listen-to-this2-英語(yǔ)中級(jí)聽(tīng)力2原文

目錄

Lesson12

Lesson25

Lesson311

Lesson418

Lesson526

Lesson631

Lesson737

Lesson844

Lesson951

Lesson1057

Lesson1161

Lesson1266

Lesson1373

Lesson1584

Lesson1688

Lesson1794

Lesson1899

Lesson20110

Lesson21115

Lesson24130

Lesson25135

Lesson26139

Lesson27145

Lesson28151

Lesson29156

Lesson30160

Lesson31164

Lesson32169

Lesson33173

Lesson34177

Lesson35181

Lesson36185

Lesson1

Announcer:Andnow,at10:50it*stimefornInYourOwnWords",inwhichwe

interviewpeoplewithunusualstoriestotell.Heretointroducetheprogrammeis

PatriciaNewell.Goodmorning,Patricia.

Patricia:Goodmorning,andgoodmorningeveryone.Withmeinthestudionow

isthismorning'sguest,TrevorCartridge.Goodmorning,Trevor.

Trevor:Goodmorning,Patricia.

Patricia:Trevor,youhaveoneofthemostunusualstoriesI'veeverheard.Yet,

nowadays,youseemtoleadaveryordinarylife.

Trevor:Yes,Patricia.Pmadentist.IliveandworkinLondon.

Patricia:Butatonetimeyouusedtohaveadifferentjob?

Trevor:Yes,Iwasasoldier.

Patricia:Asoldier?

Trevor:Thafsright.

Patricia:Andhowlongagowasthat?

Trevor:Oh,abouttwothousandyearsago.

Patricia:That'sright.TrevorCartridgebelievesthathewasasoldierinthearmy

ofJuliusCaesar.HerememberscomingtoBritainwiththeRomanarmytwo

thousandyearsago.Trevor,tellusyourremarkablestory...inyourownwords!

Trevor:Well,funnilyenough,itallbeganbecauseIwantedtogiveupsmoking.

Patricia:Giveupsmoking!

Trevor:Mm,IusedtosmoketoomuchandItriedtogiveupseveraltimes,butI

alwaysstartedsmokingagainafewdayslater.IntheendIwenttoahypnotist.

Hehypnotizedme,andIstoppedsmokingatonce.Iwasdelighted,asyoucan

imagine.

Patricia:Yes?

Trevor:Thatmademeveryinterestedinhypnotism,andItalkedtothe

hypnotistaboutit.Hetoldmethatsomepeoplecouldremembertheirpastlives

whentheywerehypnotized,andheaskedifIwantedtotry.Ididn'tbelieveitat

first,butintheendIagreed.Hehypnotizedme,andsureenough,Iremembered.

IwasaRomansoldierinCaesar'sarmy.

Patricia:Youdidn'tbelieveitatfirst?

Trevor:Ididn'tbelieveitbeforewetriedtheexperiment.Now1'mabsolutely

convincedit'strue.

Patricia:Whatdoyouremember?

Trevor:Oh,allkindsofthings,butthemostinterestingthingIrememberisthe

nightwelandedinBritain.

Patricia:Yourememberthat?

Trevor:Ohyes.Itwasaterrible,stormynight.Therewereahundredormoreof

usintheboat.Wewereallshutin,becausetheweatherwassobadandmost

peopleweresick,becauseitwasverystuffy.Therewasaterriblesmellofpetrol,

Iremember.LotsofmenthoughtweshouldgobacktoFrance.Itwasn'tcalled

Trance*then,ofcourse.

Patricia:Andtherewasasmellofpetrol?

Trevor:Yes,itwasterrible.Theweathergotworseandworse.Wethoughtwe

weregoingtodie.Intheendtheboatwaspushedupontothesands,andwe

climbedout.Irememberjumpingintothewaterandstrugglingtothebeach.

ThewaterwasuptomyshouldersanditwasafreezingnightAlotofmenwere

killedbythecoldordrownedinthestorm,butImanagedtogetashore.

Patricia:Youdid?

Trevor:Yes.Therewereabouttensurvivorsfromourboat,buteventhenour

troublesweren'tover.Wefoundafarmhouse,butitwasdeserted.Whenthe

peoplereadthenewspapers,andknewthatwewerecoming,theywereterrified.

