly, but around the cheek bones. She was upset and a bit scared.But at the moment she was pretending indignation.39. cut it out: (colloquial) to slop what she was doing, i.e. pretending they were innocent40. The words spat forth: According to grammar, it should be: "The words were spat forth", or "Ogilvie spat out the words". Perhaps the author here wants to make it more dramatic by having "the words" following right after what he had just said, instead of saying "he spat out the words". Also, "the words spat forth" is more forceful and vivid than "the words were spat forth."41. all pretense of blandness gone: nominative absolute construction with a noun phrase plus a past participle. Ogilvie threw away his pretended politeness.Some other examples of the same construction from the text:his eyes sardonically on the Duchess (n.+ prepositional phrase)you driving (pron. +present participle)her poise for the moment recovered (n. +past participle)42. Ignoring the Duke, Ogilvie waved the unlighted cigar under his adversary's nose: He knew that the Duchess was the stronger character of the two and it was she that he had to deal with, so she was his enemy.43. your high-an'-mightiness: high and mighty: very proud, (the correct way to address a Duke or a Duchess is "Your Grace"). Ogilvie addressed her this way in imitation of "Your Highness", Jo mock her haughty attitude.44. burnin' mad: burning mad; very angry45. high-tailed it: (colloquial) leave in a hurry, scurry off46. they'll throw the book, and never mind who ii hits: They’ll deal out the maximum in punishment, to apply the full force of the law and they will be punished in this case. To throw the book is an idiom, in which the word book means I the law book. It refers to the book. Here Ogilvic follows the metaphor through.47. if I do what by rights I should, ... you'll hardly see 'em: If 1 do what I should do in justice (that is, to report what 1 know to police headquarters), a group of policemen will come over here very fast, so fast that you wouldn't be able to see them moving.48. so’s: so as, so that49. ’f you want i t the other way: if you refuse lo tell me the truth and prefer to have the law lo interfere50. The Duchess of Croydon—three centuries and a half of inbred arrogance behind her—did not yield easily: The Duchess was supported by her arrogance coming from parents of noble families who belonged to tho nobility For more than three hundred years. So she did not give in easily.51. she faced the grossness of the house detective squarely: She stood up boldly and rebuked d the coarse vulgarity of the house detective.52. blackguard: scoundrel, villain53. flickered wavered54. "It’s no go, old girl It was a good try.": It's no use. What you did just now was a good attempt at trying to save the situation. Here the phrase no go is a colloquialism, meaning not possible; without use or value. Old girt is an informal way of addressing one's wife. 55. "That's more like it.” : said when a second thing said by the other person sounds more acceptable. plausible, or less objectionable than the first one 56. “Now we’re getting somewhere.”: Now we’re making some progress, accomplishing something.57. "I'll spell it out": I'll tell you frankly and in detail.58. The house detective took his time: It is the second time that Ogilvie has done so, both limes lo make the impact of what he is going to say on the Croydons even stronger.59. as if challenging her objection: as if openly daring her lo object to his smoking a cigar, as she had done earlier; as if he wanted too see if the Duchess dared to object to his smoking 60. Bin beyond wrinkling her nose in distaste, she made no comment: She only wrinkled her nose to show her dislike for the of-fending cigar smell, but did not rebuke him.61. Lindy’s Place: a gambling joint, a gambling nightclub, a casino62. Irish Bayou: bayou [beiu:] a French word,a marsh. New Orleans was colonized by the French, so a lot of places there have French names.63. fancy Jaguar: Fancy here means expensive and superior model (car).64. Leastways, I guess you'll all her that ifyou’re not too fussy: I guess if you are not too particular about what words to use, at least you'd rail her your lady friend. Here Ogilvie is trying to get at him. It’s more than obvious that be was not really with a friend, but a high class whore.65. As Ogilvie glanced, grinning, at the Duchess Ogilvie is rubbing it in, enjoying himself over the wounded pride of an arrogant wife.66. The way I hear it, you won a hundred at the tables then lost it at the bar: From what I hear, you won a hundred dollars in gambling and then spent the money drinking.67. You were into a second hundred—with a real swinging party: You were beginning to spend another hundred dollars of your own ( the hundred won in gambling had already been spent) to treat a merry and lively party.68. There ain’t