Green Line - Lo

O wonder!
How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world
How many goodly creatures are there here!
That has such people in’t.
William Shakespeare, The Tempest (V.i. 181–84)
Green Line
Oberstufe
mit CD-ROM
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Green Line Oberstufe
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Autoren:
Peter Huuck, Hildesheim; Mary Jo Rabe, Titisee-Neustadt; Thomas Tepe, Münster sowie
Marion Horner, Cambridge
Redaktion:
Mark Borrill, Tino Frey
Entstanden in Zusammenarbeit mit dem Projektteam des Verlags.
Verleger:
Dr. h. c. Michael Klett
Geschäftsführer: Thomas Baumann (Vorsitz)
Ansprechpartner: Heinz-Peter Gerlinger
Ernst Klett Verlag GmbH
Rotebühlstraße 77
70178 Stuttgart
Umsatzsteuer-ID-Nr.: DE 811122363
Stuttgart HRB 10746
© und ® Ernst Klett Verlag GmbH, Stuttgart 2009
Alle Rechte vorbehalten
Internetadresse: www.klett.de
Das Werk und seine Teile sind urheberrechtlich geschützt. Jede Nutzung in anderen als den gesetzlich
zugelassenen Fällen bedarf der vorherigen schriftlichen Einwilligung des Verlags. Hinweis zu §52a UrhG:
Weder das Werk noch seine Teile dürfen ohne eine solche Einwilligung eingescannt und in ein Netzwerk
eingestellt werden. Dies gilt auch für Intranets von Schulen und sonstigen Bildungseinrichtungen.
Fotomechanische oder andere Wiedergabeverfahren nur mit Genehmigung des Verlages.
Textquellennachweis:
S.69 © NO2ID 2009
S.70 Happiness: © International Creative Management
S.71 Lust for life ???
S.73 Chéri: © The Sunday Times 2009
S.74 Mandela speech © 1994. Extract from the
Inauguration of Nelson Mandela as State President
of South Africa, Union Buildings, Pretoria,
10 May 1994.
S.75 PETA © 2009 Peta Europe Ltd
S.76 © 2009 The New York Times
S.77 © 2009 The Guardian
Bildquellennachweis:
S.60 Klett-Archiv/Gremmelspacher
S.62 Stock 4B
S.63 NASA – National Aeronautics and Space
Administration
S.64 Creativ Collection Verlag
S.65 1 ShutterStock.com; 2 Fotolia LLC, 3 ShutterStock.com
S.66 MEV
S.68 1 dpa Picture-Alliance GmbH/Kai-Uwe Wärner; 2
Avenue Images/Banana Stock; 3 ShutterStock.com
S.71 1 Yahoo! Deutschland GmbH/BlueJay; 2 ShutterStock.
com
S.73 Imago Stock & People
S.75 Corbis GmbH
S.76 Fotosearch/Brand X Pictures
C
Contents
B Back to basics
1 Basic word skills
2 Basic text skills
Basic 1: Using a dictionary
60
Basic 2: Using collocations
61
Basic 3: Spelling
62
Basic 4: Avoiding Germanisms
64
Basic 5: Using idioms and proverbs
65
Basic 1: Talking about the author
66
Basic 2: Talking about a narrative text
67
Basic 3: Talking about relationships
68
Basic 4: Talking about function
69
Basic 5: Talking about poetry
70
Basic 6: Distinguishing between fictional and factual texts
71
Basic 7: Quoting
72
Basic 8: Underlining
73
Basic 9: Recognising stylistic devices
74
Basic 10 Recognising bias
75
Basic 11: Skimming and scanning
76
Basic 12: Note taking
78
B
Back to basics
1 Basic word skills
Basic 1: Using a dictionary
• Both monolingual and bilingual dictionaries give information about what part of speech a word is, collocations using that word, related words, pronunciation, and any irregular forms.
• A monolingual dictionary gives definitions of a word, some synonyms, and examples of correct usage.
• A bilingual dictionary gives possible translations of a word, together with information about context so that you can determine which translation is the correct one for your needs.
• A bilingual dictionary may be more useful for interpreting an English text whereas a monolingual dictionary may j
prove more helpful in ensuring that you use the best word (and use it correctly!) to express your thoughts.
TIP
Tips for using a dictionary:
1. Determine the part of speech of the word you are looking up.
2. Choose the meaning from the words available for the same part of speech as
your word.
3. Read all the information given about usage.
4. Analyse the context of the word you are looking up and make sure the meaning or translation you choose is consistent with this context.
1 Use a monolingual dictionary to complete the following tasks.
a) Look up the given words and answer the questions.
1. Is ‘vespers’ a noun or part of a verb?
4. Write down a synonym given for ‘present’:
−−
as a noun – 2. Does ‘slouch’ rhyme with: ‘couch’ or ‘touch’?
as a verb – −−
as an adjective – 3. What is the plural form of ‘information’?
5. What does ‘to croak’ mean when used informally?
−−
−−
b) Replace the marked words with more everyday words that have similar meanings.
1. I thought he needed help. I’ll never give that mendacious mendicant any money again. – 2. Nothing that loquacious loon says makes any sense at all. – 3. The parents are bad enough, but their pesky progeny are even worse. – 4. He was a malevolent miscreant, so people were afraid to stand up to him – c) Find an alternative word or expression to explain the marked words in their respective contexts.
1. He skirted around the subject of his job interview. – 2. Joe has a different slant on the problem of crime in our town. – 3. The editor asked Jill to tone down her criticism of the school play. – 4. Jack always comes to these meetings, so he’s bound to show up sooner or later. – 2 Look up the marked words in a bilingual dictionary and select the correct German or English translation for the context.
1. Why does Jack always cheat in tests? – 2. That crook cheated me out of all my money! – 3. I have to write this down. Can you give me a sheet of paper, please? – 4. Sarah verbrachte ein Jahr in den USA und besuchte dort eine ‘High School’. – 5. Nach dem Beinbruch konnte ich zwei Monate lang nicht mit dem Fahrrad fahren. – 6. Es gab einen schlimmen Unfall auf der Straße zwischen Penzance und St Ives. – 60
B
1 Basic word skills
Basic 2: Using collocations
Many words in English are frequently used in certain specific combinations,
so in order to speak and write natural-sounding English you have to put the
correct word partners together. You should aim to learn as many common
collocations as you can. Not only will this help you to avoid the temptation of
translating German phrases into English literally, but it will also give you the
chance of achieving better marks in your exams.
TIP
Look at the vocabulary sheets on the CD
accompanying the Pupil’s Book. Information
about collocations is often given in the
middle columns of these sheets.
1 Cross out the wrong words in the underlined phrases and then write the correct collocations on the right.
1. I’m going to make some pictures with my new camera today.
−−
2. It’s no pleasure to travel with the bus during the rush hour.
−−
3. My friend Annie is married with an artist.
−−
4. Children should be brought up to say the truth.
−−
5. It must be awful to discover you’ve got a heavy disease like cancer.
−−
6. I usually only meet decisions after talking to my parents.
−−
7. I’m especially interested for Romanesque architecture.
−−
8. I’ve always been good in physics.
−−
9. These cookies consist out of sugar - and not much else!
−−
10. In your paper you should refer on several research sources.
−−
11. Yes, it was a mistake not to think on asking Ted to do the job.
−−
12. More people than usual make bankrupt in an economic downturn.
−−
2 Insert an appropriate verb in the right form to complete the correct collocations for the context.
1. The students have vowed to prove their teacher wrong, so he may end up having to the conclusion that the food was unacceptable.
