Конспект урока «People nd their personalities» по английскому языку

Ex.3. Discuss the following questions:

1. Does every life have its critical moments and situations that determine the entire future of a person or the future of many others?

2. How does reading contribute to our understanding and judgment of people?

3. Do people today measure up in courage and endurance to the people of earlier generations?

4. Should people fight adverse circumstances and obstacles or should they surrender to them?

Ex.4. Speak about different people. Make use of the outline of a character sketch.

1. APPEARANCE: age, height, weight, build of figure, face, hair, eyes, complexion, clothes.

2. BACKGROUND: family, education, profession or occupation.

3. LIKES AND DISLIKES: with regard to people, tastes, hobbies and interests.

4. CHARACTER, TEMPERAMENT, DISPOSITION.

5. CONCLUSION.

Ex.5. What's the difference between a feeling and an emotion? Make use of the following:

emotion is a strong feeling of any kind (love, joy, hate, fear); a feeling is something which a person feels inside him/herself (emotion or idea).

Example: I have a feeling he doesn't love me.

Ex.6. Discuss the following questions

Why do people have emotions and feelings? What good are they? What emotions and feelings are usually classified as positive and negative?

If you have a look at the topical vocabulary list, you'll notice that it deals with painful feelings and emotions rather than joyous ones. How can you account for it?

It isn't always easy for us to keep our tempers when things go wrong. What do you say to let off steam?

What is the best way to make someone take an interest?

Ex.7. Learn to discuss different people. Make use of the following.

1. What kind of person will never arrest anyone's attention? (take a risk, spend more than he can afford, take anything to heart, lose his temper, do a silly thing, disobey instructions, wave in the face of danger, fail his friend).

2. What kind of people are often lonely (are usually surrounded by people, friends, are easily forgotten, are quick to see the point, think only for themselves, feel uneasy in company, keep their thoughts to themselves, easily lose their patience, enjoy other people's confidence).

3. What kind of people are called good mixers, poor mixers, colourful, discreet, just, business-like, levelheaded, sympathetic, revengeful, squeamish, persistent, haughty, humble, placid, broad-minded, vulgar, vain, ambitious.

4. What do you call a person who can't keep a secret? (can appreciate a piece of art, feels deeply, pokes his nose into other people's affairs, intrudes his views on others, is always sure of himself, is mostly in high spirits, gets annoyed easily, keeps on forgetting things, is unlike others, says what he thinks, has no moral principles).

5. What traits of character would you appreciate in a mother, a father, a bosom friend, a teacher...?

6. What traits of character are required to make a good teacher, a good doctor, a good lawyer, a good journalist? What traits must prevent one from becoming a good specialist in those fields?

Ex.8. There are different degrees of anger and different ways of showing it. Comment on the following text.

If we could listen in on classrooms without being seen, we would hear many kinds of anger being expressed by teachers. One teacher frequently screams and yells at her children. Another furiously bangs on her desk. A third teacher throws an eraser across the room. Another sarcastically insults a child. One teacher grabs a child furiously and shakes him. One teacher slaps a child; another raps children on the knuckles. Many angry threats are heard: “I’ll show you who's boss. Don't talk to me that way.” One teacher is furiously tearing up papers, another charges back and forth across the front of the room, letting off steam.

Ex.9. Compose different dialogues, paying attention to the different feelings and emotions of the personages.

Ex.10. Work in pairs. Use expressions dealing with moods and feelings.

JOY AND ENTHUSIASM: Great/That's great; Marvelous! Terrific! Fantastic! How wonderful! How ex­citing! How thrilling!

ANNOYANCE: How annoying! What a nuisance! What a bore! That's just what I needed! I've just about had enough of...

DISTRESS: I'm worried. I just don't know what to do... I feel terrible. I've got a lot on my mind. I don't feel at all happy. I'm fed up. I can't take much more of this.

INDIFFERENCE: I can't say I'm interested... I couldn't careless... Please yourself... I don't mind what you do. The whole thing bores me to death.

REASSURANCE: Cheer up. Take it easy. Don't you think you're overreacting a bit? There's no need to get so upset. Don't let it get you down. It's not as bad as all that, surely? Oh, come on, it's actually quite inter­esting. I see what you mean, but on the other hand…

Ex.11. Work in pairs. Make up different dialogues as if you were in different moods.

Ex.12. Give a detailed description of the appearance and character of some personage from a well-known book or film. Don't mention the name. Let your fellow-students guess who you mean.

Ex.13. Describe some two literary personages who are antipodes.

Ex.14. Think what you would do, wear, look like if you were...

Ex.15. Read the text and discuss Bill’s mother’s emotional condition after he had gone away.

A LONELY EVENING

By the time she had finished tidying up, Bill was almost ready to go. He was looking for his gloves.

"You needn't worry about me, Mum," he declared. "If the fog thickens, Harold will put me up for the night. In that case I promise I'll give you a ring as soon as we decide. I give you my word I'll take no risks."

"I hope not," she said. "I shall be waiting up till you call."

"I'll see," he said affectionately. "How about your dropping in to see Aunt Maggie when I've gone? She'll be only too pleased."

He kissed her good-bye and moved off noisily down the road. He turned, waved and disappeared into the mist. She had always enjoyed being alone. Bill had repaired the wireless so she could listen to it. And inevitably there was a pile of washing that needed ironing; there were clothes to be mended and patched, socks to be darned.

"By the time Bill returns I'll have done the whole work," she thought. She couldn't get rid of the feeling that her son was in danger.

