One of the biggest changes in the way people in Britain have spent their leisure time in recent years has been the increase in the amount of time spent watching television. The average winter viewing figures are now about twenty-eight hours per week.
As you might expect, television viewing is less popular in summer than in winter and more popular with old people than with any other age group. Viewing also varies according to social class, with professional and managerial classes watching less than the unskilled and the unemployed. On average, women watch more than men.
British TV has an international reputation for producing programs of a high quality such as documentaries, nature programs , comedies and drama series. And according to the government there should be a combination of ―competition, quality and choice‖ in any plan for the future of TV. However, not everyone agrees that more TV means better TV, and it has been argued that the standard of programs may drop in the future with companies concentrating on making programs with a mass appeal such as soap operas, quiz show and situation comedies. ―Minority‖ programs, such as many of those broadcast on BBC 2 and Channel 4, might disappear.
Viewpoint: TV or not TV? 观点：看电视还是不看电视？
In our house the television tend to be on the late afternoon and late at night. But I‘m amazed at figures that I came across recently, for example that some people may watch as much as twenty-eight hours in a week,
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近年来，英国人休闲生活习惯的一个最大变化之一是他们花更多的时间看电视。现在冬天人们平均看电视的时间是每周28小时。
如你所想，人们冬天看电视比夏天多，老年人看电视比年轻人多。看电视的多少也因社会阶层而异，专业人士和管理人员比无技术的和失业的人群看电视要少。平均来说，女性看电视比男性多。
英国电视以高质量节目（如记录片、自然节目、喜剧和连续剧）而享有世界性的声誉。根据政府计划，将来的电视业应该具备“竞争力、高质量和多元化选择”。然而，不是所有的人都认为电视节目越多，节目的质量就越高，他们相信将来随着公司把更多的精力放在迎合大众口味的节目上，如肥皂剧、问答游戏和情景喜剧，节目的质量会下降。“少数”节目，例如BBC2和第四频道的很多节目可能会消失。
在我家，电视机一般是在下午晚些时候和深夜才开着的。但是我很惊讶于近来看到的数据，譬如有些人可以一星期看28小时电视。
I suppose one of the things that worries me as a parent is the effect that television has on children. I don‘t take the same view as a lot of friends of mine who think that TV is some kind of danger to them. I think people are very inconsistent here. People never said that radio was a great danger to children, and I don‘t see any real difference between radio and television in that sense.
I think television can be a great benefit to children. I think there are a lot of good programs that give them good educational information, presented in a way which is very attractive to them. And I also think television is good for introducing children to good literature and children stories.
The most dangerous thing, I think, for children on television is the commercialism, and I get really angry about television programs that are produced, which are really produced not because they‘re interesting television programs but because they‘re part of a big marketing exercise, so that at the same time the shops will be flooded with rubbers and pencils and bags and pencil cases and things like this, and there‘s a tremendous pressure on children to go out and buy those things, and I think that is a very dangerous thing indeed.
The other dangerous thing, I thing, for children is if the television is on indiscriminately, then they do ---if parents are not careful ---they do get to see programs which are not suitable for them. And I think that is a big danger. But that‘s up to the parents to make sure that that doesn‘t happen, I think.
I find it very difficult to say what would be a reasonable time to watch television. I think the important thing is
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not how much you watch television. I think the important thing is not how much you watch but how selective you are. That you say , this is an interesting program and worth watching, and I‘ll watch it , and if there are a lot of good programs in one week, you might spend quite a bit of time watching television; another week, when the programs are not so good, far less. So it‘s very difficult to say, what is a reasonable amount of time.