Theytookalltheiranimalsandalltheirfood,andranawayintothehills.Of

course,therewerenoproperroadsinthosedays.Well,wewentintothehouse

andtriedtolightafire,butwecouldnlevendothat.Wealwayskeptmatchesin

ourtrousers*pockets,sonaturallytheywereallsoaked.Wecouldn'tfind

anythingtoeat,exceptonetinofcatfood.Weweresohungry,webrokeitopen

withourknives,andateit.Wefoundatap,butthewaterwasfrozen.Intheend

wedrankrainwaterfromthetin.Wesatveryclosetogetherandtriedtokeep

warm.Wecouldhearwolvesbutwedidn'thaveanyweapons,becauseourguns

werefullofseawater.Bythemorning,thestormwasover.Wewentontothe

beachandfoundwhatwasleftoftheboat.WemanagedtoHndsomefood,and

wehopedtherewassomewinetoo,butwhenweopenedtheboxallthebottles

werebroken.

Patricia:Sowhathappened?

Trevor:Wewaited.Finallyanotherboatcameandtookusaway,andwejoined

theothersoldiers.Iremembergoingintothecamp,andgettingahotmeal,and

cleanclothes.Itwaswonderful.Weweregivenourpay,too.Irememberthedate

onthecoins,50BC.Itwasanexcitingtime.

Patricia:AnddidyoustayinBritain?

Trevor:Ohyes,Iwashereforfiveyears,from50BCto55BC.Ienjoyedmystay

inBritainverymuch.

Patricia:AndthenyouwentbacktoRome?

Trevor:Ican,trememberanythingafterthat.

Patricia:Well,TrevorCartridge,thankyoufortellingusyourstory,inyourown

words.

(1)Bob,doyouthinkyoucouldpossiblyturnoffthatradio?I'm(pause)trying

towritealetter.

(2)A:Idon*twantadoubleroom.Iwantasingleroom.

B:Pmsorry,sir,butI'mafraid43(pause)istheonlysingleroomavailableat

themoment

(3)A:JustlookwhatTvegot.

B:Letmesee.Fiftypounds!(pause)Whereonearthdidyougetit?

(4)A:OhbothertheSexDiscriminationAct.Surelytheycan'tforcemetotake

onamarriedwoman.

B:Theycan'tforceyouto,Mr.Clark,but(pause)youmustn'tdiscriminate

againstsomeonejustbecausethey*remarried.

(5)A:I'mgladI'mnotaprincess.Itmustbeadreadfullife.

B:Dreadful?(pause)Iwouldn'tmindbeingaprince.

(6)I'mareasonablyhard-workingperson.But(pause)Pmnotaworkaholic.

(7)A:Hadyourbrotherbeennervousaboutithimself?

B:Well,hedidn'tsay,butpossibly(pause)hehadbeen.

TheKnowledge

BecomingaLondontaxidriverisn'teasy.Inordertoobtainalicencetodrive

ataxiinLondon,candidateshavetopassadetailedexamination.Theyhaveto

learnnotonlythestreets,landmarksandhotels,butalsothequickestwaytoget

there.Thisiscalled'TheKnowledge*byLondoncabdriversanditcantake

yearsofstudyandpracticetoget*TheKnowledge*.Candidatesareexaminednot

onlyonthequickestroutesbutalsoonthequickestroutesatdifferenttimesof

theday.Peoplewhowanttopasstheexaminationspendmuchoftheirfreetime

drivingorevencyclingaroundLondon,studyingmapsandlearningthehuge

streetdirectorybyheart.

TheUnderground

TravellingontheLondonunderground(the'tube')presentsfewdifficulties

forvisitorsbecauseoftheclearcolour-codedmaps.Itisalwaysusefultohave

plentyofsparechangewithyoubecausethereareoftenlongqueuesatthelarger

stations.Ifyouhaveenoughchangeyoucanbuyyourticketfromamachine.You

willfindsignswhichlistthestationsinalphabeticalorder,withthecorrectfares,

nearthemachines.Thereareautomaticbarrierswhichareoperatedbythe

tickets.Youshouldkeeptheticket,becauseitischeckedatthedestination.

Lesson2

Interviewer:Isfilmeditingacomplicatedjob?

FilmEditor:Ohyes,alotofpeopleprobablydon'tknowhowcomplicatedajob

itcanbe.It'sfarmorethanjuststickingpiecesoffilmtogether.

Interviewer:Howlongdoesittaketoeditafilm?

