Warming up and Reading I

Warming upWhat do you know about

Mark Twain? The greatest humoristof the 19th century in American literature. Also one of the greatest

Mark Twain(1835—1910)

writer in the world. Do you know any of his works?

Read the short passage quickly and fill in the chart. Real nameMeaning of his pen name Birth date Birthplace Place where he grew up His famous stories

Fill in the blanks.Real name of MT Meaning of his pen name

Samuel Langhorne Clemens

riverNovember 30th, 1835

Birth dateBirth place

Florida

In Hannibal, Missoouri, Place where along the Mississippi he grew up River. The Adventures of Tom His famous Sawyer; The Adventures stories of Huckleberry Finn.

Mark Twain: (1835—1910)

He is good at writing about children’s adventures.

The greatest humorist of the 19th century American literature. Novels: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876)(汤姆· 索亚历险记) The Prince and the Pauper (1882)(皇子与贫儿) The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1894)(哈克贝利· 费恩历险 记)

His short storiesThe £ 1,000,000 Bank-Note

DiscussionSuppose a rich

person gives you amillion pound bank-note, what will you do with it? Give the reasons.

Pre-reading

We are going to study the play “The Million Pound Bank Note” by Mark Twain. First, let’s learn something about play. 戏剧包括哪些要素？ 情感，欲望，争斗，妥协。 什么是戏剧冲突？ 戏剧冲突表现在人物性格的冲突上，具 体表现为一系列的动作。

什么是戏剧语言？ 戏剧语言包括人物语言和舞台说明。舞 台说明是写在剧本每一幕的开端，结尾 和对话中间的说明性的文字，内容包括 人物表、时间、地点、服装、道具、布 景、以及人物的表情、动作、上下场等， 它具有增强舞台气氛，烘托人物心情， 展示人物性格，推动情节展开等多种作 用。

Read the play and answer thequestions. How many characters are there in the scene? Who are they?

Characters (人物): Henry Adams: a lost American businessman in London “Roderick” and “Oliver”:

two brothers and richEnglishmen

Who is the main character? Where does he come from? Henry, the hero of the story, comes from America.

When and where did the story happen?

In London, the summer of 1903. Where are the characters in Scene 3?In the old brothers’ home. What happened in Scene 3? The two old brothers gave Henrry a bank note.

Put the following events in correct order.(1) Henry wandered in London streets. (2) About a month ago Henry Adams was sailing out of the bay. (3) The next morning he was spotted by a ship. (4) Towards nightfall he found himself carried out to sea by a strong wind. (5) On the ship he earned his passage by working as an unpaid hand.