内容发布更新时间 : 2024/5/1 21:24:21星期一 下面是文章的全部内容请认真阅读。

Unit Five TEXT 1

THE PLUG-IN DRUG:

TV AND THE AMERICAN FAMILY

Marie Winn

Objectives: to scan for the writer’s opinions on the positive and negative effects of TV on American families.

to talk about the advantages and disadvantages of watching TV in China.

to learn the writing skill - cause and effect used in this article and write an essay on the effects that computer exerts on people.

Pre-reading questions:

1. The history, present and future of TV

History: no more than 60 years

Present: Multiple-set family, portable, as small as passport-sized, as large as 35 inches, on the table or on the wall, cable TV receiving more channels in the world, …

Future: Digital, connected with computer and video-on-demand television 点播式电视

2. Can you infer from the subtitle of the essay TV and the American Family the meaning of the main title The Plug-in Drug? What does the word drug imply? (Pre-reading question 1)

Drug in one sense is a habit-forming substance one takes for pleasure or excitement. Harmful drugs include tobacco, alcohol, cocaine, opium, etc. The plug-in drug is a term used by the author to refer to TV which works when it is plugged in. TV is compared to a drug because, on the one hand, the American family has formed the habit of watching TV at leisure time and, on the other hand, TV has undesirable effects on the family.

3. How often do you watch TV? What do you think of the advantages and disadvantages of watching TV? (We often come upon such discussion in

1

conversation or in writing.)

4. What do you think this essay is about? What do you think of the effects that TV has on the American family?

Some other adv. and the disadv are discussed in the essay.

In-reading Interpretation Para.1

1. A quarter of a century … and ordinary part of daily life. --- Analyze the structure of the first sentence.

Main clause: television viewing has become an inevitable and ordinary part of daily life.

Adverbial phrase: a quarter of a century after the introduction of ... a period that has been seen the medium....

--- Can you infer from this sentence when television was first introduced into American society? (comp.3-1)

A quarter of a century after the introduction of TV: In the early 50’s, if we take 1977, the date of the publication of Winn’s book The Plug-In Drug, as the basis of inference. Many reference books give an earlier date, though. (as is shown in note 1) --- Explain a period that has seen the medium become so deeply ingrained in American life that in at least one state the television set has attained the rank of a legal necessity, safe from repossession in case of debt along with clothes, cooling utensils, and like. (comp. 3-2)

medium = TV

ingrained = fixed, rooted

The TV set has become so important in the life of a family that its possession is guaranteed by law. Even when a person is in debt, it cannot be taken away from him by whomever he owes a debt as clothes, cooking utensils, and the like. 2. Only in the early years …the effects of television on family life.

In other words, people at that time didn’t realize the effects that TV would exert on its viewer. Watching TV was just considered as an activity of sitting before the screen. Nothing was taken into account as to what they were watching, e.g. whether there was too much violence or sex shown on the screen, which would bring about

2

more juvenile delinquency in the country. Small attention was given to the influences of TV programs. If there was any, what they concerned about is only the effects of TV on family life. This is, according to the author, a myopia.

3. Why does Winn accuse the early observers of myopia? (comp. 3-3) i.e. interpret almost without exception … influence upon the family.

The early observers only saw the favorable effects of TV and none of them was sufficiently far-sighted to predict the negative effects of TV in the future. That’s why they are accused of myopia, i.e., short-sightedness. Paras. 2-5

1. What were the positive effects of TV that early writers and commentators

observed or predicted?

Para. 2: Every family with children would have TV. It seemed that TV was created to meet the needs of children.

Para. 3: TV would change people’s way of living and children’s habits for the better.

Para. 4: TV was beneficial for the happiness of a family.

Para. 5: A beautiful picture of a happy family was shown here: a family cozily sitting … around Mom’s shoulder.

But now, with the development of television, there are more and more multiple-set families in which each family member watches his favorite TV programs in their own place: Granny the operas in Channel 3, Daddy Sports Channel 5, Mummy Movie Channel 6, and child all the cartoons in all the channels. My son enjoys all the cartoons and Kungfu films. Whenever there is a conflict in choosing the channels, we are forced to sit before the smaller and not-so-well-working TV set, and he is always the winner in such conflicts. It is said that the only-child cannot find companionship in his family, but according to my observation, it is not the fact that he can’t find anybody to play games with – parents are willing and ready to offer companionship, but the fact that he doesn’t like to. What he likes is to watch cartoon films and play computer games himself.

This is the side effects of having multiple TV sets and multiple computers in a family: closer relationship between human and machine, distant relationship between human beings.

3