Unit 3

Pub Talk and the King’s English

by Henry Fairlie

Lecturer: Meng Fanyan

Teaching Objectives1. To know how to make a good

conversation

2. To trace the history of the King’s English

3. To analyse the features of spoken

English

4. To appreciate the language features

Teaching Contents• I. Background knowledge

• II. Introduction to the passage

• III. Text Analysis

• IV. Rhetorical devices

• V. Questions

Background Knowledge

• 1.   British pub culture

• 2.   The author

• 3. The History of Britain

A British Pub

•

Questions on pub culture

• What is a pub?

• Are there any official rules regulating the publicans?

• Can you enjoy the service of the waiter? What’re the social benefits?

• What are served in British pubs?

What is a pub?• ‘Pub’ is short for ‘Public House’.

• The publican opens part of his or her ‘house’ to the public --- a bit like giving a party in your own home every day.

• It is more cosy/cozy and welcoming than bars and cafes in other parts of the world.

Official Rules

• By law, pubs are not allowed to open until 11am. They cannot serve drinks after 11pm.

• It is illegal for pubs to serve alcoholic drinks to anyone under the age of 18. Some pubs will allow people over 14 years old to go inside if they are with someone who is over 18, but they are not allowed to have an alcoholic drink.

Waiter Service• Most pubs have no waiters---you have

to go to the bar to buy drinks.

• A group of Italian youths waiting 45 minutes before they realized they would have to fetch their own.

• This may sound inconvenient, but there are social benefits.

Social benefits– Having to go up to the bar for

your drinks ensures plenty of opportunities for social contact between customers.

Social benefits• Pub culture is designed to promote sociality

in a society. Standing at the bar for service allows you to chat with others waiting to be served. The bar counter is possibly the only site in the British Isles in which friendly conversation with strangers is considered entirely appropriate and really quite normal behaviour.

Pub drinks

• The drinks such as wine, bitter are usually served in a pub.

Bitter • Bitter is traditional British beer

(also known as ale). • It is quite strong and leaves a

bitter taste in your mouth after drinking.

Wine• Wine is an increasingly popular drink

in the UK. • Cider is a traditional English alcoholic

drink made from apples. • Whisky is a strong drink produced in

Scotland and in Ireland.

Drinks

Pub Food • It is common to ask for snacks to

eat with your drink.

• Common snacks:

• ---crisps

• ---peanuts

crisps

Pub friends Bar friends are companions,

not intimates. They are friends but not intimate enough to be curious about each other’s private life and thoughts.

Henry Fairlie (1924-1990)

• He was a British author and journalist.

• He was a contributing editor of The New Republic.

• He wrote for The Observer, The Times of London before 1966.

• After moving to the United States, he wrote for American publications, including The Washington Post, The New York Times, The New Yorker, and The Atlantic.

Masterpieces• The Kennedy Promise (1973)

• The life of Politics (1969)

• The Spoiled Child of the Western World (1976)

The History of Britain• The early inhabitants in Britain

–Celts ( 凯尔特人 ) arriving in Britain in 700BC

– Celt (language)• Roman Britain

–(Caesar) 43 AD, ruled for 400 years

– Latin (language)

The History of Britain• The Anglo-Saxon Britain

– from 410 to 1066

– Old English

• Norman Conquest

– ruling for 400 years (1066-1485)

– French (language)

• Tudor Period (1485-1603)

-- English won its recognition.

Introduction to the Passage

• 1.Type of literature: – a piece of ____________exposition

• 2. The thesis:– The thesis is expressed in

________________________________________________________________________________.

the opening sentence---- “Conversation is the most sociable of all human activities”

• 3. The main idea:– General discussion

on___________________________.what makes a good conversation

• The writer feels that bar conversation in a pub has a ________ of its own and illustrates his point by describing the charming conversation he had with some people one evening in a pub on the topic ________________.

charm

“the King’s English”

Question: What makes a good conversation?

• A good conversation does not really start from anywhere, and no one has any idea where it will go.

• A good conversation is not for making a point.

• Argument may often be a part of it, but the purpose of the argument is not to convince.

4. Seemingly loose organization

– Title (Well-chosen?)

– Transitional paragraph (Which?)

– Digression ( turning aside or wandering away from the subject) (Where?)

The title• The title of this piece is _____________. • It misleads the reader into thinking that

the writer is going to demonstrate some intrinsic or linguistic relationship between pub talk and the King’s English. Whereas the writer, in reality, is just discussing on what makes a good conversation.

not well chosen

What’s the meaning of the title?

