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Children who play truant from school are unimaginative.
逃学的孩子通常缺乏想象力。
开头先下判断，为后文“例外”做铺垫。
A quiet day's fishing, or eight hours in a cinema seeing the same film over and over again, is usually as far as they get.
他们通常能够做到的，至多也就是安静地钓上一天鱼，或在电影院里坐上8个小时，一遍遍地看同一部电影。
They have all been put to shame by a boy who, while playing truant, travelled 1,600 miles.
但一个在逃学期间旅行了1600英里的男孩，让他们都相形见绌。
put to shame 表示“让……羞愧、自愧不如”。
He hitchhiked to Dover and, towards evening, went into a boat to find somewhere to sleep.
他搭便车到了多佛，天快黑时钻进了一条船，想找个地方睡觉。
When he woke up next morning, he discovered that the boat had, in the meantime, travelled to Calais.
第二天早上他醒来时，发现船在这段时间已经到了加。
No one noticed the boy as he crept off.
当男孩从船里爬出来时，谁也没有发现他。
From there, he hitchhiked to Paris in a lorry.
从那里，他又搭上一辆卡车去了巴黎。
in a lorry 交代交通工具变化。
The driver gave him a few biscuits and a cup of coffee and left him just outside the city.
司机给了他几块饼干和一杯咖啡，就把他丢在了城外。
The next car the boy stopped did not take him into the centre of Paris as he hoped it would, but to Perpignan on the French-Spanish border.
接下来他拦下的车并没有像他希望的那样把他送到巴黎市中心，而是把他带到了法西边境的佩皮尼昂。
not...but... 构成路线反转；as he hoped it would 补出心理预期。
There he was picked up by a policeman and sent back to England by the local authorities.
他在那儿被一个警察抓住了，之后被当局送回了英国。
He has surely set up a record for the thousands of children who dream of evading school.
他无疑给成千上万梦想逃学的孩子创下了一项纪录。
结尾回扣标题，也回到作者调侃语气。
单元概要
本课写一个逃学男孩阴差阳错一路从英国漂到法国边境，创下“逃学旅行纪录”。重点不是赞美逃学，而是通过一连串意外路线显示这个孩子的“想象力”远超一般逃学生。
精读导图 1. 先拿普通逃学生作对比。 2. 再写这个男孩一路误打误撞跨海越境。 3. 最后在被警察送回英国中完成“纪录保持者”式讽刺结尾。 精读关注 - hitchhike / put to shame - 路线不断偏离预期的反差
单词表
| 单词 | 音标 | 释义 | 精讲 |
|---|---|---|---|
| record-holder | /ˈrekɔːd həʊldə(r)/ | 纪录保持者 |
|
| truant | /ˈtruːənt/ | 逃学者 |
|
| unimaginative | /ˌʌnɪˈmædʒɪnətɪv/ | 缺乏想象力的 |
|
| hitchhike | /ˈhɪtʃhaɪk/ | 搭便车 |
|
| meantime | /ˈmiːntaɪm/ | 其间 |
|
| lorry | /ˈlɒri/ | 卡车 |
|
| border | /ˈbɔːdə(r)/ | 边界 |
|
| evade | /ɪˈveɪd/ | 逃避 |
|
短语
| 短语 | 意思 |
|---|---|
| play truant from school | 逃学 |
| put ... to shame | 让……自愧不如 |
| in the meantime | 在这期间 |
| pick up | 带走；抓住 |
| set up a record | 创下一项纪录 |
| dream of doing | 梦想做某事 |
语法点
while doing 的伴随背景
while playing truant 表示“在逃学期间”，让主线更紧凑。
相似句：
- He lost his wallet while travelling abroad.
- She met him while studying in Paris.
过去完成时交代更早动作
the boat had travelled to Calais 表示他醒来之前船已到达。
相似句：
- The train had left before we reached the station.
- She had finished breakfast when I called.
not ... but ... 的路线反转
did not take him... but to Perpignan 突出旅程不断偏离原计划。
相似句：
- The bus went not to the village, but to the town.
- He wanted tea, not coffee.
读写提示
- 复述时要写清路线变化，不然“纪录感”出不来。
- 这课的语气带调侃，不要当成正面励志旅行故事。
- 作者先总后分的结构很清晰，可以模仿。
- 结尾被送回英国这一步很关键，它让故事闭环。
考点
4
考点
4第 1 / 4 题
为什么作者一开始说逃学孩子都缺乏想象力？