THE MILLION POUND BANK NOTE
ACT 1, SCENE3
Narrator: Two rich brothers, Roderick and Oliver, have made a bet. Oliver believes that with a millionpound bank note a man could live a month in London. His brother Roderick doubts it. They see a poor young man walking outside their house. It is Henry Adams.
Roderick: Young man, would you step inside a moment, please?
Henry: Who? Me, sir?
Roderick: Yes, you.
Servant: (opening a door) Good morning, sir. Would you please come in?
(Henry enters the house.)
Roderick: How do you do, Mr...er...?
Henry: Adams. Henry Adams.
Oliver: Come and sit down, Mr. Adams.
Henry: Thank you.
Roderick: You’re an American?
Henry: That’s right, from San Francisco.
Roderick: May we ask what you’re doing in this country and what your plans are?
Henry: Well, I can’t say that I have any plans. As a matter of fact, I landed in Britain by accident.
Oliver: How is that possible?
Henry: Well, I had my own boat. About a month ago, I was sailing, and towards night I found myself carried out to sea by a strong wind. The next morning I was spotted by a ship.
Oliver: And it was the ship that brought you to England.
Henry: Yes. I went to the American consulate to seek help, but...Anyway, I didn’t dare to try again. (The brothers smile at each other.)
Roderick: Well, you mustn’t worry about that. It’s an advantage.
Henry: I’m afraid I don’t quite follow you, sir.
Roderick: Tell us, what sort of work did you do in America?
Henry: I worked for a mining company. Could you offer me work here?
Roderick: Patience. If you don’t mind, may I ask you how much money you have?
Henry: Well, to be honest, I have none.
Oliver: (happily) What luck! Brother, what luck!
Henry: Well, it may seem lucky to you but not to me! If this is your idea of some kind of joke, I don’t think it’s very funny. Now if you’ll excuse me, I ought to be on my way.
Roderick: Please don’t go. You mustn’t think we don’t care about you, Oliver, give him the letter.
Oliver: Yer, I was about to go get the letter.
Wait！(getting it from a desk and giving it to Henry) The letter.
Henry: (taking it carefully) For me?
Roderick: For you. (Henry starts to open it.) Oh, no, you’d better not open it. You can’t open it until two o’clock.
Henry: Oh, this is silly.
Roderick: Not silly. There’s money in it.
Henry: Oh, no. I don’t want your charity. I just want a job that earns an honest income.
Roderick: We know you’re hardworking. That’s why we’ve given you the letter. (to the servant) Show Mr. Adams out.
Henry: Well, why don’t you explain what this is all about?
Roderick: You’ll soon know. In exactly an hour and a half.
Servant: This way, sir.
Roderick: Not until 2 o’clock. Promise?
Henry: Promise. Goodbye.
1. Look at the pictures and discuss the following questions with your classmates.
If you have a million pound bank note, what would you do with it?
2. How many characters are there in the play? Who are they?
There are
3. What happened to Henry when he was sailing out of the bay?
| A．His boat sank in a storm at sea. |
| B．He was carried out to sea by a strong wind. |
| C．He was attacked by some bad men at sea. |
| D．He jumped into the sea to kill himself. |
| A．Henry was penniless |
| B．he himself was rich while Henry not |
| C．Henry was not English |
| D．Henry was an American |
| A．Brave. | B．Honest. |
| C．Lazy. | D．Shy. |
| A．Henry promised to open the letter before 2 o’clock. |
| B．The two brothers would like to offer him a job. |
| C．Roderick believed that with a millionpound bank note a man could survive a month in London. |
| D．Henry only wanted a job because he was penniless in London. |
| A．Henry comes from the USA. |
| B．He worked for a mining company in America. |
| C．He arrives in England as planned. |
| D．He wants to find work in London. |
| Place | at the brothers’ | |
| Main characters | Henry Adams | ●He is a(n) ●He is ●He wants to |
| Roderick and Oliver | ●They are ●They ●They ask Henry a few ●They give Henry a letter with | |
| Event | The brothers are making a | |
9. 教材对接高考：续写微技能——情态动词表达情感变化
A.写出句中的情态动词并体会其表达的情感
(1) Young man,
(2)
(3) Well, I
(4) Well, you
B.在课文中找出表示情绪变化的含有情态动词的句子
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
John had not much affection for his mother and sisters, and an
| A．dislike | B．preference | C．delight | D．favour |
| A．occasionally | B．rarely | C．repeatedly | D．regularly |
| A．surprised | B．confused | C．distracted | D．inspired |
| A．playing my role | B．attending me | C．siding with me | D．ignoring me |
| A．comfort | B．motivate | C．praise | D．ill-treat |
A. Unlike many other AAC applications, Freespeech’s buttons are easily editable, a feature Archer believed was important to how Della wanted to communicate. It wasn't long before the Calder family noticed a change in how Della was able to communicate with them.
