Transcript 1254781939109

Unit 12
Pagoda (2)
I. Teaching Aims & Requirements:
Let students grasp some useful phrases and sentence
Let students get an overview of pagodas
Help students improve English tour interpretation
Ⅱ. Content
Overview of Chinese pagodas
Useful phrases and expressions about pagodas
Useful sentences about Chinese pagodas
III. Focus on & Difficulties:
Overview of the Chinese pagodas
Useful phrases and sentences about pagodas
I. Landscape Towers and Pavilions
Chinese cultural spirit pays special attention to
the harmony and affinity of man with nature,
and towers and pavilions particularly embody
this characteristic.
Chinese towers are wide open, so that air is
circulating and infiltrating the space inside and
outside the tower.
I. Landscape Towers and Pavilions
Around various floors there are corridors for
climbing and looking into the distance. The
corridors and balustrades around each floor
greatly reduce the soaring kinetic potential of
the overall vertical form, so that the towers can
overlook the vast land from time to time.
I. Landscape Towers and Pavilions
The notched and curved roofing, and the
rounded corners of the tower, avoid a rigid and
solitary appearance. The towers are beautifully
inlaid in nature, so that they become part of the
universe containing the infinite yearning of the
people for nature.
I. Landscape Towers and Pavilions
Many poems and prose clearly express the
human spirit contained in these towers, Such
as the lines: “The sun sets behind the mountain,
the Yellow River flows into the sea, ascending
another story to see a thousand miles”. This
describes the vivid experience of the poet who
climbs the tower and looks afar between
heaven and earth to clear his mind.
I. Landscape Towers and Pavilions
This meaning can also be seen from the
magnificently perceived names of various
towers, such as Watching the Sea Tower, Seeing
the Mountain Tower, Looking at the Cloud Tower,
Catching the Moon Tower, the Mist and Rain
Tower, the Refreshing Breeze Tower, the
Absorbing River Water Tower, Reaching-theClouds Tower, the Sunset-Bathed Tower, etc.
II. Yueyang Tower
Yueyang Tower lies in
the west of Yueyang city,
nearby the Dongting
Lake. It is listed as the
three famous towers in
the south of Yangtze
River, together with
Yellow Crane Tower at
Wuhan, Hubei province
and Tengwang Tower at
Nanchang,
Jiangxi
province.
II. Yueyang Tower
Yueyang Tower was originally built for
soldiers to rest on and watch out. In the Three
Kingdoms Period, Lusu, General of Wu State,
trained his soldiers here and then rebuilt it as a
tower to review his troops.
Fan Zhongyan, a great artist and poet, was
invited to write the well-known poem about
Yueyang Tower. In his essay which entitled A
Panegyric of the Yueyang Tower, Fan writes: “Be
the first to worry about the troubles across the
land, the last to enjoy universal happiness.”
II. Yueyang Tower
The architectural style of
Yueyang Tower is quite
unique. The main tower is
21.35 meters high with 4
columns, 3 stories, flying
eave, helmet roof and
wood construction, the
helmet-roof of such a
large dimension is a rarity
among
the
ancient
architectures in China.
II. Yueyang Tower
Entering the tower, you’ll pass the famous
couplet: “Dongting is the water of the world;
Yueyang is the tower of the world.” Moving on,
there is a platform (Dianjiang tai) that once
functioned as the training ground for the navy of
Three-Kingdom period general Lusu.
III. Yellow Crane Tower
Yellow Crane Tower stands on the southern bank of
the Yangtze River in Wuchang, Hubei. Legend has it
that the tower was initially built during the Three
Kingdoms period, although it began to become well
known during the Tang Dynasty. This was mainly
attributed to poet Cui Hao’s verse which reads:
“Riding the yellow crane, ancients have gone away,
here only the Yellow Crane Tower remains”.
III. Yellow Crane Tower
The
Yellow
Crane
Tower is built on a
platform, under which
trees provide pleasant
shade from where one
can look into the
distance and see a
vast expanse of misty,
rolling water.
III. Yellow Crane Tower
Yellow Crane Tower was repeatedly
destroyed and rebuilt. Rebuilt with
reinforced concrete in recent years, the
Tower is mostly modeled on towers of the
Qing Dynasty, but it is larger and its
height was increased to five stories, while
its position was shifted in order to make
way for the Yangtze River Bridge.
IV. Tengwang Tower
Tengwang Tower, on the banks of the
Ganjiang River in Nanchang of Jiangxi
Province, was first built in the fourth
year (653) of the reign of Gaozong of
the Tang Dynasty. It became famed due
largely to the Wang Bo’s work “Preface
to Tengwang Tower”.
IV. Tengwang Tower
It was rebuilt 23 times through subsequent
ages, remains of the Tang and Song Dynasty
structures long since fallen down and
disappeared into the river. The extant Song
painting “Picture of Tengwang Tower” is known
as the earliest of the Tengwang Tower, its
dignified and graceful style and exquisite
structure making a deep impression.
V. Chinese-Style Pagodas
The prototype and the religious meaning of
the pagoda were introduced into China
from India. Its original function in India
was a tomb wherein were buried the
bones of Sakyamuni. After it was
introduced to China, its meaning was
expanded.
V. Chinese-Style Pagodas
The practical functions of the
pagoda are not subject to
much restriction. Its form is
relatively free, and most are
built with funds raised by
believers or with financial aid
from the state and localities.
V. Chinese-Style Pagodas
The pagoda has become an important type of
Chinese architectural art. Chinese monasteries,
mainly of a tower-type and dense-eave style,
are created in light of the prototype of Indian
pagodas, and towers emerged in large
quantities in China’s Han Dynasty.
VI. Homework
1. Review the useful phrases, expressions and
sentences in Unit 12, which will be checked next
week.
2. Read the passage on page113-114, and
remember the useful expressions and sentences
in the article.