【学习园地 英语精读】
It was the end of my exhausting first day as waitress in a busy New
York restaurant. My cap had gone awry, my apron was stained,my feet ached.
I carried felt heavier and heavier.Weary and discouraged,
I didn\'t seem able to do anything right. As I made out a complicated check
5 for a family with several children who had changed their icecream order a
dozen times, I was ready to quit.
Then the father smiled at me as he handed me my tip: \"Well done, \" he
said. \"You\'ve looked after us really well. \"
Suddenly my tiredness vanished. I smiled back, and dater, when the
10 manager asked me how I\' d liked my first day, I said, \"Fine! \" Those few
words of praise had changed everything.
Praise is like sunlight to the human spirit; we cannot flower anii grow
without it. And yet, while most of us are only too ready to apply to others
the cold wind of criticism, we are somehow reluctant to give our fellows
15 the warm sunshine of praise.
Why - when one word can bring such pleasure? A friend of mine who
travels widely always tries to learn a little of the language of any place
she visits. She\'s not much of a linguist, but she does know how to say one
word -\"beautiful\"- in several languages. She can use it to a mather hold-
20 ing her baby, or to a lonely salesman fishing out pictures of his family.
The ability has earned her friends all over the world.
It\'s strange how chary we are about praising. Perhaps it\'s because few
of us know how to accept compliments gracefully.Instead, we are embarrassed
and shrug off the words we are really so glad to hear. Because of this
25 defensive reaction, direct compliments are surprisingly difficult to give.
That is why some of the most valued pats on the back are those which come
to us indirectly, in a letter or passed on by a friend: When one things of
the speed with which spiteful remarks are convey~i, it seexris a pity that
there isn\'t more effort to relay pleasing and flattering comments.
30 It\'s especially rewarding to give praise in areas in which effort generally
goes unnoticed or unmentioned. An artist gets complimented for a
glorious picture, a cook for a perfect meal. But do you ever fell your laundry
manager how pleased you are when the shirts are done just right? Do you ever
praise your paper boy for getting the paper to you on time 365 days a year?
35 Praise is particularly appreciated by those doing routine jobs:gas-sta-
tion attendants, waitresses - even housewives. Do you ever go into a house
and say, \" What a tidy room\"? Hardly anybody does. That\'s why housework is
considered such a dreary grind. Comment is often made about activities
which are relatively easy and satisfying, like arranging flowers; but not about
40 jobs which are hard and dirty, like scrubbing floors. Shakespeare said, \"Our
praises are our wages. \" Since so often praise is the only wage a housewife
receives, surely she of all people should get her measure.
Mothers know instinctively that for children an ounce of praise is worth
45 a pound of scolding. Still, we\'re not always as perceptive as we might be
about applying the rule. One day I was criticizing my children for squabbling.
\"Can you never play peacefully?\" I shouted. Susanna looked at me quizzically.
\"Of course we can, \" she said. \"But you don\'t notice us when we do. \"
50 Teachers agree about the value of praise. One teacher writes that instead
of drowning students\' compositions in critical red ink, the teacher will get
far more constructive results by finding one or two things which have been
done better than last time, and commenting favorably on them. \"I believe that
a student knows when he has handed in something above his usual standard,
55 \"writes the teacher,\" and that he waits hungrily for a brief comment in the
margin to show him that the teacher is aware of it, too. \"
Behavioral scientists have done countless experiments to prove that
any human being tends to repeat an act which has been immediately followed
by a pleasant result. In one such experiment, a number of schoolchildren
60 were divided into three groups and given arithmetic tests daily for five days.
One group was consistently praised for its previous performance; another group
was criticized; the third was ignored.
Not surprisingly, those who were praised improved dramatically. Those
who were criticized improved also, but not so much. And the scores of the
65 children who were ignored hardly improved at all. Interestingly the brightest
children were helped just as much by criticism as by praise, but the less
able children reacted badly to criticism, needed praise the most. Yet the
latter are the very youngsters who, in most schools, fail to get the pat on
the back.
70 To give praise costs the giver nothing but a moment\'s thought and a moment\'s
effort perhaps a quick phone call to pass on a compliment, or five minutes
spent writing an appreciative letter. It is such a small invest ment-- and yet
consider the results it may produce.\" I can live for two months on a good
compliment, \" said Mark Twain.
75 So, let\'s be alert to the small excellences around us - and comment on them.
We will not only bring joy into other people\'s lives, but also, very often, added
happiness into our own. New Words awry / a. with a turn to one side 歪 ; 斜
apron / n. 围裙
stain / vt. make dirty marks on 玷污
tray / n. 托盘
weary / a. very tired 厌倦的 , 厌烦的
discourage / vt. cause to lose courage or confidence 使泄气，
使灰心
reluctant / a. unwilling 不情愿的;勉强的
linguist / n. person who is good at foreign languages;
person who studies the science of language
通晓数国语言的人；语言学家
earn la:nlvt. get in return for work or as a reward for
one\'s qualities, etc. 挣得, 赢得
chary / a. careful; cautious 谨慎小心的
compliment / n. praise 赞美(话)
vt. praise 赞美
gracefully / ad. 大大方方地；优美地
graceful a.
embarrass / vt. make awkward or ashamed 使尴尬
pat n. tap made with the open hand 轻拍
v. tap gently with the open hand
spiteful / a. having or showing ill will 恶意的
convey / vt. make (ideas,views,feelings, etc.) known to
another person 转达 , 传达
relay / vt. 传送；转达
flatter / vt. praise too much; praise insincerely (in
order to please) 过奖; 谄媚, 奉承
glorious / a. splendid 辉煌的
attendant / n. 服务人员
tidy / a. natly arranged 整洁的 , 整齐的
dreary / a. dull and uninteresting 沉闷乏味的
grind / n. hard uninteresting work 苦差使
scrub / vt. clean by rubbing hard, esp. with a stiff
brush 擦洗
measure n. an adequate or due portion 份儿
instinctively/ ad. 本能地
scold / vt. blame with angry words 申斥, 怒骂
perceptive / a. 感觉灵敏的
criticize / vt. 批评
squabble / vi. quarrel, esp. noisily and unreasonably 争吵 口角
peacefully ad. in a peaceful manner; quietly 安静地
peaceful a.
quizzically / ad. 嘲弄地; 疑惑地
drown / vt. cover completely with water; cause (sb.) to
die by keeping under water 淹没; 使(某人) 淹死
critical a. fault-finding 挑剔的,苛求的
margin / n. blank space round the printed or written
matter on a page 页边的空白
behavioral / a. of or relating to behavior 行为的
arithmetic / n. science of numbers 算术
dratnatically / ad. strikingly 显著地
dramatic a.
youngster / n. young person, esp. a boy
appreciative / a. thankful; grateful
alert-/ a. watchful and keen 警觉的
Phrases & Expressions make out write out; complete or fill in 开出 ; 填写
only too very 极, 非常
not much of a not a very good 不十分好的
fish out bring out after searching 掏出
shrug off dismiss as not deserving attention or as sth.
unimportant 耸肩表示对…不屑理睬
pat on the back word or gesture of praise or encouragement 赞扬;
鼓励
pass on convey (to another) 传递
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