Unit 7 Choice Versus Chance

Unit 7 Choice Versus Chance

Part ⅠGetting ready

Man: I suppose my career’s a bit unusual because I went to university when I was twenty-five—a lot later than most people go. When I left school, I went straight out to work: I worked as a clerk in a small office. My father criticized me, I remember, for not going on studying while I had the chance, but I wanted to earn myself some money. Anyway, that job didn’t last long because I had to go into the army when I was twenty. I stayed in for five years. I don’t know what good my university course did because I’m unemployed now. Oh, I know

I got a job when I finished my university course—I was twenty-nine then

—but it didn’t last long. Well, I never really thought I would enjoy teaching very much. So, as I s ay, I’m unemployed now and looking for something else. Part ⅡSummer jobs

I—interviewer C—Christine K—Kevin

I: And Christine, what about you? What have you been doing this summer?

C: Working, mostly.

I: You mean you’ve been studying?

C: Oh no, I’ve been doing a job to earn money.

I: And have you made your fortune yet?

C: Hardly! But I haven’t done too badly.I’ve been getting about ￡70 a week, plus my meals and my accommodation, so I’ve earned over ￡500 and I’ve managed to save most of it.

I: That sounds pretty good. What kind of work have you been doing exactly?

C: I’ve been working in a hotel.

I: What, as a waitress?

C: No. I’ve been helping in the kitchen most of the time—washing and peeling vegetables, preparing breakfast trays, washing up—that sort of thing.

I: And have you been enjoying it? Or has it been rather boring?

C: No, it hasn’t been too bad. I’ve found it quite interesting here, in fact. Not so much the work itself, but the people I’ve got to know and the friends I’ve made, and I’ve managed to do lots of things in my spare time too. It’s a seaside town, so there’s been quite a lot going on in the evenings—you know, dancing, bowling, cinemas, and so on—and on my afternoons off I’ve been doing quite a bit of sunbathing and swimming.

I: Yes, I can see you’ve got quite brown. You’ve obviously been having some reasonable weather here. Now what about Kevin here? Kevin, you’ve managed to get a fantastic suntan. How have you been spending your time here? Have you been doing a holiday job?

K: Yes, I’ve been working down on the beach. I like an outdoor job. I’ve been mostly hiring out deck chairs—you know, going round collecting the money, but I’ve also been selling papers.

I: And have you earned a lot of money?

K: Not a lot. I came here for a cheap holiday more than anything else.My brother’s the one who’s been making money this summer.

I: Has he been working here in Brighton too?

K: No, he’s in Italy working as a courier for a travel firm. He’s been taking Americans round Italy on coach tours and having a fantastic time. And one of them has invited him to go and work in America next summer.

I: Lucky him!

Part Ⅲ Jobs: my idea of hell, my idea of heaven

My Idea of Hell:

1st speaker: I think my idea of hell would be, to have a job where I had to do the same thing over and over again like somebody working in a factory just picking

up one thing from one place and putting it into another and this just going

on and on, day in and day out, if it was that kind of job I would just go

mad…

2nd speaker: Well, I think the thing I would least like to do given an option of anything in the world would be to be the guy who sits in a nuclear power station

watching for it to start melting down, you know, the guy who sits there in

front of those, that’s just you know it’s a revolting thing anyway but can

you imagine the boredom and the responsibility at the same time, it

would just be completely terrible, I’d hate that.

3rd speaker: I think, I think the job I…I don’t actually think I would be capable of doing it is to be work as the killing person in an abattoir. (I don’t actually

think I would be capable of doing it: to work as the killing person in an

abattoir.) I think that would be my, my, er, it’s self-explanatory why I

couldn’t do it. I th…I can’t imagine how people actually do it. I met

somebody once who erm was one of the people that went into erm er a

chicken battery and they’d spend all night they were only working night

shift and just kill chickens and, and I just couldn’t comprehend how they

managed to do that and how they stayed sane. That would be the worst

thing. I think it’s be torture in more ways than one…

My Idea of Heaven:

1st speaker: On the other hand it would be wonderful to have a job where you are paid

a lot of money and you could travel to different countries—someone like

a television reporter or an archaeologist or an anthropologist. I mean those

are the exciting kinds of jobs I’d like to have…I can’t pinpoint one but it

has to be a job where I can travel and see different countries and learn a

little about those countries and visit exciting places.

