英语口语教程(中级) UNIT 23-25

[00:00.00]   Oral Workshop:     Discussion Lesson23-25(Text B) ;

[00:16.24]    Lesson 23    All For a Son ;

[00:20.79]    Text A ;

[00:22.97]The desire for a son and heir is common to all mankind. ;

[00:27.13]In our country, especially,to have as many male descendents as possible ;

[00:31.59]has always been regarded as the greatest blessing in life. ;

[00:35.16]The failure to produce  male heir was ;

[00:37.48]considered the most unfilial of all unfilial crimes. ;

[00:41.47]A man was justified to cast away his wife ;

[00:43.88]and take another if she failed to bear him  son. ;

[00:46.54]For the rich,the probl -em could be solved by aking a concubine or several concubines. ;

[00:51.92]All traditional ideas die hard.The desire for a son is as strong s ever, ;

[00:58.14]and the problem has been aggravated by our one-child family planning policy. ;

[01:02.54]Hence the numerous tragedies and comedies e hear and read so often. ;

[01:07.69]There are fathers who drop down in a faint ;

[01:09.88]when they hear their wives have given birth o daughters. ;

[01:12.94]There are"guerrilla" couples who roam from place to place ;

[01:16.70]dodging family planning officials to give one birth after another ;

[01:20.45]until they finally have a son. ;

[01:22.45]But more often we hear f tragedies of wives being ill treated by their husbands ;

[01:27.50]and by their parents- -in-law because they failed to give birth to sons. ;

[01:31.77]Recently I saw a photograph in Yangcheng Evening ;

[01:35.76]showing a woman with a baby in her arms appealing to passers -by in the street. ;

[01:40.26]The caption says she is telling people of her plight of ;

[01:43.46]being thrown out into the street with her baby girl by her husband's family, ;

[01:48.10]all because she has given birth to a daughter instead of a son. ;

[01:51.86]I remember some time ago reading about a man ;

[01:55.20]pushing his three-year-old daughter down a well. ;

[01:57.94]Fortunately the girl was saved by someone who happened to pass by. ;

[02:01.51]The man only got a year and a half imprisonment for attempted murder. ;

[02:05.13]To my mind,he was just s guilty as if the girl had really drowned. ;

[02:08.88]By comparison,the story of Zhou Cheng Hu, ;

[02:12.32]an ordinary farmer of Changning County in Sichuan Province ;

[02:15.19]arouses more ridicule than indignation. ;

[02:18.26]Zhou's parents had died when he was still young, ;

[02:21.41]and he was the only son to carry on the family line. ;

[02:24.15]He had married early when he was only twenty. ;

[02:27.21]The first child was a girl,so he tried again, ;

[02:30.60]and the second child born the following year was also a girl ;

[02:34.45]Zhou was vexed but still not unduly worried, ;

[02:37.04]but when the third birth turned out to be a girl too, ;

[02:40.38]he could sit tight no more.He began to consult doctors, quacks,witches, ;

[02:45.30]and fortune-tellers. One geomancer told him ;

[02:48.15]that his ancestral graves were wrongly located, ;

[02:50.99]so he dug up his mother's grave and had her remains reburied. ;

[02:54.29]But that didn't seem to help him as he had a fourth daughter. ;

[02:57.35]Now really desperate he disturbed the dead again ;

[03:00.73]and had his father reburied this time. ;

[03:03.10]But it seemed nothing could help,for the fifth was still a daughter. ;

[03:06.02]In the meantime he had ncurred upon himself heavy fines ;

[03:09.53]for violating family planning laws.Another geomancer ;

[03:13.77]told him that the gods would help him if he had a temple archway built. ;

[03:16.93]What would he not do as long as he could get a son? ;

[03:20.40]So no expenses were spared and he did as the geomancer told him. ;

[03:25.00]But the gods remained unmoved and gave him another girl. ;

[03:28.71]As the newborn baby uttered her first cry upon entering this world, ;

[03:32.23]her father began to wail most miserably. ;

[03:35.34]He was now a bitterly disappointed and broken man. ;

[03:39.56]He became a heavy drinker. ;

[03:41.56]He habitually beat up his wife and daughters or no reasons at all. ;

[03:45.08]He had nothing to live for. ;

[03:46.57]He felt he could not look people in the face because he had no son. ;

[03:50.42]When the whole village ad electric lights installed, ;

