DOMNICA ŞERBAN DENISA DR GUŞIN ENGLISH PRACTICAL COURSE FOR SECOND YEAR STUDENTS Coperta: Gustav Klimt – Lebensbaum (1909) Referent ştiin ific: lector univ M d lina Crivoi © Editura Funda iei România de Mâine, 2007 Editur acreditat de Ministerul Educa iei şi Cercet rii prin Consiliul Na ional al Cercet rii Ştiin ifice din Înv mântul Superior Descrierea CIP a Bibliotecii Na ionale a României ŞERBAN, DOMNICA English practical course for second year students/ Domnica Şerban, Denisa Dr guşin – Bucureşti: Editura Funda iei România de Mâine, 2007 ISBN 978-973-725-943-1 I Dr guşin, Denisa 811.111(075.8) Reproducerea integral sau fragmentar , prin orice form şi prin orice mijloace tehnice, este strict interzis şi se pedepseşte conform legii R spunderea pentru inutul şi originalitatea textului revine exclusiv autorului/autorilor Redactor: Andreea DINU Tehnoredactor: Brînduşa B RBAT Coperta: Cornelia PRODAN Bun de tipar: 26.10.2007; Coli de tipar: 11,25 Format: 16/61X86 Editura Funda iei România de Mâine Bulevardul Timişoara nr 58, Bucureşti, sector Tel / Fax: 021/444.20.91; www.spiruharet.ro e-mail: contact@edituraromaniademaine.ro UNIVERSITATEA SPIRU HARET FACULTATEA DE LIMBI ŞI LITERATURI STR INE DOMNICA ŞERBAN DENISA DR GUŞIN ENGLISH PRACTICAL COURSE FOR SECOND YEAR STUDENTS EDITURA FUNDA IEI ROMÂNIA DE MÂINE Bucureşti, 2007 CONTENTS Preface ………………………………………………………………… Part I (The First Term) Introduction …………………………………………………………… 15 UNIT 1: EDUCATING MAN: GOING TO SCHOOL; READING BOOKS A Pilot Text: The Flight from the Enchanter ………………………… I Reading Comprehension ……………………………………… II Lexical Focus ………………………………………………… III Vocabulary Practice ………………………………………… IV Grammar Practice …………………………………….……… V Translation …………………………………………………… VI Conversation ………………………………………….……… VII Composition ………………………………………………… B Satellite text …………………………………………………….… I Reading ………………………………………………………… II Comprehension Check-up ………………………………….… III Translation …………………………………………….……… IV Building Vocabulary ………………………………….……… V Conversation ………………………………………………… VI Composition …………………………………………………… 18 20 20 21 22 25 26 26 27 27 30 30 30 31 31 UNIT 2: PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL LIFE (1): LIFE AND DEATH; THE HUMAN BODY; RELATIONS AND FEELINGS A Pilot text: A Single Man …………………………………………… I Reading Comprehension ……………………………………… II Lexical Focus …………………………………………….…… 32 35 35 III Vocabulary Practice …………………………………………… IV Grammar Practice …………………………………….……… V Translation ………………………………………………….… VI Conversation ……………………………………….………… VII Composition ………………………………………….……… B Satellite text …………………………………………………….… I Reading ………………………………………………………… II Comprehension Check-up …………………………………… III Translation …………………………………………….……… IV Building Vocabulary ………………………………….……… V Conversation ………………………………………………… VI Composition …………………………………………………… 36 37 39 40 41 41 41 44 44 45 48 48 UNIT 3: PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL LIFE (2): INTER-HUMAN RELATIONSHIPS; LOVE AND MARRIAGE A Pilot text: The Betrayed Kingdom ………………………………… I Reading Comprehension ……………………………………… II Lexical Focus ………………………………………………… III Vocabulary Practice ………………………………………… IV Grammar Practice …………………………………….……… V Translation …………………………………………………… VI Conversation ………………………………………….……… VII Composition ………………………………………….……… B Satellite text …………………………………………………….… I Reading ………………………………………………………… II Comprehension Check-up …………………………………… III Translation …………………………………………….……… IV Building Vocabulary ………………………………….……… V Conversation ………………………………………………… VI Composition …………………………………………………… Revision Test I …………………………………………………….… 49 51 51 52 53 55 56 56 56 56 61 62 62 63 63 64 Part II (The Second Term) Introduction …………………………………………………………… 71 UNIT 4: LIFE AND TECHNOLOGY A Pilot text: Computers will know us Better than We Know Ourselves … I Reading Comprehension ……………………………………… 73 75 II Lexical Focus ……………………………………………….… III Vocabulary Practice …………………………………………… IV Grammar Practice …………………………………….……… V Translation ………………………………………………….… VI Conversation ……………………………………….………… VII Composition ………………………………………….……… B Satellite text …………………………………………………….… I Reading ………………………………………………………… II Comprehension Check-up ……………………………………… III Translation …………………………………………….……… IV Building Vocabulary ………………………………….……… V Conversation …………………………………………………… VI Composition …………………………………………………… 75 75 76 78 80 80 81 81 84 84 84 86 86 UNIT 5: MAN AS ARTIST A Pilot text: The Listener …………………………………………… 87 I Reading Comprehension ……………………………………… 90 II Lexical Focus ……………………………………………….… 90 III Vocabulary Practice …………………………………………… 91 IV Grammar Practice …………………………………….……… 91 V Translation ………………………………………………….… 94 VI Conversation ……………………………………….………… 94 VII Composition ………………………………………….……… 95 B Satellite text …………………………………………………….