2. After listening to the complaints, the manager 3. Please attention to what I say, as you need to understand the parameters of our research.
your right to vote in order to make your opinion known to your government.
4. It’s important to business with people who aren’t willing to compromise at all.
5. I don’t enjoy 6. We all his words.
the driving test, but only ten of us passed.
any problems for the neighbours, so he didn’t call the police.
7. He didn’t want to an attempt at creating a website.
8. I’m afraid I don’t have the skills, but I’ll another crime almost immediately.
9. Having been released from prison, he 10. You did promise to help us start an online business, and I expect you to your word.
3 Find adjectives which form collocations with the nouns that follow them.
1. Global warming may result in frequent storms with rain, causing extensive damage to crops.
2. I’m driving home, so I don’t want anything alcoholic. I’ll just have a 3. I really have no idea how big the crowd was, but at a 4. The lucky defendant got off with a 5. In my opinion, astrology is complete and 6. I hope you’ve all got drink, please.
guess I’d say about ten thousand.
sentence of only 30 days in jail.
nonsense. I don’t know how anyone can believe in it!
pockets, so that you can contribute generously to our charity!
4 p�� h Discuss ways to note down different kinds of collocations (noun + verb, adjective + noun etc.) so that they are
easy to collect, learn and revise. Then put your ideas into action, starting with what you consider useful collocations
from this page.
61
B
1 Basic word skills
Basic 3: Spelling
Spelling in English is a challenge, so get into the habit of using a dictionary to check how to write words correctly.
A spellchecker on your computer can help, too. Here are some points to help you avoid making mistakes:
• Certain rules can be a guide, but be aware of exceptions to those rules.
•
•
•
•
Rules for English spelling are weird!
Example : ‘ei’ or ‘ie’? – ‘i’ before ‘e’ except after ‘c’ or when it rhymes with ‘day’.
Watch out for homophones, words that sound the same but are spelt differently.
Example : by, bye, buy
Be careful not to invent non-existent words that look as it they might be possible.
Example : A commentator comments. He does not ‘commentate’.
Note the rules about capitalisation.
Example : the Catholic religion, French citizenship, the Lithuanian language
There are no clear rules about hyphens. They link compound adjectives and groups of words forming an adjective before a noun, but are not common in nouns. Example : broken-hearted, an out-of-work actor, e-mail but: paperwork, paper bag
1 Words that end with the same letter in the singular form do not always look the same in the plural. Put these pairs of words
into the plural form with the correct spelling.
1. box:
– ox:
5. goose:
– mongoose:
2. roof:
– shelf:
6. aircraft:
– craft:
3. peer:
– deer:
7. carton:
– phenomenon:
4. potato:
– cello:
8. crisis:
– Jones:
2 a) If the underlined words are spelt correctly, tick the sentence. If they are homophones, write down the correct
word at the end.
1. With text messages and emails, no one rights proper letters any more. 2. Some small bakeries even make their own flour for their bread. 3. The problem is that many people don’t no that they’re doing something wrong. 4. Great herds of buffalo used to roam over the North American planes. 5. When you walk past something every day you don’t notice it after a while. 6. In this article the writer puts the main wait on explaining the causes of the problem. 7. The environmental cost of fuel from plants soon turns it’s advantage into the opposite. 8. Some unemployed people don’t use buses because they can’t afford the fare. b)p Just for fun: Homophones provide material for many jokes in English. Together with your partner, match the questions
and answers, and then explain the joke.
1. What did one shoe say to the other?
– Let’s play draughts.
2. What did the pony tell his friend when he got a bad cold?
– My favourite music is sole.
3. What did the south wind say to the north wind?
– I’m a little hoarse.
3 a) It is easy to confuse two English words which look similar. Choose the right word for the context in the given sentence and
use a dictionary to check your solution.
1. For a long time many people found it hard to the facts about climate change. (accept/except)
2. When people are in financial difficulties agencies can 3. When the of petrol is high, people start thinking about alternative fuels. (price/prize)
4. Climate change may very well result in huge areas of landscape in every continent. (desert/dessert)
their chances of success in life. (affect/effect)
5. A person’s family background may 6. Everyone agreed the wine was the perfect 7. Most people are not them about what to do. (advice/advise)
to the dish. (compliment/complement)
to giving a helping hand if they see someone truly in need. (adverse/averse)
b) h Write your own sentences to show the meaning of the words you did not choose in a).
62
B
1 Basic word skills
4 Complete the sentences with a noun corresponding to the verb in brackets. Be careful with the spelling!
1. Money is not only needed for building roads and bridges but also for their . (maintain)
in our society. (occur)
2. Unfortunately vandalism is an all too frequent . (pronounce)
3. If you want to speak a language well, you should pay attention to for these measures is not very satisfactory. (explain)
4. The government’s of the slave trade was an important milestone in history. (abolish)
5. The of their private lives in the media. (reveal)
6. Celebrities often try to stop the 5 Even native speakers have trouble with the following aspects of spelling in English!
a) Single or double letter? Identify the letter missing from the incomplete words in each sentence and complete the words
correctly.
1. Nobody enjoys living in gri beautifu y, depressing acco pictures. 3. I think this questio the floor covered with blanke odation. 2. A aire is completely u together there were ten rooms fu ecessary. 4. There was a ma s. 5. He managed to discover the e-mail a become infatuated with. 6. She found it very emba ress of the screen go assing to have to tell him to stop ha of
ress on
ess he had
assing her.
b) -er or -or? Add the correct ending to these words.
1. explor 2. translat 8. surviv 9. curs 3. metaph 10. consum 4. distribut 11. aggress 5. admir 12. practition 6. calculat 7. dust 6 Cross out the misspelt or incorrect words in this text about the planet Mars, and write the corrections on the lines below.
Y
Opinion is devided on weather or not it is a waist of money to develop a
space program aimed at an eventuall landing on mars. One thing is not
in dout, however. If human beings ever atempt to colonise that planet
in the future, they will be confrontated by many problems. Their lifes
will be considerably more difficult then on Earth. Temperatures on the
surfice range from minus 140° too plus 20° Celsius, and their are freequent
and long-lasting dust sturms. Moreover, the atmosphaere provides no
protection against radiation, and because of the dependance of human
beings on oxygen, special shelters will be required, with walls that do
not loose the air people need to breath, as this would result in desaster.
