(9/11)
What do old
and young do in their leisure time ? What do young people in
different countries prefer to do ?
Leisure is time
spent in non-compulsory activities. Because leisure time is free
from compulsory activities such as work, study, household
duties, eating and sleeping, it is often referred to as 'free
time'. The ideas of leisure and leisure time are thought to have
emerged in the late 19th century with the rise of mechanized
industry, when the increase in productivity of labour resulted
in the fact that workers had some time to spend on themselves.
They started
doing sports and visiting theatres. Since then the idea of
leisure time and relaxation has been popular with all the age
groups and social classes. Old and young, rich and poor have
been using their free time for rest and entertainment. The ways
people spend their leisure time normally differ according to the
age group: middle-aged and old people normally prefer more
passive kind of rest like watching TV or going to the theatre,
or sometimes gardening, younger people enjoy more active
pastimes like doing extreme sports, visiting night clubs and
discos or travelling. However, the idea of active leisure like
doing sports or travelling is gaining popularity with the older
people, too.
So the basic
leisure time activities of the young are travelling, doing
sports including extreme sports, visiting discos and night clubs
or more passive ways of recreation like listening to music or
watching TV and videos, and surfing the Internet. Teenagers
normally prefer to do extreme sports, that is sports featuring
speed, height and danger as they lead to the so-called
'adrenaline rush9 in participants. They wish to push themselves
to the limits of their physical ability and fear, and push the
boundaries of a particular sport, such as bungee jumping,
climbing, white-water rafting, surfing, windsurfing and many
others. Their tastes in music are normally different kinds of
popular music associated with youth subcultures, such as hard
rock, hip-hop or rap, punk rock, psychedelic rock and the like.
In watching TV and videos or going to the cinema, they prefer
film genres which are full of action, movement, colour, cinema
effects and have a good soundtrack. They normally like action
films, comedies, musicals, thrillers and cartoons.
Sometimes the
ways young people spend their free time varies according to the
country, as they sometimes depend on national traditions. For
example, in the USA young people normally like different types
of popular culture which originated in their country like blues,
different kinds of rock, country music and hip hop in music and
pop art in fine arts. The sports they are doing are more often
than not those which originated in America like baseball,
auto-racing, basketball, and board-based recreational sports —
surfboarding, skateboarding and snowboarding. American
youngsters are fond of eating out and eat a lot of junk food
like hambuigers and cheeseburgers and drink Coca-cola or Pepsi.
British youngsters are really fond of watching football matches
and sorts of races such as horse-racing, boat-racing and even
dog-racing, as well as playing football, rugby and golf and
taking part in races. They are really fond of pets and often
spend some time in the evening taking their dog for a walk. In
going out for the evening, they still prefer pubs to
restaurants, bars and cafes. In music, their tastes are nearly
the same as those of their American peers. In Germany young
people prefer drinking beer when meeting their friends and
spending much time doing various sports. In Spain many
youngsters, as well as older people, are fond of watching
bullfighting. In France they like listening to French chanson.
(9+)
What do you
like doing in your free time?
As for me, I
prefer to spend my free time doing three things: doing swimming,
pursuing my hobby which is collecting rare books, or listening
to music in which I prefer jazz and classical music. Doing
sports (I have been doing swimming since I was 7) helps me keep
fit and be always in high spirits, as well as build up stamina
and get tempered. The first reason why I collect books is that I
am really keen on reading: Books open to me a whole world of
events and people. The second one is that collecting rare books
is getting to know history better. Reading a book is getting
information about the period it describes, feeling its
atmosphere and getting to know historical figures of the period.
I enjoy listening
to music, as music helps me relax and relieve stress. When I
listen to music, classical, jazz, rap or any other type of music
I enjoy, I forget about the troubles of everyday life; music
provides an escape from everyday problems. Stress melts away as
I am taken in by the beauty of the music. It can help me feel
calm and deeply relaxed. Secondly, music affects my emotions.
Each type of music sets distinct mood and changes mine. Whether
I am feeling sad, frustrated or confused, I listen to merry or
tender music, and my mood shifts. I can't say I prefer to listen
to some definite kind of music all the time. The choice of music
I listen to depends on my state of mind and mood. I can tell you
what kind of music I prefer to listen to when I feel depressed,
and it is jazz. The first reason why I do it is that jazz music
usually has a powerful rhythm, so it is a kind of music that
fills you with energy and strength. Secondly, it provides a
brilliant combination of instrumental tunes and voice, which
creates unforgettable harmony. Jazz immediately carries me away
from my troubles, fills me with hope and joy, even though its
tunes are often sad. I enjoy listening to classical music, too,
Firstly, I like it for the complexity of the musical harmony it
offers. Modern popular music, such as pop or rock is much more
primitive in melody. Secondly, the emotions classical music
evokes are much stronger and deeper; they carry me away to the
time when the piece of music I am listening to was composed.
(11+)
A thing we do in
our free time for recreation and pleasure is called a hobby.
Hobbies are practiced for interest and enjoyment, rather than
for money. What are hobbies for some people are professions for
others: a game tester may enjoy cooking as a hobby, while a
professional chef might enjoy playing computer games. Generally
speaking, the person who does something for fun, not
remuneration, is called an amateur (or hobbyist), as distinct
from a professional. Engaging in a hobby can lead to acquiring
substantial skill, knowledge, and experience. A lot of celestial
bodies and events have been discovered by amateur astronomers.
