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Unit 5. Love is a Fallacy. Max Shulman. Lecturer: Meng Fanyan. Teaching Objectives. To have a basic knowledge of the terms in logic To appreciate the humor in the story To analyze the structure of the story To appreciate the language. Teaching Contents. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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Unit 5
Lecturer: Meng FanyanLecturer: Meng Fanyan
Teaching Objectives
To have a basic knowledge of the terms in logic
To appreciate the humor in the story
To analyze the structure of the story
To appreciate the language
Teaching Contents
Background Information Introduction to the passage Detailed study of the text The chief attraction of the story Language features Exercises
Max Shulman (1919-1988)
one of American best-known and prolific humorists
a writer of many talents He has written novels, stories,
Broadway plays, and television scripts
Masterpieces Barefoot Boy With Cheek( 无礼的赤脚少年) The Feather Merchant (衣冠楚楚的商人) Rally Round the Flag, Boys (孩子们,团结
在旗帜周围吧) Dobie Gillis (TV series) (多比 · 吉尔斯)
His writing often focused on young people, particularly in a collegiate setting.
His book "Barefoot Boy With Cheek," became a musical comedy and ran on Broadway in 1947.
He is probably best remembered for his creation of the character "Dobie Gillis", who was the subject of a series of short stories compiled under the title The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis.
Shulman died of cancer in Los Angeles in 1988.
Logic The Concise Oxford English
Dictionary defines logic as “the science of reasoning, proof, thinking, or inference”.
Logic will let you analyze an argument or a piece of reasoning, and work out whether it is likely to be correct or not.
Logic
It is a science that deals with the principles and criteria of validity of inference and demonstration.
the science of the formal principles of reasoning
Special Terms in Logic
Argument (论证) Fallacy ( 谬误 )
Argument (论证) a statement which is offered as an
evidence or a proof consisting of two major elements
(What are they?)
argument
premises
conclusion
Argument Premises -- a previous statement
serving as a basis for an argument Conclusion--drawn from premises
Usually, an argument is correct (deductively valid) if the premises can provide enough conclusive evidence for the conclusion. Otherwise the argument is wrong. It is said to be fallacious.
Fallacy
false reasoning (as in an argument) a weakness and lack of logic
Material fallacy (内容/材料谬误) Verbal fallacy (话语谬误) Logical/formal fallacy (形式谬误)
fallacy
Material fallacy
Verbal fallacy
Formal fallacy
Three kinds of fallacies
1. material fallacy --- in its material content through a misstatement of the facts.
Material fallacies are mistakes in reasoning that attempt to support their conclusions with faulty or inadequate evidence. (Definition)
2. verbal fallacy --- in its wording through an incorrect use of terms.
3. formal fallacy --- in its structure through the use of an improper process of inference.
Fallacies
1) Dicto Simpliciter ( 绝对判断的谬误 ) 2) Hasty Generalization ( 草率结论的谬
误 ) 3) Post hoc ( 牵强附会的谬误 ) 4) False Analogy ( 错误类比 )
Fallacies 5)Evading the issue (Ad
Misericordiam) ( 文不对题 ) 6) Contradictory Premises (矛盾前
提) 7) Hypothesis Contrary to fact (与事实
相反的假设) 8) Poisoning the well ( 井里投毒)
Dicto Simpliciter ( 绝对判断的谬误 )
"Everyone wants to get married some day."
--- The example starts a logical train of thought with an assumption that is false. Not "everyone" wants to get married.
Watching TV is a waste of time. Money always brings happiness.
unqualified generalization
Hasty Generalization ( 草率结论的谬误 )
"Mr Wang's handwriting is terrible. Mr. Hu's handwriting is also terrible and you know how terrible men's handwriting is."
--- It applies a special case to general rule. That fact that certain person's handwriting is bad doesn't imply that all men’s handwriting is bad.
Post hoc ( 牵强附会的谬误 ) "The last five times that I've worn my
white pants, something depressing has happened. I'm not going to wear those pants again!"
--- This fallacy assumes that if event Y happened after event X, then X must be the cause of Y.
False Analogy ( 错误类比 ) "High school should not require a
freshman writing course. Harvard doesn't require a freshman writing course, and the students get along fine without it".
--- The analogy is false because the two items don't have strong enough similarities to predict that what happens in one will happen in the other.