… 95 I Reading ………………………………………………………… 95 II Comprehension Check-up …………………………………… 99 III Translation …………………………………………………… 99 IV Building Vocabulary ………………………………………… 99 V Conversation ……………………………………….……….… 102 VI Composition …………………………………………………… 102 UNIT 6: MAN IN THE MIDST OF NATURE A Pilot text: Reflections on the Death of a Porcupine ……………… I.1 Reading Comprehension ……………………………………… I.2 Further Text Discussion ……………………………………… II Lexical Focus ……………………………………………….… III Vocabulary Practice …………………………………………… IV Grammar Practice …………………………………………… 103 106 106 107 107 108 V Translation ……………………………………………….…… VI Conversation ……………………………………………….… VII Composition ………………………………………………… B Satellite text ……………………………………………………… I Reading ………………………………………………………… II Comprehension Check-up and Text Discussion …………….… III Translation …………………………………………………… IV Building Vocabulary ………………………………………… V Conversation ……………………………………….……….… VI Composition …………………………………………………… C Satellite text ……………………………………………………… I Reading ………………………………………………………… II Comprehension Check-up …………………………………… III Translation …………………………………………………… IV Building Vocabulary ………………………………………… V Conversation ……………………………………….……….… VI Composition …………………………………………………… 110 111 111 111 111 114 114 115 115 115 115 115 120 120 120 121 121 Revision Test II …………………………………………………….… 122 Instead of a Key ……………………………………………………… 126 Appendix – Grammar Synopses ……………………………………… 137 – Composition Writing Synopses ……………………… 173 Bibliography ………………………………………………………… 179 PREFACE The English Practical Course is designed to help the second year students reach and consolidate the upper-intermediate level of English It is a skill-based approach, tackling abilities like: reading, writing, speaking, listening and also, handling grammatical structures The course aims at securing an important progress in the domain of vocabulary and syntactic patterns (at the level of phrases, simple sentences and complex sentences), the acquisition of which should allow the students to efficiently apply their knowledge in various discourse contexts and in a wide range of textual genres The language chosen as main variety is Standard General English; besides we also introduce the basic core of English for Academic Purposes, as well as the minimal specialized vocabulary of English for Scientific and Technical Purposes and of English for Arts, with particular focus on musical terms Our material consolidates the upper-intermediate level of English by covering various other lexical areas The students’ grammatical awareness will be enhanced by applications focused on syntactic structures at phrase, simple sentence and compound or complex sentence types The students’ competence in the realm of the four skills will be refined by means of complex practical activities including discourse analysis, comprehension checks, reading by skimming and scanning, talking about controversial topics or writing on given or relatively free topics By the end of the academic year the students will have acquired the necessary competence in translating fictional and non-fictional texts into and from the target language, in essay writing, and in conversing on topics related to the selected text samples The present English Practical Course consists of five thematically oriented units (Educating Man, Physical and Emotional Life, Life and Technology, Man as Artist, Man in the Midst of Nature) developed in six units, three per term Each unit is made up of two parts: part A, focusing on the selected pilot text, mainly conveying the respective topic, and part B, focusing on the satellite text which is kindred with the pilot one from a thematic point of view The latter helps the student go deeper into the already introduced subject matter; besides it provides further reading material opening new perspectives Every pilot text is followed by reading comprehension, vocabulary practice and grammar practical activities and exercises, all designed so as to consolidate both the semantic and syntactic knowledge stored by the students Part A also includes a translation section, testing the students’ ability to translate from the native language into the target one, as well as a conversation section, aiming at improving the students’ speaking competence The last section is focused on composition aiming at developing the students’ writing skills, their creativeness The second part of the unit, part B, reinforces the topic announced in part A, being built on the following sub-sections: the text reading section, introducing the satellite text; the comprehension check-up section, made up of a set of questions testing the students’ understanding of the text; the translation section, assessing the students’ ability to translate from the target language into the native one; the