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Black Friday

The day after Thanksgiving has become America’s biggest shopping day. Closed all
day on Thursday, shopping centres all across the nation open early on Friday. Some
of them open at 12:01 Friday morning, while others open at 4 a.m. Some
“sleepyhead“ shopping centres, like Target this year, don’t open their doors on
Friday until 6 a.m. From Friday to the day before Christmas, this is the season when
businesses make nearly 25 per cent of what they earn in a year. This season puts
many businesses “in the black”, that is, they make the money they need for the year.

Reporters from local TV stations interview people who sleep in tents in front of the
shops a day or two before the doors open on Friday. These people patiently wait in
queue to get products that are 50 per cent cheaper or more.

“Oh, we have fun,” said one of the persons queuing. “We sometimes bring games to
play, we watch TV and order lots of pizza, and we often meet interesting people.
And, most important of all, we save a lot!” The problem, of course, is that only a very
small number of products have big reductions in their prices. Apart from a few big
discounts, each shop has other things that are reduced from 10 to 50 per cent,
saving shoppers from $10 to $400 per item, and so Americans want to go shopping.

Not all Americans enjoy shopping. Reverend William Graham wants to change Black
Friday’s name. “We want to call it Remember Jesus Friday. People should start the
season with the right attitude. Christmas has become a Season of Shopping. We
want to make it a Season of Giving. And we don’t mean giving material things. We
mean giving your back, your mind, and your hands. Help an old lady clean up her
house. Teach a kid how to read. Visit sick people in the hospital or in nursing homes.
Give food to the Red Cross. Celebrate Christmas by remembering Jesus and
forgetting Santa Claus.”
 Did you understand the text?

1.According to the text, the expression “sleepyhead” refers to

shops that ...
1. open later than other
2. open early in the morning
3. don’t open until late in the morning

2.On these days some businesses make ... for the rest of the year.
1. half the money
2. enough money
3. nearly all the sales

3.Which of these sentences is TRUE?

1. Most products are reduced nearly half price
2. In general, most discounts in prices are quite big
3. Just a few selected products have large discounts

4.Reverend William Graham thinks shopping so much at this time

of the year ...
1. is not right
2. is the right attitude
3. needs a new name

5.According to the text, Black Friday is ...

1. the Friday before Christmas
2. the beginning of a shopping period
3. an important holiday in The United States
 Reported speech – indirect speech

What is reported speech or indirect speech?

When we tell people what another person said or thought, we
often use reported speech or indirect speech. To do that, we
need to change verb tenses (present, past, etc.) and pronouns
(I, you, my, your, etc.) if the time and speaker are different.

Sally: ‘I don’t have time.’ ⇒ Sally said that she didn’t have
time.
⇒
Peter: ‘I am tired .’ He said that he was tired.

Omission of that
We often leave out that after reporting verbs like say, think,
etc.

She said she was late. (=She said that she was late.)
I thought I would get the job.

say or tell?

The most common verbs we use in reported speech are say

and tell. We must pay attention here. We say tell somebody
something, and say something (to somebody).

They told me (that) they would help me. (NOT They said me
they would help me.)
He said (that) he didn’t have a car. (NOT He told that he didn’t
have a car.)

 Reported speech

– indirect speech
Tense changes in reported speech
When a person said something in the past and now we tell
somebody what that person said, the time is different, and for
this reason, the verb tenses change. Look at a summary of
these changes.

Verb tense Direct Speech Verb tense Indirect Speech

Present Past He said (that) he

I am exhausted.
Simple Simple was exhausted.

Present Past She told me (that)

I'm studying.
Continuous Continuous she was studying.

He told me (that) he
Past I loved the concert. Past
had loved the
Simple Perfect
concert.

She said (that)

Present I have never been Past
she'd never been
Perfect to Rome. Perfect
to Rome.

He said (that) he
Will I will help you. Would
would help me.

She told me
You must pay
Must Had to (that) I had to
attention.
pay attention.
 Reported speech – indirect speech

Pronoun changes in reported speech

In reported or indirect speech we must also pay attention to
the use of pronouns. When a person tells us something, he or
she uses the first person (I, me, my, we, us, our) to talk about
himself or herself and the second person (you, your) to talk
about us, the person listening. But when we tell someone else
what that person said, we are going to use the third person
(he, she, his, her, etc.) to talk about the speaker and the first
person (I, me, my) to talk about ourselves, the listener.

⇒
'I will help you.’ He said that he would help me.
‘That’s my pen.’⇒ She said that it was her pen.
‘I need your help.’ ⇒ She said that she needed my help.

 Practice
Choose say/said or tell/told to complete the following
sentences in reported speech.

1. He (told/said) me that he didn't have enough money.

2. I (said/told) the waiter the soup was cold.
3. Everybody (told/said) that I had been great.
4. She (said/told) I was her favourite student.
5. Victor (said/told) he would change the windows.
6. I (said/told) the doctor I didn't want to take any medicine.
7. They didn't (say/tell) me anything.
8. She (said/told) she worked in a factory.
9. Who (said/told) you that they wouldn't come?
10. They (said/told) there was a problem.
Rewrite the sentences in reported speech, changing the verb
tenses and the pronouns appropriately.

⇒
1. 'My sister isn't well.' She said that _______________________.
⇒
2. 'I called you.' He said that ______________________.
⇒
3. 'I won't come back.' She told me that ______________________.
⇒
4. 'I've found a wallet.' He said that ______________________.
⇒
5. 'I don't like fish.' He told me that ______________________ .
⇒
6. 'I'm looking for a job.' She told me that ___________________.
7. 'You must show me your passport.' ⇒ She told me that
______________________ .
⇒
8. 'I'll call you soon.' He told me that______________________ .
⇒
9. 'I'm not feeling well.' She said that ______________________ .
10. 'You took my car.' ⇒ She said that ______________________ .
 Practice
Choose the correct reported speech forms to complete the
sentences below.

1'I'm really tired' ⇒ She said that she _____ really tired.
a.is
b.has been
c.was

2'I don't want any trouble.' ⇒ He told me he _____ any trouble.

a.didn't want
b.hasn't wanted
c.hadn't wanted

3'I'll be at home all afternoon.' ⇒ She said she _____ at home all
afternoon.
a.was
b.'d be
c.'d been

4'I love my family.' ⇒ He told me that _____ loved _____ family.

a.I / my
b.you / your
c.he / his

5'I haven't seen Tom.' ⇒ She told me she _____ Tom.

a.hadn't seen
b.haven't seen
c.didn't see
 Practice
6'You have my phone.' ⇒ The man said that _____ had _____
phone.
a.you / his
b.I / your
c.I / his

7'I'm trying to concentrate.' ⇒ She said that she _____ to

concentrate.
a.was trying
b.tried
c.tries

8'I didn't steal any money.' ⇒ The thief said that he _____ any
money.
a.hadn't stolen
b.didn't steal
c.hasn't stolen

9'I can lend you the money' ⇒ She told me he _____ me the
money.
a.can lend
b.could lend
c.lent

10'I won't call you again.' ⇒ She told me she _____ again.
a.wouldn't call you
b.didn't call me
c.wouldn't call me