大学英语精读二

1. About the Author and the Story2. India3. CobraBefore Reading_MainBefore ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter Reading4. Prejudice Against Women5. DiscussionBefore Reading_1Before ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter ReadingAbout the Author and the StoryMona Gardner, an American woman writer. Most of her short stories were written for the Saturday Evening Post magazine and Colliers Weekly magazine during the 1930s and 1940s. The Dinner Party first appeared in the Saturday Review of Literature, Vol. 25, No. 5, January 31, 1941. Before Reading_1_Saturday Evening PostBefore ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter ReadingBefore Reading_1_Colliers WeeklyBefore ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter ReadingBefore Reading_1_Saturday ReviewBefore ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter ReadingBefore Reading_IndiaBefore ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter Reading1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.India Location and Capital National FlagBritish Colony Mahatma GandhiThe Taj Mahal The Victoria Memorial MarriageSacred Cow Before Reading_India_Location and CapitalBefore ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter ReadingLocation and Capital India, officially called Republic of India, is a country in southern Asia, located on the subcontinent of India. It is bounded on the north by Afghanistan, China, Nepal, and Bhutan; on the east by Bangladesh, Myanmar (also known as Burma), and the Bay of Bengal; on the south by the Palk Strait and the Gulf of Mannâr (which separates it from Sri Lanka) and the Indian Ocean; and on the west by the Arabian Sea and Pakistan. India is divided into 26 states and 7 union territories. New Delhi is the countrys capital and one of its largest cities.Before Reading_India_ National FlagBefore ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter ReadingNational Flag The colors of the Indian flag were taken from the flag of the Indian National Congress. Dark orange represents courage and sacrifice. Green represents faith, fertility, and chivalry. White represents truth and peace. The emblem in the center was added upon independence in 1947. It is a Buddhist dharma chakra, or wheel of life, used in India thousands of years ago.Before Reading_India_ British ColonyBefore ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter ReadingBritish Colony Before Reading_India_ British ColonyBefore ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter ReadingIn the early 18th century, following the decline of the Mughal Empire, Britain expanded its power in India, where British influence had begun in the early 1600s. In 1935 Britain began to relinquish its hold on India and passed legislation providing for autonomous Indian legislative bodies. Executive power remained with the British government, however, until 1947 when the Indian people, under Gandhis leadership, won their struggle for independence and British rule in Indian ended. Before Reading_India_ Mahatma GandhiBefore ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter ReadingMahatma Gandhi (1869-1948) - Indian Nationalist LeaderThe campaign of nonviolent civil resistance organized by Indian nationalist leader Mahatma Gandhi against British rule in India led to the countrys independence in 1947. A member of the merchant caste, Mohandas K. Gandhi, later called Mahatma (Sanskrit for “great soul”), Gandhi studied law in London, England. As a lawyer and later as a political activist, he effectively fought discrimination with the principles of truth, nonviolence, and courage, which he derived in part from the teachings of Hinduism.Before Reading_India_ The Taj MahalBefore ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter ReadingThe Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal, designed as a tomb for the wife of a 17th-century Mughal emperor, was constructed by about 20,000 workers from 1631 to 1653 in a city in northern India. The massive domed structure was constructed in the Indo-Islamic style, using white marble and inlaid gems. At each corner is a minaret (prayer tower), and passages from the Koran, the Muslim holy book, adorn the outside walls. The bodies of the emperor and his wife remain in a vault below the building. Before Reading_India_ The Victoria MemorialBefore ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter ReadingThe Victoria Memorial The Victoria Memorial was built to commemorate Queen Victorias 25-year reign over India. After the Sepoy Rebellion of 1857, the British government assumed direct control of the country, and in 1876 the British parliament made Victoria the Empress of India. Her reign ended with her death in 1901. Before Reading_India_ MarriageBefore ReadingGlobal ReadingDetailed ReadingAfter ReadingMarriage During a Sikh marriage ceremony, the bride and groom in traditional clothing encircle the Sikh Holy Book four times while chanting wedding hymns. Sikhism, a religion that combines elements of Islam and Hinduism, developed in India during the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Today, Sikhs make up more than half the population of Pu