Unit 3. Family Part 1. Vivien

Ex.1. Read the text and pick up the terms referring to the topic.

My dad is quite old, he’s 81. My mum’s about 15 years younger. I have two brothers. Nigel, who is seven years older than me, is a computer programmer, or he does something with computers, I’m not sure what exactly. His main interest is music, and he plays the guitar very well, and the piano. He’s married to Nikki, who is an artist. She’s half Swiss, and paints pictures for a living. They live in London, and have two children. My other brother, Chris, is a stockbroker, and he lives with his family in Hong Kong because the firm he works for sent him out there. They send him all over the world. He met his wife Leslie in South Africa, when he was working there. Leslie doesn’t work – she’s a housewife and she brings up the children. They’ve got four children. So I have six nieces and nephews, which means I have quite a lot of presents to buy at Christmas! I come from quite a big family. I worked it out once that I’ve got 25 cousins, because my dad’s dad married twice, and my mum’s mum married twice, so I would have had three sets of grand­parents if they had all been alive at the same time. However, I only remember one grandpar­ent, my grandmother on my mother’s side, but she died when I was very young so I only have very vague memories of her. My mum has two brothers and sisters, and she has three half-sisters. And my dad has four brothers and sisters and two stepbrothers and sisters.

My two brothers are a lot older than me, so I didn’t see them much when I was lit­tle because they weren’t at home that much. There are seven years between each of us, so one brother is seven years older than me and the other is fourteen years older than me. However, my auntie Patty lived with us in the country for a while, she has four children, and the two girls, Catherine and Sarah, were around my age, so it was like having two sisters. This was nice, because we went to school together and we could play together, and it was nice having people of my age around.

My parents live in the country, in the southwest of England. When I lived in England I used to go to visit them maybe every month, but now, of course, it’s much more difficult, and now I go about twice a year. Normally I go at Christmas, although not this year, and some time in the summer. They live in the middle of the country and it’s really nice. There is a river, and you can go for long walks and get some peace and quiet after living in the city. My brother Nigel who lives in London goes home quite a lot to visit them with his children, but my older brother Chris can’t go that often, of course, as he’s always very busy working in Hong Kong.

In England, the stereotypical family is husband and wife and 2 − 4 children, so they say, and a dog and a cat. We have two cats, by the way. They were my cats, but when I left to come and live in Hungary I took them to my mum, who wasn’t overjoyed at the time, but now she quite likes them. We used to have a dog, a big golden Labrador, but he had to be put down cause he got very sick, so that was quite sad. The English stereotypical family of husband and wife is, I suppose, changing now because there are a lot of one-parent families. A lot of people get divorced now and live on their own, and bring up their children on their own. What about my parents? Well, my mother never worked, she was a housewife, and she and my dad lived in Sri Lanka and India for much of their married life, because my dad was a businessman. He’s retired now but used to import, I think it was whisky and fertilizer, from England to Sri Lanka. My mum brought up two children there, so both of my brothers were brought up in Sri Lanka and India. They must have had a very idyllic childhood − I heard stories about them swimming in tropical seas and going on expeditions to tea plantations, and it sounded really nice. I was born a year after they moved back to England, near London, so that’s a bit different from exotic Asia. I suppose in a way we conformed to the typical stereotype of a family, in that my father was the breadwinner and the head of the family, and my mother was a housewife and brought up children. Nowadays in England, most women seem to want to go out to work, and even if they have children they send them to a nursery or a crèche at a very early age, and go back to work to resume their careers. Also, quite often now just the immediate family live together, and a lot of old people live on their own, not usually with their children and their grandchildren as used to be the case.

Ex.2. Suggest the Russian equivalents to the English ones.

To be half Swiss, to do something for a living, to come from a big family, to have vague memories, to be around one’s age, to get some peace and quiet, to be overjoyed, to get sick, to live on one’s own, to resume one’s career, to put down a dog.

Ex.3. Suggest the English equivalents to the Russian ones.

