UK (798447), страница 7
Текст из файла (страница 7)
An Irish playwright Sean O’Casey wrote a number of tragicomedies, blending realism with symbolism and poetry with vernacular speech.
The poetic writings of William Yeats (1865-1939), marked with the Nobel Prize in 1923, had a great influence on the development of the British poetry of the 20th century. All his books of verses were full of the Irish spirit, brilliant vigorous technique, the combination of western viewpoint with national philosophy and traditions.
The War of the World by H. Wells (1866-1946) became the first great works of science fiction.
William Somerset Maugham (1874-1965) is considered to be the best short-story writer in English. Many of his stories, together with novels and plays have been dramatized and became very fashionable and successful. 
Agatha Christie, the world’s most successful and best-known detective writer, occupies a special place in British literature. During her long writing career she wrote over 83 books. Her detective novels were translated into every major language and tens of millions of her books were sold. Her little Belgian detective became as popular as Sherlock Homes by Arthur Conan Doyle. Poirot and her other detectives have also appeared in many of the popular films, radio programmers and stage plays, based on her books.
In the late 1950s John Osborne, one of a group of so-called Angry Young Men, achieved fame as an author of tough realistic drama about working class life. Iris Murdoch gained an international reputation for her “psychological detective stories’. Sir Arthur Clarke created a number of science fiction books but probably became best known for his book A Space Odyssey which was made into an extremely popular film.
English literature influenced the literatures of America, Europe, Russia and many other world countries. It also gave rise to the young literatures of former British colonies. For example, Paul Scot’s novels show the last years of the British presence in India, Alan Paton, Jack Cope, Alex La Guma wrote about the racial relationships in South Africa. Chinua Achebe described the tribal life in Nigeria. Nadina Gordimer, a white author from South Africa, was rewarded with the Nobel Prize in 1991 as the greatest English writer of her time.
Theater
Britain has a long tradition of theater. It was introduced from Europe to England by the Romans. By the medieval period theatre had developed a form of early street theatre, concentrating on themes such as Saint George and the Dragon and Robin Hood. The actors travelled from town to town performing those for their audiences.
The reign of Elizabeth I saw a flowering of the theater. The Elizabethan age is sometimes nicknamed "the age of William Shakespeare" for the amount of influence he held over the era. His 40 plays include tragedies, such as Hamlet (1603), Othello (1604), and King Lear (1605) Romeo and Juliet; comedies, such as A Midsummer Night's Dream (1594—96) and Twelfth Night (1602); and history plays, such as Henry IV.
During the Revolution of 1642—1660, English theatres were closed by the Puritans.When the London theatres were opened again with the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, they flourished under the personal interest and support of Charles II. The audiences were attracted by the introduction of the first professional actresses (in Shakespeare's time, all female roles had been played by boys). New genres of the Restoration were heroic dramas and comedies.
In the 18th century, the Restoration comedy was replaced by an overwhelming interest in Italian opera. A change came in the late 19th century with the plays by the Irishmen George Bernard Shaw, Oscar Wilde and Norwegian Henrik Ibsen, all of whom vitalised English drama again.
The Irish playwright Bernard Show, (1856-190) wrote a great number of satirical, witty and psychological plays that became well known not only in Britain, but also all over the world, including Russia. Among Shaw’s best-known plays are Heartbreak House, Saint Joan and Pygmalion, based on a Greek myth about a sculptor who carved a statue of a woman and fell in love with her. The adaptation of Pygmalion is a very popular musical “My Fair Lady”, successfully staged in Broadway and many Europeans theaters.
Today there are over 200 theaters in Britain: 40 of which are situated in London’s West End. The most famous British theaters are The Royal Opera and Royal Ballet, both based at Covent Garden, the National Theatre and the Barbican Theatre. The National is a part of the South Bank Arts Centre, located near the River Thames. The Centre contains three theatres, cinemas, an art gallery, lecture and concert halls. The diamond of the National is the 1.160-seat Oliver Theatre, named after famous actor and director Laurence Olivier. The Royal Shakespeare Company performs at the Barbican in London and in Shakespeare's birthplace Stratford-upon-Avon.
Pop music in Britain is an important part of British culture. It is mainly a mixture of styles. It is difficult to find people who don’t listen to music at least for pleasure so it is not surprising, that music can be an instrument of social influence and change. A prolific composer of the 20th century Andrew Lloyd Webber has dominated the West End for a number of years and his musicals have travelled to Broadway in New York and around the world, as well as being turned into films.
In the 20th century American influences became most dominant in popular music, with young performers producing their own versions of American music, developing a parallel music scene. This led to the explosion of the 'British Invasion' of America of the early 1960s, headed by The Beatles, with movements on one side of the ocean being exported to the other. As a result of these factors the United Kingdom remained a major source of musical innovation and participation in the modern era.
1. Answer the following question:
1. When was the term ballad used in its present sense?
2 .What is one of the oldest printed fairy tales in England?
3. What important information does the British folklore contain?
4. What English fairy tales and legends do you know?
5. Which English writers do you know?
6. Which English writers have you read in English?
7. What do you know about UK theater?
8. Have you read or seen any Shakespeare plays?
9. Have you seen any Shaw’s plays?
2. Translate the following sentences into English:
1.Главная причина уникальности культуры Великобритании лежит на поверхности. 2. Большинство английских сказок существовали только в устной форме. 3. Сказки с одинаковыми сюжетами и героями можно обнаружить практически во всех европейских культурах.4.Баллады можно считать богатым источником информации об истории, общественной жизни, чувствах и ценностях англичан. 5. Легенды о короле Артуре начали появляться в 12 веке и, возможно, в их основе лежат предания о предводителе кельтов 5 или 6 веков, защищавшего страну от саксонского нашествия . 6.Самые древние баллады о Робин Гуде относятся к 15 веку. Его имя впервые упоминается в английской литературе в поэме Вильяма Лэнгланда, написанной в 1377 году, и позже в 18 веке в правительственных документах. 7. Можно с уверенностью сказать, что Робин Гуд действительно был похож на человека, описанного в старинных балладах. 8. Великий шотландский поэт Роберт Бернс любил свою родину, своих соотечественников и писал, в основном, о них.9. В 1718 году, когда английскому писателю Даниэлю Дэфо было уже около 60 лет, он встретил моряка, который пробыл много лет один на необитаемом острове около Чили. 10.Необычные приключения моряка Селкирка захватили его воображение, и Дэфо написал историю человека, потерпевшего кораблекрушение. Он выбрал остров в другой части мира и создал вымышленный образ своего героя Робинзона Крузо.11. Мастерство журналиста позволило Дэфо создать очень правдивую и увлекательную историю. Книга имела грандиозный успех. Читатели поверили в реальность описанного.
Suggested themes for the projects (compositions) on the UK life ( 5-12 pp).
1.Important scientific and technological advances made by people from the UK
2.Scientific research
3.Cultural life.
4. Music.
5. Literature and writers
6. Museums and interesting sights
7. National life and characters
8. Personalities
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