Study the Vocabulary Notes and translate the illustrative examples into Russian. 2. Translate the following sentences into Russian

2. Translate the following sentences into Russian. Pay attention to the words and word combinations in bold type:

A. 1. Confide in me, and all will be well. 2. He had to make sure that she would not be likely to confide the whole story to Gervase, which she might do. 3. Kayerts was moved almost to tears by Wal­lace's kindness. He would, he said, by doing his best, try to justify his confidence. 4. Doubtless he realized that something was in the wind, but I'did not think it necessary to take him fully into my confidence. 5. He inspired universal confidence and had an iron nerve. 6. Turning towards her he saw a glimmer of understanding come into her eyes, and he quickly smiled to give her confidence. 7. It had become his second nature to listen to confidences and not to offer them. 8. Mr. Pyne, what I am about to tell you is in the strictest confidence! You do understand that, don't you? 9. During the war Bret was sure she had never worried about him, she was perfectly confident of his coming back unhurt. Her confident let­ters had made him lonely. 10. He hurried up the basement stair and out of the house, and started running along the street. 11. He started the motor and the boat swung away from the dock. 12. Eve­ryone assumed from the start, just as I did myself, that Gilbey was a writer. 13. I told him the whole story from start to finish. 14. Fi­nally, with a start, he aroused himself from his reverie. 15. The lux­ury of the house embarrassed Dolly and made her feel badly dressed, out of place and timid. 16. Miss Brown poured out her sto­ry, going back to points she had forgotten, getting confused and repeating herself. 17. The accident threw the traffic into confusion.

18. There was just awkward embarrassment in not knowing how to react to such a curious outbreak. 19. I noticed he'd dropped his Yorkshire accent. 20. He had developed the habit of dropping in on her sometimes during the week to discuss the latest news. 21. "You can drop me at Darlinghurt if you don't mind." Magda pulled the car abruptly. 22. Constance bit back her desire to tell Miss Chetond to mind her own business. 23. I've never been the nervy type who minds the dark or being alone in an empty house. 24. She had a passion for cars — in fact, she said, she had always been mechanically-minded and used to drive a sports car. 25. At the back of his mind there lurked an uneasy sense of danger. 26. He had gone through these movements in his mind so often that he now acted purely automatically. 27. Miller was not a very good driver really. He went in fits and starts as if he could not make up his mind where he was going. 28. He had half a mind to walk out of the hotel, leaving everything behind.

B. 1. He qualified as a doctor, though he never practised. 2. Dad always practised what he preached; and we respected him greatly. 3. "At any rate their efforts to teach us handicrafts were not a success," said Jim. "As usual the theory was right, but the practice went wrong." 4. He's never been up against any of the first-rate players and it would be wonderful practice for him. 5. He took an angry look at Mr. Crabben, but it was impossible to suspect that young man of a practical joke. 6. Marjorie and Dor­othy shared a natural intimacy, being closer together in age, so Phyllis was the odd one. 7. She had been feeling the weight of her eighty-odd years moving slower, talking less. 8. She had apolo­gized for having to give up the odd jobs she had done for them. 9. I did not listen to them attentively, I only heard some odds and ends. 10. "Death is nothing to be afraid of," he said, "I think about it every day of my life." "You're very odd," she said, "I try never to think about it at all." 11. I had that queer feeling that one some­times has when sitting in an empty room that one is not by one­self. 12. What concern is it of yours?—This is the least of my concerns. I just wanted to help. 13. Philip looked at the kid with some concern. What sort of man was he going to be, he won­dered. 14. But I recommend you not to repay his hospitality by taking his wife's side against him in a matter that doesn't concern you. 15. Just why, I wanted to think about it, to concern myself with it in any way, I wasn't clear about. 16. She was tortured by an irresistible and ill-bred curiosity concerning the identity of the visitor. 17. He walked past them with as unconcerned an air as he could assume. 18. Her holiday had done her good, but she was concerned about him, his lack of appetite and haggard look. 19. She looked round nervously, but everybody was too con­cerned with his or her own reaction to the news to observe the reactions of anybody else. 20. They got small thanks for their sympathy. 21. I understood for the first time how Father felt about his garden. I wondered how often and how obviously I'd shown my lack of sympathy at his enthusiasm about it. 22. Cam­pion felt that it was impossible not to sympathize with her, even if her point of view was not altogether his own. 23. The reporters looked back, the coroner ordered silence, the shocked public made sympathetic murmurs. 24. His reputation had been built on the fact that he often succeeded where other doctors had failed. 25. He had never known fear and could not recall a time when his nerves had failed him. 26. He held out his hand, and for a moment speech failed him. Then he rose to the occasion. "Pleased to meet you," said Mr. Burt. 27. He tried jokes, but John failed to manage even a routine smile. 28. Do you think I'm a failure as a writer? — Failure's a thing you measure at the end of a life. You haven't failed yet — not till you give writing up or die.

