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6. The latest general examination of the population carried out by
asking questions shows a majority in support of government
policy
7. A representative of the company is going to tell the audience
about the new products at the meeting.
8. The politicians have fully examined and discussed the new
budget.
9. It is not the first time when Jack is making jokes in such a
serious situation.
III. Below are words from the active, each followed by a group
of synonyms and antonyms. Decide which is a synonym and which
is an antonym referring to the context the word is used in:
dubious: questionable, certain, doubtful, suspicious, reliable,
hesitating, embarrassing
dumb: stupid, intelligent, smart, slow-witted, clever
habit: custom, inspiration, practice, occasion
at large: free, confined, imprisoned, locked
IV. Translate into English using the active vocabulary:
1. У него есть привычка постоянно дурачиться.
2. Джек — постоянный посетитель нашего клуба.
3. Дети совершенно разучились убирать в квартире.
4. Это сомнительное утверждение, я бы ему не доверял.
5. Все считают Боба простаком в любовных делах.
6. Мы прорекламировали этот товар, чтобы поскорее распро-
дать его.
7. Будучи заядлым курильщиком, он выку
день. Эта привычка ужасно раздражает его жену.
8. Я отдаю предпочтение художественным фильмам перед
документальными, так как считаю последние очень
скучными.
9. В студенческие годы мы увлекались гонками на лыжах по
пересеченной местности.
ривает 20 сигарет в
171
10. Он так долго проработал в администрации Буша, что его
до сих пор связывают с Республиканской партией.
11. Мы провели опрос наших покупателей, и он показал, что
реклама увеличивает продажу продукции.
12. Вся страна поднялась против терроризма.
13. Кажется, это очень сомнительное агентство.
14. Наш девиз: «Клиент всегда прав».
15. Они ещ
военную форму и отправлять на войну.
16. Ты, наверное, шутишь!
17. Фенимор Купер так живо повествует о приключениях
Нэтти Бампо, что начинаешь чувствовать себя главным
героем романа.
18. Можно ли спать спокойно, когда преступники на свободе?
19. Духи рекламировались в самих популярных женских
журналах.
20. У него была сомнительна
21. У Джорджа появилась привычка поздно ложиться спать.
22. Два подозреваемых были опознаны.
23. Тигр, который сбежал из зоопарка, еще на свободе.
24. Он начинает вести себя глупо, когда видит ее.
V. True or false:
е совсем дети, безнравственно одевать их в
я репутация в бизнесе.
1. The National Endowment for the Humanities tested some
scientists.
2. American high school students showed profound knowledge of
world history.
3. Twelve inches equals two feet.
4. Columbus sailed to America after 1850.
5. The British call private schools public schools.
DISCUSSION
I. Comment
explain why the author finds them dumb:
1. “And in Albany today they had 12 inches of snow,’ then brightly
added, ‘That’s about a foot.’
on the following episodes from the text and
172
No, actually that is a foot, you poor sad imbecile.”
2. “‘Owing to wind and rain, the Sphinx eroded by three feet in just
three hundred years,’ then paused and solemnly added: That’s a rate of
one foot a century.’”
3. “What the customers wanted, according to the incisive prose of
Mr. Gordon Bethune, President and CEO, was ‘a clean, safe and
reliable airline that took them where they wanted to go, on time and
with their luggage.’
Gosh! Let me get a pen and a notebook! Did you say ‘with their
luggage’? Wow!”
4. “If, say, the New York Times were to report on a British general
election, it would dateline the story ‘London, England’, so that no
reader anywhere would have to think: ‘London? Now let’s see, is that
in Nebraska?’”
5. The dialogue about public schools.
II. Correct the answers given by American high school seniors
in the second paragraph of the text.
III. Answer the following questions:
1. What does the author mean by the ‘Dumbing Down of
America’?
2. Is the author ironic about the problem or does he treat it
seriously? Prove your point of view.
3. What is the message of the story? Find sentences in the text
which express it.
4. Do you think the standard of living in a society depends on the
state of education?
5. Why do you think American high school seniors showed such
poor knowledge in the survey?
6. Do you think the U.S. educational system needs to be
improved?
7. What about the Russian educational system? What is your
opinion about the latest tendencies in its development?
