英语口语教程(初级) UNIT 15-21

[00:00.00] Oral Workshop:    Reproduction    Lesson 15-21 ;

[00:07.23]  Lesson 15 ;

[00:14.00]    Text B    I'll Start in  Three Months'Time ;

[00:19.66]Rose left school when she was seventeen ;

[00:23.23]and went to a college for a year to learn to type. ;

[00:26.79]She passed her examinations quite well and then went to look for work. ;

[00:32.04]She was still living with her parents. ;

[00:34.92]A lot of people were looking for typists at that time, ;

[00:38.96]so it was not difficult to find interesting work. ;

[00:42.53]Rose went to several offices,and then chose one of them. ;

[00:47.30]It was near her parents' house. ;

[00:49.92]She thought,"I'll walk there every morning. ;

[00:53.28]I won't need to go by bus." ;

[00:55.59]She went to the office again and said to the manager, ;

[00:59.57]"I want to work here, but what will you pay me?" ;

[01:02.93]"We'll pay you 27 pounds now,"the manager answered, ;

[01:07.65]"and 30 pounds after three months." ;

[01:10.64]Rose thought for a few seconds before she answered. ;

[01:14.94]Then she said,"All right,then I'll start in three months' time." ;

[01:20.86]7.Read the following   passage once. ;

[01:26.11]Underline the key words while reading and retell the story to your partner. ;

[01:32.09]  What a Language! ;

[01:35.34]First Frenchman:   I once heard   someone shout,   "Look out." ;

[01:40.27]I put my head out of a window and a bucketful of water fell on me. ;

[01:45.98]It seems that "Look out "may mean "Don't look out." ;

[01:51.81]Second F:I was once on   a ship and heard the   captain shout,"All   hands on deck." ;

[01:59.04]I put my hands on the deck and someone walked on them. ;

[02:04.29]Third F:I once called early on an English fr -iend and the maid who came to the door said, ;

[02:11.68]  "He's not up yet.   Come back in half   an hour." ;

[02:15.61]When I went again for him,she said, "He's not down yet." I said, ;

[02:22.01]"If he's not up and he's not down,where is he?"She said," He's still in bed. ;

[02:29.67]When I say "He's not up" I mean he has not yet got up, ;

[02:34.81]so he has not yet come downstairs." ;

[02:37.54]What do these phrases mean in their respec -tive contexts? ;

[02:44.62]   Lesson 16 ;

[03:16.92]    Text A  The Charcoal Pit ;

[03:20.70]Erika was worried. Her restaurant was losing customers. ;

[03:25.84]The new restaurant across the street now had more customers than she did. ;

[03:31.19]She had even seen some of her own cus- tomers going to eat at The Charcoal Pit. ;

[03:36.59]What was she going to do?One thing she could do was revise her menu. ;

[03:42.46]Maybe not everyone wanted hamburgers. ;

[03:45.61]She might add omelets and casseroles. ;

[03:48.49]The menu might help. Perhaps the decor of her restaurant was dated. ;

[03:54.00]She could redecorate the place.Erika de- cided to consult an interior decorator ;

[04:00.76]who could give her some new ideas. ;

[04:03.07]A face-lift for Burger Haven would certainly lift her spirits. ;

[04:08.00]In fact,she felt better after thinking of some improvements. ;

[04:12.62]Erika would fight to make her restaurant the most popular one in town. ;

[04:17.70]    Text B   There Is Hope   for Us! ;

[04:22.48]Tina and Leela are talking to each other. ;

[04:26.10]They are standing outside a dance-hall and they are talking about dancing. ;

[04:31.23]TINA:I haven't   danced for a   long time. ;

[04:34.70]LEELA:Neither have     I. ;

[04:36.27]TINA:We must go to     a dance soon,or     we'll forget how     to dance. ;

[04:41.15]LEELA:Yes,we must.   What have you been   doing since I last   saw you? ;

[04:46.70]TINA:I've been   studying hard for   my examinations.   And you? ;

[04:51.84]LEELA:I've been   learning Japanese   every evening. ;

[04:55.25]TINA:Why have you   been learning   Japanese?Why not   English? ;

[05:00.24]LEELA:I hope to visit   Japan next year. ;

