Family, Market and Public Places

The unit opens with three pictures and a question: what are they about, and how do people make requests (ask for something politely) in each place?

Picture	What it shows	A request someone might make there
a man with a camera to his eye	a photographer at work	Could you move a little to your left, please? (the photographer to the person he is photographing)
crowds among piles of shoes	a shoe fair in a market	Can you show me these in size 40? Could you give me a better price?
travelers with suitcases in a big hall	an airport	Could you tell me where the check-in counter for Pokhara is? Would you mind keeping an eye on my bag for a minute?

Notice what the requests have in common: they are questions (Can you…? Could you…? Would you mind…?), not orders (Show me!), and many have please in them. In English a request phrased as a question sounds polite, because it leaves the other person free to say no.

Before you read

What kind of text it is

Thomas and Jerry is a short story with a lesson, like a fable but set in our own time. It is told in the past tense by a narrator, and much of it is dialogue, the words the characters say, in quotation marks. Watch how the people in it ask for things: Could you please tell me…?, May I know…?, Will you go home with me?, Would you stay for a few days? Those are this unit’s requests, in action.

The story moves between three places: the city where the son works, his office, and the village where his parents live.

The story, part by part

1. A father sets out

Jerry is an old man who lives in a village. He hasn’t seen his son, Thomas, who lives in the city, for a few years, and he wants to meet him. So he travels to the city and approaches (comes near to) the house his son’s letters used to come from long ago. He knocks, smiling with joy, but a stranger opens the door: Thomas has moved away. Jerry is disappointed and ponders (thinks hard about) how he will find his son now.

2. Finding the office

As he walks down the street, the neighbors ask whether he is looking for Thomas. He nods (moves his head up and down to say yes), and they give him the address of Thomas’s office. At the reception counter he asks politely where Thomas works in the building. The receptionist (the person at the front desk who greets visitors) asks how he is related to Thomas: “I’m his father.” She phones Thomas, who is stunned (too shocked to react) and asks for his father to be sent to his cabin (his small office) at once.

3. “I’m afraid I can’t”

When Jerry sees his son, his eyes fill with tears. Thomas is happy to see him. After a while, Jerry asks: Thomas’s mother dearly wants to see him; will he come home with his father? Thomas says no: he is busy working for his success, his hands are full of stressful work, and it is hard to get leave (time off work). Jerry smiles and says he will go back to the village that evening. Thomas asks him to stay with him a few days, but Jerry refuses gently: he doesn’t want to be a burden (a heavy load, a trouble) to his busy son; he would be happy to meet him again some day. Then he departs (leaves).

4. Thomas feels guilty

A few weeks later, Thomas starts to wonder why his father had come all that way alone, after so long. He feels he treated his father in a weird (strange) way, and he feels guilty. So he takes a few days’ leave and goes to his village. But his parents are not in the house where he was born and grew up. Shocked, he asks the neighbors where they are, and they give him an address.

5. A sad new home

Thomas scurries (hurries with short, quick steps) there, and finds a place so bleak and lonely that it seems like a graveyard (a place where the dead are buried). With tears in his eyes he walks slowly toward it. His father sees him in the distance and waves; Thomas runs to him and hugs him.

6. The truth comes out

Jerry is surprised and glad to see him. Thomas is ashamed and keeps his head down: he never imagined he would find his parents living like this. Then Jerry explains, smiling. He had taken a loan (borrowed money) to pay for Thomas’s college education when he moved to the city, and another when Thomas wanted a new car. But the farm made a loss, and he couldn’t pay the loans back. He thought of asking Thomas for help, but his son was so busy, bustling (rushing about) with his work, that he stayed silent rather than burden him. To repay the loan, he had to let the family home go (give it up).

7. What parents want

Thomas whispers that his father could have told him: he is not an outsider. Jerry answers that his son was so busy and stressed that he chose to stay quiet: all they had ever wanted was his happiness. Thomas cries, hugs his father again, says sorry and asks him to forgive him. Jerry radiates (shines with happiness): there is no need for that. He is content (satisfied) with what he has. All he asks is that Thomas spares (gives) some time for them, because they love him, and at their age it is hard to travel to see him.

What it means. Thomas is not a bad son: he is busy, and he loves his father. His mistake is that he puts his work first and never asks how his parents are. Jerry, too, is proud and kind in the same way: he would rather lose his home than burden his son. The story asks us to notice the people who gave us everything, and to ask, listen and visit before it is too late. The lesson is in Jerry’s last words: what parents want most is not money but time.

Words from the story

Words linked here open in English Vocabulary, where you can see an example and practice them in the word game. The meanings below are the ones the words have in this story.