Evading the issue ( 文不对题 ) “This is a great restaurant : you can see
how shining and clean the kitchens are ". --- The example is called distraction
because the reader's attention is drawn to the cleanness of the kitchen instead of to the excellence of the food, which is usually the determiner of a great restaurant.
Evading the issue ( 文不对题 )
" Ms Bauer is a terrible English teacher. She always wears blue jeans."
--- Instead of pointing out faults in teaching technique, it calls attention to things about a teacher as a person that are unrelated to her teaching performance.
Introduction to the Passage 1. Type of Writing:
a witty mix between essay and fiction
This work proves that love is not logical.
2. Main characters
Dobie Gillis---protagonist Petey Burch---antagonist Polly Espy---antagonist
Question: How were you impressed by the
three characters at the first reading of the story?
(Discussion)
Main characteristics
Dobie Gillis intelligent/keen/calculating/
perspicacious/acute/astute self-important/conceited/pompous/
arrogant/smug cool, logical
Petey Burch: as dumb as an ox; emotional;
unstable; stupid; faddist Polly Espy
beautiful; gracious; unintelligent; empty-headed
3. The main idea
It is about a law student who tries to marry the girl after suitable re-education, but he’s been too clever for his own good. He has really got what he deserved.
聪明反被聪明误
The narrator of the story, Dobie Gillis, a freshman in a law school, is the protagonist. He struggles against two antagonists: Petey Burch, his roommate whose girl friend he plans to steal; and Polly Espy, the girl he intends to marry after suitable re-education.
4. Theme of the passage Love is a fallacy. (stated in the
title)
Really?
Title: humorous, well-chosen Meaning of the Title:
1) There is a deceptive or delusive (false) quality about love.
2) Love cannot be deduced from a set of given premises.
3) Love is an error, a deception and an emotion that does not follow the principles of logic.
5. Organization (Discussion)
Part 1: (paras. 1-3) the author’s note Part 2: (paras. 4-59) the bargain and the
deal between the law student and his roommate over the exchange of the girl
Part 3 (paras. 60-124) the teachings of 8 logical fallacies or the dating with the girl
Part 4 (paras. 125-154) the backfiring of all the arguments
paras. 4-59: beginning paras. 60-124: development paras. 125-154: climax and end
Climax (Where?) The climax of the story is reached at
the part of Paras.147-150 when Polly refuses to go steady with the narrator because she had already promised to go steady with Petey Burch. Then the story moves rapidly to the end on a very ironic note.
6. Language features American colloquialism Informal style (short, elliptical
sentences, dashes, etc.) Rhetorical devices Sharp contrast in the language
(ultra and learned; clipped and vulgar) Inverted sentences
Effect of language
Informal; Humorous; Colorful; Vivid
Question for discussion: Chief attraction: Humor How does the author achieve
the effect of humor?
Title; His note; Contrast; Ending of the story; Name of the character Petey (pity)
Part 1
Paras. 1-3 It’s the author’s note The author’s idea about this story
Charles Lamb (1775-1834)
English essayist and critic Pseudonym: Elia He is now best known for his Essays of
Elia ( 伊利亚随笔集) and Dream’s Children.
He collaborated with his sister Mary in adapting Shakespeare's plays into stories for children.
“Tales from Shakespeare” “莎士比亚故事集”
Question Why does the author mention
Charles Lamb? For what purpose? --- Making a comparison. He tries to
indicate the following piece of writing is even more informal than those of Charles Lamb’s.
enterprising: full of energy and initiative; willing to undertake new projects 有进取心的;有魄力实施新计划的
month of Sundays: (infml.) an indefinitely long period of time
unfetter: free from fetters (脚镣;桎梏); loosen the chains that bond; free from restraint of any kind; liberate; let sth. go freely / be completely out of control
Metaphor ( to make the essay informal)
Paraphrase
- Charles Lamb is a very merry and enterprising person. You will meet such a person only after a long time.
- He wrote the essays “Old China” and “Dream’s Children” that set free the informal essay.
There follows an informal essay that ventures even beyond Lamb’s frontier.
Metaphor Comparing the limitations set by Lamb to
a frontier - The informal essay that follows here is
even much freer than the one Charles Lamb wrote.
specific characteristics of his essay
limp: drooping; lacking firmness flaccid: soft, flabby; hanging in loose
folds spongy: like a sponge; soft and porous The author is joking, not serious. He gives the readers a suspense to
evoke their strong eagerness to read the essay.
