Тексты для чтения по английскому языку

I. Read the text

The Great Romantic

Lord Byron (1788-1824) didn't live a long life. He was an aristocrat and a fashionable man. But he loved freedom (свободу) and a simple country life. His personality attracted Britain and all Europe. He brought to his poetry romanticism of his times. He was talented and handsome, noble and brave. London admired him.

George Gordon Byron was born on January 22^nd, 1788. He was the son of John Byron and his wife, Catherine, whose ancestors (предки) were of the royal house of Stuart. He spent his early years outside the capital. He lived in the north. Later his mother took him to Aberdeen. There they lived for several years. George went to Aberdeen Grammar School and there is a monument to him outside the school. Now it is a museum and art gallery. Later he studied at Harrow School and the University of Cambridge.

When Byron was 19, he came to London. One day the poet wrote, "I woke up (проснулся) and found myself (обнаружил, что я) famous." It happened after the publication of his autobiographic poem "Childe Harold" in 1812.

The fact is that from 1809 to 1811 he had traveled in different parts of Europe and in the poem he described everything that had happened to him.

In the summer of 1816 Byron left Britain forever (навсегда). He traveled around Europe and soon he became a member of the Greek liberation movement (освободительное движение), for which he died. But he did not lead the Greeks in battle as he wished. He died of fever (лихорадка).

II. Answer the questions.

1) When and where was G. Byron born?

2) Where did he study?

3) What did he describe in the poem?

4) When did G. Byron leave Britain?

4) When did he die?

I. Read the text

Christmas

The 25^th of December is Christmas Day. It's a happy holiday for many people in different countries.

Some week before Christmas English people are busy. They send greeting cards to all their relatives and friends. You can buy Christmas cards or you can make them. Many children make their cards at school.

People buy a Christmas tree and decorate it with toys, coloured balls and little coloured lights.

On Christmas Eve people put their presents under the tree. When children go to bed, they put their stockings near their beds.

At night Father Christmas comes. He has got a big bag of presents for children. He puts the presents in the children's stockings.

Every year there is a very big Christmas tree in the centre of London, in Trafalgar Square. This is a present from the people of Norway to the people of Great Britain. They send it to Londoners every year and Londoners decorate the Christmas tree.

In the evening before Christmas people like to come to Trafalgar Square to look at the tree. On Christmas Eve streets in London are decorated, too.

The shops are very busy at Christmas. People want to buy presents for their family and friends (for their nearest and dearest). And they buy a lot of food and drink for all the Christmas parties.

People open their presents on Christmas morning and they all are happy with what they get.

For Christmas lunch people eat turkey, potatoes and green vegetables. Then they have the Christmas pudding. At five o'clock it's time for tea and Christmas cake.

On Christmas people wish their nearest and dearest a merry Christmas.

II. Answer the questions.

1) Why are people busy some weeks before Christmas?

2) Where can people get Christmas cards?

3) Where is a Christmas tree from?

4) What are the traditional Christmas dishes?

5) Do English people like Christmas?

I. Read the text

Monsters of the sea.

People have always been afraid of sharks. Films like " Jaws" have shown them as monsters. But now these animals are in danger, like many others.

In recent years, shark meat has become a popular food in America. Too much fishing has begun to reduce the numbers of some kinds of shark. Some people say this is a good thing. Sharks kill about twenty-five people a year near the world's beaches. Are we going to help sharks, or are they going to become extinct?

It's hard to solve the sharks' " image" problem and change people's minds about them. Sharks are hunters and so they naturally kill. But actually elephants kill more people than sharks every year - and every-one likes elephants.

Sharks are very important for the world's oceans. They eat unhealthy fish and keep the numbers of different kinds of sea animals in balance. Now scientists are trying to find way to protect these animals. They have been in the oceans for 350 million years. Perhaps they can survive a little longer.

II. Answer the questions.

I. Read the text

PACKING

(by Jerome K. Jerome)

Holiday time was near now, and we, that is, Harris and George and I met to discuss our plans. Harris said that the first thing was to discuss what to take with us. He also said that we couldn't take the whole world in a boat. They could take what they really needed.

