Lesson21 Williams S. Hart and the early 'Western' film威廉 • S. 哈特和早期 “西部” 影片 强调句 形式宾语
First listen and then answer the following question: How did William Hart's childhood prepare him for his acting role in Western films?
William S. Hart was, perhaps, the greatest of all Western stars, for unlike Gary Cooper and John Wayne he appeared in nothing but Westerns.
From 1914 to 1924 he was supreme and unchallenged.
It was Hart who created the basic formula of the Western film, and devised the protagonist he played in every film he made, the good-bad man, the accidental-noble outlaw, or the honest-but-framed cowboy, or the sheriff made suspect by vicious gossip; in short, the individual in conflict with himself and his frontier environment.
Unlike most of his contemporaries in Hollywood, Hart actually knew something of the old West.
He had lived in it as a child when it was already disappearing, and his hero was firmly rooted in his memories and experiences, and in both the history and the mythology of the vanished frontier.
And although no period or place in American history has been more absurdly romanticized, myth and reality did join hands in at least one arena, the conflict between the individual and encroaching civilization.
Men accustomed to struggling for survival against the elements and Indians were bewildered by politicians, bankers and businessmen, and unhorsed by fences, laws and alien taboos.
Hart's good-bad man was always an outsider, always one of the disinherited, and if he found it necessary to shoot a sheriff or rob a bank along the way, his early audiences found it easy to understand and forgive, especially when it was Hart who, in the end, overcame the attacking Indians.
Audiences in the second decade of the twentieth century found it pleasant to escape to a time when life, though hard, was relatively simple.
We still do; living in a world in which undeclared aggression, war, hypocrisy, chicanery, anarchy and impending immolation are part of our daily lives, we all want a code to live by.
CARL FOREMAN Virtue and a Fast Gun from The Observer

与课文关联的单词
supreme *
/suːˈpriːm; sjuːˈpriːm/adj. 首屈一指protagonist
/prəˈtæɡənɪst/n. 主角outlaw
/ˈaʊtlɔː/n. 逃犯,亡命之徒framed
/freɪmd/adj. 遭到陷害的vicious
/ˈvɪʃəs/adj. 恶毒的mythology
/mɪˈθɒlədʒi/n. 神话vanished
/ˈvænɪʃd/adj. 消失了的absurdly
/əbˈsɜːdli/adv. 荒诞地arena
/əˈriːnə/n. 竞技场在encroaching
/ɪnˈkrəʊtʃɪŋ/adj. 渐渐渗入的Indian
/ˈɪndiən/n. 印第安人bewilder
/bɪˈwɪldə(r)/v. 使手足无措alien *
/ˈeɪliən/adj. 外来的taboo
/təˈbuː/n. 戒律disinherit
/ˌdɪsɪnˈherɪt/v. 剥夺...继承权undeclared
/ˌʌndɪˈkleəd/adj. 未经宣布的hypocrisy
/hɪˈpɒkrəsi/n. 伪善chicanery
/ʃɪˈkeɪnəri/n. 诈骗impending
/ɪmˈpendɪŋ/adj. 迫近的,近在眉睫的immolation
/ˌɪməˈleɪʃn/n. 杀戮code *
/kəʊd/n. 准则the Western 介绍 更新于:2025-12-10 06:21:56
American 课文背景介绍
In searching for a subject unique to the young nation some American writers of the 19th century turned to the land itself ―the vast, largely untamed territory that stretched from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean.
As settlement moved westward from the eastern seaboard, the West came to symbolize the qualities associated with that land―open, wild and full of opportunity.
Artists of all kinds found this symbol so evocative that a new genre emerged in literature and other arts: the Western. It’s mainly about life in the 19th century in the American West, especially the lives of cowboys.
In 1903, Edwin S. Porter produced a short silent film, the Great Train Robbery, whose theme, crime and retribution, became a standard of Western filmmaking for 75 years.
The western film reached the height of its popularity from 1930 to 1950. After 1950 television Westerns drew audiences away from big-screen Westerns.
William S. Hart 主人公介绍
William S. Hart is noted for his insistence on realism in Westerns based on his own life in Dakota Territory. Hart directed and starred in silent movies from 1914 until 1925.Hart was followed by the most influential of all Western filmmakers, John Ford.