B. Archer, therefore, began using his coding (编程) abilities to help his sister communicate. The boy developed a web-based application called Freespeech. The site can be accessed from any device --phones, tablets and computers -- with Internet access. The simple website lets users program buttons with pictures of their choice to represent words. When clicked, the word is sounded out loud.
C. Archer made his website free for anyone to use and posted it on TikTok, hoping it might reach other families like his who might find it useful.
D. “In the past, when we had to go somewhere, we just took her. She never really discussed it with us,” the father said. “Freespeech has really helped to bring her more into the conversation and more into the life of our family." The family says it has also helped them discover more of her personality.
E. Della, Archer Calder’s sister, has Bainbridge-Ropers syndrome, a condition which affects her ability to speak. In her early teens, she was introduced to augmentative and alternative (增强型和替代型) communication (AAC) applications, programs designed to help people who have trouble with speech or language skills. Some applications were quite expensive, but her family was disappointed with the results.
A. Unfortunately, during one of her challenging workouts, Emily suffered an injury. She had to shift her focus from intense physical activities to leisurely exercises that allowed her body to recover.
B. Emily was a senior high school student with a passion for sports. She had always been participating in various sports in secondary school. With a busy schedule, she would wake up early in the morning and hit the gym before her classes started. This routine not only helped her stay fit but also improved her confidence and competence.
C. As she gradually regained her strength, Emily revised her workout schedule and aimed for a balanced lifestyle. She started doing yoga for stress reduction. She attended regular class and set achievable goals, making sure to listen to her body.
D. During her recovery period, Emily turned to the Internet for guidance. As a digital native, she knew how to surf the Internet to find expert advice on staying fit during downtime. Meanwhile, she joined a voluntary organization that offered fitness programs for people with injuries. She connected with other injured athletes and found support in their shared experiences.
E. Emily’s journey showed the importance of adaptability in sports and fitness. Setbacks were not the end but rather an opportunity to grow and strengthen oneself both physically and mentally.
One day a famous teacher was walking with his student. On the way, they saw a lake. They stopped and the teacher told the student, “I’m thirsty. Get me some water from that lake.”
Just when the student reached the lake, a cow was walking in the lake. So the water became very dirty. He thought, “I can’t give the dirty water to my teacher!”
He came back and told the teacher, “The water is very dirty. We can’t drink it.” After about half an hour, the teacher asked the student to get some water again. So he went back to the lake.
But the lake was still dirty. So he told the teacher the same thing. After some time, the teacher asked him to go back again. But this time, he found the water was clear. The mud (泥) in the water came to the bottom. So he got some water.
The teacher looked at the water and said to him, “You did nothing to make the water clear. You just let it be... Your mind is also like that! When it is bothered (被打扰), just let it be. Give it some time.”
1. One day the teacher asked his student to get some water to drink.2. The water in the lake became very dirty because the cow was walking in the lake.
3. The student only went to the lake twice.
4. The teacher made the dirty water clear.
5. The story tells us that we should do nothing when our mind is bothered.
I’m a gift-giver. I always have been, especially at Christmas. There s nothing more exciting than shopping for the people I love, then watching them open the present that’s perfect for them.
But this year I was afraid there’d be no shopping. It was a few weeks before Christmas and I sat at my kitchen table staring at my checkbook. Bills had left me with next to nothing in my gift budget. There were a dozen people on my list—my husband, Frank, our son, my sister, nieces, nephews (basketball lovers).
The newspaper was on the table next to me. I read it, and an article about a weekend estate (财产) sale practically stood out on the page. I decided to check it out, so I wrote down the address. I turned the page. There, in the middle, was an ad for the Goodwill Store. On the next? A garage sale listing. After that, one for a thrift (节俭) shop.