much, out of the way, which people who stay in this hotel do, I don’t get to hear about: if anybody who stays in this hotel does anything wrong, improper or unusual, I always get to know about it. There isn’t much that can escape me.Out of the way: improper, wrong, unusual 69. I suppose it doesn’t matter: You already know so much, I might as wall as well tell you this, it won’t make much difference now.70. clucked his tongue reprovingly: He made noises with his tongue to show his disapproval. How can you be so careless! The expoliceman was playacting, gloating over their misfortune.71. took off home: left for home72. the way things turned out: judging from what happened later73. Explains that one: This fact explains why you were driving in your sodden state; driving when you were drunk.74. lickered up: liquored up, drunk Compare:Liquor: an alcoholic drink, esp. one made by distillation, as whiskey or rum (neat whiskey) Wine: mainly grape wine ( sweet or dry wine)Soft drinks: non-alcoholic, like soda pop Chaser: a mild drink, taken with or after liquor75. Then you don’t know: The Duchess thought it was all Ogilvie’s conjecture and that he didn’t really have any evidence against them. She thought he didn’t have any caseagainst them.76. Looked right shaken, too , the pair of you: You two looked extremely upset (shocked). 77. Just come in myself an’ I got to wondering why: I had just come in myself and began to wonder why (you two looked shaken).78. the word was out: The news about the accident was spreading around. Some expressions with word:a word of advice (warning)say a good word for sb.have a word with sb. (talk with sb.)have words with (quarrel)give sb. one's word (promise )be as good as one's word/break one's word/a man of his word in so many wordsword for word79. On a hunch I went over to the garage: As I suspected and felt there was something wrong, I went over to the garage to inspect.hunch: a feeling about something not based on known facts: premonition or suspicion. The meaning derives from the superstition that it brings good luck lo touch a hunch-back.I have a hunch that...: I rather think that ...80. look-see: (slang) n quick look or inspection81. jockeys: usu. professional rider in horse-races, here it means persons who park cars or trucks in a storage garage, also called car jockeysdisc jockeys: radio or TV broadcaster who introduces performances and comments on records or tapes of light popular music82. I suppose that doesn't matter now: Now that our secret has been discovered, whether the jockeys sec the car or not doesn’t matter now.83. You might have something there: There might be a point in what you say.84. Over there they got three things to go on: At police headquarters, they have three clues to base their investigation on.85. dust it, an' it shows: Sprinkle some kind of powder on the car fender and the brush trace shows up.86. Ain' any doubt they'd match up, even without the brush trace an’ the blood: I haven't any doubt, there isn't any doubt that the trim ring that had come off the car and the busied headlight will correspond. That will be enough for the police to identify the car even withoutthe brush trace and the blood on the car fender.ain’t: (colloquial) am not, is not, are not have not.87. Oh, my God: Ogilvie mentioned the blood slain casually as if it was not important, or it had just come to his mind. In fact he had been saving it the last moment as a death blow to the Croydons. He succeeded in achieving this effect.The Second Period (3 hours)I. Teaching Objectives1. the rest of the textII. Difficult and important pointstylistic meaning of English vocabularywords for psychological statedifficult sentencesIII. Classroom Activitiesexplaininganswering questionstranslatingDetailed Study of the Text 88. square his shoulders: to show he is ready to face the consequences, he is brave, not afraid of what is. to come89. took on a musing note: his voice sounded as if he was deep in thought. He was going to put all his cards on the table now that he had made it sufficiently clear to the Cioydons that I hey were in his hands.90. Rushing any place ain't gonna bring back the kid nor its motherneither: ungrammatical. It should be: Rushing to any place (to police headquarters ) isn't going lo make the kid and its mother come to Life again. Note the double negative here, which is used in uneducated speech.91. The other two slowly raised their eyes: It began to dawn on them that the detective had no intention of handing them over to the police.92. But I got to live too- a stock phrase when someone is asking to be given money or is accused of trying lo extract too much money 93. Tell us now, please: first, civil word from the Duchess, She realizes it is best for her to cooperate.94. we'd become turned round: We lost our way, we were going in a direction opposite tothe one we intended to take.95. who was headed out: more sense of completion than "was heading out". It means they had taken that direction and had gone some distance in that direction. Somebody who was driving away from the town.96. the outside towns: small towns around a big city, here outside New OrleansOutlying towns would be more common. 