Could Carlyle do more? Could Ruskin? (Rhetorical question)
Implied meaning: My writing is even more informal. I
can do better than them.
Thomas Carlyle ( 1795-1881) English author, Scottish writer He influenced social thinking about the
new industrial working class through his essay "Chartism" and his book “The Present and the Past”.
He is best known for his epic history of “The French Revolution” (1837)
John Ruskin (1819-1900) English critic and social theorist a writer on art and architecture In his later writings he attacked social
and economic problems. Modern Painters The Stones of Venice The Seven Lamps of Architecture Time and Tide
…logic, far from being a dry, pedantic discipline, is a living, breathing thing, full of beauty, passion, and trauma.
Metaphor & Hyperbole Comparing logic to a living human being Exaggerating for the sake of effect
It isn’t as though I was in love with Polly…or going steady….
Petey Burch is trying to rationalize his action. He is trying to find an excuse to justify his action. In his mind he has decided to accept the coat and give up Polly. Since he was not in love nor going steady with Polly, it wouldn’t be wrong to give her up to his roommate in exchange for the coat.
What’s Polly to me , or me to Polly? Parody ( 仿拟 ) What’s Hecuba to him or he to
Hecuba that he shold weep for her?
(Hamlet)
仿拟( Parody )
仿拟是英语语言学分支修辞学的重要修辞手法。这是一种巧妙、机智而有趣的修辞格。它有意仿照人们熟知的现成的语言材料,如成语、谚语、明言、警句等,通过联想、类比方式,根据表达的需要临时创造出新的语、句、篇来,以使语言生动活泼,或讽刺嘲弄,或幽默诙谐,妙趣昂然。典型格式是“本体”和“仿体”一起出现。
仿拟可以分为仿词 , 仿语 , 仿句和仿篇 . 如 :Lady Hermits---Down But Not Out. ( 潦而不倒的女隐士们 )
它仿拟的是习语 down and out( 贫困潦倒 ); To Lie or Not To Lie, that is a question. 它仿拟的是莎士比亚名著哈姆雷特的名句: To be or not to be, that is a question.
It’s just been a casual kick– just a few laughs, that’s all.
This is a final excuse that eases Petey’s conscience. We occasionally went out just for a bit of fun or pleasure, that’s all.
Kick: (American slang) a sharp and strong feeling of excitement
Part 3
Paras. 60—124 the teaching of 8 logical fallacies
11 sub-divisions 1) Paras. 60-61: a survey of the girl 2) Paras.62-74: the teaching of “Dicto
Simpliciter” 3) Paras. 75-79: the teaching of “Hasty
Generalization” 4) Paras. 80-85: the teaching of “Post Hoc” 5) Paras.86-96: The teaching of “Contradictory
Premises” 6) Paras.97-98: (Interposition) He wants to
give the girl back
7) Paras.99-104: The teaching of “Ad Misericordiam”
8) Paras.105-108: The teaching of “False Analogy”
9) Paras.109-114: The teaching of “Hypothesis Contrary to Fact”
10) Paras. 115—122: The teaching of “Poinsoning the well”
11) Paras. 123—124: Review and summary of the teaching fallacies
Paras. 60-61 (1) a survey of the girl first impression of the girl He tries to find out how stupid she
is.
This was in the nature of a survey. The aim of this date was to find out
how stupid (or intelligent) Polly was (so that he would have an idea of how much work he had to do to make her intelligent enough to be his wife).
Exclamatory words like “Gee, Oo” and clipped vulgar forms like “delish, marvy, sensaysh” create the impression of a simple and rather stupid girl.
A contrast between “me” and “Polly”
I went back to my room with a heavy heart.
I went back to my room feeling sad and depressed.
This loomed as a project of no small dimensions.
To teach her to think appeared to be a rather big task.
loom: appear, or come in sight indistinctly No small dimensions: a rather big task Understatement (or Litotes)
Litotes: a figure in which something is expressed by a negation of the contrary ( 间接肯定) This is no small accomplishment. This is not at all unpleasant. The man is no fool. The face wasn't a bad one.
