Pre-Unit 1

Exercise 1.
Directions: You are given 1 minute to underline the same phrases in each group. Do it
as quickly as possible.

1. A) pass the test B) past the test C) pass the taste D) pass the test E) pass the text

2. A) since the train B) since the pain C) since the rain D) since the gain E) since the pain

3. A) play to win B) plan to win C) place to win D) play to win E) please to win
4. A) need to think B) not to think C) learn to think D) fight to think E) learn to think
5. A) get to pay B) pay to get C) paid to get D) got to pay E) pay to get
6. A) send to find B) send to fight C) mend a fight D) find to send E) mend a fight
7. A) underline the words B) understand the words C) understand the world D)
understand works E) underline the works F) understand the words
8. A) contain difficult vocabulary B) contain different vocabulary C) maintain difficult
vocabulary D) maintain different vocabulary E) combine difficult vocabulary F)
contain different vocabulary

Exercise 2
Directions: Read the following as quickly as possible with one eye glance for each
line, avoiding inner speech:

1) As the amount of information increases

in a given area,
there is an increasing need
for the ability to scan that information
at a high level and
to be highly selective of the areas
you choose to study in detail.
2) It is safe to say that

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 almost anyone can double
his speed of reading
while maintaining equal or
even higher comprehension.
In other words,
anyone can improve
the speed with which
he gets what he wants
from his reading.
3) As discussed in the following section on memory,
doing short reviews periodically
after reading new ideas
can significantly increase
the amount of detailed information that
makes it into long term memory.

Exercise 3
Directions: The following are ten sentences for you to practice your eye span. You are
required to read in on fixation as quickly and widely as possible, and mark the
fixations with “/”.

1. Because of excellent weather conditions and extremely strong signals, Venusian

scientists were able to get valuable information as to the feasibility of a manned flying
saucer on Earth.
2. Later someone told me that the story appeared in a magazine shortly before the
First World War.
3. In a free country there will be always conflicting ideas, and this is a source of
strength.
4. I should have to divide the class into three groups and teach them in turn at three
different levels.

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5. People all over the neighborhood had called to report our screams, and the police
turned out in force 20 minutes later.
6. School children used to know the story of how Abraham Lincoln walked five miles
to return a penny he’d overcharged a customer.
7. A friend of mine who travels widely always tries to learn a little of the language of
any place she visits.
8. To give praise costs the giver nothing but a moment’s thought and a moment’s
effort -- perhaps a quick phone call to pass on a compliment, or five minutes spent
writing an appreciative letter.
9. On January 18th the NIH announced the results of two studies of the effects of
taking vitamin A and beta-carotene (which the body turns into vitamin A) pills, both
widely believed to protect people against lung cancer.
10. But some pollutants still escape into the air to form smog, which can burn your
eyes, nose, and throat, and make breathing painful.

Exercise 4.
Directions: Read the following passage and answer the questions. Please be reminded
to broaden your eye span.

Most mothers have a good piece of advice: Never go into a supermarket hungry! If
you go shopping for food before lunchtime, you’ll probably buy more than you plan
to. Unfortunately, however, just this advice isn’t enough for consumers these days.
Modern shoppers need an education in how and how not to buy things at the grocery
store. First, you should check the weekly newspaper ads. Find out the items that are
on sale and decide if you really need those things. In other words, don’t buy anything
just because it’s cheaper than usual! “New and improved” or “All natural” on the front
of a package influence you. Instead, read the list of ingredients on the back. Second,
compare prices; that is, you should examine the prices of both different brands and
different sizes of the same brand.

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Another suggestion for consumers is to buy generic (普通的) items instead of famous
brands. Generic items in supermarkets come in plain packages. These products are
cheaper because manufacturers don’t spend much money on packing or advertising.
The quality, however, is usually identical to the quality of well-known name brands.
In the same way, in buying clothes, you can often find high quality and low prices in
brands that are not famous. Shopping in discount clothing stores can help you save a
lot of money. Although these stores are not very attractive, and they usually don’t
have individual dressing rooms, not only are the prices low, but you can often find the
same famous brands that you find in high-priced department stores.

Wise consumers read magazine advertisements and watch TV commercials, but they
do this with one advantage: knowledge of the psychology behind the ads. In other
words, well-informed consumers watch for information and check for misinformation.
They ask themselves questions: Is the advertiser hiding something in small print at the
bottom of the page? Is there any real information in the commercial, or is the
advertiser simply showing an attractive image? With the answers to these questions,
consumers can make a wise choice.

1) In the passage, the author’s main purpose is to .

A) suggest consumers to buy generic items instead of famous brands
B) give some pieces of advice to consumers
C) convince readers that the advice of most mothers isn’t enough for consumers
these days
D) persuade consumers not to believe the advertisements
2) Which of the following statements is NOT true about the phrase “generic items”
in paragraph 2?
A) Generic items never say “New and improved” or “All natural”.
B) Generic products are usually cheaper than famous brands.
C) Manufacturers spend less money on packaging of generic items.
D) The quality of generic items is usually as good as that of well-known name

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 brands.
3) The writer thinks that advertisements are .
A) believable
B) attractive
C) helpful to consumers
D) full of misinformation
4) Which of the following is one of the author’s suggestions to consumers?
A) To make use of advertisements.
B) Not to buy items with words like “New and improved” or “All natural”.
C) To buy high quality items such as famous brands after lunch.
D) To buy any generic items instead of famous brands.
5) The author implies that .
A) going into a supermarket hungry, you may buy more than you plan to
B) the quality of generic items is usually high and the prices are relatively low
C) discount clothing stores are good places to go to
D) advertisements sometimes don’t tell the truth

Exercise 5.
Directions: As you begin to read the following passage, try to broaden your eye span
and make fixations in phrase units rather than in one-word units. Now read the
following passage as quickly as possible and then answer the questions.

When representatives from 170 nations gather in Cairo next month for the third
International Conference on Population and Development, they will vote on the
largest population-control plan in history. It is ambitious. Not only does it call for a
host of “reproductive rights” and aim to freeze world population at 7.2 billion people
by 2050; it also calls for billions of dollars in new government spending on the issue –
US$13.2 billion by the end of the century.

Some of the plan’s provisions have already aroused opposition, most notably from

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Pope John Paul II. All this has been happily covered by newspapers. Yet scant
attention has been paid to many of the dubious social and economic assumptions that
are the basis of the plan. In particular, it is interesting to see how these programmes
are being sold in places like the Philippines, on the front lines of the population
debate. For the way the proponents of population control have gone about pushing
their programmes raises serious doubts about the integrity of their studies, their
ultimate value to development, and the role of foreign-aid groups.