Биржевой маклер, смутные воспоминания, сестра по одному из родителей, сводный брат, быть вне себя от радости, неполная семья, подходить по форме, детские ясли, ближайшие родственники, воспитывать, набор, быть живым, смутный, совершать длинные прогулки, пробрести спокойствие, стереотипный, ходить в поход, соответствовать, выйти на работу, внуки.

Ex.4. Fill in the gaps in the sentences.

1. Vivien’s mum is about … than her dad.

2. Vivien … quite a big family.

3. There is a river, and you can … and get … after living in the city.

4. Vivien’s family used to have a dog, but …, so that was quite sad.

5. Vivien supposes they … a family.

6. She only has … of her grandmother.

7. When she lived in England … her parents every month.

8. In England, the stereotypical family is … children.

9. Most women send children … to resume their careers.

10. There are a lot of … families in England nowadays.

Ex.5. Complete the sentences.

1. Nigel is a computer programmer or …

2. Nikki is half Swiss, and paints pictures…

3. Chris lives with his family in Hong Kong because …

4. Leslie doesn’t work – she …

5. Vivien has six nieces and nephews, which means …

6. Vivien would have had three sets of grand­parents if …

7. However, she only remembers her grandmother …

8. It was nice having people …

9. Vivien took the cats to her mum, who…

10. They must have had a very idyllic childhood…

11. Nowadays in England, most women see…

Ex.6. Are these statements true or false?

1. Nikki is half American and she is out of working.

2. Vivien has vague memories of her granny on her mother side.

3. English stereotypical family is strong enough and all members live together.

4. Vivien’s family doesn’t conform to the typical stereotype of a family.

5. After giving a birth a lot of women are happy to stay at home and be a housewife. They don’t go back to work.

Ex.7. Answer the questions.

1. How old are Vivien’s parents?

2. Is she the only child in her family?

3. What are her brothers?

4. What is Nigel’s main interest?

5. Nigel is single, isn’t he?

6. What does his wife do?

7. Where do Vivien’s brothers live?

8. How many children do they have?

9. Why does Chris live in Hong Kong?

10. What does his wife do?

11. Can we say that Vivien comes from a big family?

12. Why didn’t Vivien see her brothers much?

13. Why did her parents live in Sri Lanka and India?

14. Where were Vivien’s brothers brought up?

15. Where was Vivien born?

16. Does Vivien live together with her parents?

17. Does her father work?

18. Why does she have to buy a lot of presents at Christmas?

19. How often did Vivien use to visit her parents?

20. Why is it nice that Vivien’s parents live in the country?

21. Why did she take cats to her mum?

22. Was her mother happy to get cats?

23. Did they use to have dogs?

24. What did they have to do with the dog?

25. Are Vivien’s brothers much younger than her?

26. What is the stereotypical family in England?

27. What is happening to the English stereotypical family?

28. What kind of families are there?

29. How do people who get divorced live?

30. Why do most women in England want to go out to work?

31. How do a lot of old people live?

Ex.8. Translate the sentences into English.

1. Его мать наполовину швейцарка.

2. Она зарабатывает себе на жизнь тем, что рисует картины.

3. Крис живет в Гонконге, туда его направила фирма, в которой он работает.

4. Моя мама родом из большой семьи.

5. Двоюродная сестра Вивьен примерно ее возраста.

6. Родители Вивьен живут в глубинке, и это здорово. Там есть река, и можно долго бродить в тишине и отдыхать от городской суеты.

7. Когда Вивьен уезжала, она отдала своих кошек маме. Ей это не очень-то пришлось по вкусу, но сейчас они ей нравятся.

8. Раньше у Вивьен была собака лабрадор, но его пришлось усыпить, потому что он сильно заболел.

9. Типичная английская семья состоит из мужа, жены и двоих детей. Сейчас ситуация меняется, появилось много неполных семей.

10. Многие разводятся, живут отдельно и сами воспитывают детей.

11. Семья Вивьен соответствует стереотипу: папа зарабатывает деньги, мама − домохозяйка.

12. Сейчас в Англии большинство женщин выходят на работу. Даже если у них есть дети, они отправляют их в детские сады и возвращаются к своей карьере.

Ex.9. Give a summary of the text.