Unit1Parents

PartBListeningTasks

Passage1

DatingwithMyMother(PartOne)

After22yearsofmarriage,Ihavediscoveredthesecrettokeeplovealiveinmy

relationshipwithmywife,Peggy.Istarteddatingwithanotherwoman.ItwasPeggy's

idea.Onedayshesaidtome,"Lifeistooshort,youneedtospendtimewiththepeople

youlove.Youprobablywon'tbelieveme,butIknowyouloveherandIthinkthatifthe

twoofyouspendmoretimetogether,itwillmakeuscloser."The"other"womanmy

wifewasencouragingmetodateismymother,a72-year-oldwidowwhohaslived

alonesincemyfatherdied20yearsago.Rightafterhisdeath,Imoved2,500miles

awaytoCaliforniaandstartedmyownlifeandcareer.WhenImovedbacknearmy

hometownsixyearsago,IpromisedmyselfthatIwouldspendmoretimewith

mom.Butwiththedemandsofmyjobandthreekids,Inevergotaroundtoseeingher

muchbeyondfamilyget-togethersandholidays.Momwassurprisedandsuspicious

whenIcalledandsuggestedthetwoofusgoouttodinnerandamovie."What's

wrong?"sheasked."Ithoughtitwouldbenicetospendsometimewithyou,"I

said."Justthetwoofus.""Iwouldlikethatalot,"shesaid.WhenIpulledintoher

driveway,shewaswaitingbythedoorwithhercoaton.Herhairwascurled,andshe

wassmiling."ItoldmyladyfriendsIwasgoingoutwithmyson,andtheywereall

impressed.Theycan'twaittohearaboutourevening,"Mothersaid.

]Questions

1.Whatwouldmakethespeakerclosertohiswife,Peggy?

2.Whatdoyouknowaboutthespeaker'smother?

3.WhichofthefollowingadjectivesbestdescribesPeggy?

Passage2

Exercise1

Wedidn'tgoanywherefancy,justaneighborhoodplacewherewecouldtalk.Since

hereyesnowseeonlylargeshapesandshadows,Ihadtoreadthemenuforbothof

us."Iusedtobethereaderwhenyouwerelittle,"shesaid."Thenitistimeforyouto

relaxandletmereturnthefavor,"Isaid.Wehadanicetalkoverdinner,justcatching

uponeachother'slives.Wetalkedforsolongthatwemissedthemovie."I'llgoout

withyouagain,"mymothersaidasIdroppedheroff,"butonlyifyouletmebuydinner

nexttime."Iagreed."Howwasyourdate?"mywifeaskedwhenIgothomethat

evening."Nice…nicerthanIthoughtitwouldbe,"Isaid.MomandIgetoutfordinner

acoupleoftimesamonth.Sometimeswetakeinamovie,butmostlywetalk.Itellher

aboutmytrailsatworkandbragaboutthekidsandPeggy.Momfillsmeinonfamily

gossipandtellsmeaboutherpast.NowIknowwhatitwaslikeforhertoworkina

factoryduringtheSecondWorldWar.Iknowhowshemetmyfatherthere,andknow

howtheywentthroughthedifficulttimes.Ican'tgetenoughofthesestories.Theyare

importanttome,apartofmyhistory.Wealsotalkaboutthefuture.Becauseofhealth

problems,mymotherworriesaboutthedaysahead.Spendingtimewithmymomhas

taughtmetheimportanceofslowingdown.Peggywasright.Datinganotherwoman

hashelpedmymarriage.

Questions

1.Whatdoesthestorymainlytellus?

2.Whichofthefollowingistrue?

3.Whatcanyoulearnfromthestory?

PartC

1.W:Youknow,manyAmericanparentsarenowwonderingwhytheycan'tkeep

theirteenagechildrenfromdrinking.

M:Iknow.Tomymind,it'sthepermissiveattitudeoftheparentsthatistoblame.

