learning target
1, learn about John Galsworthy and his creation.
2. Analyze the image of Godzilla, a shoemaker, and understand the personality brilliance embodied in this ordinary figure in the lower class.
3. Understand the theme expressed in this article.
Target focus
1. Analyze the image of Godzilla and understand the personality brilliance that flashed on him.
2. Understand the theme expressed in this article.
Target difficulty
1. Analyze Godzilla's character.
2. Understand the thoughts and feelings contained in the author's description of characters.
Related material
1. About the author
John John Galsworthy (1867— 1933) is a British critical realism writer. Born into a wealthy bourgeois family; Studying law at Oxford University. He published his first novel Tianya Haijiao at the age of 30, but it was not until the publication of 1904 that the Pharisee attracted social attention. 1906 The novel The Possessor came out, which established his position as a first-class British writer. He wrote many works in the next twenty years, and published a novel and a play almost every year. 1932 Nobel Prize in Literature.
John Galsworthy's most important works are two sets of trilogy: The Forsyte Family (Owner, Dilemma, Task) and Modern Comedy (Song of White Ape, Silver Spoon and Swan). By describing the history of the rise and fall of a bourgeois family, these two novels reflect the history of the British bourgeoisie from/kloc-0 to 1920s. The author successfully created some typical figures of the British bourgeoisie and exposed their ugly souls. His works are meticulous and in-depth, with concise and accurate language, subtle and ironic style, seemingly indifferent on the surface, but in fact, love and hate are clear. Compared with contemporary English writers, his artistic achievements and the depth of criticizing reality are more prominent. But he doesn't want to touch the capitalist system. He believes that social stratification is an eternal law of life, and it is impossible to change the social system. The creation after the First World War clearly reflected that he stood more and more firmly in the position of safeguarding the bourgeoisie.
2. Language knowledge
Sound shape recognition
Qin Xin Spleen Boots Xu Zi Yi Qu
Credit (shē) account (tā) slippers (cē) eyebrows (máo)
Fold (zhě), wrinkle toes (zhǐ) and (chuī ?).
Vocabulary accumulation
Brand-new: brand-new, brand-new
Shyness: shyness and timidity.
Curly: Curved.
Slow: (senses, thoughts, actions, etc. ) slow and insensitive.
Loan: deferred payment of the purchase and sale amount in the account.
Compassion: show sympathy for those who have suffered misfortune.
Monopoly: refers to control and monopoly.
Lurking: existing in something that is not easy to find or discover.
Fashion: describes the fashion of people's decorative clothes or other things.
Wrinkles: wrinkles.
Caress: care and love.
Whispering: Onomatopoeic words, continuous whispering sounds.
Slow: neither fast nor slow.
Compassion: Charity Compassion (originally a Buddhist term).
Idiom accumulation
Casual: casual, do not mind.
Incredible: the original meaning is that the truth is too subtle to understand. I can't imagine doing more now.
teaching process
First, import:
Everyone has a soul and may not always be there. A characteristic of modern life is the absence of soul, which is manifested in various aspects, such as the restlessness of rhythm, the distance from nature, the loss of tradition, the loss of intimate relationship between people and so on. (Zhou Zhu's "The Existence of the Soul")
Soul is quality. The most accurate measure of a society is whether it can improve people's quality; Looking at the progress of a group, the improvement of quality is proof; From the quality point of view, it is easier to find people's true colors.
Second, the content and structure of the article.
John Galsworthy has written many short stories with diverse themes, wide contents and different styles, and the characters described are also diverse. Quality (19 1 1 year) is one of the better articles. The author got rid of the class prejudice that has always flooded British society and admired noble gentlemen, and enthusiastically praised the noble quality of humble shoemakers. I deeply sympathize with the tragic fate of small-scale craftsmen in the increasingly capitalist modernization of British industry and commerce. The story of the novel is plain, the language is simple, and there is no amazing pen throughout. However, in plain simplicity, it contains deep feelings and is full of appeal. The author focuses on how the Godzilla brothers put all their feelings into their works, so there are only a few endings, which are wonderful enough. Before he starved to death, geissler carefully made the cross section of the best quality boots, which showed the workers' deep feelings for their skills, which was particularly touching.
This novel can be divided into two parts. The first part is from the beginning to "I don't charge you for these boots". Through my communication with geissler, a shoemaker, I introduced the basic situation of geissler. At the beginning of the novel, when I was very young, I tasted Godzilla's craft. The author described the samples displayed in the window in detail, and praised geissler's superb shoemaking skills. "Those boots are so beautiful", "I can't bear to leave after seeing them", "Only those who have seen the soul of boots can make those boots", "These boots embody the essence of all kinds of boots and are really model products", "I always feel that making boots, especially those like his, is simply a wonderful craft" ... The author praised geissler's craft with the most beautiful words.
