The geographical location and climate of Great Britain.

The geographical location and climate of Great Britain.

The United Kingdom is situated on the British Isles. The British Isles consist of two large islands, Great Britain and Ireland, and many small islands. Their area is over 245,000 square kilometres.

The British Isles are separated from European continent by the North Sea and the English Channel. In the west Great Britain is washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea.

Northern Ireland borders on the Irish Republic in the south.

Britain consists of four main parts: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

There are no high mountains in Great Britain. In Scotland there are Highlands, the Grampians, and the Southern Uplands. The Cheviots separate England from Scotland. The Pennines are in the north of England. The Cambrians are in Wales.

The rivers in Britain are deep but not very long. The Severn is the longest river in the UK. The Thames is the deepest and most famous of the British rivers.

British greatest ports are London, Liverpool, Bristol, and so on.

Great Britain is not very rich in mineral resources, it has coal, iron ore, oil and gas.

The climate of Great Britain is mild and wet.

The population of the United Kingdom is over 63 million people.

The capital of Great Britain is London.

Outstanding writer/poet of the United States of America

American multi-cultural and multi-racial literature first appeared more than 300 years ago and is connected with the history of that country. Like any other national literature it reflects the beliefs, customs and traditions of the people who live in that country: native Indians, European settlers and Black people.

It is possible to say that American literature began with Romanticism at the end of the 18^th and the beginning of the 19^th century. I would like to tell you about James Fennimore Cooper, a famous American writer. In his novels “The Spy”, “The Pioneers”, “The Pathfinder” he described the ancient traditions of the native Indian tribes, the changes that the white man brought in the new territories they settled and the human tragedies that followed that process.

Cooper’s main concern was the conflict between Nature and civilization and the destruct that white people had brought into the peaceful life of Indians.

Roman invasion and classical element in the English language

In 55 B.C. the Roman army started its invasion of Britain. In 43 A.D. the Romans invaded the South-East. Other parts of the country were taken during the next 40 years.

The Romans were more civilized than the people inhabiting the British Iles. They built roads, towns and villages. The invaders also brought the skills of reading and writing.

The Romans brought Christianity to the British Isles, too.

Early in the 5^th (fifth) century the Roman legions left Britain never to return.

A lot of Latin words were borrowed into the English language. We can find the Latin classical element in:

· geographical names: Greenwich, Woolwich, Norwich;

· fields of science: fundamental, momentum veto;

· the language of the church: bishop, priest, offer;

· trade: cheap, inch.

There are some Latin abbreviations in English:

· e. g. – for example,

· i. e.– that is

· a.m.– before noon

· p. m. – after noon,

National symbols of the United States of America.

National Flag of the USA

American flag is the official national flag of the United States of America. It has 13 horizontal stripes, 7 red and 6 white, and in the upper corner near the staff, a rectangular blue field containing 50 white stars.

The stripes symbolize the 13 colonies that originally made up the United States of America. The stars represent the 50 states of the Union.

White colour symbolizes Purity and Innocence, red colour - Hardiness and Valour (доблесть, героїзм, мужність); blue colour Vigilance (пильність, зоркість), Perseverance (наполегливість, стійкість) and Justice.

Because of its stars, stripes, and colours, the American flag is often called the Stars and Stripes, or the Red, White, and Blue. Another popular, patriotic name is Old Glory.

 

Scandinavian Invasion and Scandinavian borrowings

From the end of the 8^th (eighth) century the Scandinavian tribe, the Danes, began to attack Britain. The Danes were of the same Germanic race as the Anglo-Saxons. They influenced the development of the country greatly. They were good sailors, traders and skilful shipbuilders.

At the beginning of the 11th century England was conquered by the Danes once more. The Danish king Canute became the king of Denmark, Norway and England. He made England the centre of his power. After his death an Anglo-Saxon king came to the throne.

The Scandinavian element can be found in the English language. It covers:

· nouns: anger, gate, husband, sky, window;

· adjectives: ill, low, flat, weak;

· verbs: get, give, lift, die, take;

· pronouns: same, both, they.

Scandinavian settlements in England left their toponymic traces in many places, e. g. – by (from Sc. byr- “settlement, village”) in Derby, Rugby, Grimsby; - foss (from Sc. foss- “waterfall”) in Fossbury, Fossway.

The Life of British Youth

Young people in Great Britain have a lot of different interests apart of their school work. I would like to tell you about some of them.

