Mrtin Eden / Мартин Иден (в сокращении). Книга для чтения на английском языке

Of his own class he saw nothing. The girls of the Lotus Club which he had frequented wondered what had become of him.

During those several weeks he saw Ruth half a dozen times. She helped him with his English, corrected his pronunciation, and started him on arithmetic. But their intercourse was not all devoted to elementary study; and there were times when their conversation turned on other themes – the last poetry he had read, the latest poet she had studied.

As her interest in Martin increased the remodelling of his life became a passion with her.

“I want to tell you about father’s friend Mr. Butler,” she said one afternoon when grammar and arithmetic and poetry had been put aside. “His father had come from Australia and when he died Mr. Butler, Charles Butler he was called, found himself alone in the world without any relatives in California. He went to work in a printing office – I have heard him tell of it many times – and he got three dollars a week at first. His income to-day is at least thirty thousand a year. How did he do it? He was honest and industrious and economical. He denied himself the enjoyments that most boys indulge in. He had his eyes fixed always on the future. He worked in the daytime and at night he went to night school. He was ambitious. He wanted a career, not a livelihood and he made sacrifices for his ultimate gain. He decided upon the law and he entered father’s office as an office boy, think of that, and got only four dollars a week.

But he had learned how to be economical and out of that four dollars he continued saving money. He studied bookkeeping and typewriting. He quickly became a clerk and made himself invaluable. Father appreciated him. It was on father’s suggestion that he went to law college. He became a lawyer and father took him in as junior partner. He is a great man. Such a life is an inspiration to all of us. It shows that a man with a will may rise superior to his environment.”

She paused for breath and to see how Martin was receiving it.

“Do you know,” he said, “I feel sorry for Mr. Butler. He robbed himself of life for the sake of thirty thousand dollars a year. Working all day and studying all night – just working, never having a good time!”

Martin was dissatisfied with Mr. Butler’s career. There was something paltry about it after all. Thirty thousand a year was all right, but inability to be humanly happy robbed such an income of its value.

Much of this he tried to express to Ruth and shocked her and made it clear that more remodelling was necessary. She could not guess that this man who had come from beyond her horizon had wider and deeper concepts than her own;

and she dreamed of helping him to see as she saw, of widening his horizon until it was identified with hers.

Exercises

1. Listen to the chapter with your book closed and mark the statements Y (yes) or N (no).

1. Nothing remained for Martin but to read.

2. The librarian was annoyed to see Eden every day.

3. The librarian did not give Eden any advice.

4. Martin decided to phone Ruth.

5. Ruth wondered if she could get some advice from Martin.

6. Martin’s grammar was awful.

7. Ruth explained to Martin how to speak correct English.

8. Ruth did not have any intention to remodel Martin’s life.

9. Ruth considered the life of Mr. Butler should be an inspiration to all.

10. Martin’s ideas did not surprise Ruth.

2. Learn the words from the text:

proper, devote, ordinary, attempt, contradiction, profoundly, solve, advice, tackle, interrupt, assist, hurt, demand, complete, ambitious, sacrifice, identify.

3. Complete the sentences using the words from the text. Make the changes where necessary.

1. “I’m sorry, I didn’t want to .......... you.”

2. Nothing is in its .......... place.

3. She .......... her carrier to bring up her children.

4. He .......... most of her time to his music.

5. The suspect .......... by a witness.

6. It was just an .......... Sunday evening.

7. He was an .......... hard working young clerk.

8. He thinks money .......... all his problems.

9. “Please, don’t .......... her while she is sleeping.”

10. The government is determined to .......... inflation.

11. “Can you give some .......... about buying a car?”

4. Choose a word to match the following definitions.

1) to say in a very firm way that you want something

2) right, appropriate or correct

3) to make somebody unhappy or upset

4) to spend a lot of time or effort doing something

5) determined to be successful, rich, famous, etc.

6) an act of trying to do something

7) to help someone or something

8) to find or provide a way of dealing with a problem

9) normal or average

10) an opinion you give someone about what they should do

5. Find in the text the English equivalents for:

неделя усиленного чтения, порвать с прежними привычками, столкновение идей, когда угодно, попросить совета, добраться до главного, выставить себя в глупом свете, куча родственников, резать слух, увлечь воображение, предаваться удовольствиям, человек с сильной волей.

6. Find the words in the text for which the following are synonyms: