懂你英语 流利说 Level7 Unit3 Part3 : David and Goliath - Games
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What best describe the landscape of the Shephelah? It’s covered by forest and farmland.
To be a sitting duck means ...to be in a vulnerable position.
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Why is Gladwell obsessed with the story? Everything he thought he knew about it was wrong.
To be deadlocked means ...to be in a situation where no progress can be made.
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Vulnerable, Fragile
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Javelin, Sword, Sling
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So David, in that story, is supposed to be the underdog, right? In fact, that term, David and Goliath, has entered our language as a metaphor for improbable victories by some weak party over someone far stronger. Now why do we call David an underdog?
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What connects the mountain range with the coastal plain is an area called the Shephelah, which is a series of valleys and ridges that run east to west, and you can follow the Shephelah, go through the Shephelah to get from the coastal plain to the mountains. And the Shephelah, if you've been to Israel, you'll know it's just about the most beautiful part of Israel. It's gorgeous, with forests of oak and wheat fields and vineyards.
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1) Why do we call David an underdog?
2) Well, we call him an underdog because he's a kid, a little kid, and Goliath is this big, strong giant.
3) We also call him an underdog because Goliath is an experienced warrior, and David is just a shepherd.
4) But most importantly, we call him an underdog because all he has is -- it's that Goliath is outfitted with all of this modern weaponry, this glittering coat of armor and a sword and a javelin and a spear, and all David has is this sling.
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I wanted to tell a story that really obsessed me when I was writing my new book,
and it's a story of something that happened 3,000 years ago, when the Kingdom of Israel was in its infancy.
And it takes place in an area called the Shephelah in what is now Israel.
And the reason the story obsessed me is that I thought I understood it, and then I went back over it and I realized that I didn't understand it at all.
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This was a tradition in ancient warfare called single combat.
It was a way of settling disputes without incurring the bloodshed of a major battle.
And the Philistine who is sent down, their mighty warrior, is a giant. He's 6 foot 9.
He's outfitted head to toe in this glittering bronze armor, and he's got a sword and he's got a javelin and he's got his spear.
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(all listed here in alphabetical order)
Although Goliath was wearing heavy armor all over his body, he was vulnerable between his eyes.
David is considered an underdog because he appears less powerful than Goliath.
David’s sling is not a child’s toy. It’s in fact an incredibly devastating weapon.
From medieval tapestries, we know that slingers were capable of hitting birds in flight.
Goliath is weighed down by his weapons and armor, which makes him easy to hit with a sling.
Had David not used a sling, he would have likely been defeated by his stronger opponent.
Heavy infantry are armed foot soldiers with swords and shields and some kind of armor.
He's spent his entire career using a sling to defend his flock against lions and wolves.
He’s such a terrifying figure that none of the Israelite soldiers want to fight him.
If Goliath were as powerful as the story says, he would be able to move and react to things faster.
I have been defending my flock against lions and wolves for years.
It was a way of settling disputes without incurring the bloodshed of a major battle.
It's as if Goliath's oblivious to what's going on that day.
It's gorgeous, with forests of oak and wheat fields and vineyards.
That's substantially faster than a baseball thrown by even the finest of baseball pitchers.
The Bible says that Goliath is led onto the valley floor by an attendant.
The Philistines want to occupy the highland area and split the kingdom of Israel in two.
The stopping power of heavy rock fired from a sling is roughly equal to that of a handgun.
The very thing that was the source of his apparent strength was also the source of his greatest weakness.
Throughout history, many of the most famous giants have all had acromegaly.
When he says, "Come to me," Goliath expects David to come to him to fight hand to hand.
Why do we keep calling David an underdog and keep referring to his victory as improbable?
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And they may start to make their way through one of the valleys of the Shephelah up into the mountains, because what they want to do is occupy the highland area right by Bethlehem and split the Kingdom of Israel in two.
If you go back over the history of ancient warfare, you will find time and time again that slingers were the decisive factor against infantry in one kind of battle, (against infantry in one kind of battle) or another.
I wanted to tell a story that really obsessed me when I was writing my new book, and it's a story of something that happened 3,000 years ago, when the Kingdom of Israel was in its infancy.
Neither can attack the other, because to attack the other side you've got to come down the mountain into the valley and then up the other side, and you're completely exposed.
The shepherd boy takes one of his stones out of his pocket, puts it in his sling and rolls it around and lets it fly and it hits the giant right between the eyes -- right here, in his most vulnerable spot.