"It is very important," Harris said, "to have everything we need for a long swim every morning before breakfast." He also said that a long swim always gave him fine appetite. "If you're going to eat more than you usually do," George said, "I think we'll let you go swimming not more than once in three or four days. If you go swimming every day, we'll never have enough food for you. We won't be able to carry so much in the boat. "

So we discussed the food question. "Begin with breakfast," George said. "For breakfast we must have a tea-pot," Harris said, "ham, eggs, bread and butter and jam. It's easy to prepare breakfast with such things. And for lunch - cold meat, bread and butter and jam - but no cheese. "

We agreed. Cheese in a boat in summer, little by little becomes the master of all the food. You may think you're eating sausage or meat and potatoes or cake, but it all seems to be cheese.

II. Answer the questions.

1. What is the text about?

2. Where did the friends want to go?

3. What could give Harris a good appetite?

4. Why was cheese the "master" of all food in summer?

5. Whose idea was to take few clothes?

I. Read the text

The Earth.

We live on the Earth. It is very, very big. There is a lot of water on the Earth. It is in rivers, lakes, seas and oceans. There are a lot of forests and fields, hills and mountains on it.

The Earth is full of wonders. Different animals live on the Earth. Different plants grow on it. The Earth is beautiful.

There are large countries and small countries. There are warm countries and cold countries. There are some countries where there are four seasons in a year and some countries where there are only two.

When it is day in one country it is night in another country.

When the sun shines it is day, when the sun does not shine it is night. You can see the moon and the stars in the sky at night.

People live in different countries. They speak different languages.

Our country is Russia. Russia is the largest country in the world. Our country is so large that when it is morning in the east, it is evening in the west. When it is winter in the north it is summer in the south.

There are a lot of long rivers, beautiful lakes, large forests and fields and high mountains in Russia.

People who live in Russia speak more than one hundred different languages but they can speak Russian too.

II. Answer the questions.

1. Where do people live?

2. Is the Earth big or small?

3. What is there on the Earth?

4. Where is there water on the Earth?

5. The Earth is beautiful, isn't it?

6. Why do we say that the Earth is full of wonders?

7. Why do people speak different languages?

I. Read the text

Traditions and Customs

Every nation and every country has its own traditions and customs. In Britain traditions play a more important role in the life of people than in other countries. They say British people are very conservative. They are proud of their traditions and carefully keep them up. But when we speak about British traditions we always remember that there are four parts in Britain - England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Traditions are different in these parts of the country.

You already know some of the English traditions and holidays. We hope you remember St. Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Hallowe'en which have also become traditional American holidays. Here are some more facts about old English traditions.

One of the old English legends says that London can be the capital of the country, rich and great until twelve black ravens live in the Tower of London. Each has got its name and the keepers carefully look after them. If one of the birds dies, another younger raven takes its place. Londoners believe this legend and always bring some food to give to the birds when they come to the Tower. The keepers cut the birds' wings a bit as they are afraid that they may fly away.

Another old English tradition is Guy Fawkes Day. Children go out into the streets on the 5th of November with figures like scarecrows. They stand in the streets and squares asking for the usual "Penny for the Guy". Then with the money they have collected they buy fireworks and burn the guy (the figure like a scarecrow) on their bonfire.

People watch fireworks and some people go to parties in the evening.

Though different countries have different traditions and holidays people all over the world know some of them. They are - Easter, Christmas and New Year.

II. Answer the questions.

I. Read the text.

SCOTLAND

Although Scotland forms a part of the United Kingdom, it has a distinct character of its own. In area it is more than half as big as England. Its population is, however, only one-eighth as great - about 5 200 000.

Scotland is a land of romance and it has had a most eventful history. The Picts and Celts lived there before the coming of the Romans to Britain. Those Northern tribes worried the Romans so much that the Great Wall was built to protect the Roman camps in the Northern part of England.

It was in the 11th century that the Normans began to settle in Scotland. Almost all of Scotland's history is associated with and reflected in many castles and forts that are to be seen all over the country. They are very picturesque, having retained their medieval features: stern, proud, impressive, perched high on a rock or at a hillside. Mary, Queen of Scots, the beautiful Mary Stuart was married in one of them, and her son James (who was to become James I of England) was born in another.

And now some words about the Highlands. For centuries the Highlands were a strange land, where the king's law common to all the rest of the country, wasn't even known, where wild people spoke a language no one could understand. Long after the rest of Britain adopted modern ways they kept to the old life.

In 1603 King James VI of Scotland became King James I of England too, and from then onwards the countries were under the same monarch, though the Act of Union was not passed until 1707. This Act incorporated Scotland with England in the United Kingdom, but the Scots kept their own legal system, religion and administration, centred in Edinburgh.