Word	Meaning here
approach	to come near to a place or a person
ponder	to think carefully about something for a time
nod	to move your head down and up, to say yes
receptionist	the person at the front desk of an office or hotel who greets visitors
stunned	so shocked that you can’t speak or react for a moment
burden	a heavy load; a trouble or worry that someone must carry
depart	to leave, especially to start a journey
weird	very strange, not normal
scurry	to hurry with short, quick steps
graveyard	a piece of land where the dead are buried
ashamed	feeling bad because you have done something wrong
bustle	to move about busily, in a hurry
repay	to pay back money you borrowed
whisper	to speak very quietly, using your breath, not your voice
radiate	to show a feeling clearly, as if shining with it
content	(adjective, stressed con-TENT) happy and satisfied with what you have
spare	to give time or money to someone, even when you are busy

A. Find the words

B. True or false?

C. Answer the questions

D. Talk about it

In every English word of two or more syllables (beats), one syllable is said louder, longer and a little higher than the others: it is stressed. HOL-i-day has three syllables, the first one stressed. Put the stress in the wrong place and a listener may not recognize the word at all. Dictionaries mark the stress with ˈ just before the stressed syllable: /ˈhɒlədeɪ/.

Word	Syllables, stress in capitals	British	American
holiday	HOL-i-day	/ˈhɒlədeɪ/	/ˈhɑːlədeɪ/
continue	con-TIN-ue	/kənˈtɪnjuː/	/kənˈtɪnjuː/
intention	in-TEN-tion	/ɪnˈtenʃn/	/ɪnˈtenʃn/
attitude	AT-ti-tude	/ˈætɪtjuːd/	/ˈætɪtuːd/
unlikely	un-LIKE-ly	/ʌnˈlaɪkli/	/ʌnˈlaɪkli/
membership	MEM-ber-ship	/ˈmembəʃɪp/	/ˈmembərʃɪp/
conditional	con-DI-tion-al	/kənˈdɪʃənl/	/kənˈdɪʃənl/
mistake	mis-TAKE	/mɪˈsteɪk/	/mɪˈsteɪk/
apology	a-POL-o-gy	/əˈpɒlədʒi/	/əˈpɑːlədʒi/
family	FAM-i-ly	/ˈfæməli/	/ˈfæməli/
surprise	sur-PRISE	/səˈpraɪz/	/sərˈpraɪz/
distance	DIS-tance	/ˈdɪstəns/	/ˈdɪstəns/
unnatural	un-NAT-u-ral	/ʌnˈnætʃrəl/	/ʌnˈnætʃrəl/
hotel	ho-TEL	/həʊˈtel/	/hoʊˈtel/
deny	de-NY	/dɪˈnaɪ/	/dɪˈnaɪ/
monument	MON-u-ment	/ˈmɒnjumənt/	/ˈmɑːnjumənt/
marriage	MAR-riage	/ˈmærɪdʒ/	/ˈmærɪdʒ/
secondary	SEC-ond-ar-y	/ˈsekəndri/	/ˈsekənderi/
progressive	pro-GRES-sive	/prəˈɡresɪv/	/prəˈɡresɪv/
believe	be-LIEVE	/bɪˈliːv/	/bɪˈliːv/
examination	ex-am-i-NA-tion	/ɪɡˌzæmɪˈneɪʃn/	/ɪɡˌzæmɪˈneɪʃn/

So eight of the words are stressed on the first syllable (holiday, attitude, membership, family, distance, monument, marriage, secondary), twelve on the second (continue, intention, unlikely, conditional, mistake, apology, surprise, unnatural, hotel, deny, progressive, believe), and examination on the fourth. (Marriage and distance have only two syllables. Secondary has four in American English, SEC-ond-ar-y, but usually only three in British English, SEC-ond-ry.)

A request asks someone to do something for you, or asks if you may do something. In English, the more polite you want to be, the longer and the less direct the request becomes:

How polite	Asking someone to do something	Asking if you may do something
friendly, direct (family, friends)	Can you pass the salt?	Can I use your pen?
polite (almost anyone)	Could you pass the salt, please? Would you pass the salt?	Could I use your pen? May I use your pen?
more polite (a stranger, a bigger favor)	Could you possibly pass the salt? Would you mind passing the salt? Do you think you could pass the salt?	Do you mind if I use your pen?
very polite (someone important, a big favor)	I wonder if you could pass the salt. Would you be so kind as to pass the salt?	Would you mind if I used your pen? Might I use your pen?

To answer: Yes, sure. / Of course. / No problem. / Here you are. And to say no, politely: I’m sorry, I can’t… / I’m afraid not, because… / I’d rather you didn’t.

