UNIT ONE

A FORMAL MOVIE REVIEW

GONE WITH THE WIND

1939 220m........Drama/Historical/Romance
Selznick (U.S.)
Rating:*****/PG

Clark Gable (Rhett Butler), Vivian Leigh (Scarlett O’Hara), Hattie McDaniel (Mamie), Leslie Howard (Ashley
Wilkes), Olivia De Havilland (Melanie Hamilton)

p, David O Selznick; d, Victor Fleming, George Cukor, Sam Wood;

The best remembered and most publicized film in Hollywood’s flamboyant history, the biggest of David O.
Selznick’s good obsessions, and quite probably the most beloved movie of all times.
This star-studded Civil War epic, based on Margaret Mitchell’s immensely popular novel, is nearly as
powerful and moving today as when first released in 1939. Beneath the surface of a lavish and sometimes awe-
inspiring production lies a deftly handed story about an endlessly fascinating-if not always attractive heroine.
Though she’s frequently dismissed as a simpering belle, Scarlett O’Hara (Vivien Leigh) is a resilient, resourceful
protagonist, equal to acts of real heroism but incapable of cliched nobility. And for many of us, there’s a lesson in
her story - that buying into romantic obsession almost certainly guarantees that we’ll end up with the last person we
need.
Leigh won the most coveted role in film history from a field that included Bette Davis, Joan Crawford and
Jean Harlow, among some 2,000 women in a much ballyhooed two-year talent search. She’s nothing short of
perfection. As Rhett Butler, co-star Clark Gable likewise couldn’t be bettered. The only player among the major
who disappoints is Leslie Howard - he just isn’t handsome or vigorous enough to motivate so much of Scarlett’s
energy. Supporting performances are generally in high order, though McDaniel’s heart rugging mammy is rather
cloying.
From a directorial standpoint, the sequences shot by “women’s director” George Cukor are the best. His
style is more lyrical, and more attentive to the literary qualities of the source material, than that of Victor Fleming.
Nowhere is this more evident than the barbecue at Twelve Oaks and the announcement of war-possibly the best
sequence in the piece. Later GWTW under Fleming seems to settle into itself and just tell the story. Despite some
excellent sequences - Scarlett’s attempt to get Dr.Meade to leave the railroad station springs immediately to mind -
many of the film’s purely narrative sequences verge on the mundane. Cukor began at the film’s helm but was
replaced by Fleming (whose WIZARD of OZ was released in 1939). During the course of the production Fleming
suffered a nervous breakdown and Sam Wood stepped in until Fleming was well enough to return.
Although its “historical” set pieces (e.g. the burning of Atlanta) are brilliantly realized, GWTW should not
be mistaken for history - it romanticizes the slave-owning south and caricatures Reconstruction. Still, it’s the peak
example of the collaborative artistic achievement for which Hollywood’s Golden Age is justly celebrated. To quote
Olivia de Havilland, “Every time I see it, I find something fresh, some shade of meaning I hadn’t noticed before...
How fortunate that so many gifted people found immortality in GONE WITH THE WIND.”
(from The Ninth Virgin Film Guide)

Civil War
The American Civil War (1861-1865) was fought between the mostly northern states of the Union and the southern
states of the Confederacy that declared their independence and claimed the right of secession from the Union. The
Union prevailed in the Civil War.

Reconstruction
In the history of the United States of America, Reconstruction was the period that followed the Civil War when the
southern states were reintegrated in the United States.

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A
READING COMPREHENSION

1. Paraphrase the underlined words and phrases.

2. Is “Gone with the Wind” one of the most beloved movies of the time in your opinion? Motivate your answer.
3. Why do you think Scarlett O’Hara is always dismissed as a simpering belle?
4. Why is Scarlett thought to be fascinating, while not always attractive?
5. Do you think the reviewer’s opinions on the cast are accurate? Motivate your answer.
6. How can you comment upon Olivia de Havilland’s statement “Every time I see it, I find something fresh, some
shade of meaning I hadn’t noticed before... How fortunate that so many gifted people found immortality in
GONE WITH THE WIND.”?

