Giáo trình Văn minh Anh - Mỹ: Phần 2

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Cuốn giáo trình "Văn minh Anh - Mỹ" được biên soạn nhằm giúp người học nhận biết các sự kiện địa lý, lịch sử và văn hóa; một trong những vấn đề nóng bỏng liên quan đến văn minh Anh - Mỹ. Mời các bạn cùng tham khảo nội dung phần 2 cuốn sách.

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Part One GEOGRAPHY 89
Lecture 1: NATURAL REGIONS 1. The U.S.A is situated in the central part of the North American continent. Its western coast is washed by the Pacific Ocean and its eastern coast by the Atlantic Ocean. 2. The area of the U.S.A is over nine million square kilometres. 3. The continental part of the U.S.A consists of two highland regions and two lowland regions. The highland regions are the Appalachian Mountains in the east, and the Cordillera in the west. The highest peak in the Applachian Mountains is 2,037 metres high. The highest peak of the Cordillera in the U.S.A is 4,418 metres. 4. Between the Cordillera and the Appalachian Mountains are the central lowlands, which are called the prairie, and the eastern lowlands, called the Mississippi valley. 5. The five Great lakes, between the U.S.A and Canada, are joined together by short rivers or canals, and the Saint Lawrence River joins them to the Atlantic Ocean. In the west of the U.S.A there is another lake called the Great Salt lake. 6. The main rivers of the U.S.A are the Mississippi, which flows into the Gulf of Mexico, the Colorado and the Columbia, which flow into the Pacific Ocean, the Saint Lawrence River and the Hudson River, which flow into the Atlantic Ocean. 7. The U.S.A is a very large country, so it has several different climatic regions. The coldest regions are in the north and norlh-east where much snow falls in winter. The south has a subtropical climate. Hot winds blowing from the Gulf of Mexico often bring typhoons. The climate along the Pacific coast is much warmer than that of the Atlantic coast. The region around the Great Lakes is known for its changeable weather. 90
REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Where is the United States situated? 2. What does the continental part of the U.S.A consist of? 3. Which rivers flow into the Atlatic Ocean and which ones find their way into the Pacific Ocean? Lecture 2: A TRIP FROM SAN FRANCISCO TO NEW YORK 1. The U.S.A is a country of great differences. There are high mountains and flat prairies in it, tropical heat and arctic cold. 2. If you want to go from San Francisco to New York by train, you must ride more than three thousand miles. It takes three days and nights. In California, where you begin your trip, the climate is usually mild all year. In the south of the country is the famous fruit growing area. In California, oranges, grapefruit and lemons, as well as many other fruits and vegetables, are sent all over the United States and to other parts of the world. 3. Soon the train leaves those green plains and goes up into the Sierra Nevada mountains covered with snow. Here and there you can see clear mountain lakes. As the train goes east you cross the Sait Lake desert. 4. For miles and miles you will see nothing but salt and salt. Flat plains covered with short dry grass go for miles and miles. This is sheep and cattle country, the land of the cowboys. As you cross it, you may want to know where the people of America are. From time to time you may see a few cattle on the plain or the wagon of a 91
cowboy, but most of the country is empty. 5. As the train crosses Nebraska, you leave the empty country and enter the rich farming region of America. Nebraska has many golden wheat fields. In Iowa wheat and corn are important products. After two days, the train arrives in Chicago, the second largest city in the United States. 6. Then you cross Pennsylvania and New Jersey - the richest industrial states of the country and at last arrive in New York, the largest city in the U.S.A. The trip will not show you all of America, of course. Each region has its own characteristics. There are many large and modern cities, but a great territory of the country are large plains with farm-houses and small towns. The usual town in any part of the United States has its “main street” with the same types of shops and markets selling the same products. So many America towns have the same look. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. What is California famous for? 2. What part of the U.S. is the land of the cowboys? 3. What are the richest industrial states of the U.S.A? 92
Lecture 3: THE MAIN GEOGRAPHICAL AREAS FROM THE ATLANTIC TO THE PACIFIC I. NEW ENGLAND 1. New England includes six states: Maine - New Hampshire - Vermont - Massachusetts - Rhode Island - Connecticut. 2. New England is highly industrial, but it also has many fields, woods, and small towns. 3. New England is the part of the United States that is most like “old” England. n. NEW YORK CITY 1. Manhattan is an island just 13 miles long and 2 miles wide. 2. It is the centre of American finance, advertising, art, theatre, publishing, fashion - and much more. 3. The borough of Manhattan is one of the most exciting cities in the world. 4. New York attracts people from all over the world. New York .was always a city of immigrants. It still is. ĨỊ1 5. New York’s other boroughs are Brooklyn - Queens - the Bronx, and Staten Island. 6. Brooklyn alone has so many people that if it were a separate city, it would be the fourth largest in the United States! 93
