# 第三册 Lesson 16 Mary had a little lamb 玛丽有一头小羔羊

## 一、课文原文

Mary and her husband Dimitri lived in the tiny village of Perachora in southern Greece. One of Mary's prize possessions was a little white lamb which her husband had given her. She kept it tied to a tree in a field during the day and went to fetch it every evening. One evening, however, the lamb was missing. The rope had been cut, so it was obvious that the lamb had been stolen.

When Dimitri came in from the fields, his wife told him what had happened. Dimitri at once set out to find the thief. He knew it would not prove difficult in such a small village. After telling several of his friends about the theft, Dimitri found out that his neighbour, Aleko, had suddenly acquired a new lamb. Dimitri immediately went to Aleko's house and angrily accused him of stealing the lamb. He told him he had better return it or he would call the police. Aleko denied taking it and led Dimitri into his backyard. It was true that he had just bought a lamb, he explained, but his lamb was black. Ashamed of having acted so rashly, Dimitri apologized to Aleko for having accused him. While they were talking it began to rain and Dimitri stayed in Aleko's house until the rain stopped. When he went outside half an hour later, he was astonished to find that the little black lamb was almost white. Its wool, which had been dyed black, had been washed clean by the rain!

## 二、重点词汇详解

| 单词 | 音标 | 词性 | 释义 | 用法说明 |
|------|------|------|------|----------|
| prize | /praiz/ | adj. | 珍贵的，宝贵的 | 作形容词时=precious，也可作名词"奖品" |
| possess | /pə'zes/ | v. | 拥有 | possession n. 财产；prize possession珍爱之物 |
| tie | /tai/ | v. | 拴，系 | tie A to B 把A拴在B上 |
| fetch | /fetʃ/ | v. | 去取来，去接来 | fetch强调"去取回"这一往返过程 |
| obvious | /'ɔbviəs/ | adj. | 明显的 | It is obvious that... 显然…… |
| accuse | /ə'kju:z/ | v. | 指控 | accuse sb. of (doing) sth. 指控某人做某事 |
| deny | /di'nai/ | v. | 否认 | deny doing sth. 否认做过某事（不接不定式） |
| ashamed | /ə'ʃeimd/ | adj. | 感到羞耻的 | be ashamed of (doing) sth. 为……感到羞愧 |
| apologize | /ə'pɔlədʒaiz/ | v. | 道歉 | apologize to sb. for (doing) sth. |
| dye | /dai/ | v. | 染 | 注意与die/dead形近区别 |
| theft | /θeft/ | n. | 偷盗 | thief n. 小偷；theft与thief同源 |
| acquire | /ə'kwaiə/ | v. | 获得，取得 | 区别：acquire指逐渐获得 |
| rashly | /'ræʃli/ | adv. | 鲁莽地 | rash adj. 鲁莽的 |

## 三、语法知识点

### 1. prove作为连系动词
- **it would not prove difficult**——是不难做到的
- prove在此为连系动词，意为"证明是"，与be含义相同
- 例：The report proved (to be) true.

### 2. accuse sb. of (doing) sth.
- 结构：指控/指责某人做某事
- 注意介词用**of**，后面接动名词
- 区别：charge sb. with sth.（正式控告）

### 3. had better的用法
- **he had better return it**——他最好把羔羊还回来
- had better表示建议，比should/ought to语气更强
- 常带有**威胁、告诫或催促**的意思
- 否定形式：had better not do

### 4. deny后接动名词作宾语
- **denied taking it**——否认拿了
- deny后可接动名词或宾语从句，**不可接不定式**
- 类似用法的动词：admit, avoid, enjoy, finish, mind, suggest等

### 5. apologize to sb. for (doing) sth.
- 结构：因（做）某事向某人道歉
- 介词搭配：向某人道歉用**to**，因为某事用**for**

### 6. 过去分词作原因状语
- **Ashamed of having acted so rashly**——为自己的鲁莽而感到惭愧
- 过去分词短语作原因状语，相当于Because he was ashamed of...

### 7. It is true that... but...
- 结构：……是事实，但是……
- 用于让步转折

## 四、重点句型分析

### 1. keep + 宾语 + 过去分词
- She kept it **tied to a tree**
- 结构：keep + 宾语 + 宾补（过去分词表被动状态）
- 类似：keep the door locked / keep the fire burning

### 2. set out to do sth.
- 意为"出发去做某事/着手做某事"
- 区别：set about doing sth.（着手做）

### 3. Its wool, which had been dyed black, had been washed clean by the rain!
- 主句：Its wool had been washed clean by the rain
- 非限制性定语从句：which had been dyed black（补充说明羊毛被染过黑色）
- **戏剧性反转**：雨水冲掉染料，真相大白

## 五、课文翻译

玛丽与丈夫迪米特里住在希腊南部一个叫波拉考拉的小村庄里。玛丽最珍贵的财产之一就是丈夫送给她的一只白色小羔羊。白天，玛丽把羔羊拴在地里的一棵树上，每天晚上把它牵回家。可是，一天晚上，那只小羔羊失踪了。绳子被人割断，很明显小羔羊是被人偷走了。

迪米特里从地里回来，妻子把情况跟他一说，他马上出去找偷羔羊的人。他知道在这样一个小村庄里抓住小偷并不困难。把失窃的事告诉几个朋友后，迪米特里发现他的邻居阿列科家突然多了一只小羔羊。迪米特里立刻去了阿列科家，气呼呼地指责他偷了羔羊，告诉他最好把羊交还，否则就去叫警察。阿列科不承认，并把迪米特里领进院子。不错，他的确刚买了一只羔羊，阿列科解释说，但他的羔羊是黑色的。迪米特里为自己的鲁莽而感到不好意思，向阿列科道了歉，说是错怪了他。就在他俩说话的时候，天下起了雨，迪米特里便呆在阿列科家里避雨，一直等到雨停为止。半小时后，当他从屋里出来时，他惊奇地发现小黑羔羊全身几乎都变成了白色。原来羊毛上染的黑色被雨水冲掉了！

## 六、语言点精讲

### 写作手法
- **悬念与反转**：读者跟随Dimitri的视角，从确信→道歉→发现真相，层层递进
- **讽刺效果**：Dimitri道歉后才发现自己没错，偷羊贼确实就是Aleko
- **雨水作为"真相揭露者"**：自然力量揭示了人为的伪装

### 文化背景
- 标题"Mary had a little lamb"源自著名英语童谣
- 希腊乡村生活：小村庄中人与人之间彼此熟悉
- 染色欺骗：用染料将白羊染黑来掩饰偷窃

## 七、课后练习要点

1. 词汇：掌握accuse...of, deny doing, apologize to...for, be ashamed of等搭配
2. 语法：prove作系动词；had better用法；deny后接动名词
3. 句型：keep + 宾语 + 过去分词；set out to do
4. 理解：Dimitri向邻居道歉是否正确？——不正确，Aleko确实是小偷

## 八、本课小结

- 核心词汇：prize, accuse, deny, ashamed, apologize, dye, acquire
- 核心语法：accuse sb. of, deny doing, apologize to sb. for sth., had better
- 核心句型：keep + 宾语 + 过去分词；prove作系动词；It is true that...but...
- 写作特色：悬念反转、讽刺效果、自然揭露真相