Вступительный письменный экзамен по английскому языку. Учебные материалы, методические указания и рекомендации. Пособие для абитуриентов
.pdfTask 15
1. Переведите следующий текст на русский язык.
Newspaper Language
Newspapers, especially in their headlines, prefer colourful — usually short — emotive words to more accurate but duller ones: shock (surprise), slash (reduce), soar (increase), blast (criticise), quit (resign, retire), row (disagreement), bombshell (unexpected event), dramatic (unusual), epic (very unusual). Such words make for lively, actionpacked writing; in headlines they serve their purpose in attracting attention. Whether they accurately reflect the events they purport to describe, or over-sensationalise them, or whether useful, strong words are made to lose their power by being applied inappropriately, is another matter. (If a darts match is epic, what word is left for an important human struggle?) Effective English matches the word to the occasion, and respects both. The popular press believes that strong sensations expressed in strong language sell newspapers; the ordinary user of English would do well to copy the better features of journalistic writing: crisp, clear English, directness of statement, and sentences of digestible length.
Advertising is more often concerned to create an atmosphere, influence attitudes and project a product-style than to communicate factual information. The words garden and country in garden peas and country-fresh eggs are used dishonestly: they evoke the wholesome and pleasant outdoors while glossing over the fact that mass-produced peas do not grow in gardens, and that most hens never see a blade of grass, let alone the country.
2.Изложите основное содержание текста своими словами на английском языке в 5−6 предложениях.
3.Сформулируйте 5 вопросов, ответы на которые отразили бы основное содержание текста.
4.Переведите следующие предложения на английский язык.
1)Если он не делает уроков, тем хуже для него.
2)Она любит, когда ею восхищаются, фотографируют, пишут о ней в газетах.
3)Вся школа только и говорила об этом происшествии.
4)Александр сообщил нам, что доктор хочет осмотреть раненого.
5)Я была против того, чтобы мы спали с открытыми окнами, так как ночи были уже холодные.
181
Task 16
1. Переведите следующий текст на русский язык.
Irony
Irony is saying the opposite of what you mean while making it clear what you do mean. A person who speaks ironically (for example, saying That was clever to someone who has just done something foolish) expresses his real meaning by his ironical tone of voice. A person who writes ironically must signal the fact clearly if his irony is to be detected; if it is not, serious misunderstanding will occur.
Irony derives its richness from having a double meaning, an apparent one and a camouflaged one, sometimes finely balanced. Its usefulness is that it allows a writer to make a judgement on his subject without being direct or heavy-handed (That was clever is a judgement, very different in its effect from That was stupid). Irony is favoured by satirists who feel that its subtlety, and especially the humour that comes from the incongruity between the apparent and real meanings, are just as effective as explicit judgement, condemnation or ridicule. Indeed irony is often more effective, because the ironist remains detached by his disguise — as if poised and impersonal — and because humour can be more wounding than straightforward statement.
Like several of the devices illustrated in this chapter, irony makes demands on the reader’s perceptions: accepting two layers of meaning and appreciating their relationship is more stimulating and absorbing for the reader than the response required by a single level of meaning. Understanding irony, and writing it, are among the most complex of literary activities.
2.Изложите основное содержание текста своими словами на английском языке в 5−6 предложениях.
3.Сформулируйте 5 вопросов, ответы на которые отразили бы основное содержание текста.
4.Переведите следующие предложения на английский язык.
1)Он имел обыкновение говорить о своей профессии как о каторжном труде.
2)Что могло бы быть более естественным, чем желание матери узнать что-нибудь о молодом человеке, с которым встречается ее дочь?
3)Ни при каких обстоятельствах вы не должны открывать дверь незнакомым людям!
4)Летнее время впервые было введено в Англии в 1908 г.
5)В горах резко понизилась температура и пошел снег, чего мы никак не ожидали.
182
Task 17
1. Переведите следующий текст на русский язык.
Language as an Integral Part of Human Life
Most people spend an immense amount of their life talking, listening, and, in advanced societies, reading and writing. Normal conversation uses 4,000 or 5,000 words an hour. A radio talk, where there are fewer pauses, uses as many as 8,000 or 9,000 words per hour. A person reading at a normal speed covers 14,000 or 15,000 words per hour. So someone who chats for an hour, listens to a radio talk for an hour and reads for an hour possibly comes into contact with 25,000 words in that time. Per day, the total could be as high as 100,000.
The use of language is an integral part of being human. Children all over the world start putting words together at approximately the same age, and follow remarkably similar paths in their speech development. All languages are surprisingly similar in their basic structure, whether they are found in South America, Australia or near the North Pole. Language and abstract thought are closely connected, and many people think that these two characteristics above all distinguish human beings from animals.