III. THE MID-ATLANTIC REGIONS 1. The Mid-Atlantic region is by no means uniform: Geographically, historically, and economically, the Mid-Atlantic states are quite different from one another: New York State borders on Canada and has cold winters; Maryland State has much in common with the American South. 2. The Mid-Atlantic regions plays an important role in the United States. Its cities include’WASHINGTON, DC, the nation’s capital, and NEW YORK CITY, the nation’s financial centre. 3. Not surprisingly, the Mid-Atlantic region is densely populated. Although the region is relatively small, nearly one in every ten Americans lives there. IV. THE SOUTH 1. The South is economically, historically, and culturally a distinct region. 2. With its warm climate and rich soil, it soon developed an economy based on export crops like cotton. These were grown on farms worked by slaves from Africa. 3. Conflicts between the North and the South, especially over slavery, led in 1861 to the Civil War. 4. In the last few decades, the South has become more industrial and urban than in the past. Some parts of the South are among the fastest-growing areas in the country. 5. But the South also preserves its traditions - for example, its emphasis on good cooking and its slower, more hospitable way of life. V. THE MIDWEST 1. The Midwest is a large, economically important region. It contains major industrial cities and much of America’s farmland. 94
2. Geographically, the Midwest can be divided into three smaller regions: The northern Great Lakes area has many hills, lakes, and forests. South of that is the prairie area, which is flat alid has good soil for farming. To the West is the Great Plains area, which, although also farmed, is far drier than the prairie. VI. THE SOUTHWEST 1. The Southwest is characterized by geographical and cultural variety. 2. Geographically, the region ranges from humid lands in eastern Texas to drier prairies in Oklahoma and Texas to mountains and deserts in Arizona and New Mexico. 3. Culturally, the region is home to many Indians and Hispanics, as well as the “Anglos” (ie., other Americans). The population of the state of New Mexico, for example, is about 10 percent Indian, 40 percent Hispanic, and 50 percent “Anglo”. 4. The Southwestern states are rich in minerals. Livestock raising is also an important part of the Southwest’s economy. vn. THE ROCKY MOUTAIN REGION 1. The mountain region has plains and . even deserts. But its main geographic feature is the Rocky Mountains. These mountains stretch from Alaska to northern Mexico and include many smaller ranges. 2. The Rockies are among the earth’s youngest mountains. Because they are young, they are not worn down. They have steep slopes and many peaks and valleys. The mountains give the region spectacular scenery - and they limit economic development. 3. The region has some of the least populated states in the nation. Denver, Colorado State, is its only large city. The government owns much of the land - 66 percent in the case of Utah. 4. Mining, ranching, and farming are important to the region’s economy. Tourism is also important. ( 95
VIII. THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST AND ALASKA 1. This region is known for its natural beauty - a beauty that is fairly tame in Oregon and Washington States and much more wild in Alaska. 2. There are mountains, forests, and rugged coastlines. The outdoors play an important role in people’s lifestyles, which tend to be casual and informal. 3. In the economic hard times of the early 1990s, these states were among the few that were not experiencing difficulties. 4. Alaska was doing well because of its oil, while Oregon and Washington were doing well because they are centres of trade with Asia. 5. Manufacturing and agriculture are also important in Oregon and Washington; lumber (wood) and fishing are important to all three states. X. CALIFORNIA AND HAWAH STATES 1. These two states are grouped together mainly because they are relatively near each other: California, although 2,500 miles from Hawaii, is the closest state to Hawaii. 2. California is the most populated of the states and one of the largest. 3. The eight islands of Hawaii are together one of the smallest, least populated states. 4. The two states do have a few things in common: culturally diverse populations, and lots of sun and sand. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Cite the main features of New England. 2. What are the characteristics of the South? 3. What do you know about the Midwest? 96
Lecture 4: POPULATION & MAIN CITIES 1. The population of the U.S.A is more than 236 million people. Most of the people live in towns. 2. In the country there are 26.5 million Black people and about 1 million Indians, many of whom live in reservations. 3. Besides the people from Mexico and the South American countries, there are also people who have come to the U.S.A from Europe and Asia. 4. The life of most coloured people is very difficult in the U.S.A because of race discrimination. Many other Americans live in poverty, too. They live in city slums and country shacks. They have little hope of a better future. There are millions who are not able to get work. *** 5. The capital of the U.S.A, as you know, of course, is Washington in the district of Columbia (D.C.). It is an administrative city without much industry. The American capital has many famous monuments on its streets and squares. One of them is the Abraham Lincoln memorial. Abraham Lincoln’s traditions live in the struggle of all progressive American people. That is why many demonstrations for peace, for jobs, and for a better life are held near the Lincoln memorial. *** 6. New York is the largest city and port in the United States. It is the financial and business centre of the capitalist world. New York is a city of social contrasts. Not very far from some of the city’s famous sky-crapers there are slum-streets of broken-down houses where the poor of the city live. *** 97
