9Th Form Listening Text #2:

“The Old Woman and the Physician”

An Old Woman having lost the use of her eyes, called in a Physician to heal them, and made this bargain with him in the presence of witnesses: that if he should cure her blindness, he should receive from her a sum of money; but if her infirmity remained, she should give him nothing. This agreement being made, the Physician, time after time, applied his salve to her eyes, and on every visit took something away, stealing all her property little by little. And when he had got all she had, he healed her and demanded the promised payment. The Old Woman, when she recovered her sight and saw none of her goods in her house, would give him nothing. The Physician insisted on his claim, and. as she still refused, summoned her before the Judge. The Old Woman, standing up in the Court, argued: "This man here speaks the truth in what he says; for I did promise to give him a sum of money if I should recover my sight: but if I continued blind, I was to give him nothing. Now he declares that I am healed. I on the contrary affirm that I am still blind; for when I lost the use of my eyes, I saw in my house various chattels and valuable goods: but now, though he swears I am cured of my blindness, I am not able to see a single thing in it." 

Multiple Choice:

1. Why did the old woman call for the physician?

1. she did not feel well

2. to cure her blindness

3. her daughter was pregnant

4. she wanted to speak with the judge

2. What did the physician do every time he visited the old woman?

1. stole something from the blind woman

2. applied his salve to her eyes

3. A & B only

4. none of the above

3. Why did the old woman think that she was still blind?

1. because she could not see her things in her home

2. because she was wearing dark sunglasses

3. because the physician blinded her

4. because she was still blind

4. What did the Physician demand after he healed her blindness?

1. all of her sheep

2. payment

3. her hand in marriage

4. her house

5. Who did the old woman tell that she believed she was still blind?

1. her son

2. the baker

3. the physician

4. the judge

9Th Form Listening text Answer Document:

Listening Text #1:

“The Thief and the Innkeeper”

1. A

2. C

3. B

4. A

5. D

Listening Text #2:

“The Old Woman and the Physician”

1. B

2. C

3. A

4. B

5. D

9Th Form Speaking Prompts:

~Choose one of the following prompts to speak about for 2—4 minutes

1. In the English language, we ‘lose’ many things—we lose contact, we lose sight of something, we lose our minds. We also ‘lose patience.’ What are some things that make you lose patience? Why?

• What are some solutions to those types of situations?

• Which are you in control of?

• Which are outside of your control?

2. Some people take advantage of the anonymous nature of the Internet to re-invent or express different sides of themselves.

• Why, in your opinion, do people like this anonymity?

• Do you think the internet is dangerous? Why or why not?

• Use example to prove that the Internet is either dangerous, or not dangerous.

3. Our senses are absolutely essential for interacting with our world. If you had to give up all of our senses except for one, which one would you keep?

• Explain why it is the most important sense to you.

• What would be frustrating about life without your other four senses? Would you enjoy it?

• What could you learn from this? Predict the impact of these lessons.