97. got around to: to get started on, esp. after a delay98. it won't be yet: That won't lake place yet.99. Providin' nobody twigs the car: It should be: Provided (or providing) that nobody notices the car.twig: (from thieves' slang) observe, notice 100. an' seein' where it is, etc.: If you are lucky nobody might no hotel garage.101. An' if you can get it away: And if you can get the car away, you might not be suspected at all.102. to holler "cops": to cry "police", to call the police103. You people are hot: Your are now wanted by the police.104. kept firm, tight rein on her racing mind: She kept firm and tiger control of her mind which is working quickly. Here the Duchess is thinking quickly but at the same time keeping her thoughts under control, not letting them run wild.105. It was essential that her thinking remain calm and reasoned: It was very important for her to think calmly and logically, Note the subjunctive mood in the "that" clause.Other example:1) It is natural that beginners should make such mistakes.2) It is essential that everybody take part in it. 106. as if the discussion were of some minor domestic matter and not survival itself: as if the discussion were about some unimportant domestic matter, not concerned will life and death107. her husband now a tense but passive spectator: Nominative absolute construction with a noun plus a noun. Her husband watched anxiously and nervously, incapable of taking an active108. Same thing with the glass: With the glass (as with the trim ring) the police can trace the make, model and year of the car.109. calculated coolness; She was not cool, in fact, her mind was racing, but she deliberately appeared to be cool.110. a slim one: (colloquial) a small chance 111. incriminating evidence' evidence that might prove sb. guilty of a crime112. highway patrol: police cars on highway patrol duty113. to fall victim to some sharp-eyed policeman: to be seen and arrested by an observant and alert policeman114. it might be done: They might succeed in escaping. The plan might work.115. but no more than waiting here for certain detection: To drive the car north would be risky, but not more risky than to wail here, because if they did nothing, they would surely be discovered.116. back roads: out-of-the-way, unfrequented loads.117. an unlikely route: not a route that ordinary people would take;a route which the police didn't think they would be likely to take118. other complications: other factors which would make it difficult for them to drive the car north themselves119. secondary roads: roads not of primary importance whose classification and maintenance vary according lo township, county,and state regulations120. adept at using maps: skilled in using maps Examples1) He is adept in photography.2) He is adept at (or in) taking pictures.121. their speech and manner would betray them: Their speech dud manner would reveal their identity.Betray: reveal unknowingly, or against one's wishesExamples:He said he had stayed indoors all day, but his shoes betrayed him.His face betrayed his fear.122. Or had they?: second thought which contradicts the first one Had they (the risks) to be taken?The Duchess suddenly realized that the y didn’t have to take the risks of driving the car north themselves.Other examples;He must buy that book. Or must he? (He didn’thave to.)If it had been anyone else, he would have agreed. Or would he? (Maybe not.)123. pretty well fixed: quite rich, wealthy fixed: (colloquial) supplied with something needed, esp. money, e.g. well fixed for life 124. As the Duke of Croydon shifted uneasily, the house detective's bulbous countenance reddened: Both the Duke and detective though, the Duchess had refused the offer. The Duke felt very uneasy; he’d rather pay the money In keep Ogilvie quiet.125. Eyes bored into him: looked at him steadily, sharply and searchinglybore: make a hole in, used here figuratively 126. swallowing: to refrain from retorting because he is somewhat cowered by the Duchess127. her own smallness of mind: her own meanness or weakness of mind. What she is about to do may be extremely significant to her and her husband. She has to lake a big chance, to do something very daring, so she must be bold, resolute and decisive. She has to rise to the occasion.128. When you were playing for the highest stakes, you made the highest bid: Stake and hid are gambling terms. Here the sentence means: You had to pay the highest price when your reputation and career were at stake. 