A farther problem is that Martian gravity is about 38 procent of that on
Earth, so the settlers will way only about a third as mutch as they do
back home. Even if such practical difficulties can be overcome, no one
nose how the vast distance seperating human beings from their normal
environment will effect their psychological well-being. Some may find the
habitat too quite without the familiar sounds of animals and birds, four
example, while others might be stressed out by the non stop noise from
TIP
While the spelling of most words in English is
either right or wrong, there are some words
that can be written in more than one way. This
may be just a variant spelling (e. g. inquire –
enquire) or it may be a difference between AE
and BE (e. g. airplane – aeroplane)
maschines.
7 Look back at the exercises 1 to 6 and identify general areas or individual words you personally need to concentrate on
to improve your spelling.
63
B
1 Basic word skills
Basic 4: Avoiding Germanisms
Germanisms are instances of wrong words or expressions in English caused by confusion with the German language. It is important to avoid such errors as they can often be not only unintentionally amusing but also incomprehensible to
native speakers of English. Germanisms fall into different categories such as:
• English words that have been assimilated into German but with entirely different meanings.
• words that look or sound similar in the two languages but have different meanings.
• different usage in English and German of prepositions, word order, definite and indefinite articles etc.
1 a) Cross out any of the words in brackets which are not correct. More than one option may be correct.
1. For a party, formal dress means (smokings/dinner jackets) for men and long gowns for women.
2. I refuse to go to sad movies. If I pay $15 for a ticket, I want to see a happy (ending/end).
3. It is good for children to have a (mobile/handy/cell phone) with them at school in case there is an emergency.
4. In order to provide a safe learning environment, schools should not tolerate (harassment/mobbing) in any form.
5. The store’s advertising for men’s underwear includes T-shirts and (briefs/slips/boxer shorts/underpants).
6. Most of the daily political satire on TV in the United States is provided by (talk show hosts/talkmasters).
7. We bought a new home theater system with a receiver, a media player, speakers and a (beamer/projector).
8. Our neighbour has a 1910 Cadillac. He works on his (oldtimer/vintage car) every day in his garage.
9. In our firm people were afraid for their jobs, but the (boss/chef/chief) said no one would be fired.
b)p Talk about the words you crossed out in a). Does such a word exist in English at all? If so, what does it mean and in what
context would you use it? Use a dictionary to check any words you are unsure about.
2 a) Choose the correct word in each pair for the given sentence.
1. A is a place where products are made or manufactured. (fabric/factory)
2. A girl reacts in an emotional, intuitive or perceptive manner. (sensible/sensitive)
3. A child does what he or she it told. (well-behaved/brave)
4. The use of language is not acceptable in polite company. (ordinary/vulgar)
b) Identify and cross out the Germanisms in these sentences. Write down the words that should have been used.
1. I like our new neighbours. They seem to be very sympathetic people. –
2. The new David Hare play got an excellent critic in the newspaper. –
3. He’s a successful undertaker with a chain of sportswear companies. –
4. She is interested in politics, so she enjoys watching actual programmes on TV. –
c)h Write your own sentences to show the meanings of the ‘wrong’ words in a) and b).
3 Complete the sentences with the correct prepositions. Remember to avoid Germanisms!
1. In 1997 he got married a girl half his age.
2. I think it’s right that people should care 3. One of the best novels 4. their old parents.
D.H. Lawrence is Lady Chatterley’s Lover.
the moment, there is a serious global financial crisis.
5. This is a good example the problems caused by carbon
emissions.
a wall.
6. The car left the road and crashed 7. Personal happiness depends 8. It’s time you did something many different factors.
the terrible state of your room.
9. There are still many people who believe 64
the American Dream.
Willkommen in
Amerika!
Welcome to
America!
B
1 Basic word skills
Basic 5: Using idioms and proverbs
An idiom is a phrase with a meaning which cannot be deduced from the individual words. The language of idioms is usually metaphorical.
A proverb expresses a truth in a memorable way, often through use of literary techniques.
It is important for you to understand English idioms and proverbs you come across in texts as they are often used to illustrate complex trains of thought. One or two good ones can also improve the style of your own texts, but do be careful to use them correctly.
1 What comparisons do you use in English (as opposed to German)? Use a dictionary or go online to make sure you have the
correct English metaphors. Many are similar but not identical to the German ones.
1. If I can’t understand something, it’s not Spanish but to me.
.
2. If you force yourself to do something unpleasant, you don’t bite into the sour apple. You bite the .
3. When you recover from an illness, you aren’t back on your legs again, but back on your instead.
4. If something is ruined or has turned out badly, it isn’t in the bucket. It’s down the .
5. When you say something tactless, you don’t step in the grease bowl. You put your .
6. After you’ve drunk too much alcohol, the next day you don’t have a tomcat, but rather a 7. If I can’t believe something will happen, I don’t promise to eat a broom, but my .
8. In English, when you compare people or things that are fundamentally different, you have a choice! To Americans
they are like apples and , whereas the British say they are as different as chalk and .
2 Many English proverbs refer to animals. Put in the correct animal(s) and complete the explanation of the proverb.
1. By not only carrying out experiments in space but also repairing the Hubble telescope, the same team of astronauts
were able to kill two with one stone. = They accomplished 2. During the TV talk show host’s afternoon off, her staff partied instead of writing new jokes for her. When the away, the will play. = Without supervision, 3. Despite being shown all the resources in the school library, very few students made use of them. You can lead a to water, but you can’t make it drink. = You cannot force 4. You can edit your text using either the keyboard or the mouse. As with most word processing programs, there’s more
than one way to skin a . = The same result can be achieved by different methods.
5. After the banks had failed, regulatory agencies imposed stricter rules, but it’s no good shutting the stable door after
the has bolted. = There’s no point trying to 6. Insurance companies are very aware that people often make false claims, so they always investigate carefully if they
smell a . = They 3 h Use a dictionary to look up idioms based on the parts of the body listed in the
box on the right. Choose one idiom for each body part and think of your own
sentences to illustrate how these idioms are used.
• head • chest • arm • leg •
foot • nose • shoulder • eyes Example :
It’s great to have time on my hands and be able to relax for a change!
65
B
2 Basic text skills
2 Basic text skills
Basic 1: Talking about the author
1 a) Although an ‘author’ might write either fiction or
a factual book, an article or a report, alternative
expressions are often used to define a particular
type of writer more precisely. Complete the grid with
the correct terms. Not all the words in the list are
needed.
Type of writer
Work produced
long fictional stories
film scripts
poetry
accounts of real people’s lives
autobiographer • biographer • blogger • newspaper editor • journalist • lyricist • novelist • playwright • poet • reviewer • screenwriter • technical author
plays
current affairs reports and articles
instruction manuals
b)p Check your answers for a) with a partner. Then
together pick out the words you did not use and say
what kind of work these types of writers produce.
personal thoughts posted online
2 You use the past tense to write about an author’s life, but the present tense to give summaries of stories. Sometimes you also
need the present perfect to comment on the influence an author has had. Try this out by completing a short paragraph about
Alan Sillitoe with the correct tenses and forms.
