Say Yes Tobias Wolff Say Yes Unit 2

Say Yes Tobias Wolff

Say Yes Unit 2 W arming up B ackground T ext Analysis R einforcement

Preview Materials 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Assignments for each class; Presentation topics; The original text; Questions about the text; Some short stories by the same author.

Assignments For the 1 st class: Come to class with a sheet of paper which contains: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. The title of the text; The name of the author; Key words, phrases & idiomatic expressions; A one-sentence summary of the text; An outline of the text; Parts of the text you find difficult to understand; One meaningful question you especially want to raise about the text.

Assignments For the 2 nd class: Write a paragraph on the following topic. • Because of its narrative point of view, "Say Yes" does not show any significant interior drama of the wife. What do you think the wife is thinking while their argument is taking place and afterwards? Try to put yourself in the shoes of the wife, and write down your thoughts and feelings.

Assignments For the 3 rd class: Write an essay on the following topic. • What do you think is the most important theme of the story? Why?

Presentation Topics 1. The author Tobias Wolff: his life experiences, major works and prizes, his usual topics, style of writing, etc. 2. Racial discrimination in the US in the 1980 s: disguised and undisguised racial discrimination in every aspect of the American society (stereotypes of the black people, their interests and benefits, education, jobs, etc. ) 3. Sexual discrimination in the US in the 1980 s: overt and covert sexual discrimination at home and out of home (in public affairs, business corporations, government departments, etc. )

Questions About the Text 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. From whose point of view is the story told? What effect does this point of view have on the story? What are the questions discussed by the husband wife? What are their views on these questions? In the husband’s remarks about black people and foreigners, who are “we” and “they” respectively? What is the husband’s attitude towards “them”? How well does the husband know his wife? Cite evidence from the text to support your point. Gather all the things the husband does in the story and judge whether he is a considerate husband. …

Say Yes Unit 2 Questions / Activities Check-on Preview Warming up Objectives W B T R

Warming up • Questions / Activities Form groups of 4, discuss the following two questions, and keep a record of your opinions to see whether they will change as the text is analyzed in detail. 1. Is the man a good husband? Cite textual evidence to support your view. 2. Is the man a racist? Cite textual evidence to support your view. W B T R

Warming up Check-on Preview Match the verbs with the nouns. pitch in on this trick pinch the housework resort to the silverware mop the floor spray her brows snap through her indifference demonstrate the pages blur out the right answer come up with the stars W B T R

Warming up Check-on Preview Mark the following statements T for true and F for false. F 1. The story is set in the 1960 s in the US when racial issues were hot on everybody’s mind and lips. T 2. The story happened between two middle-aged people who had been married for about 30 years. T 3. The man had never thought that he was a racist and felt greatly wronged by his wife who implied this. F 4. The man was considerate, rational and forgiving while his wife was selfish, emotional and ridiculous. T 5. The husband had known all along what his wife wanted from him, but simply didn’t want to give in to her. F 6. After the husband turned off the light, someone broke W into their house and made some strange noise. B T R

Warming up Objectives • Know something about the author and his works; • Gather some background information about racism and sexism in the US; • Learn to appreciate a short story; • Learn to use the language items listed; • Understand the story and appreciate its subtlety; • Think about themes and form your own opinions. W B T R

Say Yes Unit 2 Author Time Background Culture Tips Genre W T B R

Background Author Life • Born in Alabama USA in 1945. • Parents divorced when he was a boy; traveled widely with his mother; soon forced to endure life under his strict and cruel stepfather. • From 1964 to 1968, lieutenant with the U. S. Army Special Forces (Green Berets) in Vietnam. • B. A. (1972) and M. A. (1975) from Oxford University with First Class Honors in English, a second M. A. from Stanford. • A revered writer& teacher of creative writing and literature in Stanford and elsewhere. Tobias Wolff (1945 -) W T B R

Background His Works Short stories (O Henry Award): • “In the Garden of the North American Martyrs” (1981) • “Next Door” (1982) • “Sister” (1985) • Our Story Begins (short story collection in 2003, The Story Prize in 2004) Memoirs: • This Boy’s Life: A Memoir (1989) • In Pharaoh's Army: Memories of the Lost War(1994) Novels: • The Barrack's Thief (1984, PEN/Faukner Award for Fiction) • Old School (2003) This Boy’s Life Film Poster W T B R

