Match the words from the article with their equivalents.
| banish | to succeed in doing something, especially after trying hard, achieve |
| affirmative | happening or done in a way that is not planned or recognized |
| forge | to try very hard to persuade someone to do something |
| haphazard | the ability to return quickly to your usual health or state of mind after suffering an illness, difficulties |
| accomplish | to not allow someone or something to stay in a particular place |
| resilience | to develop |
| exhort | positive |
Read the article in detail and decide which paragraph mentions the following.
Good looks help you in early life.
It doesn’t work to ‘try, try and try again’.
Motivation is the key to success.
Many successful entrepreneurs leave school early.
Entrepreneurs tend not to fit in.
Rich people very often have rich parents.
You can often predict the success of intrapreneurs.
A hard life as a child can help you later on.
Note down the factors the author mentions as contributing to success.
Answer the following questions.
- What is our society obsessed with?
- Why does the author call ‘becoming a millionaire’ a haphazard affair?
- What is the most certain route to riches?
- How can appearance help you in your career?
- What is the key difference between intrapreneurs and entrepreneurs?
-What is typical for entrepreneurs’ early life?
- What can help you to influence your chance of success?
Comment on the title of the article summing up all the arguments of the author.
For discussion
- Is it worth making sacrifice to become successful?
- Are successful people usually neurotic?
- What are the ways to success?
- What is most essential for forging your way to success?
C. Group Discussion. Brainstorm Ideas
➢ What kind of education offers the best route to top positions in our country?
➢ Many people study for major degrees part-time over several years, or even by distance learning. What are the advantages and disadvantages of this route compared to a full-time degree? Which route do you prefer?
➢ What is the most effective type of training program? Which program would you prefer to attend – very project orientated or more traditional, involving lectures, case studies, etc?
D. Watching and Listening
² To Know More about Less or Less about More[23]
1. Listen to the commentary of writer Rod MacLeish. Check the statement that summarizes the commentator’s viewpoint.
| A generalist approach to education is necessary for today’s world. | |
| A specialist approach to education is necessary for today’s world. | |
| Both generalist approach and specialist approach to education are necessary for today’s world. |
Circle the best answer.
1. What is the subject of Rod MacLeish’s essay?
a. Experts are the same as specialists.
b. We should believe someone who knows more about less.
c. We need to ask which is better: knowing more about less or less about more.
2. From Archilochus’s Fragment 103 we learn that
a. the fox was wiser.
b. the hedgehog was wiser.
c. it’s not clear whether the fox or hedgehog was wiser.
3. Why is Fragment 103 a metaphor for modern life?
a. We need more specialists.
b. Specialists know too much.
c. Generalists have less influence today.
4. Why are hedgehogs dangerous, according to the commentator?
a. They invent new chemicals.
b. They may have forgotten history.
c. They make too much money on Wall Street.
5. In the commentator’s opinion, hedgehogs
a. may have become more powerful with the emergence of an industrial society.
b. are bad for society.
c. cannot really influence our lives.
6. How does Western society view the generalist today?
a. As a failure.
b. As a necessity.
c. As a master.
7. What was the message of the Oxford classicist?
a. You have to work hard on your own to succeed.
b. You need to study many subjects to think critically.
c. It’s important to be able to think about one big thing.
8. What conclusion does MacLeish reach in his essay?
a. Those in power may not be generalist enough.
b. There are too many people talking rot.
c. There aren’t enough people who can think anymore.