Although population-control measures in the Philippines never reached the

coercive （ 强 制 的 ） levels they did in India, they were not popular. This time,
proponents have learned their lesson. For the past few years, they have been quietly
laying the groundwork for Cairo. Rather than attach the issue directly, it has been
redefined in terms of a host of new “reproductive rights” to which the solution is
invariably a government-funded initiative.

We have just had a good taste of this in the Philippines. The National Statistics Office
recently published the results of the 1993 National Demographic Survey (NDS),
which happens to have been funded by the U.S. Agency for the International
Development. It is probably mere coincidence, but the NDS report, published on the
eve of the Cairo meeting, nicely supports the thrust of the Cairo Declaration. That is,
it has found a connection between mothers’ and children’s health and fertility
behavior. The implication is that large-scale government family-planning programmes
are essential if health issues are to be addressed.

But the demographic survey seems to have been selective about what facts it would
report and connections it would make. Take the health issue. The document concludes
that the high risk of infant, child and maternal mortality is associated with pregnancies
where mothers are too young, too old, or have already had several children. But a
discussion of poverty is missing from the list of factors related to health. It would be

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difficult to deny that poverty, lack of access to safe water, poor housing, poor hygiene
and unsanitary conditions all have a strong bearing on the health of the mother and
child. Although the NDS collected data on housing characteristics, it did not include
any data on income.

A closer look at the fertility behavior of the poor is important because of the extensive
literature on the “replacement effect” of high infant mortality. Statistical studies in
various countries show high fertility among the poor as a rational desire to have
children who will survive into adulthood to help take care of them. This helps to
explain why many poor women have babies at such short intervals. The 1993 NDS
would have been a good opportunity to verify the validity of this behavior in the
Philippines.

The NDS avoided collecting data on socio-economic variables that would have a
serious effect on these health issues. But, in one area, it made painstaking efforts to
quantify fertility preference to quantify fertility preference to derive figures for
planned and unplanned pregnancies. It concluded that “if all unwanted births were
avoided, the total fertility rate would be 2.9 children, which is almost 30% less than
the observed rate.” This, too, was used to establish an “unmet” need requiring a
government programme.

Yet the NDS’s own numbers suggest that Filipinos are aware of their options. The
total fertility rate – the number of babies the average woman bears over her lifetime –
has dropped to 4.1 in 1993 from 6.4 in 1960. Some 61% used contraceptives, just a
few percentage points short of the 65-80% rate prevailing in Europe, North America
and most of East Asia. The delay of marriage by Filipinos to the age of 23 years
represents a reduction of the risk of pregnancy by 19% given the 35 years of their
reproductive life.

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In short, the Philippines has its problems but its people are not as ignorant as the
population-control lobby would suppose. Unfortunately, this lobby has development
dollars, organizational muscle and support of the media. “We’ve built a consensus
about population as a global issue and family planning as a health issue,” says the
UN’s Naris Sadik, host of the conference. Yes, they have. And now we know how.

1) What causes the doubts about the role of foreign aid groups?

2) Generally speaking in what aspect is the demographic survey not perfect?

3) According to statistical studies in various countries, what is the reason for the high
fertility among the poor?

4) According the NDS’s statistics, the number of babies the average Filipino woman
bears dropped by between 1960 and 1993.

5) What did the population-control lobby think of Filipinos?

Exercise 6.
Directions: In this passage, you will have 15 minutes to go over the passage quickly
and answer the questions that follow. For questions 1-7, mark Y (for YES) if the
statement agrees with the information given in the passage; N (for NO) if the
statement contradicts the information given in the passage. For questions 8-10,
complete the sentences with the information given in the passage.

If it weren’t for nicotine, people wouldn’t smoke tobacco. Why? Because the more
than 4,000 chemicals in tobacco smoke, nicotine is the primary one that acts on the
brain, altering people’s moods, appetites and alertness in ways they find pleasant and
beneficial. Unfortunately, as it is widely known, nicotine has a dark side: it is highly
addictive. Once smokers become hooked on it, they must get their fix of it regularly,

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sometimes several dozen times a day. Cigarette smoke contains 43 known
carcinogens, which means that long-term smoking can amount to a death sentence. In
the U.S. alone, 420,000 Americans die every year from tobacco-related illnesses.
Breaking nicotine addiction is not easy. Each year, nearly 35 million people make a
concerted effort to quit smoking. Sadly, less than 7 percent succeed in abstaining for
more than a year; most start smoking again within days. So what is nicotine and how
does it insinuate itself into the smoker’s brain and very being?

The nicotine found in tobacco is a potent drug and smokers, and even some scientists,
say it offers certain benefits. One is to enhance performance. One study found that
non-smokers given doses of nicotine typed about 5 percent faster than they did
without it. To greater or lesser degrees, users also say nicotine helps them to maintain
concentration, reduce anxiety, relieve pain, and even dampen their appetites (thus
helping in weight control). Unfortunately, nicotine can also produce deleterious
effects beyond addiction. At high doses, as are achieved from tobacco products, it can
cause high blood pressure, distress in the respiratory and gastrointestinal systems and
an increase in susceptibility to seizures and hypothermia.

First isolated as a compound in 1828, in its pure form nicotine is a clear liquid that
turns brown when burned and smells like tobacco when exposed to air. It is found in
several species of plants, including tobacco and, perhaps surprisingly, in tomatoes,
potatoes, and eggplant (though in extremely low quantities that are pharmacologically
insignificant for humans).

As simple as it looks, the cigarette is highly engineered nicotine delivery device. For
instance, when tobacco researchers found that much of the nicotine in a cigarette
wasn’t released when burned but rather remained chemically bound within the
tobacco leaf, they began adding substances such as ammonia to cigarette tobacco to
release more nicotine. Ammonia helps keep nicotine in its basic form, which is more

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readily vaporized by the intense heat of the burning cigarette than the acidic (340)
form. Most cigarettes for sale in the U.S. today contain 10 milligrams or more of
nicotine. By inhaling smoke from a lighted cigarette, the average smoker takes 1 or 2
milligrams of vaporized nicotine per cigarette. Today we know that only a miniscule
amount of nicotine is needed to fuel addiction. Research shows that manufacturers
would have to cut nicotine levels in a typical cigarette by 95% to forestall its power to
addict. When a smoker puffs on a lighted cigarette, smoke, including vaporized
nicotine, is drawn into the mouth. The skin and lining of the mouth immediately
absorb some nicotine, but the remainder flows straight down into the lungs, where it
easily diffuses into the blood vessels lining the lung walls. The blood vessels carry the
nicotine to the heart, which then pumps it directly to the brain. While most of the
effects a smoker seeks occur in the brain, the heart takes a hit as well. Studies have
shown that a smoker’s first cigarette of the day can increase his or her heart rate by 10
to 20 beats a minute. Scientists have found that a smoked substance reaches the brain
more quickly than on swallowed, snorted (such as cocaine powder) or even injected.
Indeed, a nicotine molecule inhaled in smoke will reach the brain within 10 seconds.
The nicotine travels through blood vessels, which branch out into capillaries within
the brain. Capillaries normally carry nutrients but they readily accommodate nicotine
molecules as well. Once inside the brain, nicotine, like most addictive drugs, triggers
the release of chemicals associated with euphoria and pleasure.

