大学英语创意阅读练习答案.docx

V大学英语创意阅读练习答案Book OneUnit 1 CustomsUnderstanding the textPart A: Comprehending the textAnswer the following questions as fully as possible.1. What was the "mistake" that John Rogers* company made?They gave clocks to Chinese and the' phrase “give a clock "sounds like "make a funeral arrangement*2. Why are knives considered bad presents in some countries?Because they symbolize the cutting (i. e. the end) of a relationship.3. What sort of gifts would be appropriate, according to Rogers?Things from your own place that are difficult to get locally in the place where you are visiting.4. How should gifts be offered to people?With both hands.5. Why do people in Asia sometimes refuse gifts at first?To show ,modesty; they do not want to appear greedy by accepting immediately.Part B: Completing a tableThe text suggests a number of gifts are unsuitable for people in certain countries. Find the place in the text where these are mentioned and use the information tocomplete the table.GiftsDo Not Give To*Unsuitable Gifts Because,clocksChinesesounds like "making funeralwineMuslimsarrangements”gifts showing ”4"Japanese, Korealcohol is against their religionscissorsan and Chineseunlucky numberflowersLatins and Asianssign of cutting/ ending the relationshipleatherAsiansseen as inappropriately romantichandkerchiefsIndianscows are revered by Hindusclothingsome other placessign of sadnesswomenseen as inappropriately intimatePart C: Interpreting the textComplete these sentences.1. Gifts are important because they can strengthen business relationships.2. Offering flowers as gifts may not be suitable because they may be seen as inappropriately romantic.3. All gifts should be wrapped and presented correctly.4. Asian people tend to open gifts in private because they don't want the donor to lose face if the gift is not appropriate.5. John Rogers advises you to remember the country*s religion, avoid giving things that are not appropriate, and choose the wrapping paper carefully.Developing your skillsPart A: Relating information in a text to one's own experienceThe students may come up with other plausible answers for the choices below. The key point here is to encourage students to express their conceived/perceived notions about the objects as gifts rather than to make them give a definite right orwrong answer.GiftsAppropriateInappropriateReasons1. a white lanternJThey are used infunerals.2. a green hatIf a man is said to bewearing a green hat itJmeans that his wife hashad sex with another mansince her marriage.3. a gold ringJUsually a gold ring isgiven to someone who isvery familiar to you likea lover or familymember.4. a bunch of flowersBecause of impact fromWestern Culture, ChineseJpeople may consider thistoo intimate or that it symbolizes romance.5. a box of chocolatesV6. a pair of chopsticksV7. a combIn the past combs weresometimes given byJwomen to their fiances asengagement gifts.8. a red packet(Hong Bao)VWhat gifts would be suitable for each choices in the table below, and then, in pairs,of the following people? Write your compare your choices and explain toeach other why you consider your gifts appropriate.For this activity, again allow the students to come up with their own ideas and explanations. As long as their answers subscribe to the idea of being appropriate to the situation, neutral, and not intimate and offensive, they should be accepted.Below is just one common example of the kinds of gifts that may be more commonly given to these people. Students might be asked to add their suggestions to a table on the board and the rest of the class comment on whether or not they thinkthey are suitable gifts.Gift-ReceiversGifts1. your teacherPen2. your partnersClothing3. a friendKey-chain4. a workmateDiaryLocal handicraft5. a foreign guest6. someone who is getting marriedHousehold goods7. someone who has just retiredwatchPart B: Using knowledge of the world to make sense of a textThe topic of the text in this unit is "The Art of Gift-Giving'*. There is a lot of information about the practices of people from different cultures. Use your knowledge of the world to supplement the information about the questions below. Write your answers in the space provided.1. Why do the Chinese feel red is lucky.