Ecco la prima prova relativa agli studenti del liceo linguistico, quella relativa alla lingua inglese. Si è trattato di un doppio test, uno incentrato su una poesia del poeta americano Robert Frost, uno dei più noti poeti americani. Veniva chiesto di commentare la poesia e di fare dei brevi riassunti di commento alla poesia stessa e al poeta. IlSussidiario.net ha chiesto a Maria Bond, traduttrice madrelingua americana di svolgere il tema in questione: “Robert Frost è uno dei più conosciuti poeti americani di ogni tempo, per cui si suppone che gli studenti ne avessero una buona conoscenza fatta negli anni di studio” ha comentato. “L’impegno richiesto non era particolarmente difficile e neppure arduo da affrontare”. La seconda traccia invece chiedeva di fare un paragone fra le prossime Olimpiadi di Londra e le ultime disputate quattro anni fa a Pechino. A seguire lo svolgimento delle due tracce.
The Road not Taken
Comprehension
1. 1. Where is the poet in the first stanza?
In the first stanza, the poet is in the woods, “a yellow wood”, at a place where there is a fork in the road and he has to make a choice of which path to take to continue.
2. 2. What does the poet do when he comes to the two roads?
He stands there a long time looking down both of the paths, trying to decide which to take.
3. 3. Why does he choose the road he does?
He chooses the one he does because it is “grassy and want of wear”, meaning that not many people have travelled down it recently. It is open to interpretation whether or not the decision was thought-out or not, since the roads seem to be very similar.
4. 4. How different are the two roads, judging by the description given in the second stanza?
According to the second stanza, one of the roads is “grassy”, perhaps more than the other, but since many people have walked on both of them, they are worn down almost equally. Both also have new leaves that have not been touched on top. Thus, they are not really very different.
5. 5. Does the poet think that he will ever go back and take the other road? Why/Why not?
No, he thinks that he will not come back, though in the moment he hopes to. He says that “way leads on to way”, meaning that the path goes on and one decision leads to another and to another, and it is difficult if not impossible to return to a moment in the past.
6. 6. What does the poet express with the word “sigh” in the last stanza?
The poet uses the word “sigh” in the last stanza to refer to a future moment when he is looking back on this decision. This sigh seems to be partly a sigh of regret, or nostalgia, that he could not take the other road as well and see where it would have gone, but it could also be a sigh of contentment, as the path he had chosen led him somewhere good.
7. 7. Can the poet know what “difference” his choice will make? Why/Why not?
At the time of the poem, the poet cannot know what “difference” his choice will make because he cannot see the future. He is predicting that in the future he will look back and see that this choice “made all the difference”, but he does not know what difference it will have made.
8. 8. What makes “all the difference”?
The fact that he took the less traveled road, the one that fewer people take, “made all the difference”.
SummarySummarize the content of the passage in about 120 words.
The narrator in Robert Frost’s poem describes a moment when, while walking in the woods, he comes to a fork in the road, and must make a choice about which road to take to continue his trip. He stands in the fork and looks down each road to see which seems better. It seems that they are very similar, both worn down but with new leaves that have not been touched on top. He finally decides to take the second road, though he regrets that he cannot go down both, and knows that, however he might wish to, he will probably never come back and take the first road. He imagines a future moment when he will look back on the moment with a sigh and think about how this choice, taking the less-travelled road, and what followed from it, changed everything for him.
CompositionMaking choices is inevitable in life, so we all have roads “not taken”. What do you think is an appropriate attitude to take when faced with choices? Discuss your views on the topic by referring to your experience in a paragraph of some 300 words.
In life, everyone must make many choices, from the most mundane to the most life-changing. Robert Frost’s The Road not Taken explores this aspect of life through the metaphor of the fork in the road. His poem describes the moment of decision-making accurately. In the moment of the decision, it always seems that the decision is a momentous one, one that “will make all the difference” and that our decisions are always limiting us, since we always leave one choice behind, never to see what would have come of it. A major decision that many students have to make, and that I made, was the decision of which university to attend. Sometimes I ask myself what would have happened to me had I chosen Middlebury over Boston College, and the decision seemed paralyzing at times when I was deciding. I think the appropriate attitude to take is probably that of being grateful for having options and the freedom to choose. Of course it is better to have many forks in the road than a road already completely mapped out and planned for us. Then, if the decision is so hard, it means that both of the options are equally good or bad, and so it is better, if possible, not to think about what-ifs, but just to live. When I’m really stuck, I flip a coin and see what my reaction to the outcome is. My college experience was very rewarding, and though I think that it did indeed “make all the difference”, and in a positive way, I also believe that any other choice would have done the same. Many times, it seems to be more important what a person learns from a decision, and what a person gets out of the road they have chosen, than the decision itself.
Legacy or Lunacy?
