Unit 6 The Man in the Water

Warming-up: Discussion;

Introduction to the background knowledge

Theme of the Text

Detailed discussion of the text

Teaching Procedures

Warming-up: Discussion 

We find heroes in all societies and cultures and at all times. How do you account for that? Can you name some heroes and tell us their stories?

Background Information  1. .Roger Rosenblatt: Professor of English Professor of

Writing AB, New York University Ph.D, Harvard University

Roger Rosenblatt is a journalist, author, playwright and professor. As an essayist for Time magazine, he has won two George Polk Awards, and awards from the Overseas Press Club and the American Bar Association, among others. He is the author of six books.  

Presidential Monuments

Presidential Monuments refers to the Washington Monument , Jefferson Memorial and Lincoln Memorial

Theme of the Text

Heroism: Heroism of course has been admired. But this man’s heroism was unusual. People usually expect revolutionaries to die martyrs; true believers to be willing to die for their faith; people ready to lay down their lives in performing their duty; even people to show courage in their attempt to win power, influence, money or to save their loved ones. But the man in the water did not fit any of these descriptions.

The man in the water did not have to give his rings to others; he did not even know these people. He was extraordinary precisely because he was ordinary. He showed what everyone of us could do. The display of his heroism was a song to the beautiful human character. This is true heroism.

Detailed discussion of the text 1. As disasters go, this one was terrible, but not unique,

certainly not among the worst U.S. air crashes in record.

Air crashes usually involve a heavy loss of lives. Compared with other air crashed, this one was not the worst. This air crash was remembered for a different reason.

as disasters go: compared with the average disaster of

this type More examples of the use of “as something goes”: As writers go, Oscar Wilde was not the most talented. But

he was among the most popular. As businessmen go he is considered pretty honest.

2. There was the unusual element of the bridge, of course, and the fact that the plane hi tit at a moment of high traffic.

One thing that was unusual about this disaster was that the plane hit the bridge.

“Element” here means “factor”. high traffic: heavy traffic; heavy

flow of vehicles along the road

3. Washington, the city of form and rules, turned chaotic by a blast of real winter and a single slap of metal on metal.

the city of form and rules: See Note 2 in Notes to the Text

turned chaotic: became chaotic; was thrown into a terrible confusion

a blast of real winter: a sudden strong really cold wind The word “blast” could also refer to a sudden explosion

or a sudden very loud noise, e.g. The human-bomb exploded and more than 20 people

were killed in the terrible blast. The music came in full blast from the next door, and I

had to call the police to stop it. slap: a quick blow with something flat as in “a slap

across the face”. Her of course it is used figuratively.

5. And there was the aesthetic clash as well – blue-and-green Air Florida, … sunk down among gray chunks of ice in a black river. .

When the air crash occurred, it was not just a clash (a loud sound make by two objects) of metal against the bridge, but also a clash between colors: the blue-green color of the plane and the gray and black color of the ice and river.

the aesthetic clash: the combination of different colors which look very bad (“aesthetic”: something connected with the study of beauty)

Air Florida: The Florida Airline. Also: Air France, Air Japan (JAL)

chunk: a fairly large amount of, e.g. a chunk of meat; a chunk of rice

Still, there was nothing very special in any or it, except death, which, while always special, does not necessarily bring millions to tears or to attention.

while always special: although (it is) always special, e.g.

Money, while desirable and useful, can corrupt.

Their life, while rich and comfortable, somehow lacks meaning.

.

not necessarily: possibly but not certainly, e.g.

New things are not necessarily better.

Teachers do not necessarily know more than students sometimes.

bring millions to tears to or attention: make millions cry or attract millions of people’s attention

7. Why, then, the shock here?Why was there such a shock here?Notice the structure of this kind of

elliptical sentence, e.g. Five o’clock? Why so early? To go to Afghanistan? Why me?If so many businesses can’t comp

ete with other countries, why WTO then? ；

8. a mechanical failure We are talking about the cause of the

disaster here: whether it is a mechanical problem or a human error.

9. Here, after all, were two forms of nature in collision: the elements and human character.

the element: the bad weather the two forms of nature: the bad weather and

the human character. Both are forms of natural power.

collision: clash; two people or vehicles or ideas hitting each other while moving directly toward each other

Note: Do not mix it up with the word “coalition”.

