Главная | Обратная связь

Paraphrase using the Complex Subject.

Model:T – It is believed that Chapman left England last week.

St – Chapman is believed to have left England last week.

1. They say Mrs. Turner is having business difficulties. 2. There are rumours that the escaped prisoner is living in Bolivia. 3. It was thought that the manuscript had been destroyed. 4. They say that the late Mrs. Lemon was difficult to deal with. 5. It is believed that the jewels were stolen by one of the visitors. 6. It is known that Victorian values were reflected in the 19^th century English novels. 7. It is recognized that extended families have almost disappeared in Great Britain. 8. It is believed that medical science has been rapidly advancing in the past decade.

 

 

Substantivised Adjectives

 

31. Paraphrase as in the model:

Model: T – Rich people are accused of being concerned only with

their own interests.

St – The rich are accused of being concerned only with

their own interests.

1. Educated and affluent people send their children to public schools such as Eton, and then to Oxford or Cambridge University. 2. Young people see less need to distinguish between manual work and other types of work. 3. British people are sometimes said to be moving towards a completely middle-class society. 4. The gap between rich and poor people in Britain is wider that in most other European countries. 5. Japanese people are known to have a complicated social hierarchy. 6. She has a highly developed social conscience, and does a lot of voluntary work to help those out of employment. 7. Swedish people pay heavy taxes thus providing for the most generous system of welfare in Europe. 8. The state should provide better care for elderly people.

 

Text 1

 

Cross-cultural Notes:

1. African-American – a recent US name for black Americans descended from Africans, especially those descended from American slaves. In the 1990s, the name became more popular and politically correct than ‘black’. About 12% of the US population are African Americans.

 

2. meritocracy [LmerI'tOkrRsI] – a social system which gives the highest positions to those with the most ability.

 

3. school district (Amer.) – an area within one state that includes a number of primary and secondary schools which are governed together.

 

4. the American dream – the idea that the US offers opportunities for a good and successful life. For minorities and people coming from abroad to live in America, the dream also includes freedom and equal rights. Many immigrants to the US in the early 20^th century believed in the American dream.

 

5. chief executive officer – the person in charge of a large company.

Class in America

One difficulty in talking about class is that the word means different things to different people. At its most basic, classes are known to be groups of people of similar economic and social position; people who, for that reason, may share political attitudes, lifestyles, consumption patterns, cultural interests and opportunities to get ahead. As some sociologists and marketing consultants see it, the commonly accepted big three classes – the upper, middle and working classes – have broken down into dozens of microclasses, defined by occupations or lifestyles.

Today, class is a source of identity, a system of exclusion, culture and taste. It is an accident of birth that can influence the outcome of a life. Some Americans barely notice it; others feel its weight in powerful ways.

Religion and political allegiances are no longer reliable markers of class. And the once tight connection between race and class has weakened, too, as many African-Americans have moved into the middle and upper middle classes. The United States has gone a long way toward an appearance of classlessness. It has become harder to identify people’s status in the clothes they wear, the cars they drive, the God they worship, the colour of the skin.

But class is still a powerful force in American life. Over the past three decades, it has come to play a greater, not a lesser, role in important ways. At a time when education matters more than ever, success in school remains linked tightly to class. At a time when the country is increasingly integrated racially, the rich are isolating themselves more and more. At a time of extraordinary advances in medicine, class differences in health and lifespan are wide and appear to be widening.

Mobility, the movement of families up and down the economic ladder, is the promise that lies at the heart of the American dream. Today, anyone may have a chance at becoming a Supreme Court justice or a chief executive officer, and there are more and more self-made billionaires. At the same time, new research on mobility indicates that an overwhelming majority of Americans are more likely to end up in the class into which they were born.

Still, more Americans than 20 years ago believe it is possible to start out poor, work hard and become rich. They say hard work and a good education are more important to getting ahead than connections or a wealthy background. The old system of inherited privilege has been replaced by merit. But it turns out to be at least partly class-based. Parents with money, education and connections cultivate in their children the habits that the meritocracy rewards. When their children then succeed, their success is seen as earned.