129. gamble on the fat man's greed: She would take a chance on this fat man's greed.130. She must do so in such a way as to place the outcome beyond any doubt: She would offer him so much money as to make it impossible for him to refuse to do what she would ask him to in return, no matter how dangerous the job might be.131. eyes bulged: with greed132. watched intently: To the Duchess, it was a question of survival itself. Only it Ogilvie agreed to drive their car north would they have a chance to get out of the mess unscathed.133. "This cigar botherin' you, Duchess?": If this cigar is bot hering you, I’ll pit it out. This shows that he is willing to com. ply with the Duchess’ wishes.The Third Period (2 hours)I. Teaching Objectives1. the exercises accompanying the text II. Difficult and important pointtranslationclipping words and compound adjectivesword conversiondifference in stylistic meaningfixed collectionoral work and summery-writingIII. Classroom Activitiesdiscussingblack-fillingcommentingIV. ProceduresExercise SixIV. Write out the full words1) advertisement 2) brassiers 3) doctor 4) refrigerator 5) gymnasium 6 ) high fidelity (radio, photography, etc.)7)intercommunication system 8) liberation 9) memorandum 10) microphone 11) modern 12 )permanent wave 13)poliomyelitis 14) popular0song 15)preparatory (school) 16) professor 17)sister 18)television 19)veterinarian 20)zoologicalV. Translation1) a half-finished letter 2) a half-closed window 3) a piece of half –baked bread 4)a half-turned body 5)a well-appointed hotel 6)well-behaved pupils 7)well-chosen words 8)well-fed children 9)well-informed(people) 10)high-flown languageVI. Make sentencesSound (v.) His words sound lofty and pretentious.Figure (v.) Commerce figures largely in the prosperity of the city.Go (n.) He is always on the go from early morning till late at night.Try (n.) He didn’t succeed in his first try, but he kept on jumping.Dust (v.) They are dusting the crops with insecticide.Square (v.) He squared his shoulders to show his determination.Good (n.) Overworking yourself will do more harm than good.Head (v.) On hearing that, he headed straight for the gate without looking back.Make (n.) I don’t like a bicycle of this make. Reason (v.) If your reasons from false premises how can you expect the conclusion to be sound?。
高级英语第一册lesson6-Blackmail-课文详解2-detail-study、背景知识、文章结构及修辞学习高级英语第一册lesson6 Blackmail 课文详解2 detail study、背景知识、文章结构及修辞学习2008-02-11 12:11:18| 分类：默认分类| 标签：|字号大中小订阅高级英语第一册lesson6 Blackmail 课文详解2 detail study、背景知识、文章结构及修辞学习2007年01月01日星期一下午11:4896. bulbous: shaped like a bulb, swelling and disgustingly fat and roundbulbous dome / nose97. peremptorily: (fml) showing an expectation of being obeyed at once and without questi on, impolitely and unfriendly, commanding, insisting obedience98. rivet: metal pin for fasten plates.to hold or fasten with or as if with rivetscf: glare, stare, fix99. feature: any of the noticeable parts of the facea man with Oriental featuresHer mouth is her worst feature / best feature, like a cherry.100. set in a mould:When you take a picture, you set your body, your countenance ...in a certain way. That is to set in a mould.(A lame one-eyed king taking a picture)mould (Am.E) = mould (Br.E): character, distinctive nature, a person's character, nature, et c., considered as having been shaped by family type, education, training, experience, etc.Be cast in a mould of a particular kind means to have the characteristics, attitudes, behavio ur or lifestyle that are typical of that kind of personbe made / cast in mould ofHe is made in his father's mould. (He has the same personality and character as his father' s)101. imperious: in tensely compelling, marked by arrogant assurance, dominating. This wo rd is related to imperial.The whole sentence can be paraphrased as follows:Her handsome high-cheekboned features were set in a way which shows her imperial char acter.102. respite: a short period of pause or rest, during a time of great effort pain, or trouble, a t ime of relief (as from labour, suffering or war) or delay (as before sentencing or executing).The patient said he never had any respite from the pain.Sentence sb. to death with 2-years' respite.103. bore: make a hole inThis machine can bore through solid rock.104. swallow: to take back, to keep from expressing or showing, to accept without question ing, protest or resentmentto swallow one's words: take back what was said105. sullen: silently bad-tempered, unforgiving, dark, gloomylook sullen, to wear a sullen look106. comply: act according to a demand, order, ruleto comply with the law / regulations107. vacillation: hesitation, uncertainty, waver, continuous changing of one's opinionsThis word implies prolonged hesitation resulting from one's inability to reach a decisionHe vacillates between accepting & not accepting.The earthquake caused the entire house vacillate.108. dally: to waste time or be slowDon't dally or we'll be late.dally over one's work109. bulge: to swell out as a result of the pressure from within110. bead: small ball of glass or other material with a hole through it for a string worn with other others on a thread, esp. round the neck for ornament.She is wearing a string of green beads.