173
IV. Write an essay on the following topics:
1. Indulgence in everyday luxury prevents people from thinking.
2. If there’s nothing to improve a person starts to destroy.
3. How to improve the U. S. and Russian educational systems:
possible approaches.
4. Can stupidity be a national feature?
174
Unit 9
SPORTS
PREREADING
Answer the questions:
1. Are you fond of sports? What sport are you keen on?
2. What do you think are the most popular sports in Russia? In
the U.S.?
3. Do you know how to play baseball? basketball? cricket?
football?
4. What role do sports play in people’s lives?
TEXT 1
TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALL PARK
People sometimes ask me, ‘What is the difference between
baseball and cricket?’
The answer is simple. Both are games of great skill involving
balls and bats, but with this crucial difference: baseball is exciting
and when you go home at the end of the day you know who won.
I’m joking, of course. Cricket is a wonderful game, full of
deliciously scattered micro-moments of real action. If a doctor ever
instructs me to take a complete rest and not get over-excited, I shall
become a fan at once. In the meantime, however, I hope you will
understand when I tell you that my heart belongs to baseball.
It’s what I grew up with, what I played as a boy, and that of
course is vital to any meaningful appreciation of a sport. I had this
brought home to me many years ago in England when I went out
onto a football pitch with a couple of guys to knock a ball around.
I had watched football on TV and thought I had a fair idea of
what was required, so when one of them lofted a ball in my
direction, I decided to flick it casually into the net with my head, the
way I had seen Kevin Keegan do it. I thought that it would be like
heading a beachball — that there would be a gentle ‘ponk’ sound
and that the ball would lightly leave my brow and drift in a pleasing
arc into the net. But of course it was like heading a bowling ball. I
175
have never felt anything so startlingly not like I expected it to feel. I
walked around for four hours on wobbly legs with a big red circle
and the word
MITRE
imprinted on my forehead, and vowed never
again to do anything so foolish and painful.
I bring this up here because the World Series has just started
and I want you to know why I am very excited about it. The World
Series, I should perhaps explain, is the annual baseball contest
between the champion of the American League and the champion
of the National League.
It’s not easy being a baseball fan because baseball fans are a
hopelessly sentimental bunch, and there
is no room for sentiment in
something as wildly lucrative as an American sport.
It used to be that every big American city had a venerable ball
park. Generally these were dank and creaky, but they had character.
There are only four of these old parks left. One is Fenway Park in
Boston, home of the Red Sox. Now the owners want to tear it down
and build a new stadium. I keep saying that when they raze Fenway I
won’t go to the new stadium, but I know I’m lying because I am
hopelessly addicted to the game. You see what I mean when I say
that it is not easy being a baseball fan.
NOTES
1. Pay attention to the difference in the following British and
American terms:
AmE football cf. BrE American football — американский футбол
AmE soccer cf. BrE football — футбол
CULTURAL ASSOCIATIONS
Look up the following entries in the Dictionary of U. S. Life and
Culture (Жизнь и культура США: Лингвострановедческий
словарь) or other dictionaries and encyclopedias:
American League
baseball
bat
beachball
Boston
176
bowling
cricket
football
National League
pitch
World Series
COMPREHENSION CHECK
1. What is the author’s attitude towards baseball and cricket?
Which of the games does he prefer and why?
2. When he is speaking about ‘football,’ does he mean American
football or soccer? Retell the episode devoted to this game.
3. What is the World Series?
4. Why do you think baseball is so popular with Americans?
5. How does the author explain why it is not easy being a
baseball fan?
I. Translate the following sentences from the text and explain
what is meant:
1.
Both are games of great skill involving balls and bats, but with
this crucial difference: baseball is exciting and when you go
home at the end of the day you know who won.
2.
I walked around for four hours on wobbly legs with a big red
circle and the word
MITRE
imprinted on my forehead, and
vowed never again to do anything so foolish and painful.
3.
It’s not easy being a baseball fan because baseball fans are a
hopelessly sentimental bunch, and there
is no room for
sentiment in something as wildly lucrative as an American
sport.
III. True or false:
1. The author sticks to the point that being a fan is much more
exhilarating than being a player.
2. Playing cricket is nowhere near as amusing as playing baseball.
3. The author was a very skillful football player and enjoyed the
game a lot.
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4. If a new baseball stadium is built he will never go to a baseball
game again.
