KEY
innate: /ɪˈneɪt/ that you have when you are born. E.g. the innate ability to learn. He never lost his innate sense of fun. Some artists are born with an innate talent (a special ability that they are born with)
put something down to something: to consider that something is caused by something. Attribute. E.g. What do you put her success down to?
lifelong: lasting or existing all through your life. E.g. Her lifelong ambition had been to learn how to fly. He has been a lifelong supporter of the club. In his book he talks about his lifelong passion for poetry (something he has been dedicated to all his life).
world-class: as good as the best in the world. E.g. a world-class athlete
academically/artistically gifted: particularly good at academic studies / art.
inherit: derive genetically from your parents / ancestors.
traits: distinguishing qualities or characteristics.
to shape: help determine. To have an important influence on the way that somebody/ something develops. E.g. His ideas had been shaped by his experiences during the war. She had a leading role in shaping party policy.
Ex 2
Culture notes
Vanessa-Mae /meɪ/ Vanakorn Nicholson was born in Singapore to a Chinese mother and Thai father, but moved to England when she was four when her mother married Graham /ˈɡreɪ əm/ Nicholson. She is an internationally successful violinist who has produced over 12 albums and describes her music as ‘violin techno-acoustic fusion’ /ˈfjuːʒn/. In April 2006 she was named as the wealthiest young entertainer under 30 in the UK. She also plans to compete as a downhill skier in the 2014 Winter Olympics, representing Thailand.
KEY
1 She is a talented musician / violinist.
2 Her mother was very influential.
3 She would like to understand whether her musical success is due to a talent she was born with, or is the result of her upbringing and own work.
Vocabulary
hit: reach. E.g. a singer who hit the big time (=became very successful) in 1998. She hits forty this year and we're planning a big party. We hit top form(= played our best) in yesterday's match. Temperatures hit 40° yesterday.
propel /prəˈpel/ to force somebody to move in a particular direction or to get into a particular situation. Sp. propulsar, impulsar. E.g. He was grabbed from behind and propelled through the door. Fury propelled her into action.
turbulent: /ˈtɜːbjələnt/ in which there is a lot of sudden change, confusion, disagreement and sometimes violence. E.g. a short and turbulent career in politics. A turbulent part of the world. Turbulent emotions.
prime: main; most important; basic. E.g. My prime concern is to protect my property.
to shape: help determine. To have an important influence on the way that somebody/ something develops. E.g. His ideas had been shaped by his experiences during the war. She had a leading role in shaping party policy.
be down to somebody/something to be caused by a particular person or thing. E.g. She claimed her problems were down to the media.
nurture: /ˈnɜːtʃə(r)/ care, encouragement and support given to somebody/something while they are growing. Sp. crianza, educación. E.g. The study seems to show that nurture is more important than nature in shaping a child's character and future prospects. These plants will need careful nurture.
Ex 3
KEY
1 It was a turbulent relationship because she understood that her mother’s love was conditional on her being good at playing the violin. Her mother groomed her to be a violinist.
conditional (on/upon something) depending on something. E.g. Payment is conditional upon delivery of the goods (= if the goods are not delivered the money will not be paid).
groom: to prepare or train somebody for an important job or position. Groom somebody (for/as something) Our junior employees are being groomed for more senior roles. Groom somebody to do something The eldest son is being groomed to take over when his father dies.
2 She feels that she was born with a special ability, but that her practice and dedication helped her to develop her talent, so in the end, the ratio was about 50:50. Initially, she had thought that her innate talent accounted for more than 50% (75%) of her ability.
Account for: to be the explanation or cause of something. Explain. E.g. The poor weather may have accounted for the small crowd. Oh well, that accounts for it (= I understand now why it happened).
3 No, Vanessa doesn’t seem very happy because she feels that she missed out on having a ‘normal childhood’.
miss out (on something): to fail to benefit from something useful or enjoyable by not taking part in it. E.g. Of course I'm coming—I don't want to miss out on all the fun!
be down to somebody/something to be caused by a particular person or thing. E.g. She claimed her problems were down to the media.
nurture: /ˈnɜːtʃə(r)/ care, encouragement and support given to somebody/something while they are growing. Sp. crianza, educación. E.g. The study seems to show that nurture is more important than nature in shaping a child's character and future prospects. These plants will need careful nurture.
Ex 3
KEY
1 It was a turbulent relationship because she understood that her mother’s love was conditional on her being good at playing the violin. Her mother groomed her to be a violinist.
conditional (on/upon something) depending on something. E.g. Payment is conditional upon delivery of the goods (= if the goods are not delivered the money will not be paid).
groom: to prepare or train somebody for an important job or position. Groom somebody (for/as something) Our junior employees are being groomed for more senior roles. Groom somebody to do something The eldest son is being groomed to take over when his father dies.
