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1.Read
the text.
HOW
TO DIE
By
George Mikes
A ___
The English are the only race in the world who enjoy dying. Most other people
contemplate death with fear; the English look forward to it with gusto. They
speak of death as if it were something natural. B___ Foreign
insurance agents speak of “certain possibilities” and the “eventuality” that
“something might happen to you”. The English make careful calculations and the
thought that the insurance company will have to pay up always sweetens their
last hours. C ___ Nowhere in the world do people make so many
cruel jokes about the aged and the weak as here. In Continental families you
simply do not refer to the fact that a parent or a grandparent is not immortal.
D___ But not long ago my two children burst into my room and asked
me:
“Daddy, which of us will get your camera
when you die?”
“ I’ll let you know,” I replied. “By the
way, I’m sorry to be still alive. It’s not my fault. I can’t help it.
They were a little hurt.
“ Don’t be silly. We don’t really mind at
all. We only wanted to know who’ll get the camera.”
E___ And
when the moment comes, the English make no fuss. They are not great people for
famous last words. Dead or alive, they hate being conspicuous or saying
anything unconventional.
I will never forget the poor old gentleman
who once travelled with me on the Channel boat. Only the two of us were on deck
as a violent storm was raging. We huddled there for a while, without saying
anything. Suddenly a fearful gust blew him overboard. F___ His head
emerged just once from the water below me. He looked at me calmly and remarked
somewhat casually:
“ Rather windy, isn’t it?”
2.Find words or phrases in the
article which are similar to these words and phrases.
1) to rise, to come into view;
a) enjoy b) burst c) emerge
d) huddle
2) It doesn’t depend upon me, I can do
nothing about it;
a) I will never forget b) I’ll let
you know c) It’s not my fault d) I can’t help it
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3) to speak of, to mention, to allude to;
a) refer to b) contemplate c)
pay up d) burst into
4) don’t complain, don’t get nervous or
excited;
a) don’t be silly b) don’t mind at
all c) make no fuss d) look forward to
5) keen enjoyment, agreeable excitement;
a) insurance b) eventuality c)
gusto d) gust
6) a euphemism, a phrase used to avoid
offensive words such as death and the like.
a) careful calculations b)
insurance agents c) cruel jokes d) certain possibilities
1. Choose
the answer ( A,B,C or D) which you think fits best according to the text
1) According
to the writer, the English are the only race in the world who enjoy dying
because they
A contemplate death
with fear
B speak of certain
possibilities
C hate being
conspicuous
D look forward to
it with gusto
2)
What does the writer say about their
attitude to death?
A They sweeten their last hours.
B They are great people for famous
last words.
C They speak of it as if it were
something natural.
D They make careful calculations.
3)
The author was rather upset because
A his children had burst into his
room.
B he realised that he was not
immortal.
C the children asked who he would
give his camera to after his death.
D he was sorry to be still alive.
4) When
the moment comes, the English
A don’t get
nervous or excited.
B make many cruel
jokes about the aged and the weak.
C start preparing
their last words.
D contemplate
death with fear.
5) The
author will never forget the old gentleman because
A they once
travelled together on the Channel boat.
B there were only
two of them on deck when the violent storm started raging.
C a sudden
fearful gust had blown the old gentleman overboard.
D despite the
extreme situation the old gentleman wasn’t panicky at all.
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2. Find
the words and phrases in the text to replace the words in italics in these
sentences.
1. The
English are the only people who think about dying without fear.
2. On
his deathbed the Englishman always enjoys
thinking of the sum the insurance company will have to pay when he breathes
his last.
3. On
the Continent people usually avoid speaking about the possible death of an
aged or sick relative
4. One
day the children rushed into Father’s room.
5. He
promised to inform the boys which of them would inherit his camera.
6. He
apologized for being still alive and added that he could do nothing
about it.
7. When
the last moment comes the English show neither fear nor anxiety.
3. Answer
the following questions.
1. In
what way does the author believe the English differ from most other people?
a) They
contemplate death with fear.
b) They
simply do not refer to the fact that a parent or a grandparent is immortal.
c) They
are the only race in the world who enjoy dying.
d) They
travel on the Channel boat.