[05:03.49]TINA:Well,we'll both   have to start   learning all the   new dances. ;

[05:07.94]LEELA:Yes,let's go   into the dance-hall   and ask if we can   take dancing-lessons ;

[05:13.92]TINA:A good idea.   They can teach   elephants to dance   nowadays: ;

[05:18.64]  perhaps there's   hope for us! ;

[05:22.52]7.Read the following   passage once. ;

[05:27.87]Underline the key words while reading and retell the story to your partner. ;

[05:34.27]When I looked out the window and saw the snow drift in the driveway, ;

[05:39.73]I thought to myself that I should never have gotten out of bed. ;

[05:44.60]I had been making preparations for more than two days ;

[05:49.17]for a large dinner party to be held that night ;

[05:52.68]and knew that several of the people I was expecting to come ;

[05:57.14]would be calling to cancel if the snow continued much longer. ;

[06:02.17]I called upstairs to tell Jerry to look out the window. ;

[06:07.00]Jerry heard me and quickly got out of bed. ;

[06:11.56]He knew that the weather people had been predicting snow. ;

[06:16.07]Now it had really come To Jerry,two or three inches of fresh snow ;

[06:23.36]would be just what was needed to make the ski trip a big success. ;

[06:29.81]   Lesson 17 ;

[07:02.32]    Text A   The Country   Schoolhouse ;

[07:07.46]The country schoolhouse was three miles from my uncle's farm. ;

[07:12.34]It stood in a clearing in the woods ;

[07:15.07]and would hold about twenty-five boys and girls. ;

[07:18.95]We attended the school with more or less regularity once or twice a week in summer ;

[07:25.14]We walked to it in the cool of the morning by the forest paths, ;

[07:30.38]and back in the dusk at the end of the day. ;

[07:33.22]All the pupils brought their dinners in baskets-- ;

[07:37.57]corn dodger,butter milk,and other good things. ;

[07:41.55]We sat in the shade of the trees at noon and ate them. ;

[07:46.48]It is the part of my education ;

[07:49.11]which I look back upon with the most satisfaction. ;

[07:53.14]My first visit to the school was when I was seven. ;

[07:57.18]A strapping girl of fifteen,in the customary sunbonnet ;

[08:01.74]and calico dress,asked me if I "used tobacco" --meaning did I chew it. ;

[08:07.88]I said no.It roused her scorn.She reported me to all the crowd, and said: ;

[08:15.64]"Here is a boy seven years old who can't chew tobacco." ;

[08:20.36]I learned to smoke fairly well,but that did not win over anybody. ;

[08:25.40]I remained a poor thing,and characterless. ;

[08:28.80]I longed to be respected,but I never was able to rise. ;

[08:33.79]Children have but little charity for one another's defect. ;

[08:39.66]    Text B On a Camping Holiday ;

[08:44.75]Jimmy Booth and Donald Black are on a camping holiday. ;

[08:49.31]They have brought only a little food with them. ;

[08:52.61]Jimmy is hungry and he is looking at some rice in a tin. ;

[08:57.81]There is only a little rice in the tin. ;

[09:01.32]JIMMY:There isn't   much rice,is   there? ;

[09:04.15]DONALD:No,there isn't,   but there are some   vegetables. ;

[09:08.03]JIMMY:Are there any   potatoes? DONALD:No,there   aren't.I'm sorry. ;

[09:13.59]JIMMY:I'm very   hungry,Donald.   What can I eat? ;

[09:17.26]DONALD:There's a   little bread and   there are a few   biscuits. ;

[09:21.09]JIMMY:But I want   some rice and   some meat. ;

[09:23.87]DONALD:All right,   I'll walk to the   village and I'll   get some meat. ;

[09:28.07]JIMMY:Good.By the   way,who's going   to cook the meat? ;

[09:32.21]DONALD:You'll cook   it of course! ;

[09:35.41]7.Read the following  dialogue once.  Underline the key  words while reading ;

[09:44.17]and retell to your partner the dialogue in your own words. ;

[09:49.41]Peter:Hello,Jim.What   was the film like? ;

[09:53.66]Jim:Awful.It was a   complete waste of   time. ;

[09:57.54]Peter:Why?What was   it about? ;