5. It’s not easy to be a baseball fan because there are a lot of
emotions associated with the game.
ACTIVE VOCABULARY
game n — any form of play or way of playing; amusement;
recreation; sport: The children were in the garden playing a game
of hide-and-seek. Soccer is my favorite game.
skill n — special ability to do something well, esp. as gained by
learning and practice: computer skills; management skills; a
painter of great skill.
fan n — a keen follower of a sport, performing art, famous person,
etc.: football fans; fan club.
to appreciate v — 1. to think well of; understand and enjoy; esteem:
He is not appreciated enough in his job. 2. to recognize and be
grateful to: I really appreciate your help. 3. to estimate the quality
or worth of, esp. favorably: She appreciates good wine.
appreciation n — understanding of the good qualities or worth of
something: The audience showed their appreciation with loud
cheers.
contest n — 1. a struggle or fight to gain control or advantage: the
contest for leadership. 2. a competition: a beauty contest; annual
baseball contest.
to contest v — to compete for; fight for: How many people are
contesting for the prize? Note: Pay attention to the stresses in the
noun contest and in the verb to contest.
team n — a group of people working together in a coordinated effort:
a team of sportsmen. Note: The noun can be combined with a verb
in the singular or the plural: the team is… or the team are...
to fail v — 1. to not do what is expected, wanted, or needed: His
secretary failed to tell him about the meeting. 2. to be unsuccessful
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in (a test or examination), not pass: Why did you fail your driving
test? 3. to judge (someone) to be unsuccessful in a test or
examination: My professor failed me in the written paper. 4. to
disappoint or leave someone, esp. at a difficult time: His friends
failed him when he most needed them. 5. to lose strength, become
weak: His Grandfather’s health is failing fast.
failure n — 1. the act, state, or fact of failing: Ted’s plans ended in
failure. 2. a person or thing that fails: As a businessman, he is a
complete failure.
inevitable adj — that cannot be avoided or evaded; certain to happen:
inevitable confrontation.
addicted adj — dependent on something, esp. a drug; unable to stop
having or taking: My children are hopelessly addicted to television.
addict n — 1. a person addicted to some habit, esp. to the use of a
narcotic drug: a heroin addict. 2. an ardent supporter; devotee: a
TV addict. Note: Pay attention to the stresses in the verb to addict
and the noun addict.
stadium n — a sport arena with tiers or seats for spectators.
ASSIGNMENTS
I. Translate into Russian paying attention to the active
vocabulary:
1. Chocolate addicts are sometimes known as “chocoholics.”
2. The failure of the national community to deal with the problem
has cost thousands of lives.
3. Did you go to the stadium to watch the soccer game yesterday?
4. I know for sure my math teacher is going to fail me in the exam.
5. Reading and writing are two different skills.
6. You look great — ready for a beauty contest!
7. I’d appreciate it if you would turn the radio down.
8. She is a Tom Cruise fan.
179
9. Cricket is a team game.
10. At the last moment his courage failed him and he ran away.
11. He is a pianist of great skill.
12. I didn’t do it on my own; it was a team effort.
13. A conflict was inevitable because they disliked each other so
much.
14. The children of mothers who use crack or cocaine are often
born addicted to the drug.
15. The letter failed to arrive.
16. He handled the negotiation with great skill.
17. Come on, Harry, show some team spirit!
18. In the failing light I could hardly see the path in front of me.
19. His talents are not fully appreciated in the company he is
working for.
20. Our team has been looking forward to the contest since spring.
21. I teamed up with Jane to carry out the project.
22. The professor made his inevitable joke about junk food.
23. A team of experts has been called in to investigate the
problem.
24. “Jane, you’ve failed your exam! The game is up!”
25. A confrontation is inevitable, that’s why we should be ready
for a failure.
26. My brother has always been an ardent football fan; he spends
all his spare time playing the game.
II. Below are words from the active, each followed by a group
of synonyms and antonyms. Decide which is a synonym and which
is an antonym referring to the context the word is used in:
to fail — to lose, to break down, to win, to succeed, to fulfill, to
achieve, to waste, to miss
inevitable: obvious, inescapable, unavoidable, necessary
to appreciate: to underestimate, to value, to recognize, to be
grateful
to contest: to compete, to fight for, to give up, to conflict
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