Transcript Unit 4 The stolen letter—Based on a story by Edgar Allan

The stolen letter
—Based on a story by Edgar
Allan Poe
Introduction
Part 1
The Author
Edgar Allan
Poe
Edgar Allan Poe , one of
America's most influential
writers, was born on January
19, 1809, in Boston,
Massachusetts. His parents,
both struggling actors, died
when he was only three years
old.
Poe was raised—though never officially
adopted—by John and Frances Allan in
Richmond, Virginia. Allan, a prosperous
tobacco merchant, sent Poe to the finest
schools, including the University of Virginia,
where Poe immediately gambled away all of
his money, racked up a massive amount of
debt, despite his recognized talent for writing,
he was not successful in his jobs or his personal
life. Never able to recover from the loss of his
wife, he descended into drink and drugs. It took
another generation after his death to discover
this lost genius. and drank his first semester
away. Even so, he managed to do well in his
classes and earn the highest university honors.
Edgar Allan Poe was the first to write a
detective story. His works were gruesome,
frightening tales that made short stories
fun. Poe's use of imagination was an
influences on the modern day thriller and
for future writers. He had set a standard.
We are learning about Poe today because
his works were revolutionary of his
time. Poe had introduced a new way of
writing to society. he had made society fall
in love with the idea of using morbid,
gruesome thoughts as a base for his
stories.
Part 1
The
characters
Narrator of “ the stolen
letter”
“The stolen letter” is told from the
first –person point of view by an
unnamed narrator. He is a friend of
Dupin. All the actions are seen and told
through the eyes of “I”.
C. Auguste Dupin
C. Auguste Dupin was a famous detective in
Paris. When he and “I” were having dinner, Mr.
Germain visited him seeking assistance. After
he listened to Mr. Germain’s elaborate
description about “the stolen letter” patiently
and carefully, C. Auguste Dupin suggested to
search the house again.
About a month later, C. Auguste Dupin
asked me and Chief Germain to meet him.
He told us that he would give Chief
Germain the letter if Chief germain could
give a check for fifty thousand francs to
him. After Chief Germain left, C. Auguste
Dupin told me how he got the letter from
Minister Dandon.
Chief Germain
In the story, Mr. Germain was the chief of
the Paris Police, who was an old acquaintance
of C. Auguste Dupin. He had received a case
on a stolen letter that it had been giving him a
great deal of trouble.
The important letter had been stolen from an
office in the royal palace, and he knew Minister
Dandon had stolen it. He had searched
everywhere of Minister Danton’s house carefully,
including each room, each furniture, every
drawer, the mirrors, the clothing in the closets,
the rugs and the curtains and so on, with
advanced tools such as the powerful microscope.
However, he found nothing. In the end, C.
Auguste Dupin helped him find the important
letter.
Minister Danton
In the story, Minister Danton is one of
the most powerful and important
ministers in the government. He had
stolen the important letter from an
office in the royal palace.
Comprehension
Answer the question with a
complete sentence.
1. According to the Chief, who stole the
letter?
According to the Chief, Minister Danton,
one of the most pwerful and important
ministers in the government, stole the
letter.
2. From where was the letter stolen?
The letter was stolen from an office
in the royal palace.
3. What was the first thing that the
Chief did to look for the letter?
The first thing that the Chief did to look
for the letter was to search the
Minister’s house.
4. How did the Chief know that the Minister
did not have the letter with him?
The Chief knew that the Minister did not
have the letter with him by having
arranged twice to have him robbed and
searched him carefully.
5. What did the police use to examine the
wood of the furniture in the house?
The police used a powerful microscope
to examine the wood of the furniture in
the house.
6. How much was the check that the Chief
gave Dupin?
The check that the Chief gave Dupin was
fifty thousand francs.
7. Where did the Minister put the letter?
The Minister put the letter on a cardboard
letter holder on a wooden shelf over the
fireplace.
8. Why did the Minister rush to the window?
The Minister rushed to the window
because tney heard loud shots coming
from outside.
9. What did Dupin do when the Minister
was looking out of the window?
He hurried to the letter holder, quickly took
the letter and put it into his pocket, then
replaced it with another letter that looked
like the first.
10.Why did Dupin replace the letter instead
of grabbing it and ran away?
