An artist's pursuit of fame is like a dog chasing its tail. Once he catches up, he doesn't know what else to do except keep chasing.

The cruelty of success lies in that it often makes those who pursue success seek their own destruction.

For an artist who has worked hard and just emerged, his relatives and friends often suggest "you can't lose your serious job!" Their fears are justified.

The pursuit of success is full of difficulties at best. Many people will eventually have a nervous breakdown, if not poverty.

However, impure motives, such as hoping to win the admiration of fans and praise from peers, are encouraging them to move forward.

The temptation to enjoy the supreme glory of success is irresistible.

Celebrities become famous mostly because they have developed their own specialties in singing, dancing, painting or writing and can form their own style.

In order to become popular quickly, brokers will flatter their style. The process of their rise to the top is still unclear.

How they succeeded, most people can't tell.

Nevertheless, artists can't be idle.

If performers, painters or writers are bored, it will be difficult for their works to maintain their previous attraction and public attention.

When the enthusiasm of the public fades, they will pursue the next popular person.

Some artists will change their writing, dancing or singing styles slightly in order not to fall behind the times, but this will risk falling out of favor.

The public will despise any form, except the artistic style by which they become famous.

The styles of famous writers are obvious at a glance, such as Tennessee Williams' plays, ernest hemingway's plot arrangement, Robert Frost's or T.S. Eliot's poems, etc.

Similarly, painters like Monet, Renoir and Dali, filmmakers like Hitchcock, Ferini, Spielberg, Chen Kaige or Zhang Yimou.

Their distinctive and unique artistic style marks a major change in the artistic form different from others, making them famous and famous.

But it also costs them, that is, they lose the freedom to express themselves in other styles or forms.

The spotlight of fame is hotter than the tropical jungle.

The scam will soon be exposed, and the pressure brought by too much attention is unbearable for most people.

It makes you lose yourself. You must be the person you are recognized by the public, not the real you or the possible you.

Artists, like politicians, must often say things they don't want or don't fully believe in themselves to please the audience.

A drop of fame may defile the well of the whole person's mind, so it is especially magical for an artist to remain true to himself.

You may not know who won the fame and fortune game without compromise.

One example is Oscar Wilde, a famous Irish writer, who is famous for his social behavior and sexual behavior. Although his behavior was opposed by the public, he remained the same and paid a painful price for it.

At a banquet, the mother of one of his close friends accused him of sexually influencing her son in front of his friends and admirers.

After listening to her words, he was furious and sued the young man's mother, claiming that she had ruined her "good" reputation.

However, he really should hire a better lawyer.

As a result, the judge not only failed to support his request for compensation from the woman for his reputation loss, but also fined him.

He was finally sent to prison for refusing to pay the fine. To make matters worse, he will never win more public favor.

At the worst time, he found that no one was willing to risk his reputation to speak for him.

In order to stay true to himself, he paid the price that no one would pay attention to his admirers when he was most needed.

Strangely, the losers gain the most. They're free!

They can express themselves freely, find their own way, and don't stick to the old model without worrying about losing the support of their admirers.

When a failed artist seeks comfort, he can think that many great artists became famous years after their death, or that they didn't betray themselves.

They can also justify their failure: their talents are too profound for contemporary audiences or audiences to understand.

Those die-hards who have failed but still refuse to give up may be happy to know how some celebrities have gone through setbacks and bravely moved forward until they succeed.

Thomas Woolf's first novel, Go Home, Angel, was rejected 39 times before it was finally published.

Beethoven overcame his father's prejudice that he had no potential as a musician and became the greatest musician in the world.

/kloc-Pestalozzi, a famous Swiss educator in the 0 th and 9 th centuries, didn't succeed in his original work until he thought of educating children and worked out the basic theory of a new educational model.

Thomas Edison was kicked out of school in the fourth grade because the teacher thought he seemed too slow.

Unfortunately, for most people, failure is the end of the struggle, not the beginning.

To those who are desperate for fame and profit, I want to say: Good luck.

But, unfortunately, you will find that this is not what you want.

All a dog gets by chasing its tail is a tail.

A successful person often finds that success does more harm than good to him.

So be happy for the real you and what you do, instead of trying to succeed.

Do what you are proud of.

You may be unknown in your lifetime, but you may have created better art.

