Неличные формы глагола. Артикль. Гоголь О.В. - 43 стр.

called his castle, and the hours spent keeping his fortress safe and se-     The tour will terminate after an hour or so somewhere on the back lawn
cure become one of his greatest pleasures. If a home is in an especially     next to the two-car air-conditioned garage where you may be treated to
fashionable neighborhood, the owners may consult an interior director        a snack and light refreshment.
to give the home a certain coordinated appearance. If there is a large
back yard, great care may be spent in having it properly landscaped          Showing off one’s home is more than an exercise in vanity. It is a trib-
with exotic trees, shrubs and plants.                                        ute to one’s accomplishments. It is a way of saying that a man has been
                                                                             a good provider for his family and that he has realized one of his
It is almost a certainty that should you be a first visitor to an American   dreams.
home, you will be taken on a grand tour of the premises. The owner
will take great pride in showing to you the place he calls home. Every       TEXT SEVEN                                    SALUTING THE FLAG
closet, every cabinet and closed door will be opened so that you can
actually see the extent and value of his home. You will even be taken        For most Americans the flag is a cause for national pride and admira-
into the father’s den and the mother’s sewing room. These are special        tion. The “Stars and Stripes,” as the flag is commonly called, helps to
rooms for the respective man and woman of the house to insure their          unify the country and to unite many different people from many differ-
privacy. They may be off-limits to the rest of the family but, for the       ent cultures into one united country. It is a source of national identity.
visitor they are open to scrutiny and inspection.                            The design of the American flag has gone through several changes but
                                                                             the one which is used today is highly symbolic and cannot be confused
Yes! You’ll get the chance to browse through the books on the library        with that of any other nation. The red and white stripes on the flag rep-
shelves and inspect their collection of videos and CDs. The master bed-      resent the original thirteen colonies and each white star set in a field of
room, that room of marital privacy, with walk-in closets and wall to         blue stands for a state. The first flag of the U.S. was raised in Cam-
wall carpeting will also be yours to see. Even the children’s playroom       bridge, Mass. By George Washington on January 2, 1776. As part of
with its inventory of video games and mechanical high-tech toys will         the celebration to mark the 400th anniversary of the discovery of Amer-
be open to public viewing.                                                   ica president Benjamin Harrison in 1892 called for patriotic exercises
It is, of course, considered polite on the tour to comment favorably on      in schools. The Pledge of Allegiance was taken from a children’s
each room picking out its most salient, important feature, such as the       magazine. It was first recited by public school children as they saluted
special view from the window, the vaulted ceiling in the foyer or the        the flag during the national school Celebration held that year. In 1942
exotic choice of wallpaper in the bathroom. The finished basement is a       Congress made the pledge part of its code for the use of the flag. Fran-
special cause for pride for the family with its exercise room, video         cis Bellamy is attributed with authorship and in 1954 the words “under
games, carpenter shop and laundrette. In most homes it is here that the      God” were added by Congress. In schools today around the country an
family entertains itself in the evening while the rest of the house be-      average class day officially begins with the Pledge of Allegiance to the
comes more of a showcase. On your tour you may be reminded of the            flag. This is often proclaimed while the student faces the flag and
hours the owners had spent “fixing up the house” so it would be “nice        places his right hand over his heart. The pledge must be recited with
for the kids to bring over their friends.” You may even sense a feeling      reverence and respect and from memory. The student must stand at at-
of competition in knowing that they have not only “kept up with the          tention as if he were a soldier and focus his eyes on the flag itself. To
Jones” but have far surpassed them.                                          mumble the words or to slouch casually would register an attitude of
                                                                             disrespect. There is no classroom in which the flag is not displayed.
                                                                             Likewise, most school assemblies begin with the same pledge. This

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