大学英语精读第二册大学英语精读第二册 Unit Four My First JobUnit Four My First Job导语：你还记得你的第一份工作是怎样的吗，下面分享一篇有关第一份工作的英语课文，欢送前来学习!Trying to make some money before entering university,the author applies for a teaching job. But the interviewgoes from bad to worse.My First JobWhile I was waiting to enter university, I sawadvertised in a local newspaper a teaching post at a schoolin a suburb of London about ten miles from where I lived.Being very short money and wanting to do something useful,I applied, fearing as I did so, that without a degree andwith no experience in teaching my chances of getting thejob were slim.However, three days later a letter arrived, asking meto go to Croydon for an interview. It proved an awkwardjourney: a train to Croydon station; a ten-minute bus rideand then a walk of at least a quarter to feel nervous.The school was a red brick house with big windows, Thefront garden was a gravel square; four evergreen shrubsstood at each corner, where they struggled to survive thedust and fumes from a busy main from a busy main road.It was clearly the headmaster himself that opened thedoor. He was short and fat. He had a sandy-colouredmoustache, a wrinkled forehead and hardly any hair.He looked at me with an air of surprised disapproval,as a colonel might look at a private whose bootlaces wereundone. Ah yes, he grunted. Youd better e inside. Thenarrow, sunless hall smelled unpleasantly of stale cabbage;the walls were dirty with ink marks; it was all silent. Hisstudy, judging by the crumbs on the carpet, was also hisdining-room. Youd better sit down, he said, andproceeded to ask me a number of questions: what subjects Ihad taken in my General School Certificate; how old I was;what games I played; then fixing me suddenly with hisbloodshot eyes, he asked me whether I thought games were avital part of a boys education. I mumbled something aboutnot attaching too much importance to them. He grunted. Ihad said the wrong thing. The headmaster and I obviouslyhad very little in mon.The school, he said, consisted of one class of twenty-four boys, ranging in age from seven to thirteen. I shouldhave to teach all subjects except art, which he taughthimself. Football and cricket were played in the Park, amile away on Wednesday and Saturday afternoons.The teaching set-up filled me with fear. I should haveto divide the class into three groups and teach them inturn at three different levels; and I was dismayed at thethought of teaching algebra and geometry-two subjects atwhich I had been pletely inpetent at school. Worse perhapswas the idea of Saturday afternoon cricket; most of myfriends would be enjoying leisure at that time.I said shyly, What would my salary be? Twelve poundsa week plus lunch. Before I could protest, he got to hisfeet. Now, he said, youd better meet my wife. Shes theone who really runs this school.This was the last straw. I was very young: the prospectof working under a woman constituted the ultimate indignity.applyvi. write to ask for (a job, membership. etc.), esp.officially 申请applicationn.interviewn. 面试;接见;会见advertisevt. make know to people by printing a notice in anewspaper, etc. or by broadcasting on television, ets. 为.做广告advertisementn.localof, special to, a place or district 当地的;地方性的postn. job or position 职位suburbn. outer area of a town or city, where people live 郊区slima. small, slight; slender 微小的;苗条的depressvt. make sad 使沮丧depressionn.brickn. 砖graveln. 砾石evergreena. with green leaves throughout the year 常绿的shrubn. low bush with several woody stems 灌木fumen. strong-smelling smoke, gas or vapour 浓烈难闻的烟,气,汽headmastern. (中,小学的)校长sandy-coloureda. yellowish-red 沙色的,黄中带红的moustachen. hair growing on the upper lip 小胡子disapprovaln. unfavorable opinion or feeling; dislike 不赞成;不满coloneln. 上校privaten. soldier of the lowest rank 列兵;士兵bootlacen. shoelace for a high shoe or boot 靴带undovt. untie, unfasten 解开;松开ahinterj. (a cry of surprise, pity, pain, joy, dislike,etc.) 啊gruntvt. 咕哝着说出unpleasantlyad. 令人不愉快地stalea. not fresh 不新鲜的cabbagen. 卷心菜crumbn. very small, broken piece of bread or cake 面包屑;糕饼屑carpetn. heavy woven material fir covering floors or stairs地毯certificaten. 证(明)书bloodshota. (眼睛)充血的vitala. very necessary; of the greatest importance 必不可少的,极其重要的mumblevt. speak (words) unclearly 模糊地说attachvt. give (to); fasten (to) 把.给予;系,贴importancen. the quality of being importantobviouslyad. it can be easily seen; plainly 明显地，显然obviousa.consist (of)vi. be made up (of) 组成，构成rangevi. vary between certain limits (在一定的范围内)变动cricketn. 板球set-upn. arrangementdismayvt. make discouraged or afraid 使灰心，使害怕algebran. 代数学geometryn. 几何学inpetenta. pletely unskillful; not good enough at doing a job,etc. 无能力的;不胜任的petenta. opposite of inpetentleisuren. free time; time which one can spend as one likes 闲暇;悠闲salaryn. fixed (usually monthly) pay for regular work 薪水plusprep. with the addition of 加(上)protestvi. express a strong objection 抗议;反对strawn. 稻草;麦杆prospectvi. sth. expected or considered probable; possibility期望中的事;展望;前景constitutevt. form; make up; be 组成，构成ultimatea. greatest; utmost; last or final 最大的;终极的，最终的indignityn. injury to ones dignity; insult 侮辱be short ofnot having enough of 缺少smell ofhave, give out the smell of 有.的气味judging byforming an opinion based onattach importance toconsider important 重视in monshared with someone else 共有的,共同的consist ofbe made up ofin turnone after another 轮流London伦敦(英国首都)Croydon克洛伊登(英国地名)