Throughout history there (be) writers highly critical of
contemporary society. Alan Sillitoe, for example, (be born)
(become) one of the ‘Angry
in Nottingham in 1928 and Young Men’, a group of British writers active in the 1950s. Reading Sillitoe’s
books, we (get) a good impression not only of working class
life but also of the antipathy he and his fellow writers (feel)
towards the Establishment at that time. The Loneliness of the Long (remain) popular since its original
Distance Runner (explore) the
publication in 1959. This work, which (tell) the story of
issues of personal freedom and rebellion, (refuse) to win a running race and
a youth offender who thereby (challenge) the authority of the prison governor.
(make) in 1962,
In addition to a film adaptation which over the years this story (inspire) songs by several rock
and punk bands.
3 h Commenting on the different intentions an author might have can involve a wide range of phrases. Look at the list of
intentions below and then use the given words to make useful phrases for analysing these aspects of a text. There is no single
correct solution, so you can mix and match in whatever way you think appropriate. Write down two phrases for each intention
in your exercise book. If you like, you can also add extra phrases using your own ideas.
Intention:
– presenting a theme
– presenting characters
– arguing a point of view
– making the reader reflect
– using literary devices
– making a comparison
– coming to an end
66
The author …
makes use of • the protagonist • explores • an account of •
creates • the ending • deals with • reaches • questions • his/her thoughts •
the thesis that • irony/humour • draws • arouses • evidence for • gives •
the topic/issue of • summarises • the conclusion that • provides • raises •
supports • empathy with • an analogy with • imagery • leaves … open •
points out • archetypes • evokes • conveys … as • parallels • suspense
B
2 Basic text skills
Basic 2: Talking about a narrative text
1 Whatever kind of literary genre you are describing, there is certain vocabulary which you can almost always use.
Find suitable words to complete the text and then compare solutions with a partner.
Despite often attracting derision, one of the most popular As might be expected, the story always in modern literature is the romance novel.
on the of love but the action can place in the past or the present. Many authors writing this kind of novel seem to find it easier to
evoke a romantic in the past. Indeed, so many romance novels have a historical this has developed into a separate subgenre. Whatever the place or time, however, the out of the relationship between the two main soon arises. This may Eventually the story . Naturally, in order to that
is developed
tension, some by a rival in love or by some event that drives the lovers apart.
a climax or point after which the couple are finally united. The knows that one of the main requirements of a romance novel is a happy !
2 Answer the following questions to show you are familiar with expressions commonly used to talk about characters in stories.
1. What is the difference between a protagonist and an antagonist? – 2. How is a round character different from a flat character? – 3. When can a character be described as a stereotype? – 4. What is meant by direct characterisation? – 5. How is indirect characterisation achieved? – 3 a) Use these notes to help you write definitions of different narrative perspectives.
seems to tell story from outside • can inform reader about everything/
everyone • has overall perspective • is identical with one of
characters • can relate only what he/she knows • focuses on point of view of one character
TIP
Do not confuse the ‘author’ with the
‘narrator’. The ‘author’ writes the story
while the ‘narrator’ is the voice through
which the story is told.
1. A first-person narrator 2. A third-person omniscient narrator 3. A third-person limited narrator b)p With a partner discuss the possible advantages and disadvantages for an author of using different types of narrator.
Try to support your comments by giving examples of stories you know which employ different narrative perspectives.
4 h Write a short text about a story you have read. Describe the main features of the narrative using as many of the words and
phrases you have practised on this page as you can.
67
B
2 Basic text skills
Basic 3: Talking about relationships
1 When you describe the development of relationships
between characters in a story you often need to use
collocations referring to friendship or love. Complete these
example sentences with the correct phrases from the list
on the right.
fall in love • keep in touch • form a bond • have a lot in common • have an affair • make friends • grow apart • get married
1. Alone in a new place, she finally manages to after joining a choir.
at first sight.
2. Although from completely different backgrounds, the two main characters , the wife should always obey the husband.
3. She refuses to accept that when a man and woman and so their friendship develops quickly. 4. They find they , but disappoints him by not writing for several months.
5. She promises to himself. 6. To take revenge on his wife for being unfaithful, he decides to that can never be broken.
7. Going through such difficulties together, the women 8. Circumstances lead them away from each other and so inevitably they gradually .
2 Enter the words in the table for the appropriate context. Write them down in the correct column and then complete the
table by adding the other forms, if necessary using a dictionary to help you. Where a word does not have all three forms,
use a dash (–).
disappointed • adore • happy • deceit • attract • anger • respect • exploit • loathsome • loyalty • jealous • rely • suspect • supportive • fulfil • cruel
Positive relationship
Negative relationship
Noun
Verb
Adjective
adoration
adore
adorable
Noun
Verb
Adjective
3 a)p h Study the three photos in turn. First take a piece of paper and note down a few useful words and phrases
that can help you to express your thoughts about the relationship between the people you see and their feelings
towards each other. Then exchange ideas with your partner, also speculating about the background situation.
b) h Choose one of the photos in a) and use it as the basis for a description of how a relationship between two characters in
a story may develop and change over time. You can choose names for the people and invent any details you like. Write in the
present tense as is usual when summarising a narrative.
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B
2 Basic text skills
Basic 4: Talking about function
This skill refers to the functions of different types of texts and the function of the language used in them.
Texts can be written to persuade, describe, explain, entertain etc. They can be categorised into four main groups:
•
•
•
•
descriptive /narrative: This type of text tells a story.
explicatory / informational: This type of text explains something.
argumentative / persuasive: This type of text expresses opinions on a topic.
instructional: This type of text tells the reader how to do something.
The above categories show the functions of different text types. Most texts, however, are multi-functional. For example, in a manual you will be instructed how to use something, but one specific part may be described in great detail to provide relevant information. Similarly, a tourist guide might contain lengthy descriptive passages but will probably also tell you how to get somewhere.
1 When you talk about function in the context of a particular text, you might want to comment on the text as a whole,
on specific parts of the text, or on the language used in the text. Read the given examples for these three areas and
then add one or two further examples of your own to each list.
Talking about the text as a whole:
• The essay deals with the subject of education. • This brochure is written to advertise a holiday. • The writer relates the
story of her youth. • This is a report about the increase in crime.
Talking about parts of the text:
• The first chapter introduces the main characters. • The rest of the paragraph develops the argument. • The final
sentence appeals directly to the reader. • This section is used to give the relevant statistics.
Talking about the language:
• Repetition is used to stress the point. • Striking imagery helps to convey the mood. • The clear, simple style makes it
easy to follow. • The emotive vocabulary aims to persuade the reader.
2 h
Answer the following questions
about the text on the right, which was
written by a British campaign group
in response to the beginning of the
process in 2006 to introduce identity
cards in the UK for the first time since
1952.
No2ID: Stop ID cards and the Database State
5
a) Explain the target group and aim of
the text.
b) Analyse the structure of the text,
describing the function of each
paragraph.
c) Comment on how the choice of
vocabulary supports the overall
intention of the text. Also pick out
functional rhetorical devices.
EXAM TRAINER
p. 92 Back to basics,
Using rhetorical devices
10
15
20
The ID Card scheme is not just a harmless new bit of plastic in your wallet.
It requires a massive and intrusive database that shifts the balance of
power further away from the citizen to the State. With the ID Card, the
Government will control your identity. Showing ID to officials will become
an everyday part of British life. It will decide who you are. Although other
Europeans are used to ID Cards, they have legal safeguards we do not.