B
VOCABULARY

1. Fill in the blanks with words and phrases from the text above:
1. GWTW was first _______ in 1939.
2. Many of the film’s purely narrative sequences verge on the __________.
3. The movie ________ the slave-owning south and ________ Reconstruction.
4. Vivien Leigh is nothing ________ of perfection in this part.
5. McDaniel’s heart __________ mammy is rather ________.
6. Scarlett is frequently dismissed as a __________ belle.
7. The movie can be seen as a ________ Civil War epic.
8. The main heroine is a _________ resourceful protagonist.
9. The only player among the _______ who disappoints is Leslie Howard.
10. From a directorial ________, the scenes shot by Cukor are the best.
11. Cukor began at the film’s _______ but was replaced by Fleming.

1. Provide definitions of your own for the following theatre/cinema terms:

1. A dress rehearsal is… 2. A title role is…
3. A walk-on part is… 4. A stagehand is…
5. An understudy is… 6. A prompter is…
7. A stage manager is… 8. Props are…
9. A continuity girl is… 10. A clapper-board man is …
11. Extras are… 12. Credits are…
13. The set is… 14. The cast is…
15. A flop is… 16. A trailer is…
17. Subtitles are… 18. A close-up shot is…
19. A stuntman is… 20. A box-office hit is…
21. An audition is… 22. Editing is…

2. Choose the right word:

1. My mother is a very exacting teacher: she does not ______ fools gladly.
A. take to B. suffer C. condone D. accept

2. He ________ after wealth and appreciation despite the success he’s had lately.
A. crave B. covet C. hanker D. yearn

3. Don’t be so _______! She won’t notice you unless you do something. Try offering her something to drink.
A. daft B. deft C. dank D. dire

4. If you don’t _______ and claim your inheritance, you’ll be left penniless.
A. chip in B. barge in C. cave in D. step in
5. She _________spread her slice of toast with marmalade.
A. heavenly B. lavishly C. gloriously D. luxuriously

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6. If you have settled ______the wallpaper, we can now choose the furniture for the new house.
A. for B. on C. in D. into

7. He appeared to be the proud owner of skills of the highest _______.

A. range B. species C. type D. order

8. The money he is supposed to receive are taxed at__________.

A. origin B. source C. start D. onset

9. I think I’ll try my luck at winning the big prize. Are you equal _______ the task?
A. for B. at C. of D. to

10. Every time I watch this movie there is a new ________ of meaning that springs to mind.
A. tint B. taint C. tinge D. tingle

3. POLYSEMY: TO BUY. Translate into Romanian:

1. The bank wouldn’t help when I was starting the business but they want to buy into it now. 2. What this new
approach buys you is enough time to let the project develop. 3. I can’t buy her flimsy excuses, sorry. 4. Unless he
drops the charges, we’ll have to buy him off. 5. A pound today buys much less than it did a year ago. 6. He bought
all his partners out and is now the sole owner of the company. 7. The passengers survived the accident but I’m afraid
that the driver bought it. 8. His fame was bought at the expense of health and happiness. 9. I’ll have to buy in
potatoes for the winter. 10. Best buys of the week are carrots and cabbages, which are plentiful and cheap.

5. COMPOUNDING. Match the items in the first set to the ones in the second so as to obtain verbal
compounds (some of the items in the first set can be used more than once). Explain the meaning of each
compound you have obtained by trying to find a context for it:

back, sweet, pussy, double, day, blue, cross, man, side, brow, down, match, white, head.

pencil, beat, talk, make, hunt, cross, dream, breed, step, fire, load, dress, date, bite, stab, foot, wash, handle.

