1 Ian McEwan: An alternative history of the future of humanity 2 Machines Like Me has a fantastic setting but very real political and social preoccupations (Sat, Apr. 13, 2019) 3 www.irishtimes.comhttps://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/ian-mcewan-an-alternative-history-of-the-future-of-humanity- 4 1.3854699#.XLM22CHd9-E.mailto 5 “The present is the frailest of improbable constructs,” says the narrator of 6 Ian McEwan’s 16th novel Machines Like Me. “It could have been different. 7 Any part of it, or all of it, could be otherwise.” 8 In the author’s house down a quiet mews in London’s Bloomsbury, he 9 makes tea as I set up my equipment for our interview, and the present political moment can’t help but invade 10 our friendly small talk about books. What has he been reading recently? He loves Sally Rooney’s Normal 11 People, he tells me, admiring especially what he calls the “clever rhetorical trick” of how she merges the 12 thoughts of protagonists Marianne and Connell. The prose is “very fine, approachable and easily absorbed, 13 but nicely overladen with emotional frit”.
14 On souped-up multi-strain creative nonfiction he’s not so keen. “I want some invention: to be stretched in 15 that way.” But he likes the autofiction of Knausgaard, I’ve read somewhere. He’s “compelling in his 16 thoroughness” but can be overwhelming. “One day I’d say I can’t take any more of this, and the next day 17 read 100 pages. It’s a bit like Brexit coverage,” he tells me. “I don’t care how much I hate it; I’ve got to have 18 more of it.”
19 When we speak, we are in the hinterland between one of UK prime minister’s Theresa May’s many feints, 20 stalls and threats in the process of exiting the EU. I ask McEwan whether he thinks Brexit’s having politicised 21 a generation will be ultimately a good or bad thing for art-making.
22 “I don’t know,” he says. “I think the cultural consequences are already profound in that we are going to 23 resemble the United States. A land with two cultures that won’t speak to each other. The moment the Tories 24 called a referendum and urged us to take sides in their 40-year civil war, we had a nervous breakdown. And 25 it’s very hard to get out of it at the moment.”
26 In his clipped tenor, McEwan relays an imagined chain of events in which the UK gets itself out of this 27 breakdown. “If we have a second referendum, which is what I hope parliament will push for, Remain will win 28 but narrowly. The other half will feel betrayed. We’re better behaved, I think,” he says about the Remain side. 29 “We don’t send death and rape threats as easily as Brexiters. A Remainer has not yet stabbed a Brexiter MP 30 in the street. I think we’ve been the herbivores in this.”
31 To reduce the Booker winner’s career to the familiar march of preoccupations, he was fashionable in the 32 1970s and 1980s for books that dwelt ………. (11) brutality and psychosexual aberrations: incest, animals 33 trained to rape humans, necrophilia, dismemberment. From here he became the respected (and respectable) 34 laureate of trauma, guilt, tension and trickery. His highly intelligent narrators, often at the top of their fields, 35 give …………. (12) pages to explaining Einstein, photovoltaics, John Keats, John Milton, probability, string 36 quartets, Darwin, the structure of DNA, family law and solar energy, without alienating his popular readership. 37 His books have lent themselves successfully …………. (13) the screen (last year adaptations of both On 38 Chesil Beach and The Children Act were released). Technically, they often achieve the level of neatness and 39 elegance which their left-brain characters often profess to admire in famous scientific equations. They have for 40 a long time been grounded ……………. (14) the political moments of their setting, but creeping …………. (15), 41 every couple of books or so, has been an urgent modern worry. Climate change, post 9/11 politics, artificial 42 intelligence.
