Still Sprinting

(Derek Parker talks to the millionaire author Jeffrey Archer.)

DESPITE the recent and expensive failure of his latest West End* play, Jeffrey Archer is not noticeably down and a considerable distance from out. With Kane and Abel having sold over three million copies in England and the paperback of Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less continuing to nip smartly out of the bookshops at the rate of a thousand copies a day, fifteen years after its first publication, he has little real reason to be permanently dispirited.

It's common knowledge that literature is not his first love. He only started writing in his mid-thirties, when a promising political career collapsed and he resigned a safe seat in Parliament amid business and financial difficulties which would have crushed most men for good. The legend that he wrote his first novel with the cold-blooded intention of making a fortune, is, however, only a legend.

'I always tell people who say that, and who aren't in the profession, that if it were true - and if it were that easy - everyone'd be doing it. No, I did it much more as an exorcism, to keep working after I'd left the House, because I couldn't get a job. It was vitally important to be physically working — to believe in the work ethic. Oh yes, I wanted the book to be published, to be read, but it was much more to have done something. In fact, the advance on the first book was £3000, and they published 3000 copies, so you couldn't say I wrote it for the money

Penny became an international best seller, and from that day, as an author, he has never looked back.

Both as a reader and author, Archer divides novelists into storytellers and writers. Certainly with him, the important thing is the story. This doesn't come easy

'In fact very little comes, to begin with. I'm writing a book currently - I've done the first draft. But I never know what's on the next line, what's in the next paragraph, what's on the next page. I just let it happen.'

It happens mainly between six and eight in the morning. 'I like that session. It's the only original session. Then I correct from three till five, correct from six till eight, go to bed at nine o'clock. Two thousand words if it's a good day.'

The writing has to fit into a political schedule. Still offered several safe Parliamentary seats a year, which he firmly turns down, he accepts innumerable speaking engagements all over the country But at certain times of the year nobody wants you. I went away on December 15th to write until January 15th. There are ten weeks a year when nobody wants you to speak, and that's when the writing gets done.'

He values his relationship with his publisher to an extent which must warm their hearts. 'I don't think authors can have natural friends in publishing houses;

but there's mutual respect They're good publishers, and I'm proud to be with them.'

And his editor?

'My editor is called Richard Cohen. He's tough. He drives me and drives me. He never writes a word -that's not his job; but he guides, guides, guides the whole time - he's never satisfied. He doesn't have a lot to do with plot - I believe he thinks that's my strength. He'll get me to build characters - build, build, build, the whole time. He knows he's right. He'll go on and on at me; he won't give in. Kicking him has absolutely no effect - he doesn't even bruise. Nine times out of ten, I believe he's right. He has tremendous judgement. He's a class editor.'

Influences?

'I like story-tellers. I'm a story-teller; I'm not good enough to be a writer. I'm Jeffrey Archer and I tell a tale, I hope people turn the pages, and I hope they enjoy it and in the end. that's what I ask for',

Vocabulary

sprint - бежать на короткую дистанцию

despite - несмотря на

recent - недавний

failure - провал

West End: the area of London where many major theatres are found

noticeably - заметно

be down - быть подавленным

considerable - значительный

paperback - книга в бумажной обложке

nip out - здесь: расхватывать, раскупать

smartly - здесь: быстро

at the rate of - со скоростью

permanently - постоянно

dispirited - унылый, удрученный

common - общеизвестный

collapse - рушиться

resign - отказываться(от должности)

amid - среди

crush - уничтожать

intention - немерение

make a fortune - сколотить состояние

exorcism - изгнание из души дьявола

keep doing smth. - продолжать делать

vitally - жизненно (важно)

advance - здесь: аванс

look back - оглядываться

divide - делить, подразделять

currently - в настоящее время

draft - черновой, первый вариант

line - строка

paragraph - абзац, параграф

happen - происходить, случаться

original - настоящий

correct - вносить поправки

fit - подходить

schedule - график

turn down - отвергать

accept - принимать

innumerable - неисчислимый

engagement - здесь: договор

value - ценить

relationship - отношение

to an extent - до (некой) степени

publishing house - издательство

mutual - взаимный

editor - издатель

tough - упрямый, несговорчивый

drive - управлять, вести

guide - руководить, направлять

plot - сюжет

strength - сила, достоинство

give* in - уступать, сдаваться

kick - здесь: скандалить, возражать

bruise - ставить синяки

tremendous - потрясающий

judgement - суждение, мнение

tale - история

turn - переворачивать

enjoy - наслаждаться, нравиться

Word Study to the Text.

