知识点1

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教师讲解：

Paras. 27-31

27 Understanding this reality requires a reminder of how we arrived at this point. As William Faulkner once wrote, “The past isn't dead and buried. In fact, it isn't even past.” We do not need to recite here the history of racial injustice in this country. But we do need to remind ourselves that so many of the disparities that exist between the African-American community and a larger American community today can be traced directly to inequalities passed on from an earlier generation that suffered under the brutal legacy of slavery and Jim Crow.

28 Segregated schools were, and are, inferior schools; we still haven't fixed them, fifty years after Brown vs. Board of Education, and the inferior education they provided, then and now, helps explain the pervasive achievement gap between today's black and white students.

29 Legalized discrimination-where blacks were prevented, often through violence, from owning property, or loans were not granted to African-American business owners, or black home owners could not access FHA mortgages, or blacks were excluded from unions, or the police force, or the fire departments-meant that black families could not amass any meaningful wealth to bequeath to future generations. That history helps explain the wealth and income gap between blacks and whites, and the concentrated pockets of poverty that persist in so many of today's urban and rural communities.

30 A lack of economic opportunity among black men, and the shame and frustration that came from not being able to provide for one's family, contributed to the erosion of black families a problem that welfare policies for many years may have worsened. And the lack of basic services in so many urban black neighborhoods-parks for kids to play in, police walking the beat, regular garbage pick-up, building code enforcement-all helped create a cycle of violence, blight and neglect that continues to haunt us.

31This is the reality in which Reverend Wright and other African Americans of his generation grew up. They came of age in the late fifties and early sixties, a time when segregation was still the law of the land and opportunity was systematically constricted. What's remarkable is not how many failed in the face of discrimination, but how many men and women overcame the odds; how many were able to make a way out of no way for those like me who would come after them.

Q1: What do paragraphs 27-37 tell?

A1: They are on the vivid manifestations of the stern reality and the need for change.

Q2: What do paragraphs 27-31 mainly talk about?

A2: They are on the wretched situation of the black Americans.

Q3: How do you paraphrase the following knowledge points?

1. Understanding this reality requires a reminder of how we arrived at this point.

(Para.27)

In the previous paragraph Obama said that Wrights comments and the subsequent firestorm reflected the complexities of race in this country. In order to understand these complexities, we need to know the history and development of racial relations, the sufferings and injustices the blacks were subjected to.

1) Note how the idea is expressed: An impersonal structure is used here to achieve emphasis and conciseness. If "we" were used as the subject of the sentence, the structure would be clumsy.

2) reminder: a thing to help one remember something else

3) arrive at: to reach by development

4) how we arrive at this point: how the racial relations have developed to the current stage

2. As William Faulkner once wrote, “The past isn't dead and buried. In fact, it isn't even past." (Para.27)

1) The idea is played on the change of the part of speech of the word "past". The first "past" is a noun meaning "what has happened." The second is an adjective, meaning "ended," "over."

2) The influence of what happened in previous times has not disappeared. Such influences can still be seen.

3. We do not… in this country. (Para.27)

recite: to tell in detail; to enumerate

4… so many of the disparities… under the brutal legacy of slavery and Jim Crow.

(Para.27)

The inequalities and differences you find in the African-American communities today came directly from blacks of an older generation who were the victims of racial discrimination.

1) disparities: differences; inequalities

2) trace to: to go back (to something past)

3) the brutal legacy: a rhetorical device called transferred epithet-a legacy can't be brutal; what is brutal is the practices of slave owners, the slavery system.

4) Jim Crow: traditional discrimination against or segregation of blacks in the U.S.

5. Segregated schools were, and are, inferior schools; .… between today's black and white students. (Para.28)

This is a one-sentence paragraph describing the existence of school segregation fifty years after Warren's Court decision to make segregation unconstitutional, and pointing out that inferior education in segregated schools is the cause of the poor performance of some black students.

1) segregated schools: For a long time, there existed in the United States schools for white children and black children separately and the conditions in the two types of schools were very different.

2) In 1952, the Supreme Court under Chief Justice Earl Warren decided to hear a school case involving a suit by Reverend Oliver Brown against the school board in Topeka, Kansas. Because of the segregation system, Brown's daughter was forced to travel more than two miles to school, even though her home was only five blocks from an all-white grade school. On May 17,1954, the court read out the opinion, "We come then to the question presented: does segregation... deprive the children of the minority group of educational opportunities? We believe that it does."