• --- An interesting pub talk which centered around the meaning of the phrase, “the King’s English”.

How do you understand “the King’s English”?

• The King’s English: correct and standard English with regard to grammar and pronunciation

• The term “The Queen’s English” is used when the ruling monarch is a queen.

Transitional paragraph

• Para.___ is a transition.

• From here the writer passes from a general discourse on good conversation to a particular instance of it.

5

Digression• His reflections on ___________ and

________ of “the King’s English”.

• His love for ___________ and the ________ of 18th century Paris.

the historymeaning

dictionariessalons

• 5. Highly informal language– abundance

of_________________________.

– copious (plentiful) literary and historical allusions

– mixed metaphors

simple idiomatic expressions

Structure of the essay• Part 1(Para.1-3)• General discussion on the

charm of conversation

• Para. 1: Conversation is the most sociable of all human activities.

• Para. 2: how to make conversation charming

• Para. 3: Conversation has a charm of its own

• Part 2 ( Para. 4-17)

• An instance of pub talk that centered around the King’s English

• Para 4: an example to illustrate “what makes good conversation”

• Para.5: transition, introducing the focal subject of the conversation---the King’s English

• Para. 6: the response of the listeners when hearing the criticism on the King’s English

• Paras7-10: The writer’s reflections on the history and meaning of “the King’s English.

• Digression ( wandering away from the subject: what makes good conversation)

• Para.11: Bilingual education vs. cultural humiliation

• Para.12: The source of “the king’s English

• Para. 13: English had come royally into its own

• Para.14: The development of English

• Para.15: The rebellion against the cultural dominance by Norman ruling class

• Para.16: King’s English is a class representation of reality.

• Para.17: The author’s love for dictionaries

• Part 3 ( Para.18-21)

• Repetition of the topic: the charm of a good conversation

• Para. 18: Restating the topic: what makes a good conversation

• Para.19: Clarification --- the misunderstanding of great minds in conversation

• Para. 20: The charm of conversation --- topics are unsettled, indefinite ．

• Para.21: Advice to make good conversation --- trying not to make “sense”

Para. 1

• Is there a topic sentence in this paragraph? If yes, which one?

• --- Conversation is the most sociable of all human activities.

Conversation is the most sociable of all human activities.

--- More than any other human activity, conversation helps to promote an agreeable, pleasant and informal relationship among people.

sociable

• friendly or agreeable, especially in an easy, informal way

And it is an activity only of humans.

--- And conversation is an activity which is found only among human beings.

( animals and birds are not capable of conversation)

However intricate the ways …, they do not indulge in anything that deserves the name of conversation.

--- No matter how complicated the manner in which animals make known their intentions to each other, they do not go in for any activity which might rightly be called conversation.

Indulge (in sth.): vt.&vi.• allow oneself to enjoy the

pleasure of something 　沉溺于，迁就，纵容

• to engage or take part, especially freely 肆意从事

• He no longer indulged himself in drinking and smoking.

• 他不再过度喝酒抽烟．• He used to indulge in the wildest

fantasy.• --- 他过去曾一味地异想天开．• We should not indulge our children.

• deserve one’s name/deserve the name of sth.: to have the right to be called, be worthy of the name of

• deserve well/ill of sb.: be worthy of good or bad treatment of sb.

• 她应当受到雇主的善待。• She deserves well of her employer.

Para. 2• What’s the main idea of this

paragraph?

• According to the author, what makes a good conversation?

• What are mixed metaphors?

…it does not really start from anywhere.

• --- it does not need a special topic to start a conversation. Anything may start a conversation. And once started no one knows how or where it will end. That’s why conversation is delightful and charming.

…as it meanders or leaps and sparkles or just glows.• Mixed metaphors 混合隐喻• Here the writer compares

conversation to a _________ which meanders and leaps, and also to _______ which glows and sparkles.

stream

fire

• meanders or leaps: (like a stream) to flow placidly and aimlessly or to flow swiftly and joyously onwards

• sparkles or just glows: ( like fire)

to burn steadily without flame or to burn brightly throwing off sparks

• in a /like a flash: very quickly; at once; immediately

• a flash in the pan 昙花一现• His first novel was a flash in the

pan, and he hasn’t written anything decent since.

anecdote (n.)

• a short ， entertaining account of some happening ， usually personal or biographical 轶事

They are ready to let it go.

• --- They are ready to give up the opportunity to tell one of their best anecdotes (because the conversation has moved on to other subjects).

Para. 3

• Can you find the topic sentence in this paragraph?

