voskresenskaya_e_g_i_dr_sost_sovremennye_angliiskie_romany

The Deal Done

Results and Conclusions

PRE-READING

Focus Activity 1 Discuss the following questions.

1)What do you think of the painting Martin is obsessed with: is it a real Bruegel or not?

2)Does art have value? Price? Comment on the characters of the novel and their attachment to this or that painting.

ACTIVE READING

Vocabulary Practice

2 Find the following words/collocations in the text, give their definitions, derivatives and translations. Give the contexts they are used in.

initiation rite (p. 359); prostrate oneself (p. 359); fight one’s corner (on) (p. 360); do one’s level best (p. 360); passing (p. 366); cheat somebody (out) of something (p. 369); heave (p. 370); enough is enough (p. 370); go through the motions (p. 372); have one’s eye on (p. 372); mortification (p. 373).

3 Translate the sentences into English using words and expressions from Vocabulary Practice Section. Pay attention to the underlined words and expressions.

1. Темнолицый человек пал ниц на тканый ковер, лежащий у ног фараона. 2. Этот поступок был последней каплей, больше с таким поведением я мириться не намерен. 3. Обряд инициации вклю- чал в себя несколько испытаний и длился пять дней. 4. Мест- ный бизнесмен давно мечтал уйти на пенсию. 5. Подойдя к ал- тарю, он сначала преклонил колена, а затем пал ниц. 6. К вели- чайшему разочарованию публики, концерт так и не состоялся. 7. Президент заявил, что Россия будет отстаивать свои интересы в Европе. 8. Ради проформы был объявлен конкурс на должность,

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хотя все и так знали, кто займет место помощника руководите- ля. 9. Мы изо всех сил пытались выглядеть заинтересованными. 10. Они побросали свои пожитки в автобус и были таковы. 11. Его сделанное мимоходом замечание касалось всех присутствующих.

4 Give a word or expression for the following definitions.

1)pay a visit to (p. 376);

2)an absurd pretense intended to create a pleasant or respectable appearance (p. 377);

3)a person who enters a building, grounds, etc., without permission (p. 378);

4)having a foul or offensive smell (p. 379);

5)turned away (p. 380);

6)a very light cake made with eggs, sugar, and flour but little or no fat (p. 380);

7)judging from what you have heard or read about something (p. 380);

8)draw an obvious conclusion from what is known or evident (p. 383);

9)cause (something unpleasant or painful) to be suffered by someone or something (p. 284);

10)catch up with and pass while travelling in the same direction (p. 386);

11)a loss of awareness of one's identity, often coupled with flight from one's usual environment, associated with certain forms of hysteria and epilepsy (p. 386);

12)a sudden jar blow (p. 386);

13)too great to be overcome (p. 388).

5Translate the sentences into English using words and expressions from Vocabulary Practice Section. Pay atten-

tion to the underlined words and expressions.

1. Услышав про убийства в соседнем городке, он наконец-то по- нял, кто за ними стоит. 2. Ни одна из проблем, с которыми он столкнулся во время выполнения задания, не оказалась непре- одолимой. 3. Настал тот момент, когда мириться с этим было уже невозможно. 4. Обряд посвящения стал для новичков настоящим испытанием. 5. Она все еще тоскует по дому, но мы делаем все возможное, чтобы ее ностальгия не переросла в депрессию. 6. Для проформы, он решил повторить правила для вновь прибывших.

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7. Судя по всему, она была мастером своего дела. 8. Он отвел взгляд и принялся методично жевать.

6 Fill in missing words/phrases in the sentences below.

1)He is a hero in …. (p. 389)

2)It was his Christian … to stop this from happening. (p. 390)

3)The wife of a prominent banker, his own banker as …, said the banker liked mashed potatoes. (p. 390)

4)… was established in 1987 to be responsible for investigating and prosecuting serious or complex frauds in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. (p. 391)

5)After her husband died, Mildred found herself suddenly at …. (p. 391)

6)They won't take credit; they want …. (p. 392)

7)The United States agreed to … off debts worth billions of dollars. (p. 392)

8)Nor, for …, do the local residents have any notion of this facility. (p. 393)

9)Any country trading in these weapons would face international …. (p. 394)

Comprehension and Discussion

7 Answer the questions below.

1)Why did the author name the last two chapters ‘The Deal Done’ and ‘Results and Conclusions’?

2)What does Martin get to know when he brings money to Tony? How does he react?

3)What does Martin mean when he says that they entered the land ‘where history has ceased’?

4)How does the author show the change of mood in the story from despair to revived hope? Why does Martin constantly use water as a metaphor for time in this chapter?

5)Why did Michael Frayn choose Bruegel as the creator of the reemerged treasure? Who else could be on his place in your opinion?

6)To what does Amalienburg Palace allude the reader?

7)Why does Martin describe his wait outside the Churts’ house as a ‘lifetime’? What does he find Manichean about it?

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8)What happens inside the Churts’ house?

9)What is the connection between baler twine and suffocation?

10)What happens when Martin have finally laid hands on the picture?

8Give a summary of the chapter using words from Vocabulary Practice section.

9Comment on the following quotations and explain their

meaning. Do you agree with them?