2. How
do they speak of death?
a) They
make many cruel jokes about it.
b) They
speak calmly and casually.
c) They
speak of it as if it were something natural.
d) They
speak of “certain possibilities” and the “eventuality” that “something might
happen to you”.
3. What
calculations do they make?
a) When will the moment
come?
b) How many times did
the old gentleman’s head emerge from the water?
c) How much will the
insurance company pay up?
d) Who will inherit
everything after their death?
4. What
sweetens their last hours?
a) Cruel
jokes about the aged and weak.
b) Appropriate
last words.
c) The
fact that they are immortal.
d) The
thought that the insurance company will have to pay up.
5. What
is never done in Continental families?
a) People
never say anything unconventional.
b) They
never make any fuss when the moment comes.
c) They
do not refer to the fact that their relatives are not immortal.
d) They
never deal with insurance agents.
6. Why
did the author’s children burst into his room?
a) They
were silly.
b) They
wanted to know who would get the camera?
c) They
wanted to find out what their father’s fault was.
d) They
were disappointed that their father was still alive.
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7. How
do the English behave when the last moment comes?
a) They
enjoy dying.
b) They
huddle for a while without saying anything.
c) They
speak of death as if it were something natural.
d) They
make no fuss.
8. Where
did the author find himself in the company of an old English gentleman?
a) In
the Continental family.
b) On
the Channel boat.
c) In
the water overboard.
d) In
the insurance company.
9. What
happened to the gentleman?
a) He
was blown overboard by a sudden fearful gust.
b) He
had to pay for the insurance company.
c) He
burst into the author’s room and asked him.
d) He
was given a camera.
10. What
did he remark when his head emerged from the water?
a) “It’s
not my fault”.
b) “I
can’t help it”.
c) “I’ll
let you know”.
d) “Rather
windy, isn’t it?”
4. Match
each noun to the correct activity.
a) camera a)
make
b) jokes b)
come
c) death c)
pay up
d) gentleman d)
blow
e) head e)
get
f) storm f)
emerge
g) gust g)
travel
h) moment h)
look forward to
i) calculations i)
rage
j) children j)
make
k)
insurance agents k)
burst into
5. For
questions 1-16, choose from the people (A-E). The people may be chosen more
than once. When more than one answer is
required, these may be given in any order. A THE
AUTHOR
B THE ENGLISH
C THE CONTINENTAL FAMILIES
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D THE CHILDREN
E THE OLD GENTLEMAN
1. ...look
forward to death with gusto. ___
___
2. ...was
sorry to be still alive. ___
___
3. ...travelled
on the Channel boat. ___
___
4. ...make
many cruel jokes about the aged and the weak. ___ ___
5. ...never
refer to the fact that people aren’t immortal. ___
___
6. ...speak
of death as something natural. ___
___
7. ...was
blown overboard. ___
___
8. ...was
on deck when a violent storm started raging. ___
___
9. ...wanted
to know who would get the camera. ___ ___
10. ...make
no fuss when the moment comes. ___
___
11. ...contemplate
death with fear. ___
___
12. ...
looked calm in an extreme situation. ___
___
13. ...burst
into the room and asked. ___
___
14. ...hate
being conspicuous or saying anything unconventional. ___ ___
15. ...are
not great people for famous last words. ___
___
16. ...will
never forget the old poor gentleman. ___
___
6. These
sentences show the main idea of each paragraph. Choose from the sentences 1-9 the
one which fits each letter(A-F). There are some extra sentences which you do
not need to use.
1) Different
attitudes to death.
2) “Cowards
die many times before their deaths”.
3) Famous
last words.
4) Some
people face death with calm and dignity.
5) Death
brings not only sorrow but also profit.
6) The
valiant never taste of death but once. (W. Shakespeare)
7) Children
are unable to understand the phenomenon of death.
8) An
Englishman is known for his reserve, his distaste for all kinds of emotional
outbursts.
9) How
does an Englishman behave in a crisis?
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