[03:53.02]he had to go without because he had no money. ;

[03:55.38]In fact,his debts ran to four figures and he ould see no way of repaying them ;

[04:00.67]Then one day early this year,after loading himself heavy with drink. ;

[04:06.28]Zhou Chenghu ended his wn miserable life at the age of forty. ;

[04:10.23]Perhaps he was not as guilty as the man who tried to drown his own aughter, ;

[04:14.22]but to leave his wife and six daughters to fend for themselves, ;

[04:17.09]though no crime was certainly not excusable. ;

[04:20.02]And all because he had no son! ;

[04:23.82]    Text B ;

[04:26.79]After ignoring family planning policies and siring three girls, Zhang, ;

[04:32.36]who lives in village in Henan Province, ;

[04:34.49]finally got the son he was waiting for this year. ;

[04:37.18]Despite the heavy fines exacted ;

[04:39.69]for breaking the regulations on family planning,Zhang was overjoyed. ;

[04:43.77]The honest and simple peasant does not hesitate when asked ;

[04:47.87]why he so much desired  son."Why? Who'll support me when I get old?" ;

[04:53.51]Actually there are some homes for old folks in the village and nearby. ;

[04:59.22]But though he supposes hey live well there, ;

[05:01.40]Zhang still does not believe the old folks are happy. ;

[05:04.18]"It's just so-so there. ;

[05:06.45]Who knows what it'll be like over there when I get old. ;

[05:09.14]It's better to have a son,"Zhang said. ;

[05:12.07]And a son-in-law cannot be depended on to support him, says Zhang. ;

[05:16.34]A son-in-law who lives with his wife's family s looked down on by the community. ;

[05:21.67]He cannot be expected to replace a natural son. ;

[05:24.55]A family nearby has four sons. ;

[05:27.52]Life became very hard when the two older sons got married. ;

[05:31.09]However,the third son says he would rather be a bachelor for life ;

[05:34.52]than risk having to take in some day his wife's aged parents. ;

[05:38.45]As China's family planning programme enters the 1990s, ;

[05:41.97]traditional ideas on family life are posing he major barriers ;

[05:44.99]to limiting China's population. ;

[05:46.94]These ideas have formed over thousands of years. ;

[05:50.93]The concept of"more sons,more happiness" still exists in some rural areas, ;

[05:56.86]especially in poor and emote ones.For some families, ;

[06:01.27]the presence of several sons gives parents a feeling of protection. ;

[06:05.45]Families with no boys, or few boys,may feel intimidated by famili- es with many sons. ;

[06:12.08]Another problem the country must face is early marriages. ;

[06:16.54]A survey in a town in Zhecheng County shows young people marrying ;

[06:20.15]earlier than the law prescribes.Some are engaged by the age of 15. ;

[06:25.44]Parents dream of grandchildren, ;

[06:27.48]and sometimes they encourage early marriages, ;

[06:29.71]ignoring the government's call for "marriage at mature ages". ;

[06:33.79]Changing these ideas is hard as tens of millions of peasants are illiterate. ;

[06:39.87]Additional Information ;

[06:43.21]Wang is a school teacher in Shimen in east Sichuan. ;

[06:47.43]At 36 he was still a lonely bachelor ;

[06:50.96]and was likely to remain one until one day towards the end of 1988 ;

[06:55.46]he happened to read in the matrimonial column ;

[06:57.64]of a magazine an advertisement which read:Yang,a woman of 31 ;

[07:03.44]who is a family planning officer in a certain township in south Sichuan, ;

[07:07.10]seeks a reliable and understanding man ;

[07:10.16]for a spouse having been disappointed in her first love affair ;

[07:13.78]by the man she has lost her heart to... ;

[07:16.75]"Somehow this advertisement appealed to Wang greatly. ;

[07:21.39]After much thought he plucked up his courage and wrote to this woman Yang. ;

[07:26.07]It was the first love letter he had written in his life. ;

[07:29.32]To his surprise and great joy he got a very warm response. ;

[07:34.06]Things went so smoothly in fact that ;

[07:36.37]very soon the woman appeared before him in flesh and blood, ;

[07:39.25]with a divorce certificate in her hand ;

[07:41.11]to prove that she was a free woman and was sincere in her desire to marry him. ;

[07:46.10]Wang could hardly believe in his own luck, ;