背景知识Background informationTitle of the novel: HotelSetting:The story happened in a hotel named St. Gregory /'greg ri/ in New Orleans, Louisiana which is in the south of US.Main character of the novel:Peter McDermott, assistant general managerMain characters in this part of the novel:Ogilvie: chief house officerthe Duke of Croydon: newly appointed British ambassador to the United Statesthe Duchess of Croydon: wife of the Dukea prostitute called lady friend by OgilviePlot:Gregory was now at the brink of bankruptcy, but Peter McDermott is trying every means he could to save it.Several events happened during the week with the present text as part of it.The Duke of Croydon was an internationally famous statesman and the newly appointed Br itish ambassador to Washington. They occupied the best suite of the hotel.Monday evening, the Duke went to the gambling house. Later, his wife pursued and found him. On their way back, the car Jaguar knocked down a woman and her child. Both killed.Then we have the present text....At one o'clock Thursday morning, Ogilvie drove the car north. But he was seen leaving the hotel by McDermott. Later in the afternoon, McDermott witnessed the funeral of the two victims o f the accident. He suddenly realized the relation between these two events and contacted police.Ogilvie was caught in Tennessee and sent back to New Orleans.The Duke decided to go to the police to confess his crime (to surrender himself / to give hi mself up). But he was hurled out the elevator due to the breakdown of it. He hit the cement groun d and died instantly.Anyway, the novel had a pleasant ending.One of the guests, who looked old and sick, turned out to be a millionaire. Earlier he was s eriously ill and was saved by McDermott and his girl friend. To show his gratitude and to repay t he hotel staffs' kindness, he bought the hotel and appointed McDermott executive vice president of the hotel.This kind of novels are called thrillers. Generally defining, a thriller is a work of fiction or dr ama designed to hold the interest by the use of a high degree of intrigue, adventure or suspense. (thrill: to cause sudden strong feeling of joy, fear, excitement, pleasure etc. that seems to flow r ound the body like a wave)Others can be called cop-criminal novels, detective novels. The main purpose is for enterta inment, amusement. Very often this kind of novels contain a lot of action, usu. suspension, not v ery much deep thought, without moral intention, not considered classic.The basic technique is to make the whole story of crime into sth. like a jigsaw puzzle. You c an not see the outcome until the final part is put in.文章结构Structural and stylistic analysisPart 1. PreludeThe chief house officer...Ogilvie remained standing {p.84 (old book, ditto)}.Section 1. The chief house officer...that both might return at any moment.The setting, main characters, and the suspension.Section 2. A wave of cigar smoke...Ogilvie remained standing.The preliminary encounter between the house detective and the Croydons.Part 2: Process of unveiling the crimeNow then...the Duchess turned away (p. 89).Section 1. Now then...Now we're getting somewhere (p. 86).First round of clash. the Duke confessed his crime.Section 2. Wearily, in a gesture...I can prove all I need to (p.87).Second round of clash. Ogilvie spelt out what he found out about the activity of the Croydo ns and tried to confirm all the detailed. The Duchess tried to win back the upper hand.Section 3. The Duke cautioned...the Duchess turned away (p. 89).The Croydons realized that they were convicted of the crime. The conviction was undeniabl e.Part 3. The Dirty DealSection 1. Her husband asked...You people are hot (p.91).Eliminating the possibility of having the car repaired in New Orleans.The possibility of not being found.Section 2. The Duchess ...Or had they? (p. 93)The interior monologue of the Duchess. Her judgement, analysis and calculation of the situ ation, weighing the advantages and disadvantages, the pros and cons.Section 3. (The Duchess faced Ogilvie... the silence hung (p. 94)The Duchess' decision to gamble on the greed of the house detective.Section 4. The ending.The dirty deal reached.修辞学习RHETORICMetaphor:...the nerves of both ... were excessively frayed...his wife shot him a swift, warning glance.The words spat forth with sudden savagery.Her tone ...withered......self-assurance...flickered...The Duchess kept firm tight rein on her racing mind. Her voice was a whiplash.eyes bored into himI’ll spell it out.Euphemism:...and you took a lady friend.Metonymy:won 100 at the tableslost it at the barthey'll throw the book,...Onomatopoeia:appreciative chuckleclucked his tongue。
