a. American Dream-- It is a set of ideals in which freedom includes the opportunity for prosperity and success, and an upward social mobility achieved through hard work. The idea of the American Dream is rooted in the United States Declaration of Independence which proclaims that "all men are created equal" and that they are "endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights" including "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
* Everyone holds different American Dreams and comes to American with different reasons.
b. The free gift is the duration gift. (不要錢的最貴)
c. "The heart out of the bosom was never given in vain; Tis paid with sighs a plenty and sold for endless rue." -- excerpted from When I was One-and-Twenty
* It is the informal name of an untitled poem by A.E. Housman. It is the thirteenth in a cycle of 63 poems.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B. Discussion of American Literature
a. "Rip Van Winkle" is a piece of story which was used for mocking Dutch. "Van" is a noble's surname in Nederland. For example, Van Gogh
.jpg)
Vincent Van Gogh 
James Cooperb. James Fenimor Cooper-- His works are about the period of reclaiming and the relationship between Indian and American pioneers.
* He was a prolific and popular American writer of the early 19th century. His historical romances of frontier and Indian life in the early American days created a unique form of American literature.
c. American Romanticism put focuses on individualistic, humanistic, emotional, and imaginative. Before Romantic period (1812-1865), people used to regard literature as a kind of tool on politics such as journal for sailor and propaganda.
d. Transcendentalism never really a formalized movement, but instead a shared belief among a group of writers in the creative powers of the individual mind and the need to question established institutions and traditions. It is is the reaction and respond to the previous period.
e. Memorize three authors in each period and three pieces of each author.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C. Issue of Public Vote (News from BBC)
a. Revolutionary Period-- The Declaration of Independence video
* "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness." (excerpt from The Declaration of Independence)
b. American Dream in China / 海闊天空 (trailer)
* The story of 3 friends who build a successful English language school in China called "New Dream". This school help dream of Chinese teenagers come true. Before stand proudly in American stock market, many story happened with them.
c. The HongKong song-- 海闊天空(song) by Beyond
"America’s sluggish mobility is ultimately unsurprising. Wealthy parents not only pass on that wealth in inheritances, they can pay for better education, nutrition and health care for their children. The poor cannot afford this investment in their children’s development — and the government doesn’t provide nearly enough help. In a speech earlier this year, the Federal Reserve chairman, Ben Bernanke, argued that while the inequality of rewards fuels the economy by making people exert themselves, opportunity should be “as widely distributed and as equal as possible.” The problem is that the have-nots don’t have many opportunities either."
e. Quotations from the movie, Philadelphia and the book, The Catcher in the Rye
(a) "I heard the voices of friends, vanished and gone. At night, I hear the blood in my veins. Just as black and whispery as the rain on the streets of Philadelphia."
(b) "Life is a game, boy. Life is a game that one plays by the rules."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D. Al Gore's Concession Speech (v)
" Over the library of one of our great law schools is inscribed the motto, "Not under man but under God and law. That's the ruling principle of American freedom, the source of our democratic liberties. I've tried to make it my guide throughout this contest as it has guided America's deliberations of all the complex issues of the past five weeks.
Now the U.S. Supreme Court has spoken. Let there be no doubt, while I strongly disagree with the court's decision, I accept it. I accept the finality of this outcome, which will be ratified next Monday in the Electoral College. In addition, tonight, for the sake of our unity of the people and the strength of our democracy, I offer my concession."
* Electoral College-- The United States Electoral College is the institution that officially elects the President and Vice President of the United States every four years. The President and Vice President are not elected directly by the voters. Instead, they are elected by "electors" who are chosen by popular vote on a state-by-state basis.
* manifest destiny-- Manifest Destiny was the widely held belief in the United States that American settlers were destined to expand throughout the continent. It was always a general notion rather than a specific policy. There were never a set of principles defining manifest destiny. Ill-defined but keenly felt, manifest destiny was an expression of conviction in the morality and value of expansionism that complemented other popular ideas of the era
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
E. Topics of the day
a. Ralph Waldo Emerson-- His the American Scholar is know as "American Cultural Declaration of Independence".
* He was an American essayist, lecturer, and poet, who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champion of individualism and a prescient critic of the countervailing pressures of society, and he disseminated his thoughts through dozens of published essays and more than 1,500 public lectures across the United States.
Ralph Waldo Emersonb. Paul Revere's Ride (1774.04.18)--It's a poem by American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The story is that Paul Revere told a friend to prepare signal lanterns in the Old North Church to inform him if the British will attack by land or sea. He would await the signal across the river in Charlestown and be ready to spread the alarm throughout Middlesex County, Massachusetts. (Poem)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
F. Vocabulary
a. xerox copy-- It is the same as carbon copy but it was a brand initially.
* "Xerox" pronounces /z/ or /s/
b. learn by heart-- It is the meaning of memorizing.
c. Public vote
d. Philadelphia (v)-- "Phil" stands for love.
e. The Quaker City (in Philadelphia)-- "Quakers" are members of a family of religious movements collectively known as the Religious Society of Friends. The central unifying doctrine of these movements is the priesthood of all believers,a doctrine derived from a verse in the New Testament.