The drives to buy a house in the best school district, channel a child into the right pre-school program or get an appointment with the best medical specialist are all part of a quiet contest among social groups that the affluent and educated are winning.

Family structure, too, differs increasingly along class lines. The educated and affluent are more likely than others to have their children while married. They have fewer children and have them later, when their earning power is high. Those widening differences have left the educated and affluent in a superior position when it comes to investing in their children. In the past people used to believe that the offspring of the poor had chances as good as the chances of the offspring of the rich. That’s not true today.

Nevertheless, many Americans say that they have moved up the nation’s class ladder. Americans have never been comfortable with the notion of a hierarchy based on anything other than talent and hard work. Class contradicts their assumptions about the American dream, equal opportunity and the reasons for their own successes and even failures. Without confidence in the possibility of moving up, there would almost certainly be fewer success stories.

 

(After Janny Scott and David Leonhardt, The New York Times, 2005.)

ACTIVE VOCABULARY 1.'similar – похожий, подобный: e.g. The brothers had similar hobbies and interests; similar to – похожий на что-либо, подобный чему-либо: e.g. Their situation seems to have been very similar to ours; similar in – похожие, сходные в чем-либо: e.g. These novels are quite similar in style; simi'larity (between/to) – сходство: e.g. You could see a slight similarity between the two paintings. What strikes me about his poetry is its similarity to Byron’s; 'similarly – подобным образом, так же, соответственно; одинаково (перед прилагательным): e.g. Men are required to wear a jacket and tie; similarly, women must wear a skirt or dress, not trousers. The two sisters had similarly low tastes in clothes. 2. to con'sume –потреблять, расходовать: e.g. The new light bulbs consume less electricity. Language learning is a time consuming process; a con'sumer – потребитель: e.g. Jack turned for legal advice to the local consumer advice and protection centre; consumer goods – потребительские товары; con'sumption – потребление: e.g. Most of the meat was unfit for human consumption. When national income rises, so does consumption. 3.'common –1. широко распространенный, общепринятый, обычный: e.g. It is now very common for women to hold managerial jobs; 2. простой, обычный: e.g. The common cold is a serious thing. In the 15th century the ordinary people could neither read nor write (note that today the English for простые люди is ordinary people); 3. общий, совместный: e.g. Member states also agreed to pursue a common trade policy; 4. общественный, публичный: e.g. This park has been common land for several centuries. No building can be erected without the community’s consent; common sense –здравый смысл: e.g. Although she is not very academic, she’s got plenty of common sense; it’s common knowledge that...– общеизвестно, что…: e.g. It’s common knowledge that smoking and cancer are tightly linked;the House of Commons(Brit.) –палата общин; 'commonwealth –содружество; the Commonwealth – Британское содружество наций: e.g. In the 1950s Britain was concerned with finding a new part to play in a fast changing world and getting used to changing relations with members of the Commonwealth, a new association of former British possessions;co'mmunity –община, землячество иностранцев, сооб­щество, объединение: e.g. The President met leaders of the black community during his visit to Chicago. The terrorist attack has been condemned by the entire international community.   4. to accept[Rk'sept]–1. принимать что-либо (предложение, работу, приглашение, деньги, и т.п.): e.g. She thought about the offer for a while, but in the end decided not to accept it; 2. принимать, одобрять: e.g. Most of the committee’s recommendations have been accepted by Parliament; 3. признавать, принимать, допускать: e.g. Did she accept your reason for being late? 5. to identify[aI'dentILfaI]sb/sth –1. опознавать, идентифицировать (кого-либо/что-либо): e.g. Two of the suspects have been identified by witnesses; 2. устанавливать, определять, обозначать: e.g. The key problems have already been identified; to identify with sb/sth –отождествлять (с): e.g. He didn’t seem to be able to identify with ordinary people and their aspirations; to identify sb/sth as sth –считать, определять кого-либо/что-либокак… : e.g. Children can be identified as poor readers as early as age five;identity –1. личность: e.g. The identity of the dead man could not be established. She experienced an identity crisis after giving up her career to get married; 2. идентификация, самосознание: e.g. Although part of the UK, Scotland has preserved its political and cultural identities; identical – одинаковый, идентичный: e.g. Roman coins she showed me were identical to the one I found in the garden. 