楚門的世界ASampleHandout

1、The Truman ShowCourse: English Movies - Viewing, Listening, Speaking Students: SophomoresMaterial: Movie The Truman Show 楚門的世界 Time: 6 teaching periods (with each 45 minutes) Lesson Objectives:Students will be able to: memorize some usefulx epressions in context retell the movie story with the help

2、of several hints given analyze the characteristics of main characters in the movie learn some aspects owfe stern culturet alk about mass mediaProcedures:Period 1-2:1. Brief Introduction to the Movie (10 minutes)2. Lead-in Questions (10 minutes)3. Extensive Viewing, Listening & Speaking (20 minut

3、es)4. Tasks for Movie Clips 3-5 (45 minutes)5. Check the Answers (5 minutes)Period 3-4:1. Debate (15 minutes)2. Cultural Enrichment Reading (10 minutes)3. Cultural Enrichment Listening (15 minutes)4. Watch the first half of the movie (50 minutes) Period 5-61. Watch the second half of the movie (50 m

4、inutes)2. Cultural Enrichment Speaking (30 minutes)3. Favorite Quotes (10 minutes)I.Before-class ReadingThe Truman ShowBrief Introduction:Directed by:Peter WeirWritten by:Andrew Niccol (novel)Karen McCullah Lutz (screenplay) Kirsten Smith (screenplay)Starring:Jim Carrey. Truman BurbankLaura Linney.

5、Hannah GillEd Harris. ChristofNoah Emmerich. Louis ColtraneDistributed by: Paramount Pictures Release Year: June 5, 1998 (USA) Running time: 103 minutes Language:EnglishBudget:$60 millionBox office: $264,118,201Main Characters:Truman Burbank -Chosen out of six unwanted pregnancies and the first chil

6、d to be legally adopted by a corporation, he is unaware that his daily life is broadcast continuously around the world. He has a job in the insurance business and a lovely wife, but he eventually notices that his environment is not what it seems to be.Hannah Gill -Play as Meryl Burbank, Truman's

7、 wife, a nurse at the local hospital. Since the show relies on product placement for revenue, Meryl regularly shows off various items she has recently "purchased," one of the many oddities that makes Truman question his life. Her role is essentially to act the part of Truman's wife and

8、 ultimately to have a child by him, despite her reluctance to accomplish either. Linney explains that Gill "was a child actress who never made it, and now she's really ambitious. Mostly she's into negotiating her contract. Every time she sleeps with Truman she gets an extra $10,000.Chri

9、stof -The creator of The Truman Show. Christof remains dedicated to the program at all costs, often overseeing and directing its course in person (rather than through aides), but at the climax/resolution, he speaks to Truman over a loudspeaker, revealing the nature of Truman's situation. Dennis

10、HopperLouis Coltrane - Plays as Marlon, Truman's best friend since early childhood. Marlon is a vending machine operator for the company Goodies, who promises Truman he would never lie to him, despite the latest events in Truman's life. Emmerich has said, "My character is in a lot of pa

11、in. He feels really guilty about deceiving Truman. He's had a serious drug addiction for many years. Been in and out of rehab."Plot DescriptionTruman Burbank is the unsuspecting star of The Truman Show, a reality television program in which his entire life, since before birth, is filmed by

12、thousands of hidden cameras, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and is broadcast live around the world. The show's creator and executive producer Christof is able to capture Truman's real emotion and human behavior when put in certain situations. Truman's hometown of Seahaven is a complete s

13、et built under a giant arcological dome in the Los Angeles area. Truman's family and friends are all played by actors, allowing Christof to control every aspect of Truman's life.To prevent Truman from discovering his false reality, Christof has invented means of dissuading his sense of explo

14、ration, including "killing" his father in a storm initiated by Christof while on a fishing trip to instill in him a fear of the water, and making many news reports and commercials about the dangers of traveling, and featuring television shows about how good it is to stay at home. Despite C

15、hristof's control, Truman has managed to behave in unexpected ways, in particular by falling in love with an extra, Sylvia, known to Truman as Lauren, instead of Meryl, the character intended to be his wife. Though Sylvia is quickly removed from the set and Truman marries Meryl, he continues to

16、secretly pine for her. Sylvia becomes part of a "Free Truman" campaign that fights to free him from the show and to reveal his identity. During the 30th year of the show, Truman notices certain aspects of his near-perfect world that seem out of place. A theatrical light falls from the arti

17、ficial morning sky, nearly hitting him (quickly passed off by local radio as an aircraft in trouble that began "shedding parts") and Truman's car radio picks up a conversation between the show's crew tracking his movements. Truman also becomes aware of more subtle abnormalities wit

18、hin his regular day-to-day life, such as the way in which the same people appear in the same places at certain times each day and Meryl's tendency to blatantly advertise the various products she buys. The actor that played Truman's deceased father sneaks back onto the set as a homeless man,