作为家长我想令我担心的是电视对孩子的影响。我不赞成我很多朋友的看法，他们认为电视对孩子们来说是一种危险。我想人们在这一点上是很不一致的。他们从不说收音机对孩子来说是一个危险，而我看不出广播和电视在这一点上有什么真正的不同。 我想电视可以为孩子们带来好处。我认为有很多好的节目以一种非常吸引人的形式出现，可以给他们极好的教育知识。我还认为电视有助于启发对孩子认识好的文学作品和童话。
对于看电视的孩子来说，最危险的事，我想，是商业化。我对某些电视节目很恼火，它们制作出来并不是因为节目本身有趣，而是它们本来是营销活动的一部分。所以与此同时，商店挤满了橡皮擦、铅笔、袋子和铅笔盒，以及诸如此类的东西。小孩一出去就面临巨大的诱惑，想去买这些东西。所以我想这确实是一个危险。 我想另一件危险的事情，对于小孩来说，如果电视节目不加区别的播放，如果父母不留神的话，他们就会看到不适宜他们看的节目。我认为这是一个大危险。但是我想这取决于父母，服务一定要保证这类事情不会发生。 我很难说清楚要花多少时间看电视才适合。我觉得重要的不在于看电视时间的长短而在于你如何选择。你或许会说，这是一个有趣的节目，值得
一看，那我就会看。如果某星期有很好看，看电视的时间就会大大减少。多好节目，你可能会花好多时间看电所以多少时间才适合这个很难讲。 视；而另一个星期，如果节目不那么
开怀一笑 “Jokes”
“Studio Hell”地狱制片场
A director arrives below and is met by Satan who shows him around. It turns out that Hell is a gigantic movie studio with the latest and best equipment, stages, and great actors. The Director thinks it‘s great and asks Satan what heaven is like if hell is this good. Satan says heaven is exactly like this , a movie studio. The Director is confused. ―Then what‘s the difference,‖ he asks.
Satan smiles. ―Well, in heaven they actually ?make‘ movies.‖
一位导演来到地狱，撒旦接待他并带他四处参观。他看到地狱是一个非常巨大的电影工作室，有最新最好的设备、舞台和极好的演员等等。导演觉得一切都很理想，于是问撒旦既然地狱这般美好，那天堂是怎么样的？撒旦回答说天堂也像地狱一样是一个电影制作场。导演有点迷惘，问道：“那有什么不一样呢？” 撒旦笑着说：“事实上，在天堂他们是“创造”电影。
Chapter 7 Customs, Etiquette and Taboos 风俗、礼仪与禁忌
女士优先Lady first
Who goes first and who follows? Despite women‘s growing sense of equality, most of them still expect, receive, and cherish a number of small, special courtesies.
Many men still rise when ladies enter the room on a social occasion---although the custom is fading with the younger generation, and under the impact of women‘s liberation. Nonetheless, most women of all ages still appreciate this courtesy when it occurs.
Men usually open doors for ladies, but they stand back and allow them to go through first. This may be different in China, for the Chinese women traditionally follow the men. Women in the West usually walk ahead of men into a room or theatre or restaurant unless there is business to be done---such as choosing a table, handing tickets or buying something. Then the man goes
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ahead to attend to the details.
谁先？谁后？尽管女性的平等意识不断增强，她们大多数人仍期望、得到并珍视一些关怀女性的特殊礼仪。 在社交场合，当女士进入室内时，许多男士仍然会站起来。虽然，这种习俗在年轻一代中和在妇女解放运动的影响下正在慢慢消失。然而，各个年龄层的女性多数仍然欣赏男士这种的礼貌举止。
男士通常为女士开门，然后退到一旁，让女士先进。这种礼仪在中国有所不同，因为在传统上中国妇女向来是跟在男人后面的。西方妇女在进入屋内、剧场或餐馆时，通常走在男士前面，除非在有事情要办的情况下，如选择餐桌、办理票卷或者购买物品等，则由男士先行去具体处理这些细节问题。
取名 Naming Names
An English name comprises three parts: the given name, the middle, and the family name. For example, William Jefferson Clinton. The British tend to abbreviate the given name and the middle name, such as M.H Thatcher. According to the English tradition, a newborn baby will be given a name by the priest or relative of friends when he is baptized. This name is known as the given name. After that , the baby can have another name, following the given name. Jack, Thomas, James are the most popular boy‘s names in at least the past five years, while Chloe, Emily and Megan are the names registered most frequently for girls.
Traditionally, given names are usually from the Bible storied, ancient Roman or Greek mythologies, celebrities in history, and literature. Nowadays, when naming names for their children, some parents may follow the example of some influential people from the entertainment industry. According to the source from the General Register Office for England and Wales released in 2002, in 2001 more than 100 baby boys and baby girls share the name of Brooklyn, the son of David and Victoria Beckham. Mirroring the success of the Colombian pop singer, 221 girls were named Shakira. Some 468 baby girls share the name of Aaliyah, the American R&B singer killed in a plane crash in August 2001.