6. allegiance[R'li:dG(R)ns] – верность, преданность, приверженность;to swear (swore, sworn)orto pledge allegiance to sb –принести клятву/присягу верности (кому-либо/чему-либо): e.g. In US schools children usually say the Pledge of Allegiance every morning: ‘I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all’;political allegiances – политические пристрастия: e.g. His political allegiances are divided between the Labour and the Liberal Democrats.   7. to re'ly on sb/sth (to do sth)– полагаться на кого-либо/что-либо: e.g. John can help us. At least you can rely on him. We rely on the new data system to give us the most up-to-date and accurate information; (un)re'liable – (не)надежный, (не)заслуживающий доверия, (не)дос­товерный: e.g. This is a better and more reliable car than my last one.   8. to force –1. заставлять, принуждать, вынуждать(to force sb to do sth): e.g. Bad health forced her to abandon her studies;2. применять силу: e.g. Police say the back window has been forced;force – сила, мощь (физическая): e.g. The force of gravity makes things fall to earth. The thief took the money from the old man by force;power –1. сила, власть, влияние: e.g. Power within the company is divided between the directors and the shareholders; 2. энергия, мощность: e.g. In the 21st century more and more electric power is to be derived from renewable sources of energy: sun, wind and waves; a (nuclear/hydro['haIdrRu]) power plant – (атомная/гидро) электростанция;powerful –1. сильный, мощный, могучий: e.g. They have installed a more powerful engine in the new model; 2. влиятельный: e.g. She was a powerful force in the women’s movement.   9. to matter (to sb) –быть важным, иметь значение: e.g. People need to realize that education matters. Winning this award matters a lot to me; it doesn’t matter– мне все равно, мне безразлично, не важно: e.g. It doesn’t matter if we are a bit late; matter – дело, вопрос; сущность, содержание (беседы, статьи и т.п.): e.g. There are several important matters we must discuss; what’s the matter? – в чем дело, что случилось?; there’s something the matter (with sb/sth) – что-то случилось с…; there’s nothing the matter– ничего страшного, ничего не случилось; no matter what (who, where, etc.) – не важно, что (кто, где и т.п.): e.g. I’m determined to visit Japan no matter what it costs. (Note the Present tense!)   10. an heir[ER] (to) – наследник (чего-либо): e.g. The king’s eldest son is the heir to the throne;heritage['herItIdG] (singular!) – наследие: e.g. These beautiful old churches are part of our national heritage;to inherit[In'herIt] (from) – (у)наследовать: e.g. He inherited his business from his father; in'heritance – наследство: e.g. He spent all his inheritance in less than a year.   11. merit –достоинство, заслуга: e.g. One of her many merits is absolute reliability. 12. affluent['WfluRnt] – изобильный, богатый, состоятельный: e.g. Consumer goods are a symbol of prestige in an affluent society; affluence –изобилие, богатство, достаток: e.g. Since the Second World War there has been an increasing level of affluence in the USA. 13. to assume[R'sju:m] – 1. принимать, брать (на себя): e.g. You will assume your new responsibilities tomorrow; 2. предполагать, считать, допускать: e.g. I have always assumed her to be American; assumed name– вымышленное имя: e.g. The suspects are reported to have lived at the Swan Hotel under assumed names;assumption[R'sAmpSn] – 1. предположение, допущение: e.g. Don’t rely on the information she gave you – it’s pure assumption on her part; 2. принятие на себя ответственности, обязанностей и т.п.: e.g. With his father’s death came the assumption of adult responsibilities.

EXPRESSIONS 1. at its most basic – в своей основе, изначально 2. for that reason – по этой причине 3. political attitudes – политические взгляды 4. at a time when…– в то время, когда… 5. to be linked tightly to... – быть тесно связанным(и) с… 6. an overwhelming majority – подавляющее большинство 7. when it comes to... – когда дело касается/когда дело доходит до 8. to be concerned about sb/sth – беспокоиться, волноваться о ком-либо/чем-либо; to be concerned with sth – придавать большое значение чему-либо

 

 

COMPREHENSION EXERCISES