[10:00.79]Jim:It was about a   married couple. ;

[10:03.57]  They had to live   with the wife's   mother, ;

[10:06.46]  because they didn't   have enough money   to buy a house of   their own. ;

[10:10.44]Peter:A lot of young   people have to do   that. ;

[10:13.54]Jim:Yes,but the   husband had to work   overtime three times   a week ;

[10:18.88]  so he was always   tired. ;

[10:21.09]Peter:It sounds like   the story of my life ;

[10:24.44]Jim:Yes,it does,   doesn't it? ;

[10:27.33]  But this man was   always over-tired,   and he couldn't   sleep. ;

[10:32.84]  So he used to take   two sleeping pills   every night. ;

[10:36.98]Peter:I take sleeping   pills sometimes. ;

[10:40.13]Jim:Yes,but not two   every night.Anyway,   the strain was too   much for him. ;

[10:47.20]  He had a nervous   breakdown and had   to go to hospital. ;

[10:51.50]Peter:It sounds a   very depressing   film. ;

[10:54.76]Jim:Not really.His   wife was able to   find a good job   as an interpreter, ;

[11:00.79]because she could speak French and German fluently. ;

[11:04.35]After a few months' work,she had a better job than her husband. ;

[11:09.91]So in the end,they were able to buy a house, ;

[11:13.58]and he didn't have to work any more. Stupid,wasn't it? ;

[11:18.67]Peter:I don't know.   My wife used to   speak French. ;

[11:22.50]I must tell her to brush it up. ;

[11:26.64]   Lesson 18 ;

[11:58.42]    Text A  Christmas Cards ;

[12:02.15]It was two weeks before Christmas, and Mrs Smith was very busy. ;

[12:07.55]She bought a lot of Christmas cards to send to her friends ;

[12:11.11]  and to her husband's   friends,and put them   on the table in the   living-room. ;

[12:15.57] Then,when her husband  came home from work,  she said to him, ;

[12:20.50]  "Here are the   Christmas cards   for our friends, ;

[12:23.02]  and here are some   stamps,a pen and   our book of   addresses. ;

[12:27.63]Will you please write the cards while I am cooking the dinner?" ;

[12:31.41]Mr Smith did not say anything, ;

[12:34.09]but walked out of the living-room and went to his study. ;

[12:37.81]Mrs Smith was very angry with him,but did not say anything either. ;

[12:43.58]Then a minute later he came back with a box full of Christmas cards. ;

[12:48.25]All of them had addresses and stamps on them. ;

[12:51.50]"These are from last year,"he said,"I forgot to post them." ;

[12:57.27]    Text B New Year Resolutions ;

[13:02.77]Peter and John are admiring the Christmas decorations on the houses. ;

[13:08.28]Peter invites John to see the tree at his house,but John can't go. ;

[13:13.84]He has to buy a present for his mother. ;

[13:16.67]Later the boys and Mary talk about New Year resolutions. ;

[13:21.91]Peter tells Mary about one she should make. ;

[13:26.01]Mary,as you will see,has a good answer for him. ;

[13:30.67]PETER:I'm glad we   live in a small   town. JOHN:Why? ;

[13:35.02]PETER:Because the   houses look so   nice at Christmas   time. ;

[13:38.59]JOHN:Yes,they do.   Do you have a   Christmas tree   this year? ;

[13:43.26]PETER:Yes,we have   a big tree this   year. ;

[13:46.30]  I bought the   decorations at the   five-and-ten-cent   store yesterday. ;

[13:51.34]Do you want to come and see it? ;

[13:53.70]JOHN:I can't now   because I have   to buy a present   for my mother. ;

[13:58.05]PTEER:When can you   come? ;

[13:59.73]JOHN:I don't know   when I can come.   I'll let you   know later. ;

[14:04.45]MARY:Hi,boys.Are you   going to make any   New Year resolutions   this year? ;

[14:10.43]PETER:No,I never   make any. ;

[14:12.94]JOHN:I make them,but   I break them the   next day.Are you   making any,Mary? ;

[14:18.24]MARY:Yes,but I can't   tell you what they   are. ;

[14:21.65]PETER:You'd better   make one about   losing 20 or 30   pounds. ;