Just as it moves rapidly from the lungs into the bloodstream, nicotine also easily
diffuses through capillary walls. It then migrates to the spaces surrounding neurons –
ganglion cells that transmit nerve impulses throughout the nervous system. These
impulses are the basis for our thoughts, feelings, and moods. To transmit nerve
impulses to its neighbor, a neurone releases chemical messengers known as
neurotransmitters. Like nicotine molecules, the neurotransmitters drift into the so-
called synaptic space between neurons, ready to latch onto the receiving neurone and
thus deliver a chemical “message” that triggers an electrical impulse. The

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neurotransmitters bind onto receptors on the surface of the recipient neurone. This
opens channels in the cell surface through which enter ions (离子), or charged atoms,
of sodium. This generates a current across the membrane of the receiving cell, which
completes delivery of the “message”. An accomplished mimic, nicotine competes
with the neurotransmitters to bind to the receptors. It wins and, like the vanquished
chemical, opens ion channels that let sodium ions into the cell. But there’s a lot more
nicotine around than the original transmitter, so a much larger current spreads across
the membrane. This bigger current causes increased electrical impulses to travel along
certain neurons. With repeated smoking, the neurons adapt to this increased electrical
activity, and the smoker becomes dependent on the nicotine.

1) Although nicotine is probably the well-known chemical in cigarettes, it is not

necessarily the one that changes the psyche of the smoker when cigarettes are
smoked.
2) In spite of the difficulties, according to the text more than thirty-five million
people a year give up smoking.
3) It has been shown that nicotine in cigarettes can improve people’s abilities to
perform some actions more quickly.
4) Added ammonia in cigarettes allows smokers to inhale more nicotine.
5) Snorted substances reach the brain faster than injected substances.
6) Nicotine dilates the blood vessels that carry it around the body.
7) Nicotine molecules allow greater electrical charges to pass between neurones.
8) Cigarette companies would have to cut the nicotine content in cigarettes by to
prevent them from being addictive.
9) According to the passage, a cigarette can raise a smoker’s heart rate by a
minute.
10) In order to transmit nerve impulses to its neighbor, a neurone sends known as
neurotransmitters.
From 《英语阅读技巧与实践手册》by 陈文光、韩玉萍、从群书

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 Pre-Unit 2

Text A: Psychoanalytic Theories

Freud
Freud compared the human mind to an iceberg: we only see a little bit of it (the
conscious) peeking out above the vast depths of the unconscious. Freud endeavored to
explore the unconscious by means of free association -- a method which involves
allowing the subject to talk about whatever comes into their conscious mind, however
silly or trivial it may appear. Through the analysis of free associations, dreams and
early childhood memories, Freud tried to figure out the basic elements of personality.
He considered personality to be composed of three parts: the id, the ego and the
superego.
The Id
The id consists of all the inherited components of personality, including sex drives
and aggression. The id seeks immediate gratification of primitive impulses. It operates
on the pleasure principle, seeking to avoid pain and maximize gratification.
If tangible gratification of the primitive impulses is unavailable, then the id may
form a mental image or hallucination ( 幻 觉 ) to reduce the tension of ungratified
desire -- for example, a starving man may form a mental image of a delicious meal.
That is an example of what Freud termed wish fulfillment.
The Ego
The starving man might form an image of a meal, but that won’t satisfy his needs.
The ego emerges out of the id because we need to deal with the real world. Thus, the
ego can be said to obey the reality principle, for example controlling the sex drive

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until conditions are right in the real world for its gratification. You can think of the
ego as being the id’s controller. Freud likens the ego to a man on the horseback of the
id. The horse is stronger than the rider, but the rider controls it. Inevitably, however,
the horse’s strength will predominate and the rider will sometimes lose control or will
sometimes have to content himself with guiding the horse to where it wants to go.
The Superego
The superego incorporates the values and morals of society which are learnt from
one’s parents and others. It develops as a result of rewards and punishments as one
grows up. The superego’s function is to control the id’s impulses, especially those
which society forbids, such as sex and aggression. It also has the function of
persuading the ego to turn to moralistic goals rather than simply realistic ones and to
strive for perfection.
The superego consists of consciences -- all those actions the child is reproved for
doing -- and the ego-ideal -- all those things the child is praised for doing. The
conscience makes the individual feel guilty and ego-ideal makes the individual feel
proud, thus directing the striving for perfection.
(443 words)

Comprehension exercises
I. Complete the following sentences based on the information from the text.
1. Freud was inclined to explore the unconscious part of the human mind by
analyzing , dreams and early childhood memories.
2. If a person gets thirsty, and it is difficult to satisfy his impulse at the moment, he
may form a mental image of water, which Freud called .
3. In fact, the mental image cannot meet his needs for water. Ego then emerges out
of id, following the principle.
4. If he happens to meet another person carrying a limited amount of water, he will
not rob the person of the water, as he is restrained by the , consisting of his
conscience and ego-ideal.
5. Freud’s study has had far-reaching effects, because he aimed at finding out

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 something universal about the basic elements of .
II. Facts are statements that really happened or really is the case. A fact is based on
direct evidence and can be proved. Opinions are statements of belief, judgement, or
feeling. Opinions show what someone thinks about a subject. Label the following
statements F for fact or O for opinion.
6. The human mind is best viewed as an iceberg.
7. Freud endeavored to explore the unconscious by means of free association.
8. We should consider personality to be composed of three parts: the id, the ego and
the superego.