3) pervasive: tending to widely exist

4) achievement gap: performance disparity in study

6. Legalized discrimination... to bequeath to future generations. (Para.29)

1) What is meant by "legalized discrimination"? The kind of discriminatory practices that are protected by law.

2) What legalized discrimination did the African Americans suffer? They were not allowed to have housing in some white areas; business loans or FHA (Federal Housing Administration) insured loans were denied on consideration of race, and unions and certain professions were not open to blacks.

3) could not amass any meaningful wealth: could not put aside or accumulate significant amounts of money or property (or enough money or property)

4) bequeath to future generations: to pass on to children or grandchildren

7. That history helps explain the wealth and income gap between blacks and whites.…(Para.29)

The existence of so many poor African Americans and the low pay they get compared with the whites is partly due to the existence of legalized discrimination.

8… the concentrated pockets of poverty that persist… communities. (Para.29)

This is also the reason you find people of extreme poverty crowded into small areas or slums, in cities and rural areas.

1) pocket: a small area of a specified type

2) persist: to continue to exist or prevail

9. A lack of economic opportunity... welfare policies for many years may have worsened. (Para.30) Black men's not being able to find a good job and feeling ashamed of not being able to support a family, was one of the reasons for the breaking up of families. And the benefit for a single-parent family has made the situation even worse.

1) Once again, the impersonal structure is used to lessen the pressure on black men. Obama did not mean to criticize these black men. He was only relating a fact.

2) erode: to cause to deteriorate or vanish

3) contributed to the erosion of black families: Note the way the idea is expressed, the use of “contribute" and "erosion" softens the bluntness of the statement─helped to bring about the breaking up of black families.

4) How could welfare policies worsen the deterioration of relations in black families?

Maybe the welfare support of single-parent families makes a black man think if he deserts the family, the family without him could still live on, or even live better.

10. And the lack of basic services... that continues to haunt us. (Para.30)

1) walk the beat: to walk along a fixed route on a round of duty

2) building code: a set of rules or regulations concerning construction of houses

3) blight: destruction or frustration of hope or ambition

4) a cycle of violence, blight and neglect: Indifference to the miserable conditions in urban black communities leads to frustration and loss of hope which in turn causes violence, one leading to the other and going round and round.

11. They came of age... systematically constricted. (Para.31)

1) come of age: to reach the age when one has full legal rights; often used figuratively for any arrival at maturity, one's prime, etc.

2) constrict; to limit, restrict; to make smaller or narrower through binding, squeezing or shrinking

3) They grew up and became mature in the late 1950s and early 1960s when racial segregation and racial discrimination were still strong and widespread, and opportunity was mostly denied to black youth. They grew up in such an atmosphere which contributed to the forming of their views toward the country and the society.

12. What's remarkable... who would come after them. (Para.31)

Obama here cleverly turned around his argument and gave the statement a positive note. The "not... but rather" structure succeeds in turning around the argument.

1) What was so remarkable about the situation? The remarkable thing was that many young black men and women, facing such strong segregation and discrimination, were not discouraged and disheartened. They struggled and surmounted difficulties and became successful. They walked a path out of the wilderness.

2) (the) odds: difficulties or conditions that make success unlikely

3) to make a way out of no way: Martin Luther King, Jr. in the speech "Where Do We Go from Here" delivered on August 16,1967, at Atlanta, Georgia had this; let us remember that there is…a power that is able to make a way out of no way and transform dark yesterdays into bright tomorrows". The concept is a biblical concept and Obama is using this concept to appeal to those who were listening

Paras. 32-33

32 But for all those who scratched and clawed their way to get a piece of the American Dream, there were many who didn't make it-those who were ultimately defeated, in one way or another, by discrimination. That legacy of defeat was passed on to future generations-those young men and increasingly young women who we see standing on street corners or languishing in our prisons, without hope or prospects for the future. Even for those blacks who did make it, questions of race, and racism, continue to define their world view in fundamental ways. For the men and women of Reverend Wright's generation, the memories of humiliation and doubt and fear have not gone away; nor has the anger and the bitterness of those years. That anger may not get expressed in public, in front of white co-workers or white friends. But it does find voice in the barbershop or the beauty shop or around the kitchen table. At times, that anger is exploited by politicians, to gin up votes along racial lines, or to make up for a politician's own failings.