C
GRAMMAR
THE COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES

Preliminaries

Let’s examine the underlined forms in the sentence below:

(1) The best remembered and most publicized film in Hollywood’s flamboyant history, the biggest of David O.
Selznick’s good obsessions, and quite probably the most beloved movie of all times.

As we can easily see the underlined participial forms (remembered, publicized), adjectival forms (big, beloved) and
adverbial forms (probably) are integrated in a comparison scale. While in the form “quite probably”, “quite”
operates a mere intensification of the degree of probability represented by the adverb “probably”, the forms “best
remembered”, “most publicized”, “biggest” and “most beloved” represent an intensification brought to the extreme,
namely superlative forms.

(2) His style is more lyrical, and more attentive to the literary qualities of the source material, than that of Victor
Fleming.

Looking at the sentence above that shows the comparative forms of the adjectives “lyrical” and “attentive”, let us
remember some of the main facts about the comparison of adjectives:

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I. Comparing and intensifying

Adjectives can be compared, namely the qualities which they identify may be expressed in varying degrees of
comparison represented by the comparative (bigger, more attentive, less attentive) or the superlative (the biggest,
the most attentive, the least attentive).

Adjectives can be also intensified (quite probable, very probable), without receiving a precise, definite degree or
value. In order to understand the distinction between comparison and intensification, let’s examine the following
examples:

(3) Paul’s wife is thinner than his mistress. ( Paul’s wife weighs six pounds less than Paul’s mistress.)
(4) Paul’s wife is the thinnest woman in the world. (Paul’s wife weighs less than everybody I have seen)

(5) Paul’s wife is rather thin, don’t you think? (I think she is thin, but I can’t precisely tell how thin.)
(6) Paul’s wife is very thin. (I think she is definitely thin, but I don’t necessarily compare her to others.)
(7) Paul’s wife has become horribly thin. (She is thin to a degree that horrifies me.)

The sentences above show clearly that there is a difference between comparison and intensification. Sentences (3),
(4) show precisely what the degree of thinness of Paul’s wife is, namely in (3), it is greater than someone else’s or,
in (4), it is the greatest degree in the set of the world (thinner than everyone else), according to the speaker.
Sentences (5), (6), (7) do not show values as precise as the ones shown in (3), (4). Here, what the speaker tells us is
that the intensity of Paul’s wife’s thinness is great, according to him, but he does not indicate the precise degree of
her thinness in comparison to someone else’s.

2. Remembering about the comparison of adjectives

The table below will remind you some simple facts about the comparison of adjectives:

hot COMPARATIVE SUPERLATIVE

clever, Superiority Inferiority Superiority Inferiority
attentive,
loyal,
bad
Inflectional hotter, - the hottest, -
cleverer the cleverest
Phrasal more attentive, less hot, the most attentive the least hot,
more loyal less clever the most loyal the least clever,
less attentive, the least attentive,
less loyal, the least loyal,
less bad the least bad

Irregular worse - the worst -

A few rules will makes the table above clearer:

i. Inferiority is always expressed by phrasal comparison as shown above less/least

ii. All adjectives with one syllable (thin, hot, fast) and all adjectives with two syllables ending on -y (easy,
happy, pretty, dirty), -er (clever), -le (simple), -ow (narrow) have inflectional comparison in –er/-est
iii. All adjectives with more than one syllable (with the exception of the two syllable adjectives in 2) have
phrasal comparison with more/most
iv. A limited number of widely used adjectives have kept the irregular forms they had in Anglo-Saxon.
Examples: bad-worse-the worst, much-more-the most. Try to remember other examples.

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v. There are spelling rules to be obeyed in order to form inflectional comparison. With the help of examples,
try to remember the spelling rules that you have already learned.

Nota bene!
You have to make a distinction between most as a superlative comparison marker and most as an intensifier (which
is rather formal):

Your daughter is the most beautiful woman in the world. (superlative)

I found a most interesting book in that bookshop down the corner. (intensifier)

3. Gradable and non-gradable adjectives

(8) Jean saw a foreign film.

