Разговорные темы (стр. 5 )

Women’s Day is an international holiday, it started in Europe in 1911, and was for the first time celebrated in Russia in 1913, but now it is not so popular in other countries as it is in Russia. Women’s Day now is the day when men congratulate girls and women, give them presents and flowers, and the housework.

May Day used to be a political holiday, but now it is the holiday of spring. It is a state holiday, so nobody goes to school or to work. Victory day is the day when we remember the heroic deeds of our grandfathers during the Great Patriotic war. This holiday is celebrated all over the world. There is a parade of the veterans in the Red Square. This is a very touching holiday. This day we give them presents and flowers.

Christmas, Palm Sunday, Easter, and Shrovetide are religious holidays. They are also loved by everybody, but not widely celebrated.

One more holiday, which grows more and more popular every year, especially among the young people, is St. Valentine’s Day, the day of those who are in love. Chocolates, postcards and flowers are popular gifts on this holiday. The holiday has come from the English - speaking countries where it is very popular.

Words and expressions:

to celebrate – отмечать, праздновать

hospitality – гостеприимство

to treat – обходиться, обращаться

relatives – родственники

state – государственный

Easter – Пасха

Shrovetide - Масленица

touching – трогательный

widely – широко

postcard – открытка

gift – подарок

Answer the questions:

1. Do you like to celebrate holidays?

2. What holidays do you know?

3. What is your favourite holiday?

4. Does your family go to church on religious holidays?

5. Do you like to get and give presents?

6. Is St. Valentine’s Day celebrated at your school?

Hobbies.

Hobby is an occupation which is not a business done for money. Hobby is something done during one’s leisure time for rest and pleasure. That’s why hobbies are so different – all people are different. The English say, “so many men, so many minds” and “tastes differ”. These proverbs mean that every man has his or her own likes and dislikes, so, he or she gets pleasure from doing different things.

I think, hobbies help people learn about the world around them, understand their likes and dislikes. To my mind, any hobby can be entertaining and useful if you do it with wish and pleasure, otherwise it is just of waste of time. There are many kinds of hobbies.

One of the most popular hobbies is collecting. People can collect everything. The most popular items are records, postcards, stamps, coins and stickers.

A popular hobby is playing games starting from football and volleyball and finishing with computer games and chess. This can be a good hobby, if you do not train too much to ruin your health for sport games, and if you do not spend too much time in - doors for computer games. Such hobby can be good for your health and mind because such games as checks and checkers help you develop your thinking.

Outdoor activities are also popular and often become a hobby. In Russia there are many tourists who are fond of hiking and sailing. Some travel by car or by train. Gardening is not very popular in Russia, but it is very popular in Britain.

Costume designing, sewing, knitting, stitching and embroidering are usually considered to be women’s hobbies, but it is known that some men do it really well.

As for me I go in for sport. I am interested in … . I also like reading. When you read you learn a lot about the world around you, about history and life of other peoples.

I think, every man can occupy himself with everything he likes if he has a desire.

Words and expressions:

occupation – занятие

leisure – досуг

tastes differ – о вкусах не спорят

to my mind – по-моему

sticker – наклейка

checks and checkers – игра в шашки

sewing – шитьё

knitting – вязание

entertaining – развлекательный

useful – полезный

to occupy oneself – занять себя

desire – желание

Answer the questions:

1. What is hobby?

2. How can people occupy themselves?

3. Do you have a hobby?

4. Do you like collecting anything?

5. What is your hobby?

6. How long have you been going in for sport?

Art.

There are many different arts – literature, architecture, sculpture, painting, drawing, music, dance, theatre, cinema and others. There are many styles and genres of art. Popular arts are music, theatre, painting and cinema. People need art as a way they understand the world around them. Though all people are different, everyone has his favourite art.

The word “music” originates from the Greek word “Muse”. There were 9 Muses (goddesses) in Greek mythology, each was in charge of an art or science. Music is the art of combining sounds of voices and sounds of musical instruments to produce harmony and express emotions.

The word “theatre” also originates from a Greek word. Theatre is not only the art of acting but also dramatic literature and the place where plays are performed. It was the Greek theatre where the main types of plays were defined (tragedy, comedy and drama). For centuries theatre has been the most popular spectator art for both rich and poor people. In Russia puppet theatres with Petrushka and other characters were very popular. Theatre was the place of meeting and dating for the nobles.

Paining (the word is of Latin origin) is the art portraying or representing objects with line and colour. The first pictures were probably the pictures of animals and were drawn for the reason of magic. There are many items portraying gods. In Christianity they are called “icons”. The most famous Russian icon painters were Andrey Rublyov and Pheophan Greek. Painters express their ideas through composition, colouring and light and shade effect.

