肥皂剧起源肥皂剧一词起源于早期的欧美电视，原因是在晚间 ，电视台会播放一些搞笑的短片 ，没有深度 ，只求一 笑，在这些短片里经常会夹杂着一些肥皂的广告。久而 久之，大家都以肥皂剧来称呼这些短片。再接下来， 短片不断的拍摄 ， 形成连续剧的形式 ，现在人说的肥皂剧大体和以前的含义差不多 ， 但是 主要的意思比较贬义，含有无聊 拖沓的意思。肥皂剧的起源其实和宝洁公司有关。在一百多年前 ，收听广播节目是当时的时髦事。而广播节目中常常会 播放宝洁公司的肥皂广告，因此美国人就转而把那时候 的节目称之为肥皂剧。Why Are We Addicted to Soaps? Paragraph 1Over the Years, there have been endless arguments about the value of soaps.For some critics, they are no more than mindless tell the truth and show society as it really is. Whatever the critics say ,the fact remains that millions of people tune in eagerly to their favorite serial every day. The soap opera has succeeded in capturing the imagination of the entire world 多年来，出现了无休止的争论关于肥皂剧的价值。 Over the Years, there have been endless arguments about the value of soaps.这是一个There be 句型 For some critics, they are no more than mindless entertainment. others believe they are the only programmes that tell the truth and show society as it really is.一些批评家认为，肥皂剧仅是不用费脑筋 的娱乐而已，另外一些批评家则相信只有 肥皂剧敢直面人生。no more than adv. 仅仅， 只不过Whatever the critics say , the fact remains that millions of people tune in eagerly to their favorite serial every day.Whatever用法：Whatever一般引导名词性从句，主要包 括定语从句，主语从句和让步状语从句。句型结构：whatever +主语 +谓语，+从 句。不管评论家如何评论，事实上成千上万的人 们每天对他们所钟爱的连续剧趋之若鹜。Tune in 收看 收听The soap opera has succeeded in capturing the imagination of the entire world 肥皂剧成功抓住了整个世界的想象力 Succeed in 成功 Succeed in +doing 成功做某事 Paragraph 2Why are soaps so popular? The most important reason is that they are about the daily activities of ordinary people, and they usually center around a small community or a large family. However, soap operas are much more dramatic than real life. It allows the scriptwriter to create a complicated plot, with five or six different story lines all running at the same time. The stories are usually based on problems within personal relationships and family life, so the viewers can easily identify with the feelings and opinions of the characters, They can see that the lives of the people on the screen are not so very different from their own. Why are soaps so popular? The most important reason is that they are about the daily activities of ordinary people, and they usually center around a small community or a large family. 为是什么肥皂剧这么热门？最重要的原因 是他们再现了普通人的日常生活，而且通 常围绕一个小社会和大家庭展开。这一句是表语从句However, soap operas are much more dramatic than real life.然而肥皂剧毕竟比真实生活戏剧化得多。dramatic 戏剧性的It allows the scriptwriter to create a complicated plot, with five or six different story lines all running at the same time.同时有五六条故事线索推进。The stories are usually based on problems within personal relationships and family life, so the viewers can easily identify with the feelings and opinions of the characters, They can see that the lives of the people on the screen are not so very different from their own.identify with 和.有同感这些故事通常围绕着人际关系与家庭生活中的磕磕碰碰，所以观众们能 轻而易举地区分和体会在剧中的人思想。他们会发现屏幕上的生活与自 己生活差距并不远。Paragraph 3 Some viewers even start to think of the TV characters as real friends and family. They write letters to their favorites, giving them advice and offering their own opinions, and sometimes copy their styles of dress and behavior. Events like births, weddings or deaths in soaps are always followed with great interest. If a favorite character is unfairly treated, this usually provokes strong reactions. In one famous soap, a woman was sent to prison, and viewers started a national campaign to have her set free.Think ofas 把看作We think of our parents as our best friends.Set free 释放When dynasty was changed emperor,all prisoners set free.How seriously do some viewers take soaps?Paragraph 4Readingn Soaps may also be popular because they offer easy entertainment. Viewers dont have to concentrate very hard to follow the story. The same characters are seen every day, and the stories move along quite slowly. If viewers are forced to miss their favorite soap for a couple of weeks, theres no need to worry. They only need to watch one or two episodes to catch up again. This is because the script constantly refers back to past events, and because each story line takes a long time to develop. Translaten同样的字符每天都在看， 故事情节的发展也总是十 分缓慢。ncharactern n. 字符；特性；角色； 性格，品质 n vt. 使具有特征；印， 刻nBe seen 表被动，指代 characters 是被看到。n即使观众被迫错过他们最 喜欢的肥皂剧的几周后， 他们也不需要担心。 nA couple of 一些；几个nNeed n. 需要，要求；必 要之物；缺乏 n vt. 需要nBe need to do be need doingn此处need作名词用 nRefer to是一个固定短语，以后会经常遇到，这里 要特别注意。n本句中开头的this指代上一句中的内容n两个because后面的句子是对前面两句内容的解释 和补充，属于原因状语从句。Paragraph 5 Another important reason why soaps attract large audiences is the use of a technique called the “cliff -hanger” ending. This means that each episode always ends at a critical point in the story. A dramatic incident such as an argument is deliberately cut short by the closing title sequence. This technique almost guarantees that thousands of viewers will tune in to the next epis