As children, both boys and girls play many games, swim, go boating and camping and have fun in many kinds of sports and outdoor activities. Lots of them are members of the organizations for boys and girls. The largest organizations are the Boy Scouts and Girl Guides. Besides going in for sports, they organize social activities, learn woodwork, needlework, cooking, first aid and other subjects.

Secondary schools help develop children’s talents and skills. There are societies and clubs for them, such as a school literary society, a school drama society and different clubs for photography, music, theatre, art, stamp collecting, and natural sciences. Often schools, colleges have orchestras, bands, singing groups. Besides, there are a lot of parties.

There are also many societies for schoolchildren who are fond of sports. All schools, colleges and universities have gymnasiums, sports grounds and swimming-pools.

Britain teenagers are very active in such popular organizations as “Green Peace”. They also take part in some political organizations and movements, for example, against nuclear weapon.

Political parties of the USA

Political parties are the most representative organizations in the United States. They are made up of citizens who may differ in race, religion, age, and economic and social background.

The USА has two main political parties, the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. The first political party was the Federalist Party, which was begun while George Washington was President. Soon after, a group of people led by Thomas Jefferson formed a faction within the Federalist Party called the Democratic Republican Party. The Democratic Party grew out of this party in the 1820s. The Whigs were formed in the 1830s to oppose the Democratic Party. The Republican Party began in 1854 with members from both the Democratic Party and the Whigs.

There is less difference between the two main US parties. Both parties are moderate and close to the political centre, but the Republicans are to the right and the Democrats are to the left of centre. Typically, the Democrats support government spending on social welfare programmes, while the Republicans are against this. The Republicans are usually in favour of spending money on the armed forces and believe there should be few laws restricting business and trade. Republicans are sometimes called the GOP, or Grand Old Party, and have an elephant as their symbol. The Democrats' symbol is a donkey.

Sporting life in the USA

Sports play an important part in American life. Football is the most popular sport. Baseball is in the second place among the sports people most like to watch. Both baseball and football are American developments of sports played in England.

American football in the USA is different from its European cousins, rugby and soccer. It is not just the size, speed and strength of its players. Rather, it is the most “scientific” of all outdoor team sports. Specific rules state what each player in each position may and may not do, and when.

Baseball is the national game in the USA. It is played by two teams of nine players each throughout the spring and summer.

Volleyball is American in origin. Basketball and volleyball were both first played in Massachusetts in the 1890’s.

Different climates have provided its people with a large choice of summer and winter sports. Outdoor winter sports and activities such as skating, sledding and tobogganing are popular in the north. Those who live in the south go in for water sports like windsurfing, scuba diving, water skiing or sailing.

Who the Britons are

The geographical situation of Great Britain has produced a certain insular spirit among its inhabitants. The Britons believe that their own community is the centre of the world. The British look on foreigners with contempt and think that nothing is as well done elsewhere as in their own country. The British people have also been known as superior, snobbish, aloof, hypocritical and unsociable.

Nowadays the ordinary Briton are friendly and sociable. There are indeed two nations, with different outlooks and characters, in Britain: the rich and the poor.

Englishmen are rather conservative, they love familiar things. They don’t like introduction of something new and unknown into their lives.

Britain is supposed to be the land of law and order.

The Britons are practical and realistic. They are not romantic at all.

The English sense and feeling for privacy is great. England is the land of brick fences and stone walls, of hedges, of thick draperies at all the windows.

English people rarely shake hands except when being introduced to someone for the first time.

Snobbery is not common in England today.

The British people are careful about almost everything. Their lawns, flower beds, and trees are always in order.

The British are devoted to animals. Animals are protected by law.

Most people in Britain work a five-day week, from Monday to Friday; schools, colleges and universities are also closed on Saturdays and Sundays.

Light activities on Sunday mid-mornings of the most British people are gardening, washing the car, shelling peas or chopping mint for Sunday lunch, or taking their dog for a walk.

Another most popular pre-lunch activity is a visit to a “pub”, where Englishmen go to drink beer.

 

Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603)

Queen Elizabeth I, the last of the Tudor monarchs, was the daughter of Henry VIII. She received an excellent classical education, and could read Latin and Greek, spoke French and Italian fluently.

People rejoiced when Elizabeth became queen after her elder sister Mary’s death in 1558. Elizabeth was an intelligent, courageous and determined woman. People often called her Good Queen Bess.

Elizabeth made her first task the settlement of England’s religious affairs. She wanted to stop religious struggle. The queen tried to gradually spread Protestant religion, without offending the Catholics too much.

During Elizabeth’s reign England became a great sea power. English sailors Francis Drake and Walter Raleigh made raids on the Spanish colonies in America and captured Spanish ships that carried treasure from the New World to Spain.