"It's so absurd to be having such fancies," she said to herself. "I've obviously overworked and am tired out. I could do with a sleep. I shall feel better when I wake up."

She made up the fire with a few logs of wood and lay back in the rocking chair. She had never thought she would feel so lonely. The clock ticked rhythmically, her eyes closed and she slept peacefully. She woke up with a sick feeling of dread. The room was in darkness. Before turning on the light she came up to the window. She could see almost nothing through the yellow fog. Her uneasy feeling of coming catastrophe was increasing; she pulled herself together firmly and went to stoke the fire. Heavy steps were approaching the house; there was a single commanding knock. She went to open the door. On the threshold stood a tall grave-faced policeman.

Suggest your own ending of the story.

Ex.16. Say in short what sort of person he/she is:

1. Robinson Crusoe was very clever in finding a way out of all his difficulties.

2. You could rely upon Maggie. She would never let the cat out of the bag.

3. He was wonderful. He would never grudge you anything be it money, books, ideas.

4. Rebecca easily won the hearts of all those who met her.

5. Martin never dropped any work half-way.

6. Dr Chillip hadn't a word to throw a dog.

7. Dobbin was easy to deal with.

8. June always had her own way in everything.

9. Mike was never good at doing anything about the house. He was always sure to drop or break something.

10. Huckleberry Finn never let a friend down.

11. Christine was a very pleasant companion.

12. There was nothing Tom was afraid of.

13. Oliver was afraid of everybody and everything.

14. He always had a ready answer to every remark.

Ex.17. You know that emotional condition plays a decisive role in our life. Say when people feel good, great, pride and joy, uneasy, anxious lonely, miserable, low.

Ex.18. Speak about things which have happened to you which really made you angry. Imagine they all have happened today. Tell your friend about them.

Ex.19. You have had a task to give a talk about the meaning of feelings and the importance of their public expression. The magazines and newspapers you wanted haven't arrived. The talk begins in ten minutes. You haven't prepared it well enough. What will you do? What will you speak about?

Ex.20. Speak about the most striking traits of people's characters.

Consider the following:

1. Your favourite traits of character in a person.

2. The traits of character you detest.

3. Your chief characteristics.

Ex.21. When you describe people you either criticize or praise them. When you criticize you normally try to find faults rather than positive traits of character but it certainly does not exclude the expression of praise. Here are some comments that people make when they are invited to analyze and judge:

I think I'd much prefer to...; nothing like as good (bad)as...; that's what I thought; and that's another thing; there is much variety in...; to be similar in...; there is a tremendous number of differences in..; to have little (much) in common.

Use these clichés in the conversations of your own when you are welcome with your criticism of people.

Ex.22. Write on the chalkboard the words, denoting different traits of character. Everyone should name the traits one appreciates most or less in one's friend. Then speak about your friend who possesses some of these traits.

Ex.23. Play a game.

SIX EYES

Write your names on small pieces of paper. Take one of the pieces of paper and try to imagine that you are that person. Then you must complete the sentences:

I always..; I often..; I usually..; I occasionally..; I rarely..; I never...

Try to guess who some of you have pretended to be.

Ex.24. Suppose that you have just been elected President of the USA. What qualities would you look for in choosing a person to feel each post in your cabinet?

Ex.25. Render in English.

He удивительно, что главными человеческими достоинствами в супружеской жизни, три четверти опрошенных англичан назвали взаимопонимание, тактичность, предупредительность, а главной помехой для нее свыше половины опрошенных сочли плохой характер.

Эти данные, основанные на результатах авторитетного социологического исследования, приводит автор книги "Английский характер" Джеффри Торер. При всей относительности любых анкетных опросов, результаты их во многом показательны. Торер, в частности, обоб­щил мнение тысяч опрошенных о том, какие качества они ценят в своих супругах выше всего. Отвечая на вопрос о мужьях, 33 % английских жен назвали понимание, 28 — заботливость, 24 — юмор, 23 — честность, 21 — верность, 19 — щедрость, 17 — любовь, 14 — терпимость. По мнению английских мужей, жена прежде всего должна быть хорошей хозяйкой (29%), затем непосредственно следуют такие качества, как уживчивый характер (26), взаимопонимание (23), любовь (22), верность (21), внешность (21), умение гото­вить (20), ум (18).

С другой стороны, английские мужья больше всего осуждают в своих женах такие черты, как сварливость (29 %), глупость (24), сплетничество (21), мотовство (17), эгоизм (16). Жены же считают наиболее нетерпимыми недостатками своих мужей эгоизм (56%), недо­статок ума (20), инертность, нежелание помогать по дому (18), неопрятность (17), нечестность (16).

(В. Овчинников. "Сакура и дуб')

Ex.26. Topics for discussion.

I. What are the essential factors that help to mould a person's character: background and environment; educational possibilities; cultural standards; circumstances.

II. What are the ways and means by which a person's character is revealed and estimated: appearance; speech characterization; manners and attitudes; likes and dislikes.

Использованная литература

1. Ю. Голицынский - Spoken English- С. Петербург, Каро,2000

2. С.Л. Занина.- 95 устных тем по английскому языку- М.Айрис Рольф.

3. И.И. Бурова.С.В. Силинский -Практикум по английскому языку 60 разговорных тем для изучающих английский язык- С.Петербург. Союз,2001.

4. И.М. Павлоцкий, Н.А. Храмова. 20 Topics for Free Conversation-С.Петербург,Базис,Каро,2001.

5. B.A. Миловидов. 10 консультаций по английскому языку- М, Айрис-пресс, 1997