Listen to the scene again. Then answer the questions.
1. How did Jack get the surname ‘Worthing’?
2. What do you learn about the lives of the English upper classes in the 19th century? What was important to them? What were their attitudes to marriage, work, and property?
3. How does Oscar Wilde make the scene funny? Give some examples.
Task 7
Discuss these questions in class.
1. How do you think Jack came to be in the handbag? Write down as many ideas as you can think of.
2. Do you think Jack ultimately discovers his origins and marries Gwendolen?
Task 8
Work with a partner and act out the scene together (Your teacher will give you the scene). Remember, it’s a comedy, so make it as funny as possible! Perform the scene in front of the class.
‘After the lunch…’ (08 – 8.mp3)
Task 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.
Task 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?
Task 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.
A father’s advice on marriage (26.mp3)
Task 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 ...
Task 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.
Task 3
Now read the original passage from the novel (Appendix 2). 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.
Task 4
Listen again to the excerpt from the radio play and write down the modern equivalents of the phrases and sentences in Task 3.
Smithereens (Recording 3.2.mp3)
Task 1
Read the poem “Smithereens” by Roger McGough, a popular modern poet.
(Smithereens /,smiӘ'ri:nz/n (plural) a lot of small broken pieces).