Background His Style • A direct writing style, obeying the “show, don’t tell” maxim, leaving much to the reader’s intuition • Non-dramatic, focusing more on the psychological dimensions of a character in dilemmas than on plot development • Often understated, forcing readers to become engaged in the collection of strands that will result in the full comprehension of a story. • Exploring alienation, the nature of lying, and the essential foundations of relationships • Hoping to instruct and inspire people to triumph over their situations through character change and development W T B R

Background Time The Republican Years • The 1980 s was a decade led by Republican policy. Ronald Reagan took office as president of the United States in 1980, served two terms, and then was succeeded by his vice president, George Bush. • Reagan held conservative political beliefs, both on the domestic front and when it came to foreign policy. Although his economic programs brought the national inflation rate down, they also seemed to favor the wealthy. • By the 1980 s, as the United States and the Soviet Union built up a stockpile of nuclear weapons, the cold war had been ongoing for almost forty years. Reagan, an ardent opponent of communism, encouraged his administration to greatly increase military spending. W T B R

Background Culture Tips Racism • Definition: Racism is prejudice or discrimination based on the belief that race is the primary factor determining human traits and abilities. Racism includes the belief that genetic or inherited differences produce the inherent superiority or inferiority of one race over another. • Institutional racism: e. g. the Jim Crow laws in the US from 1876 to 1965 mandating segregation in all public facilities in the southern states of the former Confederacy with a supposedly “separate but equal” status for the black Americans; officially overruled with the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. • Overt and subtle racism: The Civil Rights Movement did away much overt racism, but racism persists in many subtle forms, in many aspects and on many levels. W T B R

Background Culture Tips Race & Marriage • Despite the public opposition to interracial marriage, in 1948, the California Supreme Court became the first state high court to declare a ban on interracial marriage unconstitutional. • The decision was controversial, courageous and correct. At that time, 38 states still forbade interracial marriage, and 6 did so by state constitutional provision. • Then, in 1967, the U. S. Supreme Court struck down the remaining interracial marriage laws nation-wide. W T B R

Background Culture Tips Sexism As with racism, overt sexism is not very much on display now in much of the world. But subtle sexism persists and can be found everywhere at all time. It is a cluster of social expectations and practices that reinforce sex-based inequality. For example: • At school: more boys in science classes and more girls in arts classes (“boys are logical while girls are imaginative”) • At work: a male boss and a female secretary, and rarely the other way around (we have “career women” and “family men” but no “career men” and “family women”) • At home: housework regarded as the wife’s responsibility whether she has a full-time job or not (the husband reputed as a considerate one because he “pitched in on the housework”) W B T R

Background Genre A Short Story • Setting: kitchen, cleaning up after dinner, USA, 1980 s • Characters: husband & wife, white, middle-aged, middle-class • Conflict: different views on interracial marriages • Plot: casual talk, argument, fight, hurt feelings, failed attempt at reconciliation • Narrative point of view: 3 rd person, the husband • Characterization: showing instead of telling W T B R

Say Yes Unit 2 Theme Text Analysis Structure Detailed Analysis 视频 W B T R

Text Analysis Structure Para. 1 -18 • The argument: The husband disapproved interracial marriages on the ground of cultural differences while the wife approved on the ground of love. Para 19 -24 • The wound: The wife was hurt; the husband helped her quickly and hoped she would reward him by letting go of the topic. Para 25 -44 • The question: The wife persistently asked whether husband would marry her if she were black and got a straight no in the end. Para 45 -48 • The anger: The husband felt deeply hurt by his wife’s indifference to him but then decided to forgive her out of love. Para 49 -57 • The stranger: When the husband tried to make up with his wife, he found her a stranger despite three decades of marriage. W B T R

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part III Part IV Part V Main Idea Sentence Paraphrase Words & Expressions Exercise W B T R

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part I: Main Idea 1. What is the setting of the story? (the fictional time, the historical time, the place) 2. Who are the main characters? What do you know about them? 3. What is the conflict of the story? 4. How did the wife feel when her husband said it was a bad idea for white people to marry black people? 5. How did the husband show that he was not a racist? 6. Why shouldn’t white people marry black people, according to the husband? Is this reason justifiable? 7. How did the wife retort her husband?

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part I: Sentences A few months earlier he’d overheard a friend of his wife’s congratulating her on having such a considerate husband. (para. 1) Questions: 1. How did the man earn the reputation of a considerate husband? What do you think of this reputation? 2. What did the husband feel about his reputation?

