Listen to Interview 1. Complete the following sentences.

1. Nicole’s eldest sister is …. …..

2. The eight children ….. …….. ….

3. Nicole and her two younger brothers looked on the rest of the family as “… ……”

4. Now the roles have reversed, and the younger children have to look after “… ……. ….”

5. Colin was the brother who taught Nicole a great deal about … ………..

6. Colin became ………

7. When he came back, he and Nicole became ………. …….

8. Everyone in the big family enjoyed life.. ….... …. ….

9. Their younger cousins envied them as they didn’t have …….

 

 

Listen to Interview 2. Answer the following questions.

 

1. What was the problem in Kathleen’s family?

2. Why didn’t Kathleen and Albert get engaged soon after they had met?

3. What kind of person was Kathleen’s mother?

4. How many children do Kathleen and Albert have?

5. Where did their children study?

6. What is the difficulty that Kathleen faces being a politician’s wife?

 

 

Listen to Text 1. Choose the correct answer.

 

1. Ian first met his wife at the age of

a) 16; b) 17; c) 19.

 

2. He didn’t ask her out because

a) he was shy; b) she was shy; c) she had another boyfriend.

 

3. They didn’t get married until

a) they moved in together;

b) her relationship with another boyfriend broke up;

c) they had been going out together for 6 years.

 

4. In Ian’s family the person looking after the children is

a) Ian; b) his mother; c) his wife.

 

5. Ian never wakes his children up in the morning because

a) he has to get up very early;

b) he doesn’t want to;

c) his wife likes to do it.

 

6. The main change that came with the children is

a) that Ian doesn’t care about himself any more;

b) Ian can’t be selfish any more;

c) he has to get up in the middle of the night now.

 

 

UNIT 2

PEOPLE AND SOCIETY

Introductory Text

The definition of the notion ‘society’ is quite broad. It is a definition that could include relatively small groups of people (tribal societies) or millions of people (modern societies such as Britain, China and America).

The main area of interest for sociologists is not what society is (in the sense of itsphysical definition,for example, the territory occupiedby a number of people), but rather what the effects of living in a social group might be on individual human behaviour. So this second dimension involves defining society in terms of its possible effects. This dimension is more complex than the first one, but it is also more useful because it starts to explore the way our behaviour is affected by the people around us. Thus, society is a form of organization that involves co-operation between individuals in order to produce the things they need for their survival (at its most basic, these things are food, water, shelter, clothing, heat, light and so forth). Society is also a way of regulating the behaviour of its members in order to meet certain social needs and prevent conflicts.

Human behaviour is regulated by rules, laws and norms. Rules can be unwritten, or formal and written. The rules of dress or table manners are unwritten guides. On the contrast, the rules of a factory, for example, safety regulations are usually put down and serve as strict regulators of behaviour.

Laws are perhaps the best example of written, formal rules and are decided upon by powerful and influential groups in society. In order to ensure that everyone adheres to the laws, there are specific penalties, including fines and imprisonment, for those who are guilty of breaking them. Unlike other rules, such as rules of dress, for example, laws can be enforced by agencies including the police and courts.

A norm is very much a general term; it is an expected way of behavior shared by members of a community. Norms can be thought

of as unwritten rules. Some of these are that parents should play with their children, or that people should respond in the appropriate way to a “good morning” greeting. Norms depend on the culture of society and are passed on from one generation to the next one.

Answer the following questions.

1. What are the examples of modern societies which include millions of people?

2. What is a “physical” definition of society? What are the definitions of society in terms of its possible effects?

3. What are the basic things people need for their survival?

4. Why is it necessary to regulate the behaviour of the people in a society? What is the difference between “a rule”, “a law” and “a norm”? Who decides upon laws in a society?

5. What agencies are responsible for enforcing laws?

6. What do norms depend on?

PART 1

TOPICAL VOCABULARY

PEOPLE AND SOCIETY

Social Classes and Groups of People	Areas of Social Concern	Moral Principles	Person’s Attitude to Other People
the aristocracy the upper class   the middle class   the working class   community organization party union	corruption drug abuse   juvenile delinquency   inflation illiteracy pollution poverty religious fundamentalism   terrorism unemployment	altruism conformism fanaticism humanism hypocrisy patriotism skepticism	Positive compassion generosity faithfulness nobleness politeness tolerance trust Negativearrogance bigotry conceit cynicism roughness selfishness

 

 

	PEOPLE AND MONEY
People	What People Do	Person’s Attitude to Money
People who have money a millionaire the rich a well-to-do person	come intoa fortune donate give money for charity invest insmth make a fortune sponsor subsidize	economical / thrifty extravagant / wasteful generous greedy / mean
People who don’t have money: the poor the needy the unemployed	get broke be pressed for money go / live on the dole live from hand to mouth / starve live in want

 

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT

Types of Crime	People Who Commit a Crime	What They Do	Types of Punishment
assassination bribery burglary drug circulation kidnapping murder robbery theft	assassin bribe-taker burglar drug-dealer kidnapper murderer robber thief	assassinate get a bribe commit a burglary traffic drugs kidnap murder rob steal	capital punishment / death penalty community service fine imprisonment life sentence penalty

Additional Vocabulary: to alter one’s habits, points of view, etc; to betray/compromise one’s principles; to benefit society; to defend one’s country; to give evidence; to lead a life; to raise money; to sue smb; to terminate parental rights; to win a case.

Mind the preposition: to be accused of smth; to be charged with a crime; to be concerned (worried) about smth; to be (get) involved with criminal activities; to be motivated by; to live by one’s own labour;to live in the honest way; to put great emphasis on smth; to put smb to prison; to release smb on a bail; to sentence smb to life imprisonment, death, etc.

 

VOCABULARY PRACTICE

1. Underline the correct word (word-combination) after checking with the dictionary:

1. Money paid by the government to people who are unemployed is – the dismissal pay- a disability pension - the dole.

2. The principle of considering the well-being and happiness of others first is – ascetism – humanism - hypocrisy.

3. A person who gives money for charity as a gift is - a donator– an investor – a sponsor.

4. A group of people living in the same area and under the same government is – a community – a company - a team.

5. A person who thinks he or she is better than people from a lower social class is – an individualist - a nationalist – a snob.

6. Money that someone gives to a person in an official position, to persuade them to do something they should not do is – a benefit - a – a bribe - a subsidy.

7. Someone who thinks that money and possessions are more important than anything else is - an addict – a conformist - a materialist.

8. Someone who thinks that all people are motivated by selfishness and who shows it by making unkind remarks about other people is called – a cynic - a hypocrite - a racist.

9. A person who gets support from others without doing anything in return is called - an altruist - a parasite - a victim.

10. Someone who steals from banks, offices, houses, especially by using threats or violence is – a burglar - a con man - a shop-lifter.

11. Money or help given to aid the needy is - benefit - charity –support.

12. Organized work sometimes given instead of punishment as a sentence to minor criminals is - community service - physical activity – team work.

13. A legal punishment in which a criminal is sent to prison for the rest of his or her life is – life expectancy - a fine - a life sentence.

14. A person in court who has been charged with a crime is a defendant - an offender - a victim.

15. A person in charge of a court is – a judge - a lawyer - a prosecutor.