Edinburgh - the capital of Scotland has always been admired as one of the most beautiful cities. Glasgow - its second city - always had a bad reputation. It was too often seen as a dirty, run-down urban area. The buildings have been cleaned up, the streets are tidy and the people now take an obvious pride in their city. Glasgow was chosen to be the cultural capital of Europe 1890.

Not far from Glasgow there is one of the most famous of Scotland's many lakes (called «lochs»), Loch Lomond. Scottish numerous valleys are known as «glens». Scotland is a country with an intense and living national tradition of a kind only too rare in the modern world. It has its distinctive national dress, the kilt, worn only by men. It also has its own typical musical instruments (the pipes, sometimes called «the bagpipes»), its own national form of dancing, its own songs, language, traditions and education. Scotland has even its own national drink, a fact so widely known that one need only ask for «Scotch».

Notes

The Picts and Celts - пикты и кельты (племена)

tribe - племя

camp - лагерь

to pass the Act - принять Акт/Закон (в парламенте)

II. Answer the questions.

1. What is the population of Scotland?

2. Why was the Great Wall built?

3. Why are there so many castles in the country?

4. What have you learnt about the Highlands?

5. When was the Act of Union passed?

6. What's the country's second city?

7. What do they call Scottish valleys and lakes?

8. Are national traditions still alive in Scotland?

I. Read the text

The Rich Man and the Gold

There was once a very rich man. He had three cars and two houses and many other things. One day he said, «I am getting old. I'm going to sell everything and buy a big piece of gold. »

He sold his houses and his cars and everything and he bought a very big piece of gold. He dug a hole near a tree, and he put the piece of gold into the hole. «No one will find my gold here», he said.

Every day he went back and dug up the gold. He looked at it and said, «Good! My gold is there». Then he put the gold back into the hole and put the earth back on top of it.

But one day there was a man behind the tree. He was a thief and he was asleep. The rich man didn't see the thief. He dug up the gold and looked at it. «Good! » he said, «My gold is there». The thief woke up and looked round the tree. «What is the man putting into the hole? » he thought. «I'm going to find out». The rich man put the gold back into the hole and went away. Then the thief went to the hole and dug up the gold. «A big piece of gold! » he said. «It's my gold now. I am a rich man. » He ran off with the gold and never came back. The next day the first man came back and began to dig. He dug and he dug but he did not find the gold. «My gold is not here», he said. «I am not a rich man now. I have no gold! » and he began to cry. Then he went home and told one of his friends. His friend said, «Don't cry. Here is a big stone. Take it and put it in the hole. Then every day you can go and dig it up and look at it». A piece of gold in a hole is no better than a stone.

II. Answer the questions.

1. What had the rich man?

2. What did he sell and buy?

3. What did he do with the piece of gold?

4. Every day he went back and dug up the gold, didn`t he?

5. Did the rich man find the gold the next day?

I. Read the text

Marco Polo

Marco Polo is famous for his journeys across Asia. He was one of the first Europeans to travel in Mongolia and China. He wrote a famous book called 'The Travels'.

He was born in Venice, Italy in 1254. In 1272, when he was only 17 years old, he travelled to Asia with his father and uncle. The journey was very long. They visited a lot of places and saw wonderful things: eye glasses, ice-cream, spaghetti and the riches of Asia.

After three years they entered China through the Great Wall. In 1275 Kublai Khon, the Emperor of China, met the visitors at his Summer Palace in the capital of China at Xanadu. The palace was very beautiful. There were a lot of gold things and silk curtains. The Emperor gave a big banquet. There were more than a thousand people in the palace. On the emperor's birthday 5,000 soldiers rode through the city to the palace on elephants. Marco Polo visited some huge markets, where merchants from all over the world bought and sold all kinds of things. He was happy to see one of the greatest cities of the thirteenth century and spent 18 years in China.

When he returned to Italy in 1295, he became a popular storyteller. People came to his home to hear stories about his journeys in the East. Many of them did not believe him. When he died, he said: 'I haven't told half of what I saw, because no one can believe it.'

II. Answer the questions.

1. Who was Marco Polo?

2. When and where was he born?

3. Who did Marco Polo travel to Asia with?

4. What did he visit and see?

5. When did he return to Italy?

I. Read the text

London

London is the capital of Great Britain. London is a very old town. London is two thousand years old. Many years ago London was a small town on the Thames. There were a lot of villages round it. After many years London and three hundred villages grew into a very large city. Some of the names of those villages are the names of the streets in modern London-Kensington, Westminster.

