The American literature is from the Romanticism to the Realism.

    The American Romanticism began from the end of 18th century to the outbreak of the Civil War, which is also called the American Renaissance. The period is as well as the time of American Westward Expansion. During the period, there were lots of workforces crowding to the cities, which promoted the industry.  The people found that they need their-own literature to record their experiences. So the Romanticism flourished(繁荣）.

    The Romanticism in American literature focuses on imagination and emotional factors. The American writers paid more attentions to the free expression of feelings and the characters' inner world. During the romantic period, there were many writers: Philip Freneau, William Cullen Bryant and so on.

    The Realism in American literature was from 1865 to 1914, and it takes on the American spirit, especially in American stories. The Realism against the Romanticism, advocates the people to come down to the earth and get rid of daydreams.

    During the 50 years from the Civil War to the WWI, the America had experienced a great change on many aspects, such as the politics, economy, culture and religion. It had changed the nature and the idea of the American society. The writers of new age didn't agree with the Romanticism of the old age.They were interested in real life and wanted to explain everything relating to the real life, which is to claim the objective reality, to get rid of idealism and Romanticism.

    There were 3 main writers at that time: William Peanoweils, Henry James and Mark Twain. Their writings represented the American native customs with their deep rural styles, which uncovered the people's inner life.

    Fun day

    To celebrate the Year of the Dog

    Organized by Lam Tin Youth Centre and Kwun Tong High school

    Date：2 February 2018

    Time：10 am – 5 pm

    Place：Kwn Tong Playground

    Fee: $ 20 (buy three get one free)

    Programmes：drama, lion dance, magic show and ballet performance

    Highlights: 1) enter the lucky draw to win a digital camera

    2) learn to make festival food

    Join us on the Fun day! Free Soft Drinks

    All are welcome!

    Note:

    Ticket are available at the General Office of Lam Tin Youth Centre.

    For those who would like to be a volunteer, please contact Miss Olivia Wong one week before the activity.

    It is increasingly popular for Chinese young people to share their experiences on Social media, such as the “moments” (朋友圈) on popular instant messaging service WeChat.

    “I have been reading 'Jane Eyre' for 40 days with 48,000 words finished,” Li Anqi said. Li has been sharing her reading experience on WeChat moments every day since January. Working in Yinchuan, capital of Northwest China's Ningxia, Li wants to learn English very much, but cannot bare (摆脱) the daily grind (日常工作) of school lessons.

    “I found many of my WeChat friends had been reading books or learning English on mobile reading apps, and I did not want to fall behind,” Li said.

    In January, she spent more than 100 yuan purchasing an online reading class at the Bohe Reading app, which tells customers they can: “Finish reading your first English book here.” At the reading class, teachers assign reading homework and give instructions to 430 class members every day.

    A survey report released (发布) on Thursday said 70.9 percent of primary and middle students in China use the Wechat instant messaging App. At the same time, 75.9 percent of Chinese children have their own mobile phones, according to China National Children's Center.

    The figures were based on a survey of nearly 9,000 children across China. However, 28.8 percent of them never read news online and 43.2 percent have never touched newspapers.

    The Center called for efforts to address the digital divide between urban and rural education and protect children's privacy as Internet users.

    Everyone's at it, even my neighbors. I thought I might be the only person left in the world who hadn't done an eBay deal. So, I decided to try my hand at online Auction（网上拍卖）.

    Buying for Beginners

    Sign up on www.eBay.co.uk. Most items （e.g. tables, computers and books）ready for auction will come with a picture and a short description; others may be marked with Buy It Now and have a fixed price. You can buy these right away.

    If the item is being auctioned, you offer the highest price you are prepared to pay and eBay bids（出价）for you. The bid will be increased little by little until it goes beyond your highest bid, then you are emailed and asked if you would like to bid again. Auctions last up to 10 days and when they finish, you get an email telling you whether you have won the item.