building vocabulary section providing the students with vocabulary lists of the respective domain; the conversation and the composition sections consolidating and refining the students’ speaking and writing skills Two revision tests round off each of the two parts Their role is to check the lexical and the grammatical cognitive material introduced in the respective units At the end of the book, in the appendix, there are several grammar and composition synopses meant to function as working instruments, which will help the students’ solve their tasks more efficiently These materials also facilitate exam preparation, by the systematic picture they provide Linguistic awareness in the domains of grammar and discourse will also be consolidated if these synopses are assimilated by the second year student We would like to conclude by referring back to the essential components of our corpus, i.e the texts we have selected as starting or 10 SUBJECT–VERB AGREEMENT RULE EXAMPLE Two or more subjects joined by Tim and his wife were the “and” usually require a plural verb expected guests A crate of apples and oranges has been delivered to our doorstep Some indefinite pronouns are One of the students in the always singular and therefore class today was absent require singular verbs (one, each, Every one of the employees is everyone, either, neither) angry about the new contract The verb in clauses that begin One of the men who are being “one of…… (who, which, or considered for the job is from that)” is plural this university When the conjunctions “or” and Either the students or the “nor” and the pairs of conjunctions teacher has made a mistake “either…or”, “neither…nor”, and The parent or the children “not only…but also” are used to inherit the estate join subjects, the verb agrees in number with the part of the subject nearest the verb When normal word order Buried under the floorboards (subject – verb) is inverted (verb – is the murdered man subject) by placing the subject There are at least fifteen after the verb, the verb agrees in angry demonstrators outside number with the logical subject following the verb Collective nouns (army, audience, The jury agrees on the verdict committee, etc.) usually take The jury disagree on the singular verbs, but require a plural verdict verb when the collective noun refers to the members of the group and not to the group as a unit 166 Expressions referring to quantity or extent (miles, liters, pounds, etc.) take singular verbs when the amount is considered as a unit and plural verbs when the amount is considered as a number of individual units “Number” may be singular or plural The number refers to the total sum and takes a singular verb; a number refers to the individual units and takes a plural verb Words ending in “-ics” (mathematics, acoustics, athletics, etc.) take a singular verb when they refer to a science, art, or body of knowledge; they take a plural verb when they refer to physical activities or qualities 10 A prepositional phrase that comes between a subject and a verb does not affect the verb form Ten miles is not far to go for a delicious meal Thirty dollars is too much to pay for that purse A number of students fail every test The number of students who pass is increasing Economics, my major, is difficult The acoustics of the building are good The man, as well as his wife and children, was injured in the accident His dog, along with his cat and goldfish, prevents him from taking long trips 167 REPORTED SPEECH There are two ways of reporting someone’s words: ♦ using a quote structure (one’s actual words): The little boy said: “My mother always fulfills my wishes.” ♦ using a report structure with a verb like: to say, to tell, to speak, to observe, to remark, to assert, to declare, to argue, to maintain, to state, to announce, to inform, to acknowledge, to admit, to command, to instruct, to ask, to demand, to inquire, to question, to answer, to think etc.: The little boy said that his mother always fulfilled his wishes Changes personal/reflexive/ possessive pronouns demonstrative pronouns/ adjectives time and place adverbs Direct speech I/we myself/ourselves mine/ours you yourselves yours “You should have called me.” this these “I’ll buy this one.” today yesterday the day before yesterday tomorrow the day after tomorrow next week last week (a year) ago now here “Peter is coming now.” 168 Indirect speech he/she/they himself/herself/themselves his/hers/theirs He said to her that she should have called him that those She said she’d buy that one that day the day before/the previous day two days before the next day/the following day in two days’ time the next week/the following week the previous week/the week before (a year) before/the previous year then there She said that Peter was coming