7. There are a lot of other large cities in the U.S.A. Boston is one of the first towns which were built on the Atlantic coast of America. It is an important port and a financial and cultural centre. It has three universities. Chicago is one of the biggest industrial cities in the U.S.A and the second largest after New York. Philadelphia, near the east coast, produces agricultural machines and locomotives. Light industry is highly developed here. Philadelphia is an important cultural centre with many fine buildings and a university. Detroit, in the Great Lakes region, is a port and one of the biggest centres of the automobile industry. San Francisco, on the Pacific Coast, is a big port and ship building centre. Los Angeles, in California, is an important centre of many modern industries. Not far from Los Angeles is Hollywood, the centre of the US film business. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Write about the population and the people of the U.S.A. 2. What is the capital of the U.S.A? Write what you know about it. 3. Name some large cities in the U.S.A and give their special features. 98
Lecture 5: WASHINGTON 1. Washington, the capital of the United States, is situated on the Potomac River in the District of Columbia. The district is a piece of land ten miles square and it does not belong to any one state but to all the states. The district is named in honour of Columbus, the discoverer of America. 2. The Capital owes very much to the first president of the United States, George Washington. It was Washington who chose the place for the; District and laid in 1790 the corner-stone of the Capitol, where Congress sits. 3. Washington is not the largest city in the United States; it is not as large as New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit or Los Angeles. It has a population of 900,000 people. 4. Washington is a one-industry town. That industry is goverment. It does not produce anything, except very much scrap paper. Every day twenty-five railway cars leave Washington loaded with scrap paper. 5. Washington has many historical places. The largest and tallest among the buildings is the Capitol with its great Hall of Representatives and Senate Chamber. There are no sky-scrapers in Washington because no other building must be taller than the Capitol. 6. The White House is the President’s residence. All American presidents except George Washington (The White House was not yet built in his time), had lived in the White House. It was built in 1799. It is a two-storied white building. In 1814, during the war with England, the White House was burnt down. After the war the charred remains of the building were whitewashed, so as not to spoil the view. Since that time the residence of the American 99
presidents has been always painted white. 7. Not far from the Capitol is the Washington Monument, which looks like a very big pencil. It rises 160 metres and is hollow inside. A special lift brings visitors to the top in 70 seconds, from where they can enjoy a view of the city. 8. The Jefferson Memorial was built in memory of the third president of the U.S.A, Thomas Jefferson, who was also the author of the Declaration of Independence. The Memorial is surrounded by cherry-trees. 9. The Lincoln Memorial is devoted to the memory of the sixteenth president of the United States, the author of the Emancipation Proclamation, which gave freedom to Negro slaves in America. 10. On the other bank of the Potomac lies the Arlington National Cemetery, where president Kennedy was buried. American soldiers and officers, who died in World Wars I and II and in the Viet Nam war, are buried there also but Negro Soldiers and officers are buried in another place. 11. The population of Washington is 70 percent Negro, but the Negroes do not live in the central parts of the city, they live in the Negro ghettoes which are outside the centre. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Where is Washington located? 2. Write about some historical places here. 3. Cite the history of the White House. 100
Lecture 6. NEW YORK 1. New York is the largest city in the world and the biggest seaport. It is the money-centre of the United States. 2. New York is situated in the North-east of the U.S.A in the State of New York or the Empire State. 3. In comparison with such ancient historical cities as Rome, Moscow, London or Paris, New York is quite young. It was founded in 1613 by Dutch settlers. A Dutchman, Peter Minuit, bought Manhattan Island from the Indians for 24 dollars and a barrel of rum. The Americans say that this was the best business deal ever made in New York. In 1613 the Dutch had built only four small houses in Manhattan. New Amsterdam was the first name of the city. After the English had taken over the city in 1626 it was renamed New York after the Duke of York who was commander of the English army. 4. During the war for independence New York was an important political centre, and for five years from 1785 till 1790, the Capital of the U.S.A. 5. The population of New York numbers 8 million people, together with the population of its suburbs it comes to 16 million people (1970). 6. It is a multi-national city, the people that live in it speak seventy- five different languages. 7. Manhattan: is the name of an island which forms the heart of New York. The island is 13 miles long, 2 miles wide, and lies at the mouth of the Hudson River. The population of Manhattan is about two million people. Here is the heart of America’s business and culture, the city of skycrapers of Broadway, of Wall Street, which is the centre of American money business. The street got its name in 101
