1) Find the English equivalents in the text. Use them in sentences of your own:

черновой набросок; стиль речи; отвергнутый; выражение индивидуальности говорящего; в конце концов; со стороны кого-либо; заслуживать; жертва; пренебрежение; с начала до конца.

2) Find the words in the text that describe or mean the following:

1. ruined or badly damaged -

2. to have the qualities, experience etc. that are appropriate for a particular situa­tion, job etc. -

3. to show or be a sign of a particular situation, idea, or feeling -

4. to describe or draw something carefully so that it is easy to understand -

5. to stop or make a mistake when you are reading to people or speaking -

6. seeming false and not natural -

3) Translate the following sentences into Russian:

1. After the war, the country's economy was in tatters.

2. We wanted an experienced journalist, and he fit the bill.

3. The poll results reflect widespread anxiety about the economy.

4. This book delineates the differences between urban and suburban schools.

5. He stumbled through his speech.

6. The script is contrived and unbelievable.

4) Match the words which are close in their meaning:

rejected	incomplete
successful	dismissed
contrived	disregard
reflect	artificial
rough	thriving

5) Match the words having the opposite meaning:

successful	precise
contrived	observance
rough	accepted
neglect	natural
rejected	failing

6) Complete the following sentences (contrived; in tatters; a rough draft; delineates; stumbles; through; draft):

1. The process just described_____________the ideal.

2. He__________a speech which, from start to finish, sounds__________.

3. Don't feel rejected if the first, second, or even third_________comes back________.

4. The next step is to write__________for the speaker.

7) Explain the grammatical structure of the sentence. Use it in sentences of your own:

It is only through this process that the speech becomes a natural expression of the speakers personality.

8) Can you explain the following?

1. A speech talks to listeners, not at them.

2. The most successful speakers take the time to work with their speechwriters.

9) Translate the following item into Russian:

Here are some tips about wording:

• Use personal pronouns like "you" and "we". This makes the talk more conver­sational and lets your listeners know that you are talking to them.

• Avoid jargon. Do not talk about the "acquisition range" of an F-16 jet fighter -talk about an F-16 jet that can shoot down another plane 10 miles away.

• Don't use long figures. Don't say "243.629.384 Americans"; say "more than 240 million Americans".

• Use simple words to communicate. Don't say "print media" when you mean "newspaper". Don't say "perish" when "die" says the same thing. Don't say "possess" when "have" is what you mean.

• Use active verbs. Say "I think" not "it is my conviction that..."

• Avoid modifiers such as "very" or "most" - these are crutches.

• Avoid empty words such as "of the nature of Instead, say "like". Don't say "in the event of - say "if" Don't say "at that point in time" - say "then".

• Use short sentences. Don't use clauses between the subject and the predicate of a sentence. Don't put a clause at the end of a sentence; start a new sentence.

• Use direct quotes. You could say, "Here is what my friend Allan said," and then quote him. *

• Use questions - for example, "Does anyone know how many refugees there are in the world today?"

• Use comparisons or contrasts. Compare exotic locales with others that are familiar. ("New Zealand has about the same land area as California, but it has only 3 million people as compared to California's 31 million.")

Do you find these tips useful?

Can you think of any tips concerning the wording when writing speeches in Russian?