then present reporting verb tenses She says to my brother: “I want to talk to you now.” past reporting verb thus: call called am/is/are calling have/has called have/has been calling had called shall will can may must ought to He said: “I have been busy today.” future reporting verb He will say: “I can that.” unchanged tense of the verb in the reported clause (demonstrative adjectives/ adverbs also remain unchanged) She tells my brother that she wants to talk to him now past tenses of the verb in the reported clause called had called/called was/were calling had called had been calling had called should would could might had to/must ought to He said he had been busy that day unchanged tense of the verb in the reported clause He will say that he can that 169 CORRECT USE OF SOME MISLEADING WORDS item use I DUMMY ITEMS (Subjects) There & It 170 There • for expressing existence in space together with existential BE: There is a phone box over there There are some books on the table Were there any bargains in the sale? • with quantified subjects: There is too much noise in here Will there be enough food? • with verbs like: to begin, to come, to fall, to happen, to lie, to live, to occur, to remain, to sit, to stand etc: There comes a time when age tells There lived an old man there There remains nothing else to say It • with physical objects, abstractions, kids, animals (as a neuter pronoun) It is a big friendly dog • in statements about time, weather, distance: It’s Monday It was colder yesterday It’s over a hundred miles from London to Birmingham It’s ten days since I last met her • with a to-infinitive Subject: It was nice to talk to you It would be a good idea to take a taxi It’s important for you to take that exam • with a gerund Subject: It’s no use crying • with a that-clause: It’s a pity that she can’t join us It was recommended that we should study harder II VERBS Do & Make Lay & Lie Lend & Borrow Raise & Rise Do ∼ research ∼ one’s homework ∼ a favour ∼ business ∼ a bunk ∼ good ∼ the honours ∼ wonders/miracles Make ∼ an agreement ∼ a mistake ∼ fun ∼ arrangements ∼ one’s bed ∼ a speech ∼ progress ∼ an attempt ∼ a change Lay (laid – laid – Lie (lay – lain – laying) lying) + object – object She laid her books on She lay down because the desk she was sick Lend Borrow ∼ sth to sb ∼ sth from sb I lent that video to She borrowed money from me John Raise (raised – Rise (rose – risen – raised – raising) rising) + object – object He raised his hands The sun is rising in prayer high in the sky III PREPOSITIONS & CONJUNCTIONS Beside & Besides Beside (preposition) Besides = next to (preposition) She was sitting beside = in addition to the handsome boy Besides Tim, Helen and I attended the lecture 171 Like = preposition You write like me Like & As 172 As = conjunction She doesn’t study as she should = preposition (“in the capacity of”) As a full-time student, you must attend al courses COMPOSITION WRITING SYNOPSES COMPOSITION WRITING Describing People a introduction: giving brief information about who the person is, where/how you met him/her b main body: including description of such things as physical appearance, personality/behaviour, manner/mannerism, and/or details of the person’s life and lifestyle (hobbies, interests, everyday activities, etc.) c conclusion: commenting on why the person is of interest, expressing your feelings/opinion concerning the person Describing Places/Buildings a introduction: giving brief information about the name and location of the place/building and stating the reason for choosing to write about it b main body: giving both general and specific details about the place/building usually moving from the general features to specific ones i when you describe a place you should give the overall impression by referring to landscape, buildings, landmarks, etc, and particular details (sights to see, places to go, things to do); ii when you describe a building you should write about its surroundings then give a detailed description of its exterior and interior; c conclusion: expressing your feelings or opinion concerning the subject or give a recommendation 173 Narrative a introduction: which sets the scene (place, time, character(s), etc.) creates an interesting mood/atmosphere to make the reader want to continue reading, and/or begins dramatically to capture the reader’s attention; b main body: which develops the series of events clearly, gives vivid description of the people/places involved, etc; c conclusion: which completes the story, perhaps in an unexpected way, and may describe people’s feelings and reactions, the consequences of what happened Discursive Essays For and Against Essay Introduction Paragraph – state topic (without stating your opinion) Main Body Paragraphs 2-3 – arguments for and