[07:48.68]and so with great haste he said goodbye to his bachelor life. ;

[07:52.48]On the wedding night,however, ;

[07:54.70]he got a great shock when he discovered that his bride ;

[07:57.74]was already three months pregnant. ;

[08:01.28]But he was a reasonable man, ;

[08:03.05]and instead of blaming er he did his best to console her, ;

[08:06.04]assuring her that nothing could alter his love for her. ;

[08:08.57]And he was as good as his words, ;

[08:12.42]so the newly-wed couple lived in harmony and bliss ;

[08:15.10]until half a year later when Yang gave birth to a lovely plump son. ;

[08:19.40]Wang cared for the mother and child as if he was the real father. ;

[08:23.40]Then on the day of the full month of the baby, ;

[08:26.79]Wang came home from school to find that his wife had prepared a small feast. ;

[08:31.09]Overjoyed and touched by this show of affection, ;

[08:34.43]he nevertheless admonished her ;

[08:35.92]for overtiring herself hile secretly ;

[08:38.01]congratulating himself ;

[08:39.46]for having found such a considerate and loving wife. ;

[08:42.29]Then,before he had finished eating and with the wine still warm in his heart. ;

[08:47.56]Yang suddenly said to him:"Happily we got together,now let us gladly part!" ;

[08:53.43]Wang could hardly believe his ears. "Please don't talk such nonsense!" ;

[08:58.59]"I'm not talking nonsense.We have to divorce. ;

[09:01.88]To be quite honest,I don't find it easy leaving you like this, ;

[09:05.62]and I feel very sad having cheated you. You are a very good man. ;

[09:10.18]But I was a happily married woman with a lovely daughter. ;

[09:13.77]Our only regret was having no son.What were we to do? ;

[09:18.12]I couldn't very well give a second birth, ;

[09:20.15]especially as I am a family planning officer. ;

[09:22.68]So my husband and I worked out this plan... ;

[09:25.26]We agreed to divorce temporarily after having made sure I was pregnant again. ;

[09:30.93]I had secretly gone to see a doctor ;

[09:32.94]and he had given me hope that it was likely going to be a boy, ;

[09:35.99]and so we went ahead with our plan. ;

[09:38.27]After I put out the advertisement,I got many offers. ;

[09:42.01]We picked on you for two reasons. ;

[09:44.14]First,you are a teacher and therefore ;

[09:46.47]are likely to be a reasonable man ;

[09:48.34]and would not make things difficult for me. ;

[09:50.97]Secondly,you are no longer so young and would not be ;

[09:53.75]too choosy and therefore would readily take me... ;

[09:56.43]Now you know all. Say whatever you like.Curse me, call me names... ;

[10:02.36]All I ask is that you forgive me and let me go back to my former husband." ;

[10:07.92]Wang was dumb-founded. ;

[10:10.56]In vain he tried to plead and remonstrate, and begged her to stay ;

[10:14.96]But Yang was adamant. "I still love my former husband. ;

[10:18.86]Our divorce was not for real in the first place. ;

[10:21.84]If you don't let me go,you can only keep my body, ;

[10:25.38]but you can't keep my heart. ;

[10:27.76]I had made it clear in my advertisement ;

[10:29.72]that I had lost my heart to my first love!" In the end the good, ;

[10:34.29]honest Wang had to agree to divorce her and let her go. ;

[10:37.43]Left alone again, Wang thought not only of the injury done to himself, ;

[10:42.79]but the deceit and trickery on the part of the couple to dodge the law ;

[10:46.39]and the woman was supposed to be some sort of officer of the law too. ;

[10:49.88]Could such a monstrous hing be allowed? ;

[10:52.71]Was the force of feudal ideas so much stronger than the force of law? ;

[10:56.91]We may well ask the same questions. ;

[11:03.09]    Lesson 24    Want to Kill     Yourself? ;

[11:45.93]    Text A ;

[11:47.93]I wonder whether smoking is as harmful as doctors make us believe it to be? ;

[11:52.99]Some of the things they say are really hair-raising, ;

[11:56.28]and even if only half of what they say is true,then it is,if not suicidal, ;

[12:01.03]at least a self- inflicted chronic disease. ;

[12:04.12]This afternoon our League branch organized a discussion ;

[12:08.29]on the harmful effects f smoking and what effective measures should be taken to ;