[14:25.21]MARY:Meanie!You'd bet   -ter make one about   saying nice things   to girls. ;

[14:30.62]7.Read the following   dialogue once.   Underline the key   words while reading ;

[14:40.21]and retell to your partner the dialogue in your own words. ;

[14:45.51]Frank is very busy. He is talking to Jimmy,his best friend. ;

[14:52.22]Jimmy:Did you play   football yesterday? Frank:Yes,I played   with Tony and John. ;

[14:59.15]Jimmy:What did you   do after you'd   played football? ;

[15:02.50]Frank:We all went   swimming. ;

[15:04.49]Jimmy:Are you going   swimming again   this afternoon? ;

[15:08.01]Frank:No,we aren't.   We're going to help   Mr Smith to plant   some flowers. ;

[15:13.93]Jimmy:Are you helping   him all afternoon? ;

[15:16.82]Frank:Yes,we are.We   can neither play   football nor do   our homework today. ;

[15:23.48]Jimmy:You're going   to be very busy. ;

[15:26.00]Frank:Yes,we certainly  are.But Mr Smith is  going to pay us for  all the work we'll do ;

[15:34.18]  Lesson 19 ;

[16:05.75]    Text A  A Lesson to Learn ;

[16:10.00]John was the only son of a wealthy American businessman. ;

[16:14.66]Usually he was taken to school by the chauffeur ;

[16:17.97]in his father's beautiful car, ;

[16:20.07]before the chauffeur took John's father to his office. ;

[16:23.74]One evening his father told him that he had to go to the airport early the next day, ;

[16:29.45]so he would need the car at the time that John had to go to school. ;

[16:33.33]He said that John's mother,who possessed another car, ;

[16:37.16]would still be in bed at the time he had to leave the house. ;

[16:41.20]"Well,how will I get to school if you need your car and Mummy is still in bed?" ;

[16:46.60]John asked. ;

[16:47.91]His father thought this was a good opportunity to teach him a lesson ;

[16:52.48]about how hard life was for the less fortunate people of the world, ;

[16:56.78]so he answered, ;

[16:58.56]"You'll go in the same way as every other child in the world goes-- ;

[17:02.81]in a taxi." ;

[17:05.22]    Text B   What's Going on     Here? ;

[17:10.67]POLICEMAN:What's   going on here? ;

[17:12.98]MAN:You mean,what's   happening? ;

[17:15.66]  Well,constable,I'm   trying to get out of   the window and Fred   here is helping me. ;

[17:21.32]POLICEMAN:Why are you   climbing through the   window ;

[17:23.79]  and not leaving by   the front door? ;

[17:26.30]MAN:Well,you see   I can't find the   key and I'm in a   hurry. ;

[17:30.60]  Come on,Fred,   We're wasting   time. ;

[17:33.75]POLICEMAN:Just a   minute you two. ;

[17:35.64]  I don't think you're   telling me the truth   This isn't your   house,is it? ;

[17:40.67]MAN:No,it's my   brother's.I'm   staying with   him for a while. ;

[17:45.39]POLICEMAN:Is he at   home? ;

[17:47.18]MAN:I'm afraid not.   He's in jail for   house-breaking at   the moment. ;

[17:52.47]7.Read the following   passage once. ;

[17:58.40]Underline the key words while reading and retell the story to your partner. ;

[18:05.27]Todd heard all the hammering behind the Marsey's house. ;

[18:10.35]He went to see what was going on. ;

[18:13.71]Jeff Marsey was making something from long pieces of wood. ;

[18:19.01]"What is it?"Todd asked."A pair of stilts,"Jeff said. ;

[18:26.51]Todd knew that stilts could make you several feet taller. ;

[18:31.33]Jeff was putting blocks of wood on the stilts. ;

[18:35.21]These were for his feet to rest on. ;

[18:38.52]Once you got used to them,you could walk anywhere on stilts. ;

[18:44.39]"I'm also making a pair of long pants," Jeff said. ;

[18:49.32]"They'll come all the way down and cover the stilts. ;

[18:53.41]I'll look like a giant." ;

[18:56.24]As the summer went on,Todd forgot all about the stilts. ;

[19:01.59]One night Todd was watching television. ;