Comprehension
1. How was the London 2012 Olympic Games supposed to be different from the Beijing one?
People thought that the London Olympics would be much more austere and less sumptuous than the Olympics in Beijing. People predicted many fewer special effects and many fewer new buildings.
2. Why was it widely believed that the architectural bubble had burst?
In China, since the government is authoritarian and the economy was booming, it was possible to do spectacular things, including building a beautiful new stadium and hiring thousands to participate in the ceremonies. On the other hand, in London, in the midst of an economic crisis, it is much more difficult to persuade taxpayers that creating something spectacular is worthwhile. The image of the bubble bursting is probably referring to the housing bubble that burst to cause the current financial crisis. It was thought that very few new buildings would be built in London for this reason.
3. What do you think the expression “more about the legacy than the fleeting spectacular” means?
It probably means that the organizers of the London Olympics, unable to provide as spectacular and expensive a show as the Chinese had in 2008, would focus on the content rather than the special effects. In this case, it could mean that there would have been less focus on the show and more focus on the actual athletic events. This could have been the legacy, what would be remembered, of these Games.
4. Why did the London Olympics organizers become nervous?
They became nervous because they did not want people to view them as cheap. This could have a bad effect on their reputation and the reputation of their country.
5. By how much has the initial cost increased?
The initial cost has increased to three times more, from three billion pounds to nine billion.
6. What is meant by “a piece of spectacular starchitecture”?
“Starchitecture”, a combination of the words star and architecture, is used in reference to the new aquatics centre built for the London Olympics. This word is probably used to indicate the fact that it is a building built by a star, Zaha Hadid is in fact mentioned, but also the fact that it is more than a building. It is supposed to be a work of art in itself, perhaps even more about its look than its functionality.
7. In the author’s opinion, what is wrong with the stadium and the aquatics centre?
The author considers the stadium completely useless, as London apparently has many stadiums that could easily have been used for the Games. He calls it a “fine, functional stadium for a city that doesn’t need it”. The aquatics centre, on the other hand, is something that is needed in the city, since the author states that there are not very many Olympic-standard pools and this one will be in a poor, deprived neighborhood. However, he also states that the pool will be extremely expensive to maintain. Thus, these buildings, according to the author, probably cannot be justified in this time of crisis.
8. Why is the author complaining about too much architecture?
The author complains about too much architecture because it seems to him that it is wasteful and unnecessary to build these new buildings, which will cost so much in construction, upkeep and management, in a time when other buildings that are much more useful (he cites libraries and sports fields) are being closed for lack of funds. He says that these buildings will become like a desolate “wasteland”, closed and empty of life, soon after the Games.
Summary Summarize the content of the article in about 150 words.
This article comments on the preparation for the London Olympics. While in China, for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the huge expenditure of money was possible thanks to an authoritarian government and a booming economy, the architectural bubble has since burst, and London is in the midst of a crisis. While many expected the Games to be much less spectacular than the Beijing Games because of this, the organizers are anxious not to appear stingy, and so they have increased their initial budget and are planning to build many impressive structures. The author describes the main creation, the new aquatics centre, as something that is needed, but which will have huge costs in upkeep, and the new stadium, which seems completely useless and to be a huge waste of taxpayer dollars in a time of crisis. The author comments on what legacy this will leave in the city, predicting that the new structures will be left empty and lifeless, and the city will be more desolate than before.
CompositionComment on the title of the article and express your views on the topic. Why do you think the Olympic Games appeals to people so much? What do you think it represents today? Write a 300-word essay.
The Olympic Games are always an opportunity of great national pride for all the participant countries, and especially for the host country, which has a chance to show the world what it is capable of, not only in terms of athletics, but also in terms of its facilities, architecture and beauty. The Games are seen as a time to set aside differences and unite to compete peacefully in sports. Millions watch the Games because of this idealism and because they hope that their athletes will bring honor to their country. Sports are always popular among people because they are a distraction from the problems of life and because they provide something to be passionate about, to root for. The article describes the preparations for the London Olympic Games this summer, and the title, Legacy or Lunacy?, refers to the question of whether or not it is crazy to spend so much money on a few-weeks-long event. The author focuses on the specific question of the new buildings being built, but the title of the article causes readers to also think about the bigger question of whether or not the Games are worth the trouble. In this period, when most of the world is foundering in a financial crisis, it seems a bit lunatic to ask taxpayers to give even more for the possibility of creating a legacy. It seems to be an ideal of glory that is a bit unrealistic. On the other hand, perhaps getting people passionate about their countries, distracted by the spectacular events, and proud of creating a legacy, is just what is needed now. There also can never be too many peaceful relationships created between members of different countries, and competing in sports is a good way to create these relationships. Perhaps a little idealism, if tempered with the just considerations of finance, is just what the doctor ordered.