2 unit

He was born in a poor area in south London.

The socks he was wearing were cut from his mother's red stockings.

His mother was once diagnosed as mentally ill.

Dickens may be able to write Charlie Chaplin's childhood story,

But only Charlie Chaplin can create a great comedy character "tramp", a little guy in rags, but his creator will be immortalized.

As far as Chaplin is concerned, other countries, such as France, Italy, Spain and even Japan, have given him more applause (and benefits) than his birthplace.

19 13, Chaplin left England permanently and set off for the United States to perform stage comedies with some actors. There, he was recruited by talent scouts to work for king of comedy Mike Sennett in Hollywood.

Unfortunately, many British people in the 1920s and 1930s thought Chaplin's The Tramp was a bit "vulgar".

The middle class certainly thinks so. On the contrary, the working class is more likely to applaud such a role that resists power: he stumbles with a naughty crutch or kicks the fat ass of power with the heel of leather boots.

Nevertheless, Chaplin's funny beggar image is not so English, and he is not even a working class.

English tramps don't wear moustaches, baggy pants or tuxedos: that's what European leaders and Italian waiters wear.

In addition, the look of the "tramp" glancing at the beautiful girl is a bit vulgar, which is considered indecent by the British audience-only foreigners do that, don't they?

For most of his screen career, Chaplin was silent on the screen, so there was no way to prove that he was English.

In fact, when Chaplin could no longer resist talking about movies and had to find the "right voice" for his "tramp", he really had a headache.

He postponed that day as much as possible: Modern Times (1936), who sang in the film for the first time. He plays a waiter who is full of nonsense and doesn't sound like any national language in the film.

Later, he said that his imaginary "tramp" was a gentleman with a college education but had declined.

But if he can speak a cultured accent in those early comedy short films, it is hard to say whether he will be famous all over the world.

And the British will definitely find this "weird". No one knows whether Chaplin was intentional or not, but it made him a great success.

He is a talented person, and his determination is rare even among Hollywood stars.

His great fame has brought him freedom, and more importantly, wealth, so that he can become his own master.

At the beginning of his career, he felt an impulse to explore and expand the genius he showed.

When he first saw his "tramp" role on the screen, he said, "This can't be me. Is this possible? See how different this role is! "

This shock aroused his imagination.

Chaplin didn't write his jokes in advance. He is the kind of comedian who creates art according to his own feelings while performing.

Inanimate objects are especially helpful for Chaplin to show his talent as an artist.

He imagines these objects as something else.

Therefore, in the pawnshop, a broken alarm clock becomes a "patient" undergoing surgery; When panning for gold, the boots are cooked in a pot, and the soles of the boots are eaten with salt and pepper, just like good fish fillets.

This transformation of things, and his skill of making this transformation again and again, is the mystery of Chaplin's great comedy.

He is also deeply eager to be loved, but he is also afraid of being betrayed.

It is difficult to combine the two, and sometimes this kind of conflict can lead to disaster, just like his early marriage.

However, even this self-knowledge gained at a heavy price is reflected in his comedy creation.

"Tramp" has never lost confidence in the flower girl, believing that she is waiting to walk into the sunset with herself; The other side of Chaplin makes his Frenchman Mr. Verdu, who killed his wife, a symbol of hatred for women.

Thankfully, life finally gave Chaplin stability and happiness that he could not get before.

He found Werner O 'Neill Chaplin's companion. Her composure and affection span the age gap of 37 years between them. Their ages are so different that when 1942 was preparing to get married, after the bride announced the wedding date, the official who handled the formalities for them asked the beautiful 17-year-old girl, "What about that young man?" -Chaplin, who was 54 years old at that time, waited outside carefully.

As Werner herself was born in a big family troubled by various troubles, she was fully prepared for the challenges that Chaplin would face in life, because there were many unfounded rumors about them at that time. Later, in his big family with so many gifted children, Chaplin sometimes caused quarrels and she became the center of peace.

Chaplin died at Christmas 1977.

A few months later, some ridiculous thieves stole his body from his grave to cheat money.

The police recovered his body, which was much more efficient than the clumsy police in mack sennett's "Keystone" comedy. But people can't help but think that Chaplin will take this strange event as a very appropriate commemoration for him-in this way, he left his last laugh to the world where he had brought him so much laughter.

