TASKS for Chapters 28-29

I. Answer the following questions:

1. What seemed the most scaring for Julia in the talk with her son on the first day of his arrival?

This was his suggestion that if she went into an empty room and someone suddenly opened the door there would be nobody there.

2. How did Julia prepare for the play?

She studied her part. Julia did not deliberately create the character she was going to act by observation; she had a knack of getting into the shoes of the woman she had to portray so that she thought with her mind and felt with her senses. Her intuition suggested to her a hundred small touches that afterwards amazed people by their verisimilitude; but when they asked her where she had got them she could not say.

3. How did she act at the dress-rehearsal? Why?

 Julia spared herself. She had no intention of giving all she had to give till the first night.

5. Who did Julia talk to about her conversation with Roger? Why? What did she need to get from the conversation?

 She talked to Charles and she expected him to be sympathetic

6. Describe the state Julia was in before a first night? Compare her attitude towards first-night acting with the bygone years?

In bygone years she had been intolerably nervous before a first night. She had felt slightly sick all day and as the hours passed got into such a state that she almost thought she would have to leave the stage. But by now, after having passed through the ordeal so many times, she had acquired a certain nonchalance. Throughout the early part of the day she felt only happy and mildly excited; it was not till late in the afternoon that she began to feel ill at ease. She grew silent and wanted to be left alone. She also grew irritable, and Michael, having learnt from experience, took care to keep out of her way. Her hands and feet got cold and by the time she reached the theatre they were like lumps of ice. But still the apprehension that filled her was not unpleasant.

7. Who did she meet while wandering the streets of London at noon, 6 hours before the first night? Where did they go?

Julia met Tom and she agreed to have a cup of tea with him.

8. What thoughts accompanied Julia when she visited Tom's place?

The love that had consumed her then, the jealousy she had stifled, the ecstasy of surrender, it had no more reality than one of the innumerable parts she had played in the past. She relished her indifference.

9. Why did Julia change her attitude to Tom? What phrase does Julia pronounce to herself at the end of chapter 28? Comment on it.

Julia became indifferent to Tom and the phrase "I dare say there's something in what Roger said. Love isn't worth all the fuss they make about it" proves it.

10. Was the first night a success for Julia? For Avice? Why?

The first night was success for Julia, as she deliberately killed Avice’s performance.

 11. What was Tom's attitude towards Avice's acting? How does the scene in Julia's dressing-room characterize him?

Tom found Avice’s acting a rotten one. The scene in Julia’s dressing-room characterizes him as a man who is ready to give up a person if he/she is not successful.

 12. Why do you think Julia refused to supper with Tom that night?

Julia refused to supper with Tom that night, as that was the end with him and Avice.

13. How did Julia spend that night? Was it typical of her? Why did she prefer this?

She wanted to be alone and enjoy herself and that’s why she went to the restaurant. She did not want to share such a moment with anybody.

14. What was peculiar about Julia's appearance and order at the Berkeley? Do you feel that night was somehow significant to her? Why?

She neither painted her lips nor rouged her cheeks. She put on again the brown coat and skirt in which she had come to the theatre and the same hat. It was a felt hat with a brim, and this she pulled down over one eye so that it should hide as much of her face as possible. When she was ready she looked at herself in the glass. She did it to analyze her life and everything that happened to her. So that was a very important moment.

15. How does she reflect about the day passed? Does she feel satisfied? Why? Prove your point of view. It was enchanting to be alone and allow her mind to wander. She thought once more of Tom and spiritually shrugged a humorous shoulder. "It was an amusing experience."

16. Describe the place in a restaurant where Julia was having supper? What was special about it? Why had she chosen to be seated there?

The room in which she sat was connected by three archways with the big dining-room where they supped and danced; amid the crowd doubtless were a certain number who had been to the play. How surprised they would be if they knew that the quiet little woman in the corner of the adjoining room, her face half hidden by a felt hat, was Julia Lambert. It gave her a pleasant sense of independence to sit there unknown and unnoticed. They were acting a play for her and she was the audience. She caught brief glimpses of them as they passed the archway, young men and young women, young men and women not so young, men with bald heads and men with fat bellies, old harridans clinging desperately to their painted semblance of youth. Some were in love, and some were jealous, and some were indifferent.

17. What conclusion did Julia come to while sitting at the Berkeley and "throwing prudence to the winds?"

 “People are our raw material. We are the meaning of their lives. We take their silly little emotions and turn them into art, out of them we create beauty, and their significance is that they form the audience we must have to fulfil ourselves. They are the instruments on which we play, and what is an instrument without somebody to play on it?”

TASKS for Chapters 25-27

III. Answer the following questions:

1. Why was Julia doubtful about her beauty and sex appeal the night after her adventure with Charles? It happened because Charles did not desire her.

2. How did she put her looks to the test? Why did she need it?

That afternoon, when she had had her sleep, she got up, made up a little more than usual, and without calling Evie put on a dress that was neither plain nor obviously expensive and a red straw hat with a wide brim. She needed it to find out whether she had sex appeal or not.

