Домашнє завдання

Culture and Arts of Great Britain

10 Form. Attention!

Домашнє завдання (курс за вибором) на п'ятницю, 17.11.17: скласти конспект і читати та перекладати тексти.

The Cultural Symbols:

·       Big Ben

·       Buckingham Palace

·       The Houses of Parliament

·       The black taxi

·       The red telephone box

·       Stonehenge

·       The Tower of London

·       St. Paul’s Cathedral

Big Ben. The Houses of Parliament’s iconic clock tower is one of London’s most famous landmarks. Technically, Big Ben is the name given to the massive bell inside the clock tower, which weighs more than 13 tons (13,760 kg). The clock tower looks spectacular at night when the four clock faces are illuminated. The origin of the name Big Ben is not known, although two different theories exist. The first is that is was named after Sir Benjamin Hall, the first commissioner of works, a large man who was known affectionately in the house as "Big Ben". The second theory is that it was named after a heavyweight boxing champion at that time, Benjamin Caunt. Also known as "Big Ben", this nickname was commonly bestowed in society to anything that was the heaviest in its class.

Words:

commissioner [kə'mɪʃ(ə)nə] – спеціальний уповноважений, член комісії

affectionately [ə'fekʃ(ə)nɪtlɪ] – ніжно, з любов’ю

bestow [bɪ'stəʊ] – надавати, присвячувати

Buckingham Palace is a Royal residence. It was built in 1703 by the Duke of Buckingham. It is now the official home of Queen Elizabeth and the British Royal Family. It is a beautiful building which contains six hundred rooms and three miles of red carpet. It is like a small town with a police station, two post offices, a hospital, a bar, two sport clubs, a disco, a cinema and a swimming- pool. About 700 people work for the Palace. Two men look after the 300 clocks. On the top of the palace there is a flag. If it is down, it means that the Queen is not at home. But if it’s up, it means that the Queen is in her residence. Every day at 11 o’clock in the morning there is a famous ceremony near Buckingham Palace. This is the changing of the guard. Many tourists want to see this ceremony, as thirty guardsmen march to the Palace and take the place of the retiring guard.

Word:

retiring [rɪ'taɪ(ə)rɪŋ] – скромний

The Houses of Parliament is not an old building. It dates only from the 19^th century. This building is in the Gothic style. When the Parliament has a sitting, a flag flies from the Victoria tower.

The Tower of London rises above the other grey buildings of the capital. It is more than 900 years old. In 1066 William, Duke of Normandy, was crowned King of England. At once he ordered the building of fortifications to protect London. A great stone tower was built and it was called the Tower of London. Since then the Tower of London has been a royal palace, a fortress, an observatory, an arsenal, a royal mint, a zoo and a prison.

Many people had been locked in the Tower for religious beliefs or suspected treason. Spies were imprisoned here during both World Wars. Today it is the home of the Crown Jewels and national treasures, a museum and a great tourist attraction. There are many old customs in the Tower that have survived the centuries. The most famous and oldest of the Tower’s customs is the Ceremony of the Keys, which has been carried out with little change for about 700 years. It represents the official locking of the Tower for the night. In the Jewel House the Crown Jewels are kept. The collection includes Saint Edward’s Crown, used for the coronation ceremony, and the Imperial State Crown, containing 3,000 precious jewels. The royal sceptre contains the biggest cut diamond in the world, the “Star of Africa”. By tradition, there have been ravens at the Tower from its beginnings. Their presence has been protected by the legend that without its ravens the Tower will fall and the Kingdom with it. Nowadays, there are usually six ravens, whose wings are clipped. When one dies, a young bird is brought from Scotland, Wales or the West of England to replace it. The ravens have names and are taken care of by a Yeoman Warder known as the Raven Master.

Words:

fortification [fɔ:tɪfɪ'keɪʃ(ə)n] – укріплення

fortress ['fɔ:trɪs] – фортеця

observatory [əb'zə:vət(ə)rɪ] – обсерваторія

arsenal ['ɔ:s(ə)n(ə)l] – арсенал, запас зброї

mint [mɪnt] – монетний двір

treason ['tri:z(ə)n] – державна зрада

sceptre ['septə] – скіпетр

clip [klɪp] – підрізати

Yeoman Warder ['jəʊmən 'wɔ:də] – вартовий Тауера