An inability to use language adequately can affect someone’s status in society, and may even alter their personality. Because of its crucial importance in human life, every year an increasing number of psychologists, sociologists, anthropologists, teachers, speech therapists, computer scientists and copywriters (to name but a few professional groups) realize that they need to study language more deeply.
2.Изложите основное содержание текста своими словами на английском языке в 5−6 предложениях.
3.Сформулируйте 5 вопросов, ответы на которые отразили бы основное содержание текста.
4.Переведите следующие предложения на английский язык.
1)Ольга взволнованно воскликнула, что такие ценные советы трудно забыть.
2)Мы вынуждены были отложить поездку за город, так как погода становилась все хуже и хуже.
3)Не обольщайтесь. Все это не так просто.
4)Он настоял на том, чтобы Анну немедленно пригласили
сюда.
5)«Я все думал об этой книге, — сказал он, — и пришел к заключению, что мы не можем ее напечатать».
183
Task 18
1. Переведите следующий текст на русский язык.
Types of Language
Linguistics can be defined as ‘the systematic study of language’ — a discipline which describes language in all its aspects and formulates theories as to how it works.
But what exactly is language? People often use the word in a very wide sense: ‘the language of flowers’, ‘the language of music’, ‘body language’ and so on. This book, in common with most linguistics books, uses the word to mean the specialized sound signalling system which seems to be genetically programmed to develop in humans. Humans can, of course, communicate in numerous other ways: they can wink, wave, smile, tap someone on the shoulder, and so on. This wider study, which overlaps with linguistics, is not the concern of this book. It is usually known as ‘the psychology of communication’, and reading on the topic is suggested later on.
It is also clear that humans can transfer language to various other media: written symbols, braille, sign language, and so on. Sign language in particular has interesting characteristics which are not all predictable from the spoken word. However, language based on sound is more widespread, and perhaps more basic, and so has been given priority in this book.
But can language be defined? And how can it be distinguished from other systems of animal communication? A useful approach was pioneered by the American linguist Charles Hockett. This is to make a list of design features, and to consider whether they are shared by other animals. Some important ones will be discussed in the next few pages.
2.Изложите основное содержание текста своими словами на английском языке в 5−6 предложениях.
3.Сформулируйте 5 вопросов, ответы на которые отразили бы основное содержание текста.
4.Переведите следующие предложения на английский язык.
1)Поскольку в доме было мало лекарств, он отправился в аптеку.
2)Велико же было их удивление, когда они увидели в небе непонятный объект.
3)Не имея прав на вождение, Петр купил машину.
4)Она удивилась ответу молодого человека на ее вопрос относительно обязанностей его отца.
5)Вы не слышали речь президента компании? Вы не можете объяснить, почему так мало людей обратили на нее внимание?
184
Task 19
1. Переведите следующий текст на русский язык.
Language and Its Uses
Language seems to be a highly developed form of animal signalling. But there is a missing link in the chain. How, and when, did we start to talk?
This is a problem of interest mainly to ethologists (students of animal behaviour), and one which has not yet been solved. Many linguists regard this fascinating topic as being outside the realm of linguistics proper.
But although how language began is a puzzle, why language began seems rather clearer. Possibly it began because humans needed a greater degree of cooperation with each other in order to survive, and this cooperation required efficient communication. Consequently, the primary function of language is to impart factual information and to convey essential commands.
But language can also be used to communicate feelings and emotions. This aspect of language is not as well developed as ‘information talking’, because humans, like other primates, can convey emotions by screams, grunts, sobs, gestures and so on. So they need language only to confirm and elaborate these more primitive signals. In addition, there is the language of social chit-chat, the meaningless small talk of everyday life. ‘Hallo, how nice to see you. How are you? Isn’t the weather terrible?’ This social patter has been called phatic communion and is primarily a device to maintain social contact on a friendly level. Some ethologists call it ‘grooming talking’ and suggest that it is a substitute for the friendly grooming indulged in by monkeys.
2.Изложите основное содержание текста своими словами на английском языке в 5−6 предложениях.
3.Сформулируйте 5 вопросов, ответы на которые отразили бы основное содержание текста.
4.Переведите следующие предложения на английский язык.
1)«Пигмалион» — это одна из наиболее популярных пьес Б. Шоу.
2)Взяв перо и бумагу, мальчик стал писать письмо брату, уехавшему в Вашингтон.
3)Профессор спросил, когда будет напечатана эта книга.
4)Представьте себе, она сказала ему, что мы не хотим, чтобы он присоединился к нашей экскурсии. Никто ведь не просил ее говорить это.
