# 第三册 Lesson 31 A lovable eccentric 可爱的怪人

## 一、课文原文

True eccentrics never deliberately set out to draw attention to themselves. They disregard social conventions without being conscious that they are doing anything extraordinary. This invariably wins them the love and respect of others, for they add colour to the dull routine of everyday life.

Up to the time of his death, Richard Colson was one of the most notable figures in our town. He was a shrewd and wealthy businessman, but most people in the town hardly knew anything about this side of his life. He was known to us all as Dickie and his eccentricity had become legendary long before he died.

Dickie disliked snobs intensely. Though he owned a large car, he hardly ever used it, preferring always to go on foot. Even when it was raining heavily, he refused to carry an umbrella. One day, he walked into an expensive shop after having been caught in a particularly heavy shower. He wanted to buy a £300 watch for his wife, but he was in such a bedraggled condition that an assistant refused to serve him. Dickie left the shop without a word and returned carrying a large cloth bag. As it was extremely heavy, he dumped it on the counter. The assistant asked him to leave, but Dickie paid no attention to him and requested to see the manager. Recognizing who the customer was, the manager was most apologetic and reprimanded the assistant severely. When Dickie was given the watch, he presented the assistant with the cloth bag. It contained £300 in pennies. He insisted on the assistant's counting the money before he left — 30,000 pennies in all! On another occasion, he invited a number of important critics to see his private collection of modern paintings. This exhibition received a great deal of attention in the press, for though the pictures were supposed to be the work of famous artists, they had in fact been painted by Dickie. It took him four years to stage this elaborate joke simply to prove that critics do not always know what they are talking about.

## 二、重点词汇详解

| 单词 | 音标 | 词性 | 释义 | 用法说明 |
|------|------|------|------|----------|
| eccentric | /ɪkˈsentrɪk/ | n./adj. | 古怪的人；古怪的 | 作名词指行为怪异的人，作形容词指偏离常规的 |
| deliberately | /dɪˈlɪbərətli/ | adv. | 故意地 | 强调有意识地做某事，同on purpose |
| disregard | /ˌdɪsrɪˈɡɑːrd/ | v. | 不顾，漠视 | disregard rules/conventions 不顾规则/惯例 |
| convention | /kənˈvenʃən/ | n. | 习俗，惯例 | social conventions 社会习俗 |
| conscious | /ˈkɒnʃəs/ | adj. | 意识到的 | be conscious of/that 意识到 |
| invariably | /ɪnˈveəriəbli/ | adv. | 总是，不变地 | 强调必然如此，同always但语气更强 |
| shrewd | /ʃruːd/ | adj. | 精明的，敏锐的 | 指判断力强，善于理财 |
| legendary | /ˈledʒəndəri/ | adj. | 传奇的，出名的 | become legendary 成为传奇 |
| snob | /snɒb/ | n. | 势利眼，自命不凡的人 | snobbish adj. 势利的 |
| bedraggled | /bɪˈdræɡld/ | adj. | 湿漉漉的，凌乱不堪的 | 形容被雨淋湿后狼狈的样子 |
| reprimand | /ˈreprɪmɑːnd/ | v. | 训斥，谴责 | reprimand sb. severely 严厉训斥某人 |
| elaborate | /ɪˈlæbərət/ | adj. | 精心构思的，复杂的 | an elaborate plan 精心策划的计划 |
| dump | /dʌmp/ | v. | 倾倒，重重放下 | dump sth. on the counter 把某物重重放在柜台上 |
| insist | /ɪnˈsɪst/ | v. | 坚持 | insist on doing/sth. 坚持要做/某事 |

## 三、语法知识点

### 1. 动名词完成式的被动语态

**结构**：having been + 过去分词

> He walked into an expensive shop **after having been caught** in a particularly heavy shower.

