Political Attitudes
It’s often said and does seem to be true: Americans seem almost instinctively to dislike their government and politicians. They especially tend to dislike those “fools in Washington” who spend their tax money and are always trying to “interfere” with their local and private concerns. Many would, no doubt, agree with the statement that the best government is the one that governs least.
Americans are seldom impressed by government officials (they do like royalty, as long as it’s not theirs). They distrust people who call themselves experts. They do not like being ordered to do anything. For example, in the Revolutionary War of Independence (1776-83) and in the Civil War (1861-1865), American soldiers often elected their own officers. In their films and fictions as well as in television series, Americans often portray corrupt politicians and incompetent officials. Anyone who wants to be President, they say with a smile, isn’t qualified. Their newsmen and journalists and television reporters are known all over the world for “not showing proper respect” to governmental leaders, whether their own or others. As thousands of foreign observers have remarked, Americans simply do not like authority.
Many visitors to the US are surprised to see that Americans from different spheres of life, people with different educational and social backgrounds, will often start talking with one another “just as if they were all equal”. Is everybody equal in the land that proclaimed – in the eyes of God and the law – that “all men are created equal”? No, of course, not. Some have advantages of birth, wealth or talent. Some have been to better schools. Some have skins or accents, or beliefs that their neighbors do not especially like. Yet the ideal is ever present in the land where so many different races, language groups, cultural and religious beliefs, hopes, dreams, traditional dislikes have come together.
All in all, what do Americans think of their system of government? What would “We the People” decide today? One American, a Nobel Prize winner in literature, gave this opinion: “We are able to believe that our government is weak, stupid, dishonest, and inefficient, and at the same time we are deeply convinced that it is the best government in the world, and we would like to impose it on everyone else.”
B) To show that you understand the main points of the text, answer the following questions in writing. Give as laconic answers as possible.
1) What do Americans seem to feel to their government and politicians?
2) What do they dislike most of all?
3) Why do Americans show disrespect to government officials, whether their own or others?
4) What are many visitors to the United States surprised to see?
5) Is everybody really equal in the land that proclaimed that “all men are created equal”?
6) Do Americans really dislike their government and would like to change it?
C) Translate the marked passage of the text into Russian in writing.
TEST 5
(Variant 2)
To complete this Test refer to GRAMMAR REFERENCE for revision.
GRAMMAR
Conditionals
Complete each sentence below with the best answer.
Example: 1a
1. Unless you … your room, you couldn’t invite your guests there.
a) had clean
b) cleaned
c) had cleaned
2. The man wouldn’t be dead now if his wife … the ransom.
a) had paid
b) would pay
c) would have paid
3. They … a new shop if they weren’t rich.
a) wouldn’t open
b) didn’t open
c) wouldn’t have opened
4. If Kate … so clever, she would have lost all her money last year.
a) wasn’t
b) weren’t
c) wouldn’t be
5. If the girl … accused of murder, she would get a good job now.
a) hadn’t been
b) wasn’t
c) not be
2. Using the words in brackets, complete the sentences below with the appropriate conditional form.
Example: 1) had passed; would have got
1) If I (pass) the test, I (get) an ‘A’ in the class. Instead, I got a ‘C’. I really should have studied more.
2) I’m sorry I didn’t know you were allergic to chocolate. If I (know) then, I (make) you a vanilla birthday cake.
3) Stop asking me what Amanda bought you for Christmas. Even if I (know), I (not/tell) you.
4) Nobody here speaks English. Too bad Gloria is not here. If she (be) with us, she (act) as our interpreter.
5) If I (be) in Tahiti right now, I (snorkel) along a beautiful reef. I wouldn’t be stuck here in this office with mountains of paperwork.
6) If I (be) rich, I (buy) that new Mercedes we saw yesterday. Unfortunately, I can’t even afford a used car.
7) If I (be) you, I (not/cancel) that flight.
8) I (have) a new coat now if I (buy) that one in Paris.
9) Unless the story (be) the truth, we (not/print) it today.
10) If you (study) harder in the past, you (have) a better job now.
Word Formation
1. Complete each sentence below by choosing the correct word form (verb, noun, adjective).
Example: 1 c
1. He’s very sensitive, he can’t accept any …
a) criticize
b) critical
c) criticism
2. I can’t take care of the children alone. It’s too much …
a) responsible
b) responsibly
c) responsibility
3. You can buy excellent rye bread in that …
a) bake
b) baker
c) bakery
4. He got a prize for costume …. His costumes were very creative.
a) original
b) origin
c) originality
5. I … dancing to eating out.
a) preference
b) prefer
c) preferable
6. Staying at home is … to going out.
a) preference
b) prefer
c) preferable
7. No, I’m not …. I’m just feeling very tired right now.
a) sick
b) sicken
c) sickness
8. No, I don’t like her perfume. Its smell … me.
a) sick
b) sickens
c) sickness
2. Add appropriate suffixes to the words in brackets to fill in the blanks with suitable word forms.
Example: 1) introduction
1) The … of ethical policy was quite a shock. (introduce)
2) Our company works in … with a Danish firm on this project. (cooperate)
3) He is an excellent football … (play)
4) When can we expect …? (deliver)
5) Children love … toys. (colour)
6) Some organizations give their workers … to develop their roles. (free)
7) We will try to offer you a … interest rate. (favour)
8) The two countries have signed an … on trade and … cooperation. (agree, culture)
9) Smoking is … to health and in many countries a warning is printed on every packet of cigarettes. (harm)
10) The report which doesn’t contain all the necessary facts is … and makes a bad impression. (use)
3. The nouns below can all be used to form another noun which has a related, but slightly different meaning by adding the suffix – ship(member – membership). Complete the sentences which follow by choosing a suitable noun in – ship from the list below. Rewrite the sentences.