(9) ??? The film Jean saw is more foreign than the one Bill saw.
(10) ??? The film I saw was the most foreign of them all.
(11)??? The film Jean saw is very foreign.

As you can see in the examples above, not all adjectives can be compared or intensified. This is why we can divide
the class of adjectives into gradable (those that can be compared and intensified), such as hot, attentive or bad and
non-gradable (those that can’t be compared and intensified), such as foreign.

Generally, adjectives that show the qualities of a thing are always gradable. We can give a few examples such as
old, new, nice and beautiful. Since all these show qualities, they can be compared and intensified.

Non-gradable adjectives can be adjectives that do not show so much the quality of a thing but its belonging in a
class. Many such classifying adjectives are non-gradable, such as:

French, English, foreign, ajar, ruined, dead, alive, married, single, separate, square, triangular, etc.

If you think about the adjectives above, it becomes clear that they mark an object as belonging to a certain class (that
of French objects/persons or that of married people). They do not mark the quality an object or a person might have,
as old, new or hot can do.

One other group of non-gradable adjectives is represented by those already having absolute or superlative values:

perfect, optimal, maximum, unique, false, utmost, absolute, etc.

Nota bene!
Even non-gradable adjectives can be compared and intensified!
Yes, some of them can indeed, but if you do that you operate a change in meaning. Let’s examine the following
examples:

(12) ???This object more French than the other.

(13) ???This is fish is more alive than the other.

(14) Pierre is more French than Marcel.

(15) My mother is very French.

(16) Susan is more alive than you think.

(17) Today I felt very much alive.

The first two sentences are ungrammatical. Here “French” and “alive” are used with their basic meaning and this is
why they are non-gradable. However, sentences (14), (15) and (16), (17) can be interpreted as grammatical, even if
“alive” and “French” have been compared/intensified. The sentences can be interpreted as correct, if we give a
different meaning, a figurative meaning to the adjectives. In (14) and (15) “French” can be thought to refer to the
quality of being French. For example, Pierre is seen to be more French than Marcel, because he behaves more like

5
French persons do than Marcel, or because, who knows, he’s more nationalistic than Marcel. In the same manner,
“alive” can be taken in its figurative meaning, namely “lively” or “full of life”, etc.

4. Various means of intensifying adjectives

We have already seen the ways in which adjectives can be compared. Let us take a look at the means of intensifying
adjectives. There are intensifiers that can do that, such as:

quite
(18) This tea is quite hot.

rather
(19) Her husband is rather old.

really
(20) My linguistics teacher is really annoying.

so
(21) That music you play is so loud!

how (in exclamative sentences)

(22) How interesting this movie is!

very
(23) The movie I saw last night is very entertaining.

As you can see above, some words can be used with no other meanings, but as that of intensifiers, but there are
words that apart from being used as mere intensifiers, can also function independently. Such words are adverbs such
as:

extremely, immensely, hugely, fairly, fantastically, incredibly, etc.

terribly, awfully, dreadfully, horribly, etc.

Compare:
(24) You sang fantastically!
(25) She spent a fantastically large amount of money in that shop.

Compare:
(26) She sang terribly!
(27) She was terribly tired and couldn’t come to the party.

5. Intensifying participles used adjectivally

Past participles that are used as adjectives can be compared in the same way as adjectives:

(28) This film has been more publicized than the other.
(29) This has been the most publicized film ever.

There are however some means of intensification that some participles prefer that can’t be used for adjectives, such
as better/best or much:

(30) This director is best remembered or better known for this feature.
(31) This is the much acclaimed and the much criticized play that was staged last year.

5. A case of metaphoric intensification

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There are other means of intensification that can be used for certain adjectives. For example in the case of colours,
there is a variety of adjectives/nouns used as modifiers meant to express the degrees and variety of a colour, such as:

bottle green, deep purple, navy blue, dark grey, light blue, pale yellow, soft green, dull grey, etc.