Cinema is the youngest of the arts. It appeared in the 19th century when the special device was invented. At first, films were silent but later the techniques for shooting sound films and films in technicolour were developed. The problems of art in general and cinema in particular are discussed in the film entitled “A man from Capuchins’ Boulevard”.

Words and expressions:

genre – жанр

in charge of – в честь

to produce harmony – создавать гармонию

to perform – представлять, показывать

to define – определять; давать характеристику

for centuries – веками

spectator – зрелищный

rich – богатый

poor – бедный

puppet theatre – кукольный театр

to date – назначать свидание; встречаться

noble – благородный; титулованный, знатный

reason – причина

magic – магия, волшебство

to draw (drew, drawn) - рисовать

shade – тень

to appear – появиться

silent – немой

to shoot a film – снимать фильм

to develop – развивать

Answer the questions:

1. What arts are most popular?

2. What artists do you know?

3. What does the word “music” mean?

4. Do you like music?

5. Do you like music more than theatre?

6. How often do you go to the cinema?

Museums and Picture Galleries.

Museum is a building where objects illustrating art, history or science are displayed. Museums collect different items. They not only collect but also store, study, systematize and popularize arts, history and other subjects. So museums are divided into museums of Natural History (Zoology Museum in St. Petersburg, Museum of Natural History in London), museums of history (National Museum of American History in Washington, D. C., the Bath Museum in Bath in England, Ethnography Museum in St. Petersburg, History Museum in Moscow), museums of Science (Polytechnical Museum in Moscow, the Franklin Institute Science Museum in Washington) and art museums. The most popular museums are museums of art.

There are many art museums in Moscow, St. Petersburg and other Russian cities. The most popular art museum in Moscow is the State Tretyakov Gallery, in St. Petersburg it is the State Hermitage.

The Tretyakov Gallery was founded by Pavel Tretyakov, a Russian merchant. In 1892 he granted his collection of Russian painting to the city of Moscow, but the date of the foundation is 1856, when Pavel bought the first works. Now the museum has 7 departments.

The Hermitage is one of the largest museums of the world. It hosts many permanent and temporary exhibitions in more than 400 halls. The Hermitage is a complex of 6 buildings (Winter Palace, Small Hermitage, Old Hermitage, New Hermitage, the Hermitage Theatre and the First Palace of Peter I). Many architects took part in constructing and reconstructing these buildings.

But the most famous are museums situated in London, this greatest attraction for tourists all over the world.

One of the most popular museums is the Tower of London which used to be a stronghold, a treasure - house, an arsenal, a prison, a mint, an observatory, a zoo and a royal residence. The Tower consists now of several buildings

The British Museum was founded in 1753 on the basis of Sir Hans Sloane’s collection. It consists of two Departments – the Museum of Mankind and the Natural history Museum. The first of the two includes vast collection of works of art in stone, glass, bronze and gold which illustrate the cultures of the Ancient World. The other Department contains 5 principal collections on the history of animals, plants and minerals.

Words and expressions:

to display – выставлять, демонстрировать, показывать

item – каждый отдельный предмет

merchant – купец

to grant – дарить; даровать

department – отдел, отделение; отрасль

foundation - образование

to host – принимать

permanent – постоянный

temporary – временный

exhibition – выставка

to take (took, taken) part – принимать участие

stronghold – крепость

treasure-house – сокровищница

prison – тюрьма

mint – монетный двор

observatory – наблюдательный пункт

royal – королевский

to consist – состоять

to include – включать

vast – огромный

to contain – содержать

plant – растение

Answer the questions:

1. What is a museum?

2. When were you in the museum last time?

3. Have you ever been to Tretyakov Gallery?

4. What can you say about the Tower of London?

5. When was the British Museum founded?

6. Would you like to go to St. Petersburg and see Hermitage?

The United States of America.

The United States of America is the fourth largest country in the world after Russia, Canada and China. It occupies the southern part of North America and stretches from the Atlantic seaboard, across the central plain, over the Rocky Mountains to the densely populated West Coast and then to the island state of Hawaii. The USA also includes Alaska in the north of the continent. The total area of the country is about nine and a half million square kilometres. The USA borders on Canada in the north and on Mexico in the south. It also has a sea-border with Russia.

The USA is made up of 50 states and the District of Columbia, a special Federal area where the capital of the country, Washington, is situated. The population of the country is about 239 million. The USA is called the “nation of immigrants”. The country was settled, built and developed by generations of immigrants and their children.

If we look at the map of the USA, we can see lowlands and mountains. The highest mountains are the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada.

The United States is a land of rivers and lakes. The northern state of Minnesota is known as the land of 10 000 lakes. The largest and the deepest lakes in the USA are the fife Great Lakes on the border with Canada. America’s largest rivers are The Mississippi, the Missouri, the Rio Grande and the Columbia.