Lesson 6 BlackmailObjectives of Teachingget familiar with the background of the author and this piece of writing；understand the main idea and theme of this text；master the key words and phrases and their use；learn and appreciate the writing style of this passage.Important and difficult pointsunderstand the main idea of this passagelearn to use the key words and phraseslearn and appreciate the writing styleI. Background information about the author:Arthur Hailey（1920-2004）was born and educated in Britain. He served in RAF（皇家空军）in 1939, and emigrated to Canada 1949.His famous novels: Hotel 《大饭店》, Airport《航空港》The moneychanger《钱商》II. Type of writing:Fiction/novel, to be specific, a thriller, designed to hold the interest by the use of a high degree of intriguey, adventure or suspense.III. Detailed study of the text1.The chief house officer, Ogilvie, who had declared he would …took twice that time : The chief house officer, Ogilvie, gave the Croydons a mysterious telephone call telling them he would pay them a visit an hour later, but actually he appeared at their suite two hours later.2. the Duke: (in Britain) a nobleman, whose rank is just below that of a prince. Below the duke are the marquis, earl, viscount and baron.3. the Duchess: wife or widown of a duke, or a woman with a rank equal to that of a duke4. the nerves of both the Duke and Duchess were excessively frayed: The nerves of both the Duke and Duchess were worn out by the long wait, were over-strained. Both the Duke and Duchess were extremely nervous.5. the muted buzzer: muted to render the noise of the bell less harsh and strident6. she had dispatched her maid on an invented errand: They sent her out to get her out of the way; the …errand‟being just an excuse, a trip which was not necessary. Obviously the talk between Ogilvie and the Croydons had to be kept a secret.7. the moon-faced male secretary: The use of male before secretary is to avoidpossibility of the reader‟s assuming otherwise, for commonly in the U.S. secretaryship is the female profession.Note: male nurse, man servant, but woman doctors, woman pilot. …Moon-faced‟means having a round face. The young man‟s appearance is in keeping with his timid character (fear of pet animals).8. cruelly instructed: ‟cruel‟because they knew the secretary was terrified of dogs. They could easily have found some other errand for him.9. to exercise the Bedlington terriers: to walk the dogs to take the dogs out and give them some exercise. The Bedlington terrier is a breed of blue or liver-coloured, wooly-coated, active, typically small dogs. The terriers are a status symbol showing that the Duchess id no ordinary dog owner. And the fact that they can keep dogs in a hotel suite proves they are very important people.10. Her own tension was not lessened …: Ogilvie had telephoned to say that he would be at the suite in an hour. The Duchess made arrangement for the maid and the secretary to be away when he called. But he was an hour late, and the maid and the secretary might return at any moment. The Duchess knew this and it made her nervous.11. A wave of cigar smoke accompanied Ogilvie in: to smoke a cigar in the presence of a lady without ask for permission is impolite and being familiar. He comes into the room smoking his cigar. Ogilvie is a coarse, vulgar, and uneducated fellow and because he thinks he has the Croydons under his thumb he doesn‟t give a damn to what they may think or feel. The Duchess …looked pointedly‟, that is, directly and sharply at the cigar, trying to intimidate hem with her superior social position.12. Would you kindly put that out.: a period instead of a question mark, indicating it is said in a falling tone, meant to be a command, not a polite request.13. piggy eyes: small, narrow eyes lost in the mass of flesh. Ogilvie is one of the …bad guys‟ in this novel. He has piggy eyes, a gross jowled face, an obese body, speaks in falsetto, is vulgar, unscrupulous, ill-mannered, to the point of throwing his cigar on the carpet. Some examples with the word pig:Don‟t be a pig. (Don‟t be greedy.)He is a pig. (He is a dirty, greedy or ill-mannered person)I‟ve made a pig of myself. (I‟ve eaten too much.)14. surveyed her sardonically: He looked her up and down scornfully because he had evidence of their crime up his sleeve and felt sure that in a moment he would be able to humble her and bring her to her knees.15. to sweep the spacious, will-appointed room: His glance passes swiftly over the big, excellently furnished and arranged room.16. who faced them uncertainly: Besides having a weak character, the Duke is over fond of liquor and other men‟s wives, and so is submissive to the Duchess, herself a woman of strong character, a known public figure and cousin of the queen. After the road accident, it was the Duchess