Ford’s 1939 movie Stagecoach introduced John Wayne as the perfect example of the tough, taciturn Western cowboy, who became an icon of the movie Western.
In the 1950s, Western films were joined by a subcategory, the adult Western. It focused more on the psychology of the characters than on action. A classic example of the genre is High Noon, starring Gary Cooper.
In the 1970s and 1980s Westerns began to lose box-office appeal because social protest movements caused many Americans to question the cultural values presented in Westerns.
However, in the early 1990s, two Westerns won Academy Awards for best picture. One is Dances with wolves (1990), directed by Kevin Costner.
The other is Unforgiven (1992), directed by Clint Eastwood. Westerns were resurrected.
William S. Hart was, perhaps, the greatest of all Western stars, for unlike Gary Cooper and John Wayne he appeared in nothing but Westerns.
appear / act / perform in a film / movie 出演电影
- She will appear in a film directed by a famous director next year. 她明年将出演一部由著名导演执导的电影。
- He has always dreamed of acting in a movie alongside his idol. 他一直梦想着能和他的偶像一起出演电影。
- The lead actor gave an incredible performance in the film. 这位主角在电影中贡献了令人难以置信的表演。
| play the lead in … 主演 | John Wayne played the lead in Stagecoach. |
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| star 主演 |
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| co-star 联合主演 |
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| feature 由…主演 | The movie featured Bruce Willis. |
nothing but ... 仅仅,只不过(=only)
- Nothing but a miracle can save her now.
- You are nothing but a thief.
- The room contained nothing but a bed and a small table. 房间里仅仅只有一张床和一张小桌子。
| nothing more than 仅仅是;只不过是 ( = only) |
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| anything but 绝不;根本不;一点也不 ( = not … at all) |
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| all but 几乎;差一点就 (almost / virtually) |
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| all but + n./ pron. 除了...之外,其它的都...(but当介词) | We could, at one time, repair ourselves—well enough, at least, to overcome all but the most instantly fatal illnesses and accidents. |
From 1914 to 1924 he was supreme and unchallenged. 同义词连用(加强语气)
supreme and unchallenged 至高无上的,无可匹敌的(同义词连用,加强语气)
- The company maintained its supreme position in the market.
- Her authority on the subject remains unchallenged.
- The beauty of the mountain is incomparable.
- Her loyalty to the company was supreme. 她对公司的忠诚是至高无上的
- He remains the unchallenged leader in his field. 他仍然是他所在领域公认的领导者。
| incomparable 无与伦比的;独一无二的 |
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| unequalled 无双的;无与伦比的 |
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| peerless 无可匹敌的;盖世无双的 |
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| be second to none 首屈一指;不亚于任何人/任何事物 |
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It was Hart who created the basic formula of the Western film, and devised the protagonist he played in every film he made, the good-bad man, the accidental-noble outlaw, or the honest-but-framed cowboy, or the sheriff made suspect by vicious gossip; in short, the individual in conflict with himself and his frontier environment.
it was ... who(m) / that ... 强调句
- It is only in recent years that it has gained an evil reputation.
- It was not until his third match in 1790 that he finally beat Humphries and became Champion of England.
- Perhaps it is the desire for solitude or the chance of making an unexpected discovery that lures people down to the depths of the earth.
- If there is one -- which I take leave to doubt -- then it is older people who create it, not the young themselves.
- These days, it is differences in national regulations, far more than tariffs, that put sand in the wheels of trade between rich countries.
- If this facilitates forgery, it is the bank which will lose, not the customer.
- It is I that am looking for you. 强调 “I” ,不是别人,正是在下我~
- It is Jack who(m) Frank phoned last night. 强调 “Jack”,不是别人,正是杰克~
formula (pl. formulas / formulae) 配方;模式
- the formula for a new drug / the washing powder.
- It is said that the nerve poison is the more primitive of the two, that the blood poison is, so to speak, a newer product from an improved formula.
- Cinderella's story is the classic formula for happiness. 灰姑娘的童话故事是幸福的典范。
devise vt. 设计;想出;发明;图谋;遗赠给
- The cartoon character Mickey Mouse was devised by Walt Disney in 1928.
