Paraphrases and Language Points

1.Mention ill-mannered children and most people roll their eyes at the memory of a little hellion and his boorish parents.(Para 1)

If you tell about ill-mannered children, most people will remember a little mischievous troublemaker and his rude parents by moving the eyes round and round.

roll one's eyes: to more or cause the eyes to move round and round

e.g. ___ His eyes were rolling with fear.

________ She rolled her eyes in disbelief.

2.rapt: (Para 2)adj./n. wholly engrossed; very pleased; fascinated

e.g. ___ We were rapt in contemplation of the scenery after climbing the mountain
________ We listen to her amazing story with rapt attention.

3.Soundtrack:(Para 3) the recorded music from a film 电影音乐

4.There sat a man and woman enjoying a relaxed meal.(Para.3)

A couple sat there, enjoying a meal in a comfortable and informal atmosphere.

5.regard: (Para 4)to look at in the stated way

e.g. ___ She regarded him with suspicion.

________ They icily regarded each other as if they had never known. 

6.dumbfounded: (Para 5)(or dumfounded, dumbstruck) so shocked and surprised that one cannot speak

e.g. ___ We were all dumbfounded at/by the news.

________ I was dumbfounded that she could say such a thing. 

7.condone: (Para 5)to forgive; pass over without blame; excuse

e.g. ___ I cannot condone the use of violence.

8.consumed with:(Para 5) (often pass.) to fill the thoughts or feelings of continuously, esp. in a damaging way

e.g. ___ She was consumed with jealousy/curiosity.

9. While teenagers laugh at the vulgar antics of "Beavis and Butthead," their parents yuk it up with the acerbic "Married With Children" and the brash "Roseanne."(Para 7)

While adolescents find humor in the coarse and ludicrous behavior of the television cartoon characters on the show "Beavis and Butthead," their parents laugh openly at the bitter situation comedy television show "Married With Children" and the loud and pushy title character in another situation comedy entitled "Roseanne."

acerbic: bitter and sour

e.g. ___ No one likes her acerbic wit.

brash: (of people) showing too much confidence and too little respect; (of clothes) too bright and colourful

e.g. ___ a loud, brash young men

________ This is the new part of the city, with its brash and vulgar buildings.

10.abominable:(Para 7) causing disgust; very unpleasant
e.g. ___ Murder is the most abominable crime.

11.Baltimore Orioles second baseman: (Para 7)巴尔的摩黄鹂队的二垒手

Baltimore: A city on the E coast of the US, in the state of Maryland, Beltimore is one of the busiest sea port in the USA.

Baltimore Oriole: a N. American Oriole that has an orange body with black on the head, wings, and tail.

12.umpire:(Para 7)

n.referee; a judge in charge of a game

v. to act as an umpire for(a game or competition )

13.counterparts: (Para 8) equivalent person or thing

e.g. ___ The Minister of Defense is meeting his American counterpart in Washington today.

14.The fraying of the nuclear family and the demands on working parents, many experts believe, have produced a generation of children who can program a computer but don't know how to write a thank-you note.(Para 8)

Many experts are convinced that the gradual wearing down of the traditional family and the high jobs expectations put upon employed parents have resulted in the development of a generation of children who are smart enough to program computers but socially adept enough to know how to write a letter thanking someone who has given them a gift or done them a kindness.

fray: have loose threads developing;wear down

e.g. ___ Constant rubbing had frayed his shirt cuffs

________ The electric cord is fraying and could be dangerous to handle.

15.Even parents who strive to teach their children manners are appalled at how easily those lessons can be undone by what takes place beyond their homes.(Para 9)

All the work they have done at home about good manners can be easily wasted under the influence of what happens outside.

16.obscene:(Para 9)disgusting and offensive; indecent

e.g. ___ The police seized a quantity of obscene publications. 

17.Parents can do a lot to make their children beauties in our world full of beasts.(Para 10)

Parents can do a lot to make their children well-behaved or keep them innocent even if the harsh world is full of ugliness or evils.

18.high-schooler:(Para 11) high school student

19.varsity team:(Para 11) school team

varsity: university, esp. Oxford and Cambridge

20.livid:(Para 11) extremely angry

e.g. ___ She'll be livid if she finds out.

21.Many parents seem to have adopted the attitude "My child, right or wrong" --with devastating results. (Para 12)

Many parents simply believe in the conception "My child is either a winner or a loser", which is just the opposite to what they wished and even greatly hurts him .

22."Being a parent means being mature enough to help a child adapt to disappointment," ... (Para 12)

Being a parent involves being so mature that he or she is able to help a child adapt to some psychological blow of disappointment.

