新概念英语第三册逐句精讲:第54课本能还是机智新概念3课文内容： We have been brought up to fear insects. We regard them as unnecessary creatures that do more harm than good. We continually wage war on them, for they contaminate our food, carry diseases, or devour our crops. They sting or bite without provocation; they fly uninvited into our rooms on summer nights, or beat against our lighted windows. We live in dread not only of unpleasant insects like spiders or wasps, but of quite harmless one like moths. Reading about them increases our understanding without dispelling our fears. Knowing that the industrious ant lives in a highly organized society does nothing to prevent us from being filled with revulsion when we find hordes of them crawling over a carefully prepared picnic lunch. No matter how much we like honey, or how much we have read about the uncanny sense of direction which bees possess, we have a horror of being stung. Most of our fears are unreasonable, but they are impossible to erase. At the same time, however, insects are strangely fascinating. We enjoy reading about them, especially when we find that, like the praying mantis, they lead perfectly horrible lives. We enjoy staring at them, entranced as they go about their business, unaware (we hope) of our presence. Who has not stood in awe at the sight of a spider pouncing on a fly, or a column of ants triumphantly bearing home an enormous dead beetle? Last summer I spent days in the garden watching thousands of ants crawling up the trunk of my prize peach tree. The tree has grown against a warm wall on a sheltered side of the house. I am especially proud of it, not only because it has survived several severe winters, but because it occasionally produces luscious peaches. During the summer, I noticed that the leaves of the tree were beginning to wither. Clusters of tiny insects called aphids were to be found on the underside of the leaves. They were visited by a large colony of ants which obtained a sort of honey from them. I immediately embarked on an experiment which, even though it failed to get rid of the ants, kept me fascinated for twenty-four hours. I bound the base of the tree with sticky tape, making it impossible for the ants to reach the aphids. The tape was so stick that they did not dare to cross it. For a long time. I watched them scurrying around the base of the tree in bewilderment. I even went out at midnight with a torch and noted with satisfaction (and surprise) that the ants were still swarming around the sticky tape without being able to do anything about it. I got up early next morning hoping to find that the ants had given up in despair. Instead, I saw that they had discovered a new route. They were climbing up the wall of the house and then on to the leaves of the tree. I realized sadly that I had been completely defeated by their ingenuity. The ants had been quick to find an answer to my thoroughly unscientific methods! 新概念英语3逐句精讲： 1.We have been brought up to fear insects. 我们自幼就在对昆虫的惧怕中长大。
语言点:句子构造分析:to fear insects作主语补足语 2.We regard them as unnecessary creatures that do more harm than good. 我们把昆虫当作害多益少的无用东西 语言点:more than构造 3.We continually wage war on them, for they contaminate our food, carry diseases, or devour our crops. 人类不断同昆虫斗争，由于昆虫弄脏我们的食物，传播疾病，吞噬庄稼 语言点1:句子构造分析:for引导缘由状语从句 语言点2:wage war on的意思是“同…作斗争 4.They sting or bite without provocation; they fly uninvited into our rooms on summer nights, or beat against our lighted windows. 它们无缘无故地又叮又咬；夏天的晚上，它们未经邀请便飞到我们房间里，或者对着露出亮光的窗户乱扑乱撞。
语言点:句子构造分析:留意本句中的分号，其作用是分隔两个等立的分句 5.We live in dread not only of unpleasant insects like spiders or wasps, but of quite harmless one like moths. 我们在日常生活中，不但憎恶如蜘蛛、黄蜂之类令人厌烦的昆虫，而且憎恶并无大害的飞蛾等 语言点:句子构造分析:not only…but(also)…连接两个并列的宾语 6.Reading about them increases our understanding without dispelling our fears. 阅读有关昆虫的书能增加我们对它们的了解，却不能消退我们的恐惊的心理 语言点:句子构造分析:留意本句中的三个现在分词:reading about them是动名词短语作整句的主语，our understanding为宾语，withou dispelling our fears 作状语 7.Knowing that the industrious ant lives in a highly organized society does nothing to prevent us from being filled with revulsion when we find hordes of them crawling over a carefully prepared picnic lunch. 即使知道勤奋的蚂蚁生活具有高度组织性的社会里，当看到大群蚂蚁在我们细心预备的午间野餐上爬行时，我们也无法抑制对它们的反感。
语言点1:句子构造分析:Knowing that the industrious ant lives in a highly organized societys是句子的主语 语言点2:do nothing to prevent的意思是“无法阻挡 8.No matter how much we like honey, or how much we have read about the uncanny sense of direction which bees possess, we have a horror of being stung. 不管我们多么爱吃蜂蜜，或读过多少关于蜜蜂具有神奇的识别方向的灵感的书，我们仍旧非常可怕被蜂蜇 语言点1:句子构造分析:两个how much构成平行构造 语言点2:No matter how在这里再次消失，意思是“不管怎样 9.Most of our fears are unreasonable, but they are impossible to erase. 我们的恐惊大局部是没有道理的，但无法消退 语言点:be impossible to的意思是“不行能（做某事）。
10.At the same time, however, insects are strangely fascinating.同时。