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  3. What our society suffers from most today is the absence of consensus about what it should be; such consensus cannot be gained fr

What our society suffers from most today is the absence of consensus about what it should be; such consensus cannot be gained fr

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问题
    What our society suffers from most today is the absence of consensus about what it should be; such consensus cannot be gained from society’s present stage, or from fantasies about what it ought to be. The present is too close and too diversified, and the future is too uncertain to make reliable claims about it. A present consensus can be achieved only through a shared understanding of the past, as Homer’s epics informed those who lived centuries later what it meant to be Greek, and by what images and ideals they were to live their lives and organize their societies.
    Most societies derive consensus from a long history, a language all their own, a common religion, common ancestry. The myths by which they live are based on all of these. But the United States is a country of immigrants, coming from a great variety of nations. Lately, it has been emphasized that a social, narcissistic personality has become characteristic of Americans, and that it is this type of personality that makes for the lack of well-being, because it prevents us from achieving consensus that would counteract a tendency to withdraw into private worlds. In this study of narcissism, Christopher Lash says that modern man, "tortured by self-consciousness, turns to new therapies not to free himself of his personal worries but to find meaning and purpose in life, to find something to live for. " There is widespread distress because national morale has declined, and we have lost an earlier sense of national vision and purpose.
Now listen to part of a lecture on the topic you just read about.
Question: Summarize the points made in the lecture, being sure to specifically explain how they support the explanations in the reading passage.
Now listen to part of a lecture on the topic you just read about.
Professor
Society is a group of human beings, held together by agreement for reasons that are mutually beneficial to the individual members. Societies operate as a whole, as a collective body, chiefly in ways that look out for the highest common good of all. Members have specific roles and responsibilities within the society. When individual human beings group together to form societies, an organization is created in which the members are the cells. Subgroups of the members may form organs through which higher-level functions can then manifest. If the relationships are loose, the body created has limited functionality over that of any individual member because there is little synergy. When the relationships are close and founded on a basis of love, the body thus created has significant functionality over that of the individuals. When the group is small, few organs can be created so there is limited complexity or functionality. When the group is large, many organs can be created, resulting in highly increased complexity and functionality.
    Countries, regions, states and cities could all be considered to be societies besides teams, groups, and any other organizations. For our purposes here, the most important society is The United States of America since it is the one established to set up the New Order for the Ages.
    Society is more than the government, however. It also includes the economic and social infrastructure necessary to provide people with what they need.
Question:
Summarize the points made in the lecture, being sure to specifically explain how they support the explanations in the reading passage.
选项
答案 The society is made up of individual people, and the society operates as a whole. Members have specific roles and responsibilities within the society. The society system is like an organ system. The base of the former is individuals who can form organizations first, then form a society in the end. While the base of the latter is the cells, which form organs first, then make the whole body. When the relationship among individual human beings is close and formed on a basis of consensus, it works like a well-conditioned body and the whole society thus has significant complexity and functionality. On the other hand, when the relationship is loose, the society usually referred to as a country can’t operate well. Most societies suffer from absence of consensus, which means the relationship among individual members is not so close or good. There are several factors that account for this: firstly, the national morale has declined, and secondly, the earlier sense of national vision and purpose has been lost.
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