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Unit 1
DIALOGUE I
A Time of Change
A: What's the matter, Grandpa?
B: Oh, Linlin, I didn't know you were back from college.
A: It's your birthday, Grandpa. I came back to celebrate your birthday. What happened, Grandpa? You're all in tears.
B: I'm OK. I was watching the Olympic Games on TV. I was so happy that I could hardly hold back my tears. Our Chinese athletes are doing so well for the country.
A: Yes, we've won 16 gold medals and 25 silver medals, counting today.
B: These medals have brought back my memories. While I was watching, I couldn't help recalling the days when I was their age.
A: What about those days? I know you were once an athlete on a national track and field team.
B: Well, it's a long story. To be an athlete in the 30s and 40s, well ... (sighs)
A: Tell me, Grandpa, I want to hear your story.
B: I don't really know where to start, but I can tell you that every time I watch our athletes win an international sports event, I get very emotional.
A: Why?
B: Because when I was young, the country was in the midst of years of war and the government paid little attention to the well-being of the people. We were slanderously nicknamed "the sick men of East Asia". I can still visualize the three times before 1949 when Chinese athletes took part in the Olympic Games. The memories are painful and disheartening.
A: Did we ever win any medals at the Olympic Games during that period of time?
B: No, never. At the time of the 1932 Games, China had two very good runners, good enough to qualify for the Games. But the government refused to send a national team to participate in the Games. It was not until the last minute that a patriotic general donated enough money to finance the trip for the two runners and their coach.
A: I'm glad they finally went to the Games.
B: Unfortunately, only one of them made it there.
A: What happened to the other one?
B: He was detained by the occupying Japanese soldiers for no reason whatsoever.
A: That's outrageous! Anyway, did our runner do well?
B: No, he dropped out in the middle of the race due to hasty training.
A: What about the other two games we participated in?
B: Our sports delegations were sent to the 1936 and 1948 Games. But they were so short of funds they were forced to live on a near-starvation diet. They had hardly enough money for the return trip. And both times, their efforts came to nothing.
A: That's really a shame!
B: So today, when our young athletes win one medal after another, I find it hard to hold back my tears. This is a time of change, a change for the better. We're a strong oriental dragon now.
DIALOGUE II
Dialogue:
Jane, a secretary, is ill in bed with flu and her colleague, Ann, comes to visit her in the evening to cheer her up.
A: Hello, how are you feeling?
J: Oh, not too bad, but I've got to stay in bed. The doctor has just left and he gave me some tablets to reduce my temperature.
A: Oh, good. Are you hungry? Do you want me to make you something to eat?
J: No, there's no need, Ann. I'm not very hungry, but thank you all the same.
A: Everyone at work sends you their regards, and Peter said hurry up and get better because he can't handle all the bills and letters himself!
J: Oh, that's typical. Everything falls apart when I'm ill.
A: Isn't there anything I can do for you?
J: Well, yes. Would you mind buying some fruit for me? Some oranges, I think.
A: No, of course not. Anything else?
J: Would you bring my washing in please? I completely forgot that it was there.
A: Yes, of course. Shall I change the sheets for you, too?
J: Oh yes, please. I'd be very grateful.
A: What about this pile of letters here that you've typed for Peter. Would you like me to give them to him tomorrow?
J: That's very kind of you, thanks a lot. Oh, there's just one more thing. I wonder if you could go to the post office for me.
A: Oh, I'm sorry, I'm afraid I can't tonight. I have to meet Brian in ten minutes. But I could go tomorrow after work.
J: Oh yes, that's fine. It's not that important, so it can wait another day.
A: I'll drop in and see you tomorrow then, Jane. See you, bye.
READING I
Two Kinds of Football
American football, not to be confused with the football called soccer, is the American national sport. It developed from the British game of rugby and, although it is played in no other country in the world (except Canada), it excites tremendous enthusiasm. Intercollegiate games (games between universities) are great social occasions. More than 100 thousand mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, students and football fans from the general public, crowd into the huge, luxurious stadiums. During a recent college final in the Rose Bowl at Pasadena, California, there were severe earthquake tremors, but nobody noticed!
The method of scoring in American football is the same as in rugby. Players try to carry the ball over the opponents' line, and then to earn more points by kicking the ball between the upright goal posts above the bar. But that is where the likeness between the two games ends.
American football has a reputation for being a brutal and dangerous game. This reputation is not really deserved. The players hurl themselves at each other fiercely, but today their uniforms and helmets (fitted with visors to protect their faces) are so skillfully padded that there are few serious injuries. By comparison, the rugby player is almost naked, having only a thin jersey and a pair of shorts to protect him from his opponents' boots and tackling.
The Americans are addicted to crazes. When they take something up, they do so wholeheartedly, and often the rest of the world follows their lead. Jogging is an example of this. The Americans now have another craze, a game which most other countries call "football," but which they call soccer. Soccer is spreading like wildfire through all the States and gaining in popularity on baseball. It is being run by big business and TV advertisers, who are doing everything they can to sell it to the public. They are employing famous fashion designers to design novel uniforms for the players. They have introduced a musical background to the games, and there is a big screen in the stadium which explains to spectators what is happening. Most important, they have hired, at enormous expense, famous coaches and players from Europe and South America. They have also changed some of the rules, including the offside rules to make the game more exciting.
Soccer games can now draw crowds of over 70 thousand in cities where baseball attracts a mere 20 thousand spectators. The soccer stadiums are much more luxurious than the vast majority of European and South American league grounds. There is a seat for everyone and a parking lot for 25 thousand cars. Soccer is being brilliantly promoted, like any other promising American product.
READING II
The Olympics
The Olympic games are an international sports competition. In the Olympics, athletes play in many different types of games. Some athletes compete in the Winter Olympics. Some compete in the Summer Olympics. The Olympic games are very old and have a very interesting history.
The first Olympic games were held in Greece in ancient times. They probably began in the sixth century, B.C. The contests were held every four years in the summer. The first games lasted for only one day. There was only one contest. It was a short race. Only Greek men were allowed to run in the race. No women and no non-Greeks were allowed to run in the race. Women were not even allowed to watch the race, or to be anywhere near the racing area. Other events were added later. But the ancient games were stopped in the fourth century, A. D. when Greece was ruled by Rome.
The Olympics were started again in the nineteenth century. The first competition in modern times was held in Athens, in 1896. Since then the Olympic games have been held every four years in many different cities around the world.
The International Olympic Committee makes the rules for athletes in the Olympics. These rules are very strict and help to make sure that everyone has the same chance to win.
The events and games are of several different types. There are individual contests, where each athlete plays alone. To win this type of contest, one athlete must be better, faster, or stronger than other athletes. Some examples of individual games are swimming, running, and walking races. These events happen in the summer. Some winter events are skiing and sledding races. Some other individual events are jumping, gymnastics, and diving.
In a second group of events and games, three or four athletes work as a group. These contests are usually races, and the fastest group wins. For these small groups, there are relay races in running and swimming in summer, and relays in skiing in winter.
In a third group of games, teams from each country compete in sports. To win these games, one team must have a higher score than the other team. The athletes must usually be able to catch, throw, hit, or kick a ball very well to win. For teams, there are many kinds of games. The teams play such games as basketball, soccer, and volleyball.
For an amateur athlete, winning in the Olympics is a great achievement. An athlete who wins the Olympics is the best in the world.
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