3. Paraphrase the following sentences using your active vocabulary:

A. 1. The words were hardly out of her mouth when she wished she had not told Ann her secret. 2. It is equally wrong to trust all and none. 3. His assurance of success was infectious. 4. You seem to be very sure of his ability. 5. Now she seemed to linger at table, evidently inclined to have a heart-to-heart talk. 6.1 wonder if there is anything that can make him a bit less sure of himself. 7. You are making a mistake: you're taking me for somebody else. 8. Every­body was made uncomfortable by the turn of the talk. 9. Her things are always thrown about in a mess. 10. She put the coin in the slot and took up the receiver. 11. Since I have taken the case up, I mean to give up everything in order to see it through. 12. For the time be­ing let's stop the argument. 13. "After a certain age," said aunt Ann, "one gets a liking for falling asleep at improper moments." 14. The boy just won't obey his mother. 15. Who will look after the children when you're away? 16. And again she was unable to tell whether he would have objected or not. 17. Don't forget that you must be back before twelve. 18. He seemed about to deny every­thing but thought better of it. 19. But here was a man who sincerely did not care what people thought of him.

B, 1. How long has he been working as a lawyer? 2. The plan seems good to me, let's think how best to carry it out. 3. It was a habit with Father to have the magazines bound as volumes. 4. Strange to say it was Johnny who settled everything. 5. You do say ridiculous things sometimes. 6. There are some mighty suspi­cious things going on here. 7. She said she had nothing to do with it. 8. The mother's worry over her daughter's poor health kept her awake all night. 9. "The matter affects the interest of a friend for whom I'm acting," said the lawyer. 10. Why do you interest your­self in other people's affairs? 11. Nothing was said about the mat­ter. 12. He has a very worried look today. 13. The boy seemed to be more interested in food than in the conversation. 14. Her heart went out to him in understanding. 15.1 smiled at her to show my af­fectionate understanding. 16. He had kindly understanding eyes and the manner of one who had done a little suffering of his own accord. 17. He was sure that he would be successful this time. 18. Robert felt that the guilt was partly his own, that he had let him down as a human being. 19. I cannot see the humour in it. 20. I don't believe you know what lack of success is.

4. Explain or comment on the following sentences:

A. 1. He had a suspicion that Stella did not take her father into her confidence. 2. You could not have imagined a more trustwor­thy person, he enjoyed everyone's confidence. 3.1 hesitated before making the decision: the offer did not inspire confidence. 4. It might give him confidence in himself to let him try. 5. She could al­ways draw confindences from a heart of stone. 6. Did he know enough of real life to speak with confidence on anything? 7. I'm a lawyer. A client's communications are confidential. 8. She rose and silently started for the exit door. 9. When he returned to Lon­don,-he started a little restaurant in Soho. 10. The untidy room of the first-floor in Baker Street had been the starting-point of many remarkable adventures. 11. You must have confused me with someone else. 12. He was never embarrassed, always ready with some glib explanation. 13. He was left in a state of confusion and despair. 14. Some Englishmen drop their h's. 15. He was not a man who let a thing drop when he had set his mind on it. 16. Once more he seemed to drop a curtain between himself and the others in the room. 17. He seems to have dropped most of his friends. 18. Drop me a line when you are away. 19. The last thing I heard as I was dropping off to sleep was Mr. Lendow's voice saying good-night to Carol. 20. Will you mind my luggage while I go and find out? 21. So I decided to mind my own business and to say nothing about what I had seen. 22. The children mind her like trained seals. 23. "Mind how you go or you'll knock your head," Lucas warned him. 24. They did not seem to mind each oth­er's presence in the least. 25. And then, being a fair-minded man, he looked at the other side of the question. 26. I tried to concen­trate, but my mind wouldn't work properly. 27. "I have a logical mind," she returned, "which you have not and never will." 28. His eyes, when they looked at you directly, gave you the feeling that they were seeing right through your mind. 29. His name had con­veyed nothing to me; perhaps it was kept in mind only by journal­ists. 30. Keep in mind the purpose of your speech and speak to the point. 31.1 tried to get my mind on my drawing, and did a few lines; but it was no use. 32. It just didn't come to my mind. 33. If Melody could not make up her own mind — well, it must be made up for her. 34.1 wasn't in two minds and acted quickly. 35. I've got a good mind to quit.

B. 1. The new doctor had only a small practice. 2. It is the prac­tice of this surgeon to give local anaesthetics whenever possible. 3. The odds are against this football team. 4. But oddly enough, though so much alike, they detest each other. 5. There weje several things about it all that struck me as queer. 6. Everybody was filled with concern when news came that Father was seriously ill. 7. Laura and Linda exchanged concerned glances. 8. I knew those concerned and was eager to learn the whole story. 9. I know him well enough to be sure that he is not concerned in the affair. 10. As practising physicians we're naturally concerned with the profes­sional standards you maintain here. 11. Andrew dropped his eyes, sympathizing, yet hardly knowing what to say. 12. Dottie remained silent, merely watching him sympathetically. 13. Angela was op­pressed by a sense of injustice, but her mother was unsympathetic. 14. His mission was ending and he felt that he had failed. 15. My eyesight has been failing me for some time. 16. During the anec­dotes he never failed to laugh at exactly the right point. 17. The pi­lot could not fail to see us there on the open beach. 18. I'll expect to see you both. Without fail. 19. He was a failure in whatever he did. 20. How do you explain his failure to come?