Paras.62—74 (2)
the teaching of fallacy “Dicto Simpliciter”
I had all the facts at my finger tips. I was completely familiar with all the
facts of logic. have sth. at one’s finger tips: to be completely familiar with; to
have available for instant use
blubber: weep loudly, like a child
Paras 105-108 (8)
The teaching of “False Analogy”
I said in a carefully controlled tone. He had to control his tone to keep
himself from screaming. brief: a concise statement of the main
points of a law case, usually filed by counsel for the information of the court诉讼摘要;辩护状
testy: easily annoyed; irritable
Paras. 109—114 (9)
The teaching of “Hypothesis Contrary to Fact”
Nuts: (American slang) It is an exclamation of disgust, scorn,
disappointment, refusal, etc. Doggedly I pressed on. I went ahead stubbornly. I kept on
persistently.
Yummy: (echoic sound made in expressing pleasure at a taste) very tasty ; delectable ; delicious
It just knocked me out. I was excited and filled with pleasure
by the movie.
Knock (oneself) out: (American slang) to elicit enthusiasm
or an emotional response, especially deep sympathy or laughter
使高兴;使情绪激动 E.g. The music was just brilliant
and really knocked me out.
dreamy: (American slang) excellent, wonderful, delightful
fracture: (American slang) to evoke a strong reaction in someone
They ought to put Walter Pidgeon in more pictures.
Thy ought to let Walter Pidgeon act in more movies.
Paras. 115-124 (10)
The teaching of “Poisoning the Well”
One more chance, I decided. I decided that I would give her one
more chance.
There is a limit to what flesh and blood can bear.
Synecdoche There is a limit to what any human
being can bear.
I watched her closely as she knit her creamy brow in concentration.
I watched her as she thought very hard.
knit the brow: to draw the brows together (as when thinking very hard)
creamy: soft
Suddenly, a glimmer of intelligence
— the first I had seen – came into her eyes.
From her eyes I could see that for the first time she was beginning to understand the problem.
a glimmer of: a little, a bit of
indignation: anger or scorn resulting from injustice, ingratitude, or meanness; righteous anger
had by the throat: attack by seizing and squeezing one’s throat
Frantically I fought back the tide of panic surging through me.
Desperately I tried to stop the feeling of panic that was overwhelming me.
At all costs I had to keep cool. I tried, by every means possible, to
keep calm. at all costs: regardless of the cost or
difficulty involved; by any means required
to keep cool: to keep calm; not to get excited
Metaphor 1. Charles Lamb, … unfettered the
informal essay with his memorable Old China and Dream's Children.
2. There follows an informal essay that ventures even beyond Lamb's frontier.
3. Don't you want to be in the swim?
4. Maybe somewhere in the extinct crater of her mind, a few embers still smoldered.
5. Maybe somehow I could fan them into flame.
6. The first man has poisoned the well before anybody could drink from it.
7. He has hamstrung his opponent before he could even start.
8. You are the whole world to me, and the moon and the stars and the constellations of outer space.
9. Logic, far from being a dry, pedantic discipline, is a living, breathing thing, full of beauty, passion, and trauma.
10. At first everything was work, sweat, and darkness. I had no idea when I would reach the light, or even if I would. But I persisted. I pounded and clawed and scraped, and finally I was rewarded. I saw a chink of light. And then the chink got bigger and the sun came pouring in and all was bright.
11. First he looked at the coat with the expression of a waif at a bakery window.
12. Back and forth his head swiveled, desire waxing, resolution waning .
Mixed metaphor
My brain, that precision instrument, slipped into high gear.
Metonymy 1. She was, to be sure, a girl who excited the
emotions but I was not one to let my heart rule my head.
2. You are guilty of Post Hoc.( You are guilty of the logical fallacy called Post Hoc.)
3. Surgeons have X-rays to guide them during an operation.
4. The time had come to change the relationship from academic to romantic.
Parody
What's Polly to me, or me to Polly? ( Hamlet by Shakespeare: What’s
Hecuba to him or he to Hecuba that he shold weep for her?)
Synecdoche
There is a limit to what flesh and blood can bear.
Hyperbole
1. My brain was as powerful as a dynamo, as precise as a chemist's scales, as penetrating as a scalpel.
2. It is not often that one so young has such a giant intellect.
3. "Holy Toledo!" he repeated fifteen or twenty times.
4. he just stood and stared with mad lust at the coat.
5. I had made a logician out of Polly. 6. I paused for a moment while my
massive brain chose the proper words.
Euphemism
Intelligent she was not. In fact, she veered in the opposite direction.
Understatement (Litotes)
This loomed as a project of no small dimensions.
Antithesis 1. It is, after all, easier to make a
beautiful dumb girl smart than to make an ugly smart girl beautiful.