33 And occasionally it finds voice in the church on Sunday morning, in the pulpit and in the pews. The fact that so many people are surprised to hear that anger in some of Reverend Wright's sermons simply reminds us of the old truism that the most segregated hour of American life occurs on Sunday morning. That anger is not always productive; indeed, all too often it distracts attention from solving real problems; it keeps us from squarely facing our own complicity within the African-American community in our own condition, and prevents the African-American community from forging the alliances it needs to bring about real change. But the anger is real; it is powerful; and to simply wish it away, to condemn it without understanding its roots, only serves to widen the chasm of misunderstanding that exists between the races.

Q1: What do these two paragraphs tell?

A1: They are on the black anger and its consequences.

Q2: How do you paraphrase the following knowledge points?

1. But for all those… in one way or another, by discrimination. (Para.32)

1) scratched and clawed: dug with one's nails and claws-fought really hard

2) make it: to succeed in a particular activity

3) out of those who worked or struggled very hard to climb the social ladder, many did not succeed. They were defeated in life's struggle, as a result of racial discrimination.

2. That legacy of defeat without hope or prospects for the future. (Para.32)

The fact of defeat and the cause of defeat made the younger generations feel they were doomed; no matter how hard they worked, they could not move ahead economically and socially. The fate of their elders was convincing enough. This could be seen in unemployed men and women on the street or criminals in prison.

1) increasingly young women: more and more young black women adopted such an attitude toward life, toward society

2) languish: to live under distressing conditions; to remain in a difficult or unpleasant situation for a long time

3) prospects: the possibility that something will happen, especially something good; the apparent chance for success

3. Even for those blacks who did make it... in fundamental ways. (Para.32)

Even for those blacks who were successful, they still viewed things through the lens of race and racism or determined their attitudes toward issues from the point of view of race and racism.

4. But it does find voice... kitchen table. (Para.32)

Views colored by race may come up at informal conversations at the barbershop where men may meet or over dinner among family members.

find voice; to express

5. At times...a politician's own failings. (Para.32)

Sometimes, when a politician wants black votes or wants to use the issue of race to compensate for his defects, he would make use of such anger in order to benefit from it.

1) at times; occasionally; sometimes

2) exploit: to use a situation so that you get benefit from it, even if it is wrong or unfair to do this

3) make up for: to provide something good, so that something bad seems less important; to compensate for

4) failing: slight fault or defect; weakness

6. And occasionally it finds voice in the church on Sunday morning, in the pulpit and in the pews.(Para.33)

And once in a while such sentiments are expressed in sermons and among church congregations, at Sunday morning black church services.

in the pulpit and in the pews: rhetorical devices of metonymy and alliteration.

"pulpit and pew" standing for the priest and the church congregations and the two words both start with "p."

7. The fact that... on Sunday morning. (Para.33)

1) truism: a statement the truth of which is obvious or well-known

2) Why is the statement an old truism? The place where the white and the black are most segregated is the church, when Christianity is supposed to say that all people are equal before God. Even when the churches are of the same denomination, black and white would go to separate churches.

8. That anger is not always productive... to bring about real change. (Para.33)

1) How does Obama view such anger? Why does he think this anger is harmful to the movement for real change? He thinks such anger is not productive and prevents real change because it moves our attention away from concentrating on solving real problems, makes us unable to see our fault in the tense race relations and prevents the black community from forming a united front with the white people in bringing about real change.

2) distract: to draw (attention) away in another direction

3) squarely: honestly, directly

4) complicity: partnership in wrongdoing

5) forge: to develop a successful relationship, especially in business or politics; to work hard to achieve something

9. But the anger is real... between the races. (Para.33)

1) What is the wrong attitude toward black anger? According to Obama the wrong attitude is to think it will disappear sometime in the future without doing anything to solve the problem, or to criticize such anger, saying it is wrong, without understanding how it was formed. Empty wishing without action and blind condemnation are both wrong, because they will only make existing misunderstanding even stronger.

