节目资讯
刊物:空中英語教室
日期:2012-03-02
难易度:High
关键字:sheer, muse, have the itch to, persist, decipher
Welcome back, everybody.
Beatrix Potter's world was very much a world of nature, full of scenic beauty,
plant life and of course, animals.
It's easy to see how Potter's real world became the fictional world of her furry
friend Peter Rabbit.
Now before we get back to the teaching, let's first wrap up the reading on line
15.
(Music).
Beatrix Potter and Peter Rabbit.
Even at a young age, Potter did more than just draw with a pencil.
She once said, "When I was young, I already had the itch to write without having
any material to write about." And write she did.
She was known to have kept a journal that contained a code only she could
decipher.
Though she had persisted in developing her talents in both writing and drawing
from a young age,
it was years before she created her famous Peter Rabbit character, and that
happened quite by accident.
So as a child, Beatrix Potter began drawing detailed pictures of plants and
animals.
And her parents saw her impressive skill and hired an art teacher who taught her
for a number of years.
Now even at a young age, Potter did more than just draw with a pencil.
Often we think of drawing classes, you do start with a pencil or with charcoal
so you learn how to use movement correctly with your hands.
But she did more than that.
Yeah, she did more than that.
And she once said: When I was young, I already had the itch to write without
having any material to write about.
So we see that she was drawing with a pencil, but even more than that, she
started writing with a pencil.
And we can see from her artwork later on, she didn't just stick to pencil
drawings, she ended up using lots of watercolors as well.
Yeah. OK, so she was an illustrator first, she was drawing these pictures.
And as she was older, she said that when she was younger, she had the itch to
write.
Now what does that mean if you "have the itch to" do something, Kaylah?
Well, let's start with what it means to "itch." When you itch, that means you
really want to scratch something.
Maybe you have a bug bite and you want to scratch it really bad.
It makes you kind of go a little crazy until you can.
Now it plays into having an itch to do something, so how do we take that word
and transition it?
Well, like you said, if you have an itch, it makes you want to do something,
right?
It makes you want to move.
Here if you have an itch to write, it means she really wanted to write.
She wants it a lot.
So you can have an itch to do just about anything.
That's right. You could have the itch to travel.
You can have the itch to go on a run.
You can have the itch to make a new friend.
So these are things you just really would like to do.
And she... but you know, she didn't have material to write about.
But that didn't stop her, she began to write.
And we see the sentence: And write she did.
Yes. "And write she did." So we see she had the itch to write, and write she
did.
Now let's explain this grammar here with Grammar on the Go.
Hello, friends.
Greetings from the Lake District here in England.
My name is Liz and it's time for Grammar on the Go.
Today we're looking at the sentence from the article: And write she did.
Normally a sentence should begin with a subject followed by the verb, which
comes after it, as in:
And she did write.
So why is the order of the sentence different this time?
This style of writing is called "inversion." And there are many, many different
kinds of inversion sentences.
We often see inversion sentences in journalism or other forms of formal writing
or communication.
Writers would use this style when they want to bring the audience's attention
immediately to the point of the sentence.
In the case of today's sentence, if the writer had used the standard way of
writing, then the subject "she" would be the focus of the sentence,
and readers would focuse on how the subject herself did do this act of writing.
However, when the verb "write" was put before the subject "she," readers will
have their attention first on this action and not on the subject.
This style of writing can easily be done by taking a sentence that uses "did +
verb." For example,
let's say Tiffany finally did quit her job after enduring months of bad
treatment in her office, so we can say:
Tiffany was tired of the bad treatment she was getting at her work, so quit she
did.
Or suppose Frank was tired of living in a messy apartment and decided to really
clean up the place, so we can say:
Frank was tired of the mess in his apartment, so clean he did.
If you want to see some more example sentences, they're available in today's
Grammar Tip section in your Studio Classroom magazine.
That's it for today.
This is Liz with Grammar on the Go, signing off.
Bye-bye.
Thank you, Liz, for that helpful Grammar Tip.
Now friends, I hope you can find good ways to use this in your English speaking
and writing as well.
