Lesson 2

LEXICAL EXERCISES

I.Organise the words into two groups: describing towns/cities and describing countryside.

shopping center field woods factory museum suburbs farm night-life pollution valleys tall buildings theatre streets and avenues fresh air libraries and universities lake underground car parks statues lots of traffic

II. Match adjectives in A with opposites in B.

clean	cheap
small	agricultural
safe	dirty
expensive	big
industrial	bad
good	noisy
quiet	dangerous

Which adjectives describe country life and life in the city?

Reading

Read the description of the picture “Mr. and Mrs. Andrew” of one of the most famous painters of 18th century Britain, Thomas Gainsborough. Pay attention and practice the vocabulary underlined.

Mr. and Mrs. Andrews (1750) is an oil painting by Thomas Gainsborough. The picture combines the two genres – portraiture and landscape. The artist placed the figures against the landscape background. In the foreground one can see a couple in front of a stout oak tree – the husband is standing and the wife is sitting. A real, quiet valley stretches out behind them: everything here is unmistakably English.

Robert Andrews is having his shotgun under his arm as his dog is looking up at him. He is standing proudly in the middle of his huge estate. His wife is sitting on a wooden bench. The play of light, movement and the choice of the other colours make the light blue of the informal hunting dress spring to life, fresh and clean as the nature around them. Her pose resembles one from a book of etiquette.

Our eyes are drawn from a field with recently harvested golden corn to meadows of grazing sheep, a stand of trees and the hills in the distance. The clouds touch the land at the horizon. The small tower in the left background of the piece is a church.

http://wikipedia.org

SPEAKING PRACTICE

I. Have a look at the historical painting of a well-known Russian painter Vasili Surikov, 1891 “Taking a snow fortress” and describe it using the Present Continuous Tense. Use the underlined vocabulary from the previous exercise.

These words and word combinations will help you (the air is fresh and frosty; to wear sheepskin coat, warm caps and mittens; Russian tradition of celebration of the Maslenitsa; divide into two groups; make a snow fortress, run, fight, climb the snow wall; become the master of the fortress; defend oneself; throw snowballs, etc.)

II.Write the conversation between Steve and James in the correct order. Look at the phrases in bold. What are they used for?

- Well, I am training to be a manager.

- Yes, it’s quite interesting. How about you?

- Oh, hi Steve. How are you?

- No, my friends are helping me.

- Fine, thanks. And you? What are you doing these days?

- Oh, how interesting! Are you doing it alone?

- Really? Are you enjoying it?

- Well, I am not working at the moment, but I’m very busy. I am building a house.

James: ________________

Steve: _________________

James: ________________

Steve: _________________

James: ________________

Steve: _________________

James: ________________

Steve: _________________

III.Choose one of the photos and make up a conversation between these people.

IV.Make up a conversation, speaking about your life at the moment and using conversational phrases.

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