Text B: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

One humanist psychologist who is constantly referred to in the study of

communication is Abraham Maslow, who developed the ‘hierarchy of needs’ shown
in the graphic. Maslow emphasized the human need for self-actualization, the

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realization of one’s full potential as a human being. According to Maslow, before one
can set about self-actualization, a person has first to solve the problems associated
with the four lower-level needs of the hierarchy:

Physiological / You must satisfy your physical wants before you can take the next
Survival needs: step up the motivational hierarchy;
Safety needs: Once you have satisfied your basic biological needs, you can get
on with exploring your environment. It is well known, however,
that a child will not begin to explore unless it feels secure. But the
drive for safety is in itself a motivator for exploration -- when you
know ‘what’s out there’ in the world, your uncertainty is reduced,
the world is more predictable and ‘safe’;
Social needs: These are ‘belongingness’ needs. Maslow claims that we have an
innate need to affiliate with others in search of affection and love.
Through empathizing (移情) with others we learn also to see the
world from different points of view;
Esteem needs: The groups we affiliate with help us to set our life’s goals. They
can provide us with feedback on how well we are doing in pursuit
of those goals. The closer we get, the more esteem we are likely
to receive from others and feel for ourselves;
Self-actualization When we have acquired sufficient self-esteem we are confident
needs: enough to go on to realize our full potential, expressing ourselves
in our own unique way.

Maslow’s hierarchy has the benefit of attempting a holistic account of human

motivation, considering a range of influences on human behavior. However, Maslow’s
hierarchy has been criticized for being based on his study of successful individuals in
Western society. To what extent it might apply to non-Western societies or to non-
middle- or upper-class individuals is not clear. Nor is it clear why there should be five

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stages rather than six or eight and it is certainly not clear why he believes that we
must progress through the stages -- one could think of artists, for example, who have
shown scant regard for their survival needs, or even esteem needs, appearing to jump
straight to working on their self-actualization. To separate out each of these needs in
the way that Maslow does seems highly artificial.
Nevertheless, there is some empirical evidence from Maslow’s experiments with
monkeys which tends to support Maslow’s ideas.
Whatever criticisms may be made of Maslow, the notion that something like
these needs seems to motivate people has been taken on by marketers.
(457 words)

Comprehension exercises
I. Read the following statements, mark
Y (for YES) if the statement agrees with the information given in the text
N (for NO) if the statement contradicts the information given in the text
NG (for NOT GIVEN) if the information is not given in the text
1) Maslow believes that one has to pass through one stage after another if he
intends to realize his values.
2) According to Maslow, to stay at home is the best way to meet one’s safety needs.
3) Some people doubt if Maslow’s theory is applicable to Asians.
4) Another researcher’s study about chimpanzees supports Maslow’s theory.
5) Businessmen have already put Maslow’s theory into use.
6) Maslow’s study has given rise to both favorable and unfavorable comments.
II. Number the statements below 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 to show the levels from low to high
in accordance with Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.
A. We begin to explore our surroundings.
B. We meet our biological needs.
C. We are confident enough to explore our potential.
D. We want to communicate with others.
E. We pursue our life’s goals to win respect from others and ourselves.

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 From 《快速阅读 3》by 束定芳

Pre-Unit 3

Pandora’s Box

A very long time ago, in the Golden Age, everyone was good and happy. It was
always spring: the earth was covered with flowers, and only gentle winds blew to set
the flowers dancing. People lived on mountain strawberries, wild grapes and sweet
acorns, which grew plentifully in the oak forests. River flowed with milk and nectar.
Even the bees did not need to lay up honey, for it fell in tiny drops from the trees.
There was abundance everywhere.
In all the whole world, there was not a sword, nor any weapon by means of
which men might fight with one another. No one had ever heard of any such thing. All
the iron and the gold were buried deep underground. Besides, people were never ill;
they had no troubles of any kind; and never grew old.
The two brothers, Prometheus and Epimetheus, lived in those wonderful days.
After stealing the fire for man, Prometheus, knowing that Zeus would be angry,
decided to go away for a time on a distant journey; but before he went, he warned
Epimetheus not to receive any gifts from the gods.
One day, after Prometheus had been gone for some time, Hermes came to the
cottage of Epimetheus, leading by the hand a beautiful young woman, whose name
was Pandora. She was made by Zeus to punish Prometheus for stealing fire to man.
Every god contributed something to perfect her. Aphrodite gave her beauty, Hermes
persuasion, Apollo music, etc. Hermes presented her to Epimetheus, saying the gods
had sent this gift that he might not be lonesome.
Pandaro had such a lovely face that Epimetheus could not help believing that the
gods had sent her to him in a good faith. So he paid no heed to the warning of

17
Prometheus, but took Pandora into his cottage, and found that the days passed much
more quickly and pleasantly when she was with him.
Soon, the gods sent Epimetheus another gift. This was a heavy box, which the
Satyrs brought to the cottage, with directions that it was not to be opened. Epimetheus
let it stand in a corner of his cottage, for by this time he had begun to think that the
caution of Prometheus about receiving gifts from the gods was altogether
unnecessary.
Often, Epimetheus was away all day, hunting or fishing or gathering grapes from
the wild vines that grew along the river banks. On such days, Pandora had nothing to
do but to wonder what was in the mysterious box. One day her curiosity was so great
that she lifted the lid a very little way and peeped in. The result was similar to what
would have happened had she lifted the cover of a beehive. Out rushed a great swarm
of little winged creatures, and before Pandora knew what had happened, she was
stung. She dropped the lid and ran out of the cottage, screaming. Epimetheus, who
was just coming in at the door, was well stung, too.
The littled winged creatures that Pandora had let out of the box were Troubles,
the first that had ever been seen in the world. They soon flew about and spread
themselves everywhere, pinching and stinging whenever they got the chance.
After this, people began to have headaches, rheumatism, and other illnesses. And
instead of being always kind and pleasant to one another as they had been before the
Troubles were let out of the box, they became unfriendly and quarrelsome. They
began to grow old, too.
Nor was it always spring any longer. The fresh young grasses that had clothed all
the hillsides, and the gay-coloured flowers that had given Epimetheus and Pandora so
much pleasure, were scorched by hot summer suns, and bitten by the forests of
autumn. Oh, it was a sad thing for the world, when all those wicked little Troubles
were let loose!
All the Troubles escaped from the box, but when Pandora let the lid fall so
hastily, she shut one little winged creature, a kind of good fairy whose name was

18
Hope. This little Hope persuaded Pandora to let her out. As soon as she was free, she
flew about in the world, undoing all the evil that the Troubles had done, that is, as fast
as one good fairy could undo the evil work of such a swarm. No matter what evil
thing had happened to poor mortals, she always found some way to comfort them. She
fanned aching heads with her gossamer wings; she brought back the colour to pale
cheeks, and, best of all, she whispered to those who were growing old that they should
one day be young again.
So this is the way that Troubles came into the world, but we must not forget that
Hope came with them.