Even the Government admits the minimum cost is £5.8 billion! That
only counts Home Office costs and not the penalties for errors, or the cost
of policing many new offences. Taxpayers and businesses will have to pay
yet more for special scanners in doctors’ surgeries, benefit offices, banks
and even hotels.
The ID scheme cannot meet the problems it is supposed to solve.
Almost all benefit fraud is lying about circumstances, not who you
are. With a wink to racists, the Government says ID will stop illegal
immigration. But it doesn’t in the rest of Europe. Asians and black people
often feel they are unfairly stopped by police already. How does a divided
society make you feel safer?
You are about to be fingerprinted, eye-scanned and tagged like a
criminal. Any errors will be your responsibility. What happens to your life
when the scanner fails or there’s a mistake? The ID scheme is expensive
and socially destructive. Help us stop it.
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B
2 Basic text skills
Basic 5: Talking about poetry
1 Complete the following tasks to remind yourself of some important terminology you might need when talking about poetry.
a) Fill in the gaps with the correct compounds. Use a word from each box.
+
regular • free • lyrical • poetic • run-on • rhyme
line • metre • scheme • I • licence • verse
1. If there is a narrator in a poem, this voice is called the .
2. A poem that conforms to a strict stress pattern is said to have a .
3. The pattern of matching sounds on different lines is called the .
4. A is one on which there is no obvious natural pause at the end.
.
5. A poem that neither rhymes nor has a steady rhythm is said to be written in is the freedom to depart from the usual rules of language in order to create an effect.
6. b) Find ten pairs of words with a similar meaning which you can use alternately to vary your choice of vocabulary.
rhythm • figurative • stress • imply • make use of • represent • reveal • verse •
thoughtful • reflective • symbolise •
stanza • colloquial • metaphorical •
suggest • metre • employ • accent •
show • informal ≈
≈
≈
≈
≈
≈
≈
≈
≈
≈
2 a) Read the two poems. Then tick which statements in the box refer to which poem. (Some might refer to both poems.)
b)p Check if you and your partner agree on your solutions for a). If not, look again and decide who is right.
c) h Choose one of the two poems and write a commentary on it. You can use the relevant statements from a) to help you,
but you should develop these points with further information and also examples where relevant.
5
(1) Happiness
(2) Hope
So early it’s still almost dark out.
I’m near the window with coffee,
and the usual early morning stuff
that passes for thought.
Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all,
When I see the boy and his friend
walking up the road
to deliver the newspaper.
They wear caps and sweaters,
and one boy has a bag over his shoulder.
They are so happy
they aren’t saying anything, these boys.
10
I think if they could, they would take
each other’s arm.
It’s early in the morning,
and they are doing this thing together.
15
They come on, slowly.
The sky is taking on light,
though the moon still hangs pale over the water.
20
Such beauty that for a minute
death and ambition, even love,
doesn’t enter into this.
Happiness. It comes on
unexpectedly. And goes beyond, really,
any early morning talk about it.
70
Raymond Carver
And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.
5
10
I’ve heard it in the chillest land,
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me.
Emily Dickinson
(1) (2)
1. The title sums up the topic of the poem.
2. The lyrical I describes a specific personal
experience.
3. The poem is divided into stanzas.
4. This is an example of free verse.
5. The poet employs a regular metre.
6. There is a variable rhyme scheme.
7. The tone and mood of the poem are
reflective.
8. Pauses help to give emphasis to certain
thoughts. 9. The theme is explored through a metaphor.
10. The language is relatively informal.
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2 Basic text skills
Basic 6: Distinguishing between fictional and factual texts
1 a) Use your own ideas to continue these lists of different types of fictional and factual texts. Don’t forget that texts can be
spoken as well as printed, can be presented visually, and can also form the basis for media like the internet or film.
Fictional texts
Factual texts
– short story
– novel
– news article
– speech
– comic
– poem
– biography
– travelogue
−−
−−
−−
−−
−−
−−
−−
−−
−−
−−
−−
−−
b) Choose one of the text types you listed in a), and write one or two sentences about why this text type belongs in
the category of fiction or non-fiction.
Fiction:
Non-fiction:
2 g Can you always be certain whether a text is fact or
fiction? Use the note on the right, which the author Irving
Stone appended to his biography of Vincent Van Gogh (titled
‘Lust for Life’), as a starting point for a group discussion
about this question. Look back at the lists you made in
exercise 1 and exchange your thoughts on the type of texts in
which the distinction might not always be clear, the reasons
why it might not be clear, and whether you think this is
important.
The reader may have asked himself, “How much of
this story is true?” The dialogue had to be reimagined;
there is an occasional stretch of pure fiction […]; in one
or two instances, I have portrayed a minor incident
where I was convinced of its probability even though I
could not document it […]; and I have omitted several
unimportant fragments of the complete story. Aside from
these technical liberties, the book is entirely true.
TIP
3 p Work with a partner to reflect on what generally makes
it possible to categorise a text as fiction or fact. Think about
the function of different types of texts and about typical
characteristics, language and style. Then make notes in the
grid to sum up general guidelines, also trying to take into
account the possibility of factual elements in fictional texts
and vice versa.
Type of texts:
Fictional
Sometimes a fictional text makes use of elements from factual
texts and vice versa. This always has a certain effect on the
reader and can be an important part of your analysis of a text.
For example, a novel may start with an invented news report that
makes the story feel more immediate and ‘real’.
Factual
Main functions:
Typical
characteristics and
language:
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B
2 Basic text skills
Basic 7: Quoting
Quotations can help to lend your essay or comment more credibility. Bear in mind, however, that in order to be effective, they should clearly underline the point you want to make and there should not be too many of them.
Here are some examples of different types of quotations:
• A phrase: In an interview, the Prime Minister promised parents would be given “powers to force councils to improve schools.”
• A whole sentence: The Prime Minister announced last week, “Parents can intervene in a school even if they don’t have children there.”
• A quote within a quote: The Speaker in the House of Commons explained, “The Leader of the Opposition has just blamed the Government for doing ‘nothing for the poor,’ which the Prime Minister will now respond to.”
• Lines from a poem: By starting the poem, “Whose woods these are I think I know./His house is in the village, though;/He will not see me stopping here” Robert Frost immediately creates a sense of mystery.
1 Study the examples above and pick
out the relevant ideas in the box on
the right to note down how they are
punctuated.
quote in (single) quotation marks • (no) comma before quote • (no) capital letter at beginning • lines separated by a slash • comma/full
stop inside quotation marks • punctuation as in original
TIP
1. Quoting a phrase:
You only put question marks, exclamation
marks, dashes etc. inside the quotation
marks if they are part of the original
quote. If you want to omit parts of the
quotation, show this with ellipses in
brackets […].
2. Quoting a whole sentence:
3. Quote within a quote:
If the text you are quoting from has line
numbers, add these for reference. Skills
19 in your textbook can show you how to
cite sources you use when writing a term
paper.