[12:12.00]prevent young people from smoking. ;

[12:13.97]According to our form master,50% of our class smoke, ;

[12:18.53]or have smoked at one time or another.If that is true, ;

[12:22.27]then all the boys must be smokers, ;

[12:24.60]because we make up about 50% of our class--I can hardly believe that. ;

[12:28.85]I,for one,certainly don't smoke,though I must admit ;

[12:32.85]I did once take a few puffs just out of curiosity, ;

[12:35.88]but you can't call that smoking.The discussion was quite a lively one. ;

[12:41.50]The girls,of course, all spoke in one voice against smoking ;

[12:45.15]but for the most part they had nothing original to offer ;

[12:47.98]besides repeating what we can read in the papers ;

[12:50.21]and popular science magazines.At first the boys listened in glum silence ;

[12:55.32]and I could see boredom and disdain on their faces. ;

[12:58.15]Then the cross-fire between Fatty and Liu Dandan livened the meeting up. ;

[13:02.56]Dandan has always been something of an actress and in her theatrical manner ;

[13:06.96]she went on and on describing how bad a cigarette tastes. ;

[13:10.86]Fatty couldn't contain imself any longer and muttered under his breath, ;

[13:14.65]"Heavens,you must be a ery experienced smoker!" ;

[13:17.79]Everybody burst out laughing and Dandan spluttered with rage. ;

[13:21.59]The girls rallied round her and began to attack Fatty. ;

[13:24.72]Of course we could have none of that and the classroom was soon in uproar. ;

[13:28.92]"All right you boys and girls,that is quite enough.Show some sense. ;

[13:34.49]Our form master's firm oice had quite a sobering effect ;

[13:37.63]and order was restored again. ;

[13:39.15]"Those who do smoke, please put up your hands." ;

[13:42.79]Taken by surprise, nobody made any move. ;

[13:46.43]"Come on.There is nothing to fear. This is not for punishment. ;

[13:49.98]I only want statistics. I only want information ;

[13:53.10]so that we can really find out something about smoking." ;

[13:56.35]We looked at each other. ;

[13:58.18]First Fatty,then about alf a dozen boys raised their hands. ;

[14:02.48]Then our form master proceeded to ask each of them why they smoked ;

[14:06.02]and whether they liked moking.Did they ever try to give it up? Why not? ;

[14:10.57]And so on and so on. ;

[14:12.19]Soon he didn't have to sk any questions as we all volunteered information ;

[14:17.05]and the discussion became very lively and the atmosphere relaxed. ;

[14:21.05]Some interesting facts came out. ;

[14:24.29]Family and surround- ings play a very important part in influencing smokers. ;

[14:29.40]All those who smoke come from smoking families or are surrounded ;

[14:32.84]by smoking friends and relatives.Films and TV lays also play a part. ;

[14:38.66]In the past only villains smoked and drank. ;

[14:41.45]Now heroes also smoke and drink,and heroes now are mostly young people ;

[14:45.49]with the "spirit of the 80s"fighting feudalism and conservatism. ;

[14:48.97]As to those who smoked nd have given up, ;

[14:51.85]they did so because they didn't enjoy smoking and found it too expensive. ;

[14:55.80]Very few people think about health dangers. ;

[14:57.98]All those who still smoke admit that they ;

[15:00.42]don't derive any great leasure out of smoking. ;

[15:03.04]Smoking has not become  hardened habit with them ;

[15:06.23]and they could give it p easily if they really wanted to. ;

[15:09.16]They just haven't felt any urgent need to do it. ;

[15:12.10]A very interesting and rewarding discussion. ;

[15:16.55]Those smokers who haven't given much thought to their smoking will, ;

[15:19.89]I'm sure,give more thought to it now. ;

[15:22.93]    Text B ;

[15:27.08]Few people like changing their habits,good or bad,and, ;

[15:32.19]whether it is smoking, drinking or over-eating, ;

[15:35.07]they continue 'enjoying' them to the end,often the bitter end. ;

[15:39.27]On every packet of cigarettes and in every advertisement, ;

[15:42.97]Americans are warned against the dangers of smoking: ;

[15:45.70]"Warning:The Surgeon General Has Determined ;

[15:48.84]That Cigarette Smoking Is Dangerous to Your Health". ;

[15:51.47]In spite of this, millions of them start smoking or go on smoking. ;