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part I: Sentences Sometimes his wife got this look where she pinched her brows together and bit her lower lip. When he saw her like this he knew he should keep his mouth shut, but he never did. Actually it made him talk more. (para. 4) relative adverb introducing a relative clause to modify “look” Question: What does this show about the husband? Compare: 1. He was wondering about the strange look that he saw on the face of his wife. (relative pronoun) 2. When he is displeased he has this look where his eyes are narrowed and brows closely knitted. (relative adverb) 3. I saw a movie last night which was real junk. 4. I saw a movie last night where there was a lot of violence.

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part I: Sentences “But that’s different. A person from their culture and a person from our culture could never really know each other. ” “Like you know me? ” his wife asked. “Yes. Like I know you. ” … “How can you understand someone who comes from a completely different background? ” “Different, ” said his wife. “Not the same, like us. ” “Yes, different, ” he snapped, angry with her for resorting to this trick of repeating his words so that they sounded hypocritical. (para. 10 -18) Questions: 1. Why did the wife constantly bring themselves in for comparison? 2. Do they really know each other?

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part I: Language Words overhear Phrases do/dry the dishes Somehow pitch in (on /with sth. ) snap Congratulate sb. on sth. Take my word for it Break up Resort to Sentence Pattern …he’d overheard a friend … congratulating her …all things considered, it was a bad idea. I don’t need you coming along and implying … Grammar … this look where she pinched her brows … 视频

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part I: Exercise Translate the following sentences, and pay special attention to the underlined parts. 1. My brother pitched in with an offer to loan us some money. 2. Her husband really pitched in on housework. 3. The entire company pitched in to help. 4. Channel 4 arrived and somehow created a different role for television. 5. He's been very quiet and withdrawn, sort of different, somehow. 6. Contemporary career women often find themselves in a situation where they have to sacrifice their career for their family. 7. Take my word for it, time will heal all wounds and cure all pains. 8. Don’t snap at me! It’s not my fault that you lost your wallet. 9. She snapped the suitcase shut and left angrily. 10. People often resort to body language when words fail.

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part II: Main Idea 1. 2. 3. What did the husband do when the wife’s finger got hurt? What does this show? What did the husband expect from his wife? What does this show? Is the cut symbolic of something?

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part II: Sentences He hoped that she appreciated how quickly he had come to her aid. He’d acted out of concern for her, he thought that it would be a nice gesture on her part not to start up that conversation again, as he was tired of it. (para. 21) done by her because he cared about her come to help her Question: What does this show about the husband? Paraphrasing: He hoped that his wife was grateful that he had helped her so quickly. He did it because he really cared about her and he thought that she should show her concern for him in return by not continuing the conversation because he did not want to.

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part II: Language Words Plunge Rummage Dab Phrases Out of concern for On her part

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part II: Exercise Key to the translation: 1. He plunged his face into a bowl of cold water to clear up his mind. 2. It seems that nothing can save the country from its plunge into chaos. 3. Some marriages break up because of personality clashes and some because of principle problems. 4. We’ll do all we can to help but efforts on your part are also required. 5. The government set up these temporary shelters out of concern for the homeless on the cold winter nights.

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part III: Main Idea 1. How did the wife pursue the argument after the husband dressed her wound? Why did she do so? 2. “The only black girl I ever knew was my partner in the debating club. ” (para. 28) Is this remark contrary to what he said in the first part? 3. What did the husband mean when he said “if you were black you wouldn't be you? ” Do you agree? 4. Why did the husband feel cornered? 5. Did the husband know what was expected of him? 6. Why did the husband refuse to say “yes”?

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part III: Sentences There was no possible way of arguing with the fact that she would not be herself if she were black. (para. 32) Question: What did the husband mean? introducing an appositive clause which explains what the fact is Compare: 1. Do you accept the view that people from different cultures should not marry? 1. Appositive clause 2. Do you accept the view that is so popular among the students? 2. Relative clause

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part III: Language Words Spray Unattached Corner Phrases Put it that way Sentence Pattern the fact + that + appositive clause Grammar Subjunctive mood

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part III: Exercise Compare the structure of the sentences and translate them into Chinese. 1. How do you explain the fact that my missing purse is under your pillow? (appositive clause) 2. How do you explain the fact that we have just discovered? (relative clause) 3. What do you think of the idea that we put aside some money each month for a trip in summer holiday? 4. What do you think of the idea that we discussed just now? 5. I can’t accept the reason that you simply didn’t get my message. 6. I can’t accept the reason that is clearly made up in a hurry.