Q:Whatcanyoulearnfromtheman'sresponse?

2.M:Don'tyouthinkit'sgoodtogiveourchildrenamonthlyallowance?

W:Ithinkso.Itcanteachthemthevalueofmoney.Withamonthlyallowance

theycanlearntobudgettheirexpenseswisely.

Q:Whataretheytalkingabout?

3.M:Mom,I'vegotapart-timejobatasupermarket.Threehoursadayweekdays

andalldaySaturday.

W:Congratulations,Tom.Butareyousureyoucanhandleit?Whataboutyour

homeworkandyourpianolessons?

Q:HowdoesthemotherfeelaboutTom'spart-timejobatthesupermarket?

4.M:Hey,Mary,youlooksoupset.Whathappened?

W:Myfatherhadanaccidenttheotherday.Heisnowinhospitalandwillhavean

operationtomorrow.Yousee,hisheartisratherweak.Ireallydon'tknowwhetherhe

cansurviveit.

Q:What'sthewomanworriedabout?

5.W:Mother'sDayiscomingsoon.Couldyoutellmewhatsonsanddaughtersdo

inyourcountryonthatday?

M:Well,theysendtheirmothersflowersandcardstocelebratetheoccasion.

Besides,itisacommonpracticeforthemtowearpinkcarnationsonthatday.

Q:Whichofthefollowingistrue

ofthecustomsofMother'sDayintheman'scountry?

Unit2Coincidence

Passage1

WhataCoincidence!(PartOne)Exercise1

Andrewhadalwayswantedtobeadoctor.Butthetuitionforamedicalschoolin

1984was15,000dollarsayear,whichwasmorethanhisfamilycouldafford.whichwas

morethanhisfamilycouldafford.Tohelphimrealizehisdream,hisfather,Mr.Stewart,

arealestateagent,begansearchingthehouse-for-saleadsinnewspapersinorderto

findextrabusiness.Oneadvertisementthathenoteddownwasforthesaleofahouse

inanearbytown.Mr.Stewartcalledtheowner,tryingtopersuadehimtolethimbehis

agent.Somehowhesucceededandtheownerpromisedthathewouldcometohimif

hefailedtogetagooddealwithhispresentagent.Thentheymadeanappointmentto

meetanddiscussthething.Asgoodthingsarenevereasytoacquire,thetimeforthe

appointmenthadtobechangedalmosttentimes.Onthedaywhentheywere

supposedtomeetat3o'clockintheafternoon,Mr.Stewartreceivedanothercallfrom

theowner.Hisheartsankashefearedtherewouldbeanotherchangeoftime.Andso

itwas.Theownertoldhimthathecouldn'tmakeitatthreebutifhewouldcomeright

then,theycouldtalkitover.Mr.Stewartwasoverjoyed.Leavingeverythingaside,he

immediatelysetouttodrivetothehouse.Asheapproachedthearea,hehadastrange

feelingofhavingbeentherebefore.Thestreets,thetrees,theneighborhood,all

lookedfamiliartohim.Andwhenhefinallyreachedthehouse,somethingclickedinhis

mind.Itusedtobethehouseofhisfather-in-law!Theoldmanhaddiedfifteenyears

agobutwhenhewasalive,hehadoftenvisitedhimwithhiswifeandchildren.He

rememberedthat,likehissonAndrew,hisfather-in-lawhadalsowantedtostudy

medicineand,failingtodoso,hadalwayshopedthatoneofhistwodaughtersorhis

grandchildrencouldsomedaybecomeadoctor.

Questions

1.Whoarethetwomaincharactersinthestoryyouhavejustheard?

2.2.HowdidMr.Stewartgettoknowtheownerofthehouse?

3.WhatproblemdidMr.Stewarthave?

4.Whatisthecoincidenceinthestoryyouhavejustheard?

