《西方文化读本(第三版)》在前两版的基础上进行了较大的修订和完善。一方面继续为学生展现西方文化全貌,以追溯文化史的方式展现了西方文化发展的主线,用生动的故事呈现西方文化发展历史中的重要节点,从而使学生英语语言技能的提升寓于对西方文化基础知识的掌握之中;另一方面在对原有内容进行增删、调整的同时,将课程思政元素有机融入教学和练习之中,增加了有关当今西方社会所面临的社会问题的补充阅读篇章和思考题,使学生在了解西方文化的同时,学会鉴别西方文化的根源和本质。 内容上,本教材从西方文化的源头,即古希腊、罗马文化开始,以西方现当代文化现象作为终结:古希腊人的想象和思考成为西方文化的摇篮;古罗马人的实用和政治促成“条条大路通罗马”;中世纪在漫长的“黑暗”之中酝酿了风起云涌的变化;文艺复兴点亮人性之光;启蒙时代将理性之火燃遍了整个西方;浪漫主义和现实主义在理性、情感、现实、想象的编织下纷繁丰富;现代主义反思传统,崇尚多元、张扬个性。 本教材为授课老师免费提供精美课件。

Unit 1 Ancient Greek Culture and Wisdom…1 Section A Greek Mythology…1 Section B City-States: Athens and Sparta…8 Section C Socrates …14 Unit 2 Roman Empire and Latin Culture…24 Section A History of Roman Empire…24 Section B All Roads Lead to Rome…30 Section C Cleopatra, the Egyptian Queen and Her Love Affairs…36 Unit 3 The Middle Ages and the Rise of Modern Europe…46 Section A The Middle Ages…46 Section B The Rise of the States…53 Section C The Rise of Universities in the Middle Ages…60 Unit 4 Renaissance and Shakespeare…71 Section A Renaissance…71 Section B William Shakespeare…78 Section C Henry VIII and His Six Wives…84 Unit 5 Enlightenment and the Origin of Modern Science…96 Section A The Age of Enlightenment…96 Section B On the Shoulders of Giants: Isaac Newton and Modern Science…103 Section C Francis Bacon: Fame and Disgrace…108 Unit 6 Romanticism and Realism…119 Section A Romanticism in Europe…119 Section B Romanticism in America…127 Section C Realism in Europe…133 Unit 7 Modernism and Contemporary Western Culture…148 Section A Modernism and Modernist Movement…148 Section B The Distinct Character of Contemporary American Culture …156 Section C How Contemporary American Society Tramples on Principles of Integrity…163 Supplementary Reading…174 Passage 1 The Toxic Individualism of Pandemic Politics…174 Passage 2 False Values Conveyed by American Entertainment and Cultural Industries…176 Passage 3 What Is the Bamboo Ceiling and How Do We Break It?…179 Passage 4 White-collar Crime…183 Glossary…187