2 She feels that she was born with a special ability, but that her practice and dedication helped her to develop her talent, so in the end, the ratio was about 50:50. Initially, she had thought that her innate talent accounted for more than 50% (75%) of her ability.
Account for: to be the explanation or cause of something. Explain. E.g. The poor weather may have accounted for the small crowd. Oh well, that accounts for it (= I understand now why it happened).
3 No, Vanessa doesn’t seem very happy because she feels that she missed out on having a ‘normal childhood’.
miss out (on something): to fail to benefit from something useful or enjoyable by not taking part in it. E.g. Of course I'm coming—I don't want to miss out on all the fun!
Ex 4B
KEY
1. 30 million pounds
excess: /ɪkˈses/ E.g. The increase will not be in excess of (= more than) two per cent.
2 history,
memory,
beauty
dictated
dictate: to control or influence how something happens. Determine. E.g. When we take our vacations is very much dictated by Greg's work schedule. It's generally your job that dictates where you live now.
3 conditional
4 mind,
psychologists
push somebody/yourself to make somebody work hard. E.g. The music teacher really pushes her pupils. Lucy should push herself a little harder. She will be pushed to the limit.
5 parent
6 tears
Transcript
The Making of Me: Vanessa-Mae
C=commentary v=vanessa-Mae p=psychologist
C: With a fortune in excess of thirty million pounds, Vanessa-Mae is one of Britain’s most successful young musicians.
v: This beautiful instrument has given me so much history and memory and beauty in my life. It has basically dictated my life.
C: From her early years as a musical prodigy to the glamour of money and celebrity, Vanessa’s entire life has been shaped by music. But for fifteen years someone else helped to forge her career: Pamela, Vanessa’s mother.
v: I was always made to appreciate that the love my mother had for me was conditional. She said to me, you know ‘I will always love you cos you’re my daughter, but you’re only special to me because you play the violin. And if you play the violin well then you’re special to me.’
C: Now Vanessa wants to know whether her musical success was down to her or her mother.
v: I need to work out whether I was born to play the violin or if I was talked into playing the violin. Was it nature or nurture that played a bigger part? … That’s really my brain?
C: To help Vanessa find the answer, science will test her body and her mind.
v: Whoa!
C: She’ll be observed by psychologists.
p: She seems quite aggressive at this point. I think she realises she’s running out of time.
C: And be pushed to the limit.
C: Vanessa ends her journey by answering the question that started it: how much did Pamela contribute to her musical life?
C=commentary v=vanessa-Mae p=psychologist
C: With a fortune in excess of thirty million pounds, Vanessa-Mae is one of Britain’s most successful young musicians.
v: This beautiful instrument has given me so much history and memory and beauty in my life. It has basically dictated my life.
C: From her early years as a musical prodigy to the glamour of money and celebrity, Vanessa’s entire life has been shaped by music. But for fifteen years someone else helped to forge her career: Pamela, Vanessa’s mother.
v: I was always made to appreciate that the love my mother had for me was conditional. She said to me, you know ‘I will always love you cos you’re my daughter, but you’re only special to me because you play the violin. And if you play the violin well then you’re special to me.’
C: Now Vanessa wants to know whether her musical success was down to her or her mother.
v: I need to work out whether I was born to play the violin or if I was talked into playing the violin. Was it nature or nurture that played a bigger part? … That’s really my brain?
C: To help Vanessa find the answer, science will test her body and her mind.
v: Whoa!
C: She’ll be observed by psychologists.
p: She seems quite aggressive at this point. I think she realises she’s running out of time.
C: And be pushed to the limit.
C: Vanessa ends her journey by answering the question that started it: how much did Pamela contribute to her musical life?
v: The key thing for me on this was finding out that emotionally I may have become the person I became because of, you know, the parent in my life. I mean I was groomed to be a violinist. It wasn’t a normal childhood and to be cut off from so many different things, means that I didn’t get to know who I was or make any choices until I was pretty old. At the start of my journey, I thought that what set me apart from say another violinist with the same amount of training was nature, so that’s why I thought seventy-five percent nature, twenty-five percent nurture. But now I think there’s nothing to be ashamed of that it was my blood, my sweat and my tears that brought me here today, even though there was a huge part my mother played in that, it’s still the experiences I went through. So I’m gonna shift towards fifty percent nurture now, and fifty percent nature.