表示在主句动作之前已经完成的被动动作，after可省略。

### 2. such...that... 引导结果状语从句

| 结构 | 例句 |
|------|------|
| such + n. + that | He was in **such** a bedraggled condition **that** an assistant refused to serve him. |
| so + adj./adv. + that | The bag was **so** heavy **that** he dumped it on the counter. |

### 3. 现在分词作伴随状语

> He returned **carrying** a large cloth bag.（表伴随状态）
> **Recognizing** who the customer was, the manager was most apologetic.（表原因/时间）

### 4. insist on + 动名词的复合结构

> He insisted on **the assistant's counting** the money.

insist on后接名词所有格+动名词，表示"坚持要某人做某事"。

## 四、重点句型分析

### 1. set out to do sth. 打算/着手做某事
> True eccentrics never deliberately **set out to** draw attention to themselves.

同义表达：set about doing sth.; intend to do sth.

### 2. without being conscious that... 没有意识到……
> They disregard social conventions **without being conscious that** they are doing anything extraordinary.

### 3. be known to sb. as... 被某人称为……
> He **was known to** us all **as** Dickie.

区分：be known for（因……出名）/ be known as（作为……出名）/ be known to（为……所知）

### 4. 长难句分析
> He insisted on the assistant's counting the money before he left — 30,000 pennies in all!

主干：He insisted on the assistant's counting the money；before引导时间状语从句；破折号后补充说明数量。

## 五、课文翻译

真正的古怪之人从不刻意引人注目。他们无视社会习俗，却没有意识到自己在做任何不寻常的事。这总是为他们赢得别人的喜爱和尊敬，因为他们为枯燥的日常生活增添了色彩。

直到去世，理查德·科尔森一直是我们镇上最著名的人物之一。他是一个精明富有的商人，但镇上大多数人几乎不知道他生活中这一面。我们大家都叫他迪基，他的古怪行为在他去世很久以前就成了传奇。

迪基极度厌恶势利眼。尽管他拥有一辆大轿车，他几乎从不使用，总是喜欢步行。即使下大雨，他也拒绝带伞。一天，他被一场特大阵雨淋得湿透后走进一家昂贵的商店。他想给妻子买一块300英镑的手表，但他那狼狈不堪的样子使店员拒绝为他服务。迪基一言不发地离开了商店，回来时扛着一个大布袋。由于袋子非常重，他把它重重地摔在柜台上。店员请他离开，但迪基不予理会，要求见经理。经理认出这位顾客后，非常抱歉地道歉，并严厉地训斥了店员。迪基拿到手表后，把布袋递给了店员。里面装着300英镑的便士。他坚持要店员在他离开前把钱数清——一共30,000枚便士！还有一次，他邀请了一些重要的评论家来观看他的私人现代画收藏。这次展览在报刊上引起了很大关注，因为虽然这些画被认为是著名艺术家的作品，但实际上都是迪基自己画的。他花了四年时间策划这个精心设计的玩笑，只是为了证明评论家并不总是在谈论他们懂得的东西。

## 六、语言点精讲

### 写作手法
1. **先总后分**：先概述古怪之人的共性，再以Dickie为例具体展开
2. **对比手法**：Dikkie作为富商的身份与他古怪行为的对比，突出"可爱的怪人"形象
3. **幽默讽刺**：用30,000便士买手表讽刺势利店员；用假画展讽刺评论家

### 文化背景
- 英国人性格中特有的"古怪"（eccentricity）被视为一种可接受的个性，甚至是一种魅力
- "snob"在英国社会有特殊含义，指注重社会等级、看不起下层人的人
- 便士（penny）是英国最小面值的硬币，30,000便士重达约125公斤

## 七、课后练习要点

1. **词汇辨析**：conscious vs. conscientious；disregard vs. ignore vs. neglect
2. **句型转换**：将such...that改写为so...that
3. **动名词复合结构**：insist on sb.'s doing 的用法
4. **写作练习**：描述一个你认识的性格独特的人，使用课文中的对比手法

## 八、本课小结

本课通过Dickie的故事阐述了"真正古怪的人反而受人喜爱"这一观点。语法重点包括动名词完成被动式、such...that结果状语从句、现在分词作状语。词汇方面要掌握eccentric、disregard、reprimand、elaborate等核心词。写作上学习先总后分和对比手法。