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Television in our life
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Whether we realize it or not, TV plays a very important part in our lives. It's the main source of information and a cheap form of entertainment for millions of people. It's the window on the world which gives us an opportunity to " travel" all over the world, to " meet" different people and learn about their customs and traditions. It has the power to educate and broaden our minds.
It helps us to relax after a hard day's work and escape from reality. There’s always a great variety of programs on TV: news and sports programs, talk shows and TV games, documentaries and feature films, concerts and theatre performances. Of course, not all programs are good. But many are made in good taste and with great professional skill. One of the advantages of watching television is the possibility to find out a lot of information.
At the same time there are a lot of arguments against TV. People do not know how to spend their free time without television. They can watch television programs from about six in the morning to the early hours of the next day watching everything. Some people argue that television is a terrible waste of time. It makes us lazier. We stay at home instead of going out. We read less. We think less. We even talk less. It's true that some TV addicts spend hours in front of the “box” watching whatever’s on — from second-rate Mexican soap operas to silly commercials.
We should control television and use it intelligently. The idea is to turn on the TV-set only when there's a really interesting program.
Violence on TV is another problem that worries people. As George Mikes once said, TV teaches us “how to kill, to rob, to shoot and to poison.” But the same can be said about computer games and many films and books. And if you don't like a certain program, why watch it?
Vocabulary
to turn on the TV-set – увімкнути телевізор
intelligently – розумно, з розумінням
TV addicts – телевізійна залежність
to find out – дізнатись
Exercise 3. Discuss the following with the class:
1. What is television nowadays?
2. How often do you watch TV?
3. What TV programs do you know?
4. What TV programs do you watch most of all? Why?
5. What are the advantages of TV?
6. What are the disadvantages of TV?
7. Why do we like to watch TV programs?
8. What makes TV be so popular?
9. Television is a wonderful invention. Do you agree?
10. Can television be the reason for violence and cruel behavior?
*Exercise 4. Find out the meaning of the unknown words from the list. Put each of the following words or phrases in the correct gap:
program, channel, commercials, quiz shows, subjective, prime-time, documentary, media, newscast, viewers, soap operas, watch, switch, surfing, couch potato, talk shows, series, movie, network, cable, infomercials
TV is an incredibly varied … which goes from awful to fantastic. Of course, what you consider worthwhile is a very … matter. Personally, I think that… such as The Bold and the Beautiful are the very worst! There is nothing worse than being a …, sitting there … from one… to the next. There certainly is a lot to choose from though. The major … are having quite a lot of competition from the… channels. I really like these channels as they often offer … that I really enjoy. Nature shows and other informational … are wonderful. One thing I like to watch during the evening, the so called…, are the question and answer shows called …and a…. I also like a few of the…, such as Friends. The worst things about television are the…. Even worse are the…, which can last up to 30 minutes! I usually… channels and … something else. One of the strangest things about television are the…. I don't really understand what… like about these shows. Oh well, what a world we live in!
Exercise 5. Read and translate the following sentences:
1. Television helps us to learn more about the world and to know and see many new things. Television can often present information to us in a more effective way than books can. It can also make things more memorable.
2. It entertains us. In is an enjoyable way to relax. For millions of people around the world, television is a source of companionship.
3. It has increased the popularity of sports and arts.
4. It has made us aware of our global responsibilities. In 1985, for example, 1.5 billion people in 147 countries watched a TV pop concert and help to collect more than $100 million for people in Africa.
5. Television can make us passive. We don’t have to think and our brains become lazy.
6. It takes time away from activities such as reading, conversation, and games.
7. It gives a false picture of society. A study in 1994 showed that people who watched a lot of television are more afraid of crime. They also think that there is a lot more crime than there really is.
8. Some critics say that television makes people violent. A ten-year study in the United States showed that children who watch violent television programs are more likely to be violent themselves.
Exercise 6. Read the following statement and decide either they are true or false, using the expressions below:
It is interesting to note; As far as I know; To my mind; Speaking of; As far as I remember; I’d like to stress the point; On the contrary; All in all.
