Unit 6I. Background to Text 1Family is considered to be the “cell” of society. It is a group of people related to each other by blood or by marriage. There are extended families—a large group of relations living together or in close contact with each other. In such a family, usually several generations live under the same roof, including grandparents. On the other hand, there are “nuclear” families, consisting of parents and children.In some societies an extended family consists of a large group of people of different generations closely or distantly related, depending on each other for economic support and security. In others, even nuclear families can be very large with many children.In different countries, there are different policies for family size, and people take different attitude towards it. For instance, in some developed countries, people tend to marry late and have fewer children. Some governments have to give incentives to encourage births. However, in some developing countries, where people tend to have more children and population is growing so fast that it hinders the economic development and keeps the living standard low, governments are forced to formulate policies to limit family size.Of course, people still do not agree as to the matter of family size because there are a lot of factors involved such as economy, religion, cultural tradition, education and even politics. There are indeed advantages and disadvantages to have a number of brothers or sisters. This text is a narration of the experience by a young woman who was brought up with six other brothers or sisters. In her opinion, having a big family is a bad thing, for there is always competition among the brothers and sisters for things. They fight for better beds, for better places to watch TV, for own favourite TV programmes and for parents‟ care. They have no privacy, no peace and quiet because of too many friends (each has friends of their own) and pets and so on. For parents,having a large family means a heavy burden. Children pose a big pressure for food and clothes, and there is endless housework to do: cleaning and tidying the house; cooking, shipping and washing. What is more, parents often have to deprive themselves of food and clothes as well as of their own free time to provide a decent life for children.II. Detailed study of the text1. sibling n.: a brother or sister2. Large families have been getting a bad press recently. (L.1)There has been more and more written in newspapers or talked about on radio or TV about the negative things of large families nowadays.3. …must all be living on state handouts. (L.2)…are almost certainly living on government‟s security benefitshandout n.: money, food etc. given out to people who need it 4. The children out of control, unloved and unwashed. (L.3)The children are badly-behaved, they do not have much of parents‟ care and appear dirty and untidy.out of control: no longer subject to proper direction or restraint;not under control; not properly directed, managed, trained, disciplined, etc.5. …play truant from school… (L.4)…stay away from school with leave or explanation…6. …none of us from multiple births… (L.7)…none of us are twains or triples…7. …queues for the bathroom were always a nightmare… (L.9)…waiting for the bathroom was always a terrible experience…8. Big families used to be the norm, not the exception. (L.10)Big families were very common in the past, not unusual cases. 9. …when having a large family was an insurance against anuncertain future. (L.12)…at that time, having more children meant that they would have people to rely on for a living when they got old…10. It was common not to make it to adulthood… (L.13)It was common for children to die young before they grew up…make it: survive; succeed11. …I was an only child—so much pressure to achieve, so muchguilt if you’re not around… (L.17)…I was an only child. It was too much pressure to have just one child. Being an only child you often feel guilty if you get away from your parents…12. …it mus t have made you really outgoing and able to stick upfor yourself. (L.21)…growing up with many brothers and sisters must have trained you to be friendly and sociable and to be able you to speak or act in your own defence when necessary.1) outgoing adj.: friendly and sociable2) stick up for sb.: speak or act in one‟s defence13. Are you Catholic? (L.22)It probably implies that Catholics tend to have large families.14. I had to sit three-deep in front of the television set. (L.25)I was forced to sit behind my brothers and sisters (three seats)away from the TV set.15. I am now very protective of my privacy and get upset if Idon’t have enough time on my own. (L.26)1) protective adj.: inclined or tending to protect2) on one’s own: alone; without help16. …blot out a row going on at the other end of the sofa. (L.32)…keep a blind eye on or turn a deaf ear to the noisy quarrel of my brothers or sisters on the other end of the sofa.1) blot out: hide from sight; refuse to think about2) row n.: (BrE) a loud noise; a fierce quarrel or dispute17. …I usually wore my sisters’ hand-me-downs…(L.33)…I usually wore the clothes which my sisters had used when they were small…hand-me-downs: a compound word made from the phrase …hand down to me”18. …were you wearing an afghan with a mauve Laura Ashleysmock in 1984?… (L.35)1) afghan n.: a knitted and sewn woolen blanket or shawel(originating from Afghanistan)2)smock n.: a woman‟s long loose blouse19. I might not have been able to stop my brothers watchingMatch of the Day, but being a baby had its advantages too.(L.39)It implies that her brothers were fond of watching the programme “Match of the Day”, but since she was little, she was able to stop her brothers watching that programme so that she could watch her favourite programme.20. Having loads of brothers and sisters meant I was exposed to avariety of music…(L.40)Since I had so many brothers and sisters, I was given a chance to listen to different kinds of music while my brothers and sisters were lis tening…21. I was into Radio… when most of my friends hadn’tprogressed past … (L.43)This is an example of the writer keeping up with the time and always leaving her friends far behind in terms of music or pop songs.22. I could secretly borrow my sisters’ slightly-too-bighigh-fashion items… (L.45)When my sisters were away I could try their up-to-date fashionable clothes, which were still slightly too big for me. 23. R owdy night-time giggling was never blamed on me and Idon’t remember ever being told o ff. (L.48)Nobody ever blamed me for noisy laughing at night (even thoughI did it). I don‟t remember anybody