Ex. Match the phrases with their Russian equivalents:

1. mutual respect 2. recent failure 3. considerable distance 4. 9

times out of 10 5. common knowledge 6. promising career 7.

publishing house 8. cold-blooded intention 9. first draft 10. next

paragraph 11. political schedule 12. at certain times

a/ политический график b/ хладнокровное намерение c/ недавний провал

d/ следующий абзац e/ многообещающая карьера f/ издательство

g/ первоначальный вариант h/ взаимное уважение i/ в определенные

моменты j/ 9 раз из 10 k/ значительное расстояние l/

общеизвестная истина

Ex. Match the phrases with their Russian equivalents:

1. be despirited 2. firmly turn down 3. have no effect 4. turn pages

5. keep working (on) 6. tell a tale 7. give in 8. value the

relationships 9. make a fortune 10. resign a seat

a/ переворачивать страницы b/ ценить отношения c/ рассказывать

историю d/ твердо отвергать e/ не иметь результата f/ пребывать в

унынии g/ отказаться от места h/ уступать, отказываться i/

сколотить состояние j/ продолжать работать (над)

Ex. Translate the following sentences into English.

1. Несмотря на недавний провал его последней пьесы в Вест Энде, Джефри

Арчер не выглядит подавленным. 2. В Англии распродано свыше 3 млн.экз. его

книги "Каин и Авель", еще одну его книгу расхватывают в книжных магазинах

со скоростью тысяча экз. в день - и это 15 лет спустя после ее первого

издания - так что у него вряд ли (hardly) есть причины пребывать в унынии.

3. Он начал писать очень поздно, после многообещающей политической карьеры.

4. Легенда о том, что он написал свою первую повесть с хладнокровным

намерением сколотить состояние, - это только легенда. 5. Я всегда говорю

людям, что если бы писательский труд был легким, все бы занимались этим. 6.

Да, я хотел, чтобы книгу опубликовали и чтобы ее читали, но аванс за первую

повесть был всего 3 тыс.фунтов при тираже 3 тыс.экз., так что нельзя

сказать, что я писал ее ради денег. 7. В настоящее время я пишу книгу, но

никогда не знаю, что будет в следующей строке или на следующей странице. 8.

Я пишу в основном с 6 до 8 утра, вношу поправки днем, с 3 до 5 и считаю,

что если написано 2 тыс.слов - то это удачный день. 9. Помимо написания

книг, Дж.Арчер выступает с докладами по всей стране - но только в

определенные периоды года. 10. Он ценит свои отношения с издателем. 11. Не

думаю, что можно иметь настоящих друзей в издательском бизнесе, но

существует взаимное уважение. 12. Мой редактор - человек несговорчивый. 13.

Но он умело направляет меня, у него здравые суждения и я полностью доверяю

(trust)ему. 14. Я пишу повести и надеюсь, что читатели переворачивают

страницы и наслаждаются этим - о чем еще можно мечтать?

Comprehension Check.

Ex. Answer the following questions:

1. Who is Jeffrey Archer interviewed by?

2. Is Mr. Archer a rich person?

3. Are all his novels successful?

4. Why isn't he despirited because of the recent failure of his play?

5. What Archer's novels are mentioned here?

6. When did he start writing?

7. What is his daily schedule like?

8. What else does he do, additionally to writing?

9. What are his relations with his editor?

Topics to discuss.

1. Achievements and failures of Jeffrey Archer.

2. His political career.

3. Jeffrey Archer and his editor.

Text IIB

Part 1

FAST FORWARD.