Unit 3

Everyone thinks that the welfare recipients are cheating.

Many people in wheelchairs I know will cheat a few more dollars from welfare agencies when they are faced with the dilemma of sharing raw cat food with their pet cats.

In order to get more welfare benefits, they told the government that they actually got 200 dollars less pension, or told social workers that the landlord had increased the rent by 100 dollars.

I chose to live a completely honest life, so I won't do that, but look for a job and draw cartoons everywhere.

I even told the welfare agency how much money I earned! Oh, it's certainly attractive for me to take a sum of money in private, but even if I can't resist the temptation, the big magazine I contribute won't get me into trouble.

They will keep my records, which will go directly into the government computer. That's a clear-cut attitude, unambiguous.

As a welfare recipient, I have to grovel in front of social workers.

Social workers know in their hearts that many recipients are cheating them, so they feel that as compensation, they have the right to make the recipients bow to them.

I didn't mean to get angry.

Most social workers are college graduates at first, with ideals and open minds.

However, after working in this system that actually requires people to lie for several years, they become like that person named Susanna-a detective in sports shorts.

Shortly after Christmas last year, Susanna came to my house to find out about the situation. When she saw the new newspaper on the wall, she wanted to know, "Where did you get the money to buy these?" "From friends and family."

"Well, you'd better get a receipt. Really, any donation or gift you accept must be reported. " She is implying that I must beg her. But I pushed her back.

"Someone gave me a cigarette on the road that day. Do I have to report it? " "I'm sorry, Mr. Callahan, but I didn't make the rules."

Susanna tried to teach me how to repair a wheelchair. Because the welfare department is unwilling to spend money to repair it, it is always bad.

"You know, Mr. Callahan, I heard that your wheelchair is much more used than the average person."

Of course I use it often. I am a very active person, not a vegetable.

I live near the city center and can walk around in a wheelchair. I wonder how she would feel if she suddenly broke her hip and had to crawl to work.

I am just one of many people who suffer from hunger and cold because of the government's cuts in welfare spending. But it has a more prominent impact on people with spinal disabilities: the government ignores our wheelchairs.

Every time something goes wrong with my wheelchair, I lose a screw, need a new bearing, or the brakes don't work, I call Susanna, but I have to receive training every time.

She always says, "Well, if I can spare some time today, I'll call the medical staff."

She should inform the medical staff that they will confirm the existence of the problem and then call the wheelchair maintenance company to get the lowest quotation.

Then the medical staff informed the welfare headquarters of the state government, and they spent several days thinking about it. In the meantime, I can only lie in bed and can't move.

Finally, if I am lucky, they will call me back and agree to repair it.

When the welfare department learned that I drew cartoons to make money, Susanna began to "visit" me every two weeks instead of every two months.

She searched everywhere, trying to find out the appliances I didn't report, or the maid, the roast pig in the oven, the newly bought helicopter after parking in the house or something.

She never gets anything, but in the end I always have to fill out a thick stack of forms to explain the source of every penny.

How to get rid of welfare care step by step is not clearly stipulated in the law. I am an independent businessman, and I am slowly establishing my own market.

It is impossible to earn 2000 dollars a month without benefits. But I really want to pay part of my living expenses, so I don't have to ask people awkwardly every time I need to buy accessories for a wheelchair.

It is really necessary to have a lawyer to protect the rights of welfare recipients, because this welfare system is easy for welfare providers to abuse their power, and it is also easy for relief recipients to abuse their power.

A few days ago, because the pharmacist said that the medical supplies I used exceeded the constant, the welfare department sent Susanna to my residence to investigate.

I did use too much because the size of the urination hole cut during the operation changed and the joint of the urine bag leaked.

She was taking notes when my phone rang. Susanna answered the phone. She was a state senator, which made her panic.

Thousands of welfare recipients like me, if allowed, can slowly bear part or even all of the living expenses. Should I try to do something on the state government Committee?

You don't have to tell me. Of course I want to! One day, welfare recipients like me will live a good life under the new welfare system. The new welfare system will not try every means to prove that welfare recipients are cheating, but will encourage them to stand on their own feet.

They will be able to develop their talents freely without guilt or worry, or have a stable and good job.

Unit 4

A change that will greatly improve the living standards of developing countries is in the ascendant.