The climate of the country varies greatly. The coldest regions are in the north. The climate of Alaska is arctic. The climate of the central part is continental. The south has a subtropical climate. Hot winds blowing from the Gulf of Mexico often bring typhoons.

The climate along the Pacific coast is much warmer than that the Atlantic coast.

The USA is highly developed industrial country. It is the world’s leading producer of copper and oil and the world’s second producer of iron ore and coal. Among the most important manufacturing industries are aircraft, cars, textiles, radio and television sets, armaments, furniture and paper.

The largest and important cities in the USA are Washington, New York, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Dallas, Detroit and others.

The USA is a presidential republic. Under the Constitution the federal government is divided into three branches: the legislative branch, the executive branch and the judicial branch. The legislative branch is exercised by the Congress which consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The executive branch is headed by the President who is elected every four years. The judicial branch is made up of Federal District Courts, 11 Federal courts and the Supreme Court. There are two main political parties in the USA: the Republicans and the Democratics.

From the beginning of the twentieth century the USA became the world’s leading country.

Words and expressions:

to occupy – занимать

the Rocky Mountains – Скалистые горы

to stretch – простираться

to border on – граничить

to develop – развиваться

generation – поколение

lowland – низменность, долина, низина

to vary – меняться, варьировать

copper – медь

iron ore – железная руда

manufacturing – промышленный

armament – вооружение

government – правительство

legislative branch of power – законодательная власть

executive – исполнительный

judicial – судебный

highly developed – высокоразвитый

Answer the questions:

1. Where is the USA situated?

2. What countries does it border with?

3. Where are the biggest lakes situated in the USA?

4. How does the climate of the country vary?

5. What main products does American industry produce?

6. How is the federal government organised?

Washington.

The beautiful city of Washington D. C. is the capital of the United States of America and the centre of its government. The capital was named after the first president George Washington and was founded in 1790. It is situated on the Potomac River in the District of Columbia. Washington is not the largest city in the USA. It has about 900000 inhabitants.

Washington has a nickname – “the American Paris”. It has long wide avenues, gardens, beautiful parks and no skyscrapers at all.

Washington is the residence of the President and the Congress of the USA. The White House is the President’s residence, the Capitol – the seat of the American Congress. The largest and the tallest among the buildings is the Capitol with its great House of Representatives and Senate Chamber. There are no skyscrapers because no other building must be taller than the Capitol. All American presidents except George Washington (the White House was not yet built in his time) have lived in the White House. It was built in 1799.

Washington is a large scientific and cultural centre, where there are many research institutes, five universities, the National Academy of Science and the Library of Congress.

There is one more well-known building in Washington – Pentagon, the residence of the US Military department. It is situated in the suburbs to the south of the Potomac.

Not far from the Capitol is the Washington Monument, which looks like a very big pencil. It rises 160 metres and is hollow inside. A special lift brings visitors to the top in 70 seconds from where they can enjoy a wonderful view of the whole city.

The Jefferson Memorial was built in memory of the third President of the USA, Thomas Jefferson, who was also the author of the Declaration of Independence. The memorial is surrounded by cherry-trees.

The Lincoln Memorial is devoted to the memory of the 16th President of the US, the author of the Emancipation Proclamation, which gave freedom to Negro slaves in America.

On the other bank of the Potomac lies the Arlington National Cemetery where President Kennedy was buried. American soldiers and officers, who died in World Wars I and II are buried there too.

Words and expressions:

skyscraper - небоскрёб

except – за исключением

suburb - пригород

the House of Representatives – палата представителей

was named – был назван

inhabitant – житель

nickname – прозвище

military – военный

hollow – пустота; углубление

to enjoy a wonderful view of – получать удовольствие от замечательного вида

in memory – в память

independence – независимость

to surround – окружать

cherry – вишня

freedom – свобода

slave – раб

are buried - похоронены

Answer the questions:

1. What is the capital of the USA?

2. Who was the city named after?

3. Is Washington the residence of the President?

4. What places of interest can you see in Washington?

5. Why are there no skyscrapers in Washington?

New York.

New York is the largest city in the USA and the biggest seaport. It is the business centre of the United States.

New York is situated in the mouth of the Hudson river.

In comparison with such historical cities as, say, Rome, London, Moscow or Paris, New York is quite young. It was founded in 1613 by Dutch settlers.

There are five districts in the city: Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn and Richmond. Manhattan is the central and the oldest part of the city. It is the district of business and finance. It is here in Wall Street that many business offices, banks and the world famous New York stock exchange are situated. The New York stock exchange dominates business life of many countries.

The total area of New York is 365 square miles or 900 square kilometres.

Its population together with the population of its suburbs amounts to 16 million people.