FilmEditor:Well,itdepends.Youcanprobablyexpecttoedita10-minutefllm

inaboutaweek.A35-minutedocumentary,liketheoneI'meditingatpresent,

takesaminimumoffourtofiveweekstoedit.

Interviewer:Canyouexplaintomehowfilmeditingworks?

FilmEditor:Therearedifferentsteps.'Synchingup\forexample.

Interviewer:Whatdoyoumeanbysynchingup?

FilmEditor:Itmeansmatchingsoundandpicturesandthatisusuallydoneby

myassistant.Thefilmandthesoundtapehavenumbersstampedalongtheedge

whichhavetobematched.Thedetailsofthefilmandthesoundarealso

recordedinalogbook,soifsquickandeasytofindaparticulartakeandits

soundtrack.Thisoperationiscalledloggingandisagaindonebymyassistant.

Interviewer:Sowhatdoyouusuallydoyourself?

FilmEditor:Alotofthings,ofcourse.First,Ihavetoviewallthematerialto

makeafirstselectionofthebesttakes.There'salotoffilmtolookthrough

becausetomakeasequenceworkthewayyouwant,youneedalotofshotsto

choosefrom.

Interviewer:Doesthatmeanthatyouhavetodiscardsequences?

FilmEditor:Ohyes.Onaverageforeveryfootofeditedfilm,youneedtwelve

timesasmuchuneditedfilmandthereforeyouhavetocompromiseand,of

course,discardsomeofit.

Interviewer:Whatdoyoudoafterselectingthematerial?

FilmEditor:Firstofall,Iprepareaninitialversionofthefilm,a*roughcut*asit

iscalled.ThatmeansthatIactuallycutthefilmintopiecesandstickthem

togetheragainintheneworder.

Interviewer:Andafterthis'roughcut'whathappens?

FilmEditor:Well,afterthe*roughcut*comestheTinecut*whenthefilmtakes

itsfinalform.Theproducerandthedirectorcomeinforaviewing.Somesmall

changesmaythenbenecessary,butwhenthe'finecut'hasbeenapprovedby

everyone,thisisthefinalversionofthefilm.

Interviewer:Atthispointisthefilmreadyfordistribution?

FilmEditor:Ohno.AftertheAnalversionofthefilmhasbeenapproved,thereis

thedubbing,therearevoices,music,backgroundnoisesandsometimesspecial

effectstobeputtogetherforthesoundtrack.Andafterthedubbing,theedited

fllmissenttothe'neg'cutters.

Interviewer:Whatdothe'neg'cuttersdo?

FilmEditor:Theycuttheoriginalnegativesonthefilms,sothatthesematchthe

editedfllmexactly.Andafterallthatcomesthebestpart-Icansitdownquietly

withmyfeetupandenjoywatchingtheHim!

Man:Hi.

Woman:HL

Man:Whafdyoudolastnight?

Woman:IwatchedTV.TherewasareallygoodmoviecalledSoylentGreen.

Man:SoylentGreen!

Woman:Yeah.CharltonHestonwasinit.

Man:Whafsitabout?

Woman:Oh,it'saboutlifeinNewYorkintheyear2022.

Man:IwonderifNewYorkwillstillbeherein2022.

Woman:Inthismovie,in2022...

Man:Yeah?

Woman:...NewYorkhasfortymillionpeople.

Man:Ouch!

Woman:Andtwentymillionofthemareunemployed.

Man:HowmanypeopleliveinNewYorknow?Aboutsevenoreightmillion?

Woman:Yeah,Ithinkthat'sright.

Man:Mm-hmm.Youknow,ifit'shardenoughtofindanapartmentnowinNew

YorkCity,what'sitgoingtobelikein2022?

Woman:Well,inthismoviemostpeoplehavenoapartment.Sothousandssleep

onthestepsofbuildings.(Uh-huh.)Peoplewhodohaveaplacetolivehaveto

crawloversleepingpeopletogetinside.Andthereareshortagesofeverything.

Thesoilissopollutedthatnothingwillgrow.(Ooo.)Andtheairissopolluted

theyneverseethesun.It'sreallyawful.

Man:IthinkI'mgoingtoavoidgoingtoNewYorkCityintheyear2022.

Woman:Andtherewasthisscenewherethestar,CharltonHeston,goesintoa

housewheresomeveryrichpeoplelive.

Man:Uh-huh.