However, the aim of a hobby is pleasure and personal fulfillment.
While some
hobbies strike many people as trivial or boring, hobbyists find
something entertaining about them. In fact, anything can be a
hobby, from collecting stamps and board games to doing extreme
sports and making model airplanes.
Translate the
following sentences into English.
1. Время, когда человек свободен от обязательной
деятельности, такой как работа, домашние обязанности,
образование, еда, и сон, называется свободным временем.
2. Понятие свободного времени появилось в XIX веке с развитием
механизации в промышленности, когда рабочие смогли посвящать
больше времени отдыху.
3. Идея отдыха популярна среди всех возрастных групп и классов
общества.
4. Люди среднего возраста и пожилые люди обычно предпочитают
более пассивные виды отдыха, более молодые люди получают
удовольствие от более активных занятий, таких как занятия
экстремальными видами спорта, путешествия, посещения диско и
ночных клубов и некоторых более пассивных занятий, таких как
просмотр видео или интернет.
5. Экстремальные виды спорта — это виды спорта, которые отличает
скорость, высота и опасность, вызывающие так называемый «выброс
адреналина» у участников, которые заставляют себя достичь
пределов своих физических возможностей и страха.
6. Их вкусы в музыке — различные виды музыки, которые
ассоциируются с молодежными субкультурами, такие как тяжелый
рок, рэп, панк-рок, психоделический рок и тому подобное.
7. Они предпочитают жанры фильмов, которые полны действия и
киноэффектов и у которых хорошее звуковое сопровождение, такие
как фильмы-боевики, комедии, мюзиклы, триллеры и мультфильмы.
8. Молодежь США предпочитает блюз, рок, музыку кантри и хип-хоп,
бейсбол, автогонки, баскетбол и виды спорта, основанные на
применении доски, а также высококалорийную пищу с низкой
питательной ценностью.
9. Британские молодые люди любят домашних животных, пабы и
традиционные британские виды спорта; испанские молодые люди
любят смотреть бой быков.
(9+)
10. Я предпочитаю проводить свое свободное время, занимаясь
своим хобби (собирание редких книг), слушая джаз или занимаясь
плаванием, что помогает мне быть в хорошей форме и всегда в
хорошем настроении, воспитывать выносливость и закаляться.
11. Музыка помогает мне расслабиться и снять стресс, который
тает, когда меня захватывает музыка, она дает возможность уйти
от повседневных проблем и создает определенное настроение.
12. У джаза мощный ритм, который наполняет энергией и силой, он
представляет собой блестящее сочетание инструментальных мелодий
и голоса, что создает незабываемую гармонию.
13. Я люблю классическую музыку за сложность музыкальной
гармонии, которую она предлагает, и за те чувства, которые она
вызывает.
(11+)
14. Хобби занимаются скорее ради интереса, удовольствия и
личного удовлетворения, чем из-за вознаграждения, хотя занятия
хобби может привести к получению значительных навыков, знаний и
опыта.
1. A time when a
person is free from compulsory activities such as work,
household duties, education, eating and sleeping is called free
time or leisure time.
2. The notion of leisure time emerged in the 19th century with
the rise of mechanised industry when workers could give more
time to recreation and leisure.
3. The idea of relaxation is popular with all the age groups and
social classes.
4. Middle-aged and old people normally prefer more passive kinds
of rest, younger people enjoy more active pastimes like doing
extreme sports, travelling, visiting discos and night clubs, and
some more passive leisure time activities like watching videos
or surfing the Internet.
5. Extreme sports are sports featuring speed, height and danger
and leading to the so-called 'adrenaline rush' in participants
who push themselves to the limits of their physical ability and
fear.
6. Their tastes in music are different kinds of music associated
with youth subcultures, such as hard rock, rap, punk rock,
psychedelic rock and the like.
7. They prefer film genres which are full of action and cinema
effects and have a good soundtrack, like action films, comedies,
musicals, thrillers and cartoons.
8. The US youngsters prefer blues, rock, country music and hip
hop, baseball, auto-racing, basketball and board-based sports,
as well as junk food.
9. British youngsters are fond of pets, pubs and traditional
British sports; Spanish young people like watching bullfighting.
(9+)
10. I prefer to spend my free time pursuing my hobby— collecting
rare books, listening to jazz and classical music or doing
swimming which helps me keep fit, be always in high spirits,
build up my stamina and get tempered.
11. Music helps me relax and relieve stress which melts away as
I am taken in by the beauty of the music, it provides an escape
from everyday problems and sets distinct mood.
12. Jazz has a powerful rhythm, which fills you with energy and
strength, provides a brilliant combination of instrumental tunes
and voice, which creates unforgettable harmony
13. I like classical music for the complexity of the musical
harmony it offers and the emotions it evokes.
(11+)
14. Hobbies are practised for interest and enjoyment and
personal fulfilment, rather than for remuneration, though
engaging in a hobby can lead to acquiring substantial skill,
knowledge, and experience.
Из пособия "ЕГЭ. Английский язык.
Устные темы" Занина Е.Л. (2010, 272с.) - Part
one. English examination topics. Forms 9/11.
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