A. Four conversations

The task’s four short conversations each show a different way of asking. Here is what happens in each:

• Conversation I, in a gift shop. A customer asks the shopkeeper, Would you help me find a birthday gift for my father? The shopkeeper answers with a very polite suggestion, Might I suggest this tie?, and the customer likes it.
• Conversation II, in a shop. A customer asks to see a shoe brush and a nail cutter (Could you show me…, please?), then adds a second, softer request: I wonder if you could give me gift paper. The shopkeeper says No problem and offers to wrap them.
• Conversation III, at home. A child finds the room stuffy and asks for permission: Do you mind if I turn the fan on? Her mother answers No, I don’t mind at all: she would like some fresh air too.
• Conversation IV, at the table. Someone asks, very politely, Do you think you could possibly pass the pepper? The answer: Yes, of course. Here you are.

B. Conversations from clues

Can, could and would are modal verbs: no -s for he, she, it, and the base form of the verb after them (Could you help?, never Could you helps? or Could you to help?). Here they are in the four jobs this unit uses them for:

To	Use	Example	Answers
request: ask someone to do something	Can / Could / Would you + base form?	Can you help me with this desk for a moment? Could you say congratulations to your brother for me?	Yes, sure. / Of course. / I’m sorry, I can’t.
ask permission: ask if you may do something	Can / Could / May I + base form?	Can I play now? Could I borrow your pen?	Yes, of course. / Go ahead. / I’m afraid not.
offer help or something	Can I…? / Shall I…? / Would you like me to + base form? / Would you like + a thing?	Can I help you? Would you like me to answer the phone? Would you like some help?	Yes, please. / That would be lovely. / No, thanks, I’m fine.
invite	Would you like to + base form?	Would you like to come for lunch this weekend?	Oh, I’d love to, thank you. / I’d love to, but I’m busy then.

A. Study the examples

B. Complete the conversations

How to write a request letter

A request letter is a formal letter (also called an official letter): you write to someone in their official role (a head teacher, a ward chairperson, an office) to ask for something. Its parts, in order:

1. Your address and the date at the top. In a school letter, your class and school will do.
2. The receiver’s title and address: The Head Teacher, the school’s name and address.
3. Subject: what the letter is about, in a few words: Request to organize….
4. Salutation: Dear Sir, / Dear Madam, (or Dear Sir/Madam,).
5. Body: paragraph 1, who you are and what you request; paragraph 2, why (the reasons); paragraph 3, exactly what you need, with details; a short polite close (We hope you will kindly consider our request.).
6. Closing: Yours faithfully, then your name and position (Class Captain, Grade 9 ‘B’).

The language of requests in a letter is longer and more careful than in speech: I would like to request you to…, We would be grateful if you could…, Could the school possibly…?, We would request you to…, We hope you will kindly consider….

In your final exam, an official letter like this is a Free writing II task (about 200 words, 8 marks), marked on its content, organization, language and layout.

Before you read

The reading begins with two pictures of dancers.

What kind of text it is

Dance is a humorous monologue: one person talking, as if to an audience, telling a story from his own life to make people laugh. The speaker talks straight to us (Do you remember the Star Disco in Thamel?, you know), corrects himself, and keeps the best joke for the very last line. It is the kind of piece a comedian might perform on stage.

It is also about this unit’s grammar: four young men ask a girl for a dance, each with a polite request, and each is turned down. Watch the requests.

The story, part by part

1. A shy young man at a disco

The speaker remembers the first time he went to a disco (a place where people dance to recorded music), when he was very young and shy. He reminds us of a disco in Thamel that was always full of beautiful girls, and adds a joke: most of them are grandmothers now. (So the story happened long ago, and the speaker is no longer young.) Too shy to ask anyone to dance, he sits and watches how the other lads (young men) do it.

2. The first man

A man walks up to a lovely girl in a blue dress and asks, in a grand, old-fashioned way, if he may have the pleasure of the next dance. She doesn’t hear him (Eh? What did you say?, it’s a noisy disco), so he tries again, even more politely and nervously: he wonders if she would be kind enough to dance with him… if she doesn’t mind. She says no, thank you very much.

3. The second man

A few minutes later another chap (man) arrives, with a big smile: would she be so kind as to have the next dance with him? Pardon? (“What did you say?”) says the girl. He asks again, more nervously: would she mind having the next dance with him? No thanks.

4. The third man

The third fellow is very good-looking, the speaker says: “black teeth, white hair”. Then he corrects himself: he means white teeth, black hair. This man is extremely polite, and climbs up the ladder of politeness as he speaks: Can I… could I… no, might I have the next dance? Sorry, she says: her feet are aching (hurting).

5. The fourth man

By now the speaker is terrified (very frightened): she has said no to everyone. A fourth character (person) tries the simplest polite question, Would you like to dance? She looks straight at him: No.

6. The surprise

The speaker gives up and decides to go home, in his old jacket and trousers, not at all good-looking. As he walks past the girl, she smiles. He can only manage two words, Er… dance?, and she says, Thank you very much. The last line is the punchline: it’s their twentieth wedding anniversary next week. The girl who refused everyone became his wife.