justifications, examples or reasons Paragraphs 4-5 – arguments against and justifications, examples or reasons Conclusion Final Paragraph – balanced consideration or opinion 174 Opinion Essay Introduction Paragraph – state the topic and your opinion Main Body Paragraphs 2-4 -viewpoints and reasons /examples Paragraph – opposing viewpoints and reason/example Conclusion Final Paragraph – summarise/restate your opinion Solutions to Problems Essay Introduction Paragraph – state the problem and its cause(s)/ effect(s) Main Body Paragraphs 2-5 – suggestions and results Conclusion – summarise your opinion Letters Letter of Request Giving Information Giving an Opinion Introduction Paragraph – state reason(s) for writing Paragraph – state reason(s) for writing Main Body Paragraphs 2-3 – explain reasons for making the request Paragraphs 4-5 – state expected results/ consequences Paragraphs 2-3 – give information required Paragraphs 4-5 – provide further explanations/ suggestions/ opinion as stated in the task instruction Conclusion Final Paragraph – closing remarks Full Name Final Paragraph – closing remarks Full name ADVICE Paragraph – state reason(s) for writing / express understanding of problem Paragraphs 2-3 offer advice / suggestions Final Paragraph – closing remarks Full name MAKING SUGGESTIONS/ RECOMMENDATIONS Paragraph – state reason(s) for writing Paragraphs 2-3 – give opinion Paragraphs 4-5 – make suggestions and comment on the expected results Final Paragraph – closing remarks Full name 175 TO AUTHORITIES / EDITOR Paragraph – state reason(s) for writing and opinion Complaint Apology Application Paragraph – state reason(s) for writing and opinion Paragraph – state reason(s) for writing and opinion Paragraph – state reason(s) for writing and opinion Paragraphs 2-3 – describe the problems and consequences Paragraphs 4-5 – suggest solutions / measures to be taken Paragraphs 2-3 – state complaint (s) with justification Paragraphs 4-5 – suggest what should be done Paragraphs 2-3 – give explanations Paragraphs 4-5 -suggest compensation Final Paragraph – closing remarks Paragraphs 2-34-5 – education and qualifications, previous experience, personal qualities, suitability Final Paragraph – closing remarks Full name Final Paragraph – closing remarks Full name Final Paragraph – closing remarks Full name Full name Reports There are various types of reports: • assessment reports (which present and evaluate the positive/ negative features of a person, plan, place; they also include your opinion and/or recommendation) 176 • informative reports (which present information concerning a meeting that has taken place, progress made on a project) • survey reports (which present and analyse information gathered from door-to-door surveys/questionnaires, including conclusions drawn from this information and suggestions or recommendations) • proposal reports (which present plans, decisions or suggestions concerning possible future courses of action for approval by one’s superior at work, a bank manager, members of committee, etc.) Structure: Introduction Paragraph – state the person and content of your report Main Body Paragraphs 2-3-4-5 – present each aspect of the subject and separate subheadings (positive / negative points of each aspect are presented in same paragraph) Conclusion Final Paragraph – general assessment, opinion and / or suggestion, recommendation Articles • it should have an interesting title (suggesting the topic) Introduction Paragraph – state topic of article Main Body Paragraphs 2-3-4-5 – the topic is developed in detail Conclusion Final Paragraph – summary of the topic, opinions, comments, recommendations; News Reports • it should have a headline (short and eye-catching, giving the reader an idea of the subject of the report) 177 Introduction Paragraph – summary of event (what / where / who / when / how / why) Main Body Paragraphs 2-3-4-5 – description / details of event; causes and / or results Conclusion Final Paragraph – reference to future developments / comments / reactions Reviews Introduction Paragraph – background – type of story, setting, theme, main characters 178 Main Body Paragraphs – main points of the plot Paragraphs – comments on various features (acting, plot, characters) Paragraphs 4-5 – explanation, reason / example Conclusion Final Paragraph – overall assessment of work/ recommendation BIBLIOGRAPHY Main Sources Bantaş, A., Limba Englez în liste şi tabele, Editura Teora, Bucureşti, 2003 B descu, A., Gramatica Limbii Engleze, Editura Ştiin ific , Bucureşti, 1963 Collins Cobuild, English Grammar, Harper Collins Publishers, London, 1990 G l eanu-Fârnoag , G., Comişel, E., Gramatica Limbii Engleze, Editura Omegapress, Bucureşti, 1995 Graver, G.B., Advanced 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