2nd speaker: What would I like to do? Well I guess probably the best job in the world would be play for the New York Mets. You can’t beat that…you just can’t

beat that … third baseman for the New York Mets. The Mets? Oh they’re a

baseball team…best baseball team in the world.

3rd speaker: To choose another sort of job that I would really like. I would very much like to be a photographer, erm because it would give me an opoportunity to

work with people but at the same time be independent still and that’s the

thing that I always need. I need to be independent, be able to work on my

own and be amongst other people, very much like you, I think, that I have

to have other contact but like to get on with wha…with my own thing. Part Ⅳ More about the topic: Occupational Outlook

1.vocation, chance, choice, selecting, vocational planning, the world of work,

requirements, present, time, effort, study, rewards

2.factors, interests, training, salaries, essential

3.grow, decline, economy, demand, changes

4.Accountants, programmers, officers, engineers, Lawyers, Medical, Public-

relations, financial, Tool, agents

5.manual, rely on, respond, opportunities, workers

6.Butchers, operators, Mail, clerks, installers

Part V Memory test: Who’ll Get the Job?

(Jane Langley is being interviewed by Mrs Grey, the Personnel Manager, and Mr Toms.)

Mr Toms: Yes,I see. Good. Good.

Mrs Grey: Miss Langley, I see that your last employer, Mr Carmichaes, described you as “ conscientious”. Do you think you are?

Jane: Well, I certainly try to be. I have a set routine for the day in the office which means that I know exactly all the jobs that I have to do. And if conscientious means being extremely careful and paying attention to details, then yes, I suppose I’m conscientious.

Mr Toms: But he said too that you could “adapt quickly to change”. Did you leave because they were making changes, or what?

Jane:No, not at all. They made a lot of changes while I was there. I’m afraid I became unhappy because I wanted something more challenging.

Mrs Grey: I assume you wanted something like the job of Senior Secretary that we’re offering.

Jane: Yes, that’s right.

(Michael James is being interviewed now by the same two people.)

Mrs Grey: … and according to your last employer, Mr Smith, you “tend to be a little impatient at times”.

Michael: Well perhaps I am, perhaps I’m not. Some of the others in the office there were so slow!

Mr Toms: Yes, yes. I like a person who wants to get on with the job.

Mrs Grey: Mr James, what I’d like to know is …

Mr Toms: Excuse me, Mrs Grey, but I wanted to ask Mr James about his sport.

You’re a keen footballer, I understand.

Michael: Oh, yes. I play regularly twice a week. And I organized a team at my old place.

Mr Toms:And golf,too, I guess.

Michael:Yes. Actually, I like golf better than football really. That’s why I play nearly every morning…

(Mrs Grey and Mr Toms are now discussing Jane and Michael after the interviews.) Mrs Grey:…so in my view, when you compare the two of them---- and this has nothing to do with Jane being a woman--- I’d give the job to Jane Langley. She’s obviously a better secretary than he is, she’s a much better secretary than he is, she’s a much better typist, she mixes better with people and is clearly far more polite. We don’t even need to discuss Mr James.

Mr Toms: Well, we do, because I think he’s brighter than Miss Langley. I know he doesn’t dress as well or speak as clearly, and he’s not as experienced as she is, but he’s quicker, more alert. And he’s keen on football and golf. I like that. So he gets the job.

Mrs Grey: No, I’m sorry, Mr Toms. He doesn’t.

Mr Toms: Yes, he does, Mrs Grey. He’s the Director’s nephew.