In 1588, the Invincible Armada was defeated. It was a great victory for England.

The Elizabethan age was one of the greatest periods of English literature. Edmund Spenser, Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare were only a few of the many writers who created their great works at that time.

Elizabeth’s court became a centre of culture for English musicians, poets, scholars and artists. The English were proud of their country and their queen.

 

Upper Class

Aristocracy and the top rich people in Britain, namely members of the royal family, dukes, earls, barons, the entrepreneurial rich belong to the upper class. They are a very small minority of the country’s population (not more than 1 per cent of it).

2. Middle Class / “White Collar”

Most of the people are classified according to their occupation:

CLASS 1: embraces professional occupations, including higher-grade professionals and higher administrators, lawyers, architects, doctors, managers, university teachers.

CLASS 2: covers intermediate occupations, including intermediate professionals and administrators, e.g.: lower-grade professionals, administrators and managers, supervisors and higher-grade technicians, shopkeepers, farmers, actors, musicians, teachers.

CLASS 3 N (a): embraces skilled occupations (non-manual), including non-manual workers, e.g.: clerks, sales and rank-and-file workers, small proprietors and self-employed artisans, draughtsmen, lower-grade technicians and foremen, etc.

Working Class/ “Blue Collar” covers:

CLASS 3 M (b): embraces skilled occupations (Manual), including skilled manual workers in industry, e.g. electricians, coalminers, etc.

CLASS 4: covers partly skilled occupations, including semi-skilled workers, e.g. milk rounds men, telephone operators, fishermen, farm workers, semi-skilled workers in industry, etc.

CLASS 5: embraces unskilled occupations, including unskilled workers, e.g. night watchers, collectors, cleaners, labourers and so on.

Occupation as a class distinction is related to differences in incomes, social prestige, in education, life style, and speech.

Food and drinks in the USA

Meal Times. In the U.S. meals are usually served at the following times: breakfast 6:30-10:00 a.m., lunch: 11:30 -2:00 p.m., dinner: 5:00 p.m. - 8:00. For breakfast meals Americans have cereal and milk, eggs and pancakes or French toast. For lunch they prefer a sandwich, yogurt or a light entrée. Dinner includes a main course of meat, poultry or fish, and soup, salad and vegetables. Brunch, a common Sunday meal served between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., is really a combination of breakfast and lunch.

Common dishes. There are a wide variety of foods, depending upon which type of restaurant you go to. Some American-style restaurants have a typical menu.

Appetizers are nachos /a tortilla chip topped with melted cheese/, chili /a thick sauce of meat and pepper/, shrimp cocktail, raw vegetables and dip, finger sandwiches, cheese and crackers. Soups are French onion, chicken, vegetable, and soup of the day. Salads are regular, Greek, chef, Caesar or spinach. Main Courses are steak, fried chicken, fish, hamburgers, pasta and pizza. Hot and Cold Sandwiches are combinations of ham, turkey, roast beef, chicken, tuna or egg salads etc., served between two slices of bread. Beverages are coffee, tea, soft drinks, mineral water and iced tea. Deserts are cakes, ice cream, frozen yogurt, fruit, etc. Breakfast dishes are cold cereal and milk, warm cereal, toast, yogurt, eggs, pancakes, French toast, waffles, etc.

Pot luck supper. Sometimes when the family gets together with other families they have what’s called potluck supper. This is an informal occasion, so people dress casually but nicely. Invitations can be written or made by phone, and each person is asked to bring a dish of food: starter, main course, salad or vegetable, or dessert. The hostess knows how many of each kind of dishes but not exactly what the guests will bring. That's why it is called "pot luck". It is a lovely surprise, holding a dinner party what you are going to feed your guests.

As the guests arrive, they put their "pot" on the table and the meal is served buffet-style. Drinks are provided, although some guests might bring a bottle of wine as a present. It is a fun, and a relaxed way of getting together with friends.

Restaurants. Americans eat out often. Fast food restaurants have wide popularity. There are two types of restaurants in the U.S.: fast food and full-service restaurants. The style of fast food restaurants is much like that of cafeteria. Patrons go up to a counter to order their meal: hamburgers, hot chicken sandwiches, and pizza. It is then placed on a plastic tray which patron brings to a table. A typical dinner costs from $3.00 to $6.00. It is expected that patrons will finish within 30-45 minutes. In full-service restaurants a waiter comes to take the patrons' order. Dinner can vary from $10.00 to $50.00. It is expected that pa­trons will finish eating and leave restaurant within an hour. To express satisfaction with service patrons will give a tip of 20% of the bill. Small tips are given to coat check attendants /up to $1.00/, rest room and car park attendants /50 cents/.