2) wish away: to make something stop or disappear just by expressing a wish

3) chasm: a very big difference that separates one person or group from another

10. Paragraphs 27 to 33

Obama outlines the historical development of racial discrimination and the sufferings of the older generation. Then he pointed out that the anger is real though it may not be shown so often. One of the places it is shown is in black church services, in the sermons and in the response of the congregations. Obama is putting Wright's remarks in a broader picture-black experience, the black situation today and the hidden or suppressed anger.

Paras. 34－36

34 In fact, a similar anger exists within segments of the white community. Most working-and middle-class white Americans don't feel that they have been particularly privileged by their race. Their experience is the immigrant experience-as far as they' re concerned, no one handed them anything; they built it from scratch. They've worked hard all their lives, many times only to see their jobs shipped overseas or their pension dumped after a lifetime of labor. They are anxious about their futures, and feel their dreams slipping away; and in an era of stagnant wages and global competition, opportunity comes to be seen as a zero-sum game, in which your dreams come at my expense. So when they are told to bus their children to a school across town; when they hear an African American is getting an advantage in landing a good job or a spot in a good college because of an injustice that they themselves never committed; when they' re told that their fears about crime in urban neighborhoods are somehow prejudiced, resentment builds over time.

35 Like the anger within the black community, these resentments aren't always expressed in polite company. But they have helped shape the political landscape for at least a generation. Anger over welfare and affirmative action helped forge the Reagan Coalition. Politicians routinely exploited fears of crime for their own electoral ends. Talk show hosts and conservative commentators built entire careers unmasking bogus claims of racism while dismissing legitimate discussions of racial injustice and inequality as mere political correctness or reverse racism.

36 Just as black anger often proved counterproductive, so have these white resentments distracted attention from the real culprits of the middle-class squeeze-a corporate culture rife with inside dealing, questionable accounting practices, and short-term greed; a Washington dominated by lobbyists and special interests; economic policies that favor the few over the many. And yet, to wish away the resentments of white Americans, to label them as misguided or even racist, without recognizing they are grounded in legitimate concerns-this too widens the racial divide, and blocks the path to understanding.

Q1: What can be known from these paragraphs?

A1: They are on the white anger and its consequences.

Q2: What do you understand the following knowledge points?

1. In fact, a similar anger exists within segments of the white community. (Para.34)

This statement serves as a transition, leading to the analysis of the anger among certain segments of white America.

2. Most... by their race. (Para.34)

A majority of white Americans of working class or middle-class origin feel that their white skin has not brought them any benefit. The implication is that racial discrimination does not exist.

3. Their experience is... they built it from scratch. (Para.34)

1) Where do these white Americans come from? They are mainly immigrants or descendants of immigrants so they are viewing the issue from the experience of immigrants.

2）from scratch: from a point where nothing has been done，so you have to do everything yourself，从零开始

3）they've built it from scratch: Note the use of "it" here；"it" does not refer to anything particular，maybe life，living in general. They succeed in establishing themselves in American society all through their own effort.

4.They are anxious...at my expense. （Para.34）

1）anxious: uneasy in mind，worried

2）future: what will happen，what is going to be

3）slip away: to move quickly without attracting notice

4）zero sum game: a specific contest in which a gain for one must result in an equal loss for another or others

5）at my expense；with the loss borne by me

6）As a result white Americans are very much worried about their future，feeling that their American dream is coming to an end，feeling hopeless and helpless. So they have a hostile attitude toward those whom they consider their competitors.

5. So when they are told…resentment builds over time. （Para.34）

Busing，affirmative action and security are raised here. This is what many whites call reverse discrimination. They feel they are made responsible for slavery which had nothing to do with them，which they never practiced.

1）land:（informal）to get，win or secure

2）spot:（informal）position，situation，job

3）build: Compare the word in two sentences: "They've built it from scratch." And “Resentment builds over time". The first "build" means “to create or develop" and the second means "to increase in amount，force，etc.”

4）resentment builds over time: A feeling of indignation from a sense of being harmed gradually grows in amount and intensity.

6. Like the anger...in polite company. （Para.35）

polite company: people you should behave politely towards，people of a high social lass. "Company” are people you are with.

