1 - Q&A
Q1: What does “you are always choosing”? Can you define it and give an example?️
A1: We are always taking an active role in what's occurring to and within us. We are always interpreting the meaning of every moment and every occurrence. We are always choosing the values by which we live and the metrics by which we measure everything that happen to us. For example, when an old man fall down in front of you, you just keep on walking like nothing happens. Whether you recognize it or not, you have made a choice to ignore the helpless old man and avoid taking responsibility.
Q2: What’s the point of telling William James’s story?️
A2: It tells us that we can in charge of our life to some extent. We are not truly powerless and choiceless as it may seem; instead, we are powerful to change ourselve, our life and our circumstance.
Q3: Any responsibility problems you had with your boyfriend/girlfriend or parents? If any, please tell us your story.
A3: Yes, I have that kind of problem with my husband. Several times, when I hurried to accomplish my reading note and my husband asked me to take care of our baby first, I would be quiet unhappy and blamed for interrupting and not leaving me enough time. I chose to be mad at him, although I was responsible for the inappropriate time arrangement. I will make an effort to control my emotion when being interrupted and adjust my time arrangement.
2 - Expressions
(1) thrust
thrust用作动词的意思有①猛推;猛塞;刺;戳；②挤;推;扎；③露在外面;凸出来。此外还可以用作名词，意思是①(车辆等的)推力，反压力，侧向压力;② (活动、思想的)要点，主要内容，要旨。
表示“推”的意思的时候，可以用push、press、propel和drive等同义替换。文中用在“a problem that was somehow thrust upon you without your choosing”一句中，意思是“强加于”。此外thrust还常常和into搭配使用，thrust into意思是push forcefully into 推入。
(2)drag on
文中用在“... as the years dragged on”一句中，意思是“不必要地拖延;拖得过久”。
drag on还可以替换成drag out。drag out也有“不必要地拖延;使持续过久”的意思，此外还可以表示“套…的话;说服…说出”。
【例句】The families soon discovered that every piece of information had to be dragged out of the authorities.
这些家庭很快发现每条消息都得从有关当局口中套出来。
(3)home in on
文中用在“he would home in on the smallest behaviors from any women hetalked with...”一句中，意思是“聚焦”。
home in on的意思是①(military, of an aircraft) To draw close to a destination, especially using radar; (of a guided missile) to move towards a target.瞄准，对准：【例句】The missile homed in on the ship.
②To focus or narrow down to something; to find, draw closer or move towards, as by trial and error or a gradual seeking process：
【例句】He used the clues to home in on the source of the flames. // We are homing in on a solution.
表示第二个意思时，可以用zero in on同义替换。