cross out;work out;hurry away;fall behind;tell off;throw light on;be filled with;be regarded as;be intended to;think on one's feet
Humour is the most effective,yet frequently neglected,means of handling the difficult situations in our lives.It can be used for patching up differences,apologizing,saying "no",criticizing,and getting the other fellow to do what you want without losing his face.For some jobs,it is the only tool that can succeed.It is a way to discuss sensitive subjects because a serious dialogue may start a riot.For example,many believe that comedians on television are doing more today for racial and religious tolerance than people in any other forum.
Humour is often the best way to keep a small misunderstanding from escalating(升级) into a big deal.Recently a neighbor of mine had a quarrel with his wife as she drove him to the airport.Airborne,he felt miserable,and he knew she did,too.Two hours after she returned home,she received a long-distance phone call."Person-to-person for Mrs.I.A.Pologize," intoned the operator."That's spelled ‘P' as in..." In a twinkling(眨眼间),the whole day changed from bad to lovely at both ends of the wire.
An English hostess with a quick wit was giving a formal dinner for eight distinguished guests whom she hoped to enlist(赞助) in a major charity drive.Austerity was a fashion in England at the time,and she had asked her children to serve the meal.She knew that anything could happen...and it did,just as her son,with the studied concentration of a tight rope walker,brought in a large roast turkey;he successfully elbowed the swinging dining-room door,but the backswing(回摆) threw the turkey onto the dining-room floor.
The boy stood rooted;the guests staring at their plates.Moving only her head,the hostess looked at her son,"No harm,Daniel," she said,"just pick him up and take him back to the kitchen..." She enunciated(发音) clearly so he would think about what she was saying,"and bring in the other one."
A wink and a one-liner instantly changed the dinner from a red-faced embarrassment to laughter.
Young children don't get sarcasm(冷嘲热讽)—but by the time they're teens,it can be their default(默认的) mode.Here's what science tells us about the mental skills behind that ironic expression.If I were to tell you that sarcasm is one of our most powerful linguistic tools,your first response might reasonably be,yeah right! Perhaps you'd even simply assume that I was sinking into a little irony myself.Parents or teachers of teenagers,in particular,may find it hard to believe that this annoying linguistic habit is a sign of a flexible and inventive mind.Yet that is exactly what psychologists and neuroscientists have been arguing.Psychologists and neuroscientists have found that sarcasm requires the brain to jump through numerous hoops to arrive at a correct interpretation,requiring more brainpower than literal statements.
And although it's often dismissed as childish comments,sarcasm is actually evidence of maturity — as it takes years for a child's developing brain to fully grasp and master it.An understanding of sarcasm's use in humour develops particularly late — at around nine or ten years of age on average.
As a form of humour,sarcasm may also help us to deal with frustration or stress.It can be a way of letting off steam.Interestingly,studies have found that depressed and anxious individuals' use of sarcasm increased over the pandemic — which may reflect this coping mechanism.In general,though,the primary motivation of sarcasm will be linguistic — to add colour to the messages that we hope to convey.
It may initially feel like a shock when parents notice their children deploying sarcasm.Parents may feel particularly helpless when dealing with a teenager who injects it into almost all interactions,as if they struggle to express any sincere emotions.But should we blame teens for employing this versatile(多功能的) tool?Perhaps it's better seen as the useful practice of a vital ability.
I was teaching creative writing at a high school,when Micky gave me a note from his mother.It 1 his absence from class the day before.
I had seen Micky himself writing the note.Most parental-excuse notes I received were penned by my 2 .The forged(伪造的)excuse notes made a large pile,with writing that ranged from imaginative to crazy.The 3 didn't realize honest excuse notes were usually 4 .
The students are always more brilliant when they 5 excuse notes rather than on any subject."The excuse notes are 6 to be written by parents,but actually they are not.True,Micky?" The students looked at me 7 .
There will be the first class to study the 8 of the excuse notes.Everyone smiled."Use your 9 to try best." 10 went down.Pens raced 11 paper.For the first time ever I saw students so 12 in their writing.
The next day everyone had excuse notes.Heated discussions followed.The headmaster entered the classroom and walked 13 ,looking at papers,and then asked me to his office.My heart 14 .
He 15 my hand,"Your job was great.Those kids were writing on the college level.Thank you."
Last summer when my family was making a road trip to Montana we arrived in Great Falls late one night.The kids had fallen asleep in the car,so my husband went and checked in while I stayed with the kids.When he returned with the room keys,we woke up our children and took them out of the car,through the hotel,up the elevators and into our guest room.We kept the room dark,leaving only the entry light on,and quickly put the kids into bed hoping they'd drift back to sleep.
My husband went to put our water in the mini-fridge only to notice some beers."That's strange,"he said and I agreed,but having discovered left-behind drinks in hotel fridges in the past,I didn't think much about it.I figured the housekeepers had forgotten to check it.In the meantime,my husband ran to the store and I went into the bathroom to get ready for bed.As I washed my face,I looked down to see cardboard beer containers in the trash.I felt my heart begin to pound.We were in someone else's room!
Now panicked,I checked the closet.Nothing.I then went to the dresser drawers.Nothing.My eyes scanned the door,room's floor and there it was:A black bag that looked like one of ours.But it wasn't!
I immediately called the front desk and the waitress in charge responded with an"Oh,my God!This is not good!"
By now the kids were wide-awake,jumping on the beds as I was trying to put all of our things back into our oversized suitcase.Just while we were packing our things,I heard someone was unlocking the door,which made my heart beating wildly.
注意：续写词数应为150左右。
The door opened and in came a young man.
……
I didn't know how to deal with the matter but luckily the cleaning lady arrived out of breath.
