Unit 11. Fame and Fortune

Fame – the state of being very well-known / famed

Fortune – good luck / success / wealth / destiny / good fortune

Translate, explain and expand

1. The fame of the Omega workshops spread very quickly.

2. She was jealous of Ellen’s enormous fame.

3. He rose rapidly to fame.

4. It was sure to bring fame and fortune to its originator.

5. It would be unfair to envy him good fortune.

6. Fortune had been kind to him.

Transcript (p.92).

Marcella: Oh, the person I most admire is Nelson Mandela, er…prime minister of South Africa after the first free elections. He was imprisoned until 1990. He’s a man of great charisma, an…and dignity, I think, and a very entertaining speaker, a…and very attractive to normal people and to sort of world statesmen as well. Er…and main thing: he’s…he’s united the blacks and whites in South Africa against all odds, er…extraordinary feat of achievement. He has a sort of natural leadership, I think, and an ability to see the “big picture”, which is s…so important.

Gabriella: Somebody that I admire greatly is…um…Oprah Winfrey. Um…she’s a…I…I just think she is such a wonderful chat show hostess. Um…she’s got a really natural touch, she can talk to anybody. She’s charming, she’s sincere, she’s got a…an honesty about her that…that really shines through. Um…she comes from a very…er…poor background, in fact. She was…um…she grew up in…er…in the South of the United States and suffered…er…a…abuse from her father when she was a little girl. Um…and I think through her suffering she’s…she’s learnt and…and…and become this…this very strong, very fine woman…um…and…and I really…really do admire her a lot.

Deborah: I admire Bill Gates, he’s the chairman of the Microsoft Corporation. Not because he has invented an amazing product, but…um…because although he’s so wealthy, and he’s obviously so amazingly clever, he’s still down-to-earth and kind of grounded and like a real person. He’s still really excited about what he does and he’s a youthful enthusiast. Um…he…he’s approachable, people can contact him by e-mail and he replies personally, he’s a really down-to-earth person and that really why I admire him.

Vocabulary 1

1. entertaining (speaker)

2. extraordinary feat of achievement

3. natural leader

4. to have a sort of natural leadership

5. to have a natural touch

6. an ability to see (e.g. sth important, the “big picture”)

7. to come from a (poor) background

8. down-to-earth

Vocabulary II

1. to admire smb (most, greatly; to be universally admired)

2. public appearances

3. brand name

4. charismatic (a man of great charisma)

5. hands-on approach to sth (делегирование обязанностей)

6. outstanding achievement

7. profitable (company)

8. publicity (enjoy publicity, avoid publicity)

9. to rule

10. to run