19、but is whisked away as soon as Truman notices him.Despite the best efforts of his family and his best friend Marlon to reassure him, all these events cause Truman to start wondering about his life, realizing how the world seems to revolve and shape around him, with complete strangers to him knowing

20、his name. Truman attempts to leave Seahaven but is blocked by emergency situations created by Christof to prevent Truman from leaving, but he notices more inconsistencies because of the situations. Meryl grows increasingly stressed by the pressure of perpetuating the deception, and their marriage un

21、ravels in the face of Truman's increasing skepticism and attendant hostility towards her, causing her to snap and partially reveal Truman's identity and life in front of Marlon as well, making Truman confused.As a result, Meryl is pulled off the show, and Christof officially brings back Trum

22、an's father, hoping his presence will keep Truman from trying to leave. However, he only provides a temporary respite: Truman soon becomes isolated and begins staying alone in his basement. One night, Truman fools the cameras and escapest he basement undetected via a secret tunnel, forcing Chris

23、tof to temporarily suspend broadcasting of the show for the first time in its history. This causes a surge in viewership, with many viewers, including Sylvia, cheering on Truman's escape attempt.Christof orders every actor and crew member to search the town, even breaking the town's daylight

24、 cycle to help in the search. They find that Truman has overcome his fear of the water and has sailed away from the town in a small boat named Santa Maria. After restoring the broadcast, Christof orders the show's crew to create a large storm to try to capsize the boat, prompting a heated debate

25、 with his superiors over the morality and legality of murdering a human being in front of a live audience. Truman almost drowns, but his determination eventually leads Christof to terminate the storm. As Truman recovers, the boat reaches the edge of the dome, its bow piercing through the dome's

26、painted sky. An awe-struck Truman then discovers a flight of stairs nearby, leading to a door marked "EXIT". As he contemplates leaving his world, Christof finally turns to his last resort by speaking directly to Truman via a powerful sound system, trying to persuade him to stay and arguin

27、g that there is no more truth in the real world than there is in his own, artificial world. Truman, after a moment's thought, delivers his catchphrase ("In case I don't see you. good afternoon, good evening, and good night"), bows to his audience and steps through the door and into

28、 the real world. The assembled television viewers excitedly celebrate Truman's escape, and Sylvia quickly leaves her L.A. apartment and departs to the edges of Seaheaven so she can meet up with him. A network executive orders the crew to cease transmission of the show, which Christof watches hap

29、pen, realizing to his dismay that his show was truly over. With the show completed, members of Truman's former audience are shown looking for something else to watch on the TV.II. Class Lead-inSection A: Warming-up Questions:1. What mass media did you encounter?2. What did you get from the media

30、?3. What do you think are the positive and negative effects of mass media?Section B: Extensive Viewing, Listening & SpeakingMovie Clip 1: Watch the scene on Truman 's morning experience and answer the following questions.1. What is the falling object? What happened to it? How do Truman and w

31、e know?2. What do Truman and other town fellow buy at the newsstand? What role do they play in people's lives?Movie Clip 2: Watch the scene on Truman 's close encounter with his beloved girl and answer the following questions.1. What does the girl try to tell Truman?2. What is the girl's

32、 name? What do you think is her real identity?III. In-class ActivitiesSection A: Intensive Listening & ViewingMovie Clip 3: Truman 's conversation with his wife Meryl.Task 1: Choose the best answer for the main idea of this clip.A. Truman's marriage is in trouble.B. Truman seeks help fro

33、m his wife and best friend.C. Truman suspects he is being cheated.D. Truman suffers from low self-esteem.Task 2: Take down the exact words to fill in the blanks.Why don't you let me fix you some of this new Mococoa drink?All . Cocoa beans from the of Mount Nicaragua.No .I 've tasted . This i

34、s the .Truman's doubtsMarlon 's explanation1. It 's like the whole world 1. You sure that's not ? Youwishing you'd ?2. I know that feeling once the good things just . You don'twanna believe it.me somehow.2. Everybody seems to be it.Movie Clip 4: Watch the scene with a panoram

35、ic view of The Truman Show.Task 1: Please use the proper forms of the following words to complete asummary of the program The Truman Show.generatemanufacturewardrobeadoptartificialconceiverbroadcastplacementTruman, who was legally by a corporation, lives in a Utopian world Seahaven Island. Unknown t

36、o him, Seahaven, whose vicinity hides 5000 cameras, is actually the largest studio ever constructed by the of a reality TV program the Truman Show. The show is a program that had an entire human life recorded on an intricate network of hidden cameras. As the designer has always waysof keeping Truman

37、 on the island, Truman has never realized that he lives in a/an world. The show was live 24/7 to an audience of millions. As a huge success,i t enormous revenues brought by product ,such as actosr ' , food products.Task Two: Choose the best answer for the following questions.1. This year the Tru

38、man Show marks its .A. 30th yearB. 40th yearC. 20th yearD. 15th year2. Which one is NOT the plot that intends to keep Truman stay in the island?E. He was made to believe that there was nothing in the world to explore.F. A barking dog stood on the way when he tried to cross the bridge.G. His “father”

