I. Grammar

1.Word-formation: undersung

underestimated    underdeveloped

underdone    underfunded

undermanned    undernourished

unerpaid    underpopulated    underused

under- + past participle: not enough

2. There is something in American character…

Patterns:

There is/was no question of (sb) doing sth

There is/was sb doing sth

There + main verb (other than be) +subject

There is/was nothing sb can/could do + to do…

There is/was such person/thing as

There is/was sth in/about sb/sth + that-clause

There was/had been a time + adverbial of place + when-clause

2. Four if idioms: if only, if not, only if and what if

(1)…that sanctioned reading only if there was some point to it. (para. 12)

(2)The theory that international trade and investment raise living standards works only if investment funds are well used…(para. 19, Unit9)

(3)We knew that we had marvelous powers within our grasp, if only Carasierra could be kept at his work. (para. 18, Unit 13, Book 1)

(4)But what if we know how to let loose a plague capable of destroying whole nations? (para. 16, Unit 13, Book 1)

(5)“The center of the world?” I repeated, trying to show interest if not completed acceptance. (para. 3, Unit 6, Book 1)

II．Writing Features

Writing Techniques

1. symbol

e.g. the club chair, the girl

2. comparison and contrast

e.g. Reading for pleasure, spurred on by some interior compulsion, became as suspect as getting on the subway to ride aimlessly from place to place. (para. 12)

e.g. I vs. others

3. simile and metaphor

e.g. My perfect island.

Structure of the Text

1. Between paragraphs

By the time I became an adult, I realized that while my satisfaction in the sheer act of reading had not abated in the least, the world was often as hostile, or as blind, to that joy… (para. 10)

A transitional sentence: summary of the previous part + leading to new idea

2. Within paragraph

my home, my sustenance, my great invincible companion→most undersung, at least publicly→I did not read from a sense of superiority, or advancement, or even learning.