10. Last Wednesday, the elements, indifferent as ever, brought down Flight 90. And on that same afternoon, human nature – groping and struggling – rose to the occasion.

indifferent as ever: unconcerned about the consequences as always

brought down: made the plane fall down flight: It refers to a plane making a particular journey. rise to the occasion: to deal successfully with a

difficult situation or problem, e.g. I’m sure that he will rise to the occasion when he

realizes what is at stake. groping and struggling: groping or the flotation

rings and struggling in the icy water But these two words may also be interpreted

figuratively, referring to human nature

11. Of the four acknowledged heroes of the event, three are able to account for their behavior.

Only three out of these four heroes lived to tell people what they actually had done and how they had rescued the five survivors.

account for: to give a satisfactory explanation of what has happened

12. Donald Usher … a park police helicopter team, risked their lives every time they dipped into the water to pick up survivors.

park police: police whose job it is to look after a park

every time: whenever

13. … they described their courage as all in the line of duty.

in the line of duty: as part of one’s duty, e.g.

They are paid by the people to provide these services. It’s all in the line of duty.

14. “It’s something I never thought I would do.”

“I never thought I would have the courage to jump into the icy water to rescue somebody.” “It” here refers to his heroic deed.

15. … delivering every hero’s line that is no less admirable for being repeated.

… saying something that has been said before by many people in similar situations, but it is still admirable.

deliver a line: to make a remark. Also: to deliver a speech; to deliver a lecture

16. That somebody actually did so is part of the reason this particular tragedy sticks in the mind. .

Noun clauses introduced by “that” are used as subjects only informal English. In informal English, we usually turn them into appositive clauses by adding the word “fact”. For example”:

The fact that somebody actually did so is part of the reason that particular tragedy sticks in the mind.

stick in the mind: to be remembered

17. … responsible for the emotional impact of the disaster

being the reason for the emotional impact of the disaster

emotional impact of the disaster: how this disaster has moved people

be responsible for: to be the cause for, e.g. That policy was largely responsible for the mas

s hunger.

18. This man was described … as appearing alert and in control.

This man was described as a person who appeared alert and in control

alert and in control: able to think quickly and clearly; calm and with perfect presence of mind, e.g.

Although she is almost ninety, she still has an alert mind.

19. Every time they lowered a lifeline and flotation ring to him, he passed it on to another of the passengers.

lifeline: a rope used to rescue people at sea

flotation ring: some kind of life-belt or life-preserver

20. “In a mass casualty, you’ll find people like him. But I’ve never seen one with that commitment.”

We can always find heroic people like him in a mass casualty because although not everyone is a hero, there’s bound to be a fair representation of heroes in a big crowd.

mass casualty: large numbers of people hurt or killed in an accident or battle

“Mass” here is an adjective as in mass murder, mass audiences, mass protest, etc.

commitment: Here: a strong sense of responsibility or loyalty

21. When the helicopter came back for him the man had gone under.

go under: to sink; to be drowned, e.g. In a fierce competition, these poorly man

aged enterprises will go under. (fail) In case of an economic recession, these

old and weak people will be the first to go under.

The captain hoped that help would come before the ship went under.

22. His selflessness was one reason the story held national attention; his anonymity another.

The fact that man in the water who had displayed such heroism did not leave his name and no one was ever able to find it out was another reason why the whole nation felt so touched by this story. It showed that the man was a very ordinary citizen. It also proved that he did wht he did not for fame or anything.

anonymity: the state of being unknown by name anonymous (adj.)

23. The fact that he went unidentified gave him a universal character.

gave him a universal character: gave him a universal quality; made him a representative man, like everyone of us could be; made people feel that it could have been anyone

24. For a while he was Everyman, and thus proof (as if one needed it) that no man is ordinary.

Notice that the word “Everyman” is capitalized. It echoes the title of a medieval play about a typical human being. It conveys the idea that this anonymous man really represents the best of human nature. What he did was not the act of a supernatural being, but the act of an ordinary person. Yet, the author says here that “no man is ordinary”, because every person is an individual moral entity and is capable of rising to the occasion and making history.

25. Still, he could never have imagined such a capacity in himself.

However, it was impossible for him to know that he would be capable of such heroism. What the man did was the natural response to the critical situation.

Notice the use of the word “in” here. It is used to say what one should consider in another.

26. Only minutes before his character was tested he was sitting …, listening to the stewardess telling to fasten his seat belt and saying something about …

The author is imagining what must have been the situation. He used the past continuous to make the narration more real and vivid.

stewardess: “-ess” is a noun suffix referring to a female, e.g.

waitress, actress, mistress, hostess, lioness, countess

27. So our man relaxed with the others, some of whom would owe their lives to him.

our man: our hero; the man we are talking about here

of whom: Notice that here only “whom” can be used, not “that” or “who”.

owe: We can say “He bought me a dictionary” or “He bought a dictionary for me”, “It cost us a lot of money” or “It cost a lot of money to us”.

