Teaching plan

for

LESSONS 41-42-43

UNIT 11 SEFC BOOK3

The Merchant of Venice

Time: November 2003

Place: No.1 Middle School

Wuhu County

Teacher: Yang Ping&Shen Shihu

1, Teaching aims and demands:

(1) make the Ss know something about Shakespeare and his works

(2) help the Ss understand and enjoy the famous play----- The Merchant of Venice

(3) make the Ss know the general ideas and the theme of the play

2, Teaching aids:

CAI multi-media

3,Teaching method:

communication approach

4, Teaching procedures:

Step 1, Presentation

(1) Take the students to visit Italy. First the leaning tower of Pisa, then the water city of Venice by using some pictures and questions.

1, What’s the name of the building? Where is it?

It’s leaning tower. It’s in Pisa Italy.

2, Are there any roads in the city? How do people travel in the city?

No. People travel by boat or ship or on bridges.

3, What’s the name of the city?

Venice.

(2) Today we are going to learn a famous play---- The Merchant of Venice

Step 2, Brief introduction about the author ---William Shakespeare .

Show a portrait of William Shakespeare and talk about him and his works.

William Shakespeare (1564----1616) the greatest English playwright and poet during the Renaissance (文藝復興),was born into a merchant’s family in Stratford in the middle of England. He worked as an actor, director, and dramatist. He wrote 37 historical plays, tragedies and comedies, and 2 narrative(敘事) poems and 154 sonnets(十四行詩).

His famous plays:

A Hamlet / King Lear / Othello /

Romeo and Juliet

B A Midsummer Night’s Dream

▲The Merchant of Venice

C The Life of King Henry Ⅷ

Step 3,The background of the Merchant of Venice

The Merchant of Venice was written around 1596 during the Renaissance. In the 16th century , the city of Venice was an important trading centre. It was a very prosperous (繁華的) city. Merchants of Venice and Jews from other countries bought and sold goods, often goods from abroad by ship or boat.

Step 4, Fast reading

(1) Ask the Ss to read the first part on Page 60, and find out the main characters of the play.

Antonio----- a merchant of Venice,…

Shylock----- a moneylender,…

Bassanio---- Antonio’s best friend…

Portia ----- a rich and beautiful lady,…

Nerrisa ----- Portia’s maid,…

(2)Ask the Ss to say something about these characters.

Step 5, Intensive reading

(1) Read the second and third part quickly and answer the following questions.

1, Why did Portia want to marry Bassanio –a poor fellow?

2, Why did Bassanio want to borrow three thousand ducats from Antonio?

3, Why did Antonio borrow money from Shylock?

4, On what condition did Shylock agree to lend Antonio money?

5, What happened to Antonio three months later?

6, What did Portia decide to help Antonio?

7, What did the Duke ask Shylock to do? What did Shylock insist?

8, Why did Shylock insist on taking Antonio’s flesh

9, What did Portia say to Shylock when she took her seat as a judge?

10,How did Portia stop Shylock from cutting Antonio’s flesh?

11, What’s the judgment of the trial?

12, What did Antonio give up? Why?

(2) Analyze the main characters of the play.

Antonio Shylock

a merchant ------ a moneylender

a Venetian

Christian ------ a Jew

kind ------ cruel

warm-hearted ------ cold / selfish

generous ------ greedy

merciful ------ unmerciful

tolerant ------ revengeful

( 3) Get some students to talk about the general ideas of the play。

(4) Talk about the theme of the play

The contrast between Antonio and Shylock (or between mercy and revenge) is in fact the conflict(沖突)between Venetian Christians and invaders--Jews. Christians are merciful and value the human relationships over business ones, while Jews are greedy and revengeful and value the money.

Step 6, Consolidation

Retell the story if you were Bassanio

Homework

Rewrite the story

The End