1. Today most people watch too much television.
2. Television widens and enriches your knowledge.
3. Television can encourage passivity.
4. It stops or inhibits conversation in the family.
5. Television stations broadcast too much violence.
6. Television often stops people from reading.
7. Sitting in front of the TV is a good way of relaxing.
8. Television exerts too much influence over people.
*Exercise7. Match the types of films with their definitions and make up your own sentences using the words given below:
| 1. Mystery | A) It is amusing and has a happy ending. |
| 2.Drama | B) It is a story about a love affair. |
| 3. Action | C) It is full of exciting events, danger and adventure. |
| 4. Cartoon | D) It is full of frightening scenes and makes people afraid. |
| 5. Musical | E) It is based on imagined scientific discoveries of the future, space travel and life on other planets. |
| 6. Historical | F) It has moving drawings. |
| 7. Infantile | G) It is about the story of a person’s life written by somebody else. |
| 8. Adventure | H) It is about crimes and strange events that are only explained at the end. |
| 9. Western | I) It is an exciting story, especially one about crime or spying. |
| 10. Thriller | J) It has topics for children. |
| 11. Disaster | K) It is about cowboys in the west of the USA. |
| 12. War | L) It is about an unexpected event which causes a lot of damage. |
| 13. Crime/detective | M) It is about people and events in the past. |
| 14. Biography | N) It is about illegal acts or activities that involve breaking the law. |
| 15. Romantic | O) It gives facts and information about something. |
| 16. Science fiction | P) It includes singing and dancing. |
| 17. Suspense | Q) It is about a situation in which two or more groups of people or countries fight against each other. |
| 18. Comedy | R) It is full of exciting situations, risks and dangerous experiences. |
| 19. Horror | S) It is about a state or feeling of excited or anxious uncertainty about what may happen. |
| 20. Documentary | T) It is about an exciting or emotional series of events. |
| 21. Silent | V) It is made by people for fun. |
| 22. Home | U) It has no spoken words. |
Exercise 8. Complete the sentences with the suitable words:
Comedy, drama series, presenter, newsreader, documentary, game show, chat show, soap opera, commentator
1. Did you see the first episode of the new…on TV last night? The actors were very good, and the story was very interesting but very sad.
2. Jill Newman is a … on breakfast television. She introduces the program and talks to guests. Before that, she was a…. on News at Ten.
3. Did you watch the … about the history of India?
4. It’s on at seven o’clock four times a week. It’s my favourite …. I know the people in the program. They are like friends.
5. It’s a fantastic….If you answer ten questions correctly, you can win a million pounds.
6. Did you see Tom Cruise on TV last night? He was interviewed by Jonathan Pross on his new….
7. I think Jon Botson is a great …. He gets very excited when he describes somebody scoring a goal in a football match.
8. It was a very funny…. I laughed and laughed.
*Exercise 9. Do a quiz:
1. I love TV. I can watch it all day sometimes. If I get bored watching something on one channel, I just ______ over to another channel.
a) jump
b) switch
c) hop
d) move
2. My friend is a real TV addict. You can't talk to her sometimes because she's just _____ to the box.
a) glued
b) stuck
c) riveted
d) frozen
3. In the UK, what we can watch on TV is much more liberal than in the past, but even now some things are still ________.
a) outcast
b) censored
c) outlawed
d) no-show
4. I hate being in a room with somebody who is channel _______. I just want to watch one programme from beginning to end.
a) jumping
b) leaping
c) swapping
d) hopping
5. Last night, I watched a fascinating fly-on-the-wall ___________ about people coping with disability.
a) soap
b) drama
c) documentary
d) broadcast
6. Tonight's concert of Mozart and Handel is being broadcast ____ from the Royal Albert Hall.
a) in the flesh
b) fresh
c) live
d) currently
7. The picture on the TV is awfully dark. Would anybody mind if I turned up the __________?
a) lightness
b) brightness
c) brilliance
d) luminance
8. People are always writing letters of complaint about the number of _______ on TV but I miss so many programmes that I like it when they show things again.
a) reviews
b) second showings
c) re-broadcasts
d) repeats
9. I've decided to get a satellite dish because some of the satellite channels offer exclusive ________ of important sporting events like boxing and European football matches.
a) portrayal
b) broadcasting
c) coverage
d) viewing
10. Nowadays, many people complain about the ____________ of television but I think modern programmes are just as intelligent as programmes twenty years ago.
a) lowering IQ
b) brain-drain
c) de-braining
d) dumbing down
11. My cousin is a real _____ potato. The only exercise he ever gets is picking up the remote control to change channels.
a) sitting
b) lazy
c) couch
d) permanent
12. People get annoyed with me for always changing the channel, but whatever I'm watching, I'm always worried that I'm missing something better on the other ____.
a) stream
b) broadcast
c) track
d) side
**Exercise 10. Do a research project. Find out the following and tell to the class:
· What beneficial activities can TV keep people from doing?
· How can parents control their children’s TV viewing and keep them from watching things inappropriate for their age?
· Do you think that TV gives us a distorted view of life and teaches us wrong values?
· Television is our friend or enemy? Why do you think so?
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