1、Love Is a Fallacy,Max Shulman,Unit 4,Teaching Plan,Teaching Objectives,To have a basic knowledge of the terms in logic To understand what love is in an affluent society To appreciate the humorous and satirical writing style To appreciate the language,Teaching Focus,The rules of logic: to understand

2、all the eight fallacies referred in the text. The particular writing style of the author. The light, humorous, yet impressing way of depicting things. Subjective, personal, sensible.,Teaching Focus,The self-boasting tone of “I”. Different adjectives applied to describe “ I” and my “rival” Petey Burc

3、h. The positive, neutral and negative senses of the similar adjectives.,Teaching Methods,Teacher-oriented teaching method Student-oriented teaching method The elicited method,Teaching Procedure,. Introductory Remarks . Background Information . Learning Focus . Key words and Expressions . Explanation

4、 of the Text,. Division of the Text . The Writing Style . The Personality of Dobie . Exercises,Introductory Remarks,. Introductory Remarks,About the title “There is deceptive or delusive quality about love”. “Love can not be deduced from a set of given premises”.,About the author Max Schulman an Ame

5、ricans best-known humorists a productive writer of many talents,His works Barefoot boy with Cheek The Feather merchant Rally Round the Flag, Boys The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis,About the text The text is excerpted from The Many loves of Dobbie Gillis by Max Shulman. It is a piece of narrative writin

6、g.,The narrator of the story, Dobie Gillis, a self-conceited freshman in a school struggles against Petey Burch, his stupid roommate whose girl friend he plans to steal and Polly Espy, the beautiful dumb girl he intends to marry after suitable reeducation.,Detailed Study of the Text,. Background Inf

7、ormation,Explanation of thelogical Fallacies A logical argument gives evidence to support some conclusion. two necessary parts: a conclusion the thesis argues for certain premises or facts on which to base the conclusion,The conclusion is to be inferred from the premises. An argument is deductively

8、valid when its premises provide conclusive evidence for the conclusion. An argument that fails to be conclusively deduced is invalid and fallacious.,An argument may be fallacious in three ways: fallacious in its material content because of the use of a misstatement of the facts; fallacious in its wo

9、rding because of an incorrect use of term; fallacious in its form because of the use of an improper process of inference.,Fallacies are divided into three groups: a) material-fallacies of presumption b) verbal-fallacies of ambiguity c) formal-a structural pattern of generically incorrect reasoning T

10、he fallacies mentioned in the text are material fallacies:,1. Dicto Simpliciter 絕對(duì)判斷 （Fallacy of Accident ） An argument based on an unqualified generalization. The argument applies a general rule to a particular case in which some special circumstances makes the rule inapplicable.,2. Hasty Generaliz

11、ation （倉(cāng)促推斷） The converse fallacy of accident arises when a special case is improperly applied as a general rule. For instance, a certain food is delicious to some people, but the fact does not imply that it is delicious to all people.,3. The Fallacy of Irrelevant Conclusion It occurs when the concl

12、usion changes the point that is under consideration in the premises. Special cases of irrelevant conclusion are produced by the so-called fallacies of irrelevance, which include:,1) Post Hoc ergo propter hoc 牽強(qiáng)附會(huì)/假性因果 The fallacy of False Cause The fallacy mislocates the cause of one phenomenon in a

13、nother that is only seemingly related.,2) Contradictory Premises循環(huán)論證 Begging the Question It comes into being when the premises openly or covertly presume the very conclusion to be demonstrated.,3）Ad Misericordiam文不對(duì)題 （appeal to pity) In a law court, a trial lawyer doesnt argue for his clients innoc

14、ence, but he tries to move the jury to sympathy for him, just as applicant for a job doesnt answer the question raised by the boss. Instead he tries to appeal to the boss sympathy by saying something about the poor situation of his family.,4) False Analogy “It doe not follow” arises when there is no

15、t even a deceptively plausible appearance of valid reasoning, because the given premises have virtually nothing to do with the conclusion drawn from them.,5） Hypothesis Contrary to Fact The fallacy of many questions consists in asking for or giving a single answer to a question when this answer coul

16、d either be separate or refused completely.,6) Poisoning the Well （井中投毒） Speaking “against the man” rather than to issue, or the fallacy of Poisoning the Well in the text where the premises may only make a personal attack on a person holding some thesis rather than offer grounds showing why what he

17、says is false.,. Learning Focus,Structure of the Narration 1. The protagonist: Dobie Gillis- a self conceited freshman 2. The antagonist: Petey Burch- his stupid roommate Polly Espy- the beautiful dumb girl,3. The time: during the period of being students 4. The place: on the campus of the universit

18、y of Minnesota 5. The main theme: love is a Fallacy 6. The plot: Focus on a Raccoon Coat,. Key words and Expressions,1. unfetter: to free from fetters; to free from restraint of any kind; liberate -free and unfettered trade 2. mumble: to speak or say indistinctly and in a low voice, mutter -I wish y

19、ou wouldnt mumble. -I cant hear you clearly.,3. shed: cast off or lose hair -All the leaves have shed. 4. covet: want ardently; long for with envy -Its a sin to covet.,5. veer: change direction; shift; turn or swing around -The wind veered round to the west. 6. swivel: turn on -He swiveled the camer

20、a on the tripod to follow the riders.,7. wax: to grow gradually larger; increase in strength, intensity, volume -The moon waxes. 8. wince: to shrink or draw back slightly, usually with a grimace, as in pain, embarrassment, etc. -He winced at the insult.,9. chirp: speak in lively way 10. blubber: wee

21、p loudly, like a child 11. fashion: shape; mold -He fashioned the clay into a jar.,12. croak: to speak in a low, rough voice as if you have a sore throat -The crow croaked disaster. 13. reel: to give way or fall back; sway, waver or stagger as from being struck -He reeled from the sharp blow.,14. be

