专题09 Mona Lisa attack-高中英语【外刊·新闻·热点】素养提升拓展阅读课

Mona Lisa attack 外刊新闻精品阅读和练习 Sources: cnet.com, wikipedia.org, cnn.com, npr.org Frida (The Mona Lisa, by Leonardo da Vinci (source) ) 1. What pieces of art are world famous? Do you like or dislike them? Why? 2. Read the headline above. Have you heard this news story? If so, say what you know. If not, can you guess what it is about? WARM-UP QUESTIONS: Discuss the following questions with your partner(s). One of the most famous artworks in the world, the Mona Lisa, was recently attacked. Housed in the Louvre in Paris, the painting of a barely smiling woman draws thousands of visitors per day. One of those visitors, a man posing as an old woman in a wheelchair, got close to the painting, stood up, and tried to rub a cake into it. It is not the first time that the painting has been attacked. Over the years, acid, a rock, red paint, and a coffee cup have all been thrown at the piece of art. However, since 1956, none of the attacks have damaged the picture, thanks to protective bulletproof glass. Why is the enigmatic portrait by Leonardo da Vinci such a popular target? The fame that brings in visitors also makes the painting a tempting target for protest. People know that they can get attention by attacking such a well-known work of art. In this recent case of attempted vandalism, based on his post-attack comments, the attacker seemed to be protesting environmental damage to our planet. He was taken away by police for psychiatric evaluation. House (v) - to keep Draw (v) - to attract, to pull in Pose as (phr. v) - to pretend to be Enigmatic (adj) - mysterious, hard to understand Portrait (n) - a painting or drawing of a person Tempting (adj) - something that people want to have or do Attempted (adj) - something somebody tried to do without success Vandalism (n) - damaging other people’s property Psychiatric (adj) - relating to mental health Evaluation (n) - judging something USEFUL LANGUAGE VOCABULARY: Match the following vocabulary words with a de