王涛涛

吊脚楼是居住者与自然和谐相处的体现，是兼顾艺术与实用的典型建筑。

1Stilted houses are a kind of wooden houses built on stilts（支柱）. They are mainly constructed on hillsides and riverbanks， and they are in harmony with nature.

2Stilted houses are traditional dwellings of various ethnic groups—including the Miao， Tujia， Dong， Zhuang and Bouyei—in China's southwestern region， including the southeastern areas of Chongqing Municipality and Guizhou Province， the western areas of Hunan and Hubei provinces， and the northern area of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

3A stilted house is constructed to overhang the water or hillside， as it is supported by many wooden pillars. As it often rains， and the climate is humid， in southwestern China， living in such houses can protect inhabit-ants from miasma （瘴气）， poisonous vegetation， and venomous （分泌毒液的） insects and snakes.

4Located in the mountains by Youshui River， in Youyang County， Chongqing， Hewan Village has a history of more than 600 years. It is famous for its stilted houses of the Tujia ethnic group， and for its terraced fields （梯田）. The construction technique used to build the stilted houses of the Tujia ethnic group was listed as a national intangible cultural heritage in May 2011.

5Pengjiazhai， a village in Xuan'en County， Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture， Hubei Province， is also known for having stilted houses of the Tujia ethnic group. The village， like an Arcadia （世外桃源）， is situated at the northern foot of Wuling Mountain.

6Fenghuang Ancient Town， in Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture， in western Hunan Province， is known as one of the most beautiful towns in China. The local custom of building and living in stilted houses can be traced back to the Tang and Song dy-nasties. The town has well?preserved stilted houses of the Miao ethnic group.

7Numerous tourists visit the town each year， and staying in a stilted house is a must for them. Listening to the sound of the river and enjoying the beautiful scenery， people will surely be immersed in the harmony of nature.

ReadingCheck

Ⅰ. Choose the best answers according to the text

Structure 1. What is the main logic applied in this text to introduce stilted housesin China？

A. Time. B. Space. C. Character. D. Importance.

Detail 2. Why are stilted houses mainly constructed on hillsides or riverbanks？

A. They are dwellings of ethnic groups.

B. They need support from hills or rivers.A9B67CBD-1AD1-4BA1-8A8F-26C30B333C41

C. They can protect inhabitants from natural harm.

D. They can better preserve the natural scenery.

Detail 3. What can we know about stilted houses from the text？

A. Hewan Village is known for stilted houses of the Tujia ethnicgroup.

B. Pengjiazhai was listed as a national intangible cultural heritage in

2011.

C. Fenghuang Ancient Town has more stilted houses of the Tujia ethnicgroup.

D. The stilted houses in different regions of China are almost the same.

Inference 4. From where is the text probably taken？

A. A history book. B. An art magazine.

C. A book review. D. An architectural journal.

Ⅱ. Discussion

What other traditional dwellings of various ethnic groups do you know？ And what's your understanding of the relationship between dwellings and nature？

LanguageStudy

Complete the following phrases according to the text

1. 吊腳楼_______houses

2. 与自然和谐相处 in_________with nature

3. 因……而著名 be__________for

4. 国家非物质文化遗产 national intangible cultural________

5. 追溯到 trace__________toA9B67CBD-1AD1-4BA1-8A8F-26C30B333C41