Exercises
I. Vocabulary activities
Idioms
An idiom is a phrase or sentence whose meaning is not clear from the meaning of its
individual words but must be learnt as a whole unit. Used properly, idioms can make
your language idiomatic, that is, colourful and natural to a native speaker.
A. The following are some common idioms about Greek or Greek myths. Match
each idiom with its definition.
1. under the rose a. gain victory/success
2. a Gordian knot b. the root of trouble, dispute
3. a Penelope’s web c. the tactics of delaying sth. on purpose
4. win laurels d. in secret
5. be all Greek to e. a difficult problem or task
6. an apple of discord f. cannot be understood at all
B. Complete the following sentences with the idioms from Exercise A above.
1. She tried to explain how the system worked, but it me.
2. The student on the football field, as well as in his studies.
3. Mr. Jones made a long speech at the meeting. Everyone else thought it .
4. We must try to solve the problem even if it is really .
5. The dispute about inheriting the estate formed between them.

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6. The senator told me that there was to be a chance in the cabinet.
II. Reading skills
Reading for the key idea in a sentence
Although a sentence may give a great deal of information, it usually offers one key
idea. Readers must be able to grasp the key idea in order to facilitate the
understanding of the whole sentence effectively.
Figure out the key idea of each sentence and write it in the space provided after
the sentence.
Model: After stealing the fire for man, Prometheus, knowing that Zeus would be
angry, decided to go away for a time on a distant journey; but before he went, he
warned Epimetheus not to receive any gifts from the gods. (Para. 3)
Key idea: Prometheus decided to go away and warned Epimetheus not to receive
gifts.
1. In all the whole world, there was not a sword, nor any weapon by means of which
men fight with one another. (Para. 2)
Key idea:
2. One day, after Prometheus had been gone for some time, Hermes came to the
cottage of Epimetheus, leading by the hand a beautiful young woman, whose name
was Pandora. (Para. 4)
Key idea:
3. Out rushed a great swarm of little winged creatures, and before Pandora knew what
had happened, she was stung. (Para. 7)
Key idea:
4. And instead of being always kind and pleasant to one another as they had been
before the Troubles were let out of the box, they became unfriendly and quarrelsome.
(Para. 9)
Key idea:
5. The gay-coloured flowers that had given Epimetheus and Pandora so much
pleasure, were scorched by hot summer suns, and bitten by the forests of autumn.
(Para. 10)

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Key idea:
6. As soon as she was free, she flew about in the world, undoing all the evil that the
Troubles had done, that is, as fast as one good fairy could undo the evil work of such
a swarm. (Para. 11)
Key idea:

Pre-Unit 4

King Arthur and His Knights

In the year 493, Uther Pendragon became King of Britain. He had a counselor
named Merlin. Merlin was also a magician. When King Uther’s son Arthur was born,
Merlin said, “Your son must grow up away from the court. It is safer!” Merlin gave
the baby son to Sir Ector and his wife. They raised him well.
When King Uther died in 509, Britain had no king. The country had many
problems. Merlin went to the Archbishop of Canterbury and said, “Britain must have
a king. We must find one. Call all the noblemen of the kingdom. Tell them to meet at
the great church in London on Christmas Day. There, God will show us the new
king.”
On Christmas Day, all the noblemen were in the great church. Outside the church
there was a big stone with a sword in it. These words were written on the big stone:
“He who pulls the sword out of this stone is the true King of Britain.”
Each nobleman tried to pull the sword out of the stone. No one was able to do it.
On the New Year’s Day, the sword was still in the stone. Arthur was there with Sir
Ector. Arthur pulled the sword out of the stone without difficulty! This was the sign
from God. All the noblemen were surprised. He was the new King of Britain.
Sir Ector said, “Arthur, you are now the King of Britain.” Arthur said, “Father, I
don’t want to leave you!” Sir Ector said, “I’m not your real father. I don’t know who
you are. The magician Merlin brought you to us when you were born. I raised you like
a son, and I love you. Now you are a king. God wants you to lead Britain. You must
go and do your duty.” Merlin said to the noblemen, “This is King Uther’s son and he

21
is our new king.” Young Arthur first became a knight. Then he became King of
Britain.
Arthur was a young king. He was about twenty years old. He lived at Camelot.
His first years as king were difficult. He fought against many enemies from other
lands, particularly the Saxons. Some noblemen of his court caused trouble. They did
not want to obey a young king. King Arthur was very adventurous. He liked riding his
horse and looking for adventures. He was courageous, loyal and friendly. His people
loved him.
One day, King Arthur was riding in the forest. He saw a fountain. Near the
fountain there was a knight named Sir Pellinore. “Stop!” said Sir Pellinore. “You
cannot go past the fountain! You must fight with me first!” King Arthur answered,
“I’m ready to fight!” The two knights began fighting. First they fought with their
lances. Then they fought with their swords. During the fight, Arthur’s sword broke.
Sir Pellinore said, “I’m the winner!” At that moment, Merlin appeared and said,
“Pellinore, this knight is your king! King Arthur!” Sir Pellinore stopped fight
immediately.
Arthur rode away with Merlin and said, “I broke my sword during the fight with
Sir Pellinore. I am king because of that sword. I must have another sword.” “Come
with me then,” said Merlin. Arthur followed Merlin to a lake of clear water. In the
middle of the lake, Arthur saw an arm. The arm was holding a sword in a beautiful
scabbard.
“Look!” said Merlin. “That is the sword and that is the Lady of the Lake. Ask her
kindly and the sword is yours.” Arthur saw a beautiful lady in a boat on the lake. He
asked her, “Can I have that sword?” She answered, “Yes, you can have it. Take my
boat and go and get it.”
Arthur and Merlin went to the middle of the lake. There Arthur took the sword.
He was very interested in it. He took the sword out of the scabbard and looked at it. It
was a beautiful sword with jewels on it. “Look, Merlin,” he said, “the word Excalibur
is written on it.” “Yes, Excalibur is the greatest sword in the world. But its scabbard is