who masterminded the cover-up and the Duke was n‟t quite sure of what to say to Ogilvie or what to do, he was afraid of messing things up.17. an appreciative chuckle: mainly self appreciative. When a hotel employee goes toa guest‟s room, usually he goes there on business and no familiarity is allowed. But here Ogilvie was enjoying the fact that he could afford to do whatever he liked. He loved being in a position of temporary supremacy. Also he appreciated the fact that the Duchess was no fool. She knew why he had come.He lowered the level of his incongruous falsetto voice: He had an unnaturally high-pitched voice. When he spoke now, he lowered the pitch.incongruous:This falsetto voice sounded funny coming from a thickset man like Ogilvie.18. a warning glance: The Duke had made a blunder the night before by mentioning the car in front of the hotel‟s assistant general manager when his wife was trying hard to establish something of an alibi. Now the wife was warning him not to blunder again.19. it pays to check: to be profitable or worthwhile to check. Other examples:1)It pays to think before you speak.2)It‟ll pay to keep a diary in English.20. surprising speed: surprising because you wouldn‟t expect a fat man like him to move quickly21. “You two was in that hit-…n-run”: You two are guilty of that hit-and-run accident. Hit-and-run is usually used to describe a driver who flees from the scene of an accident in which he is involved.22. your high-an‟-mightiness:high-and-mighty: very proud, (the correct way to address a Duke or a Duchess is “Your Grace”).Ogilvie addressed her this way in imitation of “Your highness”, to mock her haughty attitude.23. high-tailed it: (colloquial) leave in a hurry, scurry off24. they‟ll throw the book, and never mind who it hits: They‟ll deal out the maximum in punishment, to apply the full force of the law and they will not care who will be punished in this case. To throw the book is an idiom, in which the word book means the law book. It refers to the book. Here Ogilvie follows the metaphor through.25. The Duchess of croydon—three centuries and a half of inbred arrogance behind her—did not yield easily: The Duchess was supported by her arrogance coming from parents of noble families who belonged to the nobility for more than three hundred years. So she did not give in easily.26. she faced the grossness of the house detective squarely: She stood up boldly and rebuked the coarse vulgarity of the house detective.27. Lindy‟s Place: a gambling joint, a gambling nightclub, a casino28. Irish Bayou: bayou[¹beiu:] a French, word, a marsh. New Orleans was colonized by the French, so a lot of places there have French names.29. fancy Jaguar: Fancy here means expensive and superior model (car).30. You were into a second hundred—with a real swinging party: You were beginning to spend another hundred dollars of your own (the hundred won in gambling had already been spent) to treat a merry and lively party.31. There ain‟t much, out of the way, which people who stay in this hotel do, I don‟t get to hear about: If anybody who stays in this hotel does anything wrong, improperor unusual, I always get to know about it. There isn‟t much that can escape me.out of the way: improper, wrong, unusual32. lickered up: liquored up, drunkCompare:liquor: an alcoholic drink, esp. one made by distillation, as whiskey or rum (neat whiskey)wine: mainly grape wine (sweet or dry wine)soft drinks: non-alcoholic, like soda popchaser: a mild drink, taken with or after liquorbe as good as one‟s word /break one‟s word /a man of his word in so many words 33. On a hunch I went over to the garage: As I suspected and felt there was something wrong, I went over to the garage to inspect.hunch: a feeling about something not based on the known facts: premonition or suspicion. The meaning derives from the superstition that it brings good luck to touch a hunch-back.I have a hunch that…: I rather think that…34. Providin‟ nobody twigs the car: It should be: Provided (or providing) that nobody notices the car.twig: (from thieves‟ slang) observe, notice35. You people are hot: You are now wanted by the police.36. kept firm, tight rein on her racing mind: She kept firm and tight control of her mind which is working quickly. Here the Duchess is thinking quickly but at he same time keeping her thoughts under control, not letting them run wild.37. as if the discussion were of some minor domestic matter and not survival itself: as if the discussion were about some unimportant domestic matter, not concerned with life and death.38. her husband now a tense but passive spectator: Nominative absolute construction with a noun plus a noun. Her husband watched anxiously and nervously, incapable of taking an active part.39. calculated coolness: She was not cool, in fact, her mind was racing, but she deliberately appeared to be cool.40. to fall