5)Каковы последние новости о ходе выборов?
185
Task 20
1. Переведите следующий текст на русский язык.
Ways of Being Polite in Language
Shut the door!
I wonder if you’d mind shutting the door?
There’s quite a draught in here.
If you wanted someone to shut the door, you could in theory use any of the sentences above. But in practice, the first, a direct command, would be uttered perhaps only to a young child. To anyone else, it would seem somewhat rude. This avoidance of directness is partly culturally based: ‘Why did that man look offended when I said, “Pass the salt”?’ asked one puzzled visitor. She was even more bewildered when told that it would be better to say: ‘I wonder if you could possibly pass the salt.’ Why such a fuss, she queried, about a small quantity of salt? But in spite of cultural variation, the idea that it is politer to say things indirectly may be universal.
Humans everywhere tend to be polite in similar ways, based on two basic social requirements: ‘No criticism’ and ‘No interference’. Humans want to be approved of, and they do not want to be imposed upon. Consequently, anyone with social know-how will minimize criticism of others and will avoid interfering with their liberty, at least overtly.
These requirements of ‘No criticism’ and ‘No interference’ have an effect on language. Any criticism or interference will be a social risk. Therefore speakers have to balance up the advantages and disadvantages of ‘straight talking’. They must tot up the social distance between themselves and those they are talking to, the power relationship, the cultural norms, and make a decision.
2.Изложите основное содержание текста своими словами на английском языке в 5−6 предложениях.
3.Сформулируйте 5 вопросов, ответы на которые отразили бы основное содержание текста.
4.Переведите следующие предложения на английский язык.
1)Она занята посадкой цветов в саду; я надеюсь, что она не будет иметь ничего против того, чтобы мы помогли ей.
2)В старой церкви было прохладно, как будто там постоянно работал кондиционер.
3)Он еще не знал, что будет делать в Нью-Йорке.
4)Если он поможет нам, тем лучше.
5)Министр доложил о том, что сейчас в школы требуется меньше учителей.
186
Task 21
1. Переведите следующий текст на русский язык.
Changes in the Language
All languages are continually changing — their sounds, their syntax, and their meaning. This gradual alteration is mostly unnoticed by the speakers of a language, since the sounds and syntax in particular give a superficial impression of being static. Yet one glance at the works of Chaucer or Shakespeare shows how much English has changed in a relatively short time.
A closer look at the English of today reveals several sounds and constructions in the process of changing, [j], the y-like sound which occurs before [u:] in words such as tune, muse, duty seems to be dropping out. It has already disappeared in words such as rule, lute. Soon, it may have dropped out entirely, as it has in East Anglia.
Meanwhile, a change in syntax is occurring in the use of the pronouns I and me. It used to be considered correct to say It’s I. Nowadays, the majority of people say It’s me. Me tends to be used after the verb, and I before it. And there are signs that this rule is being extended so that I occurs only in a position directly preceding the verb. The line in the popular song, ‘Me and the elephant, we still remember you’, is only partially a joke. Such sentences possibly encapsulate this changing rule of grammar.
People working on this branch of linguistics are interested above all in how and why language changes. They are also interested in reconstructing an earlier state of affairs in cases where we have no written records of the previous stages of the language.
2.Изложите основное содержание текста своими словами на английском языке в 5−6 предложениях.
3.Сформулируйте 5 вопросов, ответы на которые отразили бы основное содержание текста.
4.Переведите следующие предложения на английский язык.
1)Медсестра пришла, чтобы сказать, что больной попросил
воды.
2)Вы не знаете, в какой гостинице он остановился?
3)Ее кукольное лицо выражало возрастающее раздражение.
4)Были упомянуты очень немногие имена, но я слышал, как в связи с этим вопросом упоминалось именно его имя.
5)Мы можем жить с высоко поднятой головой и смотреть всему миру в лицо.
187
Task 22
1. Переведите следующий текст на русский язык.
How Changes Spread through a Population
The American sociolinguist William Labov was one of the first people to examine how a change spreads through a population. He found a new pronunciation creeping in among the permanent inhabitants on the island of Martha’s Vineyard, a popular holiday resort off the coast of Massachusetts. Judging by previous accounts of the islanders’ speech, the vowel sounds in words such as I, my and out, about were altering their character, being produced with the mouth considerably less wide open than the standard American pronunciation. Labov did a survey of these vowel sounds, interviewing the islanders, and asking them to read passages containing the crucial words.