Time is running out. Or so people feel. According to the latest research, forty-four per cent of British workers come home exhausted. More than half suffer from stress. By almost every measure, people are more pressured, more bothered about time - or a lack of it - than they have been for many years. Time, they feel, has been squeezed. All over the world, the old ways of managing time are disappearing. Fixed jobs, shared rhythms of shopping, travel and leisure, and common patterns of learning, marriage, work and retirement are on the way out. Instead, the world is having to come to terms with just-in-time production and multi-tasking computers, 24-hour shopping and video-on-demand, time-share holidays and home banking. All of these are symptoms of a revolution, a transition from an industrial time culture based around fixed timetables and a clear division of labour between men who went to work and women who looked after the home, towards a new culture based around flexibility, customisation and rapid flows of information. This new post-industrial culture offers, perhaps for the first time in history, the promise of people using time for their own needs. But far from ushering in a leisured Utopia, its most immediate effect has been a growing divide between those with too much work and those without any. In top jobs, long hours have become a mark of status and success. One in eight British managers works more than sixty hours a week and more than half take home work during the week. Part of the reason is the insecurity that has swept through so many white-collar jobs, encouraged the phenomenon of "presenteeism" rather than absenteeism - staying in the office even when there isn't any work to do. But technology has also played a part. Ubiquitous computers mean that our work will always be with us and our competitors will always be working too These pressures aren't confined to executives and professionals. While one in six households has no jobs at all, pressure to pay the bills and fear of redundancy mean that a quarter of all British male employees work more than forty-eight hours a week and nearly a fifth of unskilled and manual workers work more than fifty hours. Right across the world the long decline in working hours has stopped. The use of leisure is changing too. Intensive sports like aerobics are being substituted for slower ones like golf. Families are driving round zoos rather than walking around them. And teenagers "multitask" their leisure, watching several television channels at once while also fiddling with a personal computer. Some of the costs of this transition to a post-industrial order are all around us. Not only unemployment and overwork, high stress and high anxiety, but also less obvious ones like fatigue. But little has been done to address it head on, or to adapt institutions to a post-industrial way of life. Most institutions remain stuck in the industrial era. Within the family, even though most women now have jobs, they still do the bulk of domestic work - and consequently have fifteen hours less free time each week than men. Taken as a whole, time remains off the political agenda, treated as far less important than money or production. No political party seems to have acknowledged how much the landscape of time has changed. No one is responding to the mood that we need to find a better balance between work and life. And no one has quite come to terms with the fact that the old industrial model is being rapidly left behind. For those seeking a better balance between work and life, there is already a marvellous institution waiting to be used. Sabbaticals offer time off to recharge the batteries, to learn a new skill or just to travel the world. At the moment, these are a rare treat for academics. With the right funding arrangements, it is not inconceivable that we could, in the future, see every seventh year taken off as a matter of course. A previous generation of writers thought the goal was to escape from work. But this misses the point. Many people enjoy work. They find it fulfilling not only because it is a way to meet people but also because it sets goals and stretches capacities. This is surely why 78 per cent of 25-34 year-olds say that they would work even if there was no financial need. The challenge of a post-industrial age is not to escape from work but rather to achieve more autonomy and more ways for people to control the terms on which they work, its pace and texture

Vocabulary :

completely - абсолютно

crazy - сумасшедший

nightmare - кошмар

survey - исследование

clock off - заканчивать работу (в регулярное время)

run* out - истекать

latest - последний (по времени)

research - исследование

exhausted - измотанный, очень усталый

suffer (from) - страдать (от)

bother - беспокоить(ся)

lack (of) - нехватка

squizze - сжимать(ся)

manage - управлять, распоряжаться

disappear - исчезать

shared - здесь: одни и те же

common - общепринятый

pattern - образец

marriage - брак, женитьба

retirement - уход не пенсию, в отставку

instead - вместо, взамен

come* to terms - прийти к соглашению

just-in-time - во время

transition - переход

division - разделение

look after - ухаживать

towards - к

flexibility - гибкость

rapid - быстрый

flow - поток

promise - обещание

usher in - докладывать

immediate - немедленный

growing - растущий

divide - разделять

insecurity - небезопасность

encourage - поощрять, приветствовать

presenteeism - присутствие

ubiquitous - вездесущий

competitor - противник, конкурент

confine - ограничивать(ся)

executive - руководитель

fear - страх

male - мужчина

unskilled & manual - неквалифицированный

decline - снижение

substitute - замещать

fiddle - бездельничать

transition - переход

order - порядок

unemployment - безработица

overwork - переработка

anxiety - тревога, беспокойство

obvious - очевидный

fatigue - усталость

adapt (to) - приспособить, адаптировать

stuck - застрявший

bulk - множество

domestic - домашний

consequently - соответственно

agenda - повестка

treat - здесь: рассматривать

acknowledge - признавать

respond - отвечать

mood - настроение

leave* behind - оставлять позади

seek - искать

sabbatical - творческий отпуск

recharge - перезаряжать

rare - редкий

funding - финансирование

inconceivable - непостижимый, невероятный

previous - предыдущий

goal - цель

stretch - расширять

capacities - мн.ч. возможности

terms - мн.ч. условия

pace - скорость

texture - качество, структура

Word Study.

