10 didn’t realise they’d sucked out way too much fat. The funny thing was, her face was closer to being pretty than any of the rest. She had the big eyes, smooth skin, and small nose, but her cheekbones were too tight, the skull practically visible beneath her flesh. “What on earth is she?” “A model.” “Which is what?” “Kind of like a professional pretty. I guess when everyone else is ugly, being pretty is sort of, like, your job.” “And she’s in her underwear because … ?” Tally began, and then a memory flashed into her mind. “She’s got that disease! The one the teachers always told us about.” “Probably. I always thought they made that up to scare us.” Back in the days before the operation, Tally remembered, a lot of people, especially young girls, became so ashamed at being fat that they stopped eating. They’d lose weight too quickly, and some would get stuck and would keep losing weight until they wound up like this “model”. Some even died, they said at school. That was one of the reasons they’d come up with the operation. No one got the disease anymore, since everyone knew at sixteen they’d turn beautiful. In fact, most people pigged out just before they turned, knowing it would all be sucked away. Tally stared at the picture and shivered. Why go back to this? “Spooky, huh?” Shay turned away. ‘‘I’ll see if the Boss is ready yet.” Before she disappeared around a corner, Tally noticed how skinny Shay was. Not diseased skinny, just ugly skinny – she’d never eaten much. Tally wondered if, here in the Smoke, Shay’s undereating would get worse and worse, until she wound up starving herself. Tally fingered the pendant. This was her chance. Might as well get it over with now. These people had forgotten what the old world was really like. Sure, they were having a great time camping out and playing hide-and-seek, and living out here was a great trick on the cities. This starving almost-pretty was only one of them. Why go back to that? Tally popped open the heart pendant, looking down into the little glowing aperture where the laser waited to read her eye-print. She brought it closer, her hand shaking. It was foolish to wait. This would only get harder. And what choice did she have? (From: Uglies by Scott Westerfeld; adapted) 80 85 90 95 100 105 110 115 120 125 Questions Work with a partner. Go through the text again and then answer the questions. • When does the story take place? • Who are the protagonists in the story? • What is the Smoke? • Describe the setting in this part of the novel. What is different from New Pretty Town? • What happens to teenagers in New Pretty Town when they turn 16? • How does Tally react when she sees the picture of the skinny model? 2 134 Beauty and fashion trends Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv
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