ever scolding me.tell off: scold or reprimand24. …my parents were remarkably lax about discipline by thetime they got to me. (L.50)…my parent s were extremely lenient to me in matter of discipline.lax adj.: lacking care, concern or firmness25. My oldest sister…a mother herself by the time I came along,had endured immovable curfews… (L.51)My oldest sister…became a mother herself when I was b orn, had never been allowed to stay out late at night and this rule never changed…1) come along: arrive2) curfew n.: an order forbidding people to be in the street aftera certain hour26. …when a new baby was born, the older ones would go backinto n appies in protest… (L.56)…when a new baby was born, the older ones were still so little that they had to wear nappies and would cry when they were put on nappies…27. …put me off domestic drudgery for life. (L.57)…caused me to dislike tedious housework all my life.1) put sb. off: cause one to loose enthusiasm, to feel disgust,for something2) domestic adj.: relating to the home, family, or private life3)drudgery n.: tedious menial work28. …disposable nappies… (L.59)…nappies intended to be thrown away after use…29. At mealtimes, which were always two sittings,…(L.63)For every meal, we had to eat in two groups one after another…30. “I’ve been making a sponge”… (L.66)I‟ve been making a sponge cake (or putting)…31. …made me averse to anything mor e strenuous than heatingup ready-to-bake ciabatta… (L.68)…made me reluctant to do anything that is more troublesome than to heat up ready-to-bake ciabatta…1) averse to: reluctant about or opposed to2) strenuous adj.: requiring or performed with great effort orenergy3) heat up: make become hot or warm32. …but we never went without. (L.78)…but the whole family always managed a holiday away from home.go without (sth.): succeed to live without; do without33. …she had ensured everyone else had been inoculated…(L.81)…she had made sure every other member of the family had been vaccinated against disease…34.…Mum only got better because she was worried about thewashing piling up. (L.84)Mum got better just because she worried that there would be nobody to do the washing if she was gone.35. …so family get-togethers are like remakes of TheGodfather… (L.91)…so family reunions are like what in the film The Godfather reappeared again…The Godfather: a US film directed by Francis Coppola (1972), a drama focusing on the power and influence of a Mafia dynasty 36. …have a penchant for…(L.93)…have a liking for something that is slightly disapproved of by others…37. …who knows not to walk between the remote control and thetelevision. (L.93)…implies that the c hild does not need to make so much effort even as to go to the TV set but to use the remote control only. III. Answers for Text 1Skills DevelopmentPre-reading1. You start with group work and end up with class discussion. Theteacher may put the main points on the board.2. It begins with individual word and then pair work.Reading2. A.3.The text indicates that the author takes a negative attitude towardsa large family, though she found it nice to be the youngest ofsiblings and large families are not that bad as the press depicts.4. ●living conditions●dressing●her mother‟s experience●her idea of her own family size and life style5.2) a. never asked children to help with houseworkb.ate left-overc.constant shopping, cooking, washing, cleaningd.never did anything for herselfe.always tiredf.had all others inoculated but herselfg.survived typhoid because of her concern for the children7. ●hate housework●hate noise●become selfish●want only one child●get used to ready-made food●have the child well-provided forPost-reading1. This is a role-play activity, designed to motivate students tospeak in English, and improve their ability to organize their ideas orally and elicit information for a specific purpose. To ensure agood performance, students should fully prepare. The teacher may organize the class into groups of four and let students divide up the roles among them. Then students prepare for their own role and jot down the points on a piece of paper. When they finish, they can swap their roles.2. This is a very advanced oral activity. Though preparation can bedone beforehand, much depends on impromptu speech. The teacher may ask every student to prepare a few points for each topic area. When debate starts, students of each side may speak in turn so as to give everyone an opportunity. Then speakers on either side may take the floor of their own accord.3. Remind students of the style of the text.Language Development1. 1) c2. i.3) a 4) b5) d 6) h7) e 8) f9) g2. 1) averse 2) drudgery3) paternal 4) strenuous5) deem 6) drawback3. 1) make it 2) got on my nerves3) tell you off 4) not to mention5) go without 6) make it to7) blotted out 8) have a penchant for9) stick up for 10) on their own4. 1) No, we cannot change the perfect into the simple presentand vice v ersa. Because the “modal + PP” refers to an eventthat happened in the past whereas the “modal +SP” dealswith the present situation. a, b and c all relate to the author‟schildhood days but d is concerned with things in general.2)must used in the three cases mentioned above means“supposition” or “hypothesis” whereas might means“possibility”. Therefore, they cannot be swapped either.Note: When must is used to show “supposition” or “hypothesis”,it cannot take the negative. In other words, we cannot put “not”after must. If you want to express the idea, you should use the modal can instead, e.g. They cannot have been great…The rest part of the activity is to use the pattern in stories.Students may do it as an option.5. remember followed by the infinitive indicates an action to takep lace whereas remember followed by a gerundial phrase expresses a finished action.1)Try to open the door with a hammer. (Make efforts to do it.)2)Try opening the door with a hammer. (Do it like this first tosee whether it works.)3)He regretted to tell the truth. (He regretted because he wasgoing to do it.)4)He regretted telling the truth. (He regretted because he haddone it.)5) She forgot to close the door when she left. (The door was notclosed.)6) She forgot closing the door when he left. (She had closed thedoor but she forgot about it.)6. a pain-in-the-stomach gesture：as having pain in the stomachstay-at-home : one who never goes away from hometake-home-pay: pay after the payment of income taxmiddle-of-the-road attitude: impartial; not supporting either side commander-in-chief: the officer in supreme command of anation‟s forcesmother-to-be: future mother; one expecting a baby7. 1）尽管我从来就没有想过做独生女，—是只要一个孩子难得做到，二是因为是独生女，一旦不在父母身边会感到内疚不已，但是有很多兄弟姊妹确有其问题。