Why it is funny. The humor comes from surprise: we expect the most polite request to win, and the shortest, clumsiest one wins instead. There are smaller jokes too: the girls of the old disco being grandmothers now, the slip “black teeth, white hair”, the third man stumbling up from can to could to might, and the excuse about her aching feet. And under the jokes is a true point: polite words matter, but they are not everything. The girl answered the person, not the grammar.

Words from the story

Word	Meaning here
disco	a club or party where people dance to recorded pop music
lad	(informal) a boy or young man
chap	(informal, British) a man
fellow	(informal) a man or a boy
character	(informal) a person, often an unusual one
pleasure	happiness; May I have the pleasure of…? is a very formal, old way to ask
pardon	Pardon?: “What did you say? Please say it again.”
ache	to hurt with a dull, steady pain
terrified	very frightened
anniversary	the same date as an important event in an earlier year: our twentieth wedding anniversary

A. Find similar words

B. Choose the correct answers

C. Your first dance

A souvenir is something you buy to remember a place or a visit, or as a gift: a singing bowl, a khukuri, a pashmina shawl, a carved wooden window. In the listening task, a man in a gift shop is looking for a present, and a salesperson suggests one thing after another. CDC’s own recording is below: read the questions in B and C first, then listen, as many times as you need.

A. Before you listen

B. The textbook’s audio: answers

C. True or false?

These answers follow CDC’s teachers’ guide, which gives the answers but not the words of the recording.

D. In a souvenir shop

Grammar II adds some more ways to make a request or an offer, a little more formal than Can you…?:

Expression	Use	Example
I’d like (to) + …	say politely what you want	I’d like to rent an apartment. I’d like a cup of tea, please.
Would it be possible to + base form?	a polite request, often for permission	Would it be possible to invite my cousin?
Would you be able to + base form?	ask if someone can do something for you	Would you be able to get me a ticket for the concert?
Could you recommend + … ?	ask for advice on choosing	Could you recommend a good dentist?
Can I book + … ?	a request in a shop, hotel or restaurant	Can I book a table for six?
Would you like me to + base form?	an offer	Would you like me to call a taxi?
Could you possibly + base form?	a very polite request	Could you possibly lend me your bicycle?
Would you mind + -ing?	a polite request	Would you mind turning the music down?

A. Match the halves

B. Make your own

Nepal has a dance for nearly every community and every season. The task names two. Rodhi is a custom of the Gurung people: in the evenings, after the day’s work, young men and women of a village used to gather in a Rodhi ghar (a Rodhi house) to sing, dance and talk, and it is still kept alive in some villages and in Gurung cultural programs. Chandi Naach is the dance of Sakela (Sakewa in Bantawa), the great festival of the Kirat Rai people.

How to write paragraphs about a tradition

1. Begin with the topic sentence: the name of the dance or custom and who keeps it.
2. Answer the reader’s questions in order: when and why it is done, then how (the people, the steps, the clothes, the music), then what it means.
3. Use the present simple for a tradition, since it happens again and again: The dancers move…, It is celebrated…. Use the past only for your own memory of it: Last year I joined….
4. Explain local words the first time you use them: the jhyamta (cymbals).
5. End with your own view: what it means to you, or why it should be kept alive.

In your final exam, paragraphs like these can be asked in Free writing I (about 150 words, 6 marks, an experience or a view) or, from given clues, in Guided writing I (about 100 words, 5 marks).

Many nouns tell us whether a person or an animal is male or female; others don’t, and some are things, with no sex at all. English grammar calls this the gender of a noun, and gives it four kinds:

Gender	What it names	Examples	Pronoun
masculine	a male person or animal	king, man, boy, father, uncle, cock, bull, monk	he
feminine	a female person or animal	queen, woman, girl, mother, aunt, hen, cow, nun, vixen	she
neuter	a thing, with no sex	table, hair, city, river, book	it
common	a person or animal that can be either	teacher, student, cousin, parent, friend, baby, doctor	he or she, they

Many masculine nouns have a feminine partner, made in one of three ways:

By a different word	By adding -ess (and other endings)	By changing one part of the word
king – queen	host – hostess	landlord – landlady
husband – wife	lion – lioness	grandfather – grandmother
nephew – niece	prince – princess	he-goat – she-goat
bull – cow	god – goddess	salesman – saleswoman
cock – hen	hero – heroine	milkman – milkmaid
stallion (horse) – mare	widower – widow (the feminine is the shorter one)	stepson – stepdaughter
fox – vixen

Practice on this unit in the style of the final exam (Grade 9’s exam follows the SEE’s kind of chart). Try each one as in the exam, then open the answer.