Woman:Hecan'tbelieveit,becausetheyhaverunningwaterandtheyhavesoap.

Man:Really?

Woman:Andthenhegoesintothekitchenandtheyhavetomatoesandlettuce

andbeef.Healmostcriesbecausehe'sneverseenrealfoodinhislife,youknow,

especiallythebeef.Itwasamazingforhim.

Man:Well,ifmostpeoplehavenorealfood,whatdotheyeat?

Woman:Theyeatsomethingcalledsoylent.

Man:Soylent?

Woman:Yeah.There*ssoylentredandsoylentyellowandsoylentgreen.Thefirst

twoaremadeoutofsoybeans.Butthesoylentgreenismadeoutofoceanplants.

(Ugh.)Thepeopleeatitlikecrackers.That*salltheyhavetoeat.

Man:Thatsoundsdisgusting.

Woman:Well,youknow,itreallyisn*tthatfarfromreality.

Man:No?

Woman:Yeah.Because,youknowthegreenhouseeffectthafsbeginningnow

andheatinguptheearth…

Man:Oh,yeah,Tveheardaboutthat

Woman:...becausewe'reputtingthepollutantsintheatmosphere,youknow?

Man:Mm-hmm.

Woman:Imean,inthismovieNewYorkhasninetydegreesweatherallyearlong.

Anditcouldreallyhappen.Uh...likenow,we???wehavefuelshortages.Andin

themoviethere'ssolittleelectricitythatpeoplehavetoridebicyclestomakeit.

Man:Youknowsomething?Idon'tthinkthatmovieisatruepredictionofthe

future.

Woman:Idon*tknow.Itscaresme.Ithinkitmightbe.

Man:Really?

Woman:Well,yeah.

ThenativeAmericans,thepeoplewecallthe'Indians',hadbeeninAmerica

formanythousandsofyearsbeforeChristopherColumbusarrivedin1492.

ColumbusthoughthehadarrivedinIndia,sohecalledthenativepeople

'Indians'.

TheIndianswerekindtotheearlysettlers.Theywerenotafraidofthemand

theywantedtohelpthem.Theyshowedthesettlersthenewworldaroundthem;

theytaughtthemaboutthelocalcropslikesweetpotatoes,cornandpeanuts;

theyintroducedtheEuropeanstochocolateandtotheturkey;andthe

EuropeansdidbusinesswiththeIndians.

Butsoonthesettlerswantedbiggerfarmsandmorelandforthemselvesand

theirfamilies.MoreandmoreimmigrantswerecomingfromEuropeandall

thesepeopleneededland.SotheEuropeansstartedtotakethelandfromthe

Indians.TheIndianshadtomovebackintothecentreofthecontinentbecause

thesettlersweretakingalltheirland.

TheIndianscouldn'tunderstandthis.Theyhadaverydifferentideaofland

fromtheEuropeans.FortheIndians,theland,theearth,wastheirmother.

Everythingcamefromtheirmother,theland,andeverythingwentbacktoit.

Thelandwasforeveryoneanditwasimpossibleforonemantoownit.How

couldtheWhiteMandividetheearthintoparts?Howcouldheputfencesround

it,buyitandsellit?

Naturally,whentheWhiteManstartedtakingalltheIndians*land,the

Indiansstartedflghtingback.Theywantedtokeeptheirland,theywantedto

stoptheWhiteMantakingitallforhimself.ButtheWhiteManwasstronger

andcleverer.SlowlyhepushedtheIndiansintothosepartsofthecontinentthat

hedidn'twant-thepartswhereitwastoocoldortoodryortoomountainousto

livecomfortably.

By1875theIndianshadlostthefight:theywerelivinginspecialplacescalled

Reservations*.ButevenheretheWhiteMantooklandfromthem-perhapshe

wantedthewood,orperhapsthelandhadimportantmineralsinit,orheeven

wantedtomakenationalparksthere.SoevenontheirreservationstheIndians

werenotsafefromtheWhiteMan.

TherearemanyHollywoodfilmsaboutthefightbetweentheIndiansandthe

WhiteMan.UsuallyinthesefilmstheIndiansarebadandtheWhiteManis

goodandbrave.Butwasitreallylikethat?Whatdoyouthink?Doyouthinkthe

IndianswererightorwrongtofighttheWhiteMan?

Interviewer:Today,therearemorethan15millionpeoplelivinginAustralia.

