英美文化基础-美国部分整理(共17页).doc

精选优质文档-倾情为你奉上1. Atlantic to Pacific1. the diversity of the physical conditions in the United Statesin its vast area, the United stated comprehends most of the physical conditions know to men: heat and cold, forest and desert, tropical swamp and Arctic waste, mountains and endless plains, empty spaces and megalopolis, and the worlds largest river system.2. the diversity of the people in the United StatesDiversity of the people themselves is immense: people come from the different country, and their origins and ethnic backgrounds are different. Differences between the first generation of immigrants and the long established Americans, as well as the differences between different generation immigrants. And even they differ according to the degree of intermarriage. 3.the growth of the Union since its foundation in the 1780s(1)At the time of its foundation, the original Union consisted of 13 states along the eastern seaboard(2)As settlememt spread westwards and new areas were deployed by stable population capable of self-government ,so new states were allowed to join the Union. Arizona in 1912 was the 48th continental state joining the Union.(3)In 1959,separate territories of Hawaii and Alaska joined the Union. Thus the list of 50 states of the United States was completed.3. How has the Republic of the United States grown in terms of area since the time of its foundation in the 1780s? The original Union consisted of 13 states 1792 Kentucky 1796 Tennessee were add 1830 Ohio was added1912 Arizona was added -the last one 4. What are some if the characteristics of the uniformity in American culture? What contributed to the uniformity?a. The lack of cultural difference among the regions, because all these varied peoples are scattered everywhere, with only minor local ethnic concentrationsb. The lack of real regional or class variety in speech or usage is one of the characteristics of uniformity .The English Language is virtually universal in its American form. Regional variations of accent are slight.c. Another instance of uniformity is in habits and ways of living. They share the same ideas, ideals and objectives.d. The fact that the United States has always been a single unit, with no tariffs to restrict trade, has contributed to uniformity.5. New Englanda. New England refers to the north-eastern six states: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, an area running from Canadian shore o New Yorkb. This area resembles old England in many ways, and the southern section is the most English.c. Some of the earliest settlement in American history was in this area. This part of the county is small-scale, long-established and urban. 6. New York citya. It is the commercial capital of the United Statesb. It is at the southernmost tip of the New York Statec. It is composed of five boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Richmond and Queens, with Manhattan Island as its center.d. It is well-known for such places as Wall Street, the Empire State Building, Harlem and Central Park7. the Mid-Atlantic area generally located between New England and the South Atlantic States. The region often includes Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., New York, Virginia, and West Virginia. North Carolina is sometimes also included.8. the Southa. it refers to the area across the Potomac River and southwards down the Atlantic coastb. this was slave-owning area before the Civil War and mainly produced tobacco and cottonc. Economically these states are notoriously backward, but more recently there has been an industrial development, helped by federal plans and hydro-electric power9. the middle Westa. it described the north-eastern part of the central plain, or the north-eastern quarter of the United States except for the states close to the Atlanticb. in terms of political geography, it refers to these states: Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin and Ohio and so onc. first developed for farming, these states include huge, sparsely-populated open spacesd. Chicago and Detroit are two of the big industrial cities in this area.10. the Great Plain statesa. characteristics: empty, featureless, monotonous and vastb. Location: run from the Gulf of Mexico in the south up to the Canadian border and the beyond.c. Containing: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska and Kansas* Detroit, Michigan, home of the great American goal, Ford, General Motors and Chrysler11. the state of Texasa. the third most populated state in the United Statesb. well-known for its cowboys and cattlec. famous for the millionaires, the brashness and the violence12. the Mississippi Rivera. the biggest river system in the USb. it flows down to the New Orleans and the Gulf of Mexicoc. Ohio and Missouri Rivers are branches of the Mississippi.13. the Western statesRefers to the states of Arizona, New Mexico and Nevada* The most significant representation of the modern American is the Pacific coast especially the southern part.14. the characteristic of Californiait is at the southern part of the Pacific coast ;it has the biggest population in the US; it has the world-famous Hollywood15. the search for California dreama. California is blessed with attractive scenery and mild climateb. It has the fertile land for the growing of oranges and grapesc. And more important still are the electronics industry, aeroplane factories, defence plants of many kind , and a whole new industrial complex in this aread. Therefore, California is regarded as the promised land by many people to fulfill their goals16. Washington, D.C. The capital of the United States, on the Potomac between Maryland and Virginia: coextensive with the District of Columbia. Chapter 1 Atlantic to Pacific1.The United States is situated in the central part of North America with its two youngest states Alaska in the northwest part of North America and Hawaii in the central Pacific. The country is bounded by Canada on the North and by Mexico on the south, with the Atlantic Ocean on the east and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It is the fourth largest country in area, next only to Russia, Canada, and China. The total population is about 256 million. The whole country includes 50 states and a federal district, the District of Columbia, which is the seat of the Federal Government. 2.The United States can be divided into three parts according to its geographical features: the eastern part, the western part, and the great central plain in between. The eastern part is made up of the highlands formed by the Appalachian Range（阿巴拉齐亚山脉）, which holds one sixth of the national territory on the continent; the western part consists of high plateaus and mountains formed by the great Cordillera Range（科迪勒拉山系）, extending form Canada through the western part of the United States to Mexico and further south, which include the Coast Range, the Cascades and the Rocky Mountains. The whole area of this part holds one third of the countrys territory on the continent; between the Rocky Mountains and the Appalachian Rang lies the central plain which occupies one second of Americas landmass. It stretches from the Great Lakes in the north to the Gulf of Mexico in the south. Drained by the Mississippi and its tributaries, it slopes towards the east where it merges with the Atlantic Coast Plain. 