 

5. Choose the right word:

confuse — embarrass (or their derivatives)

1. Keep still for a minute, you're only... me. Let me think. 2. I was ashamed; I was hot with.... 3. She watched Roy so closely that he felt.... 4. "I don't like solicitors. They... me," said Elsie.

5. My eyes, resting on him curiously, caused him no.... 6. Most people who stutter are very... about it. 7. I had better explain. I can understand how... you are. 8. Her eyes reflected the... of her mind.

odd — queer

1. It was certainly an... pair and everyone stared at them.

2. There was something... about the way his temperature ran be­low normal. 3. Something woke me up. Some sound. There are so many... noises in London. 4. It's... wanting to eat an ice in this weather. 5. He must have done it. He has been acting... lately.

6. He has an... way of walking with his feet turned in slightly.

7. The front-door bell resounded... in the empty rooms. 8. He noticed that Crale was looking very..., but he did not yet know how seriously ill he was.

to be concerned in — to be concerned with — to be concerned about

1. There were rumours that Ned had once been... something crooked. 2. I felt pretty sure that she was genuinely... my health.

3. I am not... the details. 4. Your vocation is quite a different one, doctor. You are... people. 5. I am really... you. 6. The neighbours did not suspect that the nice-looking young man was... the crime.

6. Give English equivalents for the following words and phrases:

доверять (верить) кому-л.; доверить (рассказать) что-л. кому-л.; пользоваться доверием; внушать доверие; быть уверенным в успехе; отправляться на экскурсию в горы; пуститься бежать; затеять ссору; с начала до конца; с самого начала; чувствовать смущение; сбивчи­вый ответ; валиться с ног от усталости; зайти к кому-л. домой; резкое понижение температуры; быть в нерешительности; претворять в жизнь; нечетное число; 20 с лишним лет; иметь озабоченный вид; вызывать сочувствие; чувствовать расположение к кому-л.; сочув­ственная улыбка; окончиться неудачей.

 

7. Translate the following sentences into English:

A. 1. Она никому не доверяла своих планов. Это был вопрос, кото­рый она должна была решить сама. 2. Если бы вы полностью довери­лись мне, может быть, и можно было бы избежать этой неприятнос­ти. 3. С самого начала Великой Отечественной войны, даже в самые тяжелые дни, люди твердо верили в победу. 4. Я полностью согласна с вами, что он внушает доверие, но не в этом дело; дело в том, что я просто недостаточно хорошо его знаю, чтобы просить о помощи. 5. При малейшем шуме Кейт вздрагивала и смотрела на часы, но вре­мя, казалось, остановилось. 6. Это очень милые люди. Я с самого на­чала чувствовала себя у них как дома. 7. В дверь постучали. Майкл вздрогнул и проснулся. 8. Все посмотрели на него с любопытством, но это нисколько не смутило его. 9. Я не запомню эту дату, если не за­пишу ее. Я всегда путаю даты и цифры. 10. Фашисты сбрасывали бомбы на города и села, не щадя мирное население. 11. Ваш приятель придет сегодня? — Может быть, он зайдет попозже. 12. Накапайте десять капель этого лекарства в стакан теплой воды и прополощите горло. Это вам поможет. 13. Черкните мне пару строк, как приедете. 14. Вы не присмотрите за ребенком, пока я накрою на стол? 15. Иди­те осторожно, дорога здесь очень грязная. 16. Вы не поменяетесь со мной местами? — Пожалуйста. 17. Как вам нравится это внезапное похолодание? — Я не боюсь холода, лишь бы не было дождя. 18. «Я ему все выскажу откровенно, как только он появится. Он уже не пер­вый раз заставляет нас ждать», — сказал Билл, теряя терпение.