victim to some sharp-eyed policeman: to be seen and arrested by an observant and alert policeman41. adept at using maps: skilled in using maps42. their speech and manner would betray them: Their speech and manner wouldreveal their identity.betray: reveal unknowingly, or against one‟s wishesExamples:1)He said he had stayed indoors all day, but his hoes betrayed him.2)His face betrayed his fear.43. pretty well fixed: quite rich, wealthyfixed: (colloquial) supplied with something needed, esp. money, e.g. well fixed for life44. She must do so in such a way as to place the outcome beyond any doubt: Shewould offer him so much money as to make it impossible for him to refuse to do what she would ask him to in return, no matter how dangerous the job might be.45. eyes bulged: with greed46. watched intently: The to Duchess, it was a question of survival itself. Only if Ogilvie agreed to drive their car north would they have a chance to get out of the mess unscathed.47. “This cigar bother in‟ you, Duchess?”: If this cigar is bothering you, I‟ll put it out. This shows that he is willing to comply with the Duchess‟ wishes.IV. Organization of the story:Part 1. Prelude (The chief house officer ...Ogilvie remained standing) Section 1. The setting, main characters, and the suspension. (The chief house ...that both might return at any moment.)Section 2. The preliminary encounter between the house detective and the Croydons. (A wave of cigar smoke...Ogilvie remained standing)Part2: Process of unveiling the crime (Now then...the Duchess turned away）Section 1. First round of clash. the Duke confessed his crime（Now then...Now we're getting somewhere).Section 2. Second round of clash.(Wearily, in a gesture...I can prove all I need to )Ogilvie spelt out what he had found out about the activity of the Croydons and tried to confirm all the details. The Duchess tried to win back the upper hand.Section 3. The conviction was undeniable.(The Duke cautioned...the Duchess turned away ).The Croydons realized that they were convicted of the crimePart 3. The Dirty DealSection 1. Eliminating the possibility of having the car repaired in New Orleans. ( Her husband asked...You people are hot).Section 2. The interior monologue of the Duchess. Her judgement, analysis and calculation of the situation, weighing the advantages and disadvantages.(The duchess ...Or had they? )Section 3. The Duchess' decision to gamble on the greed of the house detective.(The Duchess faced Ogilvie... the silence hung )Section 4. The ending.The dirty deal reached.V. Character analysis:Ogilvie (notice that the name itself sounds awkward, awful): rude, uneducated,sardonic, self-assured, shamelessly greedy, but finally subservientthe Duchess: imperious, three centuries and a half of inbred arrogance, decisive, vigilant, very quick in response,highly educatedthe Duke: uncertain, ready to compromise, passive, despairing,VI. Rhetorical devices:Metaphor:...the nerves of both ... were excessively frayed…his wife shot him a swift, warning glance.The words spat forth with sudden savagery.I‟ll spell it out.Euphemism:...and you took a lady friend.Metonymy:won 100 at the tableslost it at the barthey'll throw the book,...VII. Questions for discussion:1. What made the Duchess jump to the conclusion that Ogilvie had come to blackmail them?2. Why did the Duchess offer Ogilvie twenty-five thousand dollars instead of the ten thousand the detective asked for? Did Ogilvie accept the Duchess‟ offer?。
Blackmail中的情节张汉熙主编的高级英语第一册Unit Six Blackmail中Plot(情节描述)In New Orleans，the Duke and the Duchess occupied a quite luxurious suite in a large hotel. One Monday evening, when they drove back from a gambling house, they knocked down a woman and her child. Although they knew that they had killed both of them, they did not stop the car and just drove away. This hit-n-run accident became sensational news to the whole city. Late that evening, the hotel’s chief house detective,Ogilvie, notice that the Duke and the Duchess were suspicious, so he went to check their car and found that their car was busted. However, he came to talk with the Duke and the Duchess instead of reporting what he had found to the police. He promised to keep quiet about what he knew with a large sum of money in return from the Duke and the Duchess. the Duke didn’t know how to solve this problem, so he made his wife, a clever women, copy with the situation. The Duchess first try tried to deny the fact that they killed the woman and her child, but she had to admit it after the evidence was shown. She realized that in order to get out of this mess, the car must be driven out of the South where people were alerted about the hit-and-run accident. So she offered to pay Ogilvie twice more than he had asked on condition that he drove the car to Chicago up in the North. With the desire for the money , the detective accepted the offer.。
