ВУЗ:
Составители:
Рубрика:
c) I do one or two little jobs, but nothing very energetic. This is my most
enjoyable occupation.
d) I don’t have any leisure time. All my time is put to good use.
Exercise 4.
You are going to read a parable written in the 19
th
century. In the
story two possible endings are given. Which ending do you prefer? Why? What
are the morals of the different endings?
The Man Who Could Turn Back the Clock
Once upon a time there was a man who had the power to turn back the
clock. Whenever he regretted something he had done or said, he could repeat the
event in the light of experience.
Now one day it happened that this man was out for a walk when it started to
rain, so he took shelter in a barn. After a few minutes the man was joined by a
very beautiful young lady and her dog, who were also seeking shelter. The
downpour lasted about an hour.
The man went home to his wife and told her why he was late. Immediately
his wife was suspicious of her husband’s behaviour with the young lady. She
questioned him about what had happened. The man replied in a surprised and
hurt voice: “Why, nothing happened. I was a perfect gentleman. What did you
expect? Especially when she had such a large dog with her.”
His wife was furious: “What! Only the dog stopped you!”
The man realized his mistake and immediately he turned the clock back a
few minutes and tried the conversation again. This time when his wife expressed
her suspicion, he said: “It’s true the girl was very beautiful and she seemed to
like me but my deep love for you gave me the strength to resist temptation.”
However, his wife was even more furious: “What! You wanted to kiss her!
An immoral thought is as bad as an immoral deed.”
1.
The man spent a long time thinking.
There must be some way to please his
wife! Finally he turned the clock back
again a few minutes. Once more his
wife asked how he had behaved with
the beautiful young lady. But this time
he replied: “What? She wasn’t beauti-
ful, she was ugly! I am a man with
good taste, which is why I married
you, my darling!” When she heard this,
his wife, who in fact was rather unat-
2.
The man felt that his wonderful power
had not helped him at all. Except to
teach him that it was impossible to
please his wife, and he had suspected
this for a long time. Therefore he
turned back the clock once more, not
just a few minutes, but a few hours. He
went back to the beautiful young lady
in the barn, in the rain.
58
Страницы
- « первая
- ‹ предыдущая
- …
- 57
- 58
- 59
- 60
- 61
- …
- следующая ›
- последняя »