- They devised a clever plan to solve the problem. 他们设计了一个巧妙的计划来解决这个问题。
| conceive 构思;设想;怀孕 | She conceived the idea for the novel while on vacation. 她在度假时构思出了这部小说的想法。 |
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| come up with 想出;提出(主意、计划等) |
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| fabricate / concoct 捏造;虚构(故事、借口等) | He tried to fabricate an alibi to avoid being blamed. 他试图捏造一个不在场证明来避免受到责备。 |
| fabricate / concoct an excuse 捏造借口 |
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Oxymoron 矛盾修饰法 (矛盾形容词连用,越接近名词的越是表面含义)
- bad-good news 一个不好的好消息
- a cold warm embrace 一个冷冰冰的热列拥抱
- True lies 真实的谎言
- sick health 憔悴的健康
- sweat sorrow 甜蜜的悲伤
- a damned saint 一个恶魔圣徒
- a beautiful tyrant 一个美国的暴君
- an honorable murder 一个正直的谋杀 (an individual in conflict with himself)
accidental adj. 意外的;偶然的;附属的;临时记号的
- Tea is the most important drink in the world, and it is an accidental invention. 茶是世界上最重要的饮料,而且是人们偶然发现的。
- Nothing in life is really accidental. 生活中没有偶然。
- The timing is unlikely to be accidental. 时机不会是巧合。
| incidental (adj.) 附带的,容易发生的 |
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| incidentally (adv.) 顺便提一句 | Incidentally, have you seen the new movie? 顺便提一句,你看新电影了吗? |
suspect (adj.) 可疑的,不可信的
- The statistics are suspect. 统计数据是可疑的
- The police have arrested two suspects in connection with the robbery. 警方已逮捕两名与抢劫案相关的嫌疑犯。
- The whole story sounded highly suspect to the investigating officer. 整个故事在调查警官听来非常可疑。
| suspect (v.) 怀疑;猜想 | I suspect that the witness was lying to protect the accused. 我怀疑证人在说谎以保护被告。 |
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| suspect that … 怀疑…… | We suspect that the computer system has been hacked. 我们怀疑计算机系统已被黑客入侵。 |
| suspect sb. of doing 怀疑某人做某事 | They suspect him of stealing confidential documents. 他们怀疑他盗窃了机密文件。 |
make 表“选举”;可以和没有冠词的名词搭配
- We made him monitor / king.
- or the sheriff made suspect(adj.) by vicious gossip make 搞得(可疑的);使役
vicious adj. wicked; evil; malicious adj. 恶毒的;恶意的;堕落的;有错误的;品性不端的;剧烈的
- a vicious circle 恶性循环
- a virtuous circle 良性循环
- a malignant tumor 恶性肿瘤
- a benign tumor 一个良性肿瘤
in short 简言之,总之
- in short, the individual in conflict with himself and his frontier environment.
- The project was expensive, delayed, and over budget. In short, it was a disaster. 这个项目耗资巨大、延期且超出了预算。简言之,这是一场灾难。
- In short, I like online reading more than paper reading. 总之,比起纸质阅读,我更喜欢在线阅读。
- In sum, we had a fantastic trip.
- To sum up / To summarize, the research confirms our initial findings.
- Simply put, we need more time.
| in sum 总之;简而言之 | We discussed the market trends, the budget, and the timeline. In sum, the outlook is positive. 我们讨论了市场趋势、预算和时间表。总之,前景是乐观的。 |
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| in summary 总结来说;简而言之 | In summary, the report recommends increasing investment in renewable energy. 总结来说,报告建议增加对可再生能源的投资。 |
| to sum up 总结一下;概括地说 | To sum up, we need more resources and a clearer strategy. 总结一下,我们需要更多的资源和更清晰的策略。 |
| to summarize 总结来说;概括地说 | To summarize the main points, the product launch was a great success. 总结主要几点来说,这次产品发布取得了巨大的成功。 |
| simply put 简单来说;简而言之 | Simply put, we failed because we underestimated the competition. 简单来说,我们失败是因为我们低估了竞争对手。 |
in conflict (with ...) 与...有冲突
As long as poor people, who in general are colored, are in conflict with richer people, who in general are lighter skinned, there’s going to be a constant racial conflict in the world.