[15:56.73]Why?One reason may be that people watch their 'heroes' on TV drinking alcohol, ;

[16:02.81]smoking cigarettes and fighting their way from adventure to adventure, ;

[16:06.35]'heroes' who seem to fear nothing, ;

[16:08.52]neither killing other people nor killing themselves with alcohol and cigarettes ;

[16:12.37]If they are not afraid f the effects of smoking and ;

[16:15.07]drinking alcohol why should John Smith, ;

[16:17.65]sitting at home in his armchair watching all this,be afraid? ;

[16:20.48]The simple warning on the cigarette packet does not influence his ;

[16:24.18]"hero's" either.But even stronger warnings,like ;

[16:28.08]showing pictures of smokers who have lost a leg or died of cancer, ;

[16:31.57]seem to have no effect on people's smoking habits. ;

[16:34.40]Knowing and believing seem to be two different things. ;

[16:39.06]The young girl smoking a cigarette in the advertisement ;

[16:41.66]runs the risk of dying f cancer in a few years. ;

[16:44.52]The smoker sitting next to you may have a heart attack next week. ;

[16:47.51]But don't worry!The chance of dying in an accident is just as great. ;

[16:51.91]Particularly if enough eople agree with one advertiser that ;

[16:55.17]driving a car at 212m. p.h and smoking interesting cigarettes ;

[17:00.31]is all that life is really about. ;

[17:02.79]Additional Information ;

[17:05.22]    (A)     World  'No Tobacco' Day ;

[17:10.13]People in all parts of he world are observing "No Tobacco Day". ;

[17:16.10]It is the day when the World Health Organization appeals to ;

[17:19.39]people to stop using tobacco products. ;

[17:22.58]The W-H-O hopes if people stop smoking cigarettes or chewing tobacco for one day, ;

[17:27.24]they will stop permanently. ;

[17:29.21]The day includes special observances and awards ;

[17:32.60]ceremonies in one- hundred-sixty-six countries. ;

[17:35.74]The target group for this year's "No Tobacco Day" is women. ;

[17:39.69]Organizers want to make sure women know the dangers of smoking. ;

[17:43.18]Health experts have warned for years that smoking can lead to heart disease, ;

[17:48.24]cancer and other problems. ;

[17:50.42]The Wold Health Organization says diseases linked to smoking kill at least ;

[17:54.53]two-million five- hundred-thousand persons each year. ;

[17:58.16]Still,many people find it difficult to stop smoking.One reason is nicotine, ;

[18:04.08]a substance found in cigarettes.Nicotine is  drug. ;

[18:07.88]The effects of nicotine are similar to the effects of cocaine and heroin. ;

[18:12.08]"No Tobacco Day" is aimed at smokers and those who earn money from tobacco sales. ;

[18:17.44]So businesses are asked to stop selling tobacco products for twenty-four hours. ;

[18:21.69]Newspapers are asked not to publish advertisements for cigarettes. ;

[18:25.44]Two important developments have been observed in recent years. ;

[18:29.69]In industrial countries. ;

[18:31.56]the number of smokers has been falling about one percent a year. ;

[18:35.00]But in developing countries,the number has been rising two percent a year. ;

[18:39.30]This is the result of increased efforts by tobacco companies to sell their products ;

[18:44.57]in developing countries. ;

[18:45.78]the World Health Organization has approved ;

[18:48.75]plans to help reach its goal of a 'smoke -free'world. ;

[18:52.41]One urges governments to offertobacco farmers the chance ;

[18:55.79]to earn money by growing other crops. ;

[18:58.18]Another involves impro -ved public informatio -n campaigns about the angers of smoking. ;

[19:04.20]    (B) ;

[19:06.58]MIRIAM:Yeah,when,  when did you  start smoking? ;

[19:10.53]STEVE:Well,I started   when I was,er,   about sixteen,and   I really started ;

[19:14.01]because I...well,I think my family smoked nd that really made me want to, ;

[19:18.39]  er...really;somehow   it was like growing   up. ;

[19:21.21]MIRIAM:Yeah. ;

[19:22.27]STEVE:And,of course,   my friends around   me were smoking   and when we, ;

[19:25.76]  when we left school   we'd go over the   park and have a   ..., ;

[19:28.55]  and have a quick   cigarette.And er,   I mean, ;

[19:31.99]  I do remember when I  first started that ;