EJERCICIO 1: Ian McEwan: An alternative history of the future of humanity
A. Which of the four alternatives (a, b, c or d) can be used instead of the word or phrase in bold italic type without changing their meaning in the context? (4 x 0.5= 2)
ANSWER
(a, b, c, d) a) avenue b) block 1. mews (line 8) c) neighbourhood d) short street a) overloaded
2. overladen b) overexposed (line 13) c) overwhelmed d) overburdened a) visualizes
3. relays b) thinks of (line 26) c) conveys d) insists on a) members of the Green Party
4. herbivores b) the most honest (line 30) c) the least violent d) the most innocent
B. Which of the four definitions (a, b, c or d) can be used to explain the meaning of the words and phrases in bold italic type in the context? (3 x 0.5= 1.5)
ANSWER
(a, b, c, d) a) original and easy to read 5. souped-up multi- b) original and tangled strain (line 14) c) tricky and complicated d) hands-down and simple a) a place where nothing happens b) a change in the scenery 6. hinterland (line 19) c) the backcountry of a settlement d) a backwater a) situation where nobody dominates as in rock-paper-scissors 7. many feints, stalls b) stages of the negotiation and threats (lines 19-20) c) strategies and tactics d) a win-win situation
C. Which of the four alternatives (a, b, c or d) means approximately the same thing in the context of the article as the word in bold italic type at the left of the column? (3 x 0.5= 1.5)
ANSWER
(a, b, c, d)
8. frit a) refuse b) matter c) ideas d) intention (line 13)
9. compelling a) compulsory b) enjoyable c) sane d) fascinating (line15)
10. clipped a) brisk b) curty c) clear d) peremptory (line 26)
D. Complete each gap in the last two paragraphs (lines 31 to 42) with one word. (5 x 0.5= 2.5) ANSWER
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
E. Which two of the following options can be used as an alternative to “…can’t help but invade…” (line 9) without changing the meaning of the sentence? (2 x 0.5= 1)
16. ANSWERS (Tick √) a) comes off b) takes over c) comes out against d) severs e) comes in on f) pervades g) comes up h) interferes
F. Which underlined letter of the words below (a, b, c or d) shares the same pronunciation as the underlined letter of the word overladen (line 13)? (1 x 0.25= 0.25)
17. ANSWER (a, b, c, d) a) overcast b) overmanned c) overawed d) overstatement
G. The underlined letter of the word thoroughness (line 16) shares the same pronunciation as the underlined letters of two of the following words. (2 x 0.25= 0.5)
18. ANSWER (Tick √)
a) thorax
b) thong
c) thoughtful
d) thou
e) thumb
f) throughout
g) thuggish
h) None of the above
H. Which of the following options (a, b, c or d) can be used as an alternative to “…called a referendum…” (line 24) without changing the meaning of the sentence? (1 x 0.25= 0.25)
19. ANSWER (Tick √)
a) hallooed
b) demanded
c) claimed
d) yearned for
e) arranged
I. The end of the word in bold italic type on the left rhymes with the end of one of the alternatives (a, b, c or d). (2 x 0.25= 0.5)
ANSWER 20. (a, b, c, d)
coverage a) sabotage b) bandage c) massage d) barrage (line 17) laureate a) create b) chariot c) certificate d) consulate (line 34)
1 City of Djinns, by William Dalrymple
2 ONE
3 THE FLAT PERCHED at the top of the house, little more than a lean-to riveted to Mrs Puri’s ceiling. 4 The stairwell exuded sticky, airless September heat; the roof was as thin as corrugated iron.
5 Inside we were greeted by a scene from Great Expectations: a thick pall of dust on every surface, a 6 family of sparrows nesting in the blinds and a fleece of old cobwebs — great arbours of spider silk — 7 arching the corner walls. Mrs Puri stood at the doorway, a small, bent figure in a salwar kameez.
8 ‘The last tenant did not go out much,’ she said, prodding the cobwebs with her walking stick. She 9 added: ‘He was not a tidy gentleman.’ Olivia blew on a cupboard; the dust was so thick you could sign your 10 name in it.
11 Our landlady, though a grandmother, soon proved herself to be a formidable woman. A Sikh from 12 Lahore, Mrs Puri was expelled from her old home during Partition and in the upheavals of 1947 lost 13 everything. She arrived in Delhi on a bullock cart. Forty-two years later she had made the transition from 14 refugee pauper to Punjabi princess. She was now very rich indeed. She owned houses all over Delhi and 15 had swapped her bullock for a fleet of new Maruti cars, the much coveted replacement for the old 16 Hindustan Ambassador. Mrs Puri also controlled a variety of business interests. These included the 17 Gloriana Finishing School, India’s first etiquette college, a unique institution which taught village girls how 18 to use knives and forks, apply lipstick and make polite conversation about the weather.