- I'm in conflict with my parents on which major to choose. 我在选什么专业上和我的父母存在分歧。
- Many of these ideas appear to be in conflict with each other. 这些观念中有许多看上去似乎相互矛盾。
- He doesn't engage in conflict to protect his lord or country. 他不会为了保护他的领主或国家而卷入冲突。
- The proposal is in conflict with existing regulations.
| inflict sth. on sb. 把…(痛苦的事)强加给某人 | Please don’t inflict your love on me.把你的爱强加给我 |
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| afflict (vt.) 折磨某人 |
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| be afflicted with / by ... 被...折磨 | Although afflicted by serious eyesight problems, Alicia Alonso was one of the principal stars of the American Ballet Theater and later formed her own dance company. 托福阅读 |
说明 更新于:2025-12-10 07:04:04
Unlike most of his contemporaries in Hollywood, Hart actually knew something of the old West.
contemporary n. 同时代的人;同时期的东西 ;adj. 当代的;同时代的;属于同一时期的
- She was a contemporary of Picasso.
- Shakespeare and Marlowe were contemporaries. 莎士比亚和马洛斯是同时代的人。
- She specializes in contemporary literature and art. 她专攻当代文学和艺术。
- The building is contemporary with the construction of the cathedral. 这座建筑与大教堂的建造属于同一时期。
| counterpart 职位(或作用)相当的人;对应的事物 |
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He had lived in it as a child when it was already disappearing, and his hero was firmly rooted in his memories and experiences, and in both the history and the mythology of the vanished frontier.
Hart was born in 1870, just after the end of American Civil War in 1865. After the Civil War, slavery was abolished, four trans-continent railroads were built, and American economy was rapidly developed. Meanwhile, the Wild West was fading away. 故事背景
be rooted in ... 根植于...
- The conflict in this area was rooted in history and religion. 该地区的冲突根植于历史和宗教。
- Racism is still deeply rooted in our society. 种族主义在我们的社会中仍然根深蒂固。
- Their life is rooted in Chicago now. 他们在芝加哥定居了。
| be embedded in … 根植于…;嵌入… | He always meant to go back one day, but not to stay. His roots and mine had become too firmly embedded in the new land. |
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| be entrenched in … 根深蒂固于…;牢固地确立于… | Gender inequality remains deeply entrenched in the country's social system. 性别不平等在该国的社会体系中仍然根深蒂固。 |
| be ingrained in … 根深蒂固于…;深植于…(指态度、信仰等) | Respect for elders is a value that is ingrained in the culture. 尊敬长辈是一种根植于该文化的价值观。 |
| deep-seated 根深蒂固的 | She has a deep-seated faith in god that comforts her. 她对上帝有着根深蒂固的信仰,这让她感到安慰。 |
| deep-rooted 根深蒂固的 | It is difficult to change a deep-rooted bad habit without strong will. 没有坚强的意志,很难改变一个根深蒂固的坏习惯。 |
| inveterate hatred / prejudice / distrust 根深蒂固的仇恨/偏见/不信任(贬义) | We must fight against inveterate prejudice in society. 我们必须与社会中根深蒂固的偏见作斗争。 |
| an inveterate smoker 老烟鬼(贬义) |
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| have its roots in … 起源于…;根源于… | The tradition has its roots in ancient history. 这个传统起源于古代历史。 |
| stem from … 来源于…;源自… | Most of the difficulties stem from a lack of funding. 大多数困难来源于资金的缺乏。 |
| originate in … 起源于…;发源于… | Printing has its roots in / stems from / originates in China.. 印刷术被认为起源于中国。 |
谓语省略介词留 并列句不省略动词后的介词
- Carlyle was entirely ignorant of what the bottle in his pocket contained, of the nature of the illness from which his friend was suffering, and of what had previously been wrong with his wife, but a medicine that had worked so well in one form of illness would surely be of equal benefit in another, …
- The adverse effects of the Great Leap Forward and of the Cultural Revolution still loom large in the minds of Chinese policy makers.
- For in a university, science majors look down on humanities majors, foreign language majors on Chinese majors, Chinese majors on philosophy majors, philosophy majors on sociology majors, and sociology majors on education majors. Since education majors have no one to look down on, they can only despise the professors in their own department. ——‘Fortress besieged’ by Zhongshu Qian
And although no period or place in American history has been more absurdly romanticized, myth and reality did join hands in at least one arena, the conflict between the individual and encroaching civilization.
join hands 共存(co-exist);携手合作
- Science and art can often join hands in architectural design.