2. Back and forth his head swiveled, desire waxing, resolution waning .
3. If there is an irresistible force, there can be no immovable object. If there is an immovable object, there can be no irresistible force.
Transferred epithet
I said with a mysterious wink and closed my bag and left.
Parallelism
1. My brain was as powerful as a dynamo, as precise as a chemist's scales, as penetrating as a scalpel.
2. After he promised, after he made the deal, after he shook my hand!
Rhetorical question 1. Could Carlyle do more? Could
Ruskin ? 2. Who knew?
Allusion
1. Just as Pygmalion loved the perfect woman he had fashioned, so I loved mine.
2. I was Frankenstein, and my monster had me by the throat.
Characters Dobie Gillis (the narrator)
Intelligent, cool, logical, keen, calculating, perspicacious, acute, astute, shrewd
self-centered selfish self-important/self-conceited/pompous/
arrogant/smug
Characters
Petey Burch as dull as an ox; pitiful; emotional; unstable; impressionable stupid; faddist
Characters Polly Espy
beautiful; gracious; unintelligent; lack of knowledge; simple-minded kind-hearted sympathetic
Word explanation
1. fallacy
A. religious belief B. false belief C. bankruptcy D. dropping
2. incredulous
A. unbelieving B. increasing C. industrious D. unbelievable
3. scalpel
A. a carpet B. a piece of bread C. a small, light knife D. a rising market
4. perspicacious
A. determinate B. flagitious C. prestigious D. discerning
5. trauma A. emotional shock B. mental work C. the state of not having enough D. a reinforced structure for
observers
6. shed
A. take shelter B. prevent from C. lose hair D. keep company with
7. pedantic A. of a person who likes music B. of a person who pays attention
to unimportant news C. of a person who stresses on
sports D. of a person who emphasizes
trivial points of learning
8. desist
A. insist on B. cease C. heckle D. castrate
9. proportions
A. property B. portions C. massages D. dimensions
10. waif
A. homeless child B. wandering musician C. countryman D. smuggler
11. perspiration
A. convincing B. encouraging C. pledging D. sweating
12. blubber
A. speak quickly B. talk repeatedly C. say with sobs D. say with hiccups
13. modulate A. make a change in the tone B. cause to do or believe sth. C. make or become soft D. change the place or position
14. infamy
A. being famous for B. being shameful C. being honest D. being refused
15. contrite
A. sad B. honest C. penitent D. overjoyed
16. wax
A. grow bigger or greater B. become less or smaller C. drop heavily D. cover with thick coating
17. acme
A. large group of plants B. highest point C. sharp crisis D. highest mountain peak
18. veer
A. move forward B. look sideways C. change directions D. pour out
19. exultant
A. triumphant B. foreign C. exhausted D. overflowing
20. unsightly
A. invisible B. ugly C. precipitate D. provisional
21. testy
A. examining B. proving C. impatient D. judging
22. fracture
A. break B. combine C. disagree D. repeat
23. tug
A. pull B. push C. place D. fix
24. covet
A. surround B. cover C. avoid D. desire
25. grueling
A. complaining B. moaning C. tiring D. unwilling
26. mince
A. decrease B. minimize C. increase D. euphemize
27. clap
A. strike B. walk C. fall down D. climb up
28. wince
A. push forward B. draw back C. incise up D. draw out
29. qualify
A. equal B. propose C. restrict D. count
30. chink
A. a precise piece B. a small piece C. a big valley D. a narrow opening
31. shamble
A. walk in an awkward way B. tremble terribly C. close in mild way D. shine brightly
32. contrite
A. permitting easily B. seeing clearly C. feeling regret D. looking worried
33. chirp
A. a long loud sound B. a short low-pitched sound C. a low murmuring sound D. a short, high-pitched sound
34. contradict
A. take out B. be contrary to C. withdraw D. be relevant to
35. immovable
A. permanent B. quick C. immediate D. cold
36. penetrate
A. spread B. pierce C. take part D. formulate
37. specification
A. a blank or empty area B. a detailed, exact statement
of particulars C. a partial excuse D. the evolutionary formation
of new biological species
38. scrap
A. special place B. particular area C. small piece D. unseen item
39. tremendous
A. unique B. genuine C. unexpected D. enormous
40. clutch
A. grasp tightly B. hang loosely C. touch softly D. hold lightly