Some places where information was blocked not long ago are rapidly acquiring the latest communication technology, which will promote them to attract domestic and foreign investment.

Many countries in Asia, Latin America and Eastern Europe may need 10 years to improve their transportation, power supply and other public facilities.

But only optical fiber cables with a diameter less than half a millimeter can carry more information than thick cables made of copper wires.

With the installation of optical cables, digital converters and the latest wireless transmission system, a series of cities and industrial areas from Beijing to Budapest are directly entering the information age.

Spider-like digital and wireless communication networks have developed to most parts of Asia and parts of Eastern Europe.

All these developing regions regard advanced communication technology as a way to span all stages of economic development.

For example, the wide application of information technology is expected to shorten the time required for the labor-intensive assembly industry to transfer to those industries involving engineering, marketing and design.

Modern communication technology "will give countries such as China and Viet Nam greater advantages than those trapped in old technologies".

How fast these countries should move forward is a controversial issue.

Many experts believe that Vietnam requires all mobile phones to be expensive digital phones when it is in urgent need of telephones, which is too advanced.

An expert said: "These countries lack experience in cost estimation and technology selection."

However, there is no doubt that communication technology will be the key factor to distinguish between victory and defeat.

Look at the situation in Russia.

Because of its solid foundation of mathematics and science education, it should have a prosperous development in the information age.

The problem is that its domestic telephone system is a pile of rusty 1930s antiques.

In order to solve this problem, Russia has begun to lay optical cables and made a strategic plan to invest 40 billion US dollars to build a number of communication projects.

But because of its economic depression, there is almost no money to start solving the most basic problems.

Compared with Russia, in the next 10 year, Chinese mainland plans to invest10 billion dollars in communication equipment.

In a sense, China's backwardness has become a favorable factor, because this development occurs when new technologies are cheaper than copper cable systems.

By the end of 1995, all provincial capitals except Lhasa will have digital converters and large-capacity optical fiber networks.

This means that its major cities are equipped with the necessary infrastructure and become the main part of the information superhighway, enabling people to enter the system and obtain the most advanced services.

Telecommunication engineering is also the key to Shanghai's dream of becoming a first-class financial center.

In order to provide international investors with high-quality services in electronic data and paperless transactions, Shanghai plans to build a telecommunications network as powerful as Manhattan.

At the same time, Hungary also hopes to leap into the modern world.

At present, 700,000 Hungarians are waiting for the dress call.

In order to partially solve the financial problem and accelerate the introduction of western technology, Hungary sold 30% of the shares of the state-owned telephone company to two western companies.

In order to further reduce the number of telephone users waiting to be installed, Hungary leased the right to build and operate a digital mobile phone system to a Dutch-Scandinavian enterprise group, which is said to be one of the most advanced systems in the world.

In fact, wireless mode is one of the most popular ways for developing countries to quickly establish telephone systems.

It is cheaper to build a radio tower than to build a line on the mountain. In addition, enterprises eager for reliable service are willing to pay a considerable price for wireless telephone service-its tariff is usually two to four times that of fixed telephone.

Throughout Latin America, the demand and use of wireless communication has increased rapidly.

For wireless telephone service providers, there is no better place to do business than Latin America-having an operation there is like having a lot of money for you to use.

Bell Southern Telephone Company, which operates in four wireless telephone markets, estimates that its average annual income per customer is $2,000, while in the United States it is only $860.

Part of the reason is that Latin American customers talk for two to four times as long as North American customers.

Thailand has also turned to wireless communication to help Thais make better use of their time in traffic jams.

In Thailand, it is not easy to call or fax from the office: there are12 million names on the waiting list.

Therefore, mobile phones have become fashionable among business people, and they can keep in touch with the outside world when there is traffic jam.

Vietnam is making the boldest leap.

Although Vietnam's per capita annual income is only $220, the 300,000 lines it plans to add each year will all be optical fiber cables with digital conversion function, rather than those cheap systems that transmit electronic signals with copper wires.

Now that the next generation technology has been chosen, Vietnamese officials in charge of communications say that they can keep pace with any Asian country in decades.

For those countries that have been lagging behind for a long time, the temptation to jump to the top is hard to resist.

Moreover, although they will make mistakes, they will persevere-one day, they will be able to keep pace with the United States and Western Europe on the information superhighway.