• What specific techniques does the writer employ to develop this paragraph?

• How much do you know about Dumas and his Musketeers?

Perhaps it is because of my up-

bringing … has a charm of its own. --- Topic sentence.

--- Perhaps it is because I’ve spent so much of my time in English pubs that I think bar conversation has a special charm.

• up-bringing: the training and education received while growing up

• This is an exaggeration of the author for he didn’t really grow up in a pub. He was only a frequenter of pubs.

Bar friends are not deeply involved in each other's lives.

--- People who meet with each other for a drink in the bar of a pub are not intimate friends for they are not deeply absorbed or engrossed in each other’s lives.

The fact that their marriages may be on the rocks, …not a concern.

--- It is not a matter of interest or importance if their marriage are breaking up, or their love affairs have been broken or they are in a bad temper.

on the rocks: Metaphor

–1) (of a ship) wrecked on rocks

–2) (infml. of a marriage, business, etc) in danger of failing; in a severe crisis

get out of bed on the wrong side

• to be in a bad mood

• The meaning is perhaps derived from the expression: You got out of bed the wrong way.

• It is considered unlucky to put your left foot on the floor first when getting out of bed.

concern: v. & n.• n. a matter of interest or importance • Some people don't show much

concern for our environment.• V. The World Cup taking place in

Germany concerns all the fans throughout the world.

• It is reported that the pop singer is concerned with selling drug.

•

They are like the musketeers of Dumas … the recesses of their thoughts and feelings.

--- Simile. The three musketeers of Dumas’ novel were very close friends. They supported each other with their fortune and lives, yet they showed no curiosity in anything about each other’s private lives.

• Bar friends, likewise, do not probe deep into each other’s lives nor do they try to find out the inmost thoughts and feelings of their drinking companions.

delve into

• search; try to find information about something; probe deep into

• She delved into the origins of the custom.

recess

• a pause for rest in a working day or a working year

• (pl.): a secret inner part of a place, that is hard to reach

Dumas(1802—1870)

• French novelist and playwright, often called Dumas père （ father ） to distinguish him from his illegitimate son ( 私生子 ) , Dumas fils （ son ） .

• He wrote historical melodramas and romances.

• Among them The Three Musketeers (1844), and The Black Tulip (1850) were outstandingly successful.

Alexandre Dumas (Jr.) (1824-1895)

• known as Dumas fils

• French playwright and novelist, illegitimate son of Alexandre Dumas( Sr.)

• gained fame with his novel The Lady of the Camellias (1852)

The Lady of the Camellias

Alexandre Dumas (Jr.)

father

son

Para 4: example

• What’s the purpose of the writer by giving such an example?

• --- To illustrate “what makes good conversation”.

as the conversation moved desultorily … was a focus.

--- The conversation rambled along aimlessly without a focal subject. They talked about the most common things and also made some remarks about the planet Jupiter( 木星 ). Then suddenly a magical transformation took place and there was a focal subject to talk about.

　　 desultory

• 1) going from one thing to another, without a definite plan or purpose

散漫的 , 随意的 , 杂乱的e.g. a desultory talk 漫谈 desultory reading (purposeless)

　　（随意）阅读• 2) unmethodical 无条理的 , 不连贯的

alchemy

• 1) 炼金术 , 炼丹术 • 2) a power or process of

transforming something common into something special 魔力

• 3) the seemingly miraculous change of a thing into sth. better 　神奇变化

It was not something that was pressing on her mind…

• --- It wasn’t something in her mind that was calling for immediate attention.

• 那不是什么非说不可的要紧话．

"Someone told me …which one should not properly use." transition, introducing the focal

subject of the conversation---the King’s English.

The King’s English is generally regarded by most people as referring to standard or correct English. Now the speaker says it should not be properly used.

The glow of the conversation burst into flames.

• Metaphor, comparing the conversation to fire

• --- The conversation became spirited and exciting.

• Or: The conversation is filled with enthusiasm immediately.

• 谈话立即热烈起来．

We would look it up on the

morning.

--- We would look up reference books (dictionaries and so on) next morning to find out the exact meaning.

When the lady put forward that the King’s English should not be properly used, some of the customers agreed, some protested and some denied. In the end they made a promise just as they usually did in such cases, that is, looking up reference books to find out the exact meaning.

That would settle it;

--- By means of looking up reference books one could settle the right or wrong of an argument.

It could still go ignorantly on.

• --- The conversation could go on without anybody knowing who was right or wrong.

• They do not need to prove who is right and who is wrong.