Only160,000oftheseareAborigines,sowherehavetherestcomefrom?Well,

until1850mostofthesettlerscamefromBritainandIrelandand,asweknow,

manyofthesewereconvicts.Thenin1851somethinghappenedwhichchanged

everything.GoldwasdiscoveredinsoutheasternAustralia.Duringthenextten

years,nearly700,000peoplewenttoAustraliatofindgoldandbecomerich.

ManyofthemwereChinese.ChinaisquiteneartoAustralia.Sincethenmany

differentgroupsofimmigrantshavegonetoAustraliaformanydifferentreasons.

TodayI'mgoingtotalktoMariowhosefamilycamefromItalyandtoHelena

fromGreece.Mario,whendidthefirstItaliansarriveinAustralia?

Mario:ThefirstItalianswentthere,liketheChinese,inthegold-rushes,hoping

tofindgoldandbecomerich.Butmanyalsowentthereforpoliticalreasons.

Duringthe1850sand1860sdifferentstatesinItalywerefightingfor

independenceandsomeItalianswereforcedtoleavetheirhomelandsbecause

theywereindangerofbeingputinprisonforpoliticalreasons.

Interviewer:IbelievetherearealotofItaliansinthesugarindustry.

Mario:Yes,that'sright.In1891thefirstgroupof300Italianswenttoworkin

thesugarcanefieldsofnorthernAustralia.Theyworkedveryhardandmany

savedenoughmoneytobuytheirownland.Inthiswaytheycametodominate

thesugarindustryonmanypartsoftheQueenslandcoast.

Interviewer:ButnotallItaliansworkinthesugarindustry,dothey?

Mario:No.Alotofthemareinthefishingindustry.Italyhasalongcoastline,as

youknow,andItalianshavealwaysbeengoodfishermen.Attheendofthe

nineteenthcenturysomeofthesewenttowesternAustraliatomakeanewlifefor

themselves.Again,manyofthem,includingmygrandfather;weresuccessful.

Interviewer:AndwhatabouttheGreeks,Helena?

Helena:Well,theGreeksarethefourthlargestnationalgroupinAustralia,after

theBritish,theIrishandtheItalians.MostGreeksarrivedaftertheSecond

WorldWarbutinthe1860stherewerealreadyabout500Greekslivingin

Australia.

Interviewer:SowhendidthefirstGreeksarrive?

Helena:Probablyin1830,theywenttoworkinvineyardsinsoutheastern

Australia.TheGreekshavebeenmakingwineforcenturiessotheirexperience

wasveryvaluable.

Interviewer:Butdidn'tsomeofthemgointothecoalmines?

Helena:Yes,theyweren'tallabletoenjoythepleasantoutdoorlifeofthe

vineyards.SomeofthemwenttoworkinthecoalminesinSydney.Othersstarted

cafesandbarsandrestaurants.By1890therewereGreekcafesandrestaurants

alloverSydneyandoutinthecountryside(orthebush,astheAustralianscallit)

aswell.

Interviewer:Andthen,asyousaid,manyGreeksarrivedaftertheSecondWorld

War,didn'tthey?

Helena:Yes,yes,thafsright.ConditionsinGreecewereverybad:therewas

verylittleworkandmanypeoplewereverypoor.Australianeededmoreworkers

andsoofferedtopaytheboatfare.Peoplewhoalreadyhadmembersoftheir

familyinAustraliatookadvantageofthisofferandwenttofindabetterlife

there.

Interviewer:Well,thankyou,MarioandHelena.Nextweekwewillbetalkingto

JuanfromSpainandMargaretfromScotland.

(1)A:Itdoesn'tsoundmuchlikedancingtome.

B:Itis;it'sgreat.

A:MorelikesomecompetitionintheOlympicGames.

C:Yeah.It,s(pause)goodexercise.Keepsyoufit.

(2)A:Butyoucan*tjuststartdancinginthestreetlikethat.

B:Whynot?Wetaketheportablecassetterecorderandwhenwefindanice

street,we(pause)turnthemusicupreallyloudandstartdancing.

(3)A:Wehavecompetitionstoseewhocandoitthefastestwithoutfallingover.

Male'sthewinnersofar.

B:Yeah,I'mthebest.Iteachtheothersbut(pause)theycan*tdoitlikeme

yet.

(4)A:You'rereadinganewbook,John?

B:Yes.Actually,(pause)it*saveryoldbook.

