Prime Time 7, Coursebook plus Semester Self-checks

is behind the English obsession with games? How did they acquire their odd attitudes to sex and food? Where did they get their extraordinary capacity for hypocrisy? I sought answers to the question through travelling, talking and reading. Several years later, I am a bit the wiser and have a different set of questions. And now I have just noticed that I am writing of the English as “they”, when I have always thought myself one of them. They remain elusive to the last. (From: Jeremy Paxman, The English: A Portrait of a People ) Text analysis a) What kind of text is “The English today”? b) Why do you think it was written? What is its purpose? c) What challenges do the English face according to the author? d) To what extent do you agree with Jeremy Paxman’s analysis? VIP file Jeremy Paxman is an award­ winning English journalist, author and television presenter. He is best known for his tough style of interviewing on the news programme Newsnight . For this reason people in the UK often describe tough questioning as being Paxmanesque. V 2  70 75 Writing: A personal view of the UK a) Research the attitudes of the Scots, the Welsh or Northern Irish to the UK and to the English. b) Write a personal statement of about 150 words from the point of view of one of them including historical and/or political aspects. Fact file Devolution in the UK In 1997 the Labour government began a programme of “devolving” power from central government to regional ones in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Since 1999 there have been a Scottish Parliament, a Welsh Assembly and a Northern Ireland Assembly, all of which have limited but important powers. They deal with issues such as education policy, the environment, health and internal transport. However, certain areas – including defence, foreign affairs and taxation – are “reserved”, i. e. they are still dealt with in Westminster. Supporters of devolution say that it improves democracy because people have more control of their own affairs. Critics argue that it is expensive and causes divisions between the regions. F 3  13 Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv