英美国家概况Media

英美国家概况Unit9TheBritishMedia（英国的媒体）Unit 9 The British Media (英国的媒体)一、本单元重点内容1. Popularity of the media (媒体的受欢迎程度)2. The quality press (优质报章)3. The Observer 《观察家报》4. The Times 《泰晤士报》5. The Guardian 《卫报》6. The Telegraph 《电讯报》7. The Financial Time 《金融时报》8. The tabloids (小报)9. Television and radio (电视和无线电)10. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) (英国广播公司)11. The Independent Television Commission (独立电视委员会)二、本单元重、难点辅导1. the degree of popularity of the media: 1 st : TV 2 nd: newspaper 3 rd: radio2. the functions of the mediaProvide entertainment; information about political and social issues; weather reports; carry advertising; education; provide a forum for people to write letters or phone in to express their views or seek advice; engendering a national culture3. British Newspapers (one of the world’s oldest established newspaper industries)1). the Observer <<观察家报>>—still published every Sunday; first appeared in 1791; the world’s oldest national newspaper2). the Times <<泰晤士报>>—began in 1785; the UK’s oldest daily newspaper3). the Guardian<<卫报>>—a national daily newspaper which is radical in politics and interested in society and social problems. It is quite soft on crime and quite feminist and shows great concern for green politics.政治上比较激进，对社会问题感兴趣。

比较地理环境对中英两国文明进程的影响人类的文明，无论是古代的、现代的、都发生于某一特定的时间和空间所外的自然环境。

原始人采撷果实、居于洞穴或露宿于野，所有的一切都离不开自然环境，他们的衣食住行、生活和生产都深深地依赖地理环境。

进入文明之后，随着人类自身巨大潜能的逐渐发挥，人类对自然的依赖表面看来似乎有所淡化和隐化，但实际情况是，人类的文明程度愈高，对地理环境的利用的范围也愈益扩大和深化。

今天，科学技术的突飞猛进，都是建立在无数对自然宇宙的新发现、新认识和众多新材料、新方法产生的基础之上。

所以，无论对人类历史的哪一阶段进行研究，都决不能忽视自然地理环境对人类文明的影响和作用。

英国是一个岛国，总面积244200平方公里，东邻北海，西、北面对大西洋，南面是英吉利海峡，与法国隔海相望。

地理学上叫“不列颠群岛”，它们星星点点地散布在欧洲大陆西北边的水域中。

最大的岛屿——大不列颠岛，上面分布着英格兰、苏格兰和威尔士三个区域单位。

从英格兰的最南端到苏格兰的最北端只跨越10个纬度，最长也不过600英里（966公里）。

在欧洲国家中英国的面积之小可想而知。

英国的海岸线异常曲折，构成了许多港湾。

在英国，“内陆”离海洋最远处也不过75英里（120公里）。

位于欧洲大陆袈上的不列颠诸岛沿海水域不深，当大西洋暖流缓缓穿过这个“陆桥”之时，它温暖了空气、提升了水温，使不列颠的气候与同纬度其他地区相比，都要暖和宜人。

浅水、暖流、深湾共同构成了远古时代养育不列颠人的天赐富源。

独特的地理环境，对英国的政治、经济、文明、价值观念和民族精神都产生了深远的影响，其影响可归纳为以下几点：1.国家面积小，有助于政治统一，社会、经济和文化易于交流，制度容易规范化。