(5)A:Now,canyoudeliverallthistomyhouse?

B:Certainly.Just(pause)writeyouraddressandI'llgettheboytobring

themround.

(6)A:Good.Evemadeanicecurry.Ihopeyoudolikecurry?

B:Yes,Ilovecurry,IusedtoworkinIndia,asamatteroffact.

A:Really?Howinteresting.Youmust(pause)tellusallaboutitoverdinner.

TheFoolishFrog

Onceuponatimeabig,fatfroglivedinatinyshallowpond.Heknewevery

plantandstoneinit,andhecouldswimacrossiteasily.Hewasthebiggest

creatureinthepond,sohewasveryimportant.Whenhecroaked,thewater

snailslistenedpolitely.Andthewaterbeetlesalwaysswambehindhim.Hewas

veryhappythere.

Oneday,whilehewascatchingflies,aprettydragonflypassedby.'Ybu'rea

veryfinefrog/shesang,*butwhydon'tyouliveinabiggerpond?Cometomy

pond.You*llfindalotoffrogsthere.You'llmeetsomefinefish,andyou'llseethe

dangerousducks.Andyoumustseeourlovelywaterlilies.Lifeinalargepondis

wonderful!f

Terhapsitisratherdullhere/thoughtthefoolishfrog.Sohehoppedafter

thedragonfly.

Buthedidn'tlikethebig,deeppond.Itwasfullofstrangeplants.Thewater

snailswererudetohim,andhewasafraidoftheducks.Thefishdidn'tlikehim,

andhewasthesmallestfrogthere.Hewaslonelyandunhappy.

Hesatonawaterlilyleafandcroakedsadlytohimself,*1don'tlikeithere.I

thinkrilgohometomorrow.,

Butahungryheronflewdownandswallowedhimupforsupper.

Lesson3

Clerk:Hello,sir.WhatcanIdoforyou?

Customer:Hi.Uh…Ihavethis...uh...cassetteplayer(Mm-hmm.)herethatI

boughtaboutsixmonthsago.Anditjustruinedfourofmyfavouritecassettes.

Clerk:Ohdear,Tmsorry.

Customer:SoI...um…wantedyoutofixit.I'msureitwillbenoproblem,right?

Clerk:Yoursalesslip,please?

Customer:Yeah,hereitis.Uh.

Clerk:I'msorry,sir.Yourwarranty'sexpired.

Customer:Well,it...uh...ranouttendaysago,butI'msurethatyou'll...

you*ll…fixthemachineforfree,becausethemachinewasobviouslydefective

whenIboughtit.I...

Clerk:I'msorry,sir.Yourwarrantyhasrunout.There'snothingIcando.

Customer:No.No,look.No.Ididn'tdropitoffabuildingoranything.Imean,

whatdifferencecantendaysmake?Imeanyou...youcan一

Clerk:Sii;Pmsorry,wehavethesix-monthruleforareason.Wecan't…

Customer:Well,butyoucanbendtherulealittlebit.

Clerk:???makeanexceptionforyou.Thenwe'llhavetomakeanexceptionfor

everybody.(Well,butlook...)Youcouldsayit'sonlyamonth,it*sonlytwo

months.

Customer:Ijustlosttwentydollarsworthoftapes.

Clerk:Sir,I'msorry,it'stoolate.

Customer:Itactuallyatethetapes.Imean,they*redestroyed.Imean一

Clerk:Well,sir,youknew(I...)whenyourwarrantyranout.Youshould(Well...)

havebroughtitinbefore.Itwas(Well...look...)guaranteedforsixmonths.Pm

sorry,there*snothingIcando.

Customer:Payingforthisisaddinginsulttoinjury.Imean,surelyyou,regoing

tomakegoodonthiscassetteplayer.It's…it*s...it'sagoodcassetteplayer,but

ifsjustdefective.Imean,Ican'tpayforthis.

Clerk:Well,sir,I'msorry,youshouldhavebroughtitinearlier.

Customer:Butsurelyyouwon'tholdmetotendaysonthis.

Clerk:Sir,therulesaretherules.I'msorry,butthere*snothingIcando.

Norma:Youknow,Brian,itdoesn'tlooklikeyou*vevacuumedthelivingroomor

cleanedthebathroom.

Brian:No,Ihaven't.Ugh.Ihadtheworstday.Iamsotired.Look,IpromiseIll

doitthisweekend.

