Lesson 13

1. Lesson 13 Britannia Rues the Waves

4. dockside

6. Objectives of Teaching • To comprehend the whole text • To lean and master the vocabulary and expressions • To learn to paraphrase the difficult sentences • To understand the structure of the text • To appreciate the style and rhetoric of the passage.

7. oil tanker bulk carrier passenger liner cargo liner container liner container freight liner express liner conventional liner feeder liner general cargo liner ocean liner

8. rue repent of; wish nonexistent rue the day when one did sth. You'll live to rue it. Britannia rules the waves Britain is sorry that she has lost her dominance on the high seas. Britain’s merchant fleet is no longer an important item of news these days lifeline anything on which one’s life depends Shipping in Britain has developed into a famous, profit-making industry.

9. peril exposure to harm or injury; imminent danger at the peril of in peril All is not lost that's in peril. He is in peril of his life. the British fleet faces the danger of being forced out of the trade as a result of intense foreign competition. eastern bloc countries Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, East Germany undercut sell or work at lower prices or wages than bent on strongly inclined or determined

10. The social imperialists are bent on keeping the situation tense in the Middle East. There is no doubt that they are bent on the complete destruction of Hitler and Nazism. the lion’s share the largest or best part of sth. when it is divided; Several beasts joined the lion in a hunt; but , when the spoil was divided, the lion claimed one quarter in right of his prerogative, one for his superior courage, one for his dam and cubs, “and as for the fourth, let who will dispute it with me.” Awed by his frown, the other beasts silently withdrew. As usual, the lion’s share of the budget is for defense.

11. who are determined to control most of the trade a share/interest, as in property, a person, or a business venture stake The simplest explanation for the Western nations’ reluctance to support sanctions is their considerable economic stake in South Africa. in which Britain has a big stake Britain has important interests in these trade routes Translate the clause “it can … in 1914”. big to a large amount; or considerable amount talk/act big think big invested big put in a great deal of money

12. (infml) to obtain a profit or other advantage by timely exploitation cash in the shipping companies took advantage of government grants and tax concessions. launch launch a satellite launch an attack launch a new enterprise many companies which had a long history couldn’t stand the economic strain and went bankrupt. dodgy (infml, esp. B. E.) risky and possibly dangerous shipping conferences have made sea transportation which in itself involves great danger less risky

13. to make a big killing to rap big profit, to make a large amount of money suddenly, esp. in business come through successfully; pass safely through (storm, difficulty) weather It was a difficult time for her, but she weathered through beautifully. there will not be any rush and struggle to monopolize the dwindling trade to the exclusion of others Our profits have quadrupled in ten years. charter rates plummeted the amount of money paid for chartering oil-tankers dropped drastically

14. marble-sized balls of naphthalene, stored • with clothes (esp. woolens) to repel moths; moth-ball 2. the state of being stored , or kept in existence but not used, as of no further use He keeps his car in mothballs during the winter months. We shall have to put this idea in mothballs. more and more oil tankers all over the world lay idle British shipowners had not invested big in the tanker trade from the very beginning when the demand of oil was great a sudden falling off/decline, as in activity, prices/ business slump a stock market slump

15. By 1976, the bulk-carrier trade had begun to suffer because of the slump 1. a region of the ocean near the equator, characterized by calms, light winds doldrums 2. a low and sad state of mind; a state of inactivity The President was relying heavily on his think tank to shake his Administration out of the doldrums. suffering caused by lack of necessary things, esp. money pinch American farmers, feeling the pinch, raised loud cries of protest. The President’s economic sanction against the Soviet Union should pinch in the months ahead.

16. establish securely (used in passive voice/ with a reflexive pronoun) entrench The troops were entrenched near the mountains. He entrenched himself behind his newspaper. be entrenched within tradition that is where Britain’s fleet is firmly and securely established/has a firm hold the going freight rate currently accepted charge for sending the specified goods there

17. plus (informal) a welcome or favourable addition The clear weather was a plus for the golf tournament. the plus and minus factors a float moored in water as a warning of danger or as a marker for a channel buoy buoyancy ability to recover quickly from setbacks so long as other industries are not affected and are still developing in a satisfactory manner That makes it possible for them to stand a better chance than… Much of the fleet carries goods between foreign countries.

18. run the journey to a (stated) place by train or ship a ship on the San Francisco run a train on the Beijing-Shanghai run British companies are doing much business on the line between Japan and Australia. the Persian Gulf (often in pl.) an injurious intrusion on/into; an advance, esp. at another's expense; inroad + on/upon/into Foreign products have made inroads into the American economy. These hospital expenses made inroads on my savings.

19. They are also the routes…the biggest inroads. They are also the routes on which the Third World and the Russians are making a determined effort to take over (to grab) from Britain as much business as possible. the status symbol a sign which sows one’s high social position Developing countries regard…after a national airline. Developing countries consider a merchant navy very important because it is a sign showing that these countries have become economically strong and independent, so after they have set up a national airline, the next thing thy would like to have is a merchant fleet.