Paras. 7-10

• What are these paras. mainly about?

• Who are the founders of Australia?

• Why are Australian called descendants of convicts?

• --- The writer’s reflections on the history and meaning of “the King’s English”.

• Digressing ( wandering away from the subject: what makes good conversation)

It was an Australian …the descendants of convicts.

--- When the speaker explained that the definition was given to her by an Australian, her listeners immediately made some sharp cutting replies.

The Saxon peasants who tilled the

land and reared the animals … --- The poor Saxon peasants who

belonged to the oppressed class, could not afford the meat the Norman conquerors ate. Hence the names of the meat, derived from French, reflect the class difference at that time.

the Norman lords of course turned

up their noses at it. --- Naturally the Norman rulers

scorned the cheap rabbit meat. It would lower their social position if they ate the cheap rabbit meat eaten by the poor Saxon peasants.

• turn up one’s nose at: to regard with contempt; scorn

• He turns up his nose at anyone who hasn't had a college education.

• He was such an arrogant person that he would turn his nose up at anyone with a funny accent.

So rabbit is still rabbit on our tables, and not changed into some rendering of lapin.

• --- As the Norman rulers scorned the cheap rabbit meat, it is still called by its Anglo-Saxon name “rabbit”. If the Norman rulers had liked it, they would have given it a name derived from the French word, “lapin”.

Para.11

• Bilingual education vs. cultural humiliation

As we listen … into the shoes of

the Saxon peasant. • --- When we listen to the merits and

demerits of bilingual education, we should try to think as the Saxon peasants did when two languages( English and Norman French) were being used in England.

bilingual education

--- using two languages in teaching, for example, using English and Chinese to teach Chinese students English

into the shoes: imagine oneself to be in another’s

position; experience what another has to experience 设身处地

• shake in one’s shoes: be very frightened

• step into sb’s shoes: take control of a responsible task or

job from another person 接替某人职位

The new ruling class had built a cultural barrier …

-- The new ruling class by using French instead of English made it difficult for the English to accept or absorb the culture of the rulers.

There must have been a great deal of cultural humiliation felt by the

English --- The English must have felt greatly

humiliated when they were forced to listen to and use a foreign language and accept a foreign culture.

Hereward the Wake:

• Anglo-Saxon patriot and rebel leader. He rose up against the Norman conquerors but was defeated and killed (1071).

Hereward the Wake

"The King's English"--if the term had

existed then--had become French. --- If the term “the King's English” had

existed at that time, its meaning would be different because the king spoke French not English.

And here in America now, 900 years

later, we are still the heirs to it. --- The English we speak today in

America also shows the French influence of that time. We have inherited this French influence on the English language.

Para.12

• The source of “the king’s English

• "thou clipst the King's English":

• --- middle English

• It should read: "you clip the King's English".

• clip: to abbreviate

That would be the confirmation that

it was in general use.

--- That ( if the phrase is in Shakespeare) would prove that the term, “the King’s English” was in general use at that time.

"here will be . . . King's English":

• ---- There will be a great trying of one's patience and plentiful misuse of the King's English. This is a direct quotation from the play.

abusing:

• one word but used in two senses:

– 1) take unfair advantage of (one’s patience) 虐待

– 2) improper or incorrect use of language (the King's English)

　　滥用

God's patience:

• God is more patient than any human being.

• --- No matter how patient you are, you won't be able to bear him, because he will even try God's patience.

The Elizabethans … and floated to

the ends of the earth. --- a Simile, the English language

being compared to the seeds of the dandelion.

The Elizabethan writers spread the English language far and wide to every corner of the world.

Dandelion clock

"The King's English" … as racial discrimination.

--- The use of “the King's English" ( standard, correct English) was no longer a form of racial discrimination. The use of English was no longer restricted to a certain race or class.

After the Norman conquest the king and nobles used French and the oppressed Saxon peasants used English. Now English is used both by the king and common people in England.

Revision

• idiomatic expressions

make a point

--- explain fully what one is proposing充分解释

• 好啦，你已经把话说清楚了；那就别说了，让别人谈谈看法。

• All right ， you’ve made your point ；now keep quiet and let the others say what they think.

Questions for revision

• 1. According to the author, what spoils a good conversation?

• --- When people become serious and talk as if they have something very important to say, or when they argue to convince or to win their point, the conversation is spoilt.

2. Why does the author like pub talk so much?

• --- The writer likes bar conversation very much because he has spent a lot of time in pubs and is used to this kind of conversation.

• Bar friends are companions, not intimates. They are friends but not intimate enough to be curious about each other's private life and thoughts.