B. 1. Я уже давно не практикую и вряд ли смогу помочь вам, но здесь неподалеку живет врач, обратитесь лучше к нему. 2. Мы навер­няка столкнемся с трудностями при осуществлении этоГо плана. 3. Когда наконец был напечатан сборник его рассказов и распродан за один день, Джон, не колеблясь, бросил медицинскую практику и занялся литературной работой. 4. Не надо меня уговаривать. Я пре­красно знаю, что я не в форме. Я давно не упражнялся и не могу выс­тупать в концерте. 5. Инженер работал над прибором пять с лишним лет, прежде чем прибор был применен на практике. 6. Не знаю, по­нравится ли он вам: он очень эксцентричный человек. 7. Вы можете сказать, что это не мое дело, но право же вам надо бросить курить, вы так кашляете. 8. Имейте в виду, что это решение касается всех нас. 9. Гертруда была твердо уверена, что ее муж не способен ни на какие махинации, и никак не могла поверить, что он замешан в этом деле. 10. Я очень беспокоюсь о здоровье Елены. К сожалению, я ни­чего не могу с ней поделать: она не желает идти к врачу. 11. В данный момент меня не интересуют подробности, мы займемся этим делом позднее. 12. Родители не разделяют ее мечты стать актрисой. 13. Мы очень сочувствовали ей и старались сделать все возможное, чтобы облегчить ей жизнь. 14. Он был благодарен ей за ее сочувственные слова и искреннее желание помочь. 15. Чем бы он ни был занят, он умудряется видеть все, что происходит вокруг. 16. Я буду вас ждать, не подведите меня. 17. Пока я не могу сказать вам ничего оп­ределенного. Я наводил справки, но потерпел неудачу. 18. Провал эк­сперимента не обескуражил его, он был уверен, что рано или поздно добьется успеха. 19. Когда мы соберемся? — Давайте в понедельник в шесть. Приходите обязательно. Будем ждать.

8. Respond to the following statements and questions using the Essential Vocabulary:

1. Why did you tell Ann about it? Can't you keep your mouth shut? 2. I wonder if I should be telling you all this. 3. I'll make a mess of the job, I'm afraid. 4. What's so funny about the story?

5. How did you manage to read all these books in two months?

6. Whatever did you go to the cinema for if you were really so pressed for time? 7. Why are you going to bed so early? 8. What's the matter? Did I scare you? 9. But surely you ought to remember her name. 10. Why didn't she answer the question I wonder? 11. When are we to expect you? 12. Tomorrow I'm going to Spain, for a month. 13. Why were you cross with the boy? 14. Excuse me for bothering you. 15. You will stick to your decision, won't you? 16. Can't you give me a definite answer now? 17. I'm sorry, but I really cannot concentrate. 18. Do sing for us, will you? 19. I hear Fred has quitted his work. What's he doing? 20. Why did you not interfere? You might have prevented the quarrel. 21. What made John drop his studies? 22. You ought not to reproach her, she's up­set as it is. 23. Did you manage to persuade him to change his mind?

9. Make up and practise a short situation using the Essential Vocabulary:

to start on a trip; a ring at the bell; to drop in; to remind smb. of smth.; to have some difficulty in doing smth.; to hesitate to do smth.; to sympathize with; to fail smb.; to make up one's mind

10. Make up and act out conversations using the Essential Vocabulary:

1. to be concerned about; to have not the least notion; by fits and starts; to mind one's business; from the start; to resist the temptation; to drop the subject; that's precisely what...

2. to have a fancy for; to have a mind to; to mind smth.; I can't imagine a worse place to...; to be in two minds; to change one's mind; to put into practice

 

11. Find in Text Seven and copy out phrases in which the prepositions (or ad­verbs) 'at', 'for', 'by' are used. Translate the phrases into Russian.

12. Fill in prepositions or adverbs:

1. The country was... peace then; now it is... war. 2. He is always... his worst when fighting against difficulties. 3.... first sight I thought you were his brother. 4. You won't get anywhere by shouting... him. 5. You can quit your work... a fortnight's notice. 6. The boy is very good... football. 7. This was sold... 4d a pound, but that was really... a loss not... a profit. 8.... recreation there was boating and swimming. 9. Can't say I care... that kind... art myself, but there's no accounting... tastes. 10. Don't judge a man... his clothes. 11. What do you mean... taking my bag? — I'm sorry, I took it... mistake. 12. These apples are sold... weight. 13. He is paid... the hour. 14.1 know him... sight, but not to speak to. 15. He is... far the best teacher I have ever had. 16. It wasn't... us to judge him hard. 17. Ned took a cold shower and felt the better... it. 18.He repeated the conversation he had heard word... word.

19.Will you please change the book... another one? 20. Don't ask me... advice. You must decide... yourself.

13. Translate the following sentences into English. Pay attention to the prep­ositions:

1. Мальчики бросали снежки в своего товарища. 2. Нужно посту­чать в дверь, прежде чем входить в комнату. 3. В тот вечер Джордж был в ударе и смешил нас всех своими шутками. 4. Во всяком случае мы знаем, что сейчас он в безопасности. 5. Старик был возмущен не­справедливым обвинением. 6. В первом предложении вверху 31-й страницы есть опечатка, исправьте ее. 7. На таком расстоянии я ни­чего не могу разглядеть. 8. Я, пожалуй, не поеду этим поездом. Он от­ходит в полночь, это очень неудобно. 9. Ренни твердо решил, что, ког­да вся семья соберется за обедом, он скажет им о своем намерении. 10При первом же звуке будильника он вскочил и начал одеваться. 10.Это была старая машина, и мы ехали со скоростью 40 миль в час. 11.Охотник прицелился в ястреба и выстрелил. 13. Вряд ли можно считать ее взрослой: ей не больше 16 лет. 14. У меня сейчас нет вре­мени, но я постараюсь выяснить этот вопрос не позднее пятницы. 15. Сперва эта книга показалась мне не очень интересной, но потом она так захватила меня, что я не могла оторваться от нее. 16. Вот таб­летки от кашля. Не забывайте принимать их. 17. Я не чувствую к нему никакого уважения. 18. Мери не к кому было обратиться за советом. 19. Если бы не вы, мы бы пришли вовремя. 20. Люди, кото­рые отдают жизнь за родину, навсегда остаются в сердцах своих со­отечественников

.

