Vocabulary

to stretch

vast

to cover

twice

following

directly

considerable

executive power

to nominate

state official

to be approved by

consent

armed forces

National Security Council

bicameral

Federal Assembly of Russia

to consist of

• простираться

• обширный

• покрывать

• дважды

• (зд.) следуя за

• непосредственно

• значительный

• исполнительная власть

• назначать

• чиновник

• быть утвержденным

• согласие

• вооруженные силы

• Государственный Совет Безопасности

• двухпалатный

• Федеральное Собрание Российской Фе­дерации

• состоять из

• верхняя палата (парламента)

• исполнение полномочий

• нижняя палата

• пропорциональное представительство

• партийный список

• субъекты Российской Федерации

• по большинству вопросов

• соотвествовать

• этнические меньшинства

• недавно, в последнее время

• обширный

• уровень, слой

• редко (не густо)

• средняя плотность населения

• огромный

• коренной

• перепись

• вера

upper house

serving the term

lower house

proportional representation

party list

Federal subjects of Russia

on most issues

correspond

ethnic minorities

recently

extensive

layer

sparsely

average population density

enormous

Indigenous

census

faith

Questions to the text.

1. What parts of the world does Russia stretch into?

2. Where does it rank in the world in population?

3. Who is the Head of State in Russia?

4. What term is the Russian President elected for?

5. Does the Parliament have to approve the nominations by the Presi­dent?

6. What are the two chambers of the Russian Parliament?

7. How many delegates and deputies are there in the Russian Parliament?

8. How many federal districts are there in Russia?

9. How densely is Russia populated?

10. How many different ethnic groups live in Russia?

EXERCISE 1 Translate the sentences into Russian.

1. The Russian Federation is the largest country in the world, but ranks seventh in the world population.

2. China and India have the largest population in the world.

3. The President of Russia is directly elected for a four-year term.

4. The President can pass decree without consent from the Parliament.

5. The President of Russia is the Head of State, Head of the armed forces and of the National Security Council.

6. The Russian Federation has a bicameral parliament, like the United Kingdom and the United States.

7. The upper house is called the Federal Council of Russia and the lower house is called the State Duma.

8. The State Duma comprises 450 deputies who serve a four-year term.

9. Twenty-one republics within the Russian Federation correspond to some of Russia's ethnic minorities.

EXERCISE 2 Translate the sentences into Englis

1. Русский язык является единственным государственным языком Российской Федерации, но некоторые республики в составе Феде­рации используют родной язык для официальных целей.

2. Самыми распространенными конфессиями на территории Россий­ской Федерации являются православие, ислам, католицизм, буд­дизм и иудаизм.

3. 79,8% населения Российской Федерации составляют этнические русские, 3,8% — татары, 2% — украинцы, 1,2% — башкиры, 1,1% — Чувашии, 0,8% — армяне.

4. Недавно в России появился еще один слой государственной вла­сти — федеральные округа. Четыре из них находятся в Европе и три в Азии.

5. В России чрезвычайно низкая средняя плотность населения из-за ее огромных размеров.

6. Русский язык является единственным официальным языком в Российской Федерации.

1. Российская Федерация состоит из 89 субъектов Федерации.

EXERCISE 3 What aspects of Russian geography, history, culture, science and arts are not present in the text? Prepare your own presentation about Russia.

THE RUSSIAN SOUL

The Russian national character or "the Russian soul" has been a fa­mous topic for discussion for many years, if not centuries. Let's look at some of the scientific discussions. In 1951, a famous American anthropologist Margaret Mead por­trayed Russians as an uncontrolled, even impulsive, group of people. She wrote that the distinction between the group and the individual are less important in Russia then in the West. She also wrote that equality is very important for Russians. Another American anthropologist Clyde Klukhon wrote in 1961 that Russians are expressive and emotionally alive. They show a great need for intensive relationship with others and value people as they are and not what they have done.

In 1985, Peabody made a conclusion that Russians depend strongly on the group to provide emotional support and guidance. He also no­ticed that Russians have a tendency to express their impulses rather then control them. Russians display little concern with achievement, are very personal in relations and are more oriented to the group then the individual. Many scientists wrote about the enormous importance that friends and friendship have for Russians. In 1976, Smith wrote that when it comes to friendship Russians look for soul-brothers, not simply conversational partners. They want someone to whom they can pour their hearts out, tell about family problems and difficulties in life. From a conversation 'soul to soul' Russians derive the greatest joy and relief. Some foreigners find this habit exhausting.

A poll conducted in the USA during World War II found that the adjectives most frequently chosen by the Americans to describe Rus­sians were hardworking, brave, and radical. After the War, in 1953 Rus­sians were described as cruel, domineering and hardworking. In 1985, Peabody conducted the same survey and found out that in Europe Rus­sians were perceived as serious, hardworking, intelligent, persistent, and self-confident.