22
more precious.” “Why?” asked Arthur. “It has a great magic power,” said Merlin.
“When you wear it, you never bleed even if you are wounded. When you fight, you
must always have the scabbard with you.”
A lot of enemies tried to invade Britain: the Saxons, the Jutes, the Pitts and
others. A big army of Saxons attacked King Leodegrance in his castle. He was the
King of Cameliard. Young King Arthur and his knights fought against these Saxons
and won.
King Leodegrance was very thankful to Arthur. He invited him and his knights to
a royal banquet. He invited him and his knights to a royal banquet. At the banquet,
Arthur met the King’s daughter, Princess Guinevere. Guinevere was young and very
beautiful. Arthur fell in love with her. He wanted to marry her. Merlin wasn’t happy
with Arthur’s choice, but he accepted his king’s decision. King Leodegrance,
Guinevere’s father, was very happy about this marriage. “I am honored to give my
daughter to our courageous king!” said Guinevere’s father. “My gift to King Arthur is
the Round Table, which belonged to his father, King Uther.” Arthur and Guinevere
were married. There was an enormous banquet. Everyone in the kingdom was happy.
Guinevere arrived at King Arthur’s castle with her ladies and the Round Table.
The enormous Round Table had places for 150 knights. Arthur called the best knights
of Britain to sit at the Round Table. Only the bravest knights were part of Arthur’s
court.
King Arthur and Queen Guinevere were very happy together. The people loved
their beautiful queen. Not long after their marriage, there was another invasion of
Britain. The King of Ireland, the King of Denmark, and three other kings joined
together. They wanted to conquer Britain with their strong armies.
“We must fight these five kings,” said King Arthur. “We must protect Britain.”
The knights of the Round Table were ready to fight against the enemy. Before leaving
Camelot, Arthur said to Guinevere, “Dear Guinevere, I don’t want to leave you alone.
Please come with me. I promise to protect you. Your lovely presence gives me
happiness and courage.” Guinevere smiled and said, “Arthur, I am happy to follow

23
you.”
Queen Guinevere rode next to King Arthur. King Arthur’s army followed. After
travelling for many days they did not meet the five kings. Suddenly one night, the five
kings attacked King Arthur’s camp. They almost destroyed the camp. The noise of the
battle woke up King Arthur. He, Guinevere, and the knights rode away quickly. They
crossed the River Humber and went to the forest.
Then they heard horses across the river. In the moonlight, they saw the five
kings. The kings were riding towards them, and they were alone. One knight said,
“Let’s attack them by surprise! They’re alone! They can’t see us, but we can see
them!” King Arthur and his knights killed the five kings. The enemy armies were
confused without their leaders. They all left Britain. King Arthur and his knights were
again victorious. They saved Britain from a dangerous invasion.
One of the Knights of the Round Table was Lancelot. He came from France.
Lancelot was very kind and generous. He often gave his things to the poor. Lancelot
served his king and queen well.
One day a strange girl came to the great hall of the castle. She said to Sir
Lancelot, “Come with me! It’s very important. I cannot tell you more. Please follow
me.” Sir Lancelot followed the girl to the forest. They stopped at a church. Lancelot
entered the church. He saw twelve nuns. One nun said, “Sir Lancelot, we bring you
this young man. He is loyal and courageous. Please make him a knight.”
The young man looked honest. Lancelot agreed to make him a knight. However,
Lancelot did not recognize this young man. He was the son Lancelot had from Elaine,
a lady he loved some years before. The young man’s name was Galahad. Galahad’s
mother wanted him to be a knight, like his father.
The next day, Lancelot returned to Camelot with the young knight. King Arthur,
Queen Guinevere and the Knights of the Round Table were happy to meet Galahad.
When Sir Galahad sat down at the Round Table, his name appeared on the table.
Everyone was amazed. Lancelot looked at Galahad carefully. Suddenly, he realized
that Galahad was his son! Lancelot was happy and proud.

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 One day the knights were sitting at the Round Table. They were celebrating a
religious holiday. Suddenly, there was a loud noise. Then there was a strong light. A
green bowl covered with a cloth moved around the room. Invisible hands carried it.
After a few moments, the green bowl disappeared.
“That was the Holy Grail!” exclaimed King Arthur. “That is where Christ’s blood
was kept after he was crucified.” The knights were amazed. They all wanted to see the
Holy Grail. Sir Gawain, a loyal knight, declared, “I want to look for the Grail for one
year and one day.” “Yes, I want to look for the Grail too,” said another knight. All the
knights wanted to travel to distant lands to find the Holy Grail. There was great
excitement at the Round Table.
King Arthur was very worried. He knew that the search for the Holy Grail was
dangerous. In fact, many knights died during the search. Others never returned to
Camelot. Only three knights found the Holy Grail. They were Galahad, Percival and
Bors. All three had pure hearts. Only those with pure hearts saw the Holy Grail. The
three knights travelled to distant lands. After many dangerous adventures, they found
the Holy Grail. When they saw it on a silver table, they thanked God for this great
happiness. After finding the Grail, Galahad and Percival died. But Bors returned to
Camelot. He told everyone about his wonderful experience.
King Arthur lived a long life, but it finished sadly. In the search for the Holy
Grail, many of his knights left Britain. Other knights died. Arthur was alone. In 537,
King Arthur went to a distant land to fight. Sir Gawain and other loyal knights went
with him. Before leaving Camelot, King Arthur spoke to a knight called Mordred. He
said, “Mordred, I ask you to rule my land until I return. I know you are a loyal man.”
King Arthur and his knights left Britain to go to war. But Mordred was not loyal.
He wanted to take King Arthur’s place. He wanted to be King of Britain! So Mordred
told everyone that Arthur was killed in the war, in France. Mordred became King of
Britain! He was made King in Canterbury.
When King Arthur heard the news, he was furious. He returned to Britain
immediately. He and his knights arrived in Dover. Here he found Mordred and his

25
army. They were waiting for him. There was a long, terrible battle. Only King Arthur
and Sir Bedivere remained alive. Sir Gawain died in Arthur’s arms. The King buried
him in Dover Castle.
Arthur fought a long battle against Mordred. At the end of the battle, King Arthur
took his spear and killed Mordred. But Mordred’s sword went through Arthur’s
helmet and his head. The great king was dying! He still had to do one thing. He called
Sir Bedivere and said, “I must give my sword Excalibur back to the Lady of the Lake.
Take it to the lake. Then throw it far into the water.”
Sir Bedivere went to the lake. He threw Excalibur far into the water. An arm
came out of the water and caught the sword. Then it disappeared into the water. Sir
Bedivere returned to King Arthur. He told him about what he saw at the lake. Arthur
was satisfied and said, “Thank you, my loyal friend. Now carry me to the lake.”
At the lake, there was a boat waiting for Arthur. The Lady of the Lake was in it.
“Put me in the boat,” said Arthur. Sir Bedivere obeyed and said, “What can I do
without you, my king?” Arthur answered, “My life is near the end. Pray for yourself.
Prayers can do many things. Farewell! I am going to Avalon.” The boat moved away
slowly. Sir Bedivere watched the boat on the lake until it disappeared.