OK. So we saw earlier that Beatrix Potter she... she was illustrating and she
really wanted to become a writer even before she knew what to write about.
So what happens next, Kaylah?
Well, she was known to have kept a journal that contained a code that only she
could decipher.
So even before she had the... the ability to write stories, she had the itch to
write, and so she kept a journal.
But it was a special journal.
It was written in code.
That's right.
Now first, Kaylah, a journal is something that you usually write what happened
in your day or maybe some secrets that you don't want other people to know.
But her journal was even more secret, it used a code.
And that means it's using numbers and letters that do not make sense unless you
know how to decipher them.
Now to "decipher" something means you can figure out the meaning of it even if
it is a little confusing.
So a code is most often what we have to decipher because it's something that if
we figure out the way it matches up, we can decipher it.
But Ryan, really, we decipher all the time when we're learning a language.
If you are looking at an English word and you're not exactly sure what it means,
you can take apart pieces and try to figure out how they fit together.
And that also would be deciphering.
Yes, and it can be difficult.
But if you continue to learn, it would become easier over time.
Now Kaylah, did you ever have a journal written in code?
I did, actually.
Really?
I... I did not keep a journal written in code for myself.
But I had friends that we would share the journal with each other, we'd pass it
back and forth.
And we wrote in code so no one else could understand what we were writing.
Wow. Actually, I did too.
But it was my own journal, and eventually I forgot how to decipher it.
Oh, no! So you lost all of your journal entries because you forgot the code, you
forgot how to decipher.
Yeah. I guess... I guess I wasn't going to end up becoming a writer like Beatrix
Potter.
No. Well, though she had persisted in developing her talents in both writing and
drawing from a young age,
it was years before she created the famous Peter Rabbit character.
OK, so she persisted in developing her writing.
And to "persist" means to continue trying to do something.
So she kept working at it.
If you want to learn a language, you should persist, keep trying.
That's right.
Now it took years before she ended up writing about Peter, and that actually
happened quite by accident.
Now "quite by accident" means it was not intentional, it just kind of happened.
Yes. And you can use this phrase, quite by accident, that is OK to use here.
That, in fact, means that it was especially by accident, definitely she did not
try.
Well, for right now let's go visit the Chat Room.
(Background Noise).
Excuse me, Bryan.
Can I check out these books?
Oh. I'm sorry, Ken.
I'm busy keeping a log of all the books checked out during my shift.
You are?
I don't see a log here.
No. It's not that kind of log.
Keeping a log is another way to say "keeping a record of something." So every
time someone checks out a book, I make a mark in my notebook.
So "keeping a log" doesn't have anything to do with a tree?
No, it doesn't.
Ships, aircraft and large machines all have logs or records that show how they
perform and when they are maintained.
Hmm. Do you keep any other kinds of logs?
Yes, I do. I keep a blog.
"Blog" is short for web log.
Oh. That's right.
I have visited your blog online before.
So how long have you been keeping your blog?
That's funny. Actually, I don't keep it up to date.
The last time I wrote something on my blog was over eight months ago.
What about keeping a journal?
Is that the same as keeping a blog?
Sure, except the journal is usually written by hand in a notebook.
And journals and diaries are usually much more private than blogs are.
That makes sense.
I do remember my sister getting really angry when I read her diary.
So Ken, did you learn anything interesting?
Oh, yeah. But since that's private, I can't share it.
Wow! Your sister should be proud of you.
Thanks. But don't mention this on your blog.
(Chinese).
Hi, everyone.
I'm Michelle.
(Chinese).
And we're running out of time.
I'll see you soon. Bye-bye.
If you're not familiar with Beatrix Potter's books, then I suggest you go to the
library and check one out.
Experience for yourself why generations of children read them, love them and
then go back and read them again.
Be sure to look for a copy that has Potter's original illustrations, which
perfectly complement the text.
Friends, what books or stories did you enjoy as a child?
Talk about it.
And then join us tomorrow for more on Beatrix Potter and Peter Rabbit.
Have a great day.