the old days when one of the Dutch governors of New Amsterdam built a wall across Manhattan to protect the colonists from the Indians. The wall was later broken down but the name remained. 8. Harlem - the largest Negro ghetto is also in Manhattan. The houses are old and dirty; there are few schools and few hospitals. Very many Negroes are out of work because a coloured person in the U.S.A is “the last to be hired and the first to be fired”. Like other capitalist cities New York is a city of deep social contrasts. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Where is New York situated? Give its first name. 2. Point out the special features you know about New York. 3. Describe Harlem and contrast it with Manhattan. Lecture 7: NEW YORK, THE CITY OF THE YELLOW DEVIL 1. New York, the largest city in the U.S.A, is a city of great contrasts. Side by side with wealth and comfort, poverty and race discrimination can be found here. 2. New York has a population of over eight million people. 3. In New York City, there are representatives of nearly all the world’s national groups, and when you walk in the streets and avenues of Manhattan you can hear practically every language in the world. 4. In the city of New York, alone, there are more than one million Negroes. They mostly live in Harlem, the poorest district of New York. 102
5. Early in the morning, factory workers, dockers and builders go to work. Work is going on under the ground, on the ground and high above the ground on the walls of the sky-crapers; every morning men clean the windows of these great buildings. 6. By eight o’clock in the morning, the New York streets are crowded with clerks and office employees. When they start their work, there is nobody in the streets, only those who have no work, no future. 7. It is not easy to find work in New York. A man in need takes up any job he finds, even the most badly paid one. But very many New Yorkers have no work at all. 8. New York’s harbour is the finest and largest in the world- Every year a great number of big ships from all countries come up to the docks. New Yorkers helped to build twelve railroads which carry goods and people to and from all parts of the country. In this way they made New York one of the greatest ports in the world. 9. When more business offices were needed, skyscrapers were built. When better communications were needed, bridges, subways and roads were built. When planes became an inportant of the public transport system, great airports were built. But the federal government in Washington does little to help New York to solve its many problems. While millions and millions of dollars are spent on military needs, there is no money for public services, for housing. Many apartment houses in New York are old, the rooms are small and dark. In summer these houses are very hot, in winter they are often cold. Living conditions in such apartment houses are very bad. There is ho place for children to play. 10. When Maxim Gorky visited New York in 1906, he called it the City of the Yellow Devil, the city of gold. The Yellow Devil, the power of money, enslaves the people of America today as it did in Gorky’s time. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Why is New York a city of great contrast? 103
2. State the reasons why New York’s harbour is one of the greatest ports in the world. 3. What is meant by “New York, the City of the Yellow Devil”? Lecture 8: CHICAGO 1. Chicago is the second largest city in the United States. It is in state Illinois. The population of the city numbers about 4 million, together with the population of the suburbs it comes up to over 6 million people. Over 800,000 of them are Negroes. Chicago is often called “the most American” of all American cities and towns, and the second largest (after New York) industrial centre. It lies on the banks of Lake Michigan. 2. Chicago is not a very old city. It was founded in 1848, when the first English settlements appeared on the territory of present day Chicago. The city has quickly grown in the last 125 years due to the great number of newcomers. 3. Like New York and other large American cities, Chicago has two different parts: the centre, with its skycrapers and rich and comfortable houses on the Golden shore of Lake Michigan, and the districts where the workers live in old and blackened one - and two- storied houses. 4. Chicago is the country’s greatest railway centre where thirty-eight railroads meet. It also has the largest stockyards in the country and the largest corn market. 5. The idea of May Day - the international day of labour and of men’s solidarity - was born here, in Chicago, in 1886 during the worker’s struggle for the eight-hour working day. 104
