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Listen to the Chapter 1 sound track and fill in the gaps in the passage given below.

JOHN GRISHAM

The FIRM

Level 5 (Upper Intermediate)
Retold by Robin Waterfield

CHAPTERS 1-8

 

 

READ CHAPTERS 1-8 AND DO THE TASKS GIVEN THEREAFTER

CHAPTER 1 MITCHELL MCDEERE

  • · Vocabulary

1. Give Russian equivalents to these English words, phrases and abbreviations:

be about to graduate, be in the top five, H LS, degree in accounting, CPA exam, tax lawyer, ex-CIA agent,

be born in poverty, bring up, take care, waste money, win the place, poverty hurts, climb away,

student loans, senior partner, an associate, BMW, be able to afford,

international tax law, rather than the other way round, bring in, to bring business in.

2. Make up your own sentences using the above English words and phrases.

  • Listening

Listen to the Chapter 1 sound track and fill in the gaps in the passage given below.

Mitchell had been born in _____ in Kentucky and _____ by his mother after his father's death. Theyknew that she had _____the_____ the army gave her after her eldest son's death in _____, and thatonly the other brother, Ray, had_____ him. They knew that he had _____at Western Kentucky Universitybecause he was good at football, and had _____ of his class. They could see the ____, and that hewanted to ______ from it.

  • Reading

Read Chapter 1 and summarize Mitchell Y. McDeere’s background.

v

Mitchell Y. McDeere was twenty-five years old. He was about to graduate in the top five from HLS– Harvard Law School. He had a degree in accounting, passed the CPA exam the first time he took it and wanted to be a tax lawyer. He had a beautiful wife, Abby. He was white, handsome, tall and physicallyfit. He didn't take drugs or drink too much. And he was hungry. He wanted it all: money, power, a bighouse, a fast car . . . He urgently wanted to succeed. He had the brains, the ambition, and the good looks.

In other words, he was perfect for the Memphis law firm of Bendini, Lambert & Locke. Every one ofthe twenty partners in the firm was given a file on him labeled “Mitchell Y. McDeere – HLS.” An inch thick with small print and a few photographs, it had been prepared by some ex-CIA agents. They knew that he had been born in poverty in Kentucky and brought up by his mother after his father'sdeath. They knew that she had wasted the money the army gave her after her eldest son's death inVietnam, and that only the other brother, Ray, had cared for him. They knew that he had won a place atWestern Kentucky University because he was good at football, and had graduated top of his class.They could see the poverty hurt, and that he wanted to climb away from it.

They learned, for instance, that he had been given the opportunity to cheat on a securities exam during his second year. He declined, and made the highest grade in the class. Two months ago he had been offered cocaine at a law school party. He refused and left when everyone began snorting. He drank an occasional beer, but drinking was expensive and he had no money. He owed close to $23,000 in student loans.



Now he was about to leave Harvard. Two firms in New York and one in Chicago were interestedin him, according to the file. The highest offer was $76,000 and the lowest was $68,000. All thepartners agreed that he was the one they wanted. They needed a new associate this year and theywanted it to be him. The first interview, in a hotel near Harvard, went well. Oliver Lambert, the senior partner, and Lamar Quin, an associate who had been with the firm for seven years, offered Mitch$80,000, a new BMW and help in buying a house. Mitch was interested, of course. Lambert invitedhim down to Memphis to visit the firm. He said he would send the air tickets. The figure of $80,000 started Mitch and Abby dreaming.

'Eighty thousand in Memphis is the same as one hundred and twenty thousand in New York,' Mitchsaid. 'We'll be able to afford almost anything we want. And it's only the money I'll start at: in two years I'llbe into six figures. They say that on average an associate becomes a partner in about ten years, andthen I'll be earning about half a million dollars a year! And what about the car and the house?'

'Who wants New York?' Abby said, smiling, and thinking about their rusty Mazda and about newfurniture in a big old house — and dreaming of babies. 'What sort of work is it?'

'Taxes,' Mitch said, 'which is what I enjoy. And we both hate the cold weather in the north-east.The firm specializes in international tax law. Bendini started it in 1944. He had a lot of clients in the south,so he moved down to Memphis. And obviously everyone who works there loves it: they say that membersvery rarely leave the firm.'

'And you'd be closer to Ray.'

'True.'

'If they're offering so much, why doesn't everybody know about them and try to work there?'

'Lambert says they like to stay small. There are only forty-one members in all. They get one newmember every two years, and they approach him rather than the other way round.'

'Why would they help us with a house?' Abby asked.

'It's important to the firm that their members stay happy and look rich. It helps to bring business in.'

'Memphis, here we come,' said Abby. 'I like this firm already.'

 


Date: 2015-12-17; view: 1077


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