[19:33.74]  I didn't really draw  cigarettes at all   because ;

[19:36.04]  I didn't really know  how to do it and I   didn't think it was   very pleasant; ;

[19:39.48]  and it's only as   time goes by you   get more and more   involved in that, ;

[19:42.67]  erm,in that process   until finally   you've... ;

[19:46.36]  you realise that   you,you can't give   up. ;

[19:49.45]  And,in fact,when   I first started I   used to ;

[19:51.96]  pretend that I was   so hooked that I   couldn't give up, ;

[19:55.02]  because it was like   being a child-it   was like being a,   being a grown-up. ;

[19:59.87]  You know,grown-ups   say they can't give   up smoking, ;

[20:02.76]  they wish they   couldn't smoke and   I used to pretend   to say that. ;

[20:06.15]  And of course,by   the time it really   happens it's too   late. ;

[20:09.49]  It doesn't mean   the same thing   any more. ;

[20:11.77]  You actually want   to give up but you   can't. ;

[20:14.95]MIRIAM:I've smoked   since I was   eighteen and   I started, ;

[20:17.03]  er...as you did,   sort of...sort   of socially. ;

[20:20.88]  And it wasn't   a lot of fun   to start with. ;

[20:23.25]STEVE:Right. ;

[20:23.96]MIRIAM:It was quite   embarrassing,   sometimes,you know ;

[20:26.44]  You get smoke in   your eyes and your   eyes would water ;

[20:29.68]  and it's a dead give   -away that you've   only just started. STEVE:Mmm. ;

[20:33.22]MIRIAM:Er.And I  didn't care for the  taste all that much  but everybody... ;

[20:37.98]  people smoked...   I mean I started   smoking a long   time ago ;

[20:41.88]  before anything   was known about   cancer and, ;

[20:44.97]  er...it was just the  thing to do.And as,   as you said,it was   a..., ;

[20:50.53]  it was being grown-   up.It was drawing   that line,you know:   I am,now grown up. ;

[20:56.61]ANNE:I should think   I started at   nine...I started. ;

[21:00.25]  No,I really started   my first year at   university. ;

[21:03.28]  Everybody else   smoked.It was just   the thing to do. ;

[21:07.13]  And now not so many   people smoke,it's... ;

[21:11.23]  it seems to me   that it was an   awful waste of   time and money. ;

[21:15.94]  But my father smoked   and my mother didn't ;

[21:18.92]  so it was always a   split thing in the   house. ;

[21:21.25]  I don't know,   I really. ;

[21:23.22]  I think it probably   just was a social   habit more than   anything else. ;

[21:27.48]JOHN:Like most   people,I started   smoking at school,   foolishly. ;

[21:31.73]  Er,I was offered   cigarettes by   other,er, ;

[21:34.31]  children and in   those days, ;

[21:35.96]  I suppose smoking   was the equivalent   of drug taking   today; ;

[21:39.22]  er,that it was   considered,erm,...   erm,... ;

[21:43.22]  fashionable and   sophisticated and   adult to smoke. ;

[21:49.09]    Lesson 25   Don't They Feel     Ashamed of    Themselves? ;

[22:32.10]    Text A ;

[22:35.04]We were at the terminus and as a bus had just left, ;

[22:39.24]there were only the two of us. ;

[22:41.11]"We're sure to get good seats,"I thought to myself confidently. ;

[22:45.26]But soon there was a crowd ;

[22:46.83]and nobody seemed to have the least intention of forming a ine. ;

[22:50.12]In fact everybody was trying to crane forward ;

[22:53.21]and soon they were almost standing in the middle of the road ;

[22:55.89]so as to be in the best strategic position. ;

[22:58.42]I realized I had been over-optimistic about getting seats. ;

[23:02.67]So I said to Granny: "You get on in your own good time,Granny ;

[23:06.62]I'll get on first to find a seat for you." ;

[23:09.00]She was terrified at the idea:"Oh no,you don't! ;

[23:12.69]Never mind about the seat.The important thing is to get on the bus. ;

[23:16.79]I'll never manage it by myself." ;

[23:19.47]Looking at all the young men around us, I realized Granny was right. ;

[23:23.88]All the young men had intent faces just like oldiers ready to go into action. ;

[23:29.19]And when a bus did finally arrive, everybody rushed forward to meet it ;

[23:32.85]so as to be just in front of one of the doors, ;

