Main Course ( Основной курс )
Unit 1
Languages. The English Language
1. Before reading the text answer the questions:
a) What are the most common languages spoken in the world today?
b) What languages do we use travelling abroad?
Read the text and compare your answers with the information in it.
Imagine a meeting between two people from different parts of the world – Russia and Mexico, let’s say, or Japan and Brazil – when neither speaks the other’s native language. How do they communicate? Nowadays, they would certainly use English.
Unofficially, English has become the international language of travel and tourism, technology and computers, business, medicine and so on.
Officially, it is the international language of air traffic control and shipping. Also, in countries with several tribal or ethnic groups speaking different languages, English has often been chosen as the official language of government, as in Nigeria, India and Papua New Guinea.
Noun(s) + Noun
Two (or more) nouns are often used together to mean one thing, person, idea etc. For example, world literature – мировая литература, book shop – книжный магазин, spelling system – система правописания, science fiction writer – писатель-фантаст.
The first noun is like an adjective – it tells what kind of thing, person, idea, etc:
London teacher – a teacher from London;
Language problems – problems of the language.
2. Translate the following sentences into Russian.
1. She has written a lot of business letters.
2. We met on a summer day.
3. English is spoken as a mother tongue in England.
4. English has become a world language.
5. 5.60 per cent of the world’s telephone calls are in English.
6. This reference book for students is interesting.
Emphatic construction
It is (was) … that (who, which, where, etc.) …
It is (was) not until (till) … that …
We use the emphatic construction to emphasize some part of the sentence. It is translated into Russian with the help of the following words: именно …, лишь …, как раз …, только …, и только после …, только в …, только тогда , когда … .
It was A. Pushkin who created the literary Russian language. – Именно А. Пушкин создал литературный русский язык.
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It was not until 1997 that this theory was developed. – Только в 1997 году разработали эту теорию.
3. Translate the following sentences into Russian. Pay attention to the emphatic construction “It is… that”.
1. It was on Sunday that he arrived.
2. It was he who helped us.
3. It was on Saturday when we went to the theatre.
4. It is the great growth of the population in the USA that has given English its present standing.
5. It was Mr. White who initiated the work in this field.
6. It is for educational purposes that I study English.
7. It was not until I finished my work that I could go home.
8. It was not until 1997 that his poem was published.
9. It was not until 2 o’clock in the morning that he arrived.
10. It was not till 1982 that this writer won the Nobel Prize for Literature.
4. Read the text and translate it into Russian. Consult Key Vocabulary if necessary.
English as a World Language
English is spoken as a mother tongue in England, the USA, Canada, Australia, India, etc. Today, when English is one of the major languages in the world, it requires an effort of the imagination to realize that this is a relatively recent thing – in Shakespeare’s time, for example, only a few million people spoke English.
English has become a world language because of its establishment1 as a mother tongue outside England, in all the continents of the world. This exporting of English began in the seventeenth century, with the first settlements in North America. Above all, it is the great growth of population in the United States, assisted by massive immigration in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries that has given English its present standing in the world. Geographically, English is the most widespread language on Earth, second only to Chinese in the number of people who speak it. It is the language of business, technology, sport, and aviation.
People who speak English fall into one of three groups: those who have learned it as their native language; those who have learned it as a second language in a society that is mainly bilingual; and those who are forced to use it for a practical purpose – administrative, professional or educational. One person in seven of the world’s entire population belongs to one of these three groups. Incredibly enough, 75 per cent of the world’s mail and 60 per cent of the world’s telephone calls are in English.
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English is one of those languages which for many seems easy in the beginning. But it is by no means an easy language to learn. Learning English is a long and slow process. There is a problem of spelling and pronunciation, of the large number of exceptions to any rule, it is very idiomatic and prepositions are terrible. The tense system is also very complicated.
Basic characteristics of English are simplicity of form, flexibility and openness of vocabulary. Old English, like modern German, French, Russian and Greek, had many inflections to show singular and plural, tense, person, etc., but over the centuries words have been simplified. Verbs now have very few inflections, and adjectives do not change according to the noun.