14. a) Give Russian equivalents for the following English proverbs and say­ings (or translate them into Russian), b) Make up and act out dialogues to illus­trate the meaning of the proverbs:

1. An open door may tempt a saint. 2. The last drop makes the cup run over. 3. Practise what you preach. 4. He who would catch fish must not mind getting wet. 5. The face is the index of the mind.

15. Write an essay on one of the following topics:

1. A man who was happy.

2. How a piece of advice changed my life.

CONVERSATION AND DISCUSSION

TALKING ABOUT PEOPLE

Topical Vocabulary

1. Virtuous (good) characteristics: affable, amiable, good-na­tured, good-humoured, kind, kind-hearted, communicative, socia­ble, friendly, modest, discreet, generous, considerate, attentive, thoughtful, earnest, sincere, enthusiastic, calm, quiet, composed, self-possessed, honest, merciful, impartial, just, patient, forebear- ing, sympathetic, respectable, cordial, broad-minded, witty, intelli­gent, dignified, capable, benevolent, philanthropic, scrupulous, consistent, easy-going, affectionate, devoted, loyal, courageous, persevering, industrious, hard-working, sweet, gentle, proud

2. Evil (bad) characteristics: ill-natured, unkind, hard-hearted, reserved, uncommunicative, unsociable, hostile, haughty, arro­gant, dashing, showy, indiscreet, unscrupulous, greedy, inconsis­tent, tactless, insincere, hypocritical, false, vulgar, double-faced, indifferent, dispassionate, fussy, unrestrained, dishonest, cruel, partial, intolerant, conceited, self-willed, wilful, capricious, per­verse, insensible, inconsiderate, servile, presumptuous, deceitful, harsh, sulky, sullen, obstinate, coarse, rude, vain, impertinent, im­pudent, revengeful.

 

1. Read the text for obtaining its information. • '

Girlhood of Anna Brangwen

Anna Brangwen is one of the protagonists of the novel which tells a life story of the Brangwens, the farm-people. The men spent their lives in hard toil, the women dreamt about "the supreme life" for their children. And it was not money, it was education and experience.

In the given below extract Anna's school-years are described. The writer presents a true picture of the problems that a young girl faces in life.

Anna became a tall, awkward girl... She was sent to a young la­dies school in Nottingham.

And at this period she was absorbed in becoming a young lady. She was intelligent enough, but not interested in learning. At first, she thought all the girls at school were ladylike and wonderful, and she wanted to be like them. She came to a speedy disillusion: they failed and maddened her, they were petty and mean. After the - loose, generous atmosphere of her home, where little things did not count, she was always uneasy in the world, that would snap and bite at every trifle.

A quick change came over her. She mistrusted herself, she mis­trusted the outer world. She did not want to go on, she did not want to go out into it, she wanted to go no further.

"What do I care about that lot of girls?" she would say to her fa­ther, contemptuously, "they are nobody."

The trouble was that the girls would not accept Anha at her measure. They would have her according to themselves or not at all.

So Anna was only easy at home, where the common sense and the supreme relation between her parents produced a freer stan­dard of being than she could find outside.

At school, or in the world, she was usually at fault, she felt usu­ally that she ought to be slinking in disgrace. She never felt quite sure, in herself, whether she were wrong or whether the others were wrong. She had not done her lessons: well, she did not see any reason why she should do her lessons, if she did not want to. Was there some occult reason why she should? Were these people, schoolmistresses, representatives of some mystic Right, some Higher Good? They seemed to think so themselves. But she could not for her life see why a woman should bully and insult her be­cause she did not know thirty lines of "As You Like It". After all, what did it matter if she knew them or not. Nothing could per­suade her that it was of the slightest importance. Because she de­spised inwardly the coarsely working nature of the mistress. There­fore she was always at outs with authority. From constant telling, she came almost to believe in her own badness, her own intrinsic inferiority. She felt that she ought always to be in a state of slinking disgrace, if she fulfilled what was expected of her. But she rebelled. She never really believed in her own badness. At the bottom of her heart she despised the other people, who carped and were loud over trifles. She despised them, and wanted revenge on them. She hated them whilst they had power over her.