[23:35.23]and people ran along with the bus,keeping as near to a door as possible ;

[23:38.72]until finally the bus came to a halt and the oors opened. ;

[23:42.11]The mad scramble that followed defies description. ;

[23:45.86]It was almost a free-for-all:people fought,jostled, ;

[23:50.46]pushed and elbowed their way forward, ;

[23:52.38]accompanied by shouts and curses all around. ;

[23:55.47]I had great difficulty n pushing Granny into the bus. ;

[23:58.51]I was really afraid that her old bones might crack. ;

[24:01.75]Had a lot of difficulties in getting on myself too. ;

[24:04.58]People behind me pushed,people beside me elbowed, ;

[24:08.07]and people in front of e seemed to have formed a block of solid wall. ;

[24:11.46]Actually there was plenty of room in the bus. ;

[24:13.69]After all the seats had been taken, ;

[24:15.97]people who got on just stood near the doorway and refused to move in, ;

[24:19.11]blocking the way for all those behind who had not yet got on. ;

[24:22.45]After what seemed to me to be an eternity of pushing and shouting, ;

[24:26.39]all the passengers managed to get on and the doors finally closed. ;

[24:30.19]I looked around, hoping somebody would have ;

[24:32.72]the decency to give up his seat to Granny. ;

[24:35.20]But they all seemed to he glued to their seats, ;

[24:37.53]those "elegantly" dressed young men and ladies,looking happy and smug, ;

[24:41.37]apparently proud of the fact that they were smart enough ;

[24:44.00]be ahead of everybody else. ;

[24:45.83]After the bus started, Granny began to wobble n her feet ;

[24:50.43]and I had to hold her tight to prevent her from falling. ;

[24:53.87]"Will someone be kind enough to give the old ady a seat?" ;

[24:57.16]The conductress called ut several times, meeting no response. ;

[25:01.36]Some seemed to have suddenly dozed off, ;

[25:03.74]and others seemed to be captivated by something ;

[25:05.97]very interesting outside the bus window. ;

[25:08.80]In the end it was a middle-aged lady who stood up and gave Granny her seat. ;

[25:12.19]After thanking the lady,I helped Granny sit down and looked at those ;

[25:16.04]"elegant"young people again, ;

[25:17.26]trying to detect some traces of shame on their faces.But I found none. ;

[25:22.21]    Text B ;

[25:24.54]Vietnam? Isn't that a shame?(Laughs softly.) ;

[25:30.11]I saw a film on Vietnam,it showed the actual fighting. ;

[25:33.45]It looked ridiculous, just a bunch of kids. ;

[25:36.54]It was actually embarrassing to watch that, ;

[25:38.86]people were actually shooting and shouting. I saw Vietnam. ;

[25:43.72]I looked at a map once.I'm concerned with Vietnam if my brother has to go, ;

[25:48.43]otherwise,no.My interest in life is me.It's a shame. ;

[25:54.25]I wish I could pick up a newspaper and read it. ;

[25:56.88]What I hear about things is heard from other people. ;

[26:00.07]I hope I'll make it. I think it's marriage, to someone who is successful. ;

[26:05.38]Highland Park,a couple of kids. ;

[26:08.93]I'm not too crazy about children, though. ;

[26:11.56]You're sitting in a room,and all of a sudden five kids' ll come in and they'll ;

[26:14.95] go to another girl  in the room.Same  with dogs. ;

[26:19.00]I'm worried about the next couple of years. ;

[26:21.53]Here I'm putting all this time and feeling into this relationship ith Steven, ;

[26:26.59]and to have it not work out,it would be terrible.I don't know what I'd do. ;

[26:31.40]I'd probably find someone else and be just as happy. ;

[26:35.39]We have to have war, there's been wars through all the ages, ;

[26:39.44]apparently everyone gets enjoyment out of it. ;

[26:42.33]If we removed this part from man,it would be boring. ;

[26:45.31]Otherwise things would be sort of dull. ;

[26:48.20]I love my building, I just love it.If I'm on a bus going to my mother's, ;

[26:52.95]I look at these people nd get a nauseous feeling. ;

[26:55.64]On Michigan Avenue,I respect them more.Home ives me a sick feeling. ;

[27:00.60]It's a shame Blacks don't like me ;

[27:02.47]and children don't like me and dogs don't run up to me. ;