Choose from: member/leader/dictator/citizen/partner
1) The US Constitution provides for three parts of power to avoid …
2) American … can be gained by birth, adoption, registration or naturalization.
3) Anita Morgan was extremely pleased when Smith and Jones, the owners of the company she had directed for five years, asked her to form a … with them.
4) ‘This country needs a strong … to tell people what to do and get things working again!’
5) ‘That’s an exclusive club. May I see your … card, please, sir?’
4. Choose the correct word to complete each sentence below.
Example: 1a
1. I’m not sure it’s …. Why don’t you ask your lawyer friend?
a) illegal
b) unlegal
2. If you are … you shouldn’t apply for this job.
a) unexperienced
b) inexperienced
3. Oh, come on. You must agree this is absolutely …
a) immoral
b) unmoral
4. Are you …? If you do this jump you are going to die.
a) unsane
b) insane
5. The accident caused … damage of his car.
a) unreparable
b) irreparable
6. The worst enemy in relationship is ….
a) distrust
b) untrust
7. I’m absolutely sure it wasn’t Kate! She’s … of something like that.
a) uncapable
b) incapable
8. I don’t think the police will be able to … the drug dealers.
a) unarm
b) disarm
9. It’s very … that he will come to your party. He doesn’t like crowds.
a) improbable
b) unprobable
10. Her father … of her dating John. He thinks John is a bad influence.
a) unapproves
b) disapproves
5. Complete the definitions on the left with the words on the right. Use a dictionary if necessary.
Example: 1) inadequate
| 1) Something that is … is not good enough. | unlawful |
| 2) A person who can’t read and write is … | unfamiliar |
| 3) If somebody is …, you cannot trust or depend on them. | unconstitutional |
| 4) Something that is … is too big to be measured. | inadequate |
| 5) A person who is … cheats others. | unreliable |
| 6) Something that is against the law is … | dishonest |
| 7) If the law does not conform to the constitution, it is … | illiterate |
| 8) Something or somebody you haven’t seen before is … to you. | immeasurable |
VOCABULARY
1. Complete the following text with the words and phrases from the box.
Example: a) republic
| constitutions states national | federal government republic | laws democracy powers |
The United States is a democratic a) … or a representative b) …. The c)... government is a government of all Americans and their representatives. It is called the d) …government because the nation is a federation, or association of the states. The US Constitution gives the federal e) … only limited powers which are stated in the Constitution. All other f) … belong to the individual g) …. The states are allowed to have their own h) … and i) …
READING COMPREHENSION
a) Read the text ‘What is Monarchy?’
What is Monarchy?
In a monarchy the head of state, the nation’s representative-in-chief, inherits that position from her or his parents and is entitled to hold it until death. The people have no say in who should represent them.
Supporters of monarchy at one time based the monarch’s claim to power on “divine right.” They said that the privilege was given by God. The increasing power of the middle class and the development of democratic ideas brought about a gradual reduction in royal power.
In Britain we now have a “constitutional monarchy” in which the monarch acknowledges the rights of the legislature and the executive branch of government. The Windsor family has put about the idea that they will “go quietly” when the British people ask. However, members of the family are said to believe that their family does have a unique right to their status. They act as if determined to hold on to their hereditary privileges.
There are 45 countries besides Britain that still have a monarchy. Sixteen of them, all members of the Commonwealth, have Britain’s queen Windsor as head of state. They are Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Canada, Grenada, Jamaica, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, St. Christopher & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu.
Other countries which still have monarchies include the Netherlands, Morocco, Norway, Sweden, Japan, Denmark and Belgium. Liechtenstein has an absolute monarch by the name of Hans-Adam. In 1999 he was found by the European Court of Human Rights to have suppressed freedom of expression in his principality.
Britain’s head of state is known as the queen if a woman and the king if a man. Only members of the Windsor family are eligible to be head of state.
The British people have never had the chance to vote for or against a monarchy. Unlike countries which have a written constitution, much of our system of government has been inherited from an undemocratic past. Although Parliament might vote to abolish the monarchy, under the Treason Felony Act 1848 it is treason if “any person whatsoever, within the United Kingdom or without devise or intend to deprive our most gracious Lady the Queen from the style, honor or Royal Name of the Imperial Crown of the United Kingdom.” Many monarchists argue that advocating republican democracy is therefore seditious and illegal.