TGG - Chapter 4

1-Guiding Task

(1)Q: What the three Sus experienced for preparing for and passing the examinations, and what happened after the examinations?

A: As for Chinese ancients, "an official career was the only road to honor and success", so the three Sus saw it a must to take the examinations. In this Chapter, the writer wrote according to the time sequence. Before they set out for the exams, Su Tungpo and his brother got married because of the Chinese custom，which believes that being married soon before career matures and develops will be better.

When comes to the exams, the author gives details about the exams, as well as the importance of special recommendation of some high minister of state, and the Ouyang Shiu's high praise of Su Tungpo. In this part, details about the capital's geographic position and history are mentioned.

After the exams and just as Su Tungpo was about to begin his official career, Tungpo's mother died, which means a twenty-seven months' compulsory mourning period. Without straightly talking about what Su Tungpo has achieved in official career and fame after the exams, this part pens some lines about his father and his happy days with his wife's family, which leaves the readers with suspense.

(2)Impressive Sentences

①all marriages, however arranged, are a gamble and an adventure upon an uncharted sea.

Remarks： Truth! ( from the perspective of a married person ... ...)

②The advantages of the system of arrangement by parents are merely that it is simpler, more efficient,less wasteful of time, and allows a much greater freedom and wider range of choice.

Remarks: Since I never doubt that making match by parents' order and match-maker's word is a bad thing, this sentence suddenly enlightens me that nothing is absolutely bad. There're pros and cons.

③Of the forty-five candidates from Meichow, both brothers were among the successful thirteen.

④The palace occupied the center of the city, beginning in the south with a long stretch of stone and brick wall below the ShiiantehTower, with an elaborate bas-relief of dragons and phoenixes,while above showed the glittering roofs of the palaces, made with glazed tiles of variegated colors. Around the palace on four sides were the main streets, named by the four points of the compass. On the west of the palace stood the premier's office ... ....

Remarks: These sentences are valuable to imitate, especially the sentence that describes the palace's position and details.

⑤The judges read the story, but dared not question it, because it amounted to their admitting not having read its omewhere in one of the obscure ancient texts.So SuTungpo was passed.

Remarks: How lucky he is! But it's totally make sense if you heard about the story - the Emperor's New Clothes. And Su Tungpo may get caught if he take exams nowadays as the internet will help the judges.

2-Words and Phrases

① swarm：

原文： The streets swarmed with pedestrians. 

swarm with 可替代 be crowded with

②provided 

（注意与provide的过去分词区分开）

连词 also pro'vided that

1.used to say that something will only be possible if something else happens or is

done 只要，如果…的话; SYN providing

•He can come with us, provided he pays for his own meals.只要他付自己的饭钱，就可以跟我们一起来。

③ deal with 

这个词通常局限于处理的意思，但是文中是to be about (something)；to have (something) as a subject的意思，可以替换mainly talks/writes about sth。