3.The three major river systems and the five Great lakes(1) The Mississippi River is the longest and the most important river in the system of the Gulf. It flows from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico, having the length of 6262 kilometers. (2) There are no long rivers in the system of the Atlantic. The Hudson River, the Delaware River, and the St. Lawrence River are the most important. (3) In the system of the Pacific, there are two important rivers: the Colorado River and the Columbia River, which flow through the western plateaus and are rich in potential water power resources due to their swift currents. (4) the five Great lakes lying between the boundary between Canada and the United States are: Lake Michigan, Lake Superior, lake Erie, Lake Huron and Lake Ontario, among which Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake of its kind in the world. The world-famous Niagara Falls are located on the US-Canada boundary between Lake Erie and lake Ontario, the width of which is about 1240 meters and the drop average of 49 meters. 4.50 States and Eight regions From a historical and geographical point of view, the fifty states may grouped into eight regions. (1) New England Region includes 6 states: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut. All are located in the northeastern corner of the country. New England is featured with mountains, valleys and rivers. The most important state in this region is Massachusetts, with its capital the most important city as a leading port, a financial and cultural center in this region. (2) The Middle Atlantic Region includes 6 states: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia. The region is important in many ways, and it is marked by its industry, and it is often called the “Industrial Northeast”. Many important cities are in this region such as New York, Philadelphia and Baltimore. (3) The South Region consists of 11 states: Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Arkansas. The region is called the “Sunny South” because of its warm climate. Despite its large area, it ahs few large cities, and the notable ones are New Orleans, Memphis, Atlanta, and Birmingham. (4) The Midwest Region includes 8 states: Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri, Iowa, and Minnesota. This region lies in the general area of the Great lakes, extending a little beyond the Mississippi River. It is one of the richest sections of the whole United States. There are many large cities including Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, Cincinnati, etc. (5) The Region of the Great Plain contains 6 states: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. This region is marked by the smallest population in the country, few large cities, vastness of flat land, and different climate form north to south, poor soil and litt6le rain in many part. Important cities include Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, and Oklahoma City. (6) The West Region is vast area including 11 states: Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, Washington, Oregon, and California. This region is the most rapid growing section of the US. The principal cities in this region include Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Salt Lake City, and Denver. (7) Alaska lies in the northeastern part of the North America, stretching southward form the Arctic Ocean to the Pacific. It is well-known as a world full of glaciers, waterfalls and rippling. (8) Hawaii comprises eight major islands and over one hundred small islets stretching upon the central Pacific. The climate here is comfortable and the temperature usually remains close to the average of twenty four degrees centigrade. Chapter 2 American History1. The Discovery of the New ContinentIt is generally known that Christopher Columbus was the discoverer of the New Continent in 1492. However, it is believed that Columbus was not the first European to arrive at America.Another important figure in the process of the New World was Amerigo Vespucci, an Italian navigator and explorer of the South American coast. He was not the discoverer of the new continents, but it was he who first confirmed the fact that a new continent rather than Asia had been discovered, and America was named in his honor in 1507.2. The Revolution (The American War of Independence)Before 1763, the colonial people had to depend much on England. However, as the colonies grew in population and wealth they depended less and less on England for clothing, food and protection. They wanted to take care of themselves. But Britain began to speed up its economic exploitation and plunder after the founding of the thirteen colonies in North America. It tried control all the trade in the colonies. It exercised more and more strict policies upon the colonial people, trying to take more profits out of her colonies. This gradually brought the colonial people, poor or rich, in a common struggle against their common enemy-the British rulers. The Stamp Act and the Townshend Acts aroused great protest from the colonies, and Britain decided to force the colonists into obedience. In September 1774, the First Continental Congress, a meeting of colonial leaders opposed to what they perceived to be British oppression in the colonies, met in Philadelphia. The leaders urged the Americans to disobey the British Acts and boycott British trade. On April 19, 1775, American War of Independence began in Lexington. In May 1775, a second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia and decided to found a Continental Army and Navy under the command of George Washington. In July 1776, the Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence drafted by Thomas Jefferson. Six hard years passed by and the war ended with the British troops surrendered to Washington at Yorktown. Then the British government asked for peace and signed the Treaty of Paris in September 1783 and recognized the independence of the United States. 1.The Confederation and the Constitution The 13 colonies were now “free and independent states”, but not yet one united nation. Since 1781, they had been governed by the Articles of Confederation, a constitution that set up a very weak central government. In May 1787 a Constitutional Convention was held in Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation. The meeting lasted 13 weeks and in September the American Constitution was finally made. it established a stronger federal government empowered to collect taxes, conduct diplomacy, maintain armed forces, and regulate foreign trade and commerce among the states. It established the principle of a “balance of power” to be maintained among the three branches of government-the executive（行政）, the legislative（立法） and the judicial（司法）. Each branch was provided the independent means to exercise checks on and to balance the activities of the others, thus guaranteeing that no branch could exert dictatorial authority over the workings of the government. The Constitution was accepted in 1788 after much bitter debate. In 1791, ten amendments-the Bill of Rights-were added to the Constitution. The Constitution and the Bill of Rights thus struck a balance between two conflicting but fundamental aspects of American politics-the need for a strong efficient central authority and the n