Read the dialogue. Find all the Objective-with-the Infinitive Constructions in it and explain their use. Learn the dialogue and act it out in class. Do the tasks below.
AT THE POLICE STATION Police sergeant: Please, tell us exactly what happened. Bus Driver: Well you see, I was driving along the High Street at a normal speed, about 20 miles an hour it was, when suddenly I saw this woman appear in front of me, in the middle of the road. P.S.: Didn’t you see her start to cross over? Driver: No, and in any case there was a zebra crossing just a few yards along and I was keeping my eye on that. I saw her quite suddenly and heard her scream at the same time. P.S.: When did you start to brake? Driver: Well, it all seemed to happen at once. I suppose I must have braked as soon as I touched her, or perhaps even a split second earlier. Jane: It was lucky she was thrown clear, or you couldn’t have avoided running over her. P.S.: Now, Miss, perhaps you’ll tell us exactly what you saw? Where were you sitting? Jane: I was sitting by the right-hand window, just behind the driver. I happened to be watching the other side of the road, because we were passing a cinema and I wanted to see what was on. P.S.: Where was the woman then? Jane: I noticed her standing on the pavement and then I saw her start to run across the road. She was waving to someone on the other side. P.S.: Did she look round at all? Jane: No, I’m quite sure of that. She simply didn’t pay attention to the traffic. I saw a car driver lean out and shout at her, but she didn’t notice. P.S.: Did you actually see the bus hit her? Jane: No, she was hidden from view by that time. In any case, it all happened so quickly. But I’m almost sure I felt the bus brake before I heard her scream. Driver: I don’t see how I could have done anything about it, sergeant. She just didn’t look where she was going. Jane: I’m sure it wasn’t your fault. It was lucky for her she didn’t end up under your wheels. Driver: Thank you for your support, Miss. Will that be all, sergeant? I’m rather in a hurry to get back to the depot. P.S.: I’ll just have your statements typed out so that you can sign them. That won’t take more than 10 minutes. Of course you may have to appear in court, but we’ll get in touch with you about that later.
I. Imagine that you are Jane. Tell the policeman in detail what you saw, heard, and felt when the accident took place. I noticed the woman stand… a man wave to her… saw the woman start to run… a car-driver lean out and shout at her. didn’t see the bus hit her. felt the bus brake before… heard her scream II. You are a passer-by. You happened to be close at hand when the accident took place. Tell the police sergeant what you noticed, heard, saw. III. Imagine that you are the driver. Tell the sergeant what happened. I saw this woman appear. didn’t see her start to… heard her scream. felt the bus brake didn’t feel the bus hit her didn’t notice the man wave IV. Imagine that you are the woman. Describe the accident. see a friend of mine wave notice a bus appear hear myself scream feel something hit me
11. Read the story “Shark-eating people” and retell it, using the Objective-with-the Infinitive Construction where possible.
Rescued after drifting for 118 days in a rubber raft in the middle of the Pacific, Mr. Maurice Bailey and his wife could not believe their luck. How they stayed alive was a miracle. Small sharks, about three feet long, kept swimming up and pushing against the raft. His wife pulled them out by their tails and Maurice wrapped a cloth around their heads until they suffocated. Then they ate them. The Baileys had sailed from Southampton in June 1972 in their 31st yacht bound for New Zealand. One day, halfway between Mexico and the Galapagos Islands, their lunch was scarcely cleared away when the boat was hit by a whale. They watched the water pour into the yacht for an hour before taking to their raft. They were picked up by a Korean trawler four months later, remarkably fit on a diet of rainwater, raw shark meat, seagulls and the occasional turtle they caught along the way.
You may use the following: The Baileys’ odyssey made them fight for their lives. Maurice Bailey considered his luck to be a miracle. Once he saw his wife pull a small shark out of the water. He felt his hands tremble. They watched the water pour into the yacht. The Baileys did (not) expect anybody to rescue them.
12. Read the story “Sea Saga” and retell it, using the Objective-with-the Infinitive construction where possible: … We had enjoyed four months of our cruise on the Southern Cross. It was seven o’clock on a cold and windy morning in February 1963 and we were steaming across the Bay of Biscay en route for Southampton. I ran upstairs to the next deck where I saw the captain in his pyjamas heading for the bridge. Instead of sailing north, the ship was turning slowly around in the direction we had just come from. I was on my way to the dining-room for breakfast but I decided to investigate the situation instead. The ship was now alive with activity. Alarm bells were ringing and sailors were trying desperately to lower a lifeboat. The boat jammed. They tried another which started to descend but jammed as it was nearing the water. By now hundreds of passengers had crowded onto the decks, like the captain many of them still in their pyjamas. As I watched, all around me there was a mixture of fear and excitement. I forced my way to the railings to get a better view. A lifeboat had managed to get free and made its way to a figure in the water. The figure was now struggling for its life. The crew was rather slow and the figure drifted away from us faster than they could row. Then with horror I realized who the figure was. I must have stayed on deck for over an hour; I could not move for shock. Suddenly somebody touched me on the shoulder. A calm but firm voice said, “Mr. Booth, we want to ask you one or two questions in connection with the drowning of your cabin mate.”
You may use the following: Mr. Booth meant the cruise to be… He heard the captain … He watched him … Mr. Booth observed the passengers… He found the ship turn around. Mr. Booth felt somebody touch his shoulder. The captain wanted him to explain…
|