7. But they have helped shape the political landscape for at least a generation.（Para.35）

By the end of the 1970s，liberalism had run its course and people felt that it could no longer solve domestic and foreign policy issues. People blamed this on affirmative action and on social welfare and they were worried about crime and refused to discuss racial inequality. People demanded change. This led to the election of Reagan and the dominance of conservatism for more than 25 years.

This is the "political landscape" that Obama refers to.

1）shape: to influence the way a person，idea，or situation develops

2）political landscape: the main features of the political situation

8. Politicians routinely exploited fears of crime for their own electoral ends.

（Para.35）

How could politicians link crime up with the blacks？Since the unemployment rate and school dropouts were higher among black youth and there were biased media reports about the crime rate among black youth，it would be easy for politicians to put the blame on blacks and appeal to white people with pent-up resentment.

9.Talk show hosts.…or reverse racism. （Para.35）

1）talk show host：访谈节目主持人

2）bogus: not genuine；very careful imitation and always implies intent to deceive

3）unmask: to discover the real truth about somebody or something especially when it is bad；to discover the true nature of；to expose

4）political correctness；statements conforming or adhering to what is regarded as orthodox liberal opinion on matters of sexuality，race，etc.，usually used disparagingly to connote dogmatism，excessive sensibility to minority causes，etc.

5）reverse racism: Here it means racism against the whites.

6）Talk show hosts and conservative commentators became famous through exposing so-called incidents of racism which were in fact not true. They said that reasonable discussions of unfair treatment of minorities were catering to excessive sensibility to minority causes or were racism against the whites.

10. Just as black anger often proved counterproductive...that favor the few over the many. （Para.36）

In Paragraph 33，in talking about black anger，Obama says，"That anger is not always productive；indeed，all too often it distracts attention from solving real problems.” But he also points out that if you handle it in a wrong way it would widen "the chasm of misunderstanding" Then Obama moves on to discuss white anger and points out the problem，" these white resentments distracted attention from the real culprits of the middle-class squeeze". But he also says that if you handle it wrongly，it would block the path to understanding.

The argument is that black anger and white anger are real and powerful. If people fail to understand the cause of such anger and fail to handle this anger properly，misunderstanding will increase and this will play into the hands of selfish，biased politicians.

1）counterproductive: bringing about effects or results regarded as contrary to those intended；having the opposite result to the one intended

2）culprit: a person guilty of a crime or offense；someone who is responsible for doing something bad or illegal，罪魁祸首

3）squeeze：a period or situation marked by scarcity，hardship，insecurity，.etc.

4）corporate culture：企业文化

5）rife: abundant

6）lobbyist: a person acting for a special interest group，who tries to influence the introduction of or voting on legislation or the decisions of government administrators

7）According to Obama，what are the real culprits that put the middle class in a difficult situation？They are the wrong practices of big corporations，a government following the urge of special interests and an economic policy which favors the rich.

11. And yet…blocks the path to understanding. （Para.36）

If you think such anger will disappear by good wishes，if you regard such anger as being racist without acknowledging that the concern behind the anger is justifiable，then misunderstanding will increase and the division between the whites and the blacks will grow.

1）label: to classify as；to describe

2）misguide: to lead into error；to mislead

3）ground: to base（a claim，argument）on something specified

4）divide: a division

5）block: to create difficulty for progress；to obstruct

Para. 37

37 This is where we are right now. It's a racial stalemate we've been stuck in for years. Contrary to the claims of some of my critics, black and white, I have never been so naive as to believe that we can get beyond our racial divisions in a single election cycle, or with a single candidacy-particularly a candidacy as imperfect as my own.

Q1: What can be known from this paragraph?

A1: It summarizes the current situation.

Q2: What do you understand the following knowledge point?

1.This is where we are right now. It’s a racial stalemate we've been stuck in for years. （Para.37）

This is a summing-up of the racial situation in the U.S. today. And this situation has lasted for many years. The anger of the blacks and the resentment of the whites are not groundless. Both groups have legitimate concerns. Yet their anger is directed toward the wrong targets，thus hampering the solution of the issues causing such anger. Neither side has come to see the problem. So a racial deadlock exists，

1) stalemate: any unresolved situation in which further action is impossible or useless; deadlock

2) stick: to become embedded and immovable