- The two opposing factions decided to join hands to achieve a common goal. 携手合作
- After a long rivalry, the two companies agreed to join hands on the new project. 合作
conflict n. clash; collision 冲突
- There was a conflict between what he said and what he did.
- The story is about a young woman's inner conflict. 内心的矛盾
- Management and staff were in conflict over the new working hours. 处于冲突之中
解释 更新于:2025-12-10 08:27:36
Men accustomed to struggling for survival against the elements and Indians were bewildered by politicians, bankers and businessmen, and (were) unhorsed by fences, laws and alien taboos.
be accustomed to sth. / doing 习惯于
- For men accustomed to eating seven-course dinners and sleeping between fine linen sheets at home, the change to the Alps must have very hard indeed.
- How do we break the pattern of praise we're all so accustomed to? 我们该如何打破我们都习以为常的表扬模式呢?
- Martha gave her hand a clumsy little shake, as if she was not accustomed to this sort of thing either. 玛莎笨拙地轻轻摇了一下她的手,似乎她也不习惯这种事。
| be used to sth. / doing 习惯于 | She quickly got used to the cold weather here.她很快就习惯了这里的寒冷天气。 |
against the elements 与大自然作斗争
古人不知道 element (所以仅代表 earth, water, fire, air) 古文中 the elements 指“大自然”
- The brave explorers had to struggle against the elements for days to reach the summit.勇敢的探险家们不得不与大自然作斗争数日才到达了山顶。
- The small tent offered little protection against the elements.那个小帐篷几乎不能提供对抗大自然的保护。
- Farmers often face a tough battle against the elements to ensure a good harvest.农民经常面临与大自然的艰难斗争来确保丰收。
| fight / battle / struggle against the elements 与困难做斗争/与大自然做斗争 | The sailors fought against the elements during the storm.在暴风雨中,水手们与大自然作斗争。 |
| fight / battle / struggle against the odds 与困难做斗争/战胜困难 | They would have continued to struggle against economic odds and would have lived in obscurity. |
unhorse 使下马/使措手不及(引申义)
- The unexpected question completely unhorsed the speaker, leaving them speechless.这个意料之外的问题使演讲者完全措手不及,说不出话来。
- The sudden scandal effectively unhorsed the politician from his position of power.突如其来的丑闻有效地将这位政治家从权力宝座上拉了下来。
- In the jousting match, a skilled blow unhorsed his opponent.在马上比武中,一次熟练的打击使他的对手落马。
Hart's good-bad man was always an outsider, always one of the disinherited, and if he found it necessary to shoot a sheriff or rob a bank along the way, his early audiences found it easy to understand and forgive, especially when it was Hart who, in the end, overcame the attacking Indians.
形式宾语
- When their father died, they thought it their duty to keep Eric in hiding.
- I find it difficult to learn a new language in a short time.我发现在短时间内学习一门新语言是困难的。
- I couldn't imagine it raining all weekend for our trip.我无法想象我们旅行的整个周末都在下雨。
- She made it clear that she would not tolerate any delays. 她明确表示不会容忍任何延误。
- I appreciate it when people are on time for meetings.我欣赏人们开会时准时的行为。
- The company will consider it important what the customers think about the new product.公司会认为顾客对新产品的看法是重要的。
Audiences in the second decade of the 20th century found it pleasant to escape to a time when life, though hard, was relatively simple.
decade 十年
- Technology advanced rapidly in the last decade.在过去的十年里,科技发展迅速。
- The band released five albums over the course of a decade.这个乐队在十年内发行了五张专辑。
- The company celebrated its first decade in business.这家公司庆祝了其商业运作的第一个十年。
| century 百年/世纪 | The cathedral was built in the 14th century.这座大教堂建于十四世纪。 |
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| millennium 千年 | We celebrated the turn of the new millennium in 2000.我们在2000年庆祝了新千年的到来。 |
We still do; living in a world in which undeclared aggression, war, hypocrisy, chicanery, anarchy and impending immolation are part of our daily lives, we all want a code to live by.
We still find it pleasant to escape to a time when life, though hard, was relatively simple. 课文补全
live by ... 按照…生活/遵循(准则)生活
- I have always tried to live by my faith.我一直努力按我的信仰生活。
- The team promises to live by its commitment to fair play.该团队承诺将遵循其公平竞争的承诺。
- He has a simple philosophy that he tries to live by every day.他有一个简单的哲学,并努力每天遵循它生活。