Exercises
I. Vocabulary activities
Synonyms and Antonyms
A synonym is a word that has the same or similar meaning as another word, for
example “split” and “divide”. An antonym is a word that has the opposite meaning of
another word, for example “light” and “dark”, “true” and “false”. One good way to
enlarge your vocabulary is to learn synonyms and antonyms.
1. Find synonyms from the text for the given words.
Vocabulary Synonyms
1. brave
2. injured

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3. attack
4. feast
5. large
6. existence
2. Find antonyms from the text for the given words.
Vocabulary Antonyms
1. clear
2. servant
3. valueless
4. defeated
5. mean (adj.)
6. sly
II. Reading comprehension
Decide whether the statements are Y, N, or NG.
The following are statements about the text. Decide whether they are Y, N, or NG.
Y (for YES) if the statement agrees with the information given in the text;
N (for NO) if the statement contradicts the information given in the text;
NG (for NOT GIVEN) if the information is not given in the text.
Y N NG
1. Merlin’s son Arthur was brought up by Sir Ector and his wife.
2. The noblemen were surprised because Arthur was strong enough
to pull the sword out of the stone.
3. Arthur was the son of Uther instead of Sir Ector, but both Arthur
and Sir Ector didn’t know.
4. People in the kingdom loved Arthur for he was courageous, loyal
and friendly.
5. Before finding the sword Excalibur, Arthur’s sword was the best
in the world.

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6. King Arthur fell in love with Princess Guinevere and wanted to
marry her, but Merlin didn’t agree.

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 Pre-Unit 5

Education and Discipline

By Bertrand Russell
(1) Any serious educational theory must consist of two parts: a conception of the
ends of life, and a science of psychological dynamics, i.e., of the laws of mental
change. Two men who differ as to the ends of life cannot hope to agree about
education. The educational machine, throughout Western civilization, is dominated by
two ethical theories: that of Christianity, and that of nationalism. These two, when
taken seriously, are incompatible, as is becoming evident in Germany. For my part, I
hold that, where they differ, Christianity is preferable, but where they agree, both are
mistaken. The conception which I should substitute as the purpose of education
is civilization, a term which, as I mean it, has a definition which is partly individual,
partly social. It consists, in the individual, of both intellectual and moral
qualities: intellectually, a certain minimum of general knowledge, technical skill in
one's own profession, and a habit of forming opinions on evidence; morally, of
impartiality, kindliness, and a modicum of self-control. I should add a quality which is
neither moral nor intellectual, but perhaps physiological: zest and joy of life. In
communities, civilization demands respect for law, justice as between man and man,
purposes not involving permanent injury to any section of the human race, and
intelligent adaptation of means to ends. 
(2) If these are to be the purpose of education, it is a question for the science of
psychology to consider what can be done towards realizing them, and, in particular,
what degree of freedom is likely to prove most effective.
(3) On the question of freedom in education there are at present three main schools
of thought, deriving partly from differences as to ends and partly from differences in
psychological theory. There are those who say that children should be completely
free, however bad they may be; there are those who say they should be completely
subject to authority, however good they may be; and there are those who say they

29
should be free, but in spite of freedom they should be always good. This last party is
larger than it has any logical right to be; children, like adults, will not all be virtuous if
they are all free. The belief that liberty will ensure moral perfection is a relic of
Rousseauism, and would not survive a study of animals and babies. Those who hold
this belief think that education should have no positive purpose, but should merely
offer an environment suitable for spontaneous development. I cannot agree with this
school, which seems to me too individualistic, and unduly indifferent to the
importance of knowledge. We live in communities which require co-operation, and it
would be utopian to expect all the necessary co-operation to result from spontaneous
impulse. The existence of a large population on a limited area is only possible owing
to science and technique; education must, therefore, hand on the necessary minimum
of these. The educators who allow most freedom are men whose success depends
upon a degree of benevolence, self-control, and trained intelligence which can hardly
be generated where every impulse is left unchecked; their merits, therefore, are not
likely to be perpetuated if their methods are undiluted. Education, viewed from a
social standpoint, must be something more positive than a mere opportunity for
growth. It must, of course, provide this, but it must also provide a mental and moral
equipment which children cannot acquire entirely for themselves.
(4) The arguments in favor of a great degree of freedom in education are derived
not from man's natural goodness, but from the effects of authority, both on those who
suffer it and on those who exercise it. Those who are subject to authority become
either submissive or rebellious, and each attitude has its drawbacks.
(5) The submissive lose initiative, both in thought and action; moreover, the anger
generated by the feeling of being thwarted tends to find an outlet in bullying those
who are weaker. That is why tyrannical institutions are self-perpetuating: what a man
has suffered from his father he inflicts upon his son, and the humiliations which he
remembers having endured at his public school he passes on to “natives” when he
becomes an empire-builder. Thus an unduly authoritative education turns the pupils
into timid tyrants, incapable of either claiming or tolerating originality in word or

30
deed. The effect upon the educators is even worse: they tend to become sadistic
disciplinarians, glad to inspire terror, and content to inspire nothing else. As these
men represent knowledge, the pupils acquire a horror of knowledge, which, among
the English upper-class, is supposed to be part of human nature, but is really part of
the well-grounded hatred of the authoritarian pedagogue.
(6) Rebels, on the other hand, though they may be necessary, can hardly be just to
what exists. Moreover, there are many ways of rebelling, and only a small minority of
these are wise. Galileo was a rebel and was wise; believers in the flat-earth theory are
equally rebels, but are foolish. There is a great danger in the tendency to suppose that
opposition to authority is essentially meritorious and that unconventional opinions are
bound to be correct: no useful purpose is served by smashing lamp-posts or
maintaining Shakespeare to be no poet. Yet this excessive rebelliousness is often the
effect that too much authority has on spirited pupils. And when rebels become
educators, they sometimes encourage defiance in their pupils, for whom at the same
time they are trying to produce a perfect environment, although these two aims are
scarcely compatible.
(7) What is wanted is neither submissiveness nor rebellion, but good
nature, and general friendliness both to people and to new ideas. These qualities are
due in part to physical causes, to which old-fashioned educators paid too little
attention; but they are due still more to freedom from the feeling of baffled
impotence which arises when vital impulses are thwarted. If the young are to grow
into friendly adults, it is necessary, in most cases, that they should feel their
environment friendly. This requires that there should be a certain sympathy with the
child's important desires, and not merely an attempt to use him for some abstract end
such as the glory of God or the greatness of one's country. And, in teaching, every
attempt should be made to cause the pupil to feel that it is worth his while to know
what is being taught-at least when this is true. When the pupil co-operates willingly,
he learns twice as fast and with half the fatigue. All these are valid reasons for a very
great degree of freedom.