Unit 5

In fact, we live alone. According to the latest statistics, there are 22 million people living alone in their own homes. Some of them like this kind of life, others don't.

Some are divorced, some are widowed and some have never been married.

Loneliness may be a national disease here, and we are ashamed to admit it, more than any other evil.

On the other hand, it is a characteristic of American heroes to deliberately choose to be alone and refuse the company of others instead of being abandoned by their peers.

Lonely hunters or explorers don't need company when they venture into deer and wolves and conquer the vast wilderness.

Thoreau lived alone in a cabin by the lake, deliberately alienating himself from city life. Now, this has become your personality.

The inspiration of solitude is the most useful thing for poets and philosophers.

They are all in favor of being alone,

Everyone thinks highly of themselves, because they can be alone, at least an hour or two before going home for tea.

Take Dorothy Wordsworth as an example. She helped her brother William put on his coat, helped him find a notebook and pencil, waved goodbye to him, and watched him walk into the early spring sunshine and meditate on the flowers alone.

He wrote: "How elegant and comfortable a person is."

There is no doubt that it would be much better if you volunteered to be alone.

Look at Milton's daughters: they prepare mats and blankets for him and then walk away quietly so that he can write poetry.

However, he didn't bother to write the poem himself, but called his daughters back, dictated it to them and wrote it down by them.

Perhaps you have noticed that most of these artists are outdoors alone.

At home, their relatives have prepared hot tea, waiting for them to go home.

The representative figure of loneliness in America is Thoreau.

We admire him, not because he is self-reliant, but because he lives alone by Walden Lake, and he likes it-living alone in the Woods by the lake.

In fact, his nearest neighbor is only a mile away and only 20 minutes' walk. The railway is half a mile away from him; The busy road is 300 yards away from him.

People come in and out of his hut all day and ask him why he can be so noble.

Obviously, his nobility mainly lies in that he has neither a wife nor a servant, chopping wood with an axe and washing cups and dishes by himself.

I don't know who washed his clothes He didn't say, but he certainly didn't mention that he did it himself.

Listen to what he said: "I have never found a better partner than a person."

Thoreau was accompanied by self-esteem.

Perhaps the moral here is: the stronger your self-awareness, the less you need others around you.

The more we feel humble, the more lonely we feel and we don't get along with ourselves enough.

If you live with others, their differences will cheer you up.

Loneliness will end on Thursday.

If I use singular personal pronouns when I mention myself today, I will use plural forms next week.

When others are away, you can let your soul fly and let it fill the whole room. You can fully enjoy your freedom and come and go at will without apologizing. You can stay up reading, soak in the bathtub and eat a pint of ice cream at one sitting. You can act at your own pace.

Those who say goodbye will come back.

Their waterproof winter coats are still in the closet, and the dogs are watching their return by the window.

But if you live alone, the temporary departure of friends or acquaintances will make you feel empty, and maybe they will never come back.

The feeling of loneliness rises and falls, but we always need to talk to people.

This is more important than the need to listen.

Oh, we all have friends to talk to. We can call our friends and tell them that we are unemployed, or we fall on the wet floor and break our arm.

Daily trivial complaints, opinions and opinions on various things accumulate there and fill our hearts.

We won't really call our friends to say that we have received my sister's package, or that it is getting dark early now, or that we don't trust the new judge of the Supreme Court.

Scientific research shows that people who live alone will nag about themselves, their pets and TV.

We asked the cat whether to wear a blue suit or a yellow dress today.

Ask the parrot whether to cook steak or noodles for dinner today.

We argue with ourselves about who is the better figure skater or skier.

There's nothing wrong with that,

It's also good for us, and it's not as embarrassing as some people: at the checkout counter in the supermarket, the woman in front told the cashier that her niece Melissa might come to see her on Saturday. Melissa likes hot chocolate very much, so she bought instant hot chocolate powder, although she never drinks it herself.

The important thing is to be rational.

The important thing is not to wait, but to settle down and make yourself comfortable, at least temporarily. To find some elegance and fun under our own conditions, we should not be a self-centered English poet, but wait patiently for a happy ending of our fairy tale like a princess locked in a tower.

After all, things have come to this,

This may not be what we expected, but we might as well call it home now.

In any case, there is no place like home.