In the same way, metaphoric intensification can be achieved for other adjectives. Let’s give some examples:

stark naked, raving mad, stinking rich, etc.

EXERCISES

1*. Translate into English:

1. Malvolio era îmbrăcat într-o jiletcă verde prăzuliu şi purta nişte ciorăpei galbeni ţipător cu jartiere încrucişate.
2. Am citit cartea ta mult lăudată şi nu mi s-a părut cine ştie ce. Cred că ai fi mai cunoscut dacă te-ai mulţumi să
scrii doar piese.
3. Fratele lui Joan a venit aseară acasă beat mort. Cu cât pleacă mai repede de pe capul meu, cu atât mai bine.
4. Afară era un ger de crăpau pietrele şi am ajuns acasă cu adevărat îngheţată.
5. Ann este cam prostuţă, dar este chiar pricepută la treburile gospodăriei.
6. Vino şi tu la petrecere cu noi. Cu cât vom fi mai mulţi, cu atât mai bine.
7. Nu-mi place să port haine bleumarin închis, cu atât mai puţin în fiecare zi.
8. Apa din cadă era îngrozitor de fierbinte şi sincer să spun, nu ştiu cum ai făcut baie în ea, cu atât mai mult cu cât
ştiu că eşti bolnav de inimă.
9. Să ştii că piesa a fost extraordinar de frumoasă şi ar fi fost cu mult mai frumos dacă ar fi venit şi părinţii tăi s-o
vadă.
10. Este oribil de zgârcit cu toate că e putred de bogat şi are cei mai mulţi bani din oraş.
11. Nu m-aş căsători cu Victor nici dacă ar fi ultimul bărbat de pe Pământ!
12. Oglindă, oglinjoară, cine-i mai frumoasă-n ţară?
13. Cred că bărbatul tău este destul de chipeş însă este îngozitor de slab, pe când iubitul lui Ann este al naibii de
arătos şi pe deasupra extraordinar de musculos.
14. Chiar dacă în cameră era întuneric beznă se gândi că ar fi mai simplu să-şi aştepte prietenul acolo, în cazul în
care acesta venea mai devreme.
15. Deşi era gol puşcă şi teribil de obosit, îşi luă inima-n dinţi să se îmbrace şi plecă chiar mult mai repede decât
anticipase.
16. Nu vreau absolut deloc să te critic, dar cred că dacă ai fi mai puţin îngrijorat de reacţia celorlalţi şi mai
preocupat de propriile-ţi griji, ai fi mai fericit.
17. E blond roşcată, frumoasă de-ţi taie răsuflarea şi, pe deasupra, are o minte brici.
18. Deşi era sărac lipit pământului, a reuşit să-şi construiască o casă cu mult mai frumoasă decât a acelora mai
bogaţi decât el.
19. Uite, cerneala e uscată iască, nu cred că se mai poate folosi. Ia un pix la tine şi renunţă la stilou.
20. Nenea Gicu e surd toacă şi n-aude nici dacă îi răcneşti în ureche. Nu-ţi rămâne decât să îi scrii bileţele dacă vrei
să te faci înţeles.

2. Fill in the blanks with the right choice or choices. Try to find an appropriate Romanian translation for the
combinations thus obtained:

buck, scarlet, deep, snow, shocking, lime, dirt, jet, inky, piping, blood, rock, midnight, iron, primrose, lemon, cherry,
pea, chrome, navy, olive, lily, razor, dove.