Still she kept an ideal: a free, proud lady absolved from the petty ties, existing beyond petty considerations. She would see such ladies in pictures: Alexandra, Princess of Wales, was one of her models. This lady was proud and royal, and stepped indiffer­ently over small, mean desires: so thought Anna, in her heart. And the girl did up her hair high under a little slanting hat, her skirts were fashionably bunched up, she wore an elegant, skin-fitting coat.

She was seventeen, touchy, full of spirits, and very moody: quick to flush, and always uneasy, uncertain. For some reason or other, she turned to her father, she felt almost flashes of hatred for her mother. Her mother's dark muzzle and curiously insidious ways, her mother's utter surety and confidence, her strange satis­faction, even triumph, her mother's way of laughing at things and her mother's silent overriding of vexatious propositions, most of all her mother's triumphant power maddened the girl.

She became sudden and incalculable... the whole house contin­ued to be disturbed. She had a pathetic, baffled appeal. She was hostile to her parents, even whilst she lived entirely with them, within their spell.

(From "The Rainbow" by D. H. Lawrence)

2. Answer the following questions:

1. What do we learn about Anna's relationship to the girls at school in Nottingham? 2. In what kind of environment did the girl grow up? How did it contribute to her personal development? 3. Was Anna a disciplined and hard-working pupil at school? How can you account for her lack of interest in learning? 4. What do you think is an essential conflict in the girl's character? What made her mistrust the outside world? 5. Was the girl entirely or partially right when despising her schoolmistresses, "who carped and were loud over trifles"? 6. Why did she turn to a royal ideal to satisfy her ego? 7. How did Anna's attitude to her parents change at the age of seventeen? What do you think are the reasons for it? 8. What were the most remarkable traits of Anna's character that made her unlike the girls of her age? 9. How can you apply the information you obtained from the story to the problems which you are facing or will have to face as a future parent (a teacher)?

3. Find in the text the arguments to illustrate the following:

Anna Brangwen was not what we call a "problem" child, but a child who was just having problems like most young people of her age. Try and preserve the wording of the original. Add your arguments as well.

4. Summarize the text in four paragraphs specifying the role of the family background and school experience in the moulding of a person's character.

5. Use the Topical Vocabulary in answering the following questions:

1. What kind of person will never arrest anyone's attention? (take a risk, spend more than he can afford, take anything to heart, lose his temper, do a silly thing, disobey instructions, w^ver in the face of danger, fail his friend)

2. What kind of people are often lonely? (are usually surround­ed by friends, are easily forgotten, are quick to see the point, think only of themselves, feel uneasy in company, keep their thoughts to themselves, easily lose their patience, enjoy other people's con­fidence)

3. What kind of people are called good mixers, poor mixers, co­lourful, discreet, just, business-like, level-headed, sympathetic, re­vengeful, squeamish, persistent, haughty, humble, placid, broad- minded, vulgar, vain, ambitious?

4. What do you call a person who can't keep a secret? (can ap­preciate a piece of art, feels deeply, pokes his nose into other peo­ple's affairs, intrudes his views on others, is always sure of himself, is mostly in high spirits, gets annoyed easily, keeps on forgetting things, is unlike others, says what he thinks, has no moral princi­ples)

5. What traits of character would you appreciate in a wife (a husband), a mother (a father), a son (a daughter), a bosom friend? What traits would you detest most?

6. What traits of character are required to make a good teacher, a good doctor, a good lawyer, a good journalist? What traits might prevent one from becoming a good specialist in those fields?

6. Give a character sketch of a person you know and like (dislike). Use the Topical Vocabulary. Remember: The sketch should be informative and convinc­ing enough. A mere outward description of a person is not a character sketch. You should present a sort of critical analysis and pass your own well-grounded judgement of a personality.

Outline for a Character Sketch (Personal Identification)

1. Appearance: age, height, weight, build of figure, face, hair, eyes, complexion, clothes.

2. Background: family, education, profession or occupation.

3. Likes and dislikes: with regard to people, tastes, hobbies and interests.

4. Character, temperament, disposition.

5. Conclusion.

You are asked to tell a group of students about your favourite fictitious (literary, film) character. Describe the character in about fifty words. Use the Topical Vocabulary and the Outline for a Character Sketch of Ex. 6.

8. Work in pairs. Discuss real people or fictitious characters you find inter­esting. Bring out clearly their most prominent individual traits. One of the stu­dents is supposed to describe a person he/she likes, the other a person he/she dislikes. Try and interrupt each other with questions to get sufficient informa­tion about the characters you speak about. Use the Topical Vocabulary and the Outline for a Character Sketch of Ex. 6.

Model:

A: I want to tell you about Peter who is by far the most affable man from all I know. I can speak about him unreservedly. He is honest and generous, he is a man of high morals. Moreover, he is everyone's favourite....

B: I am not as enthusiastic about people as you are. I do not take people for what they look and sound. I try to size them up accord­ing to their deeds. That's why I pass my judgement only on second thought. Very often some little things make us change our opinion of a person for the worse....

