5. Give Russian equivalents of the words, phrases and sentences below:

A. 1) in one swallow; 2) to hope vaguely; 3) to pull it [the shirt] frantically over one’s head; 4) to pray fervently;

B. 1. He was cold and miserable, huddled up like a hedgehog in a filthy black coat… 2. Drioli’s eyes were half closed with fatigue, the whites streaked with little connecting lines of red; and above an inch behind each eyeball there was a small concentration of pain. 3. He … was drawing the corks from the bottles, each making a small plop as it came out. 4. This broadness of the cheeks was accentuated by the ears which stood out sharply from the head. 5. What in heaven’s name is it you want? 6. It was a flabby face with so much flesh upon it that the cheeks hung down on either side of the mouth in two fleshy collops, spanielwise. 7. The dealer’s eyes were small and dark, the wings of his broad nose-base were beginning to quiver.

6. Explain what is meant by:

a nude study; morning coat (morning dress); flunkey

7. Rephrase or interpret the given sentences (without using the underlined parts).

1. …Drioli looked again at the boy as he took the glasses of wine and tipped it down his throat in one swallow. 2. …if anyone knew about the tattoo it was he – Drioli.

3. … when the muscle of the arm was flexed the lady came to life and performed some astonishing contortions. 4. It was a startling sight. 5. “That did it.”

8. ARE YOU A CAREFUL READER?

1. How old was Soutine when he tattooed the picture on Drioli’s back? 2. What colour was Soutine’s couch? 3. Soutine lived at Drioli’s place. (True or false?)

9. Answer the questions and do the following tasks:

1. Prepare a short talk on the Russian-born French expressionist painter Chaïm Soutine.

2. What facts in the story show that Drioli possessed an artistic taste and was able to appreciate works of art?

3. What feelings did the end of the story evoke in you? What happened to Drioli, do you think? In your opinion, would it have been wiser of him to make a private arrangement with the dealer (who suggested a major skin-grafting operation) instead of following the owner of the Bristol Hotel?

4. “It was not a good likeness. It was a mood rather than a likeness.” How important is likeness in portraiture?

5. What’s your attitude towards tattooing?

6. Share your impressions of the story. To what genre would you refer it? What moral issues does it raise? Dwell upon one of them.

Contents

1. The Birds by d. Du Maurier ……………………………………………………………3

2. The Enormous Radio by J.Cheever….………………………………………………...40

3. Jane by W.S.Maugham………… .…………………………………………………… 51

4. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by J.Thurber…………...…………………………...78

5. The Happy Man by W.S.Maugham……………………………………………………84

6. Treacle Tart by R.Graves……….………………………………………………….…..88

7. Nunc Dimittis by R. Dahl ………………………………………………………….…..93