Unit 1 Fresh Start
Key to the Exercises
Text comprehension
I .    Decide which of the following is NOT part of the theme of the essay.
    C
    (This statement goes to extremes. Though the author stresses the notion that we should find our true selves and be faithful to them in college, she does not mean we should ignore others in pursuit of our true selves.) 
II.    Judge, according to the text, whether the following statements are true or false.
1.    F (Refer to Paragraph 2. Evelyn acted carefully and put on air of assurance for fear that other students might notice she was a freshman.)   
2.    T (Refer to Paragraph 6. When she fell, she seemed to see the failure of her entire life, as if it ended with the first day of college classes.)
3.    F (Refer to Paragraph 7. All the students in the cafeteria stood up, cheering and clapping, making fun of the most miserable person. And Evelyn knew that they had all noticed her embarrassment and "determined that I would never forget it.")
4.    T (Refer to Paragraphs 9 and 10. The response of the football player gave her a sudden realization that she had been taking herself far too seriously, and what she had interpreted as a malicious attempt to embarrass a freshman had been merely a moment of college fun.)
5. F (Refer to Paragraphs 12 and 13. She did make some mistakes on purpose, but the purpose was to try new experiences like new articles of clothing in order to find out her real self.)
III .    Answer the following questions.
1.    Refer to Paragraphs 1 and 2. She felt "first-gradish" on her arrival at the campus. The "first-gradish" feeling refers basically to naivety and anxiety, so she attempted to behave in a perfect way with the hope that no one would notice she was a freshman.
2.    Refer to Paragraph 3. She chose to sit in the front row and to the side. This was because the freshman manual suggested sitting near the front to show that one is an intelligent and enthusiastic student, but as she was not confident enough to sit in the professor's direct line of vision, she chose a side seat in the front row.
3.    Refer to Paragraph 6. She felt as if her life had plunged into total failure and the doom of life had come.
4.    Refer to Paragraph 9. The football player got up, hands held high above his head in a victory clasp, which is an expression of fun. At this moment, Evelyn realized that she had been too serious and on the contrary her slip could be a moment of fun for other people and herself alike. Everyone may have done something dumb, but they have all survived after all.
5.    Refer to Paragraphs 13 and 14. She understood that one could live his college life as an experiment. She should not be afraid of making mistakes because it is only through trial and error that one can find his real self and finding his real self is the ultimate purpose of a college education. The college allows one to make massive mistakes. And even after graduation, she was still making mistakes of which she was no longer afraid.
IV.    Explain in your own words the following sentences.
1.    I planned to keep silent and act in such a way that nobody would notice that I was only a new-comer in college.
2.    For three days, I had not been to the cafeteria due to my feeling of humiliation and shame. Instead, I stayed alone in my room and ate junk food of various kinds from a vending machine which was in just the right place to aid me in avoiding others.
3.    It didn't matter whether or not you were widely accepted or admired; you did not have to behave to the liking of everybody else.
Structural analysis of the text
Unlike a piece of expository writing, which usually expresses the main idea in a thesis statement, in a piece of narrative writing, the point is shown through dialogues, actions or events. The three incidents that are treated expansively in this essay are related to one another by their implicit messages -- the author made mistakes and her reaction toward the mistakes. It was in this process that the author achieved significant insight into life and herself.
Rhetorical features of the text
"I knew everyone would stare. Forget it. I settled into my chair and tried to assume the scientific pose of a biology major, bending slightly forward, tensing my arms in preparation for furious notetaking, and cursing under my breath" (Paragraph 5). "Keeping myself upright and getting out of the mess was not going to be easy, and this flailing of my feet was doing no good. Just as I decided to try another maneuver, my food tray tipped and I lost my balance" (Paragraph 6). The italicized parts in the selections offer vivid pictures of
what she did or how she looked in the embarrassing situations.
Vocabulary exercises
I.    Explain the underlined part in each sentence in your own words.
1.    I had just the feeling of a newcomer at college without the strength a mature student might possess

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