Listen to three people talking about a book they have read recently. Take notes about it under the following headings.

Task 2. A book I enjoyed (07 – 7.mp3)

2.1. Listen to Jerry talking about a book he enjoyed reading, the novel ‘How to be good’ by Nick Hornby. Which sentence best summarizes the story in the book?

a) It’s about a rich man who loses his wealth but discovers the positive aspects of being poor.

b) It shows the transformation of a man’s attitude to life, from very negative to the opposite extreme.

c) It describes how an average family discovers how to be happy by helping other people.

2.2. Listen again. Which of the adjectives in the box describe the man before he saw the faith healer, and which describe him afterwards. Write В or A.

2.3. Choose the correct answer. Fill in the blanks and write the exact words that Jerry uses.

1. How old are the man’s children?

quite young / teenage

2. How would the man’s wife like their life to be?

happy in some way / without any cares ________________________

3. What would the man's attitude to faith healers normally be?

he would use them with caution / he would reject them as totally stupid

4. How does the speaker feel about recognizing that his own character is similar to the man’s?

he feels guilty about it / he’s happy to recognize this _____________
________________________________________________________

5. How obvious is the book’s philosophical message?

It’s the main focus of the book / it lies beneath the surface
________________________________________________________

Task 3. ‘After the lunch…’ (08 – 8.mp3)

3.1. Four lines of the following poem are left out. Write the missing lines.

After the lunch ...

Wendy Cope

On Waterloo bridge, where we said our goodbyes

(1) ___________________________________

I wipe them away with a black woolly glove

(2) ___________________________________

On Waterloo bridge I am trying to think:

This is nothing. You're high on the charm and the drink

But the jukebox inside me is playing a song

(3) ___________________________________

On Waterloo bridge with the wind in my hair

I am tempted to skip. You’re a fool. I don’t care,

(4) ____________________________________

I admit it before I’m halfway across.

3.2. Read the poem and answer the questions.

1. She says it’s the weather that’s making her cry. What do you think the real reason is?

2. Why are some words in italics?

3. What does “The head does its best, but the heart is the boss” mean?

3.3. Read the poem aloud, noticing the rhythm. How many main stresses are there in each line: three, four, or five? Listen to the poem, paying particular attention to the rhythm and stress. Mark the main stresses in each line, then practise reading the poem again.

Task 4. A father’s advice on marriage (26.mp3)

4.1. Read the short introduction to a radio play. (It’s a modern version of Jane Austen’s novel, “Pride and Prejudice”).

The heroine of the story is Lizzy Bennet, a young woman of 20. She’s single, one of five sisters, and her mother is desperate for her to get married. Lizzy’s obsequious cousin, William Collins, has asked Lizzy to marry him. She has rejected his offer, as she thinks he’s pompous and boring. Mr Collins is now appealing to her mother ...

4.2. Listen to an excerpt from the radio play. Are the sentences true or false? Correct the false ones.

1. Mr Collins remains keen to marry Lizzy.

2. Mr Bennet isn't enthusiastic about speaking to Lizzy.

3. Mr Bennet fully supports his wife.

4.3. Now read the original passage from the novel (Appendix 1). Find these phrases and sentences. Explain what these phrases and sentences from the original excerpt mean.

1. Depend on it... that Lizzy shall be brought to reason;

2. [She] does not know her own interest;

3. if liable to such defects of temper;

4. we shall very soon settle it with her;

5. we are all in an uproar;

6. I have not the pleasure of understanding you;

7. And what am I to do on the occasion?

8. She shall hear my opinion;

9. An unhappy alternative is now before you;

10. you must be a stranger to one of your parents.

4.4. Listen again to the excerpt from the radio play and write down the modern equivalents of the phrases and sentences in Task 3.

Task 5. Smithereens (Recording 3.2.mp3)

5.1. Read the poem “Smithereens” by Roger McGough, a popular modern poet.

(Smithereens /,smiӘ'ri:nz/ n (plural)– a lot of small broken pieces).

What do you think the poet means when he says:

1 he collects smithereens?

2 he picks up the leftovers?

3 he pockets eavesdroppings and stores them away?

4 he makes nice things out of them?

Smithereens

I spend my days

collecting smithereens.

I find them on buses

and on busy pavements.

At restaurant tables

I pick up the leftovers

of polite conversation.

At railway stations

the tearful debris

of parting lovers.

I pocket my eavesdroppings

and store them away.

I make things out of them.

Nice things, sometimes.

Sometimes odd, like this.

You are going to read the poem aloud. Which words will you stress? Where will you pause? Practise reading the poem.

5.2. Listen to Roger McGough introducing and reading the poem. How does his reading compare with yours? (e.g. Does he read it more quickly or more slowly than you? Does he stress words you didn’t?)

5.3. You are going to listen to Roger McGough talking about how he writes his poetry. Imagine you were able to earn your living writing poetry.

a) What kind of poems would you like to be able to write (e.g. love poems, poems about places)?

b) What kind of daily routine would you have? (e.g. Would you write at night?)

c) What advantages and disadvantages would there be in this kind of life?

5.4. Listen to Extract 1 from the interview. Answer the questions.

1. What experiences has he written about?

2. What is his daily routine?

5.5. Listen again. Which of these does he say? Say in what way the other sentences are incorrect.

1. He is a serious poet.

2. His humorous poems are only for children.

3. Things he sees on TV can stimulate an idea for a poem.

4. A poet is like a sheep.

5. The only day he doesn't write a poem is on the day of a poetry reading.

6. He writes a poem as soon as he wakes up.

7. He is totally useless at everything except writing poems.

5.6. Listen to Extract 2 and answer the questions.

1. What does he feel makes a poem different from prose?

2. Are many British people interested in poetry?

5.7. Discuss some of these questions.

1. Can you remember any poems from childhood? What do you think of them now?

2. Have you ever written any poetry?

3. Who are the most famous creative artists in your country at present (e.g. poets, painters, musicians, novelists, film-makers)?

4. Are they original / classical and traditional /popular with young people?

Task 6. A Lecture on Robert Browning (14.wma)

Date: 2015-02-03; view: 1780