亚里士多德曾论述过城邦人口的规模，他认为一个城邦最适当的人口限度应该是足以满足自我需要而又是观察所能遍及的最大数目。

正是这种小国寡民的城邦才有条件建立那种公民直接参与的民主政治，而且极不容易形成专制。

Standard EnglishStandard English is based on the speech of the upper class of southeastern England. It’s widely used in media and taught at schools. It’s preferred by the educated, middle-class people. It has developed and has been promoted as a model f or correct British English. It’s also the norm carried overseas. Today, Standard English is codified to the extent that the grammar and vocabulary are much the same everywhere in the world where English is taught and used. Commonwealth of NationsThe Commonwealth of Nations is a voluntary association of independent sovereign states, all of which acknowledge the British monarch as the head. The commonwealth is not a political union of any sort, and its member states have full autonomy to manage their internal and external affairs. It is primarily an organization in which countries with diverse economic backgrounds have an opportunity for close and equal interaction after gaining independence. The major activities of Commonwealth are designed to advocate democracy, human rights, and to promote economic cooperation and growth within its members.Critical realismCritical Realism is a literary school which flourished in the 40s and early 50s of the 19th century. The critical realists described the chief traits of the society and criticized the capitalist system from a democratic viewpoint. The greatest English critical realist was Charles Dickens.Three Majestic CirclesIt’s the foreign policy adopted by the Britain after WW II.The first was the Commonwealth circle,which embraced much of Africa and Asia as well as the dominions of Canada, New Zealand and Australia. The second was Britain’s “special relationship” with the United States,and the third was Britain’s close relationship with Western Europe.Melting pot/salad bowlThe United States "is not merely a nation but a nation of nations". The immigrants came in waves, including the Europeans, the Africans and the Asians. Therefore, America was described as a "melting pot" where various racial and ethnic groups were combined into one culture. Recently, Americans have been called a "salad" in that people of different races and ethnic groups mix harmoniously but at the same time keep their distinct culture and custom.Checks and balancesIt goes back to the tradition that everybody in the United States was afraid that one persons or group, including the majority, it might become too powerful or be able to seize control of the country and create a tyranny. To guard against the possibility, the delegates who drafted the constitution set up a government consisting of three parts, or branches: the legislature, executive, and the judiciary. Each branches has powers that the others do not have and each has a way of counteracting and limiting any wrongful actionby other branches.Ideals of American educationThe first ideal is that as many people as possible should have access to as much education as they want. The second is that of producing a society that is totally literate and of local control. The third is about the basic nature of knowledge and learning that scholars and students should work to discover new information or conceive new ways to understand what is already known. ThanksgivingIt is celebrated in the United States on the fourth Thursday in November. For many Americas it is the most important holiday apart from Christmas. Schools, offices and most businesses close for thanksgiving, and many people make the whole weekend a vacation.The lost generationThe lost generation refers to the young American writers caught up in the world war I and cut off from the old values yet unable to come to terms with the new era when civilization has gone mad.They produced works of disillusionment.Two of the most representative writers of the The lost generation are Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald.。

英美国家概况大不列颠及北爱尔兰联合王国The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland首都：伦敦面积：2,441,000.00 平方公里国际电话码：44人口：5858.7万人(1997年)语言：英语货币：英镑(GBP)民族：英格兰人81.5%，苏格兰人9.6%，爱尔兰人2.4%，威尔士人1.9%，奥尔斯特人1.8%，其它民族2.8%。

宗教：圣公会50%, 天主教10%。

国花：红玫瑰（蔷薇科）简史公元1-5世纪，英格兰被罗马帝国所占领。

8世纪末起到9世纪中，丹麦人侵袭英格兰，公元865年，对其发动全面入侵。

公元10世纪，魏萨王朝挫败入侵丹麦人，建立广阔权域。

丹麦人又于1017年在第二次入侵中征服英格兰，使之成为松散的丹麦海盗帝国的一部份。

1042年，帝国瓦解，恢复英国王统。

15世纪下半叶进入资本主义原始积累时期。

17世纪中爆发资产阶级革命。

18世纪后半叶至19世纪上半叶，是生气勃勃的经济变革时期，英国成为世界上第一个完成了工业革命的国家。

19世纪是大英帝国的全盛时期，它的工商业居世界领先地位，殖民地遍布五大洲；是世界上最有政治权势的国家，号称“日不落帝国”。

美利坚合众国The United States of America首都：华盛顿哥伦比亚特区面积：9,363,123.00 平方公里国际电话码：1人口：27053.7万(1998年)语言：英语货币：美元US$民族：白人83.4%，黑人12.4%，亚洲人后裔和太平洋岛居民3.3%，印第安人和爱斯基摩人0.8%，其它种族占0.1%，不属于任何教派的占10%。

