Text 5 The artist and the Fisherman

One day an artist looked out of the window of his room and saw an old fisherman going by. He thought the old man would make a good model for a picture. So he went out and told the fisherman that he wanted to paint him.

The man thought about it for a minute and asked: “What will you pay me?”

“We’ll pay you two pounds, answered the artist and added, as the man still hesitated: “It’s an easy way to earn two pounds, you see.”

“Oh, I know that,” said the man, “but I’m wondering how I shall get the paint off afterwards.”

Exercise 13. Read the text “John Constable” and write out the words you can easily recognize because they exist in the Russian language as well.

Exercise 14. Read the text again and contradict to the statements given after the text. Be sure you know these words:

following his father’s wish – по волі батька

necessity – необхідність

attitude – відношення

sparkle with originality – відзначаються самобутністю

inspiration – натхнення

artificial – штучний, фальшивий

shady – тінистий

brook – рівчак

cart – візок

damp – сирий, вологий

recognition – визнання

to be recognized – бути визнанним

fame – слава

wain – віз

hay – сіно

Text 6 John Constable

(1776 – 1837)

John Constable is one the greatest painters-realists of the 19^th century. His pictures are as fresh and simple as the poetry of the Scotchman Robert Burns (1759 –1796).

Constable was born in a Suffolk village. He spent his childhood about his father’s mills on the banks of Stour, a pleasant river in Suffolk. He went to London to study but following his father’s wish he soon returned to help at the mill. He became a student at the Royal Academy School only at the age of 23.

As an artist Constable developed his style with great independence, studying nature and the world of old masters. He never traveled to Italy or to any other country, he did not feel a necessity for that. Though Constable is the author of portraits, his talent fully developed in landscape painting.

Constable painted the valleys of his dear green England, her river and hills with windmills, her sea coast with boats. He painted rain and sunshine; cool evening and the heat of midday. In his landscapes he tried to express his attitude to his native country. Constable’s paintings show us his love for the countryside and his deep respect for the common people of his native country.

One of the French artists and critics wrote about Constable’s most popular painting “The Hay Wain” (1821); “The appearance of Constable’s works was a great event in the history of modern painting. His paintings sparkle with originality, based on truth and inspiration. There is nothing artificial in the picture “The Hay Wain”. You see a cottage half covered with old shady trees, a clear brook and a cart crossing it. In the distance you see the typical countryside near London. You can feel the damp atmosphere of England. Such is one of Constable’s compositions in all its simplicity.”

Constable did not receive real recognition in England during his lifetime. The reactionary critics and aristocracy were not friendly to Constable’s work. Constable said “I am not a painter of ladies and gentlemen.” The artist understood that his landscapes of cottages and mills, valleys and fields with common people would not bring him fame.

The country where Constable was first recognized when he was already 48 was France. In the eyes of French artists and critics Constable was an innovator in landscape painting. His painting “The Hay Wain”, a landscape of his beloved Stour, was exhibited in Paris in 1824. It was awarded a gold medal at the exhibition.

In Constable’s pictures you can see something of the whole country in each of them. You see the changeable English weather, the ocean winds carrying clouds and the damp air. The artist liked to study the sky and he had a special word for making sketches of the sky – skying. Constable paid great attention to sketches from nature and has left a great number of them. He knew how to find beauty in the smallest spot of his native country. Work amid nature was always joyful to Constable’s mind.

Contradict like this:

• John Constable is one of the first Impressionists.

• I can’t agree with this. As far as I know John Constable is one of the greatest painters-realists of the 19-th century.

1. Constable was born in France. His father was a famous banker.

2. His father wanted John to be a painter and sent him to a Royal Academy.

3. He developed his style copying old masters in the greatest museums of the world.

4. He traveled much. He visited Italy, Greece, Turkey, Egypt and other countries.

5. Constable didn’t like to live in the country. He painted only cityscapes.

6. As he didn’t know rural life, his painting “The Hay Wain” was not a success especially in France.

7. Constable was very popular in England during his life he was even awarded a gold medal at the exhibition in London.

Exercise 15. Find in the text the description of Constable’s picture “The Hay Wain” and say what can be seen in it.

Exercise 16. Retell the text according to the plan:

Plan:

1. Place of birth.

2. Family.

3. Education.

4. The things he painted.

5. “The Hay Wain,” – what can be seen in this picture.

6. Recognition and Fame.

7. What can be seen in his pictures? With what Scottish poet can Constable be compared?

8. How will you finish Burn’s phrase concerning Constable: my heart’s in …

Exercise 17. Look at J.Constable^’s landscape “Flatford mill on the river Stour” exhibited in National Gallery. Describe it.

Use the words and word combinations: typically English scene, in the near foreground a horse with a boy on its back, barge floating on the stream; in the back ground, the mill and a lock (шлюз); the graze, the foliage (листя), the sky, early summer.

Lesson 9

Observe and remember

The Infinitive

Форми інфінітиву	Active	Passive
Indefinite	to invite	to be invited
Continuous	to be inviting
Perfect	to have invited	to have been invited
Perfect Continuous	to have been inviting

Функції в реченні:

Функція	Приклад	Переклад
1. підмет	To live is to learn.	Жити це – вчитись.
2. частина присудка	We must stay at home. To see is to believe.	Ми повинні залишитись вдома. Побачити це – повірити.
додаток	He asked me to wait.	Він попросив мене почекати.
4. означення	He was the first to come. He brought me the book to read.	Він прийшов першим. Він приніс мені почитати книгу
5. обставина	It was too hot to go out into the town.	Було надто жарко, щоб іти в місто