Английский язык. Texts and topics for discussion. Сборник текстов и тем для обсуждения. Учебно-методическое пособие

values. It is the one quality which political fanatics appear to lack. If we can see the funny side, we never make the mistake of taking ourselves too seriously. We are always reminded that tragedy is not really far removed from comedy, so we never get a lop-sided view of things.

This is one of the chief functions of satire and irony. Human pain and suffering are so grim; we hover so often on the brink of war; political realities are usually enough to plunge us into total despair. In such circumstances, cartoons and satirical accounts of sombre political events redress the balance. They take the wind out of pompous and arrogant politicians who have lost their sense of proportion. They enable us to see that many of our most profound actions are merely comic or absurd. We laugh when a great satirist like Swift writes about war in Gulliver’s Travels. The Lilliputians and their neighbours attack each other because they can’t agree which end to break an egg. We laugh because we are meant to laugh; but we are meant to weep too. It is no wonder that in totalitarian regimes any satire against the Establishment is wholly banned. It is too powerful a weapon to be allowed to flourish.

The sense of humour must be singled out as man’s most important quality because it is associated with laughter. And laughter, in turn, is associated with happiness. Courage, determination, initiative — these are qualities we share with other forms of life. But the sense of humour is uniquely human. If happiness is one of the great goals of life, then it is the sense of humour that provides the key.

Questions for discussion

1.Does laughter serve any biologic process?

2.Is sense of humour an entirely human quality? Is it the most important one? Does it help us in our everyday life?

3.In what situations do people laugh? Is humour acceptable in any sad situations?

41

4.Does humour have any forms or is it always the same?

5.How do you understand the expression ‘to get a lop-sided view of things’? How does it work?

23. Untidy people are not nice to know

You don’t have to be a genius to spot them. The men of the species are often uncombed; their ties never knotted squarely beneath their collars. The women of the species always manage to smear lipstick on their faces as well as their lips; in one hand they carry handbags which are stuffed full of accumulated rubbish; with the other, they drag a horde of neglected children behind them. With a sort of happy unconcern, both the male and female species litter railway stations, streets, parks, etc., with sweet wrappings, banana-skins, egg-shells and cast-off shoes. Who are they? That great untidy band of people that make up about three-quarters of the human race. An unending trail of rubbish pursues them wherever they go. It is most unwise to call on them at their homes — particularly if they aren’t expecting you. You are liable to find socks behind the refrigerator, marbles in the jam and egg-encrusted crockery. Newspapers litter the floor; ashtrays overflow; withered flowers go on withering in stale water. Writing-desks have become dumping grounds for piles of assorted, indescribable junk. And as for the bedrooms, well, it’s best not to say. Avoid looking in their cars, too, because you are likely to find last year’s lolly sticks, chewing-gum clinging to the carpets and a note saying ‘Running In’ on the rear window of a ten-year-old vehicle.

Yes, but what are they really like? Definitely not nice to know. They are invariably dirty, scruffy, forgetful, impatient, slovenly, slothful, unpunctual, inconsiderate, rude, irritable and (if they’re driving a car) positively dangerous. Untidiness and these delightful qualities always seem to go together, or shall we say that untidiness breeds these qualities. It’s hardly surprising. If you are getting dressed and can only find one sock, you can only end up being irritable and scruffy. If after a visit to a lovely beauty spot you think that other people will enjoy the sight of your orange peel, you can only be inconsiderate and slovenly. If you can’t find an important letter because you stuck it between the

42

pages of a book and then returned the book to the library, you can only be forgetful. If you live in perpetual, self-imposed squalor, you must be slothful — otherwise you’d do something about it.

What a delightful minority tidy people are by comparison! They seem to have a monopoly of the best human qualities. They are clean, neat, patient, hard-working, punctual, considerate and polite. All these gifts are reflected in their homes, their gardens, their work, their personal appearance. They are radiant, welcoming people whom you long to meet, whose esteem you really value. The crux of the matter is that tidy people are kind and generous, while untidy people are mean and selfish. The best proof of this is that tidy people, acting on the highest, selfless motives, invariably marry untidy ones. What happens after that is another story!

Questions for discussion

1.In what ways are untidy people described in the text? Is it difficult to spot them?

2.What do you think of them? Do you know any?

3.Are untidy people definitely not nice to know? Why? Does their untidiness matter?

4.Are untidy people always mean and selfish?

5.Is it wise to judge about people by their appearance?

43

Учебное издание

АНГЛИЙСКИЙ ЯЗЫК. TEXTS AND TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION

Учебно-методическое пособие

Автор-составитель Гаврилова Юлия Викторовна

Корректор Н. М. Шешеня Компьютерная верстка Г. Г. Кротовой

Подписано в печать 15.07.2015. Формат 60х84/16. Бумага офсетная. Печ. л. 2,75. Тираж 300 экз.

Изд. № 432. Заказ № 181

Издательство Московского гуманитарного университета 111395, Москва, ул. Юности, 5

АНГЛИЙСКИЙ ЯЗЫК.

TEXTS AND TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION

Сборник текстов и тем для обсуждения

Москва 2015