..... pink, .....blue, .....sharp, .....white, .......purple, ..... solid, .......black, .......red, ....cheap, ......yellow,
.......green, .....grey, .....naked, .....hot

3*. Translate into Romanian:

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1. The chaplain felt most deceitful presiding at funerals, and it would not have astonished him to learn that the
apparition in the tree that day was a manifestation of the Almighty’s censure for the blasphemy and pride inherent in
his function. To simulate gravity, feign grief and pretend supernatural intelligence of the hereafter in so fearsome
and arcane a circumstance as death seemed the most criminal of offenses. He recalled – or was almost convinced he
recalled – the scene at the cemetery perfectly. He could still see Major Danby standing as somber as a broken stone
pillar on his side, see almost the exact number of enlisted men and almost the exact places in which they had stood,
and the large, loose, triumphant mound of reddish-brown earth, and the massive, still, depthless sky, so weirdly
blank and blue that day that it was almost poisonous. He would remember them forever, for they were all part and
parcel of the most extraordinary event that had ever befallen him, an event perhaps marvellous, perhaps
pathological, - the vision of the naked man in the tree. How could he explain it? It was not already seen or never
seen, and certainly not almost seen; neither déjà vu, jamais vu or presque vu was elastic enough to cover it. Was it a
ghost, then? The dead man’s soul? An angel from heaven or a minion from hell? Or was the whole fantastic episode
merely the figment of a diseased imagination, his own, of a deteriorating mind, a rotting brain? The possibility that
there really had been a naked man in the tree – two men, actually, since the first had been joined shortly by a second
man clad in a brown moustache and sinister dark garments from head to toe who bent forward ritualistically along
the limb of the tree to offer the first man something to drink from a brown goblet – never crossed the chaplain’s
mind. (Joseph Heller – Catch 22)

2. When she abused him in public, she did so with a diamond smile that suggested she was only teasing, that her
constant belittlements were no more than a way of concealing an adoration too enormous to express; it was an
ironising smile that sought to put her behaviour into quotes. This act was never completely convincing. Often, she
drank – the anti-alcohol regulations came and went – and when she drank she cursed. Confident of her genius,
armed with a tongue as merciless as her beauty and as violent as her work, she excluded nobody from her coloratura
damnations, all delivered with that cheery stone-hard smile that sought to anaesthetise her victims as she ripped out
their innards. (Ask me how it felt! I was her only son. The closer to the bull you work, the likelier you are to be
gored.) (Salman Rushdie – The Moor’s Last Sigh)

3. This was the closest Aurora came to thanking Abraham for the uncomplaining inexhaustibility of his cheques, for
the city of gold he had so quickly built from her family’s wealth, which for all its old-money graciousness had been
no more than, as it were, a village, a country-estate, or a small provincial town, compared to the great metropolis of
their present fortune. Aurora was not unaware that her lavishness required maintenance, so that she was bound to
Abie by her own needs. Sometimes she came close to admitting this, even to worrying that the scale of her spending,
or the looseness of her tongue, might bring the house down. Always fond of macabre bedtime stories, she would tell
me the parable of the scorpion and the frog, in which the scorpion, having hitched a ride across a stretch of water in
return for a promise not to attack his mount, breaks his vow and administers a potent and fatal sting. As the frog and
scorpion are both drowning, the murderer apologises to his victim. ‘I couldn’t help it,’ says the scorpion. ‘It’s in my
nature.’
(Salman Rushdie – The Moor’s Last Sigh)
4. Translate into English:
1. `De presupus că scrisoarea la care se refereau dicomesienii o trimisese Fibula. I-o trimisese imediat, am zis, după
ce primise de la mine copia amintită. O scrisoare mânioasă şi cu gelozii de nepoată batrână care-l certa pe Umilit că
se lasă încontinuu păcălit de dicomesieni, care-i vor mereu banii si-i folosesc numele spre câştigul lor, după cum îl
certa pe Umilit că se lăsase înşelat şi o primise la Viena pe falsa îngrijitoare Zoe Lucescu care n-avea altă misiune
decât să-l spioneze şi să-l târasca spre Dicomesia sau spre Mavrocordat pentru a fi mai bine golit de averi şi
moşteniri. Apăs pe termeni, fiindcă limbajul Fibulei la mânie îl cunosc foarte bine. Limbajul ei devine tot mai
violent pe măsură ce înaintează în vârstă, masculinizarea expresiei luând forme tot mai dure. Sunt sigur că în
scrisoarea ei către Umilit pe Zoe Lucescu n-a scos-o din tot felul de blasfemii şi insulte. (Ştefan Bănulescu – Cartea
milionarului)