As a result of the loss of inflections, English has become, over the past centuries, a very flexible language. Without inflections, the same word can operate as different parts of speech. Many nouns and verbs have the same form, for example, walk, look, smile.
We can talk about water to drink and to water the flowers; a paper to read and to paper a bedroom. Adjectives can be used as verbs. We warm our hands in front of a fire; if clothes are dirtied they need to be cleaned and dried.
Sometimes even prepositions can operate as verbs. A sixty-year old man is nearing retirement2; we can talk about a round of golf, cards, or drinks.
Openness of vocabulary involves the free admission of words3 from other languages and the easy creation of compounds and derivatives. Most world languages have contributed some words to English at some time, and the process is now being reversed. Purists of the French, Russian and Japanese languages are resisting the arrival of English in their vocabulary.
Notes:
1. because of its establishment... – потому, что он утвердился...
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2. is nearing retirement – приближается к пенсионному возрасту
3. this involves the free admission of words –
это подразумевает свободное проникновение слов
5. Give the English for:
Один из основных языков, требуется усилие, родной язык, двуязычное общество, простота форм, окончание, множественное число, открытость, гибкость, предлог, лицо, одно и то же слово, исключение из правила, производные слова, широкораспрост-раненный.
6. Match the synonyms from different columns.
A B
1) native language a) to function
2) inflection b) formation
3) to print c) mother tongue
4) word d) acceptance
5) to exceed e) exclusion
6) exception f) term
7) to simplify g) to issue
8) to operate h) to surpass
9) admission i) ending
10) creation j) to reduce
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7. Complete the following sentences inserting the proper prepositions or adverbs.
1. Many people study foreign languages to read books ___ the original.
2. English is the language ___ diplomacy.
3. This book is written ___ English.
4. Many people use English ___ a second language.
5. It is a necessity ___ any scientist to study a foreign language.
6. In English there is a large number ___ exceptions ___ any rule.
7. ___ the centuries the palace has been ruined.
8. In Russian adjectives change according ___ the noun.
8. Answer the following questions:
1. In which countries is English spoken as a mother tongue?
2. Why has English become one of the major languages in the world?
3. When did the exporting of English begin?
4. Why do people study English?
5. Which of the three groups of English speakers do you belong to?
6. What is your reason for learning English?
7. What are basic characteristics of English?
8. What does the term “flexibility” mean?
9. What role does openness of vocabulary play in the English language?
10. What spheres is English used in as an international language?
9. Agree or disagree. Use the conversational formulas of agreement/ disagreement.
Agreement
I (quite) agree with you – (Полностью) с вами согласен.
So do (am/ have/ can) I – И я тоже.
I suppose so – Мне так кажется.
I think so – Я так полагаю.
Fully agree with you – Совершенно с вами согласен.
Naturally – Естественно.
Exactly – Совершенно верно.
Surely – Конечно.
Quite so – Именно так.
Right you are – Вы правы.
That’s right – Правильно.
Disagreement
I don’t think so. – Я думаю, что нет.
I don’t agree/ disagree. – Я так не считаю.
I can’t agree. – Я не могу согласиться.
I am afraid that it is not so. – Боюсь, что это не так.
I think you are wrong. – Думаю, Вы не правы.
Certainly not/ Surely not. – Конечно, нет.
1. People in our country study foreign languages to read books.
2. English is the major language of diplomacy.
3. English is spoken as a second language in Germany.
4. A lot of educated people all over the world want to know as many foreign languages as possible.
5. It is necessary for any good specialist to study a foreign language.
6. English came from Denmark.
7. English is a difficult language to learn.
8. Modern English like modern German, Russian, French and Greek has many inflections to show singular and plural, tense, person, etc.
