1. What do you know of Somerset Maugham? 2. What do you think of his stories and novels? 3. Who is the narrator of the story

«The Happy Man»? 4. What can you say about the structure of the story? 5. What conclusions as to Somerset Maugham's attitude to -

wards life and relations between people can you draw from the first passage? Do you share his views? 6. Translate the following sen-

tences from the first passage into Russian, paying attention to the metaphors: a) "Each of us is a prisoner in a solitary tower." b) "But

there are men who flounder at the journey's start." с) "I have been forced to point the finger of fate." d) "I have seen myself for a mo-

ment wrapped in the dark cloak of Destiny." Explain how the metaphors contribute to the vividness of narration. 7. Point out three

metaphors and three epithets used by the author to characterize Stephens and comment on them. 8. Give synonyms of colloquial style

to the following literary words: 'to flounder', 'hazardous', 'content', 'a trifling indisposition', 'errand', 'to perceive'. 9. What words and

phrases are used to describe Stephens at the beginning and at the end of the story? How can the reader gather that Stephens was

happy in Spain? What was it that attracted him to Spain? 10. How does the author draw the main character: by de scribing him or by

showing him through his actions and conversation? 11. Find evidence in the story that the author sympathized with Stephens. What

traits of character did the doctor possess that appealed to the author? 12. How would you explain the title of the story? 13. What is the

message of the story and by what devices did the author achieve the effect?

13.Retell Text Seven close to the text.

14.Give a summary of Text Seven.

15.Discuss Stephens's idea of happiness.

16.Make up and act out a dialogue between two friends discussing what happiness is.

VOCABULARY EXERCISES

1. Study the Vocabulary Notes and translate the illustrative examples into Russian.

2.Translate the following sentences into Russian. Pay attention to the words and word combinations in bold type:

A. 1. Confide in me, and all will be well. 2. He had to make sure that she would not be likely to confide the whole story to

Gervase, which she might do. 3. Kayerts was moved almost to tears by Wallace's kindness. He would, he said, by doing his best, try

to justify his confidence. 4. Doubtless he realized that something was in the wind, but I'did not think it necessary to take him fully

into my confidence. 5. He inspired universal confidence and had an iron nerve. 6. Turning towards her he saw a glimmer of

understanding come into her eyes, and he quickly smiled to give her confidence. 7. It had become his second nature to listen to

confidences and not to offer them. 8. Mr. Pyne, what I am about to tell you is in the strictest confidence! You do understand that,

don't you? 9. During the war Bret was sure she had never worried about him, she was perfectly confident of his coming back unhurt.

Her confident letters had made him lonely. 10. He hurried up the basement stair and out of the house, and started running along the

street. 11. He started the motor and the boat swung away from the dock. 12. Everyone assumed from the start, just as I did myself,

that Gilbey was a writer. 13. I told him the whole story from start to finish. 14. Finally, with a start, he aroused himself from his

reverie. 15. The luxury of the house embarrassed Dolly and made her feel badly dressed, out of place and timid. 16. Miss Brown

poured out her story, going back to points she had forgotten, getting confused and repeating herself. 17. The accident threw the

traffic into confusion.

18. There was just awkward embarrassment in not knowing how to react to such a curious outbreak. 19. I noticed he'd dropped his

Yorkshire accent. 20. He had developed the habit of dropping in on her sometimes during the week to discuss the latest news. 21.

"You can drop me at Darlinghurt if you don't mind." Magda pulled the car abruptly. 22. Constance bit back her desire to tell Miss

Chetond to mind her own business. 23. I've never been the nervy type who minds the dark or being alone in an empty house. 24.

She had a passion for cars — in fact, she said, she had always been mechanically-minded and used to drive a sports car. 25. At the

back of his mind there lurked an uneasy sense of danger. 26. He had gone through these movements in his mind so often that he

now acted purely automatically. 27. Miller was not a very good driver really. He went in fits and starts as if he could not make up his

mind where he was going. 28. He had half a mind to walk out of the hotel, leaving everything behind.

B. 1. He qualified as a doctor, though he never practised. 2. Dad always practised what he preached; and we respected him

greatly. 3. "At any rate their efforts to teach us handicrafts were not a success," said Jim. "As usual the theory was right, but the

practice went wrong." 4. He's never been up against any of the first-rate players and it would be wonderful practice for him. 5. He

took an angry look at Mr. Crabben, but it was impossible to suspect that young man of a practical joke. 6. Marjorie and Dorothy

shared a natural intimacy, being closer together in age, so Phyllis was the odd one. 7. She had been feeling the weight of her eighty-

odd years moving slower, talking less. 8. She had apologized for having to give up the odd jobs she had done for them. 9. I did not

listen to them attentively, I only heard some odds and ends. 10. "Death is nothing to be afraid of," he said, "I think about it every

day of my life." "You're very odd," she said, "I try never to think about it at all." 11. I had that queer feeling that one sometimes has when sitting in an empty room that one is not by oneself. 12. What concern is it of yours? —This is the least of my concerns. I just

wanted to help. 13. Philip looked at the kid with some concern. What sort of man was he going to be, he wondered. 14. But I

recommend you not to repay his hospitality by taking his wife's side against him in a matter that doesn't concern you. 15. Just why,

I wanted to think about it, to concern myself with it in any way, I wasn't clear about. 16. She was tortured by an irresistible and ill-

bred curiosity concerning the identity of the visitor. 17. He walked past them with as unconcerned an air as he could assume. 18.

Her holiday had done her good, but she was concerned about him, his lack of appetite and haggard look. 19. She looked round

nervously, but everybody was too concerned with his or her own reaction to the news to observe the reactions of anybody else. 20.

They got small thanks for their sympathy. 21. I understood for the first time how Father felt about his garden. I wondered how often

and how obviously I'd shown my lack of sympathy at his enthusiasm about it. 22. Campion felt that it was impossible not to

sympathize with her, even if her point of view was not altogether his own. 23. The reporters looked back, the coroner ordered

silence, the shocked public made sympathetic murmurs. 24. His reputation had been built on the fact that he often succeeded