6. On May 1, 1886, the Chicago workers came to Hay Market Square and called a strike in support of the eight-hour working day. When the police came the workers organized a mass demonstration of protest. The police opened fire and killed and wounded many workers. In memory of this day the first of May was proclaimed the day of International solidarity of the world protetariat. 7. Chicago was also the place where the American communist party was organized in 1920. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. State the location and population of Chicago. 2. Where was the idea of May Day born? 3. When and where was the American Communist Party organized? Lecture 9: SAN FRANCISCO 1. The city of San Francisco was itself a result of the Gold Rush. 2. It is a romantic and liberal city. It is surrounded on three sides by water. It is famous for its bridges, fog, and fog horns. It has 40 hills. It is famous for its cable cars and for its bright houses clinging to the hills. 3. San Francisco also has a.reputation as an intellectual, liberal, and slightly crazy city - a city where new and different ideas' can be explored: In the mid-1960s, it gave rise to hippies. The college protests that swept America in the late 1960s also began in San Francisco, at the university of California, Berkeley which is always known for academic excellence and student protest. 4. It also has Chinatown, the largest Chinese neighbourhood, outside 105
Asia. 5. Don’t leave San Francisco without seeing the structure that has become its symbol - THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE. This beautiful orange suspension bridge, which opened in 1937, goes between San Francisco and Marin County to its north. 6. The bridge was first proposed in 1869 by Norton and it took twentieth-century technology and the engineering genius of a man named Joseph Strauss to bring the Golden Gate Bridge into existence. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Why can we say that San Francisco is a romantic and liberal city? 2. What is it famous for in the field of education and ideas? 3. What is the symbol of the city? Describe something about it. Lecture 10: THE AMERICAN ECONOMY 1. The United States economy is based on the free enterprise system: Private businesses compete against one another with relatively little interference from the government. 2. Since the depression of the 1930s, when the economy essentially collapsed, laws have been made giving the government a more active role in economic and other matters. 3. Until the second half of the last century, the US. was a mainly agricultural nation. The Civil War (1861-1865) helped stimulate industry. In the years that followed, industrialization transformed the country, although many areas, especially the South, remained mainly agricultural and rural. 106
4. In the 1950s and 1960s, the US economy grew quickly. Many companies moved to the South and Southwest, and these areas experienced change and growth. 5. Then, in the mid-1970s, economic growth began to slow down. 6. Just as there had been a shift from agriculture to industry, there is now a shift from industry to services. Services are provided by hospitals, banks, law firms, hotels and restaurants, and so on. In recent years, most new jobs have been service jobs. 7. The U.S. is a large country and is rich in natural resources. It is a leading producer of fuel - of oil, natural gas, and coal. It is also a leading producer of many other minerals. The U.S. grows wheat, com, and other crops and raises many cows, pigs, and chickens. 8. However, the U.S. is also a major consumer of resources. This means that it must import much of the fuel it uses. 9. Not surprisingly, international trade is important to the U.S. Major exports include machinery and high-technology equipment, chemicals, cars, aircraft, and grains. Major 'imports include machinery and telecommunications equipment, oil, cars, metals and chemicals. 10. Today, the US faces some major economic challenges. One is increasing its productivity, or the efficiency of the labor force. Another is to train people to fill new kinds of jobs when the country shifts from manufacturing to services. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. When did the U.S. economy grow rapidly? 2. What are some of the U.S. major imports and exports? 3. What major economic challenges is the U.S. facing now? 107
Lecture 11: INDUSTRY AND AGRICULTURE 1. The U.S.A is a highly developed industrial country, and its agriculture is highly mechanized. 2. Coal is found in many parts of the country: in the Cordillera Mountains, in the state of Kansas, in the east near Birmingham and Pittsburgh. The state of Illinois is especially rich in coal. 3. Iron is mined near the Great Lakes and in other areas. The U.S.A has rich oil-fields in California, Texas, Alaska and other regions. It holds first place in the capitalist world for oil and natural gas. ■t * * 4. The heavy industries are for the most part in the Middle West, in the region of the Great Lakes, around Detroit and Chicago, in the north-eastern states and near Birmingham. 5. The automobile industry and all kinds of machine-buildings are highly developed especially in and near Detroit, in California and in the areas of heavy industry. 6. Ship-building is developed along the Atlantic coast and also in San Francisco and Seattle on the Pacific coast. 7. The textile industry is concentrated in the north-east in Boston and other cities; but it is especially well developed in the South, where much cotton is grown, in the Mississippi valley. 8. The U.S.A has a highly developed railway system. It also has the best system of roads in the capitalist world. The Great Lakes and the rivers, especially the Saint Lawrence River and the Mississippi, are used for transport. * ĨỈÍ $ 108