22、llow: cry out loudly, as in anger or pain 15. enterprising: full of energy and initiative; willing to undertake new projects,16. flaccid: hanging in loose folds or wrinkles; soft and limp 17. pedantic: of or like a pedant 18. calculating: shrewd or cunning, esp. in a selfish way,19. astute: having o

23、r showing a clever or shrewd mind; cunning; crafty 20. unsightly: not slightly, not pleasant to look at; ugly 21. cerebral: appealing to the intellect rather than the emotions, intellectual,22. pin-up: designating a girl whose sexual attractiveness makes her a subject for the kind of pictures often

24、pinned up on walls 23. greasy: smeared with or containing grease,24. canny: careful and shrewd in ones action and dealing; clever and cautious 25. glum: feeling or looking gloomy 26. fraught: filled, charged or loaded,27. yummy: very tasty; delicious 28. grueling: extremely tiring; exhausting 29. we

25、ll-heeled: rich, prosperous -a well-heeled dandy,. Explanation of the Text,1. Charles Lamb Charles Lamb, an English essayist and poet, was born in London in 1775 and died in 1834. His writing was full of gentle humor. His dramatic essay “Specimens of English Dramatic Poets” established his reputatio

26、n as a critic.,2. Thomas Carlyle a British historian and essayist The Revolution ,Chartism:characterized by his trenchant social and political criticism and his complex literary style Carlyese: a compound of biblical, colloquialisms, and his own coinages, arranged in unexpected sequences.,3. Ruskin

27、-an English writer, art critic and social theorist -a great painting to be one that conveys great ideas to the viewer -the virtual dictator of artistic opinion in England during the mid-19th century,His works include: -Modern Painters (1843-1860), -The seven Lamps of architecture (1849) -Sesame and

28、Lilies (1856) -The Crown of Wild Olive (1866), -Time and Tide (1867).,4. nothing upstairs: (AmE. slang) empty-headed, a nitwit (BrE. slang) unfurnished in the upper storey 5. surrender oneself to sth.: to stop trying to prevent yourself from having a feeling, habit, etc. -She surrendered herself to

29、sleep. -He finally surrendered himself to his craving for drug.,6. in the swim (of things): (informal) involved in things that are happening in society or in a particular situation 7. tear: make sb. feel very unhappy or worried -His distress tore me apart. 8. have at ones figure tips: to be complete

30、ly familiar with,9. bat ones eyes / eyelashes: open and close ones eyes quickly, in a way that is supposed to be attractive not bat an eyelid: (BE) / not bat an eye (AE): 10. knock sb. out: to surprise and impress sb. very much -The movie just knocked me out.,11. exasperate: to annoy or irritate sb.

31、 very much -Her moods exasperated him. Exasperation: n. He shook his head in exasperation. 12. knit ones brow(s): to move / draw ones eyebrows together, to show that you are thinking hard, feeling angry,13. hammer away (at): keep emphasizing or talking about 14. patronize: -Some television programs

32、tend to patronize children. 15. have by the throat: attack by seizing and squeezing ones throat,16. rat: mouse, rat poison (informal) an unpleasant person, esp. one who is not loyal or trick sb.,. Division of the Text,Part I Paras 1-3 It serves as a brief introduction to, and a comment, on the story

33、. Part II Paras 4-59 It humorously depicts how the promise of exchanging a girlfriend for a raccoon coat is made and fulfilled.,Part III Paras 60-125 It vividly describes the incredibly tough project of making dumb Polly smart, and the seeming success. Part IV Paras 126-154 It ironically represents

34、the seemingly Pygmalion effect, which turns out to be a Frankenstein tragedy and forms the climax of the story.,Summary,. The Writing Style,a piece of narration of light, humorous satire Its theme: “Love is a Fallacy” “l(fā)ove” is an error a deception and emotion that does not follow the principles of

35、logic,summary,The purpose of the story to demonstrate that logic is a living, breathing things, full of beauty, passion and trauma, far from being a dry, pedantic subject.,The logical link of passage ideas “l(fā)ogic-a living thing” “exchange of a raccoon coat for a pretty but foolish girl” “teaching he

36、r to be logical and clever” “a Pygmalion becomes a Frankenstein”,Affluence has replaced love, thus there is no question of taking brilliance, talent, or education into consideration when choosing a boyfriend and a husband. It has reduced the search to a matter of seeking wealth and keeping up with t

37、he Joneses. Indeed , this kind of love is a fallacy.,The climax: paras. 147-150 Polly refuses to go steady with Dobie because she already promised to go steady with Petey Burch.,The end: in a very ironic note Dobie ignores the fact that love is the sincere attachment which arises naturally from both

38、 hearts, and he fails to win Polly because he has been too clever for his good.,The Features of Writing Style American colloquialism and slang a large lexical spectrum the ultra learned terms the infra clipped vulgar forms figurative language inversion for special emphasis,many figures of speech sim

39、ile metaphor hyperbole metonymy antithesis,short sentence elliptical sentences dashes topic-centered paragraph,. The Personality of Dobie,a smug, self-conceited freshman, smugly boasting and singing praises of himself, heaping on himself all the beautiful words of praise: cool, logical , keen, calcu

40、lating, perspicacious, acute, astute, powerful, precise and penetrating.,taking every opportunity to downgrade Petey Burch it might also imply a high-keyed state of nervous attention that is not sustainable for long. an acute awareness of the slightest ambiguity in each statement made by his opponent an acute alertness, heightened by the strange silence in the enemy trenches,Astute suggests a thorough and profound understanding, stemming from a scholarly or experienced mind that is in full command of a given field. an astute assessment of the strengths and weakness of the plans f