Praise the craft of boots first, and then introduce the maker of boots. After seeing the samples of boots, people must want to know about Godzilla. When introducing the appearance of the geissler brothers, the author has some comments: "He is a bit like a man made of leather", "Because leather is a rigid object, it is a bit stiff and dull", "Only his blue-gray eyes suggest a simple and serious expression, as if obsessed with ideals" and "He looks thinner and paler in all aspects because of his hard work". The character's character is partly reflected in this description, and readers can see that this is a serious and unsociable person. In this part, the contradiction has been pointed out: because of the good quality ("he seems to sew the essence of boots in"), people don't often go to his shop because the boots are worn out.
After a general introduction. Introduce the concrete communication between me and Godzilla. Godzilla has a good reputation and high quality boots. Judging from the way he receives customers, it is obvious that he is putting more energy into making boots. He is confident in his craft and his boots ("if I can't repair them, I won't charge you for these boots").
The second part, from "once (and only once)" to the end of the article, writes that Godzilla still insists on making the best quality boots under difficult circumstances.
Facing the fashionable boots made by big companies, "there is no anger, sadness or even contempt in his tone." In fact, Gesla has his own anger. He despises those inferior products that are promoted by advertisements regardless of the quality of boots. "These big companies really don't care about decency. Shame! " -This is the most powerful criticism issued by Godzilla. Under the monopoly of large industrial companies, the operation of small-scale industrial workshops is becoming more and more difficult. Geissler's anger is not entirely because the monopoly of big companies makes his livelihood difficult. More importantly, he thinks that big companies ignore their reputation and produce substandard boots to hurt consumers.
The following passage is an important part of the work, and it is also the reason for the turning point of the characters' fate. -"They monopolized everything", "They monopolized everything through advertising instead of work. We like boots, but they take away our business. Now-I'm going to lose my job. Business is getting slower every year-you will understand later. " For geissler, if he "follows the trend", he will have to use advertisements to make people constantly change their boots and buy them in his shop, thus increasing business. However, geissler's excellent quality as a bottom laborer has been displayed here. He adhered to the consistent principle of life until the end of his life.
Squeezed by big companies for two years, geissler's business continued to decline and had to open a shop. My brother was so sad. Another year passed and I returned to London. In just one year, Gesla, who had a hard life, suddenly aged a lot ("When I left, he was 60 years old, and when I came back, he seemed to be 75 years old"). The last command was written in great detail. After some conversation, Godzilla looked at me as always; After receiving the goods, "I" made some comments on the boots ("These boots are the best boots he has ever made for me, whether in style or size, whether in craftsmanship or leather quality"). Under these foreshadowing, the fate of the characters is incredible; I can't believe Godzilla is starving.
The "young man" in the shop next door told the source of the unfortunate fate of the characters as an insider: making his own boots and not letting others wear them; He carefully crafted and spared no time; He uses the best leather; He forgot to eat and sleep; He never gets paid in advance and "often doesn't cook" ...
Although he is poor, he abides by his professional dignity. Godzilla, a poor shoemaker, did only one thing in his life-making boots. He made it perfect and died without regret. The change of social atmosphere is also the reason for the decline of business in geissler ("people don't seem to want strong boots"), so why is there such an atmosphere? In addition to the end of the novel, the "young man" talked about some reasons, and other reasons are not difficult to guess: he treats boots more seriously than customers; He only pays attention to the quality of boots and does not pursue fashion; He thinks he knows boots best, but what customers want is fashion; He thinks that the quality of boots is durable first, but customers may like the new and hate the old ... The focus of the contradiction may be that he attaches too much importance to the quality of boots.
This novel has a profound theme. Based on the impact of industrial monopoly on industrial workshops, the novel objectively describes the survival crisis of craftsmen, praises the noble quality of shoemaker Gesla, who abides by professional ethics and would rather starve to death than cut corners, and shows respect for the bottom workers. At the same time, through this image, the crisis of commercial integrity brought about by industrial revolution and market competition is exposed.
Third, the reading of key paragraphs.
1, only people who have seen the soul of boots can make boots like that-these boots embody the essence of various boots and are real model products.