宗教：56%的居民信奉基督教新教，28%信奉天主教，2%信奉犹太教，信奉其它宗教的占4%。

国花：耧斗菜（毛茛科）简史自哥伦布1492年到达美洲以后，西班牙、英国和法国等欧洲国家陆续向美洲移民并建立殖民地。

18世纪30年代，英国人在北美东海岸建立起13个殖民地。

英语国家概况三．简答题1.Standard EnglishStandard English is based on the speech of the upper class of southeastern England, adopted as a broadcasting standard in the British media. It is used as much in printed materials, and is normally taught in schools and to non-native speakers learning the language. It is also called Queen’s English or BBC English. It has developed and has been promoted as a model for the correct British English. Standard English also refers to the norm carried overseas for non-native speakers learning English.2.Constitutional monarchyThe British monarchy is known as constitutional monarchy. It means the monarchy's powers are limited by law and Par. The monarchy actually has no real power. Constitutional monarchy began after the Glorious Revolution in 1688.3.House of commonsIn Britain the upper Chamber is the House of Lords, and the lower the house of Commons. The House of Commons is elected by universal adult suffrage and consists of 651 Members of Parliament (MPs). It is in the House of Commons that the ultimate authority. It has three functions: to draft laws, to scrutinize, criticize and restrain the activities of the government , and to influence future government policy.monwealth of nationsThe Commonwealth of Nations is a voluntary association of independent sovereign states, all of which acknowledge the British monarch as the head. The commonwealth is not a political union of any sort, and its member states have full autonomy to manage their internal and external affairs. It is primarily an organization in which countries with diverse economic backgrounds have an opportunity for close and equal interaction after gaining independence. The major activities of Commonwealth are designed to advocate democracy, human rights, and to promote economic cooperation and growth within its members.5.Industrial Revolution in BritainThe Industrial Revolution in Britain took in Britain for lots of reasons. By the middle of the 19th century, the Industrial Revolution was accomplished in Britain. It changed Britain in many ways. Britain became the most advanced industrial country and also the financial center in the world. The country also underwent a process of mass urbanization. Many new cities sprang up. The Industrial Revolution also created changes in the class structure. The capitalist class replaced the old nobility as the mose important force in the country.prehensive schoolsBritish comprehensive schools provide a general education, offering both academic subjects like cooking and carpentry.7. BBCThe BBC(the British Broadcasting Corporation) and its programs BBC is the largest and dominant broadcasting corporation in Britain. BBC World Service broadcasts international news worldwide in 38 other languages. The BBC is state-run（国营）and it is financed from the sales of television licences. BBC Network Radio serves an audience of 30 million a week in Britain, broadcasting around 38,000 hours of programmers each year on its 5 networks.8. Shakespeare/Charles dickensWilliam Shakespeare is recognized in much of the world as the greatest of all dramatists. There are many reasons why Shakespeare is so famous. The basic one lies in his great understanding of human nature and his ability to find universal human qualities and to put them in dramatic situations.The Critical Realism of the 19th century flourished in the 1840s and the early 1850s. the critical realists described the chief traits of the society and criticized the capitalist system from a democratic viewpoint. The greatest English realist was Charles dickens9. Anglo-Irish agreementAn agreement made in 1985 between the governments of the UK and the Republic of Ireland, which gave the Irish the right to take part in discussions about the future of Northern Ireland10. Quebec ActThe Quebec Act was passed in 1774 by the British Parliament. It granted the people of Quebec linguistic and religious freedom and guaranteed the use of French civil law and British criminal law. It was the fist important in coping with differences between the France and British people and uniting them into one country.四．论述题1. Higher education in BritainStudents spend three years studying full-time for the first degree, Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science. Then if they want to obtain a Master’s Degree in Arts or Master’s Degree in science, they will need another one-year of full-time or two years of part-time study. To obtain a doctoral degree requires from three to five years of additional study and research.2. The service industry in BritainLondon is one of the three principal financial centers of the world. Tourism is on of the largest industries in Britain.3. Multilingualism and multiculturalism in CanadaCanadians are composed of many different races and ethnic groups; they speak different languages at home apart from English and French. While participating as equal partners in the Canadian society, they keep their own cultural heritage, constituting a “cultural mosaic”. In 1971, Canada became the fist country to implement a multilingualism policy to admit pluralism as a fact of Canadian life. In 1988, the Canadian Multilingualism Act was passed. With globalization and increasing immigration, multilingualism and multiculturalism will remain a special feature of the Canadian society4. Ireland economy developmentThe high-tech industries of the 1980s, such as software and biological engineering, gave further impetus to the development of the national economy. As a result, Ireland’s economy finished its transition from an agriculture-based economy to a knowledge-based one.。