Now London is a beautiful city with large squares and parks. The city of London is the business centre. East End includes the poor districts. West of London is the West End where rich people live.

Trafalgar Square is in the centre of the West End of London. In the centre of Trafalgar Square there is the column made of granite. On the top of the column there is a 17-feet-tall statue of Admiral Nelson who defeated the French at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1809. The total high of the monument is 184 feet (44 meters).On the pedestal is a bronze relief cast from a captured French cannon, representing Nelson's victory.

On the North side of Trafalgar Square is the National Gallery. The National Gallery has one of the finest collections of pictures in the world.

Trafalgar Square is one of the busiest places in London, where people go to and from the work, it is hard to cross the street.

II. Answer the questions.

1. What is the capital of Great Britain?

2. How many years is London?

3. What includes the poor districts?

4. Where do rich people live?

5. Where is the Admiral Nelson column?

I. Read the text

THE STORY OF MY TROUBLES

From my childhood I was an easily taught and obedient boy. My kindness was so noticeable that my friends made fun of me. I was especially fond of animals and had a great number of pets. With these I spent most of my time, and never was so happy as when feeding and playing with them. My character did not change much when I grew up.

I married early, and was happy to find in my wife a character very much like my own. Seeing my love for pets she never lost a chance of getting the most pleasant animals. We had birds, gold-fish, a fine dog, rabbits, a small monkey, and a cat.

This cat was a remarkably large and beautiful animal, quite black and surprisingly clever. In speaking of his cleverness, my wife, who was a superstitious woman, often mentioned the old popular belief, which considered all black cats to be in disguise.

Pluto- this was the cat's name-was my favourite pet and playmate. I alone fed him, and he followed me everywhere about the house. It was even with difficulty that I could prevent him following me through the streets.

Our friendship lasted for several years, during which my character (I blush to confess it) had changed for the worse. I became day by day more moody and irritable. It often happened that I hurt the feelings of others; I suffered myself as I was rude to my wife. At last I even hit her.

My pets, of course, could feel the change in my character. In fact, I began to treat them cruelly. As for Pluto, I held back from cruelty as I did treat cruelly the rabbits, the monkey, or even the dog when they came in my way. But my illness took hold of me- for what other illness is like alcohol!- and at last even Pluto ,who was now becoming old, even Pluto began to feel the effects of my temper.

II. Answer the questions.

1. What kind of pets do they have?

2. What was the cat's name?

3. What illness had the author?

4. Was he a kind man?

5. How long did their friendship last?

Television in Our Life

Television is an important part in our lives. People can watch many really exciting programmes: informational, musical, political, educational, sporting, for children and for adults. It's enough difficult to say what programmes are most interesting.

The political and informational programmes discuss important events of our state and abroad. Most of people like musical programmes as "MTV", "New songs about main things", and others because music helps to win through bad mood or to weather difficult times. Such programmes as "The Millionaire" and "The Dancing with the Stars" are entertaining and enjoyable.

Schoolchildren can learn better biology, zoology, and geography by watching regularly such TV programmes as "The World of Animals", "The Travelers Club", "The Animals Planet", which attract the attention of adult people, too.

Education in Russia

An educated person is one who knows a lot about many things. Education is very important in our life.
In the Russian Federation the school education is compulsory. Pupils begin to go to school at the age of six. When they complete high grades they can either continue to study at school for more 2 years, or go to a professional school where they study not only main subjects , but are able to learn some profession. When school pupils leave school they can try to continue their education in institutes or universities.
There are many school types of schools in Russia: specialized, politecnical, musical art and others. Nowdays appeared some new types of schools: gymnasiums and colleges.

Sport in our life.

People all over the world are very fond of sports and games. The most popular outdoor winter sports are shooting, hunting, and hockey and, in the countries where the weather is frosty and there is much snow - skating, skiing and tobogganing. It's so nice to go to the skating-rink on a frosty sunny day.

Summer affords excellent opportunities for swimming, boating, yachting, cycling, and many other sports. Among outdoor games football takes the first place in public interests; this game is played in all the countries of the world. Badminton is also very popular both with young and old.
Among indoor games are billiards, table tennis, draughts, chess, of course. The results of chess tournamets are studied and discussed by enthusiasts in different countries.
So we have all grounds to say that sport is one of the things that makes people kin.