[Taste] Can boots still have a "soul"? Who has seen this "boot soul"? I'm afraid they all just shrugged their shoulders and spread their hands, and there was no answer. But if Godzilla can get out of his works, he will argue loudly: "No, gentlemen, boots have souls, they are in the shoemaker's heart!" " "John Galsworthy's shoemaker is the smallest nobody, but once he is given the witness of" Boot Soul ",it can be said that he is even greater than any great hero, at least in this respect, he can overwhelm everyone in the world. The magic in the plain is even more amazing, which may be the impressive reason for pulling up the blue sky like the Duxiu Peak in Guilin. This is true in nature, but not in literature!
[Experience] From this vocabulary, we can see the author's uniqueness. Yes, John Galsworthy really mixed the image of Godzilla with his career and his spirit, making it impossible to separate him from it, and even his appearance was closely linked with his boots.
2. He is a bit like a man made of leather: his face is yellow, his face is wrinkled, his hair and beard are reddish and curly, and some neat wrinkles hang obliquely between his cheeks and corners of his mouth, his voice is monotonous and his throat is heavy; Because leather is a rigid object, it is a bit stiff and dull. This is the feature of his face, and only his blue-gray eyes imply a simple and serious expression, as if obsessed with ideals.
[Taste] This portrait description has two obvious characteristics. One is to combine the similarity between appearance and heart, and the other is to attribute the foothold of description to the revelation of the spiritual realm of the characters. This is a fascinating passage. Imagine, after reading this description, will there be such an old man with "yellow wrinkles" and "neat wrinkles" appearing in front of us, holding a pair of newly made boots in his hand, and revealing a trace of spiritual satisfaction and ideal joy in his proud eyes?
I thought the same thing.
[Experience] Describe Mr. Godzilla's physical characteristics: rigid and dull, lacking in vitality. The phrase "eyes with a simple and serious expression, as if clinging to ideals" is the key to understanding this character.
3 ..... He finally stood in front of the visitor, with no coat on his upper body, a little bent back, a leather apron around his waist, rolled sleeves and blinking eyes-like an owl who had just woken up from a dream of boots, or more precisely, like an owl disturbed by the sun.
[Smell] These descriptions of eyes, such as "just waking up from a dream of boots" and "like an owl disturbed by the sun", highlight that he just woke up from a concentrated work and wrote about Mr. Godzilla's devotion to making boots.
[Experience] This sentence describes the clothes and manner of Mr. Godzilla who just came out of the workshop, from which we can infer the Godzilla brothers' selfless dedication in their work.
There is no anger, sadness or even contempt in his tone, but there are hidden potential factors that can make people's blood coagulate.
[Taste] "Potential factors" refers to confidence in one's own shoe-making skills and sincere treatment of others, as well as contempt for those who make inferior boots.
[Experience] "No … no … not even … no … no … no … no … no … no … no … no … no … no … no … no … no … no … no … no … no … no … no.
5. "These big companies really don't care about decency. Shame! " Then, he seemed a little impatient, so he made a series of sarcastic remarks.
[Taste] "Dignity" originally refers to appearance and face, and here refers to the principle of sincerity.
[Experience] Mr. Godzilla criticized the behavior of big companies that only pay attention to making money, but they are shoddy, which harms the interests of customers in pursuit of fashion. At the same time, it actually embodies the noble quality that the Godzilla brothers never harm others and benefit themselves.
6. I looked at his wrinkled face and saw something I hadn't noticed before: painful things, painful struggles-his red beard seemed to suddenly have a lot of gray beards!
[Taste] In this sentence, the author used the word "pain", which shows that Mr. Godzilla is tired and difficult in supporting the store.
[Experience] Exquisite craftsmanship and honest quality can't save the business of his shop. This sentence reflects the cruelty of bourgeois social competition from the side.
7. I didn't have any hope for these boots, but one night they arrived. I unpacked and arranged four pairs of boots in a row. Then, Shuang Yi tried on the boots. There is no problem at all. These boots are the best boots he has ever made for me, no matter the style or the size, the craft or the leather. I found the bill for her walk in the city in those boots. The price on the list is exactly the same as in the past, but I am shocked. He never wrote a bill before the Four Seasons Hotel closed. I hurried downstairs, filled out a check and mailed it myself at once.
The change in the bill bodes ill.
[Experience] There will be no bill until the closing day of the four seasons, but this time it is an exception, indicating that Mr. Godzilla's life has reached the point where he can't hold on. It laid the groundwork for the death of Mr. Godzilla below.
8. He never lets himself have time to eat; There is never a penny left in the shop. All the money is spent on rent and leather. How can he live so long? I don't know. He often does not eat. He is a freak. But he made a good pair of boots.