9. There are some Roman words in English from the time when England was a part of the Roman Empire.
10. Read the text and find the answers for the following questions:
a) What is the origin of the English language?
b) What Anglo-Saxon words can you find in modern English? What kind of things do they denote?
c) How did English get words of Latin origin?
d) What is the difference in meaning between the words of Latin and Germanic origin?
e) Why do the names of meat and animals differ in the English language?
The Germanic and French Influence
The Anglo-Saxons, who invaded England in AD350, came from Germany, Denmark and Holland. They spoke a Germanic language which became the basis of Old English. Even today, words used in modern English for ordinary objects are mostly Anglo-Saxon, or Germanic, in origin. Germanic languages, such as Danish, German, Norwegian and Swedish, have very similar words for the objects mentioned below. Words of Germanic origin are usually short (often just one syllable) and tend to be informal in modern English:
shoe, clothes, earth, sun, moon, day, man, wife, child, friend, house, food, water, sleep, love, say, live, have, be, work.
English also has many similarities with Romance languages, whose origin is Latin. The words below came to England with the French-speaking Normans. Notice that the words are associated with power: Norman-French was used as the language of government. Words of Latin origin are usually longer than words of Germanic origin and often have a more formal meaning in English than in the original Romance language:
government, parliament, judge, court, legal, military, army, crown, nation, state, country, power, authority, people.
Norman-French words did not enter English immediately. When the Normans invaded in 1066, ordinary people still spoke Old English.
Imagine a Norman feast. The English would look after the animals and cook the meat, still calling the animals by their Old English names. The Normans, when they saw the cooked meat arrive at the table, would use French ones. This explains why the English language now has different words for animals and meats.
| ANIMAL | MEAT | ||
| Anglo-Saxon | Modern English | French | Modern English |
| pigga | Pig | porc | pork |
| scep | Sheep | mouton | mutton |
| cu | Cow | boeuf | beef |
11. Read the texts and answer the following questions:
a) How many varieties of English can you spot?
b) What is “good” English?
c) What kind of people speak it?
d) What are the differences between varieties of English?
e) Does your native language have the same varieties?
What is Good English?
There are different kinds of English, ranging from the formal to1 the colloquial. The kind of English we use2 may depend on the occasion we use it, the person we are addressing or the type of writing we are engaged in. Thus, good English is correct English appropriate to a certain level of communication.
Different degrees of education and different social situations produce different levels of usage. They are classified as standard English, non-standard English, colloquial English and differ in constructions, pronunciation and vocabulary. One might even say that there is no difference in factual meaning between “He took his sister to the pictures” and “He taken his sister to the pictures”, but we recognize the first sentence as standard English, and the second as non-standard, incorrect English.
Non-standard English is the English used by the people with little or no education, it is nearly always spoken, seldom written, except in fiction which reproduces this type of speech. It is characterized by the misuse of words, the use of non-standard words, and the corruption of what is now considered a correct or conventional grammatical form. Another characteristic of non-standard English is its limited vocabulary. Slang is an important part of non-standard English and, indeed, of language in general. Most slang is, however, by its very nature3, short-lived.
Within the area of standard English three levels are generally recognized now: they are called formal English, informal English and colloquial English.
Formal English is the English, more often written than spoken, used by highly educated people in formal situations. One finds examples of formal English in scholarly articles and theses, in formal letters and public addresses4, and poetry. Contractions and colloquial expressions are avoided in formal style, grammar and usage are generally conservative. A wide and exact vocabulary is an important characteristic of formal English.
Informal English is the English most commonly written or spoken by educated people. Lectures for unspecialized audiences, informal essays, business letters and most current novels, short stories and plays are written in informal English. In vocabulary and sentence style informal English is less formal and elaborate than formal English, its sentences being shorter and simpler.
Colloquial English is conversational English, more often spoken than written. It has short sentences and casual constructions and vocabulary of the everyday relaxed speech of educated people. Colloquial English is personal and familiar in tone.
Notes:
1) ranging from ... to – от ... до
2) English we use – английский язык, которым мы пользуемся
3) by its very nature – по самой своей природе
4) public addresses – публичные выступления
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