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Unit ThreeUnit ThreeUnit ThreeUnit ThreeMy Friend, Albert EinsteinMy Friend, Albert Einstein

Banish HoffmannBanish Hoffmann

2013-92013-9

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Einstein’s speech on behalf of the Hebrew University, 1950's

• “Ladies and gentlemen, our age is proud of the progress it has made in man‘s intellectual development. The search and striving for truth and knowledge is one of the highest of man’s qualities - though often, the pride is most loudly voiced by those who strive the least. And certainly we should take care not to make the intellect our god; it has, of course, powerful muscles, but no personality. It cannot lead, it can only serve; and it is not fastidious( 苛求的，挑剔的 ) in its choice of a leader. This characteristic is reflected in the qualities of its priests, the intellectuals. The intellect has a sharp eye for methods and tools, but is blind to ends and values. So it is no wonder that this fatal blindness is handed on from old to young and today involves a whole generation."

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Dictionary work• knack— a clever way of doing sth., a natural /speci

al skill, talent or ability, trick• E.g. It’s easy to make moon cakes once you’ve

got the knack.• awry — turned or twisted toward one side; askew;

away from the expected or proper direction, wrong. 扭曲的，错误的，歪斜的

• E.g. It’s no use to blame the looking glass if your face is awry.

• be in awe of — have respect as well as fear for

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• staggering — unexpectedly surprising; astounding, shocking, amazing, astonishing

E.g. a staggering view, a staggering achievement

• endearing — lovable especially in a childlike or naïve way.

E.g. She has such an endearing personality. She is endearingly free of pretensions. 她丝

毫不做作，很讨人喜爱。• vestiges — traces; remnantE.g. There's not a vestige of truth in what he say

s.

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prodigy — an unusually gifted or intelligent (young) person or child

ultimately — finally; after a long series of events

fabulous (flower) — remarkable (achievements)

Haggard and grief-lined — grieved, distressed, sorrowful, sad

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• Recalcitrant —[ri′kælsitr nt] hard to deal witəh; unmanageable; stubbornly unwilling to obey orders or to co-operate

E.g. Donkeys are reputed to be the most recalcitrant of animals.

• Worry — assail or attack a problem again and again until it is solved, just like a dog biting some small animals, shaking it or pulling at it with the teeth

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• surcease — (archaic) pause, stop• plausible — seeming to be reasonable• a house of cards — an insecure scheme• ineffable — unutterable; incapable of being e

xpressed in wordsE.g. an ineffable sweetness• elusively whimsical — indescribably quaint o

r strange 捉摸不透的，反复无常的，古怪

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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)• Austrian composer, one of the world’s gre

at musical geniuses, wrote masterpieces in every branch of music. During his short life, Mozart composed a great volume of music. His 789 compositions include operas, symphonies, concertos （协奏曲） , quartets for the piano and for stringed instruments, and sonatas （奏鸣曲） for both piano and violin. His music has delicate beauty and is always fresh and pleasing to the ear.

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Ludwig Van Beethoven (1770- 1827)

• German composer, was one of the greatest music geniuses. His works have a rare originality, emotional depth, and expressive power. He was known for his nine symphonies, piano concertos and sonatas, and string quartets.

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The Nobel Prize• Alfred Bernhard Nobel (1833-1896), a

distinguished Swedish chemist and industrialist, provided for the award of the Nobel Prizes. He experimented with deadly explosives, but he was a pacifist and he feared that his inventions might further warfare. In his will he left about $9,200,000 in a fund to award those who did most for their fellow men in science, literature and peace (physics, chemistry, literature, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace ).

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The Nazis

• Nazism is a political doctrine of racial supremacy, nationalism, and dictatorship. Nazi is the abbreviated form of the German words for National Socialism( 民族社会主义 ). It was Adolf Hitler, a member of National Socialist German Workers’ Party, who developed the program for Nazism, and defined the Germanic people as a race, called Aryan / ＇ ε riə ən/, superior to other races.

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Organization and Development

• As Hoffmann’s intention is to present to the reader the various traits of Einstein, the text does not follow a linear development, that is, it does not follow the “one-thing-leads-to-another” pattern. Rather, the author presents a portrait of Einstein by looking at him from various perspectives. And Hoffmann aims to reveal some less well-known aspects of Einstein’s personality, traits that characterize him more as a man than as a scientific genius. At the beginning of the article, Hoffmann chooses the word “simplicity” to convey what he thinks is the essence of Einstein. Simplicity characterizes not only the great man’s personality, but also the way he thinks, he looks at the world, and even his methods of research.

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Para. 1• Simplicity

• Anecdote: hat and rain• knack for going instinctively to the he

art of a matter : the secret for his major scientific discoveries

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Paras. 2 - 4• Modesty and Amiability

• Anecdotes: 1.Asking for a small salary2.The writer’s visit

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Paras. 5 - 7• Einstein’s personal history and ac

ademic achievements

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Paras. 8 - 11

• Concentration on work• Paras. 8 -10: concentrating his mind

when thinking;• Para. 11:absorption in work released

his pain

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Paras. 12 - 13• Love of natural simplicity

• Anecdote: Mozart vs. Beethoven

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Paras. 14 - 15• Academic courage

1.Simplicity vs. courage;2.Einstein’s genius: a Noble Prize

winner3.Noble Prize winning incident

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Paras. 17 - 18• Einstein & Politics

• Sense of justice

1.Einstein under the Nazi regime;2.Einstein in USA

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Paras. 19 - 20

• Elusive simplicity1.Einstein’s childlike innocence;2.The author’s failure to sum up: ceas

eless search for cosmic simplicity— a deeper, sadder beauty