[Taste] "He made a pair of good boots" can be seen as a summary of a shoemaker's life: craftsmanship is a shoemaker's life, and persistence in craftsmanship is actually persistence in traditional virtues. The quality of boots is the quality of the shoemaker, and the soul of boots is the soul of the shoemaker! The business philosophy of not paying attention to speed but only to quality eventually brought destruction. As a tragic figure, the shoemaker embodies the antinomy between Kant's material progress and the retrogression of civilization (morality). The regrets and sighs left by the novel are as unforgettable as the flash quality of the protagonist.
It can be seen from this sentence that when the store was on the verge of bankruptcy, Mr. Godzilla still supported it with strong perseverance. He works day and night, but it is difficult to make ends meet. Even so, he still refused to sell his honesty and credibility and used inferior leather instead. From "he often breaks his cooking" and "but his boots are very good", it can be said that Mr. Godzilla put his life into his boots. He "seems to have sewn the essence of boots into them."
Fourth, analysis of difficult problems.
1, how did the author write the superb craftsmanship and noble character of the Godzilla brothers?
(1) At the beginning of the novel, I tasted Godzilla's craft when I was very young.
The author described the samples displayed in the window in detail, and praised geissler's superb shoemaking skills. "Those boots are so beautiful", "I can't bear to leave after seeing them", "Only those who have seen the soul of boots can make those boots", "These boots embody the essence of all kinds of boots and are really model products", "I always think that making boots, especially those made of oak, is a wonderful craft" ... The author praised geissler's craft with the most beautiful words.
(2) Praise the craft of boots first, and then introduce the makers of boots. After seeing the samples of boots, people must want to know about Godzilla. When introducing the appearance of the geissler brothers, the author has some comments: "He is a bit like a man made of leather", "Because leather is a rigid object, it is a bit stiff and dull", "Only his blue-gray eyes suggest a simple and serious expression, as if obsessed with ideals" and "He looks thinner and paler in all aspects because of his hard work". The character's character is partly reflected in this description, and readers can see that this is a serious and unsociable person. In this part, the contradiction has been pointed out: because of the good quality ("he seems to sew the essence of boots in"), people don't often go to his shop because the boots are worn out.
(3) From the introduction of the specific communication between "I" and Godzilla, it is written that Godzilla has a good reputation and high quality boots. Judging from the way he receives customers, it is obvious that he is putting more energy into making boots. He is confident in his craft and his boots ("If I can't repair them, I won't charge you for them").
(4) Facing the fashionable boots made by big companies, "there is no anger, sadness or even contempt in his tone". As a matter of fact, geissler has his own anger and shows contempt for those inferior products that are promoted by advertisements regardless of the quality of boots. "These big companies really don't care about decency. Shame! " -This is the most powerful criticism issued by Godzilla. Under the monopoly of large industrial companies, the operation of small-scale industrial workshops is becoming more and more difficult. Geissler's anger is not entirely because the monopoly of big companies makes his livelihood difficult. More importantly, he thinks that big companies ignore their reputation and their unqualified boots hurt consumers.
For geissler, if he "follows the trend", he will have to use advertisements to make people constantly change their boots and buy them in his shop, thus increasing business. However, geissler's excellent quality as a bottom laborer has been displayed here. He adhered to the consistent principle of life until the end of his life.
Squeezed by big companies for two years, geissler's business continued to decline and had to open a shop. My brother was so sad. Another year passed and I returned to London. In just one year, Gesla, who had a hard life, suddenly aged a lot ("When I left, he was 60 years old, and when I came back, he seemed to be 75 years old").
2. Why did the author write the last order in detail?
This is to pave the way for the death of the characters.
After some conversation, Godzilla looked at me as always; After receiving the goods, "I" made some comments on the boots ("These boots are the best boots he has ever made for me, whether in style or size, workmanship or leather quality"). Under these conditions, the fate of the characters seems unbelievable: Gesla actually starved to death.
The "young man" in the shop next door spoke as an insider, telling the root of the unfortunate fate of the characters: making their own boots and not letting others touch them; He carefully crafted and spared no time; He uses the best leather; He forgot to eat and sleep; He never gets paid in advance and "often doesn't cook" ...
3. Some people think that Gesla, the shoemaker, need not starve to death in order to keep the best craftsmanship, but should "adapt to the times". What do you think of this problem?
