# Lesson 76 April Fools' Day 愚人节

## 一、课文原文

'To end our special news bulletin,' said the voice of the television announcer, 'we're going over to the macaroni fields of Calabria. Macaroni has been grown in this area for over six hundred years. Two of the leading growers, Giuseppe Moldova and Riccardo Brabante, tell me that they have been expecting a splendid crop this year and harvesting has begun earlier than usual. Here you can see two workers who, between them, have just finished cutting three cartloads of golden brown macaroni stalks. The whole village has been working day and night gathering and threshing this year's crop before the September rains. On the right, you can see Mrs. Brabante herself. She has been helping her husband for thirty years now. Mrs. Brabante is talking to the manager of the local factory where the crop is processed. This last scene shows you what will happen at the end of the harvest: the famous Calabrian macaroni-eating competition! Signor Fratelli, the present champion, has won it every year since 1991. And that ends our special bulletin for today, Thursday, April 1st. We're now going back to the studio.'

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## 二、重点词汇详解

| 单词 | 音标 | 词性 | 释义 | 用法说明 |
|------|------|------|------|----------|
| **bulletin** | /ˈbʊlətɪn/ | n. | 新闻简报 | news bulletin 新闻简报；bulletin board 公告板 |
| **announcer** | /əˈnaʊnsə/ | n. | （广播）播音员 | announce v. 宣布；announcement n. 通告 |
| **macaroni** | /ˌmækəˈrəʊni/ | n. | 通心粉 | 意大利面食的一种 |
| **leading** | /ˈliːdɪŋ/ | adj. | 主要的，领先的 | leading role 主角；leading company 领先企业 |
| **grower** | /ˈɡrəʊə/ | n. | 种植者 | grow v. 种植；growth n. 生长 |
| **splendid** | /ˈsplendɪd/ | adj. | 极好的，壮丽的 | a splendid idea 好主意 |
| **cartload** | /ˈkɑːtləʊd/ | n. | 一车之量 | cart + load 复合词 |
| **stalk** | /stɔːk/ | n. | 茎，秆 | corn stalk 玉米秆 |
| **thresh** | /θreʃ/ | v. | 打谷 | thresher n. 打谷机 |
| **process** | /ˈprəʊses/ | v. | 加工 | processing n. 加工；processed food 加工食品 |
| **champion** | /ˈtʃæmpiən/ | n. | 冠军 | championship n. 锦标赛 |

### 词汇拓展

**1. April Fools' Day 愚人节**
- 每年4月1日，人们互相开玩笑、欺骗
- 被骗的人叫 April fool
- 传统：中午12点前可以开玩笑，12点后开玩笑的人反而成为傻瓜

**2. bulletin 与相关词的区别**
- bulletin：简报、公告（简短新闻）
- newsletter：通讯、简报（定期出版物）
- broadcast：广播（侧重传播方式）

**3. process 的多义**
- v. 加工：process food 加工食品（本课用法）
- v. 处理：process data 处理数据
- n. 过程：in the process of 在…过程中

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## 三、语法知识点

### 1. 现在完成时复习

> Macaroni **has been grown** in this area for over six hundred years.
> He **has won** it every year since 1991.

**用法**：表示从过去持续到现在的动作或状态

| 结构 | 用法 | 例句 |
|------|------|------|
| have/has + done | 已完成 | They have finished the work. |
| have/has + been done | 被动完成 | Macaroni has been grown here. |

**标志词**：for + 段时间，since + 时间点

### 2. 现在完成进行时

> The whole village **has been working** day and night...
> She **has been helping** her husband for thirty years now.

**结构**：have/has + been + doing

**用法**：强调动作从过去一直持续到现在，且可能继续

| 时态 | 例句 | 侧重点 |
|------|------|--------|
| 现在完成时 | She has helped him. | 动作已完成 |
| 现在完成进行时 | She has been helping him. | 动作持续进行 |

### 3. 间接引语

> Two of the leading growers... **tell me that** they have been expecting a splendid crop.

tell me that 引导间接引语，引述别人的话而不使用引号。

**直接引语 → 间接引语的变化**：
- 人称变化：I → they
- 时态变化：一般现在时 → 一般过去时（但此处保留完成进行时）

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## 四、重点句型分析

### 1. go over to...

> We're **going over to** the macaroni fields of Calabria.

**含义**：转到（电视节目用语）

go over 的其他含义：
- 复习：go over the lesson 复习功课
- 仔细检查：go over the plan 仔细检查计划

### 2. between them

> Two workers who, **between them**, have just finished cutting...

**含义**：他们合力，一起

注意：between 并非只用于两者之间，也可表示"共同、合力"。

### 3. day and night

> The whole village has been working **day and night**...

**含义**：日日夜夜，昼夜不停

同义表达：night and day, around the clock

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## 五、课文翻译

"作为我们专题新闻节目的结尾，"电视广播员说，"我们现在到克拉布利亚的通心粉田里。通心粉在这个地区已经种植了600多年了。两个主要种植者，朱塞皮·莫尔道瓦和里卡多·布拉班特告诉我，他们一直期待着今年获得一个大丰收，收割工作比往年开始得要早些。这里您可以看到两个工人，他们协力割下了3车金黄色的通心粉秸。全村的人都日夜奋战，要赶在9月的雨季之前把今年的庄稼收获上来，打完场。在屏幕的右侧，您可以看到布拉班特太太本人，她已经帮了她的丈夫30年了。布拉班特太太现在正和负责通心粉加工的当地加工厂的经理交谈。这最后一个镜头向您展示了收获之后将发生的事情：著名的克拉布利亚人吃通心粉大赛！目前的冠军弗拉特里先生，自1991年以来，年年获胜。今天—4月1日，星期四—的专题新闻节目到此结束。现在我们回到电视演播室。"

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## 六、语言点精讲

### 1. 愚人节的玩笑

整篇课文是一个精心构造的愚人节玩笑——通心粉（macaroni）是一种面食，不可能像庄稼一样种在田里。但播音员用严肃的新闻口吻描述"通心粉田""通心粉秆""通心粉收割"，让人一时难辨真假。

### 2. 新闻播音风格

课文模仿了电视新闻播音的正式语言风格：
- "we're going over to..." 转到…
- "Here you can see..." 这里您可以看到…
- "On the right..." 在右侧…

这种正式语气与荒诞内容形成强烈反差，增强了幽默效果。

### 3. April 1st 的点题

最后一句 "Thursday, April 1st" 才揭示这是愚人节玩笑，这是典型的英式幽默——铺垫很久才揭底。

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## 七、课后练习要点

### 1. 语法练习
- 现在完成时 vs 现在完成进行时的区别
- 间接引语的时态变化规则

### 2. 词汇运用
- 用 splendid, process, champion 造句
- day and night 的同义替换

### 3. 写作练习
- 写一个"似是而非"的新闻报道（模仿愚人节风格）

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## 八、本课小结

| 项目 | 内容 |
|------|------|
| **核心语法** | 现在完成时复习、现在完成进行时、间接引语 |
| **重点词汇** | 11个（bulletin, announcer, macaroni, leading, grower, splendid, cartload, stalk, thresh, process, champion） |
| **重点短语** | go over to, between them, day and night, present champion |
| **学习难点** | 现在完成进行时与现在完成时的区别、新闻语体特点 |

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*本课以愚人节玩笑为载体，重点复习现在完成时和现在完成进行时的区别。*