“There he goes,” I said. “Over there. He’s crossing the street. He’s in a hurry.”
We watched the little man. When he reached the other side of the street, he turned left, walking very fast.
“He doesn’t look very tired, does he, mummy? He doesn’t look as if he’s trying to get a taxi, either.”
My mother was standing very still. “He’s up to something. Come with me.” We crossed the street together. It was raining very hard now, but we were under the silk umbrella.
“He said he was too tired to walk and now he’s almost running.” “He’s disappeared!” I cried. “Where’s he gone?”
“He went in that door!” It was a pub. The room we were looking into was full of people and cigarette smoke, and our little man was in the middle of it all, without his hat and coat, and moving towards the bar. When he reached it, he spoke to the barman. The barman gave him a drink. The little man gave him a pound. The barman didn’t give him any change. The little man drank it in one go.
“That’s very expensive drink,” I said.
He was smiling now. He went to where his hat and coat were. He put on his hat. He put on his coat. Then very quickly, he took from the rack one of the many wet umbrellas, and left.
“Did you see that!” my mother shouted. “Sssh!” I whispered. “He’s coming out.”
He didn’t see us. He opened his new umbrella and went down the road. We followed him back to the main street where we met him first, and we watched as he exchanged his new umbrella for another pound. This time it was with a tall, thin man who didn’t even have a hat or a coat. When it was over he went off again, this time in the opposite direction.
“He never goes into the same pub twice,” my mother said. “I expect he’s always hoping for a rainy day.” Note
He’s up to something. He is about to do something, usually something bad.
Exercise 1
Listen to the recording and choose the best answer to each question you hear.
1. Why was the mother so unpleasant to the old man at first? a. Because she wanted to reveal his real intention. b. Because she wanted to be sure that there was no trick involved. c. Because she really wanted to help him later. d. Because she knew him very well.
2. What made the narrator and her mother believe that the old man was not telling the truth? a. It was the speed with which he walked, after he said he was tired. b. It was the silk umbrella itself that made them think so. c. It was the fact that he disappeared in the rain all at once. d. It was the fact that they ran into him again in the street.
3. What can be concluded about the silk umbrella that the old man sold? a. It was his only property. b. It belonged to one of the pub-goers. c. The mother would return the umbrella to him. d. He had sold this umbrella to someone else before.
4. What can be inferred about the old man? a. He was a professional thief. b. He was poor and loved drinking. c. He was a smart person.
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d. He hated to live a poor life.
Exercise 2
Listen to the recording again and complete the sentences with what you hear.
1. It was a pub. The room we were looking into was full of people and cigarette smoke, and our little man was in the middle of it all, without his hat and coat, and moving towards the bar.
2. When he reached it, he spoke to the barman. The barman gave him a drink. The little man gave him a pound. The barman didn’t give him any change. The little man drank it in one go.
3. He was smiling now. He went to where his hat and coat were. He put on his hat. He put on his coat. Then very quickly, he took from the rack one of the many wet umbrellas, and left.
4. We followed him back to the main street where we met him first, and we watched as he
exchanged his new umbrella for another pound. This time it was with a tall, thin man who didn’t even have a hat or a coat. When it was over he went off again, this time in the opposite direction.
II. Speaking Tasks
A. Reflections on the texts
(1) Comment on the characters
You have just heard the story “The Umbrella Man.” Form pairs and make short comments on the main characters in the story. You can first write down what you think of them and then exchange views with your partner to see whether you agree with each other or not.
1) What kind of person was the mother?
She was a suspicious person but was willing to help others. She was also a practical woman, who knew how to take advantage of the situation. When she was offered an expensive silk umbrella, she was ready to accept it at a very small cost.
2) What kind of person was the narrator?
We can tell the narrator was a child. Unlike her mother, she probably didn’t know much about this complicated society and the real life of the poor. Yet, she had sympathy for those who were poor and needed help.
3) What kind of person was the old man?
He was poor. He loved alcohol but had no money. In order to get a drink, he would take advantage of a rainy day to steal an umbrella from a pub and exchange it for a little money. He didn’t feel ashamed at all in doing so and even acted as a pitiful old man. Surely he was clever and knew very well how to persuade people.
(2) Role-play
Form groups of three or four. Spend two or three minutes thinking about the old man’s behaviour. Put yourself in the position of one of the characters in the story and prepare an outline of what your chosen character might say about what happened. The following notes may help to start you off.
Role One
You act as the old man. You want to have a drink, but have no money. As you are thinking about how to get the money, you notice that it starts to rain.
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Opening remarks:
It was a fine day when I went out. I loved alcohol, but had no money on me. Then it started to rain and I got an idea. On rainy days, there are always some umbrellas in a pub.