 

9. Speak about the most striking traits of people's characters. Consider the following:

1. Your favourite traits of character in a person.

2. The traits of character you detest.

3. Your own chief characteristics.

Read the following interview. The expressions in bold type show the way English people describe themselves and other matters. Note them down. Be ready to act out the Interview in class.

TV interviewer: In this week's edition of "Up with People" we went into the streets and asked a number of people a question they just didn't expect. We asked them to be self-critical... to ask themselves exactly what they thought they lacked or — the other side of the coin — what virtues they had. Here is what we heard.

Jane Smith: Well... I... I don't know really... it's not the sort of question you ask yourself directly. I know I'm good at my job... at least my boss calls me hard-working, conscientious, efficient. I am a secretary by the way. As for when I look at myself in a mirror as it were... you know... you sometimes do in the privacy of your own bedroom... or at your reflection in the... in the shop window as you walk up the street... Well... then I see someone a bit different. Yes... I'm different in my private life. And that's probably, my main fault I should say... I'm not exactly — Oh, how shall I say? — I sup­pose I'm not coherent in my behaviour... My office is always in or­der... but my flat! Well... you'd have to see it to believe it.

Charles Dimmock: Well... I'm retired, you know. Used to be a secondary school teacher. And... I think I've kept myself... yes, I've kept myself respectable — that's the word I'd use — respect­able and dignified the whole of my life. I've tried to help those who depended on me. Perhaps you might consider me a bit of a fanatic about organization and discipline — self-discipline comes first — and all that sort of thing. But basically I'm a good chap... not two polemic... fond of my wife and family... That's me.

Arthur Fuller: Well... when I was young I was very shy. At times I... I was very unhappy... especially when I was sent to boarding- school at seven. I didn't make close friends till... till quite late in life... till I was about... what... fifteen. Then I became quite good at being myself. I had no one to rely on... and no one to ask for ad­vice. That made me independent... and I've always solved my problems myself...

 

11. Answer the following questions:

1. Does the self-criticism of each of the participants of the inter­view reveal anything about personality and attitudes? 2. Would these people be different when described by their relations or friends? 3. What differences do you notice between the people answering the questions of the interviewer?

12. When you describe people you either criticize or praise them. When you criticize you normally try to find faults rather than positive traits of character but it certainly does not exclude the expression of praise. Here are some com­ments that people make when they are invited to analyse and judge:

I think I'd much prefer to...; nothing like as good (bad) as...; that's what I thought...; and that's another thing; there's much va­riety in...; to be similar in...; there's a tremendous number of dif­ferences in...: to have little (much) in common.

Use the cliches in the conversations of your own when you are welcome with your criticism of people.

13. Work in pairs. Read the extracts and expand on the idea that: "Every man is a bundle of possibilities." You are to sum up the characters described. You may be of a similar or a different opinion of the human types presented below. Consider the strong and the weak traits of characters. Your judgement should be followed by some appropriate comment:

1. Where she found the time, and still managed to "practically run that big house" and be the president of her class..., a skilled rider, an excellent musician (piano, clarinet), an annual winner at the country fair (pastry, preserves, needlework, flower arrange­ment) — how a girl not yet seventeen could have such a wagon- load, and do so without "brag", with, rather, merely a radiant jaun- tiness, was an enigma the community pondered, and solved by saying, "She's got character. Gets it from her old man." Certain­ly her strongest trait, the talent that gave support to all the others, was derived from her father: a fine-boned sense of organization. Each moment was assigned; she knew precisely at any hour, what she would be doing, how long it would require.

2. You are a man of extreme passion, a hungry man not quite sure where his appetite lies, a deeply frustrated man striving to project his individuality against a backdrop of rigid conformity. You exist in a half-world suspended between two superstructures, one self-expression and the other self-destruction. You are strong, but there is a flaw in your strength, and unless you learn to control it the flaw will prove stronger than your strength and defeat you. The flaw? Explosive emotional reaction out of all proportion to the occasion. Why? Why this unreasonable anger at the sight of others who are happy or content, this growing contempt for people and the desire to hurt them? All right, you think they're fools, you de­spise them because their morals, their happiness is the source of your frustration and resentment. But these are dreadful enemies you carry within yourself — in time destructive as bullets. Merci­fully, a bullet kills its victim. This other bacteria, permitted to age, does not kill a man but leaves in its wake the hulk of a creature torn and twisted; there is still fire within his being but it is kept alive by casting upon it faggots of scorn and hate. He may successfully accumulate, but he does not accumulate success, for he is his own enemy and is kept from truly enjoying his achievements.

3. What wasn't too appealing was the idea of using family as a crutch, and right at the outset. He couldn't bear the thought of hearing for the rest of his life, "Of course, if was Julian gave him his state..." But of more significance was the damage that accept­ing something like this could do to his individuality. Not only would he never respect himself if he just stepped into a job and rose solely on the basis of personal privilege, but how would he ever realize his own potential if he was going to be treated like one of those rich kids who were just coddled up the ladder of success their whole life long?

