Introduce the story: Today we'll talk about jokes and ‘sick’humour.
Step 1: Intensive reading.
Try to answer the question below while you’re reading:
Question: What is the basis of ‘sick’ humour?
Vocabulary:
largely adv. 在很大程度上
comic adj. 喜剧的，可笑的
universal adj. 普遍的
comedian n. 滑稽演员，喜剧演员
distasteful adj. 讨厌的
pester v. 一再要求，纠缠
dread v. 惧怕
recovery n. 康复
plaster n. 熟石膏
console v. 安慰，慰问
hobble v. 瘸着腿走
compensate v. 补偿
mumble v. 喃喃而语
Passage:
Whether we find a joke funny or not largely depends on where we have been brought
up. The sense of humour is mysteriously bound up with national characteristics. A
Frenchman, for instance, might find it hard to laugh at a Russian joke. In the same
way, a Russian might fail to see anything amusing in a joke which would make an
Englishman laugh to tears.
我们觉得一则笑话是否好笑，很大程度上取决于我们是在哪儿长大的。幽默感与
民族有着神秘莫测的联系。譬如，法国人听完一则俄国笑话可能很难发笑。同样
的道理，一则可以令英国人笑出泪来的笑话，俄国人听了可能觉得没有什么可笑
之处。
Most funny stories are based on comic situations. In spite of national differences,
certain funny situations have a universal appeal. No matter where you live, you would
find it difficult not to laugh at, say, Charlie Chaplin's early films. However, a new
type of humour, which stems largely from the U. S., has recently come into fashion. It
is called ‘sick humour’. Comedians base their jokes on tragic situations like violent
death or serious accidents. Many people find this sort of joke distasteful. The
following example of ‘sick humour’ will enable you to judge for yourself.
大部分令人发笑的故事都是根据喜剧情节编写的。尽管民族不同，有些滑稽情节
却能产生普遍的效果。比如说，不管你生活在哪里，你看了查理 ·卓别林的早期
电影很难不发笑。然而，近来一种新式幽默流行了起来，这种幽默主要来自美国。
它被叫作“病态幽默”。喜剧演员根据悲剧情节诸如暴死、重大事故等来编造笑话。
许多人认为这种笑话是低级庸俗的。下面是个“病态幽默”的实例，你可以据此自
己作出判断。
Notes:
1 whether we find a joke funny or not，这是一个名词性的从句，在句中作主语。
2 be bound up with，与……联系在一起。
3 you would find it difficult not to laugh at, say, Charlie Chaplin's early films. 比如
说，你看了查理 ·卓别林的早期电影很难不发笑。句中的say 是插入语，可译作“ 比
如说”。查理·卓别林是电影史上最有名的演员之一。他在诸如《淘金记》（1924）
这类电影中扮演的流浪汉“小人物”在各种不利的条件下仍获得了成功。
4 stem from，起源于。
5 come into fashion ，开始流行，时兴起来。
6 judge for yourself，你自己来判断
A man who had broken his right leg was taken to hospital a few weeks before
Christmas. From the moment he arrived there, he kept on pestering his doctor to tell
him when he would be able to go home. He dreaded having to spend Christmas in
hospital. Though the doctor did his best, the patient's recovery was slow. On
Christmas Day, the man still had his right leg in plaster. He spent a miserable day in
bed thinking of all the fun he was missing. The following day, however, the doctor
consoled him by telling him that his chances of being able to leave hospital in time for
New Year celebrations were good. The man took heart and, sure enough, on New
Year's Eve he was able to hobble along to a party. To compensate for his unpleasant
experiences in hospital, the man drank a little more than was good for him. In the
process, he enjoyed himself thoroughly and kept telling everybody how much he
hated hospitals. He was still mumbling something about hospitals at the end of the
party when he slipped on a piece of ice and broke his left leg.
圣诞节前几周，某人摔断了右腿被送进医院。从他进医院那一刻时，他就缠住医
生，让医生告诉他什么时候能回家。他十分害怕在医院过圣诞。尽管医生竭力医
治，但病人恢复缓慢。圣诞节那天，他的右腿还上着石膏，他在床上郁郁不乐地
躺了一天，想着他错过的种种欢乐。然而，第二天，医生安慰他说，出院欢度新
年的可能性还是很大的，那人听后振作了精神。果然，除夕时他可以一瘸一拐地
去参加晚会了。为了补偿住院这一段不愉快的经历，那人喝得稍许多了一点。在
晚会上他尽情娱乐，一再告诉大家他是多么讨厌医院。晚会结束时，他嘴里还在
嘟哝着医院的事，突然踩到一块冰上滑倒了，摔断了左腿。
Notes:
7 take heart ，振作精神。
8 the man drank a little more than was good for him.这个人稍微多喝了一点酒。此
句 than 后面省略了主语 what， be good for sb. 是“对某人有益”的意思。
29.2【阅读理解】Funny or not?