1)We seem to have come full circle. (p. 359)

2)We are getting visibly a little nearer to sunset. (p. 362)

3)I outsmarted everyone, even myself. (p. 366)

4)She doesn’t even react to the news that I’ve managed to lose most of the money in the process of achieving nothing. (p. 367)

5)No one means absolutely literally what they say. (p. 370-1)

6)Falling, falling, into the depths, where the waters will close above him for ever. (p. 371)

7)I see why you are a philosopher. (p. 374)

8)Way off in the middle distance, unnoticed by anyone around, remarked only by an eye outside the world of the picture, a secular martyrdom is taking place. (p. 384)

9)The whole accelerating, headlong rush of events has been focused into this one final insane fugue, which will only be ended by a vehicle coming in the opposite direction. (p. 386)

Creating a Commentary

10 Comment on the meaning and usage of the following references and allusions, give the context they are used in.

Chapel Perilous (p. 359); Menelaus’s treasure (p. 371); Paris (p. 371); odyssey (p. 374); the Plough (p. 378).

Language and Style

11 Translate the following passage.

What I’m putting together is… – …turns the whole idyll into an irony. (p. 383-4)

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компетентный сотрудник был уволен. 13. В столице были за- держаны приспешники известного террориста. 14. Автопортрет художника не был представлен на выставке. 15. В качестве до- казательства приводилась надпись, сделанная каким-то рели- гиозным фанатиком.

THEMES AND IDEAS

3 Answer the questions below.

1)How does Frayn’s portray Martin and Kate’s marriage? Do their problems seem resolved at the novel’s conclusion?

2)What dilemma preoccupies Martin throughout the novel? How does he justify his ‘confidence trick’?

3)Besides Martin, several other characters of the novel behave badly – which did you feel behaved worst and why?

4)In what ways has Martin changed at the end of the novel? Is he a complex character? Why and why not? Are there complex characters in the novel?

5)Art is another symbol of the novel. What is art for Martin? For other characters?

6)Did you like the book? How would you describe your feelings after having read it?

7)What is the theme of the novel? The idea? How are they conveyed in the book? Choose apposite quotations to prove your point of view.

8)What plot-structure technique is used in the novel? What effect is achieved?

9)Why is the setting of the novel so important for the narration? Could this story have happened in London? In the USA? Somewhere else?

10)What are the overall mood and tonality of the novel? How can we explain constant shifts in the mood, but generally stable tonality?

11)The author uses the word ‘uneventfulness’ several times. Can you explain its meaning and symbolism in this novel? What does Headlong tell us about the correlation between images and their underlying meanings?

12)What other words (e.g.: darkness, light) from the novel would you choose to explain the theme of the novel?

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13)How would you explain the importance of water for the narrative of the novel?

14)History is also present abundantly on the pages of the novel. Did Frayn successfully merge Martin’s story with art history and the history of the Netherlands? Do Martin’s arguments about the painting attribution seem plausible to you? Did this book awaken an interest in history and art for you?

4Describe what happened with all the characters (and paintings) of the novel after the ‘Bruegel’ was destroyed. Comment on the final pages of the novel.

5Draw the timeline of the events of the novel.

6Comment on the point of view in the novel.

7Explain the title of the novel. How would you translate it into Russian?

8As a writer, Frayn is perhaps best known for his comedic works. Discuss the farcical elements of Headlong. Does Frayn’s use of comedy succeed? Moreover, Frayn is well-known as a dramatist. To what extent have his skills as a playwright influenced the structure and style of Headlong?

9Write your own blurb of the novel.

10Characterise

•Martin;

•Kate;

•Laura;

•Tony;

•John Quiss.

Use a character sketch template at the end of the book.

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REFERENCES AND ALLUSIONS

11 Comment on the following references and allusions. Which role do they play in the narrative of Headlong?

Sotheby's, Christie's, Guardi, Tiepolo, the Kunsthistorisches Museum, breviary, Mischlandschaft, suggestio falsi, Fall of the Rebel Angels, Philip II, Faveau and Mallart, Manichaeanism, Granvelle, The Painter and the Connoisseur, grisaille, prelapsarian world, Two Monkeys, Nativity, Armada, Menelaus's treasure.

12Complete the quiz on the life and works of Pieter Bruegel.

1.Which genre of painting is Bruegel renowned for?

2.Bruegel was an apprentice of which artist?

a) Jan van Eyck; b) Pieter Coecke van Aelst;

c) Rogier van der Weyden

3.Where had Bruegel lived before he moved to Brussels?

a) Haarlem; b) Antwerp; c) Ghent

4.Grotesque manner of painting characteristic of which artist

can be traced in Bruegel’s works?

a) Hieronymus Bosch; b) Maarten de Vos;

c) Vincent van Gogh5.

5.Who called Bruegel the most perfect artist of the century in his memorable obituary?

a) Jacques Jonghelinck; b) Niclaes; c) Abraham Ortelius

6.When did Pieter Bruegel die?

a) 1569; b) 1566; c) 1560

7.How many paintings by Bruegel have been preserved to the

8.Where are most of these paintings located?

a) Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna; b) private collections;

c)Metropolitan Museum of Art in New-York

9.In which painting did Bruegel depict Margaret, Duchess of Parma, according to Martin?

a)The Triumph of Death; b) The Census at Bethlehem;

c) Dulle Griet

10.Which painting by Bruegel depicts at least 100 sayings?

PART 4

Graham Swift

WATERLAND

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