20. throw in the towel admit defeat or failure; surrender sponge to spend money on those branches with advanced and complex technology so that Third World countries cannot afford and are not in a position to compete put up provide (funds) in advance They finally got a company to put up money for the new musical. dockside is far from being the whole…the Third World threat this strategy is not at all (by no means) the complete answer to the Third World threat. This does not entirely solve the problem

21. to establish/apply as compulsory; to apply • by/as if by authority impose + on/upon New duties were imposed on wines and spirits. 2. obtrude or force (oneself, for example) on another or others Don't impose yourself on people who don't want you. 3. vi. to take unfair advantage You are always imposing on their generosity. they want to impose…of the shipping trade they want to pass a series of rules for all the countries to follow, hoping that in this way they will be able to get the biggest share of the trade

22. find expression in be expressed by means of At home, British outrage found expression in news headlines. Growing mutual suspicion found its expression in increased armaments and the preparation of plans for war. Let this plaque serve as an expression of our esteem. the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development That leaves only 20 per cent…cross-traders The cross-traders will have to fight for their shares of the 20 percent that have been left to them

23. if it does become universal if it is ratified by most of the countries and comes into effect show a satisfactory reason or excuse for sth. done justify A far more serious view was taken of the situation than was justified. The course of events fully justifies our views. Nothing can justify such careless mistakes. He had justified every expectation. Neither the growth in Russia’s trade nor that in world trade would require ( warrant, demand) such a rapid development of Russia’s cargo-liner fleet; would make it necessary for the fleet to develop so rapidly.

24. has already made major inroads into Western trade has already penetrated (cut ) deeply into Western trade, that is, has taken over a large part of the trade carried by Western fleets • be able to do sth. without causing • serious problems afford to We simply can't afford to offend such an important customer. 2. have enough money/time to do sth. They can't afford to buy such an expensive color TV set. 3. be able to spare or give up We are almost busy to death now and can't afford an hour for lunch.

25. How can the Russians…40 per cent? How is it possible for the Russians to stand the loss of lowering the freight rate by 40 percent? in our sense of the word how we understand the word the name of the game (colloquial) the basic, central, or critical point of the matter Well, all right, I said, the name of the game is trust: you’ve got to trust things. In the rough and tumble world of professional basketball, survival is often the name of the game.

26. The phrase comes from the fact that in certain games, esp. in card games, the game’s object is expressed by its name, as in the expression “to get 21”. The thing that really counts (matters) for Russian ships is foreign currency; the true purpose why the Russians undercut by up to 40 percent is to grab the trade( to squeeze out the competitors) and earn foreign currency. What does the word “even” indicate? do or provide (sth lacking, needed, not done, lost or missed) make up the loss can be compensated by the Soviet government in roubles

27. there is more to it than that for the Russians that is not the only purpose of the Russians The former allies are now sworn enemies. But there was more to it than that: Vietnam has become Soviet Russia’s pawn in Southeast Asia. He turned and went out, cursing his own stupidity. And yet as he walked towards the barn, he knew in his heart that there was more to it than that. which …reach well beyond its perimeters these ships would undoubtedly make it possible for the Soviet Union to exert its influence on countries far from its territory

28. project 1. cause (an image) to appear on a surface project the slide onto a screen 2. get (ideas, feelings, one’s presence etc.) across to others effectively A singer must learn to project his voice so as to be heard in a large hall. A politician must project himself if he wants to win an election. project one's country overseas to project their power at some distance from their own frontiers to cause their influence to be felt at places far away from their own territory

29. hydrographic policy a plan to study and map the oceans with reference to their navigational and commercial uses this is also part of a general Soviet hydrographic policy to map the oceans of the world the mapping of the oceans will make its fleet familiar with the main sea-routes all over the world; this should be considered part of its expansionist policy Translate the 25th paragraph. greatest or smallest amount, degree, etc. of what is possible limit + to Are there no limits to your tolerance? He will support it to the limit of the resources at his disposal.

30. They would surely fight if pushed to the limit. There is a limit, …can do on its own. There will be a point where the British government finds it cannot do any more (finds it has exhausted its resources). … has been calling for a coordinated response Britain, West Germany and Demark have asked other EEC member countries to take joint action to meet the Russian challenge the monitoring of Russian ship movements the watching, following and checking on Russian ship movements

31. the French… blocked plans along these lines the French, because of their close connections with the Soviet Union, created all kinds of difficulties to prevent the adoption of plans that could put into effect countermeasures to offset the Russian challenge Shipowners fear that… its merchant fleet. Shipowners fear that those people might be more concerned about employment in the shipyards than about saving the British merchant fleet. produce in quantity without quality; to produce in an abundant & automatic manner churn out This factory churns out lots and lots of cars a day. She churns out romantic novels.

32. financial assistance given by one person or government to another subsidy British shipbuilders would raise all the credit British shipbuilders would be responsible for securing loans for the Poles Smaller shipping lines do not have the resources to diversify Smaller shipping companies cannot afford to invest in several different trades so as to make sure they won’t suffer great losses. when these smaller shipping companies go bankrupt (are forced out of business), a big part of the few old industries that have been doing well and bringing in huge profits will also close down (stop functioning)

33. Thank you!