That weekend I drove over to the estate sale. First I looked through the living room. There was antique furniture, tables crowded with vases and lamps. Nothing caught my eye. I walked over to an office area and looked at some electronics. Nothing there either. Another room had beautiful artworks, but everything was out of my price range. “Maybe this is a waste of time,” I thought, wandering into the kitchen. A table loaded with lace handkerchiefs for a dollar apiece. My sister collected handkerchiefs!
The race was on! The next day I hit the Goodwill. I found a men’s designer dress shirt, in just the right size for my hard-to-fit son, still with original packs, for just a few dollars. A couple of days later I discovered a beautiful necklace with an unusual stone in the center. Just the thing for my fashionable niece! Next up were the garage sales. There were two terrific finds for my husband, Frank: a CD of Oklahoma’s centennial anniversary celebrations and a movie featuring Andy Griffith, his favorite actor.
“Have you bought anything for yourself?” Frank asked one afternoon when I came home with more packages.
1. 阅读短文，完成下面的表格(每空一词)5W | Details |
When | A few weeks before |
Where | A |
Who | The |
Why | To buy |
What | Perfect presents with the limited gift |
But I went to the thrift shop the next day.
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Not only did I have special gifts for everyone on my list,
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“Every cloud has a silver lining.” It drives me crazy when Mom says nonsense (废话) like that.
I’d barely had time to arrange myself in the passenger seat, my foot already blown up like a balloon when she came out with it, exactly like I knew she would. First, she patted my leg. Then she just couldn’t help herself, “Every cloud has a silver lining, you know, sweetheart.” “Mom, I appreciate the thought, but I’m not ready to look on the bright side of this.” We hadn’t even left the school parking lot yet.
On the farthest side of the field, I could see my teammates doing sprint training, Coach Zito striding back toward them. He’d mercifully helped me to the car in silence. Unlike Mom, he knew when it was best to say nothing.
As Mom started the engine, I imagined my teammates cooling down without me while they listened to Coach Zito’s pep talk. And next Thursday, they would go to practice without me, and the Thursday after that. When I had fallen and twisted my ankle, I’d cried from the pain, but I was crying out of self-pity in the car. Hours and hours of training， and then this. I told myself there was a glimmer (微光) of hope that everything would turn out okay, and that I’d make it to the track meet next month, but I knew it was just that: a glimmer. The tears fell hot and fast. Mom gave me a weak smile. “It’ll be okay, Casey.“ I suspected this was another version of the silver lining thing, but I felt so miserable that I let it pass.
We finally arrived at the hospital. Doctor Van gently moved my ankle around a bit before carefully lowering it. I nervously asked how long it would be before I could run. “Four weeks maybe, possibly five, “he replied. “And even then, you’ll need to take it easy for a while. Is that possible?” he asked with a smile.
I couldn’t answer.
One month later, I made my appearance on the field.
| A．Five weeks meant little chance for me to the track meet. Looking down at my swollen foot, I wept bitter tears, knowing my last glimmer of hope was fading. As usual, Mom patted me on the shoulder and said with a smile, “sweetheart, every cloud...”“No...”I interrupted her impatiently. Life seemed dull and meaningless, but touched by Mom’s great help, I regained my confidence and was back on my feet. Amazingly, I began to practice running soon. |
| B．I was lying calmly on the bed. Seeing my mother come into the ward (病房)，I greeted her with a smile. When she asked what happened, I told her I was not going to play sports anymore. After hearing my words about the accident, she was quite surprised how I could still remain so optimistic. I patted my mom on the shoulder and comfort her. In my view, it is a great opportunity to have a good rest and rethink about my future life. |
| C．I saw my doctor carrying the medical bag and waiting for me. He explained, “I came here to see my patient. “The delighted man warmly welcomed me, asking me whether I conducted a thorough examination and suggested appropriate following-up care. I thanked him with gratitude. Before he left, my mother came, asking,” How did you know to come to see my son? I didn’t call!” |
| D．All my teammates were absolutely astonished at my quick recovery, not believing their eyes. “OH, boy! What a miracle!” My coach Zito looked at me in disbelief. To tell them everything was okay, I kicked, jumped and ran in front of them. Seeing this, they all burst out laughing. Later, I went to practice with them and participated in the track meet. From then on, whenever I encountered difficulties, Mom’s encouraging words “Every cloud has a silver lining” always rang in my ears. |
A. They were to advise people who were used to gas lighting not to light the electricity with a match.
B. There were many cases where people had no idea how to use new technologies, causing embarrassment (尴尬) in the would-be user and amusement in the observer.