Role Two
You act as the narrator. You really feel pity for the old man and would like to help him. But how? Give him some money for a drink or teach him a lesson and tell him not to pick up any more umbrellas from pubs?
Opening remarks:
It was a fine day and mother and I decided to go shopping in the downtown area of London. When we walked out of a department store, it was raining hard and we didn’t have any umbrella and for the moment no taxi was available. Just then, an old man came to us.
Role Three
You act as the mother. You are a suspicious person. Though you know the old man is lying to you, you find the temptation of having a silk umbrella is too great to resist, especially on this rainy afternoon.
Opening remarks:
It was raining hard and we hadn’t brought any umbrella with us. Worse still, there was no taxi in sight. What should we do? Then I heard an old man saying “Excuse me, madam.”
B. Picture talk
Do you believe in Internet romance? Do you often go online chatting with strangers? Every day, millions of people, especially the young, are online chatting with friends or strangers. Occasionally online chatting may spark a romance between two chatters and the Internet is full of stories about people who met casually as friends on the Net and later became inseparable as lovers. But, is this a rose without a thorn? Is online dating a cure for loneliness or a cause of it? Is it possible to fall in love online with someone you have never met in person, or is it only a fantasy? Look at the following pictures and describe them one by one. The opening sentences are already written out for you.
Picture 1
Li Ming loves chatting with people on the Internet. His screen name is Flying Fox and lots of people like his humorous language. He is now enjoying his time online.
Demo:
A sophomore at a university, Li Ming has a broad range of interests. He likes sports, computer games, photography and chatting with people on the Internet. He is good at typing and can sit in front of the computer screen for hours on end. Now we can see that he is so engrossed in chatting
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with a friend that he forgets meals. When he feels hungry, he would just have a bite of bread or have a cup of coffee.
Picture 2
People are usually more relaxed and bold online than they actually are in real life. Li Ming met a lady online the other day. Her screen name was Violet. Li Ming found that he and Violet had a lot in common and both of them loved movies.
Demo:
Now it’s already midnight. But he feels excited and sleepless. His fingers are dancing on the keyboard. They are talking about arts, literature, films they have seen, interesting places they have visited, etc. At this time, both of them feel they are close friends already, despite the fact they have never met each other offline.
Picture 3
Li Ming thought Violet was an ideal partner and could be the love of his life. He asked for Violet’s phone number and they decided to date.
Demo:
“Is she beautiful,” Li Ming often asks himself. For several times Li Ming asked Violet to send him a picture, but she refused. Sitting in a chair, he pictures Violet to be a pretty girl, very considerate and kind. He is weaving a dream of romance. Anyway he will meet her face to face and find out how she really looks like. He is looking forward to meeting her at 9:00 a.m. in the central park.
Picture 4
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Li Ming was too excited to go to sleep that night. Early the next morning he bought a bouquet of flowers and came to the park ahead of time.
Demo:
There are many people in the park. The sun is shining brightly and the flowers around are lovely. But Li Ming’s mind is too preoccupied to notice that. He keeps looking at his watch and the girls passing by. It’s already the time, and where is Violet? He starts to grow a little nervous. 9:30, and then 9:45. At this time, he notices a middle-aged lady who seems also waiting for someone. “Aren’t you Li Ming?” the lady asks. “You are…Violet?” Li Ming stammers out. Yet, quickly Li Ming regains his composure and gives Violet a bouquet of flowers with a smile.
C. Commenting
Children are taught the rule “Never talk to strangers” when young. Yet everyone is a stranger in the eyes of new comers. Gradually a stranger may become a friend. So make a short comment on the proverb “A friend without faults will never be found.” Give an example to illustrate your points.
Demo:
Well, I think there is some truth in this proverb. The proverb means no one is perfect and friends should forgive each other.
I can recall my college years when I lived with a roommate. He was regarded as a so-called trouble maker in our class. He had a lot of bad habits, such as spitting, smoking, snoring and liked to use four-letter words. So we all tried to avoid him whenever possible. But one day a small instance changed my opinion. Another classmate of mine went to the downtown area to do some shopping, but a thief stole his wallet and he had no money left to buy food in the following week. At this moment, the trouble maker volunteered to give him a helpful hand. Out of his own pocket, he bought my classmate enough food that could last him for a whole week. After this instance, I found that the trouble maker was not that bad. He liked sports and was good at it. He helped our basketball team to win the championship in our yearly school basketball tournament. Gradually we became good friends and shared a common interest in music as well.
So if you want to make friends, you have to tolerate their shortcomings. If you expect your friends to be perfect or without faults, then no one will ever meet that standard and you will have no friends. Part C Additional Listening
You’ve Got Mail
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