1. Read the text and
translate it
Halloween
Halloween! A time
for games, fun and fortune-telling, for ghosts stories and making mischief. At
Halloween on October 31, millions of people celebrate a very old festival
indeed.
For centuries,
people believed that Halloween was a night when witches walked – or flew! – and
ghosts and spirits were on the loose. What makes Halloween so special is its
long and colorful history. For all the fun games, it is part of the story of
Britain, Ireland and northern France – part of their 2000-year-old Celtic past.
Halloween
was originally known as the Festival of the Dead. The church wanted to break
its hold, and to do this called it All Hallows’ Eve. Hallow means holy, holy
man or saint. This later became Halloween, and the church made November 1 All
Saints’ Day. But Halloween was never really a Christian festival.
Many ancient people
believed that on certain nights of the year the spirits of the dead went
wandering. One such people were the Taino Indians. They lived on the island of
Puerto Rico long before the Spanish arrived. The Indians thought the hungry
souls of the dead might return to the family hut. For this reason they used to
set out food offerings at night.
Before
northern Europe became Christian, people believed that every autumn there came
a night of howling wind and frightening happenings. Witches rode the air,
skeletons rattled their bones, and ghosts appeared out of the swirling mists.
The
Christian religion has set aside a special day to honor all those saints who do
not have name of their own. It is November 1, and it is called All Saints’ Day.
In Europe, the night of the ghosts and witches was combined with the Christian
holy day. Because that night fell on October 31, people called it Halloween.
This means “hallowed evening” or “holy eve”.
Today’s
Halloween customs in English-speaking America – mainly the USA and Canada - had
their beginnings in England, Scotland, and Ireland long, long ago.
The snarling black
Halloween cats with arched backs are said to have once been human beings who
were punished for their evil deeds. The grinning jack-o’-lantern carved from
the harvest pumpkin is said to be the head of a man named Jack. He was so mean
he could not enter heaven or hell, but had to walk the earth forever.
On
Halloween, people often go to parties at which fortunes are read and ghost
stories are told. Children may dress up in the costumes and masks of witches,
goblins, or skeletons and go trick – or- treating. They ring doorbells for
candy, apples, or coins. If they do not receive a treat, they may play a trick.
Some
Halloween tricks are messy and annoying. Children may slap at sidewalks or
front doors with socks filled with flour. They may smear windows and parked
cars with shaving cream or soap. But other tricks may permanently damage
property and even harm people.
2.
Answer the following questions:
1. When do millions of
people celebrate Halloween?
2. What day is special
for dead?
3. Where did Today’s
Halloween customs have their beginnings?
4. What does the
snarling black Halloween cat and grinning jack-o’-lantern mean?
5. What do people do on
this day?
3.
Find the English equivalents:
Страшные
события; ведьма; призрак; День Всех Святых; наряжаться в костюм; разыграть
шутку; фестиваль мертвых.
4. Write a recipe using at least one of the
following ingredients. Name your recipe.
Recipe
title: __________________________
Ingredients:
__________________________
_____________________________________
How
to cook: _________________________
_____________________________________
5. Use the following code to learn the
secret. Write the letters on the correct lines
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_! _ _ _! _ _ _!
6. Read and translate the story
The Green Ribbon
Once there
was a girl named Lenny. She was like all the other girls, except for one thing.
She always wore a green ribbon around her neck. There was a boy named Alfred in
her class. Alfred liked Jenny, and Jenny liked Alfred. One day he asked her,
“Why do you wear
that ribbon all the time?”
“I cannot tell
you,” said Jenny. But Alfred kept asking,
“Why do you wear
it?” And Jenny would say,
“It is not
important.”
Jenny and Alfred
grew up and fell in love. One day they got married. After their wedding, Alfred
said,
Now that we are married,
you must tell me about the green ribbon.”
“You still must
wait,” said Jenny. “I will tell you when the right time comes.”
Years p[assed.
Alfred and Jenny grew old. One day Jenny became very sick. The doctor told her
she was dying. Jenny called Alfred to her side.
“Alfred,” she
said, “now I can tell you about the green ribbon. Untie it, and you will see
why I could not tell you before.” Slowly and carefully, Alfred untied the
ribbon, and Jenny’s head fell off.
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