*Because the colour of blood is red and blood represents life, red is considered lucky as it shows something is alive.2. Why are gifts showing the number 4 or a gift of 4 items of something considered unlucky in Japanese, Korean and Chinese cultures?Because the pronunciation of the number 4 is similar to the word “death” in these languages.3. Why is giving anything with the left hand considered insulting in Arabic countries?Because the left hand is associated with evil or "the wrong path*, whereas the right hand is associated with good or "the right path”,(refer to "Further information on the text*')4. Why do Westerners often open the gift immediately?So that they can show their appreciation of the gift to the gift-giver right away. They feel that to say "Thank you" the receiver needs to make a comment on the gift and this is difficult if you don't know what it is.5. Why is it considered polite in Asia to refuse the gift at the beginning and for the gift-giver to have to insist that the other person accepts it?Because this allows the gift-receiver to show that he is modest and not greedy and this gives the gift-giver the chance to show that he genuinely wants the gift-receiver to have the gift.Extending your vocabularyPart A: SynonymsAs an extension activity, students might be put into groups and asked to find antonyms for these words where possible, and make sentences with the antonyms to show that they understand how the words work in context.For example, for ”offensive” the antonym is "pleasing/pleasant".It was extremely pleasant to sit by the pool with a cold beer in this hot weather.Her voice is very pleasing to the ear. I can just listen to her all day long.Column AColumn Bbusiness associatesto represent something importantclientsnot suitablesymbolizeunpleasant or insultinginappropriatebelief that magic or luck can affect youroffensivelifesupers t it ionpersonal or private thingsintimatenot to talk about yourself or show offmodestyto value something and be grateful for itappreciatePart B: Cloze passageUse mainly the words in Part A of Extending your vocabulary to complete this paragraph. It is very important to avoid giving gifts to clients that will upset them or be seen as oftensiie. People usually appreciate receiving small gifts but the giver should take care to ensure these are neither inappropriate for the customs of the country nor too intimate for the person to whom the present is intended. Gift-givers need to bear in mind different things have different meanings in other countries-a number may symbolize bad luck for example and some cultures have a belief in superstition so care should be taken to avoid certain objects. People should also be aware of natural modesty amongst recipients and not be surprised if their gifts are rejected at first.To give students more practice, after completing the passage, students can choose 3 or 4 words out of the above key words and, in pairs, use the words to make up their own short sentences on a related topic.Expanding your creativityGuidelines for giving giftsAgain, there are few definite answers here. For any suggestions students make, they should be encouraged to explain why the gifts are suitable or unsuitable. Ideas could be collected onto a table on the board and discussed by the whole class.DoDon't crystal ornaments decorative items, e.g. sculptures, handicraft watches books bottled delicacy or food, e.g. jams, honey potted plants cash exotic food, e.g. snakes, dried lizards Chinese herbal medicine intimate clothing, e.g. lingerie, underwearBelow is an example of the kind of information that students can include in the guidelines. Another way to present the advice would be in point form in terms of ndos and don'ts". The main thing to note is that students should be able to include information given in the text at the beginning of the unit and from the task that they have just completed, but also to extend this information with further ideas of their own. Students who have travelled, or those studying international trade and business or tourism, may be able to think about particular countries in relation to their guidelines. All students should be encouraged to arrange the information into a logical and organised structure.Guidelines for Giving Gifts to a Western PersonHere are some tips for you when you arc trying to decide what gifts to buy for your Western colleagues or friends when you visit them overseas. The questions below will help you to do the right thing:1. How well do you know the person that you are buying the gift for?2. Do you know if there is anything that is offensive to the person either because of his religion or his personal taste?Firstly, if you do not know the person well, then you should stay with neutralgifts for his house or office that are not considered intimate. For example, you can gethim a painting or a penholder. If you are quite familiar with the person, then you cantry to find something that matches his personality or taste. However, you must stillstay away from items that are considered too intimate like underwear.Secondly, you should find out if there are any taboos or superstitions that theperson believes in. Then make sure you do not buy him anything that is in any wayconnected with or anything that resembles his taboos or