21世纪大学英语读写教程第三册 Unit5-21世纪大学英语读写教程

Unit 5

Text A

Pre-reading Activities

1. As you listen to the passage, write down the idioms and expressions that match each definition below. Warning: One of the definitions fits two expressions that you'll hear.
______ a) a child who learns to survive by observing life on city streets
______ b) competitive strategies used in business
______ c) 100% American
______ d) unhealthy food
______ e) a popular American dessert
______ f) an activity, decision, problem, etc., that concerns only family members

2. How would you answer Li's last question?

The ABCs of the U.S.A.: America Seen with European Eyes

Michael Dobbs

America can be a strange experience for a foreigner. My wife and I arrived in the United States in January after seven years overseas — four in France, three in Poland. From the jumble of first impressions, we compiled an A-to-Z explanation of why America can be such a foreign country to those who arrive here from Europe.
I should explain at the outset that I am from Britain, but my Florida-born wife Lisa is as American as apple pie. In our list, however, A doesn't stand for apple pie. It stands for:
Ambition. In the Old World, people are taught to hide it. Here it's quite proper to announce that you're after the boss's job or want to make a million dollars by the age of 30.
Breakfast. The American habit of conducting business at breakfast has reached Europe, but I doubt it will ever really catch on. In France and Britain, breakfast is a family affair. Here, it's become part of the power game.
Credit Cards. You really can't leave home without them. It's interesting, and somewhat frustrating, to discover that bad credit is better than no credit at all: I was refused a VISA card on the grounds that I didn't have a credit profile.
Dreams. The American Dream is still very much alive. Dreaming great dreams is what keeps American society going — from the waitress who wants to become a car dealer to the street kid who wants to become a basketball star. Europeans dream dreams too, but don't seem to believe in them so much.
Exercise. A couple of years ago I came to Washington with some French journalists. As our bus passed a health club on the way to the hotel, the French visitors cheered at the sight of body-conscious Americans bending, stretching and leaping around. America's obsession with physical fitness really amuses — and puzzles — Europeans.
First names. In Europe, people progress in a natural and orderly way from the use of last names to the use of first names. Here, it's first names at first sight. This can cause confusion for Europeans. With everyone on a first-name basis, how can you tell your acquaintances from your friends?
Gadgets. These can be addictive. It's difficult to imagine now how we survived for so long without automatic ice machines and microwave ovens.
Hardware Stores. If I were in charge of arranging the programs of visiting delegations from lessdeveloped countries, I'd include a compulsory visit to a hardware store. These temples of American capitalism reveal a whole range of American values, from the do-it-yourself pioneer spirit through a love of comfort that absolutely astonishes most foreigners.