学生姓名：梁嘉昊

所在学校：中国人民大学附属中学

所在年级：高一

案例说明：该生自高一入学起开始学习《典范英语》，以下是他在读完《典范英语》（10）Frankenstein后写的读后感。文章观点新颖，以独特的视角剖析了作品中monster悲惨经历的原因，并反思现实社会，表达了自己对于人生的感悟和思考。

 We Are All Like “the Monster”

In the book Frankenstein, man’s discrimination against the monster really impressed me. Then it occurs to me that the discrimination among people in real life is quite common and that we are all like monsters in this world. This may seem to be unreasonable, but I have the following reasons.

The social norms, passed down from our ancestors or enforced by those who held power, are supposed to be followed by us all. They may be good for the social order and human development, but they may not be fair, for they were all designed subjectively in some way. If someone doesn’t meet these standards, he or she will be judged to be unconventional or even criminal, no matter it is really true or not.

A school, a class, or even a family, can be defined as a small society in which discrimination abounds. For instance, if a boy nowadays likes something pink or behaves like a girl, most people will despise him. But what is wrong with him? If every other student in the class is good at chemistry, then the one lacks such talent may be excluded by others, although he may surpass everyone else in other subjects. If a short person is surrounded by tall people, he will be put into an awkward situation, in despite of his strong logical mind that others may never possess. And a poor girl will never be able to get along well with those who wear gorgeous ornaments. The reason for the discrimination is that the standards formed in each small society determine that people must be adroit at chemistry or physically tall or wealthy in order to gain respect. 

In Frankenstein, “the creature” was mistreated in human society. His strange look disgusted other people, thus making him a monster. However, the blind man regarded him as agreeable and kind at first. It was because he couldn’t see the creature and therefore didn't judge him by appearance. As the creature of Frankenstein realized the hostilities of other people, he started to bear grudge against them. Filled with hatred towards Frankenstein, he killed Frankenstein’s brother and fiancée.

Everyone probably has experienced slight discrimination in daily life. When people are looked down upon by others, they may choose to leave the community, to defend for themselves or to disregard the unfair treatment, for those measures can help them to recover. But when it came to “the monster”, there was no choice for him, no place to escape, and no one to ask for help. Just like many criminals, he turned against people. 

According to the statements above, rules and standards of human society are unfair in some way. We might be unfairly judged by people every now and then, though some discrimination is usually disguised and hard to recognize. It is understandable that we may ignore others’ feelings easily at some point, since we are all human beings who have the inherent gene to care much more about ourselves. However, in my opinion, we can avoid hurting others, thus to avoid further harm to society.

学生姓名：汪雪倩

所在学校：中国人民大学附属中学

案例说明：该生自2013年9月高一起学习《典范英语》，目前已经读完《典范英语》（10）。以下是她读完《典范英语》（9）Waiting for Goldie后创作的诗歌。诗歌从鸽子Goldie的角度出发，深入刻画了Goldie的内心世界，表达了鸽子对于主人的爱和受伤时孤单无助的心情。

A Pigeon’s Monologue

I’m a pigeon.

My master said that,

I’m a precious champion racer.

He loved me so much;

Moreover,

He understood me;

I truly didn’t want to disappoint him.

With his keen expectations,

I set off,

Like a soldier,

Like a warrior,

But I was more like a small dove.

Under the shelter of love,

I would try my best,

Just for my master.

It was regrettable that,

I was attacked by those falcons.

In a small refuge,

Loneliness and fear hung over me.

I opened my eyes with every effort,

To carve the everyday sunset in my mind.

I became weaker and weaker.

It seemed that,

Death had already strangled my throat,

With a firm hold on me.

My dear master,

Will you save me?

Once again,

I want to feel your touch,

I want to stare at you,

I want to fly for you in the wind…

Maybe in the next life,

My master,

My companion,

My real friend,

I love you.

学生姓名：万松筠

所在学校：中国人民大学附属中学

案例说明：该生自2012年高一入学起学习《典范英语》，经过一年时间，已经读完《典范英语》（10）。以下是他在读完《典范英语》（9）The Personality Potion后写的一篇读后感。从文中可以看出，该学生具有扎实的基本功，用词准确地道，内涵深刻。

The Personality Potion

After reading this novel, I would like to conclude by saying that self-confidence plays an important role in everyone’s life. The main character, Danny, is always under the stress of unbelief in himself. He doesn’t suppose that he has the talents of behaving bravely. However, the potion, in fact, the hidden belief and the thoughts of facing up to challenges, made him reckless and stand up for the first time. Confidence is power — the power to attract, persuade, influence, and succeed. Imagine what your life would be like if you had an abundance of self-confidence!

There’s a saying goes that, low self-esteem is like driving through life with your hand-break on. Confidence can be built up in a special way, such as with the potion in the story. It reminds me of the movie, Les Choristes（放牛班的春天）. A former music teacher got to a boarding school to teach problematic boys. At first, these guys were naughty and had no urge to make progress because they were lack of love and respect. To change this situation, the teacher decided to teach the boys to sing in a choir in their spare time, and identified the musical potential of every child. He encouraged them and helped them become more confident and more peaceful by using these beautiful tunes. Thanks to the musical training, the kids developed self-confidence and finally made great progress instead of living a poor life.

Confidence starts in the mind. What you think of yourself very much influences the way you feel about yourself. This, in turn, affects the way you speak and act. Not only shall we believe in ourselves, but also we should care others more and help them.