Passage2

WhataCoincidence!(PartTwo)

Exercise1

Whenheenteredthehouse,Mr.Stewartwasevenmoreamazedtofindthatthe

housewasdecoratedexactlyashehadrememberedit.Hetoldtheowneraboutthis

andthelatterbecameintriguedtoo.However,theywereinforevengreater

surprises.Itsohappenedthatinthemiddleoftheirdiscussion,apostmancameto

deliveraletter.AndtheletterwasaddressedtoMr.Stewart'sfather-in-law!Wereitnot

forMr.Stewart'spresencethereandthen,theletterwouldbereturnedasnopersonof

thatnamelivedinthehouseanylonger.Asthepostmandemandedasignatureonthe

receiptslip,Mr.Stewartsignedforhislong-deceasedfather-in-law.Mystified,the

ownerurgedMr.Stewarttoopentheletterandseewhatitcontained.Theletterwas

fromabank.Whenheopenedit,twowordsimmediatelymethiseye—"For

education".Itwasabankstatementofanamounthisfather-in-lawhadputinyears

agoforhisgrandchildren'seducationneeds.Withtheinterestithadearnedoverthe

years,thestandingvalueoftheamountcametoalittleover$15,000,justenough

moneytocoverthetuitionofAndrew'sfirstyearatamedicalcollege!Anotherthing

thatisworthmentioningisaboutthepostman.Theoriginalpostman,whohadworked

inthisneighborhood,calledinsickthatday.Sothepostman,whowasnewtothe

area,cametodelivermailinhisplace.Haditbeentheoldpostman,theletterwould

undoubtedlyhavebeenreturnedtothesender,asheknewfullwellthatnoperson

bearingthatnamelivedinthathouseanylonger.Themiraclewasablessingfor

Andrew.Withthemoneygiventohimbyhisgrandfather,hewasabletostudy

medicine.NowheisadoctorinIllinois.

PartC

Oneofthebest-knowncollectionsofparallelsisbetweenthecareersofAbraham

LincolnandJohnF.Kennedy.BothwereshotonaFriday,inthepresenceoftheir

wives;bothweresucceededbyaSouthernernamedJohnson;boththeirkillerswere

themselveskilledbeforetheycouldbebroughttojustice.Lincolnhadasecretarycalled

Kennedy;KennedyasecretarycalledLincoln.LincolnwaskilledintheFord

Theater;KennedymethisdeathwhileridinginaLincolnconvertiblemadebytheFord

MotorCompany—andsoon.Similarcoincidencesoftenoccurbetweentwins.Anews

storyfromFinlandreportedoftwo70-year-oldtwinbrothersdyingtwohoursapartin

separateaccidents,withbothbeinghitbytruckswhilecrossingthesameroadon

bicycles.Accordingtothepolice,thesecondvictimcouldnothaveknownabouthis

brother'sdeath,asofficershadonlymanagedtoidentifythefirstvictimminutesbefore

thesecondaccident.Connectionsarealsofoundbetweenidenticaltwinswhohave

beenseparatedatbirth.DorothyLoweandBridgetHarrisonwereseparatedin

1945,anddidnotmeetuntil1979,whentheywereflownoverfromBritainforan

investigationbyapsychologistattheUniversityofMinnesota.Theyfoundthatwhen

theymettheywerebothwearingsevenringsontheirhands,twobraceletsonone

wrist,awatchandabraceletontheother.Theymarriedonthesameday,hadworn

identicalweddingdressesandcarriedthesameflowers.Dorothyhadnamedherson

RichardAndrewandherdaughterCatherineLouise;Bridgethadnamedherson

AndrewRichardandherdaughterKarenLouise.Infact,shehadwantedtocallher

Catherine.BothhadacatcalledTiger.Theyalsohadastringofsimilarmannerisms

whentheywerenervous.Howcanweexplaintheabovesimilarities?