2.“Văd că te obsedează Dinu, râse ea surprinzător de bucuroasă. Da, cu ceva timp în urmă ai fi avut motive de
nelinişte. Adevărul este că m-am îndrăgostit de el brusc, nebuneşte, de parcă m-aş fi îmbolnăvit. Bărbat frumos,
căutat, admirat... fost sportiv de performanţă... armata avea o echipă foarte bună... Eram foarte bucuroasă că-l răpesc
tuturor femeilor din oraş... Dacă mi-ar fi cerut, i-aş fi oferit orice, fără să ezit o clipă, călcând interdicţiile tatei. Din
fericire sau nefericire, Dinu nu mi-a cerut nimic, mă trata ca pe o copilă de gimnaziu... Şi, cu cât îl cunoşteam mai
bine, cu atât îi reduceam din calităţi. Nu are nimic imprevizibil în el, trăieşte după nişte reguli foarte rigide... Pentru
fiecare vizită sau întâlnire cu vreun cunoscut se pregăteşte de parcă merge la un seminar. Plouă, ninge, tună, el

8
învaţă citate, memorează replici celebre şi nu pierde ocazia de a devia discuţia spre ceea ce ştie.” (Augustin Buzura
– Recviem pentru nebuni şi bestii)

3*. Desigur, asupra lui timpul îşi făcuse simţită apăsarea; avea douazeci şi şase de ani şi îşi trăise o parte a vieţii mai
mult pe sub pământ şi prin mlaştini, săpând gropi şi pregătind ambuscade şi se putea să şi moară fără să apuce să
vadă sfârşitul luptei şi să respire în libertate, dar nu se putea ca aceşti opt ani să nu-l fi atins greu şi pe inamic, doar
viaţa s-a scurs şi pentru el şi opt ani nu e o glumă cu atât mai mult cu cât mulţi dintre ai lui şi-au dat şi ei viaţa pe
aceste locuri şi uneori în chinuri la fel de cumplite ca acelea pe care ei le stârneau pe unde treceau (fiindcă ei au fost
cei care s-au arătat cei dintâi fără cruţare aruncând din avioane benzină asupra satelor şi oamenilor, făcându-i să ardă
ca nişte torţe, şi atunci şi lor au început să le fie întinse pe drumurile lor de patrulare nişte curse, nu atât de
spectaculoase ca flăcările unui incendiu, dar nu mai puţin sinistre prin aparenţa lor inofensivă, gropi de pildă,
acoperite cu un capac bine camuflat, la fel de sensibil ca o balanţă, care se răsturna fulgerător îndata ce era atins cu
piciorul, de pe fundul cărora trupul celui căzut era întâmpinat de vârfuri ascuţite de bambus care îi spintecau rinichii
şi maţele şi ale cărui urlete nici măcar nu se mai auzeau.) (Marin Preda -
Friguri)

4.Nang simţi cum i se înteţesc bătăile inimii şi ascultându-le se miră. Nu i se întâmpla să-şi audă inima decât foarte
rar şi încă mai rar de emoţie, ci mai mult de efort şi numai dacă era prea flămând şi prea obosit. O dată capturaseră o
baterie de artilerie şi o duceau în munţi prin păduri neumblate. Urcau foarte greu, trăgându tunurile înhămaţi la ele.
(Marin Preda - Friguri)

5.Nu mai aşteptă întunericul, ieşi din apă şi se spălă de noroi. Afară era mai frig şi începu să dârdâie tot aşa de tare
ca Hong genistul când trecuseră pentru prima dată peste Lach-Tray. (Marin Preda - Friguri)