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part III: Exercise Learn the subjunctive mood in the following sentences. 1. She would not be herself if she were black. 2. You wouldn’t have married me if I’d been black. 3. You would probably have been going out with a black guy if you had been black. Respond to the following questions. 1. What would you do if you were given a large sum of money? 2. The old woman found a wallet on the pavement and waited for hours in the cold wind for its owner. What would you have done if you had been in that situation? 3. The school was funded to pull down the old classrooms and build new ones. What would have been the students doing if they hadn’t been given the money?

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part IV: Main Idea 1. What did the wife do after husband answered “No” ? 2. How did she feel? 3. How did the husband react? Why? 4. How did the husband’s feelings change? 5. What brought about the change?

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part IV: Sentences He knew that she was too angry to be actually reading it, but she didn’t snap through the pages the way he would have done. She turned them slowly, as if she were studying every word. She was demonstrating her indifference to him, and it had the effect he knew she wanted it to have. It hurt him. He had no choice but to demonstrate his indifference to her. (para. 45 -46) Questions: 1. From whose point of view is the situation described? 2. Are the husband’s guesses about his wife’s thoughts and feelings reliable? 3. Is it true that the husband “had no choice”? What would a really considerate husband do?

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part IV: Sentences He felt ashamed that he had let his wife get him into a fight. (para. 48) Questions: 1. Who did the husband blame for starting the fight? 2. Why did the husband feel “ashamed”? 3. Do you notice the sexism of the husband?

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part V: Main Idea 1. How did the husband try to make up with his wife? 2. Why did the wife ask her husband to turn off the light? 3. What did the man expect to happen when he turned off the light? 4. What do you think really happened? Why? 5. What does the ending of the story imply? 6. 视频

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part V: Sentences “I’ll make it up to you. I promise. ” “How? ” she said. He knew that he had to come up with the right answer. … “I’ll marry you, ” he whispered. “We’ll see, ” she said. (para. 49 -52) Questions: 1. Is it usual for one to ask “how” when someone promises to “make it up to you”? Why did the wife ask this question? 2. Did the husband really mean that he would marry her if she were black? 3. What did the wife mean by saying “We’ll see”?

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part V: Sentences The room was silent. His heart pounded the way it had on their first night together, the way it still did when he woke at a noise in the darkness and waited to hear again–the sound of someone moving through the house, a stranger. (para. 57) Questions: followed by a relative clause the relative adverb (how) of which is omitted 1. How did the husband feel on their first night together? 2. How did he feel when he woke at a strange noise at night? 3. Who was the “stranger”?

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part IV & V: Language Words Snap Demonstrate blur Phrases Mop the floor Be done To the west Make it up to/with sb. Come up with Reach over Sentence Pattern the way + relative clause Grammar Subjunctive mood

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part IV & V: Exercise Complete the following sentences. 1. I don’t like _______ he treats his parents. 2. He likes observing children _____ play. 3. Now that we are in the supermarket, we ______ look around and buy something we need. 4. Sorry I can’t take you to the cinema today, but I’ll _____ you next week. 5. I’ll lend you the book when I am _____ it. 6. Have you _____ her since your fight last week? 7. If you hadn’t come up with that bright idea our company _____ (struggle) for survival.

Text Analysis Detailed Analysis Part IV & V: Exercise Complete the following sentences. 1. I don’t like the way he treats his parents. 2. He likes observing children at play. 3. Now that we are in the supermarket, we might just as well look around and buy something we need. 4. Sorry I can’t take you to the cinema today, but I’ll make it up to you next week. 5. I’ll lend you the book when I am done with it. 6. Have you made it up with her since your fight last week? 7. If you hadn’t come up with that bright idea our company would still have been struggling for survival.

Text Analysis Theme The theme of this story is everybody’s guess. So what is yours? • Attitudes towards interracial marriages (racism)? • Man-woman relationships (feminism)? • The unreasonable nature of women? • The arrogance of men? • The impossibility of effective communication? /Alienation in modern society? 视频 W B T R

Say Yes Unit 2 Discussion Reinforcement Retelling W T B R

Reinforcement Discussion 1. From whose point of view is the story told? How does this narrative point of view affect the story? What difference would it make to choose another perspective? 2. From what the husband said and did, is he a racist or not? 3. In what sense is the man a considerate husband? In what sense is he not? 4. Do you notice sexual inequality in the relationship between the husband the wife? Explain yourself. W T B R

Reinforcement Retelling Choose one topic 1. Suppose you were the husband tell the story of that night to your friends. 2. Suppose you were the wife and tell the story of that night to your friends. W T B R