4. It was our friend's eye that chiefly told his story,«an eye in which innocence and experience were singularly blended. It was full of contradictory suggestions; and though it was by no means the glowing orb of a hero of romance, you could find in it almost anything you looked for. Frigid and yet friendly, positive yet scep­tical, confident yet shy, extremely intelligent and extremely good- humoured, there was something vaguely defiant in its concessions, and something profoundly reassuring in its reserve... Decision, sa­lubrity, jocosity, prosperity seem to hover within his call: he is evi­dently a practical man....

14. Read the following text. Find in it arguments "for" and "against" the problem under discussion. Copy them out into two columns.

Happiness Is This Shape...

There is a large number of intriguing conclusions contained in the study of happiness— what causes it and what doesn't — which has just been concluded by two psychologists. They have analysed the replies of as many as 52,000 people.

The people who replied to their questionnaire were younger, better educated and more affluent than average, so their replies may not be absolutely typical to everyone. They varied in age from 15 to 95 and their answers were so diverse that the two interviewers believe that they have enough material to see what is related to happiness, and what isn't.

The general level of happiness of people proved the thorniest problem to assess. Some of the people answered that they had been happy once. At the same time many were constantly thinking about happiness, weekly or daily. Can anyone really be happy when they are thinking about it so often?

The scientists were interested in 16 aspects of people's lives and how important each was in contributing to general happiness. For single people being happy depends on having congenial friends, a satisfying work and love life and also some sort of recognition by others for what they are doing. For married couples the impor­tant things seem to be somewhat different.

The wife gets her happiness chiefly from her family life. The husband is more concerned with personal growth and devel­opment.

The psychologists also asked a number of questions about peo­ple's childhoods to see if there was anything in that which was associated with being happy.

The major surprise was that few childhood experiences predict­ed with any certainty whether someone would be happy as an adult. And many people who came through bad early and teen­age years are perfectly happy as adults.

Happiness, conclude the psychologists, is more a matter of how you regard your circumstances than of what the circum­stances are.

15. Discuss the text in pairs. One of the pair insists that happiness is more an attitude to life than the state of things, the other defends the opposite viewpoint. Be sure to provide sound arguments for whatever you say. Consider the follow­ing aspects in relation to your idea of happiness:

friends and social life; job or primary activity; being in love; rec­ognition, success, personal growth; financial situation; house or apartment; attractiveness; health, physical condition; city you live in; recreation; being a parent; marriage; partner's happiness.

 

16. The extracts given below present rather complicated subjects. Team up with another student, work out arguments "for" and "against" and discuss the extracts in pairs. Use conversational formulas of Ex. 12.

A. Does every life have its critical moments and situations that determine the entire future of a person or the future of many others?

Some men and women risk comfort and security, and even their lives, to venture into the unknown or to follow an unconventional course of conduct. They may do so for any one of a number of rea­sons. They may desire to benefit mankind, to gain knowledge, to increase understanding, to gain wealth or power for themselves or their country, or to prove to themselves that they can do what seems impossible.

B. How does reading contribute to our understanding and judgement of people?

Reading often increases our understanding of people because the individuals we meet in novels resemble so closely, or differ so much, from persons with whom we are acquainted in real life. The conduct of a fictitious character, like that of real people, results from such emotions as greed, ambition, fear, love, self-sacrifice, jealousy, hatred, revenge, patriotism, civic pride and the desire to reform the society.

C. Do people today measure up in courage and endurance to the people of earlier generations?

Few great people have had to contend with as many obstacles to success in life as Christopher Columbus. He had a lively curiosi­ty about the heavens and the earth, he read widely about astrono­my and navigation. He needed indomitable will and courage to fight for his ideas against ignorance and prejudices of his time. He convinced the Spanish rulers that an expedition to find a new west­ward commercial route to India would bring Spain unlimited pow­er and wealth. The task of carrying out such an expedition called for tremendous determination, courage, and resourcefulness. Only these qualities enabled Columbus to overcome the dangers and hardships of the voyage into the unknown. Columbus was in es­sence, a great man, whose broad vision, faith in his ideas, and ex­traordinary abilities led to outstanding achievements in spite of very adverse circumstances.

D. Should people fight adverse circumstances and obstacles or should they surrender to them?

Hellen Keller was able to lead an active useful life in spite of being blind and deaf from early childhood. Such a triumph over adversity calls for almost superhuman perseverance, courage, re­sourcefulness. With the help of her devoted teacher Ann Sullivan Macy, the girl was able to overcome her crushing handicaps and make herself a figure of international renown. Other persons, struck such a cruel blow by fate, might have chosen to withdraw from life. Not so the dauntless Helen! She travelled abroad, she championed social and economic rights for women; she worked for world peace; she aided movements to help the unfortunate and underprivileged. And more than anything else, by the mere example of what she was able to achieve, she gave hope and cour­age to untold thousands who might otherwise have given up to despair.