[19:05.79]His cousin came running in the front door.He'd never seen her so excited. ;

[19:12.45]"You'd better call the police,"she said."Why? "asked Todd. ;

[19:19.11]"I was waking him," she said."I looked up and saw a--a giant. ;

[19:26.56]He was following me.He wore big baggy pants. ;

[19:31.49]He was very stiff and straight.Each step was a huge step. ;

[19:37.94]I'm going to call the police." "Wait,"said Todd. ;

[19:43.50]"It wasn't a giant. You'll be surprised when I tell you who it was!" ;

[19:51.73]    Lesson 20 ;

[20:22.67]    Text A     Honesty ;

[20:26.19]A man went to an insurance office to have his life insured. ;

[20:30.80]The manager of the office asked him how old his parents were when they died. ;

[20:36.36]"Mother had a bad heart and died at the age of thirty. ;

[20:40.56]Father died of tuberculosis when he was thirty-five." ;

[20:45.01]"I am very sorry," said the manager, ;

[20:48.00]"We cannot insure your life as your parents were not healthy." ;

[20:52.72]As the man was leaving the office,depressed, ;

[20:56.03]he met a clerk who had overheard the conversation. ;

[20:59.85]"You must not be so frank and tell the truth," ;

[21:02.69]said the clerk,"no office will insure you if you speak like that. ;

[21:07.41]Use your imagination a little." ;

[21:10.13]The man went to another office and was shown into the manager's room. ;

[21:15.48]"Well,young man, how old were your parents when they died?" ;

[21:19.68]"Mother was ninety- three,and she died from a fall off her bicycle. ;

[21:24.77]Father was ninety- eight and he died while he was playing football." ;

[21:31.11]    Text B Can You Deliver It? ;

[21:36.20]MAN:Can you deliver   it,please? ;

[21:38.93]SALESWOMAN:It   depends where   you live,sir. ;

[21:41.34]MAN:In Camden Town. ;

[21:43.38]SALESWOMAN:Yes,we   deliver there.But   it costs two pounds   fifty. ;

[21:48.31]MAN:All right.But   I'm only in on   Saturday. ;

[21:51.72]SALESWOMAN:Morning   or afternoon? ;

[21:53.77]MAN:Afternoon,please,   if that's possible. ;

[21:58.01]7.Read the following   passage once. ;

[22:02.84]Underline the key words while reading and retell the story to your partner. ;

[22:09.71]  They Are Here    in My Hand! ;

[22:12.96]Mrs Williams loved flowers and had a small but beautiful garden. ;

[22:19.46]In the summer,her roses were always the best in her street. ;

[22:24.97]One summer afternoon her bell rang,and when she went to the front door, ;

[22:31.18]she saw a small boy outside.He was about seven years old, ;

[22:37.34]and was holding a big bunch of beautiful roses in his hand. ;

[22:42.88]"I am selling roses" he said."Do you want any? ;

[22:47.68]They are quite cheap. Five pence for a big bunch. ;

[22:51.88]They are fresh.I picked them this afternoon." ;

[22:55.75]"My boy,"Mrs Williams answered,"I pick roses whenever I want, ;

[23:01.86]and don't pay anything for them,because I have lots in my garden." ;

[23:06.80]"Oh,no,you haven't," said the small boy. ;

[23:10.99]"There aren't any roses in your garden-- ;

[23:13.88]because they are here in my hand!" ;

[23:16.96]  Lesson 21 ;

[23:47.77]   Text A  Bill Is Very Rude ;

[23:52.29]Bill is in Victor's house and he is sitting down, ;

[23:56.77]He is leaning back and he has put his feet on the table. Bill is very rude. ;

[24:03.67]VICTOR:Would you   mind taking your   feet off the   table,Bill? ;

[24:07.49]BILL:Not at all.   But I was very   comfortable. ;

[24:10.89]VICTOR:Do you put   your feet on your   own table? ;

[24:13.78]BILL:No,I never do   that. VICTOR:Why not? ;

[24:17.89]BILL:I don't want   to mark my table,   of course. ;

[24:20.78]VICTOR:Well,will   you please avoid   marking mine? ;

[24:24.09]BILL:I'm sorry.I   thought you were   going to buy a new   table soon. ;

