本书共有12章。每一章有3-5个内容提示性的问题，即本章的重点；课文及附图或图表；课文后面有本章的生词及英语解释。为了巩固所学的各章内容，作者精心设计了与内容有关的各种练习：词汇练习、课文理解练习、口语讨论题（大及小的问题）、调查美国人对一些问题看法的题目、总结本章课文内容的填空练习。推荐了进一步了解各章的阅读书目及电影名单。

Contents

介绍《美国文化背景》

To the Teacher

About the Second Edition

1 Introduction

2 Traditional Ametican Values and Beliefs

3 The Ametican Religious Heritage

4 The Frontier Hertiage

5 The Heritage of Abundance

6 The World of American Business

7 Govetnment and Politics in the United States

8 Ethnic and Racial Assimilation in the United States

9 Education in the United States

10 Leisure Time：Organized Sports,Recreation,and Television

11 The American Family

12 American Values at the Crossroads：The United States in the 21st Century

Bibliography

New Word Index

Think about the following questions,and write down your answers.Discuss your answets with a partner.Then share your answers with anothet pair of students.