31
(8) It is easy, however, to carry the argument too far. It is not desirable that
children, in avoiding the vices of the slave, should acquire those of the
aristocrat. Consideration for others, not only in great matters, but also in little
everyday things, is an essential element in civilization, without which social life
would be intolerable. I am not thinking of mere forms of politeness, such as saying
"please" and "thank you": formal manners are most fully developed among
barbarians, and diminish with every advance in culture. I am thinking rather
of willingness to take a fair share of necessary work, to be obliging in small ways that
save trouble on the balance. Sanity itself is a form of politeness and it is not desirable
to give a child a sense of omnipotence, or a belief that adults exist only to minister to
the pleasures of the young. And those who disapprove of the existence of the idle rich
are hardly consistent if they bring up their children without any sense that work is
necessary, and without the habits that make continuous application possible.
(9) There is another consideration to which some advocates of freedom attach too
little importance. In a community of children which is left without adult interference
there is a tyranny of the stronger, which is likely to be far more brutal than most adult
tyranny. If two children of two or three years old are left to play together, they will,
after a few fights, discover which is bound to be the victor, and the other will then
become a slave. Where the number of children is larger, one or two acquire complete
mastery, and the others have far less liberty than they would have if the adults
interfered to protect the weaker and less pugnacious. Consideration for others does
not, with most children, arise spontaneously, but has to be taught, and can hardly be
taught except by the exercise of authority. This is perhaps the most important
argument against the abdication of the adults.
(10) I do not think that educators have yet solved the problem of combining the
desirable forms of freedom with the necessary minimum of moral training. The right
solution, it must be admitted, is often made impossible by parents before the child is
brought to an enlightened school. just as psychoanalysts, from their clinical
experience, conclude that we are all mad, so the authorities in modern schools, from

32
their contact with pupils whose parents have made them unmanageable, are disposed
to conclude that all children are "difficult" and all parents utterly foolish. Children
who have been driven wild by parental tyranny (which often takes the form of
solicitous affection) may require a longer or shorter period of complete liberty before
they can view any adult without suspicion. But children who have been sensibly
handled at home can bear to be checked in minor ways, so long as they feel that they
are being helped in the ways that they themselves regard as important. Adults who
like children, and are not reduced to a condition of nervous exhaustion by their
company, can achieve a great deal in the way of discipline without ceasing to be
regarded with friendly feelings by their pupils.
(11) I think modern educational theorists are inclined to attach too much importance
to the negative virtue of not interfering with children, and too little to the positive
merit of enjoying their company. If you have the sort of liking for children that many
people have for horses or dogs, they will be apt to respond to your suggestions, and to
accept prohibitions, perhaps with some good-humoured grumbling, but without
resentment. It is no use to have the sort of liking that consists in regarding them as a
field for valuable social endeavour, or what amounts to the same thingÑas an outlet
for power-impulses. No child will be grateful for an interest in him that springs from
the thought that he will have a vote to be secured for your party or a body to be
sacrificed to king and country. The desirable sort of interest is that which consists in
spontaneous pleasure in the presence of children, without any ulterior purpose.
Teachers who have this quality will seldom need to interfere with children's freedom,
but will be able to do so, when necessary, without causing psychological damage.
(12) Unfortunately, it is utterly impossible for over-worked teachers to preserve an
instinctive liking for children; they are bound to come to feel towards them as the
proverbial confectioner's apprentice does towards macaroons. I do not think that
education ought to be anyone's whole profession: it should be undertaken for at most
two hours a day by people whose remaining hours are spent away from children. The
society of the young is fatiguing, especially when strict discipline is avoided. Fatigue,

33
in the end, produces irritation, which is likely to express itself somehow, whatever
theories the harassed teacher may have taught himself or herself to believe. The
necessary friendliness cannot be preserved by self-control alone. But where it exists, it
should be unnecessary to have rules in advance as to how "naughty" children are to be
treated, since impulse is likely to lead to the right decision, and almost any decision
will be right if the child feels that you like him. No rules, however wise, are a
substitute for affection and tact.

Exercises
I. Vocabulary exercises
1. Find in the text suitable words or expressions to fill in the gaps in the following
sentences. The meaning of the missing words or expressions is given in the bracket at
the end of the sentence:
a) When we started living together we realized how i (adj.) we were -- our
interests were so different. (unsuitable, inconsistent)
b) The state must ensure the independence and i (n.) of the justice system.
(fairness, non-partisan)
c) The country’s employment system is a r (n.) of the 1960s when jobs were
scarce. (a trace of some past or outmoded practice, custom, or belief)
d) He found it very hard teaching a class full of i (adj.) teenagers. (not caring
about or interested in someone or something)
e) George received an award for m (adj.) military service. (deserving great
praise)
f) James was busy m (v.) to the affairs of the firm. (to give help to someone who
needs it, especially someone who is sick or old).
g) In the film, Khan portrays a murderer who gets a deep s (adj.) thrill out of
killing. (cruel and enjoying making other people suffer)
h) A caustically witty and p (adj.) man, Wade is a charismatic speaker who can
keep a crowd spellbound. (very eager to argue or fight with people)
i) The exact nature of black holes continues to b (v.) scientists. (to defeat or

34
check by confusing or puzzling -- to frustrate)
j) We can see the soft expression in their eyes, caring and s (adj.), watchful. (very
concerned about someone’s safety, health, or comfort)
2. Replace the underlined words in the following sentences with suitable phrases from
the following list:
subject to modicum leave unchecked
dispose to pass on attach great importance to
a) Before you rush out, though, we must advise a small amount of caution.
b) This dictionary was passed down from his father to him as a family heirloom.
c) The police are accused of not controlling the growth in crime in this district.
d) Chinese parents have a high opinion of good education for their children.
e) This nation is no longer under the dominion of foreign rule; the people are their
own master now.
f) James didn’t seem to have a tendency towards accepting my proposal.
II. Paraphrase the following sentences
1. This last party is larger than it has any logical right to be. (Para. 3)
2. The belief that liberty will ensure moral perfection is a relic of Rousseauism, and
would not survive a study of animals and babies. (Para. 3)
3. ... and it would be utopian to expect all the necessary co-operation to result from
spontaneous impulse. (Para. 3)
4. their merits, therefore, are not likely to be perpetuated if their methods are
undiluted. (Para. 3)
5. ... formal manners are most fully developed among barbarians, and diminish with
every advance in culture. (Para. 8)
6. But children who have been sensibly handled at home can bear to be checked in
minor ways, ... (Para. 10)
7. The desirable sort of interest is that which consists in spontaneous pleasure in the
presence of children, without any ulterior purpose. (Para. 11)
8. The society of the young is fatiguing, especially when strict discipline is avoided.
(Para. 12)

35
III. Questions on the text
1. What makes it possible for a large population to exist together on a limited area?
2. What are the conditions for the success of those educators who allow most
freedom?
3. Discuss the two results of subjection to authority.
4. What does Russell propose as the alternative to submissiveness and rebellion? How
can these alternative qualities be produced?
5. What will happen in a community of children without adult supervision?

36