Раздел 4.2.

1. Отработайте произношение слов, уточнив транскрипцию по словарю:

enlighten v average a hostile a species n light-hearted a apparent a conceal v contempt n sneer v minor a quibble n addition n bear (bore, borne) v rear v guard v otherwise conj preposterous a familiar a cling v supremacy n inferiority n shun v

просвещать средний враждебный, неприятельский вид, род, разновидность весёлый, беззаботный явный, очевидный, кажущийся скрывать презрение, неуважение усмешка, насмешка меньший, незначительный, минорный игра слов, увёртка прибавление, дополнение носить, поддерживать поднимать, воспитывать, выращивать охранять, сторожить, караулить иначе, в противном случае, в других отношениях нелепый, абсурдный хорошо известный, обычный, близкий цепляться, прилипать верховенство, верховная власть низшая степень, худшее качество избегать, остерегаться

2. Прочитайте текст и скажите, как в среднем в обществе мужчины оценивают женщин:

Women In Society

This is supposed to be an enlightened age, but you wouldn't think so if you could hear what the average man thinks of the average woman. Women won their independence years ago. After a long, bitter struggle, they now enjoy the same educational opportunities as men in most parts of the world. They have proved repeatedly that they are equal and often superior to men in almost every field. The hard-fought battle for recognition has been won, but it is by no means over. It is men, not women who still carry on the sex war because their attitude remains basically hostile. Even in the most progressive societies, women continue to be regarded as second-rate to citizens. To hear some men talk, you'd think that women belonged to a different species!

On the surface, the comments made by men about women's abilities seem light-hearted. The same tired jokes about women drivers are repeated day in, day out. This apparent light-heartedness does not conceal the real contempt that men feel for women. However much men sneer at women, their claims to superiority are not borne out by statistics. Let's consider the matter of driving, for instance. We all know that women cause far fewer accidents than men. They are too conscientious and responsible to drive like maniacs. But this is a minor quibble. Women have succeeded in any job you care to name. As politicians, soldiers, doctors, factory-hands, university professors, farmers, company directors, lawyers, bus-conductors, scientists and presidents of countries they have often put men to shame. And we must remember that they frequently succeed brilliantly in all these fields in addition to bearing and rearing children.

Yet men go on maintaining the fiction that there are many jobs women can't do. Top-level political negotiation between countries, business and banking are almost entirely controlled by men, who jealously guard their so-called 'rights'. Even in otherwise enlightened places like Switzerland women haven't even been given the vote. This situation is preposterous! The arguments that men put forward to exclude women from these fields are all too familiar. Women, they say, are unreliable and irrational. They depend too little on cool reasoning and too much on intuition and instinct to arrive at decisions. They are not even capable of thinking clearly. Yet when women prove their abilities, men refuse to acknowledge them and give them their due. So much for a man's ability to think clearly!

The truth is that men cling to their supremacy because of their basic inferiority complex. They shun real competition. They know in their hearts that women are superior and they are afraid of being beaten at their own game. One of the most important tasks in the world is to achieve peace between the nations. You can be sure that if women were allowed to sit round the conference table, they would succeed brilliantly, as they always do, where men have failed for centuries, Some things are too important to be left to men!

3. Прочитайте следующие высказывания. Исправьте неверные высказывания в соответствие с содержанием текста.

1. Women have just won their independence.

2. Women enjoy the same educational opportunities in most countries.

3. They proved to be always superior to men in most fields.

4. Men stopped to carry on the sex war.

5. Their attitude remains basically friendly.

6. Women are considered to be the first-rate citizens in most countries.

7. They are regarded as belonging to a different species.

8. The men’s jokes about women show their respect to them.

9. Women cause more accidents than men.

10. Women drive much more carefully.

11. Women have succeeded in many jobs.

12. Men continue to prove that women can do all the jobs.

13. Men say that women depend on intuition not on cool reasoning.

14. Men are afraid of real competition.

4. Заполните пропуски следующими словами:

supremacy responsible recognition achieve to be equal shame independence unreliable succeeded jealously to acknowledge claims opportunities better

1. Women won their …… years ago.

2. They have got the same ….. to study as men have.

3. In almost every field women have proved to …… and often superior to men.

4. The battle for …… is by no means over.

5. The men’s claims to superiority are not proved by statistics.

6. The women are …… to drive like maniacs.

7. Women have ….. almost in every job.

8. They often put men to …….

9. Men …… guard their “superiority”.

10. They believe that women are …… and irrational.

11. On the average women have got ….. intuition than men.

12. Men refuse …… women’s abilities.

13. It is true that men cling to their ….. because of their inferiority complex.

14. The main task is to …… peace throughout the world.

5. Прокомментируйте следующие высказывания:

1. No man should think himself a zero and think he can do nothing about the state of the world.

2. If it keeps up man will atrophy all his limbs but the push-button finger.

3. The test of a man or woman’s breeding is how they behave in a quarrel.

4. Being a woman is a terribly difficult task since it consists principally in dealing with men.

5. On one issue at least men and women agree - they both distrust women.

6. The way to fight a woman is with your hat. Grab it and run.

6. Назовите несколько профессиональных занятий, которыми занимаются только мужчины.

7. Напишите 5-7 вопросов по содержанию текста и задайте их своим сокурсникам.

8. Сформулируйте основную мысль каждого абзаца.

9. Напишите краткую аннотацию текста, используя фразы:

The average man; the battle for recognition; women’s abilities; fewer accidents; succeeded in; in addition to; guard their rights; exclude women; unreliable and irrational; real competition; would succeed brilliantly.