C. Seeing this, her husband asked her what she was doing. She replied, “Shaking the tape. It says on the tape ‘Shake before use’”. Her husband told her the name of the film was “Shake Before Use”!
D. At the turn of the 20th century, when electricity was set up in many homes, signs were placed on the wall next to the light-switches.
E. Then when videos first came on the market, a woman, who had never seen a videotape (录影带) before, took one tape out of the box and began shaking it violently.
1. I have often thought it would be a blessing if each human being were stricken blind and deaf for a few days at some time during his early adult life. Darkness would make him more appreciative of sight; silence would teach him the joys of sound.
2. Now and then I have tested my seeing friends to discover what they see. Recently, I asked a friend who had just returned from a long walk in the woods what she had observed. “Nothing in particular,” she replied.
3. How was it possible, I asked myself, to walk for an hour through the woods and see nothing worthy of note? I who cannot see find hundreds of things to interest me through mere touch. If I can get so much pleasure from touch, how much more beauty must be revealed by sight? And I have imagined what I should most like to see if I were given the use of my eyes, say for just three days.
4. On the first day, I should want to see the people whose kindness and gentleness and companionship have made my life worth living. I do not know what it is to see into the heart of a friend through that “window of the soul”, the eye. I can only “see” through my fingertips the outline of a face. I should like to see the books which have been read to me, and which have revealed to me the deepest channels of human life and the human spirit. In the afternoon I should take a long walk in the woods and intoxicate my eyes on the beauties of the world of nature. That night, I should not be able to sleep.
5. On my second day, I should like to see the pageant of man’s progress, and I should go to the museums. I should try to probe into the soul of man through his art. The things I knew through touch I should now see. The evening of my second day I should spend at a theater or at the movies.
10 . It was an accident. I brought a salad to a holiday party and the hostess gave me back the wrong spoon. It looked out of fashion, with a tiny snowflake engraved(刻)on the handle, unclean, nearly dull from use.
My home was lacking in teaspoons since my four-year-old son had a habit of clearing tableware(餐具)into the litter after meals and I lacked money for new spoons. So I held onto the spoon.
My two kids like arguing over everything and anything. I wasn’t happy about telling them to use the snowflake spoon. The moment it hit the placemat(餐具垫), it got a sideways look from my daughter Veronica, then six. “This isn’t ours,” she said.
I held it up like an exhibit. “Listen,” I said. “This is a special spoon. See the magic snowflake? Isn’t it cute?” I placed it in front of her. “I want you to use it.”
Next thing you know, four-year-old Louis asked why he didn’t get the special spoon. After that, the kids had to take turns eating with the special spoon. Years into negotiations over who got to use the special spoon, I finally admitted to the kids: enough already. It’s not actually special. I only said that so you wouldn’t refuse it in favor of our other teaspoons. But I was too late. By then, the snowflake spoon had gained its place in the drawer.
When my family condition improved, I brought home some new spoons. “What are you going to do with the old one?” asked Veronica. “It is special, and you’re not throwing it away,” she said. I felt deeply moved. At that moment, I realized I’ve created words that will bring unforgettable memories for my kids. I created “The Special Spoon”.
(以下是A种题型)
1. What can we learn about the special spoon?
| A．It was new when the author got it. |
| B．It was given to the author by mistake. |
| C．It was intended as a gift for the author. |
| D．It was loved by the daughter at first sight. |
| A．The spoon was refused by Veronica. |
| B．The spoon was thrown into the drawer. |
| C．The kids believed and competed for it. |
| D．The kids thought it was nothing special. |
| A．It was valued by the two kids. |
| B．It was replaced by the new ones. |
| C．It made the author richer and richer. |
| D．It inspired the author to create more spoons. |
| A．The Story 1 Told About the Special Spoon |
| B．Why I Lied to My Kids About the Spoon |
| C．The Most Beautiful Spoon I Have Ever Got |
| D．How I Created a Little Magic for My Family |
(以下是B种题型)
5. Why did the author lack spoons?
6. What was Veronica’s attitude towards the spoon at the beginning?
7. What does the underlined word “negotiations” in paragraph 5 mean in English?
8. What did the Special Spoon bring to the author’s family?