When large-scale industrial production impacted the traditional handicraft production and shoemaker geissler faced the crisis of survival, he still adhered to the principle of being a man and made the best leather boots ("sewing the essence of boots into boots"). He makes boots, loves his own work ("we love boots"), and would rather starve to death than shoddy, showing noble labor ethics. Large-scale industrial production improves efficiency, but it also reduces the quality of products to some extent. Geissler is honest and loyal to his profession. If he is required to "conform to the times" and give up his code of conduct in order to survive, this character is of little value.
Five, writing characteristics:
(1) The characters are vivid and vivid.
John Galsworthy's prose often reproduces the characters' characters in a lyrical style, outlines Bishop's portrait in the shape of a god, and renders the artistic conception as beautiful and profound as prose poetry. This is the description of Godzilla in this paper. The author describes his appearance spirit like this: "He has no coat on his upper body, his back is a little bent, his waist is surrounded by a leather apron, his sleeves are rolled up, and his eyes are blinking-just like waking up from a dream of boots." "He himself is a bit like a man made of leather: his face is yellow, his face is wrinkled, his hair and beard are reddish and curly, and some neat wrinkles hang obliquely between his cheeks and corners of his mouth. His voice is monotonous and his throat is heavy; Because leather is a rigid object, it is a bit stiff and dull. This is the feature of his face. Only his blue-gray eyes contain a simple and serious expression, as if clinging to ideals. " This Chinese sketch technique is very similar to the sketch in portrait painting. My back is a little bent, my face is yellow and wrinkled, stiff and dull. These characteristics are the result of years of hard work in making boots. The two characteristics of the description of characters in the novel are: (1) the combination of likeness and spirit likeness; (2) The end result of the description is the hint to the spiritual realm of the characters. Their professionalism can be seen from the appearance alone.
The description of geissler's words and deeds is extremely delicate and touching, such as: "If I want to order new boots that he didn't make for me, he must go through the formalities-tell me to take them off, hold them in my hand, and immediately look at them with critical and caressing eyes, as if remembering his enthusiasm when he created these boots, as if blaming me for wearing his masterpiece like this. After that, he put my foot on a piece of paper, scratched the outer edge two or three times with a pencil, and then touched my toes back and forth with his sensitive fingers, trying to find out the main points I asked. " The description of his work state, behavior and expression is so delicate that a character who is obsessed with his work and devoted himself wholeheartedly is vividly presented to the readers.
Facing the ill-fitting boots made of inferior leather by big companies, he said, "These big companies really don't care about decency. Shame! " They monopolized everything. They monopolize everything through advertising, not work. We like boots, but they take away our business. He thinks it is "disrespectful" and "shameful" to use advertisements to sell inferior boots to customers.
In this way, the image of an old shoemaker who loves his job, is infatuated with shoemaking, regards quality as life, regards ignoring quality as shame, and abides by the principle of being a man all his life stands clearly in front of us.
(2) Clear, concise and lyrical style.
John Galsworthy's language style in the article is clear and concise at the beginning, and it won't give people a sense of being so-so. Every action and sentence of a character is extremely useful and cannot be simplified. For example, in the first paragraph, only two sentences are used to introduce the relationship between time, place, people, "I" and people. The portrait description has been discussed above. Please look at how concise the dialogue description is: "I clearly remember that one day, when I put my little foot in front of him, I shyly asked,' Mr. Godzilla, is it difficult to make boots?' He replied, "This is a craft." A smile suddenly appeared on the root of his sarcastic red beard. Another example: "Those boots shouldn't creak. "Sorry, it's ringing. Did your boots get wet when you were still wearing them? I don't think so. "Hearing this sentence, he frowned, as if searching for the memory of those boots; I'm sorry to bring up this serious matter. The conciseness of the dialogue is obvious at first glance, especially the last sentence: "I'm really sorry to mention this serious matter." This is the lyric language in narrative, and there are many such lyric languages in the text. Another example is: "he has become extremely old, and it is really hard to see him;" I'm glad to leave him. " "I walked in and felt very uncomfortable. "Wait a minute.
(3) The narrative clues are clear and the materials are numerous but not messy.
The reason why we are willing to read this article as an essay is mainly because it has no central story like a novel, and the shoemaker described has a long half-life and more content. But when we read it, we feel very complete and touching, which first benefits from clear narrative clues, namely; From beginning to end, with the clue that "I" asked the old shoemaker to make boots, I portrayed the characters through what I saw and heard in making boots; Besides, it is very lyrical, so the article attracts readers like a magnet.
(4) Adopting the narrative mode of double clues.
There are two clues in this novel: the bright line is that "I" went to the store several times to make boots; Dark lines are the ups and downs of shops.