Ex. 1. Match the phrases with their Russian equivalents:

1.lack of time a/ феномен "присутствия"

2. fixed job b/ предыдущее поколение

3. based upon flexibility c/ вездесущие компьютеры

4. funding arrangements d/ нехватка времени

5. top job e/ уменьшение рабочих часов

6. fixed timetable f/ основанный на гибкости

7. flow of information g/ способ жизни

8. for one's own needs h/ фиксированная работа

9. phenomenon of "presenteeism" i/ неквалифицированный рабочий

10. ubiquitous computers j/ руководящая работа(должность)

11. decline in working hours k/ поток информации

12. high anxiety l/ для своих нужд

13. unskilled worker m/ фиксированное расписание (график)

14. way of life n/ высокий уровень тревоги

15. previous generation o/ договоренности о финансировании

Ex. 2. Match the phrases with their Russian equivalents: 1. time is running out a/ распоряжаться временем 2. to escape from work b/ устанавливать цели 3. to be on the way out c/ оплачивать счета 4. to stick in the industrial era d/ добиться большей автономии 5. to be left behind e/ время истекает 6. to set goals f/ приходить к соглашению 7. to achieve more autonomy g/ застрять в индустриальной эпохе 8. to pay the bills h/ оставаться позади 9. to come on terms i/ завоевать аудиторию 10. to drive round "zoos" o/ избегать работы 11. to win the audience k/ чрезвычайно устать 12. to be exhausted l/ уходить 13. to recharge the batteries j/ объезжать вокруг зоопарка на а/м 14. to manage time m/ перезарядить батарейки Ex. 3. Translate the following sentences into English. 1. Время истекает - так чувствуют люди, по крайней мере. 2. В соответствии с последним исследованием, 44% британских рабочих приходят домой в высшей степени уставшими. 3. Более половины страдают от стресса. 4. По любым меркам, люди ощущают большее давление, они больше беспокоятся по поводу времени - или его нехватки - чем ранее. 5. Вы чувствуете, что время сжимается. 6. Во всем мире прежние (former) способы распоряжения временем устаревают (get obsolete). 7. Фиксированная работа, одни и те же ритмы покупки, путешествий и досуга, общепринятые способы (patterns) учебы, брака, работы и ухода на пенсию отступают (be on the way out). 8. Чтобы победить в споре, вам нужно убедить кого-то, что вы правы. 9. Удивительно, как много людей начинают говорить (sound off), не решив еще, что они думают по этому поводу. 10. Мнение, которое сформировано без реального обдумывания или заимствовано от других - на самом деле не более, чем предупреждение. 11. Прежде, чем начать спорить по какому-то поводу, вам нужно понять, о чем вы собираетесь говорить. 12. Затем следует отобрать аргументы. 13. Весь процесс высказывания вашего мнения и доказательства, почему это верно, называется дискуссией. 14. Затем следует отобрать доказательства (reasons), которые лучше всего могут поддержать ваше мнение. 15. Неплохо также подобрать примеры, чтобы проиллюстрировать ваши доказательства. 16. Вы должны быть готовы к возможной критике. 17. Порядок приведения аргументов тоже очень важен - можно, например, начать с менее важных и закончить выступление более убедительными аргументами. 18. С годами люди создали множество техник, чтобы звучать убедительно, в том числе риторические вопросы (вопросы, не требующие ответа), воззвание к эмоциям аудитории и приведение эффективных аналогий. 19. Пользуясь вышеуказанными (above) методами, вы сможете завоевать аудиторию.

Comprehension Check.

Answer the following questions:

1. How do people feel concerning time?

2. What are the old ways of managing time?

3. What are the sympthoms of transition from industrial time culture

4. towards a new time culture?