Unit3Courage

PartB

ListeningTasksPassage1Krimali(PartOne)

Exercise1

OnthemorningofthedevastatingearthquakethatstruckIndiain2001,Krimali,a

girlof17,hadjustlefthometogotoaninterviewforapositionofasalesclerk.Shewas

pleasedwithhergreenandyellowflowereddress,butfeltsomethingwasn'tquiteright

aboutherhair.Shereturnedhome,removinghershoesandleavingthematthe

door.Momentslater,theearthquakestruck.Ceilingsandwallsinthebuildingshookin

thedeafeningnoise.Theneverythingbegancrashingdown.Krimaliandherimmediate

familyescapedseriousinjurybutwereunabletomaketheirwayout.Theceilingofan

entireroomtoweredabovetheonlypossibleescaperoute.Completelydetachedon

threesides,thehugeslabclungtoanoutsidewallonitsfourthside.Toanobserver,it

coulddropatanymoment.Peoplewerescreaminganddidn'tknowwhattodo.Krimali

decidedtoact.Carefullysheclimbedbarefootupanddownthedebrisuntilshe

reachedapointjustbeneaththeswayingceiling.Aboutfourmetersbelowwere

unevenpiecesofconcrete,brokenglassandsmashedfurniture,allmixedwithsharp

spikesofiron.Sheknewifshecouldmanagetogetdowntothegroundlevel,shecould

makeherwaytosafety.Shepausedtofigureoutthebestwaydown.Astherewasn't

anygoodplacetojump,shejustjumped.Luckily,shelandedinacrouch,herfeet

missinganysharpedges.Emboldenedbyhergoodfortune,Krimaliknewitwasupto

hertopersuadeotherstofollow.

Questions

1.Whatdoesthepassagemainlytellus?

2.WhatcanbesaidaboutKrimali?

Passage2

Krimali(PartTwo)Exercise1

Listentothepassage

Krimaliplannedtorescueherfamilyfirst,butjustthensheheardawomanfrom

twostorysabovescreamingforsomeonetosavehertwo-month-oldbaby."Throwthe

babytome,"Krimalishouted."Icancatchher!"Thewomanrefused.Krimalitoldthe

womantowrapthebabyinbedsheetsandthentossherdown.Crying

uncontrollably,themotherwrappedthelittlegirlbutstillwouldnotpartwithher

baby.Asthemothertriedtodecidewhattodo,Krimaliintentlywatchedtheconcrete

ceilinghangingaboveher.Finallythemothertossedthebaby.]Krimalimadeaclean

catch.Abrightsmilelitupthewoman'sface."I'llbeback!"Krimalicalledout,hugging

thechildtoherasshehurriedlypickedherwayouttowheresurvivorshad

gathered.Shegaveupthebaby,thenaskedifanyofthementherewouldcomeback

withhertohelpotherstrappedinthebuilding.Noonecameforward,fortheywereall

afraidofthatswayingceiling.ButforKrimali,asmallgirlof154centimetersinheight

andweighingabout50kilos,herfearshadbeenliftedbywhatshehad

accomplished.Onherwaybackintotheruins,shesawpartofalargedoor.Itwas

extremelyheavybutshemanagedtodragittothespotjustbelowthehanging

ceiling.Byplacingitontheruins,shecreatedsomethinglikeaslidingboard.With

Krimalicoachingher,thebaby'smotherpartlyjumpedandpartlyrolleddowntheboard

tothegroundlevel.Krimaliledherthroughthedebristoherbaby.Inthehoursthat

followedKrimalimadecountlessrescuemissionsintothebuilding,eachtimeinthe

shadowofthehugeceiling.Thankstohercourage,abouttwodozenmen,womenand

childrenweresaved.

Questions

1.Whichofthefollowingcanbeapropertitleforthepassage?

2.Howwouldyoudescribethespeaker'sattitudetowardKrimali?

PartC

WhenthefirstplaneslammedintotheWorldTradeCenter'snorthtower,Iwas

alreadyatmydeskonthe88th