3. Does a good conversation need a focal subject to talk about?

---No. Conversation does not need a focus. But when a focal subject appears in the natural flow of conversation, the conversation becomes vivid, lively and more interesting.

4. Why did the people talk about

Australia? • --- The people talked about Australia

because the speaker who introduced the subject mentioned incidentally that it was an Australian who had given her such a definition of “the King's English”.

Para.15

• The rebellion against the cultural dominance by Norman ruling class

The phrase …pejoratively and even

facetiously by the lower classes. --- The phrase, the King’s English, has

always been used disrespectfully and scornfully by the lower classes.

The working people very often make fun of the proper and formal language used by the educated people.

下层阶级在用这一名词时总带着一点轻蔑或讥讽的味道 .

• pejorative ： scornful

• facetious ： joking, humorous

Dr. Caius will lose his control and

speak with the vigor of ordinary folk.

--- Dr. Caius may lose control of himself and use the strong language that ordinary people would use in such circumstances because he was in a rage and lost his temper. Here the servant commented on her master’s remark.

What’s the difference between the language used by ordinary people

and that of upper class people? • The language of the ordinary people

is more vigorous, direct and straightforward.

• The educated people would speak euphemistically or in a mild, indirect and roundabout way.

If the King's English …"English as

it should be spoke." --- The educated people insist that one

must use the King’s English, i.e. speak English as it should be spoken. But the working people, members of the lower classes mock and jeer at the people by replying in non-standard English that one should speak "English as it should be spoke."

The rebellion against a cultural

dominance is still there. --- There still exists a spirit of opposition

to the cultural authority of the ruling class in the working people, as it in the early Saxon peasants.　下层人民对文化上的专制仍是极为反感的．

Para. 16

• King’s English is a class representation of reality.

There is always a great danger, as Carlyle put it, …

--- There is always a great danger that we might forget that words are only symbols and take them for things that they are supposed to represent.

For example, the word “dog” is a symbol representing a kind of animal. We mustn’t regard the “dog” as being the animal itself.

Words are not themselves a reality,

… representation of reality. --- The term “ the King's English” or

the Anglo-French used by the Norman rulers only represent the language used by the ruling class. It represents the language used by a certain class.

it should not be laid down as an

edict , … change from below. --- People should not be ordered to

speak the King’s English or the ruling class should not impose the King’s English on the oppressed people. The ordinary people should be allowed to introduce changes into the language.

• lay down an edict: to issue an order or decree 颁布法令

• made immune: protect against

　保护使不受影响

Para.17

• Digression

• The author’s love for dictionaries

I have an unending love affair with

dictionaries. --- Metaphor, his eager interest in

dictionaries compared to having a love affair.

I’ve always had an intense and eager interest in dictionaries.

The King's English …but it ought not to be an ultimatum.

--- The King's English sets up an excellent standard for us to imitate for we can gain a lot of useful knowledge or information by studying it, but people shouldn’t be forced to accept it.

Para. 18

• Restating the topic:

what makes a good conversation

Otherwise one will bind the conversation, … Norman

Conquest.

--- metaphor, comparing talking about Australians and language used during Norman rule in England to going to Australia and going back to the Norman Conquest.

Metaphor

• They got out of bed on the wrong side is simply not a concern.

2) Suddenly the alchemy of conversation took place.

3) The glow of the conversation burst into flames.

4) We ought to think ourselves back into the shoes of the Saxon peasant.

5) The Elizabethans blew on it as on a dandelion clock, and its seeds multiplied, and floated to the ends of the earth.

6) I have an unending love affair with dictionaries.

7) Otherwise one will bind the conversation, one will not let it flow freely here and there.

8) We would never have gone to Australia, or leaped back in time to the Norman Conquest.

Mixed metaphors

• No one has any idea where it will go as it meanders or leaps and sparkles or just glows.

Allusions • --descendants of convicts

• --Norman conquerors

• --musketeers of Dumas

Alliteration

• slip and slide

Idiomatic expressions:

-- be on the rocks – get up on the wrong side of the

bed

– be on wings

– turn up one’s nose at sth. – into the shoes of

Idiomatic phrases

• Their marriage may be on the rocks (P.3)

• They got out of bed on the wrong side (P.3)

• The conversation was on wings (P.8)

• The Norman lords of course turned up their noses at it (P.10)

• We ought to think ourselves back into the shoes of the Saxon peasant (P.11)

• English had come royally into its own (P.13)

• We sit up at the vividness of the phrase (P.18)