19 Mrs Puri had achieved all this through a combination of hard work and good old-fashioned thrift. In 20 the heat of summer she rarely put on the air conditioning. In winter she allowed herself the electric fire for 21 only an hour a day. She recycled the newspapers we threw out; and returning from parties late at night we 22 could see her still sitting up, silhouetted against the window, knitting sweaters for export. ‘Sleep is silver,’ 23 she would say in explanation, ‘but money is gold.’
24 This was all very admirable, but the hitch, we soon learned, was that she expected her tenants to 25 emulate the disciplines she imposed upon herself. One morning, after only a week in the flat, I turned on 26 the tap to discover that our water had been cut off, so went downstairs to sort out the problem. Mrs Puri 27 had already been up and about for several hours; she had been to the gurdwara, said her prayers and was 28 now busy drinking her morning glass of rice water.
29 ‘There is no water in our flat this morning, Mrs Puri.’
30 ‘No, Mr William, and I am telling you why.’
31 ‘Why, Mrs Puri?’
32 ‘You are having guests, Mr William. And always they are going to the lavatory.’
33 ‘But why should that affect the water supply?’
34 ‘Last night I counted seven flushes,’ said Mrs Puri, rapping her stick on the floor. ‘So I have cut off the 35 water as protest.’
36 She paused to let the enormity of our crime sink in.
37 ‘Is there any wonder that there is water shortage in our India when you people are making seven 38 flushes in one night?’
39 Old Mr Puri, her husband, was a magnificent-looking Sikh gentleman with a long white beard and a 40 tin zimmer frame with wheels on the bottom. He always seemed friendly enough - as we passed he would 41 nod politely from his armchair. But when we first took the flat Mrs Puri drew us aside and warned us that 42 her husband had never been, well, quite the same since the riots that followed Mrs Gandhi’s death in 1984.
43 It was a rather heroic story. When some hooligans began to break down the front door, Mr Puri got 44 Ladoo (the name means Sweety), his bearer, to place him directly behind the splintering wood. Uttering a 45 blood-curdling cry, he whipped out his old service revolver and fired the entire magazine through the door. 46 The marauders ran off to attack the taxi rank around the corner and the Puris were saved.
47 From that day on, however, the old man had become a fervent Sikh nationalist. ‘Everyone should have 48 their own home,’ he would snort. ‘The Muslims have Pakistan. The Hindus have Hindustan. The Punjab is 49 our home. If I was a young man I would join Bhindranwale and fight these Hindu dogs.’
EJERCICIO 2: City of Djinns, by William Dalrymple
A. Which of the four alternatives can be used instead of the words or phrases in bold italic type without changing their meaning in the context? (6 x 0.5= 3)
ANSWER
(a, b, c, d) a) mat b) layer 1. pall (line 5) c) tier d) film a) a wool cloth b) a warm sweatshirt 2. a fleece (line 6) c) a cotton sheet d) a thin carpet a) pushing b) stabbing 3. prodding (line 8): c) poking d) pulling a) overbearing b) ghoulish 4. formidable (line 11) c) spooky d) impressive a) coy b) yearned for 5. coveted (line 15) c) covetous d) admiring a) efforts b) upbringing 6. thrift (line 19) c) savings d) labours
B. Which of the four words or phrases (a, b, c or d) can be used to explain the meaning of the words and phrases in bold italic type in the context? (4 x 0.5= 2) ANSWER
(a, b, c, d) a) times of political and social discussion b) the run-up to the election 7. upheavals (line 12) c) times of turmoil d) a monsoon season a) but all we needed was b) but the problem was 8. but the hitch (line 24) c) but the knot of it was d) but the hub of the matter a) walking aid b) rickshaw 9. zimmer frame (line 40) c) walking impairment d) wheelchair a) a large number of people during a violent event, who steal from shops or houses b) people going from one place to another killing or using violence, stealing or destroying 10. marauders (line 46) c) people who make someone go somewhere with them, using threats or violence d) people who stop someone else on a public road and steal from them