4. Quoting from a poem:
You may only quote up to three lines from
a poem. If you want to quote more, you
indent the lines and don’t use quotation
marks at all.
2 h Insert the following quotations into the sentences below and add the correct punctuation. For the first two you may just fill
in the quote here. For 3. to 5. you have to write your sentences from scratch on an extra sheet.
Quotes
Sentences
1. We are sleepwalking our way to segregation.
need to help ethnic minority communities in UK • head of the Commission for racial equality • to warn
2. an inconvenient truth
Al Gore • climate change • ignored by politicians
3. Yes, we can!
2008 Presidential election campaign • Barack Obama • vision of a bright future • American people
4. What passing-bells for those who die as cattle? Only the monstrous anger of the guns.
famous poem “Anthem for Doomed Youth” • Wilfred Owen • feelings about sending young men into war
5. a man who could not make up his mind
Laurence Olivier • great British actor and director • introduction to screen adapation • to describe Hamlet • Shakespeare’s most famous tragedy
1. In highlighting the need to help ethnic minority communities in the UK, the head of the Commission for Racial Equality warned, 2. Al Gore claimed that climate change was 3. …
72
and therefore ignored by politicians.
B
2 Basic text skills
Basic 8: Underlining
When dealing with a text, you are often asked to underline or highlight elements such as key content, specific
references, examples of figurative language or new vocabulary. If you have to mark several elements in the same
text, you can distinguish between them by using different colours or different kinds of line (single, double, wavy,
dotted). Avoid underlining whole sentences unless absolutely necessary as otherwise your points will not stand out so clearly.
1 a) Read the following extract about a middle-aged unmarried English woman who lives alone in a small apartment
in France. Underline or highlight (red) the phrase you think first suggests that Miss Brill’s behaviour is strange.
This extract is from “Miss Brill”, a short
story by Katherine Mansfield about a
middle-aged unmarried Englishwoman
who lives alone in a small apartment in
5 France. One of her prized possessions is
a fur that she wears when walking in the
park.
Although it was so brilliantly fine – the
blue sky powdered with gold and great
10 spots of light like white wine splashed
over the Jardins Publiques – Miss Brill
was glad that she had decided on her
fur. The air was motionless, but when
you opened your mouth there was just a
15 faint chill, like a chill from a glass of iced
water before you sip, and now and again
a leaf came drifting – from nowhere, from
the sky. Miss Brill put up her hand and
touched her fur. Dear little thing! It was
20 nice to feel it again. She had taken it out
of its box that afternoon, shaken out the
moth-powder, given it a good brush, and
rubbed the life back into the dim little
eyes. “What has been happening to me?”
said the sad little eyes. Oh, how sweet it
was to see them snap at her again from the
red eiderdown! ... But the nose, which was
of some black composition, wasn’t at all
firm. It must have had a knock, somehow.
Never mind – a little dab of black sealingwax when the time came – when it was
absolutely necessary … Little rogue! Yes,
she really felt like that about it. Little rogue
biting its tail just by her left ear. She could
have taken it off and laid it on her lap and
stroked it. She felt a tingling in her hands
and arms, but that came from walking,
she supposed. And when she breathed,
something light and sad – no, not sad,
exactly – something gentle seemed to
move in her bosom.
25
30
35
40
6 fur here: Pelzstola • 27 eiderdown Daunendecke • 30 dab Klecks, Tupfer • 32 little rogue Lausejunge
b) Taking into account the phrase you underlined in a), sum up in one or two sentences how you would characterise Miss Brill.
c) Underline or highlight (blue) all the words and phrases which attribute human or live qualities to the fur.
d) Underline or highlight (green) typical characteristics of the narrative technique ‘stream of consciousness’.
2 Identify and mark different elements
in this film review (published in The
Sunday Times) by underlining or
highlighting them as follows:
• information about the content
of the film (blue)
• positive comments (green)
• negative comments (red)
16 courtesan prostitute • 18 brattish spoilt • 21 pungency here: intensity • 23 callow
immature • 24 wry dryly humorous • 25 to
pitch to set the tone of
Chéri
15, 92 mins ä ä ä
Stephen Frears and Christopher
Hampton, the director and the
writer of Dangerous Liaisons,
have reunited for this adaptation
5 of Colette’s 1920 novel, and the
result is a similarly polished and
handsome work, not only in its
eye for the clothes and interiors
that come with its setting,
10 belle époque France, but in its
well-turned dialogue. It further
resembles Dangerous Liaisons by
having a strong performance by
Michelle Pfeiffer, here cast as a
middle-aged courtesan who
15
takes a big risk by surrendering
her heart to Chéri, her brattish
young lover. Despite these virtues,
though, it’s not a film of any great
pungency. In the title role, Rupert
20
Friend is perhaps even more callow
than the part requires, and the wry
narration, read by Frears, is wrongly
pitched. The main drawback,
however, is the not terribly exciting 25
source material.
73
B
2 Basic text skills
Basic 9: Recognising stylistic devices
1 a) Without using any reference sources, give a short definition and an example for each of the following stylistic devices.
1. A metaphor Example : 2. A simile Example :
3. Anaphora Example : 4. Irony Example : 5. Exaggeration Example : 6. Personification Example : 7. Alliteration Example : b)p Work together with a partner. Compare your answers in a), using the Glossary of literary terms in your textbook to check
your definitions. If necessary, make helpful suggestions for improvements to each other’s example sentences.
2 Study the short poem and find three of the stylistic devices you described in exercise 1. Write down the name of each device
and the line on which it is found, and then add a comment (in note form) on the effect it achieves.
Device
Line
Effect
The Eagle
He clasps the crag with crooked hands;
Close to the sun in lonely lands,
Ring’d with the azure world, he stands.
5
The wrinkled sea beneath him crawls;
He watches from his mountain walls,
And like a thunderbolt he falls.
Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809-92)
1 crag Felsspitze 4 wrinkled runzelig
3 h The text below is part of a speech made by Nelson Mandela on his inauguration as President of South Africa on
May 10th 1994. While you read it, underline stylistic devices that add emphasis, symbolise ideas or make the speech
inspirational. (You can use the Glossary as a checklist.) Then write a paragraph in your exercise book describing and
commenting on these features.
We have triumphed in the effort to implant hope in
the breasts of the millions of our people. We enter into
a covenant that we shall build the society in which all
South Africans, both black and white, will be able to
5 walk tall, without any fear in their hearts, assured of
their inalienable right to human dignity – a rainbow
nation at peace with itself and the world. […] We
are both humbled and elevated by the honour and
privilege that you, the people of South Africa, have
10 bestowed on us, as the first President of a united,
democratic, non-racial and non-sexist South Africa,
to lead our country out of the valley of darkness. We
understand it still that there is no easy road to freedom.
74
We know it well that none of us acting alone can
achieve success. We must therefore act together as a
15
united people, for national reconciliation, for nation
building, for the birth of a new world. Let there be
justice for all. Let there be peace for all. Let there be
work, bread, water and salt for all. Let each know that
for each the body, the mind and the soul have been
20
freed to fulfil themselves. Never, never and never again
shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience
the oppression of one by another and suffer the
indignity of being the skunk of the world. Let freedom
reign. God bless Africa!
