Put the jumbled sentences in the logical order to sum up the information given in the text.

 

1. But not all parents are easy to get on with.

2. If you antagonize your parents, your life will be much harder but if you treat them in an honest way, their response will be more reasonable.

3. Parents can get on your nerves just as you can get on theirs.

4. Mutual understanding is a two-way process.

5. The difference between children’s philosophy and way of life and their parents’ is called the generation gap.

6. Try to avoid doing things your parents will disapprove of and never deceive your parents.

7. Before doing something think of your parents’ response.

8. If you are sensitive to each other’s feelings, you can avoid upsetting each other.

9. They may worry about money or about getting old themselves.

10. Try to think about your parents as ordinary people who are under all sorts of pressure.

11. Be open and reasonable with your parents and they’ll treat you in a similar way.

12. In time the relationship between parents and children will change and become much more one between equals.

 

Give the main idea of the text using the following words and expressions and adding connectives and some more words if necessary.

 

1. 1.Parents, to get on one’s nerves.

2. To be sensitive to, feelings, to avoid, to upset each other.

3. Understanding, to be, parents, a two-way process.

4. To grow up, relations, to change, to become, one between equals.

5. Generation gap, to call, difference, way of life, philosophy.

6. Parents, to be under pressure, to worry about, to get old, to be lonely.

7. To treat, honest way, reasonable response, to antagonize, life, to be hard.

8. To think, to act, to deceive parents, never.

 

Unit X

Pre-reading tasks

1. Look through the key words and expressions and guess what this text is about:

sport                                           feelings of rivalry

to create good will                                to arouse

to lead to hatred                          to humiliate

competitive                                 to gain a victory

the question of prestige               to intervene

to do one’s utmost                               to cheat

to win                                         crowd

to have nothing to do with          fair play

 

Look through the text to see if your guess about its contents was correct. If it wasn’t, give the information that you have missed.

The Sporting Spirit

I am always amazed when I hear people saying that sport creates good will between the nations, and that if only the common peoples of the world could meet one another at football or cricket, they would have no inclination to meet on the battlefield. Even if one didn’t know from concrete examples that international sporting contests lead to hatred one could deduce it from general principles.

Nearly all sports nowadays are competitive. You play to win, and the game has little meaning unless you do your utmost to win. On the village green, where you pick up sides and no feeling of local patriotism is involved, it is possible to play simply for the fun and exercise; but as soon as the question of prestige arises, as soon as you feel that you and some larger unit will be disgraced if you lose, the most savage combative instincts are aroused. Anyone who has played even in a school football match knows this.

At the international level sport is frankly mimic warfare. But the significant thing is not the behaviour of the players but the attitude of the spectators; and behind the spectators, of the nations who work themselves into furies over these absurd contests and seriously believe that running, jumping and kicking a ball are tests of national virtue. As soon as strong feelings of rivalry are aroused, the notion of playing the game according to the rules always vanishes. People want to see one side on top and the other side humiliated and they forget that victory gained through cheating or through the intervention of the crowd is meaningless. Even when the spectators don’t intervenephysically they try to influence the game by cheering their own side and rattling opposing players. Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play. It is bound up with hatred, jealousy, boastfulness, disregard of all rules, in other words, it is war minus the shooting.

I do hot, of course, suggest that sport is one of the main causes of international rivalry; big-scale sport is itself, I think, merely another effect of the causes that have produced nationalism. Still, you do make things worse by sending forth a team of eleven men to do battle against some rival team. There are quite enough real causes of trouble already, and we need not add to them.

 

Post-reading tasks

Read the text again to fulfill the tasks to follow.

The text is headlined “ The Sporting Spirit” . Do you think the heading suits the information given in the text? Express your opinion. Below you’ll find some more headings. Choose the one that suits best and motivate your choice.

 

a) Serious sport and fair play are incompatible.

b) Sport as one of the main reasons for international rivalry.

c) Ambiguous nature of sport.

 

2. Choose the synonyms to the words given in italics according to the context.

 

fair          a) considerable b) beautiful     c) light   d) honest

to intervene a) to happen b) to interfere  c) to interrupt d) to disturb

rivalry     a) match        b) competition c) contest d) tournament

to humiliate a) to insult              b) to offend     c) to praise d) to shame

 

3. Complete the following sentences. Your answers must be related to the ideas contained in the text.

 

1. I am always astonished when I … .

2. In fact, sporting contests lead to … .

3. Sport is … .

4. Players usually do their … .

5. When the question of prestige … .

6. The most important thing is … .

7. When feelings of rivalry are aroused … .

8. If spectators don’t intervene … .

9. Serious sport has nothing … .

10. Sport is one … .

11. In my opinion, there are enough real … .