English Globe understanding the world

Open menu
Главная >> Изучаем English >> Pronunciation >> III Advanced >> Unit 57. We Expected Profits to Drop, but They Rose.

Unit 57. We Expected Profits to Drop, but They Rose.

here.png
Step-ups - Contrasts and New Topics

Unit 57; Part A

Contrasts
We can use a step-up (see Unit 47) toa relatively high pitch to show that information contrasts withprevious information or what was expected. The step-up is in the firstprominent word of a speech unit (see Unit 32) which includes the contrasting information. In these examples step-ups are marked with
           We expected profits to drop this quarter, 
           //but they
ROSE by a THIRD//. - a contrast between an expected drop and an actual rise

         Patients are now encouraged// to EXercise//
          instead of rest after their operations.
- a contrast between the past encouragement to rest and the new practice of encouraging exercise


        Although many people think of ants as a nuisance,
         they play// a
VItal ROLE// in many ecosystems.- a contrast between the common belief that they are a nuisance and their actual vital role

        We know that vegetarians have low rates of heart disease,//
         but we
DON'T fully understand WHY//. - a contrast between what we know to be the case and our lack of understanding
       
         Rather than wait for the authorities to solve the problem,// we should
ACT NOW//. - a contrast between waiting and acting now

Unit 57; Part B

New topics
Step-ups are also used, particularly in prepared speech, to showthat we are starting a new topic. Here is the beginning of a speechmade by a senior manager from the car company Rovoda to a conference ofscientists discussing environmental problems. Notice how step-ups areused at the beginning of new topics:
57.1.jpg

 



Exercises

flag.jpgPut a before the word in each sentence you think is most likely to have a step-up signalling a contrast.

Key.57.6.jpg
Example: We didn't think the bid would be successful, but it's been accepted.
1    She always said it was her best film, although the critics hated it.
2    Rather than a military solution, we should be looking for a political one.
3    Some plastics are easy to produce, but difficult to dispose of.
4    Instead of a quick resolution to the war, their tactics prolonged it.
5    Most people think he's French, but in fact he's from Canada.
6    The model weighs only four kilos, whereas the full-scale version will weigh four thousand.
7    Despite the President's personal popularity, his party lost the election.
8    The novel was all his own work - or he claimed it was.
9    The area is a popular tourist attraction, and yet completely unspoilt.
10  Unlike most of our competitors, we've actually made a profit this year.

Now listen and check your predictions. (Also see the notes in the Key.)Then read the sentences aloud, putting a step-up in the same word as onthe recording.
 


flag.jpgA history teacher is telling his students about Napoleon Bonaparte. Here is part of his lesson. Listen and put a ⇑ before the word where he uses a step-up to introduce a new topic.
Key.57.7.jpg
57.2.jpg

Now check your answers in the Key. Then read the text aloud, putting a step-up in the same places as on the recording.

Follow up:Prepare notes for a short talk on a historical subject that you arefamiliar with. Think about the places where you want to mark a newtopic. Give your talk, using step-ups to mark new topics. If possible,record it and listen.

 
back.jpg
Unit 56      Unit 57     Unit 58 forward.jpg



Школы английского языка позволяют значительно повысить уровень знания языка и приобрести новые навыки.Где эффективное изучение английского языка? www.dschool.ru - грамотные курсы, позволяющие значительно повысить уровень знания языка иприобрести навыки, как разговорного языка, так и в областиграмматики.