25
B
2 Basic text skills
Basic 10: Recognising bias
In today’s information age it is important for us not only to understand the content of a text, but also to recognise how that
content is portrayed. All information is biased to some extent, and we need to develop skills to recognise this. These clues
can help you to look critically at what you see or hear in the media and to be aware of possible bias.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
the choice of vocabulary (Is the language emotive or reasonably objective?)
the writer’s background (Might he/she have a professional or personal interest in expressing a certain viewpoint?)
images e.g. photos, cartoons (Do they portray the subject in an especially favourable or unfavourable way?)
supporting statistics (Is the source reliable? Do they present the whole picture?)
the balance of the information (Are alternative viewpoints included or ignored?)
the distinction between facts and opinions (Is it clear whether statements are based on evidence or not?)
the political perspective of the publisher/network (Might the text be written to influence voters?)
the source of finance of the publisher/network (Is it public or private? Who controls what is printed or broadcast?)
1 a) What attitude to the subject do the sentences reveal? Tick the appropriate box.
Positive
Negative
Neutral
1. a)The UK is being forced to accept thousands of asylum seekers.
b)The UK is willing to welcome its quota of refugees.
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2. a)Tax will be increased on high carbon-emitting vehicles.
b)Cars are to be taxed more fairly according to their cost to the environment.
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3. a)The train drivers’ strike was called to highlight important safety issues.
b)Yesterday’s railway strike caused chaos and misery for commuters.
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4. a)There has been a further rise in the number of single-parent families.
b)The number of unmarried mothers has rocketed.
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b)p Talk about how you arrived at your judgement of the sentences in a).
2 h Write one or two sentences comparing how these issues might be treated by the people suggested.
1. Smoking: doctor – representative of tobacco industry
3. Shorter school day: teacher – working parent
2. CCTV: civil liberties campaigner – police chief
4. Cut in welfare payments: social worker – taxpayer
You can start like this:
Whereas the doctor would probably …, the representative of the tobacco industry would …
3 a) Look critically at this internet text and mark anything that reveals a particular viewpoint or a wish to influence the reader.
PeTA
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
A few years back, a very special macaque monkey touched the lives of everybody at
PETA. His name was Felix and he had large brown eyes, golden fur and would have
behaved much like a small child. He was also condemned to a lonely life of boredom, pain and misery in an Oxford University laboratory cage, neurologically experimented
5 upon, and killed two years later.
In 2007, PETA made a Freedom of Information request to the University concerning
Felix. In a televised documentary, Oxford was able to control the information given to
the public, but we knew in our hearts that the public had a right to the full story of what
happened to Felix and why.
10 In a significant blow to the secrecy surrounding animal experiments, the Information
Commissioner has forced Oxford University to reveal to PETA information about the
experiments conducted on Felix that it had previously refused to give – information of
a kind never made public before. We’re now in the process of assessing the information
that has been made available to us. In the meantime, keep an eye on PETA.org.uk for
15 further updates.
b)g Discuss these questions about the text: What did you mark in a) and why? What aspects of the issue are ignored in the
text? Did you already have any personal feelings about the issue before you read the text, and if so, did they influence your
ability to read the text critically?
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B
2 Basic text skills
Basic 11: Skimming and scanning
1 In no more than two sentences, sum up the difference between skimming and scanning, referring to both techniques and
aims.
2 Look at key elements of an article in the New York Times and give the gist of the content, as far as possible in your own words.
“The fact is, people are not motivated by more facts,” she
said. “That can just reinforce their feeling of helplessness.”
“confused and a little fed up”
recycle
Energy
Nuclear
footprint
natural
organic
time to reassess strategies before it’s too late
Sorting Through Conflicting Eco-Advice
A friend, also a committed
environmentalist, starting
questioning her good deed.
environmentalists fear that the public
might begin to ignore the message
She is, in other words, a victim of “green noise” - static caused by urgent,
sometimes contradictory information played at too high a volume for too long.
3 Scan the text and underline any references made to methods of illegal fishing (red) and the results of fishing in this way
(blue). Try to take no longer than three minutes to complete the task.
5
10
15
20
RIO GRANDE VALLEY, Jamaica
Catching freshwater shrimp in the legendary Rio
Grande here in the forested hills of eastern Jamaica
used to be done at night with a homemade bamboo
torch in one hand and a sharp spear in the other. It is
painstaking work. The results, though, are worth the
effort – succulent shrimp, known locally as janga.
But those days are fading. Man’s destruction
of the natural world takes many shocking forms:
Poachers gun down elephants for the ivory and leave
the carcasses to rot. Illegal foresters slash the trees
of the rain forests for a quick buck. And in the Blue
Mountains and John Crow Mountains here, people go
fishing by dumping poison in the Rio Grande.
Any toxin will do. When subjected to the poison, the
shrimp float right to the top. So do the fish. Catching
them is as easy as scooping them up.
Economics is driving the practice, experts and river
poisoners themselves say. “You can get 10 pounds of
janga in two hours,” said Carlton Walker. He has been
caught twice poisoning the Rio Grande. “It’s quick
money,” he said. Residents are rising up against the practice,
however, joining a campaign that is aimed at keeping
offenders from going to market with their catches and
sending them to jail instead.
Marva Smith Moodie, a park ranger, said only a
handful of poisoners had been caught. Besides poison,
Ms Moodie said, some unscrupulous fishermen throw
dynamite into the river and then scoop up the fish and
shrimp that are blasted out of the water.
The effects of such practices are becoming more
apparent every day. “Look, there’s no fish here,” Cecil
Beckford, 36, a fisherman, said as he scanned the river.
“When I was a boy, you’d find fish everywhere. Now,
look, nothing.”
Local residents also complain of more and more
cases of diarrhea, stomach-aches and vomiting, which
they attribute to poisons from the river, ingested in
food and drinking water. “I was on my death bed,” said
Robert Wilson, 75, a local banana farmer who became
gravely ill after buying some tainted shrimp.
“My fear is that the food that we depend on, that
is part of our cultural tradition, will die,” said Linette
Wilkins, a member of a conservation group in the
valley. “To think that children some generations down
the road will have no idea what a janga or a crayfish
looks like …”
Marc Lacey, The New York Times, 15 Feb 2009
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2 Basic text skills
4 a) Skim the text below, which is from the Guardian newspaper website, and answer the questions in full sentences.
1. What kind of newspaper article is this? –
2. What is the main point made by the writer? –
Better meat, not less meat
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The proposal of National Health Service chiefs to
take meat off hospital menus in a bid to cut carbon
emissions shows an alarming ignorance of both
nutrition and the causes of climate change. What
matters to patients and to the planet is not whether
meat is available, but how it is produced. There’s now
plenty of evidence that the farming methods that
put health-protecting nutrients into meat are the
very ones that combat climate change. Sadly they’re
methods that are being rapidly abandoned in the
headlong rush towards a globalised food economy.