The Three Basic Principles of the US Political System•The 3 Basic Principles: federalism联邦制, the separation of powers三权分立and respect for the constitution and the rule of the law.•The national government has the powers delegated授权by the Constitution. The power of the state government is from the Constitution and the state constitution.Federalism•The division of powers by constitution between the central government is called federalism.•Federalism operates on two levels, the national level and the state.•Units单位of government within a state enjoy no independent existence不想有独立存在意义Separation of Powers•Constitutional division of powers among the legislative立法的, executive, and judicial branches.•This principle means more than allocating配置legislative power立法权to Congress, executive power行政权to President and judicial power司法权to the Supreme Court. It also means giving each branch constitutional and political independence and checks and balances that ensure each of the three branches plays a significant role in the actions of the other.•The branches must work together so as to government business is to be performed•The supreme law of the land–The US Constitution–Treaties under the authority of the United States–Laws to ensure the constitutional power to be practicedThe Membership and Powers of Congress•Congress is made up of the House of Representatives众议院and the Senate参议院、上院•Members of the House are elected directly by the voters for a two year term. The senator serves a six year term.•In 1913 the 17th Amendment修正案to the Constitution provided for the direct election of senators.•Members of the House must be 25 years old and must have been citizens for seven years. Senators must be at least 30 and must have been American citizens for nine years.The Specific Powers•The rights to collect taxes, regulate foreign and domestic commerce, coin money, declare war, support an army and navy, and establish lower federal courts. Congress can admit new states to the Union联邦, propose amendments to the constitution, collect federal income taxes, and enforce protection and extension of civil rights.Implied Powers 隐暗的•Implied powers are not stated per se本身in the constitution. They derive from来自the right of the Congress to make all laws “necessary and proper” to carry out its specific powers.•Some certain special powers:–The senate has the power to confirm presidential nominations.–The House brings impeachment弹劾charges, but the Senate has the “sole power”唯一权力to try impeachment cases–All revenue bills must originate in the House, but the Senate can freely amend修正the bills that originate in the HouseLeadership and Committees in Congress•The speaker of the House is the only presiding officer审裁官and traditionally has been the leader of the majority party in the House. The Speaker is second in line in presidential succession after the VicePresident副总统.•The Vice President is the presiding officer and is called the president of the Senate. He seldom appears in the Senate chamber堂、会所in this role unless it appears that there might be tie vote in the Senate.He casts the tiebreaking vote. To deal with day to day business, the Senate chooses the president pro tempore.How a Bill Becomes a Law•When bills are introduced引进, they are sent to the appropriate committees by the Speaker of the House or the Senate majority leader.•The chair of the committee sends the bill to a subcommittee小组委员会where hearings听证会are held.•The subcommittee issues a report that is either favorable or unfavorable to the bill. Or it may report out an amended修正的or changed bill or rewrite the original bill.• A bill favorably reported out of a Senate committee is put on the calendar for floor action.•In the House bills must first go through the Rules Committee规则委员会, which decides when the full house will hear the bill.• A senator who wants to delay延期action on a bill or kill it may use a tactic策略called a filibuster阻挠议事行动. It can be cut off only through cloture讨论终结.