Read the text with a dictionary and answer the questions that follow it.

The British have a reputation of being conservative, have established values without questioning their validity; have a strong sense of being different from others. They keep to the left side of the road and use double-deckers. They stick to their own measurement system and continue to measure distances in miles (not kms) and yards (not meters). They buy cheese in pounds and ounces, milk in pints, petrol in gallons.

English people don’t like displaying their emotions even in dangerous and tragic situations. The Englishman prefers his own house to an apartment in a block of flats, because he doesn’t wish his doing to be overlooked by his neighbours. They say “An Englishman’s house is his castle”. The average British family lives in a semi-detached house with a garden in the south of England. They own their house which is situated in the suburbs of a large town. The house has three bedrooms. On average they have two children and a pet. The family drives a two-year-old Ford Cortina.

They are rather conservative in many ways. They love familiar things. They keep to old traditions. The Britons are practical and realistic. English people are famous for their sense of humor. We can find numerous limericks, jokes, nursery rhymes and tongue twisters.

English people show great love for animals. Pet dogs, cats, hens, canaries, guinea-pigs, hemsters and many other animals have a good life in Britain. The English often say: “Love me – love my dog”.

The typical Englishmen work in London bank but live in the countryside, in a house with a lovely garden. Every day he reads the Times newspaper and does the crossword on the way to work. He never speaks to anybody on the train, but will talk to you about the weather or cricket if you meet him in the pub at lunch time. He always wears a dark suit to work and always carries an umbrella. He gave up smoking his pipe and wearing a bowler hat some years ago. At the weekend he wears an old tweed jacket and a pair of gardening trousers. He likes plain, simple food and drinks tea at every opportunity. In his free time, he works in the garden, plays golf or takes his dog for a walk. He is suspicious of all foreigners. He is kind and polite to his wife but doesn’t show her a lot of affection. His wife is a snob who dresses rather badly. They both admire members of the Royal Family and copy their accents. He is proud of his son, who is at Cambridge University, (but would rather die than tell him). He is rather worried about his daughter, who is currently living with her punk, but hopes that she will eventually marry a doctor or an accountant.

The most popular hobby is gardening and the most popular sports are fishing, football and tennis.

Answer the questions on the text:

1. What do you think influenced the formation of the English character?

2. What surprises you in the way the British people live?

3. Can you give any proof of the English conservatism?

4. Give a character sketch of the typical Englishman.

Дата добавления: 2015-11-16