For centuries food animals – particularly
ruminants such as cattle and sheep – have been
raised on species-rich pastures. New research at
centres including the Institute of Biological and
Environmental and Rural Sciences shows that
meat produced this way not only tastes better, but
contains more health-giving nutrients such as vitamin
E, omega-3 fatty acids, DHA, thought to protect
against heart disease, and CLA, a powerful anticancer agent. There’s also evidence that this kind of
grassland – dominated by deep-rooting perennial
species – removes carbon from the atmosphere
and accumulates it in the soil, which – if exploited
sufficiently – could act as a powerful carbon sink. A
new study in the United States suggests that perennial
grasses growing with the naturally-occurring, threadlike fungi that often inhabit long-established pastures
can double the level of soil carbon in a single season.
However, the globalised meat industry is taking
animal production in an entirely different and
dangerous direction. Beef and dairy producers around
the world are fast adopting the US feedlot model in
which animals are crowded into yards and fed on
chemically grown soya and grains, together with
industrially grown forage crops such as maize. Meat
produced this way is robbed of many of the nutrients
that once made it a healthy food. At the same time the
globally-traded grains that drive the system – together
with the arsenal of fertilisers and pesticides needed
to grow them – are damaging soils and squandering
water and other scarce resources. It has been
estimated that conversion to this kind of intensive
chemical agriculture has led to a loss of 60% of soil
organic matter in temperate regions and to a 75%
loss in cultivated tropical soils. Up to one-third of the
increased load of atmospheric carbon dioxide since
the industrial revolution has been attributed to carbon
losses from soil as a result of changes to agriculture.
There is, of course, a downside to pasture-based
food production – the well-known propensity of
ruminant animals to belch climate-changing methane
gas. But UK researchers have had spectacular
success in reducing methane emissions in sheep
by introducing fumaric acid into their rations. This
compound occurs widely in many pasture species. It
seems likely that methane emissions are only a serious
threat because farmers insist on replacing their native,
species – rich pastures with heavily fertilised grass
monocultures, another practice that robs animal foods
of nutrients.
In a new study, Professor Henry Buller of Exeter
University calls on policy makers to give more support
to pasture farming, the kind that makes use of species
– rich, biodiverse grasslands. He argues that this sort
of food production is good for consumers, farmers and
the environment. Yet just as the benefits of pasture
farming are becoming apparent to both nutritionists
and environmentalists, the NHS plans to deal it
another body blow by taking meat off hospital menus.
It’s surely the moment for patients’ groups to weigh
in against such crass stupidity. What hospitals need is
not the reinstatement of meat to their menus but the
introduction of pasture-fed meat. In this one act they
would do more to help sick people and a sick planet
than all the NHS carbon tinkering.
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Graham Harvey, The Guardian, 26 January 2009
4 nutrition Ernährung 14 pasture Weide 24 soil Erde 51 propensity Neigung 51 ruminant Wiederkäuer 76 to tinker herumbasteln
b) Imagine you are researching the following subjects. Scan the text and note down anything relevant included by the writer in
his article. (Add line references in brackets to show where you found the information.)
1. methane gas:
2. links between soil and climate change:
c) Now look for phrases used in the text with these meanings. Write down the expression and the line reference.
1. farming methods using lots of fertilisers and pesticides:
2. the worldwide system of producing things to eat:
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B
2 Basic text skills
Basic 12: Note taking
You take notes to record information extracted from a written or audio text. This might
be either the main points of the whole text or details relating to just one particular aspect.
Especially when taking notes while listening, it is important to be able to write quickly. On
the right you can see a few examples of ‘shorthand’, but it is up to you to develop your own
system. Any symbols you use are fine, as long as you can understand them later! 1 Take notes with a view to making a summary of the text.
First underline or highlight the key points of the text.
Then, bearing in mind the advice on the right, use the
information you marked to write notes on the lines below.
Global sea level is rising, and faster than expected. We
need to honestly discuss this risk rather than trying to
play it down.
Measurements from tide gauge stations around the
5 world show that the global sea level has risen by almost
20 cm since 1880. Since 1993, global sea level has been
measured accurately from satellites; since 1993 figures
have shown levels rising at a rate of 3.2 cm per decade.
The two main causes of this rise are extra water
10 entering the ocean from melting land-ice and the
expansion of ocean water as it gets warmer. Both are
inevitable physical consequences of global warming.
Both contributions can be estimated independently
+
sth
→
>
esp
and/more/plus
something
causes/leads to
more than
especially
TIP
Use your own words as far as possible
Avoid copying words you don’t understand.
Keep to the main facts – don’t include examples.
from satellite and other data, and their sum is consistent
with the observed rise. Depending on the time period
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considered, 50 % to 80 % of the rise is due to melting ice.
Despite knowing the causes, we cannot predict future
sea level rise very well. Particularly uncertain is how
ice sheets will respond to warming, as this involves
complex flow processes. For example, warming ocean 20
waters destroy the floating tongues of ice that form when
glaciers meet the sea. These ice tongues are pinned to
rock outcrops and hold back the glacier behind them.
when the ice tongue goes, the glacier speeds up its flow.
Stefan Rahmsdorf, The Guardian, 3 March 2009
4 tide gauge Gezeitenpegel
2 g h Work in groups of three. Each of you takes notes on a different aspect of the text: 1. information about ethnic minority
groups 2. what is said about white working-class people 3. ideas about what should be done. Use your notes to report your
findings to each other in the same order. Then go on and discuss the situation yourselves.
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Immigrant pupils are overtaking many white children
at school, a key Government adviser has said. Rapid
progress was being made by children from Chinese,
Bengali and Indian backgrounds, while white workingclass boys, in particular, were struggling, according to
Sir Mike Tomlinson, the former head of Ofsted.
In controversial comments which will raise questions
about the focus of Government funding, Sir Mike
said that white working-class parents failed to place
the same value on education as their ethnic minority
counterparts. As a result, poor white children have low
expectations of what they can achieve, leading to lack of
effort and low results.
“We are seeing every ethnic group progress rapidly,”
said Sir Mike. “The results that are being achieved are
higher and this has improved the numbers applying to
university and entering professions such as medicine,
veterinary science, law and accountancy. A very high
value is placed on education among many ethnic
groups, compared with white working-class families.
There seems to be different value systems at work.”
Sir Mike now chief adviser on London schools, said
that if parents could not support their children, schools
had to raise their expectations. “Raising aspiration is
essential,” he said.
The Government has poured millions of pounds into
tackling boys’ underachievement, yet only 15 per cent of 25
16-year-old white boys who qualify for free school meals
– an indicator of deprivation – leave school with five
GCSEs at grades A to C, including maths and English.
The figure for black boys from similar backgrounds is
22 per cent and for children from Asian backgrounds
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29 per cent – still low but improving. Some critics have
argued that funding ringfenced for ethnic minority
pupils should be redirected.
In a report last year, researchers from Manchester
University identified a cycle of underachievement in
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white working-class families. The report, which focused
on how some schools were bucking the trend, said
that teachers had to abandon the mindset that poor
white children were doomed to failure because of their
background. Head teachers who made a difference
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had high expectations and often came from poor
backgrounds themselves.
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Julie Henry, The Telegraph, 1 March 2009