购物方式 Let’s Go Shopping!
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一个英文名字由三部分组成：名（教名）， 中间名和姓。例如，威廉.杰佛逊.克林顿。英国人喜欢把名和中间名缩写，例如M.H .撒切尔。
根据英国传统，一个新生儿在洗礼 4会由牧师或亲戚朋友给起一个名字。这个名字就是赐名，此后，婴孩还会在赐名后加另一个名字。在过去至少五年中，杰克.托马斯和詹姆斯是最多人用的男孩名字，而克洛伊、爱米丽和梅根是注册最多的女孩名字。
根据传统，赐名通常来自圣经故事、古罗马或希腊神话，历史名人和文学著作。今天，父母在孩子们起名时还会考虑娱乐界某些有影响力的人的名字。英格兰和威尔士注册办公室在2002年公布的数据显示：2001年有100多个男婴和女婴使用布鲁克林（大卫.贝克汉姆和维多利亚. 贝克汉姆的儿子）这个名字。221位女孩被命名为夏拉奇，反映了这位哥伦比亚流行歌手的巨大成功。约有468个女婴取名为阿丽亚，与2001年8月因飞机失事而丧生的美国节奏蓝调歌手同名。
There are mainly two kinds of shopping stores in the UK: neighborhood corner shops and large retailers. Britain used to be described as ―a nation of shopkeepers.‖ The neighborhood corner shop used to sell everything a housewife needed and the shopkeeper was an important person in the local community. The shop itself was a focus of community life--- a place to chat, as well as shop---in the days when Britons knew their local baker, local grocer and local butcher personally.
However, shopping patterns changed dramatically in the 1970s and 1980s and the customers changed too. This change has been called the ―High Street Revolution.‖ The development of transportation and the increase of car owners make it possible to travel further for shopping. Shops began to get bigger and the owners opened more branches in different towns, each branch selling the same goods and offering cheaper prices than the local corner shop. Later during the economic boo of the 1980s large retailers developed superstores, offering an even wider choice of goods at even cheaper prices.
Now most Britons are paid monthly and prefer to buy in bulk (large quantities) once a month. The self-service and late-night shopping at superstores is convenient for the many women who work during the week. People in Britain like shopping at a ―name‖ they know, because they can be sure of the quality.
The corner shop saw a decline in customers. It is now empty during the day and people tend to use their local shops only in emergencies, if they have ―forgotten‖ to buy something. There are
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also some customers who have to shop there if they have no choice---the elderly or disabled, people without cars and young mothers with small children for whom a trip to a superstore would take a lot of planning and effort---but they are in the minority.
英国主要有两种购物商店：邻近的街角小店和大零售店。英国过去被称为“店主的国度”。社区的街角小店过去售卖家庭主妇所需的一切东西，店主在社区是一个非常重要的人物。街角小店本身就是社区生活的焦点，一个买东西和聊天的好地方。在那时，英国人都认识他们当地的面包店主、杂货店主和屠夫。
然而，二十世纪七八十年代购物方式发生了巨大变化，顾客也发生了变化，顾客也发生了变化。这场变革被称为“告诉公路革命”。随着交通的发展，越来越多的人拥有汽车，因此人们去较远的地方购物成为可能。商店的规模开始变得越来越大，店主在不同的城镇开设分店，每个分店都卖同样的东西，而且价格比当地街角小店更为便宜。后来在八十年代的“经济繁荣期”，大零售商发展超市，以更低廉的价格提供更多的商店选择。
现在多数英国人领取月薪，他们喜欢一个月大购物一次。自助式和比较晚关门的超市给很多上班的女性提供了方便。英国人喜欢按“品牌”购物，因为这样能够保证质量。
街角小店的顾客日益减少。现在，它们在白天门可罗雀，人们通常只有在“紧急情况”时，譬如“忘”了买什么东西时才会去街角小店。也有一些顾客光顾街角小店，因为他们没有别的选择---老年人或残疾人，没有车的儿女和带小孩的年轻妈妈，她们去超市需要花大量时间和精力做计划---但这些人毕竟是少数。