Try to answer these questions without searching for the answers in the text.

Module 1

There’s no place like home

Characters:

Troy Hopkins a bachelor of Computer Operation, Chicago, Illinois, the USA, aged 22

Nick Ritchie a senior student of Marketing, London, Great Britain, aged 21

Eve Spencer an undergraduate student of Journalism, Montreal, Canada, aged 24

Alice Cameron a student of Business School, Brighton, Great Britain, aged 23

Steve McNeal a post-graduate student of sociology, Edinburgh, Scotland, Great Britain, aged 24

Boris Ivanov an undergraduate student of sociology, PSTU, Perm, Russia, aged 21

Natasha Sokolova a student of public relations, PSTU, Perm, Russia, aged 20

Nastya Novikova a distant learning student of ecology, PSTU, Perm, Russia, aged 19

WHAT A FAMILY IS

Students from different countries are staying with the Russian families. After having unpacked their luggage they have met the Russian students and share their opinions of the host families.

Troy: Let’s get acquainted as we are going to spend so much time together. My name is Troy.

Boris: I’m Boris. I’m glad to meet you all. I’m a student of sociology.

Steve: Nice to meet you. I come from Scotland. I’m in sociology as well. We have much in common, don’t we?

Boris: What a fabulous coincidence! Don’t you just research the problems of the families? I’m writing a dissertation on the problem “How families have changed in Russia”.

Steve: The topic of my investigation is “Family strengths and family values”.

Boris: So we’ve got plenty of things to discuss, I guess. By the way, how do you like your host family?

Steve: I’d like to say, the family I’m staying, with is the so-called extended one. They are so many to live under the same roof. Let me see … all in all – nine: grandparents, their daughter with her husband and two children, their son with his wife and a toddler.

Nastya: You’re kidding! Nowadays extended family groups are uncommon. I mean several generations living in one household.

Steve: In that case I think I’m fortunate to stay with such a family. So I’ll keep an eye on their life and compare it with a British one.

Natasha: And now, do grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, and nieces and nephews live together in Britain?

Steve: The Royal family is a perfect example.

Alice: Probably being a member of a clanis a good thing. As for me I’ve got neither brothers nor sisters, only my Мom. I believe having both parents is better. When people get married they never know what can happen in future. I mean divorce, single-parent family or remarriage. My Mom, for example, divorced with my father and hasn’t remarried again.

Troy: Don't you think it's better to stay single? What are the advantages and disadvantages of getting married?

Nick: Well if you ask me, it all depends on your circumstances.

Troy: What do you mean?

Nick: I mean that people's situations can be very different.

Troy: What are you trying to say?

Nick: To come to the point, there are so many different motives for marriage that it's impossible to generalize about why people prefer married to single status.

Eve: Rubbish! It must be possible to compare living together with someone to living on your own. What about independence?

Boris: But you don't seem to realize that some married people live totally independent lives.

Eve: That may be so, but for most people the whole point of marriage is to live together and possibly to raise a family. That's what this discussion's about.

Alice: In that case, it's obvious that children are a commitment for life. I guess that many single people have different priorities or else they believe that they would make unsuitable parents. Surely, there's more to marriage than having children.

Boris: If you're talking about getting married, the divorce rate is so high that these don't seem to be relevant any more. Why not just stay single. You can still live together with other people for as long as you find them compatible…

Try to answer these questions without searching for the answers in the text.

1. Steve: … We have much in common, don’t we?

Boris: …

2. Boris: Don’t you just research the problems of the families?

Steve: …

3. Boris: By the way, how do you like your host family?

Steve: …

4. Natasha: And now, do grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, and nieces and

nephews live together in Britain?

Steve: …

5. Troy: Don't you think it's better to stay single? What are the advantages and

disadvantages of getting married?

Nick: …

6. Troy: What do you mean?

Nick: …

7. Troy: What are you trying to say?

Nick: …

8. Eve: … What about independence?

Boris: …

Read and decide 1. What is the definition of family and what is its function? 2. What are the family types? 3. Look at the photos and define the family type

Boris’s story

Дата добавления: 2015-08-13