superstitions. Don't forgetthat it is not just the appearance of the gift that you have to be careful of, but also theway the item is pronounced in his language!Lastly, do not forget that it is considered impolite not to wrap up your gift before presenting it to your Western friend. And you must also be careful in choosing wrapping paper. It should be in either plain colours or have neutral designs.If you remember the above advice, you should not go wrong. In fact, you should be quite popular with your Western friends!Intercultural notesGift-Giving:"it's the thought that counts*One of the ways to use the Intercultural notes section is to encourage students to read to find the main ideas of the text. Students can be put in pairs for this activity. Each student makes up a few questions that focus on the main points in the passage. Then they exchange questions and try to find the answers in the passage as fast as they can. After they have done that they can compare answers to see if they both understand what the main points of the passage are.Overall theme of passage: It*s the thought that counts when it comes to giving gifts.Main ideas:paragraph 1Giving gifts一a kind of social exchange; common occasions for giving gifts inEnglish-speaking countries - birthdays, Christmas and weddings.paragraph 2Birthdays usually think carefully what to give, but can also give books or gift tokens.paragraph 3Christmas一some people give gifts that cost almost the same as what they got from the gift-giver previouslyso as not to embarrass the giver-and others pay attention to finding the gift that is unique to the receiver.paragraph 4Weddingsgive household objects or follow checklists given by bride and bridegroom or ask them to choose something by themselves.paragraph 5Wrapping一shows thoughtfulness, courtesy and social refinement一using beautiful wrappings and appropriate accompanying words.Unit 2 HoroscopesUnderstanding the textPart A: Comprehending the textAnswer these questions as fully as possible.1. Into how many star signs is the Western horoscope divided?The Western horoscope is divided into 12 star signs.2. Name 4 of the Western star signs.Varied answers,(refer to the chart in "Before you read" section for all twelve possible answers)3. What other items are often found on the same page of the newspaper as the Western horoscope?Cartoons and crosswords.4. What should a Leo avoid doing?Travelling overseas.5. Which is the seventh animal in the Chinese horoscope?The horse.6. What does the tiger symbolize?Power, passion and daring.7. When does Chinese New Year start?The second new-moon day after the winter solstice.8. Why are some animal signs best avoided when thinking of marriage?Because some signs are believed to be incompatible with others and therefore a bad marriage will result.Part B: True or falseIndicate whether each of the following statements is true or false. Correct any false statements in the box provided.1. Most British people read their star signs every day.F2. The advice for Pisces includes staying at home more.T3. If you are a Libra you should jump at the chance to start a new love affair.F4. Horoscopes in the newspaper give important and serious advice about how to behave.F5. The Chinese tiger is strong but quiet.F6. Chinese parents traditionally planned to have children during "favourable0 years.T7. The Chinese horoscopes tell you what to do every day.F1. About 30% of British people read their star signs every day.3. If you are a Libra you should look before you leap into a new love affair.4. Horoscopes in the newspaper give light-hearted and harmless fun to entertain people in their daily lives.5. The Chinese tiger is strong and dynamic.7. The Chinese horoscopes describe your fate.8. The Western and Chinese horoscopes are essentially not the same.Developing your skillsIdentifying various types of supplementary detailsRead the text again and identify the types of the supplementary details in the table below. Then, complete the table by filling in each box with a correct type.Follow the example.Supplementary Details1. Almost 30% of British people read the a star sign “ section of the newspaper every day.(A / paragraph 1)2. ,in other words it can mean what you want it to mean!(A/ paragraph 5)3. the Western horoscope, which is supposed to tell you what to do and how to behave on a day-to-day hasis(B / paragraph 6)4. So anyone bom between these times needs to know exactly when the New Year fell in the year they were born in order to work out their true animal sign.(B / paragraph 4)5. Traditionally parents tried to plan when to have children-(B/ paragraph 5)6. We can all agree that it would be good to spend more time with one's family or think about the future and we do not need the starsto tell us that!(A/ paragraph 5)7. B