    How to Pay

    Sellers decide how they would like to be paid and you need to check this before placing a bid as you might not want to post a check or postal order （邮政汇票）. The easiest way is through PayPal, an online payment system that takes the money away from your credit card.

    Selling Made Sample

    If you plan to sell on eBay, it helps to include a picture of the item. I followed my friend's advice and put up the items I wanted to sell for a 10-day auction, starting on a Thursday. This way buyers had two weekends to bid.

    The Big Things in Life

    It's easy to post a small item, but furniture is a big part of eBay and this has to be collectively sent by deliverymen. Check the ways of delivery before you bid.

    The movie The Wizard of Oz has thousands of fans around the world. But back in 1939 when the film opened, audiences were not particularly fond of it. It was only a modest box office success. It was nominated for Best Picture at that year's Academy Awards, but so were nine other great films. It lost out to Gone with the Wind.

    The Wizard of Oz really gained an audience when it was broadcast regularly on TV. That began in the 1950s. The film's plot follows young Dorothy who is knocked unconscious during a tornado. She dreams about following a Yellow Brick Road through the Land of Oz to the Emerald City. She wants to meet the Wizard of Oz who lives there. He's the only one who can help her to return home to Kansas. Along the way she makes friends with the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion. They help her and her dog Toto overcome the Wicked Witch of the West!

    According to the Library of Congress, The Wizard of Oz is the most watched movie of all time. What is it about the film that appeals to people? It includes themes that people can relate to. Through most of the movie Dorothy is trying to get home to Kansas. When she finally gets to go, she speaks the words, "there's no place like home." People identify with that thought. Home is the welcoming place where they feel secure.

    At the beginning of the film, Dorothy sings of a place "over the rainbow." There, the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true. So while home is a great place, dreaming about something different is all right too.

    The Wizard of Oz also deals with courage. Dorothy learns that true courage isn't being unafraid. It's facing danger when you are afraid. Her friends face plenty of danger to rescue her.

    As one of the true classics of American literature, The Wizard of Oz has stirred the imagination of young and old alike for over four generations. Celebrate the 80th year of this fabulous film by watching it again.

Babies made from three people approved in UK

    Babies made from two women and one man have been approved by the UK's fertility regulator. The historic and controversial move is to prevent children from being born with deadly genetic diseases.

    Doctors in Newcastle—who developed the advanced form of In Vitro Fertilization or IVF (人工授精)—are expected to be the first to offer the procedure and have already appealed for donor eggs. The first such child could be born, at the earliest, by the end of 2017.

    Some families have lost multiple children to incurable mitochondrial (线粒体的) diseases, which can leave people with insufficient energy to keep their heart beating.

    The diseases are passed down from only the mother, so a technique using a donor egg as well as the mother's egg and father's sperm has been developed.

    The resulting child has a tiny amount of their DNA from the donor, but the procedure is legal and reviews say it is ethical (伦理的) and scientifically ready.

    "It is a decision of historic importance," said Sally Cheshire, chairwoman of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA). "I'm sure patients will be really pleased by what we've decided today."

    But some scientists have questioned the ethics of the technique, saying it could open the door to genetically-modified (转基因) 'designer' babies.

    The HFEA must approve every clinic and every patient before the procedure can take place. Three-person babies have been allowed only in cases where the risk of a child developing mitochondrial disease is very high.

    Prof Mary Herbert, from the Newcastle Fertility Centre, said, "It is enormously pleasing that our many years of research in this area can finally be applied to help families affected by these devastating diseases".

    "Now that we are moving forward towards clinical treatments, we will also need donors to donate eggs for use in treatment to prevent affected women transmitting disease to their children."

    Prof Sir Doug Turnbull, the director of the Welcome Centre for Mitochondrial Research at Newcastle University, said, "We are delighted by today's decision. We will also provide long-term follow up of any children born."

    NHS England has agreed to fund the treatment costs of the first trial of three-person IVF for those women who meet the HFEA criteria, as long as they agree to long-term follow up of their children after they are born.