Vocabulary
excess: /ɪkˈses/ E.g. The increase will not be in excess of (= more than) two per cent.
dictate: to control or influence how something happens. Determine. E.g. When we take our vacations is very much dictated by Greg's work schedule. It's generally your job that dictates where you live now.
prodigy: /ˈprɒdədʒi/ a young person who is unusually intelligent or skilful for their age. E.g. a child/an infant prodigy. A musical prodigy.
glamour: /ˈɡlæmə(r)/ the attractive and exciting quality that makes a person, a job or a place seem special, often because of wealth or status. E.g. hopeful young actors and actresses dazzled by the glamour of Hollywood. Now that she's a flight attendant, foreign travel has lost its glamour for her.
celebrity: /səˈlebrəti/ 1 (also informal celeb) [countable] a famous person. E.g. TV celebrities. 2 [uncountable] the state of being famous. Fame. E.g. Does he find his new celebrity intruding on his private life?
to shape: help determine. To have an important influence on the way that somebody/ something develops. E.g. His ideas had been shaped by his experiences during the war. She had a leading role in shaping party policy.
forge something: /fɔːdʒ/ to put a lot of effort into making something successful or strong so that it will last. Sp. forjar. E.g. She forged a new career as a poet and songwriter. A move to forge new links between management and workers. Strategic alliances are being forged with major European companies. She forged a new career in the music business. They forged a lead in the first 30 minutes of the game.
conditional (on/upon something) depending on something. E.g. Payment is conditional upon delivery of the goods (= if the goods are not delivered the money will not be paid).
be down to somebody/something to be caused by a particular person or thing. E.g. She claimed her problems were down to the media.
work out: to find the answer to something. Solve. E.g. to work out a problem. I couldn't work out where the music was coming from. I can't work out what to do.
talk somebody into/out of something: to persuade somebody to do/not to do something. E.g. I didn't want to move abroad but Bill talked me into it. Talk somebody into/out of doing something She tried to talk him out of leaving.
nurture: /ˈnɜːtʃə(r)/ care, encouragement and support given to somebody/something while they are growing. Sp. crianza, educación. E.g. The study seems to show that nurture is more important than nature in shaping a child's character and future prospects. These plants will need careful nurture.
push somebody/yourself to make somebody work hard. E.g. The music teacher really pushes her pupils. Lucy should push herself a little harder. She will be pushed to the limit.
groom: to prepare or train somebody for an important job or position. Groom somebody (for/as something) Our junior employees are being groomed for more senior roles. Groom somebody to do something The eldest son is being groomed to take over when his father dies.
cut somebody/something off (from somebody/something) [often passive] to prevent somebody/ something from leaving or reaching a place or communicating with people outside a place. E.g. The army was cut off from its base. She feels very cut off living in the country. He cut himself off from all human contact.
set somebody/something apart (from somebody/something): to make somebody/something different from or better than others. E.g. Her elegant style sets her apart from other journalists.
Shift: to change your opinion of or attitude towards something, or change the way that you do something. E.g. We need to shift the focus of this debate. Shift something (from…) (to/towards/toward…) The new policy shifted the emphasis away from fighting inflation. The future of commerce is going to shift towards the internet.
forge something: /fɔːdʒ/ to put a lot of effort into making something successful or strong so that it will last. Sp. forjar. E.g. She forged a new career as a poet and songwriter. A move to forge new links between management and workers. Strategic alliances are being forged with major European companies. She forged a new career in the music business. They forged a lead in the first 30 minutes of the game.
conditional (on/upon something) depending on something. E.g. Payment is conditional upon delivery of the goods (= if the goods are not delivered the money will not be paid).
be down to somebody/something to be caused by a particular person or thing. E.g. She claimed her problems were down to the media.
work out: to find the answer to something. Solve. E.g. to work out a problem. I couldn't work out where the music was coming from. I can't work out what to do.
talk somebody into/out of something: to persuade somebody to do/not to do something. E.g. I didn't want to move abroad but Bill talked me into it. Talk somebody into/out of doing something She tried to talk him out of leaving.
nurture: /ˈnɜːtʃə(r)/ care, encouragement and support given to somebody/something while they are growing. Sp. crianza, educación. E.g. The study seems to show that nurture is more important than nature in shaping a child's character and future prospects. These plants will need careful nurture.
push somebody/yourself to make somebody work hard. E.g. The music teacher really pushes her pupils. Lucy should push herself a little harder. She will be pushed to the limit.
groom: to prepare or train somebody for an important job or position. Groom somebody (for/as something) Our junior employees are being groomed for more senior roles. Groom somebody to do something The eldest son is being groomed to take over when his father dies.
cut somebody/something off (from somebody/something) [often passive] to prevent somebody/ something from leaving or reaching a place or communicating with people outside a place. E.g. The army was cut off from its base. She feels very cut off living in the country. He cut himself off from all human contact.
set somebody/something apart (from somebody/something): to make somebody/something different from or better than others. E.g. Her elegant style sets her apart from other journalists.
Shift: to change your opinion of or attitude towards something, or change the way that you do something. E.g. We need to shift the focus of this debate. Shift something (from…) (to/towards/toward…) The new policy shifted the emphasis away from fighting inflation. The future of commerce is going to shift towards the internet.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.