5. What are the costs of this transition?

6. What does a new post-industrial era offer?

7. What is meant by the word "presenteeism"?

8. Are these pressures confined to executives only?

9. Who has the right to sabbaticals?

10. What can sabbaticals used for?

11. Do young people dream of escaping from work?

Topics to discuss.

1. Man and Time.

2. Features (признаки) of the industrial era.

3. Phenomenon of "presenteeism".

4. Features of post-industrial epoch.

5. Sabbatical.

6. Escaping from work!?

Part 2

THE FIRM

(The partner of a law firm - his name is Avery - is explaining to Mitch, who is a newcomer, the rules of work in the firm).

They both declined dessert and ordered coffee. Mitch would be expected to be in the office by nine each morning, Avery explained as he lit a Montesino. The secretaries would be there at eight-thirty. Nine to five, but no one worked eight day. Personally, he was in the office by eight, and seldom left before six. He could bill twelve hours each day, every day, regardless of how many hours he actually worked. Twelve a day, five days a week, at three hundred an hour, for fifty weeks. Nine hundred thousand dollars in billable time! That was his goal. Last year he had billed seven hundred thousand, but there had been some personal problems. The firm didn't care if Mitch came in at 6 A.M. or 9 A.M., as long as the work was done. "What time are the doors unlocked?" Mitch asked. Everyone has a key, he explained, so he could come and go as he pleased. Security was tight, but the guards were accustomed to workaholics. Some of the work habits were legendary. Victor Milligan, in his younger days, worked six-teen hours a day, seven days a week, until he made partner. Then he quit working on Sundays. He had a heart attack and gave up Saturdays. His doctor put him on ten-hour days, five days a week, and he hasn't been happy since. Marty Kozinski knew all the janitors by first name. He was a 9 A.M. man who wanted to have breakfast with the kids. He would come in at nine and leave at midnight. Nathan Locke claims he can't work well after the secretaries arrive, so he comes in at six. It would be a disgrace to start later. Here's a man sixty-one years old, worth ten million, and works from six in the morning until eight at night five days a week and then a half day on Saturday. If he retired, he'd die. Nobody punched a clock, the partner explained. Come and go as you please. Just get the work done.

Vocabulaty. decline - отказаться order - заказать lit* - здесь: прикурить Montesino - сорт сигарет personally - лично seldom - редко bill - заносить в счет regardless - несмотря на actually - на самом деле goal - цель unlocked - незапертый tight - сдержанный (в обращении) accustomed (to) - привычный (к) quit - бросать attack - приступ (болезни) give* up - бросать janitor - амер.: сторож claim - утверждать disgrace - позор be* worth - стоить retire - уйти в отставку, на пенсию punch a clock - отмечаться по часам (на работе) Word Study. Ex. I. Match the phrases with their Russian equivalents. 1. to decline dessert a) рабочие привычки 2. by first name b) сердечный приступ 3. unlocked doors c) закурить сигарету 4. to work actually d) отказаться от десерта 5. work habits e) по имени 6. heart attack f) незапертые двери 7. lit a cigarette g) работать на самом деле Ex. II. Translate the following sentences into English. 1. Они оба отказались от десерта и заказали кофе. 2. Предпалагается, что Митч будет в офисе ежедневно с 9 часов утра. 3. Секретари обычно приходят в 8-30. 4. Авери мог записывать себе 12 часов в день, несмотря на то, сколько часов он отработал на самом деле. 5. На ночь двери запирались на замок, но у каждого был свой ключ, чтобы приходить и уходить, когда необходимо. 6. Охранникки были привычны к трудоголикам. 7. Некоторые партнеры начинали рабочий день очень рано, они считали позором приходить в офис в 9. 8. Был в фирме человек, который "стоил" 10 млн.долл., но если бы он ушел в отставку, он бы умер. 9. Можно было приходить на работу, когда тебе угодно - главное, чтобы работа была сделана. Comprehension Check. Answer the following questions. 1. What does the word "workaholic" mean? 2. How long did the partners of this law firm work evry day? 3. What were the reasons of long working hours, in your opinion? Topics to Discuss. 1. Law firm partners. 2. Avery.

Text IIC