28. … or to regret some harsh remark made in the office that morning.

… or to feel sorry for the unkind things he might have said to his employee in the office that morning before he took the plane.

The author imagined the man to be some kind of business executive.

29. Like every other person on that flight, he was desperate to live, which makes his final act so stunning.

His last act was stunning because like everyone else, he s\also valued his life and was desperate to live.

stunning: shocking on that flight: on board that plane “Which” here stands for what has been stated be

fore.

30. For at some moment in the water he must have realized that he would not live if he continued to handover the rope and ring to others. He had to know it, no matter how slow the effect of the cold.

Obviously it requires much more courage to face sure death knowing that you have a choice (keep one of the rings for yourself) than to face the possibility to death by, for example, a stray bullet in a battle. The man in the story did not act on impulse. He did not pass on his rings to others with a total unawareness of the consequences. At some point he must have known that he was freezing to death and would go under any moment. Bu the still gave the chance for survival to the next person.

31. Yet there was something else about our man that kept our thoughts on him, …

that kept our thoughts on him: that held our attention to him; that made us think of him all the time

32. He was there, in the essential, classic circumstance.

What happened that day was a typical situation in which nature and man fought each other. And when nature begins to show its power, you always find man fighting back. He is always there. We can always expect to find such a hero.

essential: basic, typical, the most important classic: very traditional or long established

33. So the age-old battle began again in the Potomac. For as long as that man could last, they went at each other, nature and man …

the age-old battle between nature and man: The author is using a very traditional idea here, the idea that human civilization is a record of man’s gradual conquest of nature.

go at: to attack; to start to fight, e.g. Those companies went at each other like hun

gry wolves

34. … the one making no distinctions of good and evil, acting on no principles, offering no lifelines; the other acting wholly on distinctions, principles and, perhaps, on faith.

Nature is indifferent. It does not have any idea what is good or what is bad for Hunan beings, and it does not care. It has no moral principles. Human beings, on the other hand, are different. They have moral standards. They have feelings. They care and they love. Therefore they are able to choose between right and wrong.

35. In reality, we believe the opposite, and it takes the act of the man in the water to remind us of our true feelings in this matter.

Actually, the death of the man did not mean that human beings had lost the battle. In a moral sense, man had won, because man’s courage to defy death was also a tremendous power. Therefore what happened to this man in the water should fill us with pride rather than sadness.

36. It is not to say that everyone would have acted as he did …

It is not to say: It does not mean

37. Yet whatever moved these men to challenge death on behalf of their fellows is not peculiar to them. Everyone feels the possibility in himself.

Yet whatever enabled or made these men or gave these men the power to challenge death is not unique. Indeed every one of us has the potentiality to be a hero.

38. That is the enduring wonder of the story. That is why we would not let go of it.

That is the lasting wonder of the story. That is what keeps our thoughts on this story. (That is why we keep thinking about this story. That is why this story will always live in our memory.)

39. If the man in the water gave a lifeline to the people gasping for survival, he was likewise giving a lifeline t those who watched him.

In this article, the author is giving the man’s action a symbolic meaning. When the man was giving a lifeline to the people gasping for survival, we might say that he was also giving the chance to live to everyone of us. He was showing by his own example the meaning of life, the dignity of human existence, the power of noble human character.

40. “Everything in Nature contains all the powers of nature,” said Emerson.

For Emerson, see Note 11 in Notes to the Text. By “the powers of nature”, Emerson did not just

mean such powers as coming form coal, oil, water, wind, etc. (He could have included nuclear power if he had been able to see that far into the future.) He probably also meant the power unique to human beings: the power to love, the power to change, and the power to create.

41. The man in the water set himself against an immovable, impersonal enemy; he fought it with kindness; and he held it to a standoff. He was the best we can do.

set sb. against sb.: to make sb. start to fight or quarrel with another person, esp. a person with whom they had friendly relations before, e.g.

There were outside forces who were trying to set one tries against another. That was shy there were endless civil wars in tat country.

I’m not going to set myself against my own classmates.

an immovable, impersonal enemy: It refers to nature, which is indifferent and cannot be persuaded to change its attitude towards us humans. “Immovable” here means “impossible to be changed or persuaded”.

standoff: a situation in which neither side in a fight or battle can gain an advantage

He was the best we can do: The man in the water represented human nature at its best.