Norma:Listen,Iknowthefeeling.I'mtired,too.ButIcamehomeandIdidmy

shareofthehousework.Imean,that'stheagreement,right?

Brian:Allright.Weagreed.THdoitinaminute.

Norma:Comeon.Don'tbethatway.Youknow,(What?)Ishouldn'thavetoask

youtodoanything.Imean,webothwork,webothliveinthehouse,weagreed

thathouseworkis...isbothofourresponsibility.Idon'tliketohavetokeep

remindingyouaboutit.Itmakesmefeellikeanoldnagorsomething.

Brian:Sometimesyouareanoldnag.

Norma:Oh,great!

Brian:No,it*sjustthatIdon'tnoticewhenthingsgetdirtylikeyoudo.Look,all

youhavetodoistellme,andI'lldoit.

Norma:No,Idon'twanttobeputinthatposition.Imean,youcanseedirtas

wellasIcan.Otherwise—Imean,thatputsalltheresponsibilityonme.

Brian:It'sjustthatcleanlinessisnotahighprioritywithme.Thereareother

thingsIwouldmuchratherdo.Besides,thelivingroomfloordoesnotlookthat

dirty.

Norma:Brian.

Brian:Okay,acouplecrumbs.

Bob:Mr.Weaver,Ihavebeenwiththiscompanynowforfiveyears.AndI've

alwaysbeenveryloyaltothecompany.AndIfeelthatI'veworkedquitehard

here.AndI'veneverbeenpromoted.It'sgettingtothepointnowinmylife

where,youknow,Ineedmoremoney.Iwouldliketobuyacar.I'dliketostarta

family,andmaybebuyahouse,allofwhichisimpossiblewiththecurrentsalary

you*repayingme.

Mr.Weaver:Bob,Iknowyou'vebeenwiththecompanyforawhile,butraises

herearebasedonmerit,notonlengthofemployment.Now,youdoyourjob

adequately,butyoudon*tdoitwellenoughtodeservearaiseatthistime.Now,

I'vetoldyoubefore,toearnaraiseyouneedtotakemoreinitiativeandshow

moreenthusiasmforthejob.Uh,forinstance,maybefindawaytomakethe

officerunmoreefficiently.

Bob:Allright.MaybeIcouldshowalittlemoreenthusiasm.IstillthinkthatI

workhardhere.Butacompanydoeshaveatleastanobligationtopayits

employeesenoughtoliveon.AndthesalaryI*mgettinghereisn'tenough.The

rent*srising.Thepriceoffoodisgoingup.Thereflationishigh,andIcanbarely

covermyexpenses.

Mr.Weaver:Bob,again,Ipaypeoplewhatthey*reworthtothecompany,now,

notwhattheythinktheyneedtoliveoncomfortably.Ifyoudidthatthe

companywouldgooutofbusiness.

Bob:Yes,butIhave...IhavebeenhereforfiveyearsandIhavebeenveryloyal.

Andit'sabsolutelynecessaryformetohavearaiseorIcannotjustifykeeping

thisjobanymore.

Mr.Weaver:Well,thafsadecisionyoullhavetomakeforyourself,Bob.

Hereisanextractfromaradiotalkonmarriagecustomsindifferentpartsof

theworldbyProfessorRobinStuart:

Despitetherecentgrowthinthenumberofdivorces,weintheWeststilltend

toregardcourtshipandmarriagethroughtheeyesofaHollywoodproducer.For

usit'saromanticbusiness.Boymeetsgirl,boyfallsinlovewithgirl,boyasks

girltomarryhim,girlaccepts.Wedding,flowers,bigcelebration.

Butinotherpartsoftheworldthingsworkdifferently.InIndia,forinstance,

arrangedmarriageisstillverycommon.Anintermediary,usuallyamarriedlady,

learnsthatayoungmanwishestogetmarriedandsheundertakestofindhima

suitablebride.Theyoungcouplemeetforthefirsttimeonthedayofthe

wedding.

InJapan,too,arrangedmarriagesstilltakeplace.Buttherethingsare

organizedinadifferentway.Agirlwishestofindahusband,andthegirl's

mother,oranauntperhaps,approachesthemotherofasuitableyoungmanand

theyoungcoupleareintroduced.Theygetachancetohavealookatoneanother

andifoneofthemsays'Oh,no,Icouldnevermarryhimorher',theycallthe

wholethingoff.Butift