6.Dar intrarea ei în cauză era străină de raţiuni militare, dar tot atât de puternice, ca un ordin pe care îl primea de astă
dată din el însuşi, dintr-un Nang pe care nu-l cunoştea bine, dar tot atât de hotărât, de prudent şi de răbdător: această
fată trebuia ferită! Iar acesta era parcă mai mult decât un ordin, o şoaptă parcă a unei divinităţi care totdeauna îl
protejase, dar niciodată nu-şi dezvăluise prezenţa, iar acum şi-o dezvăluia.
(Marin Preda - Friguri)

7. Nineta se îmbrăcase, dar nu pleca, stătea în fotoliu şi continua astfel despre copii şi povestirea ei nu mai înaintă,
să aflu şi eu ce făcuse atâţia ani, poate chiar zece… Şi, fără un motiv aparent, izbucni deodată într-un plâns
interminabil, asemenea unei Fantine a cărei copii se aflau sub puterea unui Thenardier mizerabil, numai că nu era
nici bolnavă ca aceea, nu-şi vânduse dinţii şi părul ca să le trimită bani, iar tatăl copiilor era departe de a fi un
Thenardier… Cu atât mai vinovată deci şi fără scăpare se simţea, cu cât, în afară de faptul că îi născuse, nu făcuse
nimic pentru ei. Acest adevăr brutal o împiedica să deschidă un proces şi să câştige pentru ea măcar unul. N-ar fi
putut îndura să-i audă pe copii în instanţă optând pentru tatăl lor. “I-am întrebat,” zise Nineta, înseninându-se ca în
faţa unei fatalităţi, şi nu mi-au spus chiar nu, dar nici nu mi-au răspuns nimic, semn că pentru ei hotăra tatăl, deşi
când le-am pus întrebarea el nu era de faţă.” (Marin Preda – Cel mai iubit dintre pământeni)

8. - De ce? întrebă cu nevinovăţie. Eu găsesc că uneori Capitala e un oraş admirabil! Această voie bună nu este un
optimism de ţară tânără, de popor tânăr, de oraş tânăr?
Costea Lipan se uită posomorât la lanţul automobilelor şi la îmbulzeala călătorilor de pe trotuar.
- Optimism numeşti dumneata aceasta? Inconştienţă , iresponsabilitate, orice…nu optimism! Îi vezi cum trec, cum
se salută , cum se invidiază? Doamnei acesteia, care a trecut pe lângă noi i se pare că nu are blana destul de scumpă,
fiindcă doamna de dinaintea ei are una încă mai scumpă. Fiecare haină, fiecare podoabă, automobilul acesta lung cât
un vagon şi parfumul pe care îl lasă în urma sa fetişcana aceasta prea vopsită, toate sunt preţul unui compromis.
(Cezar Petrescu – Calea Victoriei)

9. Dar, aşa cum se întâmplă de obicei, bogaţii deveneau tot mai bogaţi, iar săracii tot mai săraci. Existau bogaţi atât
de bogaţi încât nu mai aveau nevoie să fure sau să pună pe alţii să fure ca să rămână în continuare bogaţi. Dar dacă
nu mai prădau, sărăceau, pentru că nevoiaşii furau de la ei. Atunci i-au plătit pe cei mai săraci dintre săraci ca să-şi
apere averea de ceilalţi săraci. Aşa au ajuns să instituie poliţia şi să ridice închisori.
(Italo Calvino – O lume de hoţi)

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WRITING

1. FORMAL REVIEW: Examine the structure of the movie review provided above. Write a movie review of your
own for a movie of your own choice that would have a similar structure.
2. FOR OR AGAINST: “Buying into romantic obsession almost certainly guarantees that we’ll end up with the
last person we need ”. Argue for or against this statement choosing examples from the movies you have seen.

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