北师大版高中英语必修2Unit6课文听力音频

听英语单词 2022-06-09

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Unit 6 Lesson 1 A Matter of Taste

Xu Beihong (1895-1953) was important in modern Chinese folk art. During his lifetime, he developed the tradition of combining poetry with painting. Between 1933 and 1940, he held several exhibitions in Asia and Europe to promote Chinese art. Across this painting, named Racing Horse, we can see a horse running at high speed like a missile across the sky. On the left and right side of the painting, Xu Cleverly drew in black ink to show the moving hair on the horse’s mane and tail. He also used different shades of grey in a creative way to show the sweat along the horse’s body. The painting of dark and light colours is a favourite of many art lovers.

Qi Baishi (1863-1957) was one of China’s greatest painters. He worked with wood during his early youth. Then between 1902 and 1909, he travelled across the country and painted many pictures of scenery. His interest changed later to simple pictures from everyday life, such as vegetables, flowers, birds, and insects. Cabbage is a well-known example of Qi’s work. The tiny insect near the cabbage has some red on its back. Its black eyes, which are fixed on the cabbage, show the creature’s interest in the vegetable. Qi Baishi’s style of painting often leaves the audience guessing and makes them use their imagination.

Chen Yifei (1946-2005) was a very successful artist. His soft portraits of beautiful women are very valuable. In 1997, one of his paintings sold for US＄503,000. The painting, a young woman sits alone and is deep in thought. Her hand holding the fan is elegantly positioned above her knees. To emphasise the woman even more, Chen adds a lot of detail to the fan and the cloth of her dress, and chooses to paint the background behind the woman black. The folds of her dress are very beautiful painted.

Lesson 3 Chinese Paper Art

The Art of Paper

Chen Zijiang is a paper-cutting expert whom I interviewed for my article on Chinese Art. Paper-cutting is something that he learned to do from an early age.

“It is a Chinese folk art with a long history,” Mr Chen told me, “Paper cuts of animals have been found in tombs which date back to the time of the Northern and Southern Dynasty!” He added that by the Southern Song Dynasty, paper-cutting had become an important part of everyday life. “A young farmer who wanted a wife would look at a young woman’s paper-cutting skills before marrying her!” explained Mr Chen, laughing at the look of surprise on my face.

Mr Chen went on to explain that there are three types of paper cuts which people still make today: paper cuts for decorations, for religious purposes and for design patterns.

Papers cuts used for decoration are often seen on windows and gates. They are usually put up during holidays to bring good luck. They are also used on presents. A present for parents whose child has recently been born might show a paper cut of children, for example. Paper cuts which show the Chinese character for double happiness are often used to celebrate weddings.

Paper cuts used for religious purposes are often found in temples. They are also used as offerings to the dead. People to whom the dead person was related would make these offerings on special days and during festivals.

The third kind of paper cuts are those used to make patterns in clothing. They are also sometimes used to decorate jewellery boxes. Dragons are very popular patterns for these designs.

The interview was very useful as I got a lot of interesting information for my article. I was also ready to try out paper-cutting for myself. “See you next week,” I said as I waved goodbye to Mr Chen. I was going to meet him again so that he could help me make my first paper cut!

Lesson 4 Dream Houses

The House on Mango Street

We didn’t always live on Mango Street. Before that are we lived on Loomis on third floor, and before that we lived on Keeler Street. Before Keeler Street it was Paulina Street, and before that I can’t remember. But what I remembered most is moving a lot. Each time it seemed there’d be one more of us. By the time we got to Mango Street we were six – Mama, Papa, Carlos, Kiki, my sister Nenny and me.

The house on Mango Street is outs, and we don’t have to pay rent to anybody, or share the yard with the people downstairs, or be careful not to make too much noise, and worried about the landlord being angry. But even so, it’s not the house we thought we’d get.

We had to leave the flat on Loomis quick. There ere worms in the wooden walls. Then the water popes broke and the landlord wouldn’t fix them because the house was too old. He had no mercy so we had to leave fast. We were using the washroom next door and carrying water over. And everything in the flat was damp. That’s why Mama and Papa looked for a house, and that’s why we moved into the house on Mango Street, far away, on the other side of town.

They always told us that one day we would move into a house, a real house that would be ours so we wouldn’t have to move each year. And our house would have running water and a bathtub and pipes that worked. And inside it would have real stairs, like the houses on TV. And we’d have a basement and at least three washrooms so when we wanted to bathe we wouldn’t have to tell everybody. Our house would be white with trees around it, a great big yard and grass growing without a fence. This was the house Papa talked about when he dreamed of being rich and this was the house Mama dreamed up in the stories she told us before we went to bed.

But the house on Mango Street is not the way they described it at all. It’s small and red with narrow steps in front and windows so small that you’d think they were holding their breath. There is no front yard, only four little trees the city planted on the side of the street. Out back is a small garage for the car we don’t own yet and a small yard that looks smaller between the two buildings on wither side. There are that looks house but they’re ordinary stairs, and the house has only one washroom. Everybody has to share a bedroom – Mama and Papa, Carlos and Kiki, me and Nenny.

Adapted from The House on Mango Street

By Sandra Cisneros