Step 2: Comprehension questions.
1 What is the sense of humour mysteriously bound up with? (National
characteristics.)
2 Would a Frenchman find it easy to laugh at a Russian joke? (No, he wouldn't.)
3 Would a Russian find an English joke funny? (No, he wouldn't.)
4 What are most funny stories based on? (Comic situations.)
5 What kind of appeal do certain funny situations have? (A universal appeal.)
6 Would most people laugh at Charlie Chaplin's early films? (Yes, they would.)
7 Where does the new kind of humour come from? (The U.S./The United States.)
8 What is the new kind of humour called? (‘Sick humour’)
9 What do comedians base their jokes on? (Tragic situations like violent death or
serious accidents.)
10 What do many people think of this kind of humour? (They find it distasteful.)
11 A man was taken to hospital. Why? (Because he had broken his right leg.)
12 When? (A few weeks before Christmas.)
13 Why did he keep on pestering his doctor? (To ask when he would be able to go
home.)
14 What did he dread? (Having to spend Christmas in hospital.)
15 Was the patient's recovery fast or slow? (It was slow.)
16 Did he spend Christmas Day in hospital? (Yes, he did.)
17 When did the doctor tell him that he would probably be able to go home? (In time
for New Year.)
18 Where did the man go on New Year's Eve? (To a party.)
19 How much did he drink? (More than was good for him.)
20 What happened to him at the end of the party? (He slipped on a piece of ice and
broke his left leg.)
29.3【拓展写作】Funny or not?
Step 3: Composition
In not more than 250 words tell a funny story you know well. Make out a full plan
and provide a suitable title. Your composition should be in three or four paragraphs.
Key to composition
The gasman
An aunt of mine lives in a small village in the country and tells this story of what
happened to her once. In order to understand the story, you should know a little about
life in an English village. For example, people often enjoy afternoon tea together, they
still leave doors unlocked, and certain tradesmen are used to delivering goods and,
with permission, leaving them inside the owner's house.
One day my aunt had invited some friends round for afternoon tea. She had put
some cakes in the oven to bake, and had gone upstairs to do some cleaning. When she
finished, she decided to have a bath before her friends arrived. She was just about to
get into the bath when she suddenly remembered the cakes. She wrapped a bath towel
round her, went down to the kitchen and took the cakes out of the oven. Just then,
there was a knock on the back door. She was sure it was the baker, who would open
the door, come in and leave the bread on the kitchen table.
She panicked, dashed into the cupboard under the stairs and closed the door. Then,
horrified, she heard footsteps coming to the cupboard. The door opened and there
stood the gasman who had come to read the meter — which was in the cupboard. My
aunt blushed and said, ‘I'm very sorry. I was expecting the baker.’ ‘Oh,’ the gasman
said. ‘Sorry, madam.’ He closed the door gently and left.
课外练习：
1 Whether you find ‘sick humour' funny or not will depend on .
(a) your having been brought up in America
(b) the joke being related to a fundamentally comic situation
(c) your ability to see the funny side of an unpleasant event
(d) your ability to laugh until you cry
2 The man spent Christmas Day feeling miserable because .
(a) the doctor had failed to attend to him
(b) he was not able to be with his friends
(c) being unable to walk, he did not enjoy the celebrations at the hospital
(d) he thought he might also miss the New Year's Eve celebrations
3 The point of the joke taken to illustrate ‘sick humour’is .
(a) no sooner was the man out of hospital than he had to go back in
(b) the man should not have said how much he hated hospitals
(c) the man would be unable to walk for the rest of his life
(d) the man had not got a leg to stand on
4 , for instance, might find it hard to ...
(a) The French
(b)A French
(c) A man in France
(d) If you were French
5 amusing stories are based on comic situations.
(a) Most
(b) Most of
(c) The majority
(d) Mostly
6 A man broken Was taken to hospital…
(a) whose right leg had been
(b) who had the right leg
(c) with one right leg
(d) to whom the right leg had been
7 He had no sooner arrived there pestering his doctor …
(a) and then he began
(b) than he began
(c) he began
(d to begin
8 The man compensated for his unpleasant experiences in hospital a little
more than…
(a) drinking
(b) to drink
(c) by drinking
(d) and drunk
9 Though the doctor ...
(a) worked very well
(b) could not have been better
(c) was extremely skilled
(d) did all he could
10 The doctor him by …
(a) felt
(b) advised
(c) pleased
(d) comforted
11 - and kept telling everyone he hated hospitals.
(a) at great lengths that
(b) to their cost
(c) to what extent
(d) why
12 He was still mumbling something at the end…
(a) in the same way
(b) to the same effect
(c) of common sense
(d) of some sort
答案：1c 2b 3a 4a 5a 6a 7b 8c 9d 10d 11c 12b