Chapters Thirty-three – Thirty-six (pp. 247-278)

Active Vocabulary

1. to be determined to do sth (249) – иметь твёрдые намерения сделать что-л.

2. to make a protest against sth (249) –   выражать протест против чего-л.

3. to blame sb for sth (254) –         обвинять кого-л в чём-л.

4. to get off the rails (254, 255) –             сбиться с пути истинного,

быть выбитым из колеи, сбитым с толку

5. to remind sb of sth (257) –     напоминать кому-л о чём-л.

6. to be the last straw (258) –         быть последней каплей

7. kindred spirits (260) –           родственные души

8. to feel sorry for sb (267) –          чувствовать жалость к кому-л.

 

I. Find in the novel the following words and phrases. Learn them. Get ready to reproduce the situations in which they were used. Try to use them in answering the questions and discussing the characters and the events of the novel.

II. Find in the novel words or word combinations with the following meaning. Put them down, translate them into Russian. Reproduce the sentences where they are used.

1. confusing (248) ___________________________________________________

2. to take drugs (252) ______________________________________________

3. to stare angrily at sb (253) ________________________________________

4. to want to do sth very much (253) __________________________________

5. to be insane (255) (infml) ____________________________________________

6. to commit suicide (254) (infml) _____________________________________

7. not to hurry (260) _______________________________________________

8. annoyed, irritable (273) ___________________________________________

III. Find in the novel the English equivalents of the following Russian words or word combinations.

1. ввязываться в драки (248) _________________________________________

2. сойти с поезда (253, 254) __________________________________________

3. выпустить кого-л. из вида (250) ____________________________________

4. бросить сапог в витрину магазина (250) _____________________________

5. разговор по душам (254) ________________________________________

6. потерять дар речи (262) ___________________________________________

7. язвить, иронизировать над кем-л (274) (infml) ________________________

On the train

1. Ellie claimed that her life was full of trouble. Did Marcus think so too?

Were their lives similar in Marcus’s opinion?

What do you think about it?

Speak on Marcus’s attitude to Ellie. Why had it changed do you think?

 

2. How did Ellie get into trouble this time?

Why were Ellie and Marcus taken to the police station?

3. Why did Ellie break the shop window?

Using Active Grammar (complex sentences with clauses of nonfactual condition)

 

Marcus thought his life would have been different if some events hadn’t happened.

Using the pattern the Conditional Mood + Subjunctive II (with reference to the past) make up a chain of sentences beginning with:

Marcus wouldn’t have been taken to the police station if Ellie hadn’t broken the shop window. Ellie wouldn’t have broken the shop window if she hadn’t got drunk. ….

 

You can use the beginning of the following chain of events and develop it or make up your own one.

 

Marcus was taken to the police station ß Ellie broke the shop window ß Ellie got drunkß Ellie got off the train ßEllie went to Cambridge with Marcus ß Ellie wanted to support Marcus ß Marcus and Ellie made friends ß Marcus met Ellie at the headmistress’s office ß…. ___________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________

At the Police Station

1. What kind of state were Marcus’s dad and his girlfriend in when they arrived at the police station?

 

Retell the conversation between Marcus, Ellie, Clive and Lindsey in indirect speech. Describe the feelings of each of them and their attitudes to each other.

2. Driving to the police station Will had the feeling of alarm and anxiety which he had experienced on the Dead Duck Day. But was it different now? Why?

Describe Will’s feelings during the journey to the police station.

There were a few people at the police station.

Match the people to the adjectives used to describe them and put them down in front of each of the characters. Add your own adjectives which could be used to describe these people’s state.

angry` curious    grumpy concerned sympathetic tired embarrassing     furious insulting    grim silent   bewildered embarrassed nervy    aggressive    calm awkward    sarcastic

Marcus _________________________                                      

 

Ellie __________________________

 

Clive __________________________

Lindsey ________________________

 

Will ___________________________

 

Fiona__________________________

 

Katrina________________________

    

Ruth,the shop owner,_____________

v Try your hand at acting

Dramatize the conversation like a play (9 people are talking).

Think how your characters might look like, how they behaved during the conversation, what mimics and gestures they might have when talking.

Try to be natural when performing your part.

Marcus and His Dad

Speak on Marcus’s relations with his dad.

What were their attitudes to each other?

 

Marcus called Clive ‘a useless father’. Did he really think so?

Do you agree with Marcus? Prove your point of view.

 Render their conversation from chapter thirty-five.

 

Chapter Thirty-six

Speak on the changes in the characters’ way of life.

 

 

Ditto (258) – ‘repeat that’.

University of Life sweatshirt (261) – means something like ‘I was educated at the University of Life’, a popular phrase used by those who think that experience is much more important than formal education.

doppelganger (262) – a German borrowing which means someone who is so like you that he or she seems to shadow you and understand your mind.

Paul Smith suit or pair of Raybans (273) –fashionable cool clothes that Will had used to protect himself from real emotions.

Lesson 13

Themes to discuss

(1) The decline of the nuclear family. Parenthood and its difficulties.

Key paragraphs: Chapter Eleven p. 66: ‘Two wasn’t enough…..’

         Chapter Thirty-six p. 276: “I don’t think couples are the future.”

Fiona as a mother.

Clive as a father.

Will as a …? (decide yourself)

 

(2) Will.

Changes in Will’s character: Will at the beginning and at the end of the novel.

The way Will gains a sense of responsibility for and involvement with others.

 

(3) Marcus.

Marcus’s first steps to learn life.

Marcus as the oldest twelve-year-old boy in the world.

· Watching Video in Class

Episodes 14-19 (30 min: 01:00:05-01:30:20)

Will      Hugh Grant

Marcus Nicholas Hoult

Rachel  Rachel Weisz

Ali        Augustus Prew

Ellie      Nat Gasian Tena

Fiona    Toni Collette

Plot:

· Will and Marcus visit Rachel and Ali

· Marcus and Ellie make friends

· Will tells Rachel the truth

· Marcus signs up for the school rock concert

· Will visits SPAT again

· School Rock Concert

· Final Party

Questions to discuss

· Which of the characters arouses your

a) kindly feelings or sympathy;

b) disapproval or dislike;

c) mixed feelings?

 

· What do you think of the screen version of the novel?

Do you think the actors are a successful choice?

 

· What are your general impressions after you have read the novel?

Would you recommend reading this book to those who haven’t read anything by Nick Hornby?

 

· What is the most memorable episode in the book?

 

Symbols in the novel

 

There are some symbols used by the author to convey the characters in the novel, such as: fish (p. 4), acrobatic displays (p. 270), etc.

What do they symbolize?

What other symbols are used in the novel? Comment on their symbolic meaning.

Do you think that the first letters in the names of the main characters M arcus & W ill can symbolize anything too?

Humour in the novel

Get ready to discuss humour in the novel.

· Was there anything in the novel that made you laugh?

Point out ridiculous situations described in the novel which seemed comic to you and made you laugh (if any) and comic absurdities that arise as the author plays with patterns of speech and thought.

You are welcome with any other questions or problems touched upon in the book to discuss in class.

Учебное издание

 

Составитель: Наталья Владимировна Майзенгер

 

Student’s Workbook for Home Reading:

About a Boy by Nick Hornby:

рабочая тетрадь по домашнему чтению

по книге Н. Хорнби «Мой мальчик»

 

 

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