C. Which alternative (a, b, c or d) does not have a literal meaning in the text? (1 x 0.5= 0.5)
ANSWER 11. (a, b, c, d)
a) water supplyb) b) sink in c) water shortage d) flushes
(line 33) (line 36) (line 37) (line 38)
D. The word bullock comes up in the text in line 13. Which of these words (a, b, c or d) does NOT belong to the same group as bullock? (1 x 0.5= 0.5)
ANSWER 12. (a, b, c, d) a) gelding b) gander b) gib d) wether
E. Find a word in the text which matches each synonym or definition. (5 x 0.5= 2.5)
ANSWER
13. a shack
14. extremely frightening
15. to produce
16. an arsenal
17. to make a loud sound by breathing air
through your nose
F. The end of the word in bold italic type on the left does NOT rhyme with the end of one of the alternatives (a, b, c or d). Write your answer in the grid. (3 x 0.5= 1.5)
ANSWER
(a, b, c, d)
18. arbours a) harbours b) armours c) contours d) rumours (line 6)
19. fleece a) chance b) hose c) loose d) endorse (line 6)
20. bullock a) paddock b) padlock c) interlock d) wedlock (line 13)
Departamento de Educación, Cultura y Deporte
ORDEN ECD/110/2019, de 25 de febrero, por la que se convoca procedimiento selectivo de ingreso y acceso al Cuerpo de Profesores de Escuelas Oficiales de Idiomas, Cuerpo de Profesores de Música y Artes Escénicas, Cuerpo de Profesores de Artes Plásticas y Diseño y
Cuerpo de Maestros, así como procedimiento para la adquisición de nuevas especialidades por el funcionariado de los citados Cuerpos.
22/06/2019 Primera Prueba. Prueba de Conocimientos Parte A. Práctica
EJERCICIO DE EXPRESIÓN ESCRITA ESPECIALIDAD: INGLÉS
CUERPO: PROFESORES DE ESCUELAS OFICIALES DE IDIOMAS
APELLIDOS Y NOMBRE:
D.N.I. o análogos:
Departamento de Educación, Cultura y Deporte
ORDEN ECD/110/2019, de 25 de febrero, por la que se convoca procedimiento selectivo de ingreso y acceso al Cuerpo de Profesores de Escuelas Oficiales de Idiomas, Cuerpo de Profesores de Música y Artes Escénicas, Cuerpo de Profesores de Artes Plásticas y Diseño y
Cuerpo de Maestros, así como procedimiento para la adquisición de nuevas especialidades
por el funcionariado de los citados Cuerpos.
INSTRUCCIONES PARA LA REALIZACIÓN DE LA PRUEBA:
• Elija UNA de las dos opciones (Ejercicio 1 o Ejercicio 2). • El ejercicio que elija redactar deberá contener entre 270 y 300 palabras. • Cada contracción contará como una palabra. • No se podrán utilizar frases ni fragmentos de frases de los enunciados de ninguna de las dos opciones (ni del Ejercicio 1 ni del Ejercicio 2).
EJERCICIO 1
“The plastic backlash: what’s behind our sudden rage – and will it make a difference? Until recently, plastic enjoyed a sort of anonymity in ubiquity: we were so thoroughly surrounded that we hardly noticed it.”, wrote Stephen Buranvi for The Guardian (November 2018).
Suddenly, we are at odds with it. Will the fight be worthwhile?
Write an article on how unrestrained and expansive use of plastic is affecting our planet, and on whether initiatives to curtail its use will pull off.
EJERCICIO 2
You read two blog entries on the topic of surveillance. The two opposing views are the following:
“We live in a constant threat of attack from solo gunmen to suicidal bombers. In order to live safer, we have to install home security cameras in and out of our house and also CCTV cameras in public places like schools, stores, libraries, airports, bars and clubs.”
“The Surveillance State is dangerous but not so much because it violates some standard of privacy, but because surveillance fuels control.”
You feel very strongly about this issue and decide to write an essay explaining the importance of the issue and dealing with your agreement or disagreement on any of the two views. You have to state your position clearly and present the argument fairly and judiciously. Support your points with examples to strengthen your position.