Dupin replaced the letter instead of
grabbing it an ran away because there was
an armed guard in Minister Danton’s
house. If Dupin did so, he might never left
the Minister’s house alive.
Language study
Part 1
words
acquaintance
名词，认识，了解。
It was in the United States that I
made the acquaintance of Professor
Jones.
我是在美国结识琼斯教授的。
enormous
形容词，巨大的，庞大的。
We grow an enormous number of
bananas each year.
我们每年都种植大量的香蕉。
abandon
动词，放弃，遗弃。
She and her tribe had to abandon their
lands and retreat to Canada.
她和她的部落被迫放弃了土地，退
到加拿大。
detect
动词，察觉，侦查，探测。
The robots can detect unauthorized personnel
and alert security staff immediately.
机器人能发觉未经允许擅自入内的人员，
并马上向安保人员报警。
proceed
动词，进行，前进，继续。
Our work is proceeding slowly.
我们的工作在慢慢地进行中。
unfold
动词，展开，打开。
He was very excited to receive her letter
and unfolded it immediately.
收到她的来信，他很兴奋，马上打
开了它。
out-of-the-way
形容词，偏远的，偏僻的，隐蔽的。
Tom went to an out-of-the-way place to
become a volunteer.
汤姆去了一个偏远的地方，当了一
名志愿者。
fascinating
形容词，迷人的。
The museum has a fascinating collection
of Celtic artifacts.
该博物馆收藏了极吸引人的塞尔特文
化遗物。
Part 2
idioms
in vain
徒劳，无效，白费力。
All his efforts were in vain.
他的一切努力都是徒劳。
summary
Part 1
plot
The story happened on a freezing winter
night in Paris. When I( the narrator of
the story) and C. Auguste Dupin, the
famous detective, were having dinner, Mr.
Germain, the chief of the Paris Police,
visited the famous detective seeking
assistance.
Mr. Germain was working on a case that
had been giving him a great deal of trouble.
The case was about a very important letter
had been stolen from an office by Minister
Danton in the royal palace. In order to
obtain the letter, Chief Germain tried his
best to take measures.
His first move was to search Minister
Danton’ house. He carefully searched the
entire house room by room, including the
furniture, the mirrors and beds, the
clothing in the closet, the rugs, the curtains,
the books, the carpets and so on.
He also used some advanced methods including
using the powerful microscope and long and thin
needles and removing the tops from the table.
However unfortunately, he found nothing. Dupin’
suggestion was to search the house again. Chief
Germain was depressed and left.
About a month later, Dupin asked me and
Chief Germain to meet him and told us that
he would give Chief Germain the letter if
Chief germain could give a check for fifty
thousand francs to him. After Chief
Germain left, C. Auguste Dupin told me
how he got the letter from Minister Dandon.
Dupon thought Chief Germain had searched
for the letter the wrong way—in some secret
out-of-the-way place.Therefore, he paid
attention to the letter out in the open. He
finally saw it on a cardboard letter holder. At
last, he wound his way into the letter.
Part 2
Character
Features
C. Auguste Dupin
C. Auguste Dupin is a brilliant man who is
creative but also analytical, Dupin is highly
observant and enjoys having the Narrator
around as an audience to his abilities. He is
also very arrogant,
showing disdain for those who are not as
observant or skilled as he is, particularly the
Police. He gains wealth as a reward from
Chief Germain after obtaining the “stolen
letter” back from the unsuspecting Minister
Danton.
Chief Germain
In the “stolen letter”, the Chief is capable,
smart and hardworking. He did a great job to
searching for the letter carefully. But he is not
good at observing and analysing, he searched
the letter the wrong way, focusing solely on
secret place but ignoring ordinary ones, so he
fails to obtain the letter.
Minister Danton
In the story, Minister Danton is creative,
analytical, clever enough to leave the letter out in
the open, right under everyone’s nose, where no one
will search for it. He is a brilliant man, much like
Auguste Dupin himself. Whereas Minister Danton
has used his brilliance to commit crime, so too has
Dupin used his own brilliance for good purposes.
writing
As Chief Germain has made such
mistakes — searching the wrong way, lots of
people are searching for the mearning of life
the wrong way now. Discuss it with your
classmates and see what lessons you can
learn from it. You may write an article after
the discussion.