热身词语

　　dole: an informal name for government money given to poor people

　　dime: US/data0/apache/share/cgi-bin/publish/doc_edit.pl.10 coin

　　Aid: the formal name of government money given to the poor

　　handout: money given to poor people, usually by wealthier people

　　check: a bank receipt that a person can take to the bank and turn in for cash

　　ADC: Aid to Dependent Children , a US government program to provide money to women with children whose husbands had died or abandoned their family hiring'em: hiring them

　　category: classification

　　make it: make enough money to obtain their basic needs; survive

　　plum: something highly prized

　　Everybody's screaming now, "Oh, these women on ADC." Why hasn't somebody told these people that they're on ADC because you gave all this money to keep from hiring 'em? Years and years ago. This didn't just start, you know. You don't keep people in a certain category for hundreds of years and expect them to come out and do all these things. For generations and generations they've been just barely making it. Now what do you expect? Plums?

　　Negro: a black person, now usually offensive term. Use instead African American, man of color, woman of color, or people of color

　　defy: do something that is against someone else's rules

　　got so: the situation became so that…

　　old time: a fun time

　　I happened to be the kind of Negro that became controversial, because I read such things as The American Dilemma and I walk around with the book in my hand, see? I defied them in so many ways, I almost terrified them. You know, it got so every time I got on an elevator-"What are you reading, Lucy? What are you reading? What are you reading?" I'd begin to enjoy this thing, you know? I wasshavings the best old time.

　　damn: almost

　　have a ball: have fun; enjoy oneself particularly well

　　heading: the top of a page

　　intern: a student who practicing as part of his or her study to be a doctor

　　get on: start saying…

　　Here's this Negro woman, every time you see her she's reading a different book. You know what I'd do? I'd go to the library and read those books, and I'd just dash back home and read these. And truly it became a game with me. I don't think I ever had more fun in my life than I had working there.

　　I guess I was damn near fifty then. That's the reason I say I was havin' a ball. I'm carrying the book by Faulkner, paperback, in my pocket, you know. This particular time I didn't realize that the heading of the book was sticking out just a little above. The students, doctors, interns got on-"Faulkner!"

　　stereo thing: stereotypes

　　glare at: stare angrily

　　You're just breaking down this stereo thing that all Negroes are ignorant, they won't read, they won't do this. They won't help themselves. Once they see you're trying to do it ... You see what? They're not really worrying so much about the Negro; they're worried about themselves. When I really want to fight'em, you know what I do? I glare at 'em. They cringe.

　　get letters: get notices from the school

　　little item: school notices

　　work up (to his capacity): work as much as he has the ability to workvague: unclear

　　Crane High: the name of a high school

　　ghetto: the poor section of a town

　　be laid off (from): be let go from your job because the company does not have enough money to keep you or is changing its structure

　　cock my hat Miss Johnny Aside: place your hat on the side rather than the top of your head

　　Julian was doing very poorly in school and I was getting letters. You know, they send all these little items. Come to see me, come to school, because your child is not working up to his capacity. I don't know why they just don't tell you the truth about it, instead of using all these vague, false phrases. I thought he was just being lazy, but the child couldn't read. He couldn't spell. We were at Crane High, out there in the ghetto. I was laid off from work the next day. I got up, cocked my hat Miss Johnny Aside -I wanted them to know I was plenty mad then. Oh yeah, I visited Crane.

　　in a row: one after the next

　　auditorium: a large room in the school used for sports and for gathering all the school's students together at once (such as for a special school-wide announcement)

　　put up this business: handle

　　blah, blah, blah: and so on

　　Julian wasshavingsthree study periods in a row. Gee, this is kind of crazy-studying what? I went to see this study hall. And this is the auditorium. It has a false ceiling, and there's very few lights, and there's children everywhere, male and female, and about the only thing they can do is make love. Most of the kids can't read anyway, but if they could, they wouldn't be able to see. So I went to the counselor and he said, "It costs ,000 to put up this business of putting lights in, and the school system doesn't have money," and blah, blah, blah. I said, "But in the meantime, what are you going to do about all these children in there, these boys and girls, these young men and women?"I said, "Maybe they can't read but they can do other things in there, such as getting babies."

　　bet: can guess

　　disgrace: absolutely without honor

　　storefront: the front section of a store that includes a large window

　　do any good: is not worth anything

　　lifeblood: what makes life worth living

　　crap: other unimportant things

　　You're talking about teachers. I bet he never had the same teacher twice in two weeks in two years. It's a disgrace to call these places schools. Schools you learn in. They could take a storefront anywhere and clean it up, put some seats in there, and put some books in. But see, you can't learn anythingswheresthere is no book.. Julian went a whole year in Crane, didn't have a book. If I woke up in a house that didn't have a book, I'd just burn it down. It wouldn't do any good. To me, they're my lifeblood. Types of caps, gowns, all that crap, it doesn't mean nothing.

　　rear: raise (a child)

　　thrill: something fun

　　Oh, what am I really looking for? My daughter to have her baby. I would like for her to finish her college education. She's gonna need it, to help her child, to rear her child. The only thrill left for me is to see my grandchild come and to see what I can do about him. Won't that be fun?

　　paint: make pictures with colored liquid

　　count: what is important is…

　　hostile: angry and unfriendly

　　one has had it: you are finished; you have been given a last chance and has failed

　　You know, I'll be able to afford things that would give him incentive to paint, music, literature, all these things that would free his little soul. Let's face it. What counts is knowledge. And feeling. You see, there's such a thing as a feeling tone. One is friendly, one is hostile. And if you don't have this, baby, you've had it. You're dead.