Tomorrow and tomorrow and so forth

Tomorrow and tomorrow and so forth

By John Updike

Text:

http://literature2.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/updike.pdf

Tasks:

I. Speak about the author of the story.

II. Transcribe the given words and read them correctly:

virtual, adolescent, discipline, infallibly, explicit, effeminate, sarcastic, melancholy, soliloquy, aisle, courteously, arithmetic, chivalrous.

III. Learn the Essential Vocabulary:

A. General Vocabulary

Compromise

To provoke

Odd Syn.: queer

Suspense

Deliberate

Valid

To encourage

To scold

Genuine

For the good of smb

B. Phrasal Verbs

To laugh smth off

To be wrapped up in smth

To think smth up

To hang up (somewhere)

C. Idioms

A lady’s man

To be tickled pink

D. Prepositional Phrases

Right under smb’s eyes

At smb’s expense

For once

In all innocence

To make a face at smb

To read smth into smth

To read to oneself

To refer to smth

IV. Explain the difference between the following words; make up some sentences to bring out the difference:

1. sensitive – sensual – sensible
2. to disturb – to bother – to worry
3. to stare – to glare
4. economic – economical

V. Learn the following derivational patterns; explain their meaning; give 5-6 examples of derivatives built after them:

A. v + -ance = N annoyance

a + -ance = N arrogance, ignorance

B. v + -ure = N exposure

C. n + -ous = A poisonous

D. inter- + n = N interplay

VI. Find out the pronunciation of the following personal names; find reference to them in the story and say what you know about these people: Shakespeare, Dante, Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello.

VII. Explain what is meant by: fullback, thyroid eyes, beauty parlor, a Jehovah’s Witness, footnote, crooner, faculty, locker.

VIII. Read the soliloquy from “Macbeth” which Mark’s students discussed in class. How do you interpret it?

IX. Write a short summary of the story; retell the story.

X. Choose a passage and prepare to read it aloud in class; explain your choice.

XI. Write out all the words, phrases, passages that characterize Mark Prosser.

XII. Explain what is meant by the following:

1. …wearing an expression of distant arrogance that Prosser instantly coordinated with baffled feelings he used to have.
2. a race of bluffers
3. He realized he had been playing for laughs at a student’s expense.
4. Mark read into Geoffrey’s question his own adolescent premonitions.
5. But the impulse might not be the true kindness, but just the self-congratulatory kindly pose in which he sometimes discovered himself.
6. Mark judged he could safely reassume his human-among-humans pose.

XIII. Answer the questions:

1. How long had Mark Prosser been teaching high school?
2. Why did Mark guess, looking at 11D, that it would rain?
3. Mark disliked Peter Forrester, didn’t he? Why?
4. What literary work did 11D discuss in class?
5. Were the students interested in what they were discussing? How did they behave?
6. Mark tried to be friendly, frank and informal, didn’t he? Did he succeed?
7. How did he try to maintain discipline?
8. What did Gloria write in her note?
9. What did the physical education teacher tell Mark?

XIV. Discussion Points:

1. What do you think of Mark Prosser? Give his character-sketch. What sort of teacher was he, in your opinion? Was your literature teacher in any way like him?
2. Mark couldn’t maintain discipline very well in class, could he? Why not? Was he too young and inexperienced? Did he lack strength of character? Was he in awe of his students? Any other reason? What did his students think of him?
3. Mark intercepted and read the note Gloria was passing to Peter Forrester. What do you think of his action? What would you do if it happened in your class and you read such a note about yourself?
4. How did Mark react when he was told that Gloria’s note was only a practical joke? Did he believe it? Do you believe it? If it was a joke, it was rather a cruel one, wasn’t it?
5. What do you think of the literature lesson described in the story? Should literature be taught at school at all? Should Shakespeare be taught at school?
6. Comment upon the passage that begins with “And about love…”

Дата добавления: 2015-11-04