He found that the change seemed to be radiating out from a group of fishermen who were regarded as typifying the old true values of the island, in contrast to the despised summer visitors. In recent years, the difference between the fishermen’s speech and the standard American pronunciation appeared to have become more extreme. The non-stan- dard vowels were being picked up and imitated in particular by people aged 30−45 who had made a firm decision to stay permanently on the island.
The fishermen’s strange vowels, then, were not a totally new invention, they were simply an exaggeration of existing vowels. Other inhabitants who came into contact with these respected old fishermen perhaps subconsciously imitated aspects of their speech in an effort to sound like ‘true’ islanders.
2.Изложите основное содержание текста своими словами на английском языке в 5−6 предложениях.
3.Сформулируйте 5 вопросов, ответы на которые отразили бы основное содержание текста.
4.Переведите следующие предложения на английский язык.
1)Василий сказал, что его еще никогда не принимали за англичанина.
2)Ни в одном магазине города мы не смогли купить живую
рыбу.
3)Роджер грустно сказал нам, что у него украли коллекцию марок.
4)Об этих фактах не стоит упоминать, вам следовало бы достать более надежные сведения.
5)Он сказал это таким тоном, что я не смогла не рассмеяться; у него, право, большой комический талант.
188
Task 23
1. Переведите следующий текст на русский язык.
Linguistic Areas and Borrowing
When similarities are found between adjacent languages, so-called borrowing should be suspected as a possible source. Languages which come into contact with one another often take over some of the linguistic features of their neighbours. Borrowed vocabulary items are particularly common: English has adopted numerous French food words: courgettes, aubergines, pate, for example. Borrowing of constructions is more likely to occur if the languages are structurally similar. But even dissimilar languages can, over time, gradually absorb features from one another. If some particularly striking characteristic has spread over a wide range, linguists sometimes talk about linguistic areas.
The reason for studying areal characteristics is twofold: on the one hand, knowledge of how languages can affect one another extends our understanding of language change. On the other hand, it is important to isolate shared features caused by borrowing, so as not to confuse them with genetic and typological similarities.
Areal features can involve any aspect of the language. For example, Chinese, Thai and Vietnamese are all spoken in the Far East, and they are all tone languages, something which has apparently come about through contact. And in India, languages with quite different origins have all developed a particular type of sound, known as a ‘retroflex’. Several Balkan languages show similarities which appear to be due to proximity.
2.Изложите основное содержание текста своими словами на английском языке в 5−6 предложениях.
3.Сформулируйте 5 вопросов, ответы на которые отразили бы основное содержание текста.
4.Переведите следующие предложения на английский язык.
1)Сергей рассказал им, что все эти годы я хранил их письма под замком.
2)Конечно, у меня было то преимущество, что я очень хорошо знал этого человека.
3)Я знаю Берта с прошлого года.
4)Джилл внезапно почувствовала, что кто-то прикасается к ее плечу.
5)Однажды у него был трудный матч с сильным соперником. Но ему все-таки удалось выиграть.
189
Task 24
1. Переведите следующий текст на русский язык.
The Roles of Grammar
Grammar is the set of rules and conventions that are the basis of the language.
Early English grammars were derived from the rules of Latin. The result was that they were over-rigid and even included ‘rules’ that did not apply to English at all. For example, there is no rule of English grammar that prohibits split infinitives, or prepositions to end sentences, or conjunctions to start them. These are matters of style, not grammar.
In the 1960s English grammar was accused of restricting the personal development and free expression of young people. The previously accepted form of standard English was declared to be both a straitjacket on self-expression and a devious means of keeping the working class and ethnic minorities in their place. The result was that in many politically correct classrooms the teaching of English grammar was virtually abandoned.
But the pendulum has swung back, and learning the rules of grammar is now an important part of the national curriculum. This is surely right — above all, for journalists, who act as interpreters between the sources they use and their readers and listeners. Not to know the grammar of their own language is a big disadvantage for a writer — and a crippling one for a sub-editor.
A comprehensive English grammar would constitute a book of its own. What follows is an attempt to list the main grammatical terms and rules you need to know. The next chapter describes common mistakes and confusions.
2.Изложите основное содержание текста своими словами на английском языке в 5−6 предложениях.
3.Сформулируйте 5 вопросов, ответы на которые отразили бы основное содержание текста.
4.Переведите следующие предложения на английский язык.
1)Все знали, что последние известия по телевизору начинаются в девять часов.
2)Он никогда раньше ни от кого ничего не слышал об этом странном замужестве Элизы.
3)Гости отметили, что его речь была выслушана с большим вниманием.
4)Джек жил в Манчестере до того, как он поступил в кол-
ледж.
5)Статуя Свободы, которая была изготовлена во Франции, была преподнесена Америке как символ дружбы.
190