[24:29.36]VICTOR:I hope to buy   a new table,but I   have to sell my   old one first. ;

[24:34.30]BILL:Would you   please tell me   how much you want   for it? ;

[24:37.70]VICTOR:How much do   you think it's   worth? ;

[24:40.22]BILL:Not much.It's   badly marked.I'll   give you ten   dollars for it. ;

[24:46.37]    Text B The Phone Rang Again ;

[24:51.40]Mrs Moore had worked hard all day at the office, ;

[24:55.13]and she was looking forward to a relaxing evening at home. ;

[24:59.61]Just as she walked in the door,the telephone began to ring. ;

[25:04.27]She dashed to answer the phone ;

[25:06.37]and found that the caller was a man trying to sell her some light bulbs. ;

[25:10.38]She refused and hung up the phone. She smelled dinner cooking ;

[25:15.04]and went in to see how her children were getting along with the meal. ;

[25:19.23]Everything was ready except setting the table, ;

[25:22.59]so Mrs Moore went upstairs to change clothes. ;

[25:26.13]Just as she reached the head of the stairs,the telephone rang again. ;

[25:31.54]When Mrs Moore answered it, ;

[25:33.69]she found out that her husband wouldn't be home for dinner. ;

[25:37.65]After she changed clothes,she went back downstairs to eat. ;

[25:43.15]During dinner,the phone rang twice. ;

[25:46.37]Her sister called to ask about the family, ;

[25:49.72]and a group wanted her to do some volunteer work. ;

[25:52.89]She and the children finished dinner and began cleaning up the kitchen. ;

[25:57.79]The phone rang again. The neighbours wanted to borrow the garden hose. ;

[26:03.10]After the kitchen was cleaned, ;

[26:05.62]Mrs Moore sat down with a sigh to read while the children did their homework. ;

[26:10.84]The phone rang again. ;

[26:13.08]Without even answering it,Mrs Moore called to her children, ;

[26:17.93]"Get ready,we're all going to a movie." "Great!But why?" ;

[26:23.80]"It seems that's the only way we can get away from this telephone." ;

[26:29.91]7.Read the following   passage once. ;

[26:35.45]Underline the key words while reading and retell the story to your partner. ;

[26:41.84]Billy's motorcycle shone in the afternoon sun ;

[26:45.94]and caught Billy's reflection in the fender. ;

[26:49.49]He had worked all summer to save enough money for this bike ;

[26:53.96]and it was his-- all his. ;

[26:57.74]He strapped on his helmet,slid the new black leather gloves over his hands, ;

[27:03.47]then threw one leg over the vinyl seat. ;

[27:07.06]There was a roar of the engine as he kicked it into motion, ;

[27:11.30]and suddenly there he was,speeding down the street on his motorcycle. ;

[27:17.18]Billy's little brother Tommy,watched solemnly from the front door. ;

[27:23.75]Tommy was only eight years old,but eight was old enough,he thought, ;

[27:28.83]for someone to have his very own motorcycle. ;

[27:31.95]It didn't seem fair that Billy had a bike and Tommy didn't. ;

[27:36.85]So Tommy sat on the front porch,ate his candy bar, ;

[27:41.60]and brooded over the matter as he watched Billy slide around the corner. ;

[27:46.64]All he wanted was just one ride. ;

[27:50.41]When Billy discovered his bike missing the next morning, ;

[27:54.56]there was a widespread investigation by the police, ;

[27:57.97]his parents,and the neighbours. ;

[28:01.04]No one had seen the bike since the day before. ;

[28:04.68]As Billy walked off down the sidewalk, heading for the school bus, ;

[28:10.18]his attention was attracted by something black ;

[28:13.40]glaring at him from under a hedge. ;

[28:16.29]He approached slowly, then suddenly broke into a run. ;

[28:21.51]There under the hedge was his motorcycle with one badly dented fender. ;

[28:28.27]He reached for the handlebars to pull it from under the bushes. ;

[28:32.88]when he retracted his hand, ;

[28:35.40]there was a familiar sticky substance on his fingers. ;

[28:39.92]Tasting the brown sweetness,Billy smiled secretly to himself. ;

[28:45.84]He knew he had discovered who had taken his motorcycle for a spin. ;