•Then the bills are sent to the President.•If the President does not sign or veto否决a bill within ten days, the bill becomes law.•The bill is dead if Congress adjourns延期within this ten day period. This is known as a pocket veto 搁置否决权. Congress can override推翻the veto by a two thirds vote of both houses.•Lobbying游说is part of the citizen’s right to petition请愿government in the US. Now there are thousands of lobbyists游说者in Washington D.C. (mostly corporate/rich individual lobbyists).Their influence in making US policy is so great that some peopl e call them “the third house” of Congress. Notes•Standing Committees常务委员会: They are permanent ones to determine whether proposed legislation should be presented to the entire House or Senate for consideration.•Select Committees特别委员会: They are also known as special committees. They are temporary暂时的and are established to examine specific issues. They must be reestablished with each new Congress.•Conference Committees会议委员会: They deal with the differences in legislation that have been passed by each of both houses of Congress.•Joint Committees联合委员会: They have members from both houses, with the leadership rotating旋转between Senate and House members. They focus on issues of general concern to Congress and investigate problems but do not propose legislation.•Filibuster阻挠议事行动: It is a marathon马拉松式的speech that may go on for hours with the senators yielding the floor only to members who support his or her position. It can be cut off only through cloture.•Riders附文: Amendments修正案completely unrelated to the bill are called riders.•••The power of the state in the US is actually from_____•A: the central government•B: the state constitution•C: the US constitution•D: both B & C• D•The supreme law of the United States includes_____•A: the US Constitution•B: treaties under the authority of the United States•C: laws to ensure the constitutional power being practiced•D: all of the above• D•The terms of the senator and representative are _____ and _____ years respectively. •A: two, four•B: two, three•C: two, six•D: six, two• D•Which amendment provided for the direct election of senators?•A: the 16th Amendment (1913)•B: the 17th Amendment (1913)•C: the 18th Amendment (1919)•D: The 19th Amendment (1920)• B•Certain Presidential appointments must be approved by a majority vote in _____•A: Congress•B: the House•C: the Supreme Court•D: the Senate• D•All revenue国家收入or tax bills must be originated in ____?•A: the Cabinet•B: the House•C: the Senate•D: the Executive Office• B•Who is second in line in presidential succession?•A: The Speaker of the House•B: The Vice President•C: The president pro tempore临时总统•D: The leader of the majority party in the Senate• A•In the House, the power to decide when the full House will hear the bill is vested in _____? •A: the Rules Committee•B: the standing committee•C: Subcommittee•D: the select committee A。

A General Survey of UK and USA 英美概况Contents• 地理特点 Geographical Features• 历史History• 政治 Political Systems• 传统文化 Traditions and Cultures1.美国地理The Geographical Features of the USAⅠ.General KnowledgeⅡ.Regions and CitiesⅢ.Lakes and RiversⅣ.MountainsⅤ.OthersThe U.S has a land area of 9.3 million square kilometers. It is the fourth largest country in the world in size after Russia, Canada and China.就面积而言，美国是世界第四大国，就人口而言，美国是世界是第三大国。

Traditionally from the east to the west the United States can be divided into seven geographical regions. 美国从东到西可分为七个地理区。

New Englanders were originally knows as Yankees, which came to stand for all Americans.新英格兰人最初曾被称作"美国佬：这一名称，后来渐渐指所有的美国人。

The soil is rich, the rain usually plentiful and the growing season long. These factors make the Midwest America's most important agricultural area .It is also a major manufacturing region and the nation's leading center of heavy industry. 中西部地区是美国最重要的农业区，也是主要的制造业区各最主要的重工业区。