Water and ice. Most people in the U.S. drink tap water. Any cold beverage you order will be j served to you with ice unless you request otherwise.

Historically, there was the Grand Exchange. Kernels of New World corn became a yellow cur­rency more valuable to the well-being of the world than nuggets of gold. Potatoes kept famine from Euro­pean villages. Sweet potatoes eased China's dependence on rice. Wheat from the Middle East made North America's Great Plains the "breadbasket of the world". Five centuries after it started, the Grand Exchange goes on.

 

An Invitation to the Palace

When the Queen invites a lot of people for dinner, it takes three days to do the washing up. Everybody has five glasses: one for red wine, one for white wine, one for water, one for port, and one for liqueur. During the first and the second courses, the Queen speaks to the person on her left and then she speaks to the person on her right for the rest of the meal. When the Queen finishes her food, everybody finishes, and it is the time for the next course.

Changing the Guard

One of the most impressive and popular displays of royal pageantry is changing the Guard, which takes place every day, including Sunday, at 11.30.

The troops who take part are selected from the five regiments of Foot Guards. Their numbers are dependent on whether the Queen is in residence or not. These form the famous Brigade of Guards, and they consist of the Grenadiers, the Coldstream Guards, and the Welsh, Irish and Scots Guards.

Each regiment has two colours – a royal one and a regimental one. The royal colour can be seen only when the Queen is at home. Sometimes the colour is decorated with a laurel wreath. The laurel wreath signifies the anniversary of a battle in which the regiment was engaged.

The Brigade of Guards serves as a personal bodyguard to the Sovereign. When the Queen is in residence at Buckingham Palace, there is a guard of four sentries. Only two are on duty when she is away from London.

 

Big cities of the USA

NEW YORK CITY

New York City is the nation's largest city and richest port. It is the national leader in business and art. New-York City was the first capital /1789-90/ of the United States. It is the financial headquarters of the world. Park Avenue, Wall Street and Broadway have become synonyms for wealth. As a cultural capital the city has its theater district and the cultural complex of Lincoln Center. New York City is home of the United Nations Building., City area is 320 sq. miles. Population is 8 million.

Manhattan is the heart of the city. It is a rocky island, 13 miles long and 2 miles wide. Fifth Avenue is a symbol of wealth and elegance. Seventh Avenue symbolizes the women's fashion industry. Broadway is a place where most theatres are situated. Manhattan is divided into 3 parts: down­town, midtown /20th St - Central park/, and uptown. Downtown Manhattan is the business center. Wall Street - America's financial center - has become world famous. The City Hall houses the offices of the Mayor. In China Town there are shops with goods from the Orient. There is the campus of NY University. Greenwich Village is home of literary and artistic world.

Statue of Liberty Museum is on Liberty Island. The statue is largest ever made. There are exhibits of Museum of Immigration in base of statue. The Statue of Liberty was presented by France on July 4,1884 for the U.S. centennial.

Uptown Manhattan has a Memorial to Christopher Columbus in Columbus Circle. New York Coliseum is most modern exhibition hall. Central Park has playgrounds and tennis courts. Lincoln Center in­cludes the new Met /the Metropolitan Opera/ and the NY State Theatre and Philharmonic Hall. American Museum of Natural Histor y has finest collections. Metropolitan Museum of Art collections cover 5,000 years. Columbia University was founded in 1754. The tuition is $6,000 a year.

The geographical location and climate of Great Britain.

The United Kingdom is situated on the British Isles. The British Isles consist of two large islands, Great Britain and Ireland, and many small islands. Their area is over 245,000 square kilometres.

The British Isles are separated from European continent by the North Sea and the English Channel. In the west Great Britain is washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea.

Northern Ireland borders on the Irish Republic in the south.

Britain consists of four main parts: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

There are no high mountains in Great Britain. In Scotland there are Highlands, the Grampians, and the Southern Uplands. The Cheviots separate England from Scotland. The Pennines are in the north of England. The Cambrians are in Wales.

The rivers in Britain are deep but not very long. The Severn is the longest river in the UK. The Thames is the deepest and most famous of the British rivers.

British greatest ports are London, Liverpool, Bristol, and so on.

Great Britain is not very rich in mineral resources, it has coal, iron ore, oil and gas.

The climate of Great Britain is mild and wet.

The population of the United Kingdom is over 63 million people.

The capital of Great Britain is London.