23.violate:(Para 12) to disregard or act against

e.g. ___ A country isn't respected if it violates an international agreement.

________ The law was often violated by the mobs. 

24.Of course, all the training in the world won't persuade a child to behave gallantly if his parents become aggressive, demanding and rude at the slightest provocation.(Para 14)

Certainly, they won't make a child of decent one even though they teach him with great efforts. Because they themselves are always quarrelsome, muttering and grumbling, and rude when they feel a little displeased.

provocation: action intended to cause a reaction, esp anger or annoyance

e.g. ___ They have to face their enemy's millitary provocation practically.

________ There is some ill intention behind their willful provocation of disorder.

25.vigilant: (Para 15) watchful; alert

e.g. ___ The police said the public should remain vigilant in the fight against crime.

________ The shopkeeper has to be vigilant in case naughty boys steal things off his counter.

26.prompt:(Para 15)

1) v.to cause or urge

e.g. ___ The incident prompted him to call a meeting of the staff.

________ We listened so attentively that he felt prompted to expand on his theme.

2) to remind of the next words in a speech

e.g. ___ It is forbidden to prompt a witness in court.

adj. done quickly or at once

e.g. ___ She was prompt to dismiss any suspicions I might have had.

27.Why, then, do they fail so miserably? (Para 17)

Why do most parents fail so miserably to educate their children? 

28.deliberate:(Para 18)

adj. 1)intentional,purposeful

e.g. ___ a deliberate lie/insult

2)slow and careful

e.g. ___ The old man stood up in a very deliberate way and left the room.

v.consider or talk about carefully

e.g. ___ deliberate with sb on/over/upon sth.

cf.deliberative adj.(US)for the purpose of deliberating 审议的

e.g. ___ Parliament is a deliberative assembly.

29.coercion:(Para 18) exercise of force to obtain compliance; government by force

e.g. ___ They won the election through a mixture of bribery and coercion.

________ His coercion antagonized people who had been his friends.

30.So rather than saying "You're such a slob. Get your elbows off the table," a parent can simply state, "Our family rule is that elbows don't go on the table." (Para 21)

Don't rudely say "You're a ill-mannered child. Get your elbows off the table", but say that it's better for us in our family not to move our elbows on the table" instead.

31.defuse: (Para 21)to make less dangerous or harmful

e.g. ___ to defuse a daugerons situation

________ we might not stop it, but we might defuse it.

cf: defuser和事佬

32.Conn.(Para 22) Connecticut

33.attest:(Para 22) to declare to be true by signing something

e.g. ___ Witness attested his account of the attack.

________ The luxurious furnishings attested (to) the family's wealth. 

34.plunk herself in:(Para 22) also plump herself in

plunk: to fall or sink heavily

e.g. ___ The old lady plunked herself down in a chair and kept silent after getting home.

35."How come no one says 'good-morning' to me?"(Para 23)

How can it be that none of you says "good-morning" to me?

36.W. Va.(Para 24) West Virginia

37.a sit-down dinner:(Para 24) a meal at which people are served while seated at a table

e.g. ___ They had a sit-down dinner for twenty people in a splendid restaurant. 

38.impart:(Para 26) give; make known; tell

e.g. ___ The music imparts a feeling of excitement to the film.

________ The prime minister imparted the news of his trip at a press conference.

39.ritual:one or more ceremonies or customary acts which are of ten repeated in the same form

e.g. ___ She went through her usual ritual of making sure all the doors were locked before she went to bed.

40.If a child reaches adulthood with recollections only of television, Little League and birthday parties, then that child has little to draw on when a true test of character comes up-say, in a prickly business situation.(Para 24)

If a child becomes an adult and only remembers things such as television, Little League and birthday parties, he has little to take advantage of when he really encounters a test of character especially in a difficult business situation.

draw on: to make use of a supply of something

e.g. ___ I'll have to draw on my savings to pay for the repairs.

________ A writer has to draw on his imagination and experience.

say: to suppose; for example

e.g. ___ Would you take an offer of, say, $ 500 for your car?

________ Let's say that your plan fails; then what do we do?

41.feel grounded in: feel based on 

ground: to base

e.g. ___ Our development plans are grounded on the results of our market research. ________ He grounded his argument on his own experience.

42.Even though children often aren't eager to learn to be courteous, there is no reason for them to think of good manners as just a lot of pretentious rules.

warm to: to begin to like; to become interested in

e.g. ___ The students warmed to the new teacher at once.

________ The more he spoke, the more he warmed to this subject.