Task 2. Read
the text and do the tasks below.
After
О.
Henry
Miss Carington was born in Cranberry, a small
beautiful village. When she was 17 she left for New York. She started working in a drama
theatre. She was very talented and some years later she became a famous
actress.
Once the director of the theatre at which she
was performing decided to put on a modern play about country life. Miss
Carington was going to play the leading part, but they couldn't find an actor
for the male part.
One day a young man asked the director to
give him the part. But it was only Miss Carington who could make a choice. The
young actor knew that it was the part of a young farmer. He thought of a plan.
He asked many people about Miss Carington and found out everything about her. Two days later he left for Cranberry.
Не stayed there for а few days and then came back to New York.
Оnсе when Miss
Carington was having lunch with her friends in а small restaurant, the young man came up to their table, greeted the
famous actress, and told her the news about her relatives and old friends from Cranberry.
She was extremely interested. The way he spoke made her believe every word he
said. She was sure he was а farmer.
Не told the famous actress that her mother wanted to see
her before her death. Then he gave her а rose he picked from а bush in front
of her house in Cranberry. Miss Carington was so touched that she couldn't help
crying. She thanked the young man and invited him to see her again at the hotel
before he left the city.
The next morning the young actor went to the hotel.
Не was sure Miss Carington would agree to take him as
her partner in the play if he told her everything.
То his surprise he was told that Miss Carington had left
N. Y. forever for her native village. The young actor realised that he had
acted too well.
8. Choose
the best title for the text.
А. А Famous Actress; В. А Young Man and а Famous Actress;
C. Too Well; D. The Part in the Play.
9. Choose
the best variant to continue the sentence.
The story
describes ...
А. the life of Miss Carington.
В. the trip of the young actor to Cranberry.
С. the news about Miss Carington's friends and
relatives.
D. how the famous actress believed the young actor.
10. Find
the information that was not mentioned in the text.
А. The young man was а famous actor.
В. The young man told her the news about her old
friends.
С. The young man found out everything about Miss
Carington.
D. She became а famous actress in New York.
11. Choose the best answer to the question.
Why was
Miss Carington going to play the leading part in а new play?
А. There was only оnе actress at the theatre.
В. The director decided to put оn а new play.
С. She was а famous actress.
D. She knew
country life very well.
12. Choose the
best answer to the question.
Why did
Miss Carington leave for Cranberry after her talk with the young man?
А. She wanted to have а rest.
В. She wanted to find out if the young actor had told
her the truth.
С. She still loved country life very much.
D. She wanted to
know some more news about Cranberry.
13. Put the sentences in the correct order
according to the text.
1.
The
actress was sure that he was а farmer.
2.
The
famous actress was very interested.
3.
The
young man's performance was very convincing.
4.
The
young man left for Cranberry.
Task 3. Read the questions
(14 – 23) and texts (A – G). Match the questions with the texts where you can
find answers. There are extra questions that don’t have answers.
Who / Whose
14. visited her husband in hospital?
15. had one of the most difficult
jobs?
16. grandmother said that
there were people who helped prisoners?
17. remembers very well how people
celebrated Victory Day in 1945?
18. thought of escaping from a
German camp?
19. mother made good friends in the
evacuation?
20. feels thankfulness to those
people who looked after the children during the evacuation?
21. grandmother went to Germany
to look for her husband?
22. grandmother and grandfather were
in German camps?
23. saw how people of different
nationalities celebrated Victory Day in Scotland?
A Dobbie Dobson. "We were evacuated later on and were billeted with a wonderful family in
Lancashire. When my mother eventually found
my little brother, she arranged for him to join us, but as we were already
overcrowded, he went to stay with a family in the next street. One day my
mother and the lady who we were billeted with, went around to see him and found
him on his hands and knees scrubbing floors. They were very upset and although
there were ten children in our family, the lady insisted he come back with us.
The lady and her husband had a heart of gold and she and mum remained friends
long after the war until mum died."
B. Tommy Mac. "Like every other city in Britain, Glasgow
was bursting with excitement. The entire city was a little mad. Schools were
closed for the day. At the bottom of the street the dance was the 'eightsome
reel' - this was Scotland's
national dance, and everyone could join in. Music and lights were
everywhere! To see the lights go on
again was a miracle in itself'.
C. Svetlana Pankratova. "My grandma and her two little sons were captured in Russia during the war. They were
sent to a labour camp in Germany.
Grandmother told us that many people pitied the Russians and shared some of
their food with, them, but that food was almost nothing, and she had to go
begging with other captives to local people to feed her two children. Some of the
locals were friendly and gave something, but others were stony faced and she
knew in advance that they would give nothing. When the war was over my
grandmother learnt that her husband, my grandfather, had also been captured,
and had been working in a camp nearby."
2010/2011
Round 2 Form 8-9 Page 6
D. Walter Morison. " ... the Germans treated us well and observed the Geneva Conventions,
an international treaty on the treatment of POWs (военнопленных). But of
course we wanted to go home. And we often spoke about it. It was technically
demanding, exciting, dangerous; a sport really. However, we learned with horror
that 50 RAF officers who had escaped from Stalag Luft III had been shot. This
was no longer "cricket". There was also the worry that we might be
caught in a chaotic no-man's land between the Russians in the East and the
Anglo-Americans to the West."
E. Mary MacGween. " ... At that time I was visiting my husband,
who had been injured when the lorry he was travelling in overturned, crushing
his leg beneath the huge searchlight. He was in Surrey
and it was there I saw the plight of his fellow patients. I saw young men with
vacant stares, shell-shocked and suffering from the loss of memory."
F. Joan Vass. "Having passed as a qualified balloon operator, I was sent to help
defend the City of Steel, Sheffield.
There was a crew of 12 women including a sergeant and a corporal. Part of our
duties was guard duty several times a week. But our job took priority. More
often than not we would be hauled out of our warm beds to either fly the
balloon or pull her into the wind because of a wind change. I think I was
privileged to work as a Balloon Operator, one of the toughest jobs in the Royal
Air Force."
G. Eric Brown. "I don't know the details of the methods used to place children for
evacuation, but I do recall my parents, who had a car, driving my sister and me
to a humble cottage on the outskirts of Edinburgh.
Our "adopting" family had children of their own, and my recollection
was that they were not well off. Then my parents returned to collect us and we
were taken to another location. That place was called Craigs, and thus began a
few years of the most memorable times for young children. I am grateful to the
owners of the house for making it available to us children during those
harrowing times."