39、 Kirk drowned in the sea.H. His boss promised him a better position.3. How did the producer select the star?A. He interviewed five families who registered for the role.B. He adopted Truman from a poor family and made him a star.C. The audience recommended baby Truman as the best candidate.D. Truman

40、was born the moment when the show started.4. How much profit does the program gain?E. 220 million dollars.F. 1.7 billion dollars.G. About the gross national product of a small country.H. About the inland revenue of the United States.Movie Clip 5: The Scene where Truman has a conversation with Christ

41、of.Task 1: Watch the scene and answer the following questions.1. How does Truman get to know the true nature of his world?2. What was Truman's decision?Task 2: Decide whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F) according to what you understand about the clip.1. _ Everything in the

42、 show except Truman is fake.2. _ The producer argues the world in the show is better than the real world.3. _ Truman does not know what he wants from life.4. _ Christof is Truman's real father.5. _ The audiences do not want to see Truman leave.Section B: Speaking ActivityDebate: Would you rather

43、 live in an artificial world with the promise of comfort or a real world full of unpredictability?Group A: It 's better to live in an artificial world with the promise of comfort. 1. 2. 3. Group B: It 's better to live in a real world full of unpredictability.1. 2. 3. IV. Culture through Mov

44、ieSection A: Cultural Enrichment ReadingDirections: Read the following passage and get some idea about mass media.Mass Media and CultureCulture can be defined as the way of life which includes the beliefs, aesthetics and institutions of a civilization. Considering today 's way of life, we would

45、be lying if we didn't admit that media is not an influential entity in our culture. Lately the media theories that regard the audience as a passive entity have been discarded and advanced media theories that take into account the audience response have been formulated. It is still a fact that de

46、spite cognitive abilities of the audience, mass media has been successfully ingraining several values and elements into a large section of our society. A through understanding of mass media helps us to see how it is involved in the production of popular culture.Mass media is any medium used to deliv

47、er a “message” on a large scale to a mass audience. It includes everything from billboards to online videos online that are available today; one thing that we all agree upon, is that mass media is an inseparable part of our lives. Entertainment and media always go hand in hand, but in addition to th

48、e entertainment, mass media also remains an effective medium for communication, dissemination of information, advertising, marketing and in general, for expressing and sharing views, opinions and ideas.Here are some of the different types of mass media:Print Media: Print media includes newspapers, m

49、agazines, brochures, newsletters, books and even leaflets and pamphlets. Visual media like photography can also be mentioned under this sub-head, since photography is an important mass media, which communicates via visual representations. Although it is said that the electronic or new media has repl

50、aced the print media, there exists a majority of audiences who prefer the print media for various communication purposes. Public speaking and even organizing can also be considered as a form of mass media.Electronic Media: This mass media includes television and radio. This category also includes el

51、ectronic media like movies, CDs and DVDs as well as the new hottest electronic gadgets.New-age Media: With the advent of new technologies like the Internet, we are now enjoying the benefits of high technology mass media, which has a widespread range. Mobile phones, computers and Internet are often r

52、eferred to as the new-age media. Internet has opened up several new opportunities for mass communication which include email, websites, blogging, Internet TV and many other mass media which are booming today.There is no doubt about the fact that there are certain media elements affecting our culture

53、 for better because, had it not been for media, the quick and easy flow of useful information and education would not have been possible. The media has played a major role in positive developments like the fight against racism, the fight against gender bias, would poverty and spreading awareness abo

54、ut world peace.There is no denying the fact that certain media messages are detrimental to our society. We need to realize that although media is a reflection of the society we live in at times, the media needs to do much more than reflect the surroundings it has to exaggerate, sensationalize and at

55、 times even trivialize the matters of utmost importance to male way for entertainment. The media creates celebrities; it creates idols celebrities who thrive on fans, flowers, and groupies! When we say a certain type of music or a certain genre of movies is popular, it means a large number of people

56、 are following an ideology or a concept which lies at the heart of that song or the movie. One of the most striking examples in this case would have to be the popularity of violent and abusive rap songs amongst teenagers. The glorification of violence, drug abuse and other unhealthy habits has a maj

57、or role in the outburst of unfortunate incidents where children have gotten extremely violent and out of control.In an age where music videos and rock bands give out the message that alcohol; drugs and sex are inevitable parts of life, how can teens begin to see that these do not help battle depress

58、ion? In an age where someone like Paris Hilton is a role model for so many young girls, how can we expect to spread awareness about the importance of knowledge in the young generation? In an age where excessively aggressive videogame-playing children believe guns and weapons are cool we have reached

59、 a stage where media literacy is the dire need of the hour.The bright side is that class and ethnic distinctions in American culture began to fade as mass media transmitted the same movies and music to people throughout the country. Culture became more democratic as modern technology and mass media allowed it to reach more people. Outside the country, when our entertainment program reaches other parts of the world, it