3. Describe Julia's feelings when she had caught a young man's eye in the street? Rely on the lines starting with, "Suddenly her heart gave an exultant leap..." (Ch.25) and use your stylistic and linguistic knowledge while commenting.

Suddenly her heart gave an exultant leap. She had caught a young man's eye and she was sure that there was a gleam in it. He passed, and she had all she could do not to turn round. She started, for in a moment he passed her again, he had retraced his steps, and this time he gave her a stare. She shot him a glance and then modestly lowered her eyes. He fell back and she was conscious that he was following her. It was all right. She stopped to look into a shop window and he stopped too. She knew how to behave now. She pretended to be absorbed in the goods that were displayed, but just before she moved on gave him a quick flash of her faintly smiling eyes.

4. Did the date meet Julia's expectations? What were the man's real intentions towards having a cup of tea with Julia? Julia did not expect that the man only wanted to take an autograph for his wife that’s why the date did not meet her expectations.

5. The young man didn't seem to be very polite and well-bred. Prove it using the text and comment on the techniques the author employs to create a desirable effect upon the reader.

There was a sort of impudence in his manner that Julia did not much like, but then, as she sensibly reflected, you could hardly expect the modesty of the violet in a young man who picked you up in the Edgware Road. (Before we go any further let's 'ave this autograph, eh? Do it now, that's my motto. Let me bring my young lady to see you in your dressing-room one day. Just shake 'ands with her, see? It would mean a rare lot to her. Why, she'd go on talking about it the rest of her life.)

6. After the stroll, what thoughts occurred to Julia when she got back home and started reflecting over herself? Rely on the lines starting with, "When she got home she went upstairs to her room..." (Ch.25) and use your stylistic and linguistic knowledge while commenting.

Having come, the woman began speaking to herself, asking rhetorical questions, what shows her emotionality and acting skills as if she was on stage at that moment: Old, old, old. There are no two ways about it; I'm entirely devoid of sex appeal. You wouldn't believe it, would you? You'd say it was preposterous. What other explanation is there? I walk from one end of the Edgware Road to the other and God knows I'd dressed the part perfectly, and not a man pays the smallest attention to me except a bloody little shop-assistant who wants my autograph for his young lady. It's absurd. It's ridiculous to suppose that I could have got to my position if I hadn't got sex appeal. What do people come to see an actress for? Because they want to go to bed with her. Do you mean to tell me that I could fill a theatre for three months with a rotten play if I hadn't got sex appeal? What is sex appeal anyway?

8. What was the name of the play Michael was putting on?

Nowadays

9. How did Julia feel before the rehearsals?

The first rehearsal still made her almost sick with excitement. It was the beginning of a new adventure. She did not feel like a leading lady then, she felt as gay and eager as if she were a girl playing her first small part. But at the same time she had a delicious sense of her own powers. Once more she had the chance to exercise them.

10. The play Michael was staging was a modern version of The Second Mrs. Tanqueray by Arthur Pinero (1855-1934), an English playwright. What changes did Michael introduce to the original?

Some of the old characters were introduced, and Aubrey Tanqueray, now a very old man, appeared in the second act. He was now a retired brigadier-general who played golf and deplored the decline of the British Empire.

12. What motifs did Julia have to praise the mediocre Avice Crichton and keep her in the cast?

She knew her well enough to be sure that if she were dismissed she would tell Tom that it was because Julia was jealous of her. He loved her and would believe anything she said. He might even think that Julia had put this affront on her in revenge for his desertion. No, no, she must stay. She must play the part, and fail; and Tom must see with his own eyes what a bad actress she was. They both of them thought the play would make her. Fools. It would kill her.

13. What pains did Julia take to make herself look nice to meet Roger? How does that characterize her as an actress and a mother?

She wanted Roger to be proud of her, and certainly she looked very young and pretty in her summer frock as she strolled up and down the platform. You would have thought, but wrongly, that she was perfectly unconscious of the attention she attracted. Roger, after a month in the sun, was very brown, but he was still rather spotty and he seemed thinner than when he had left London at the New Year. She hugged him with exuberant affection.

14. What did Michael ask Julia to discuss with Roger?

Now that he was going to Cambridge so soon he ought to make up his mind what he wanted to do. Michael was afraid that he would drift through his time there and then go into a broker's office or even on the stage. Thinking that Julia had more tact than he, and more influence with the boy, he had urged her to put before him the advantages of the Foreign Office and the brilliant possibilities of the Bar.

 15. How did Julia react on Roger's reflection about his future? What did they eventually talk about?

 She had a feeling of acute discomfort.

16. During their conversation, Julia notices some new traits in her son's character and behavior. What are they?

He seemed a trifle apathetic; he had none of her sparkling vitality. He listened with his slow, quiet smile; but she had an uneasy feeling that he did not think it quite so funny as she did. She sighed in her heart. Poor lamb, he could have no sense of humour.

17. Roger sounds reproachful to Julia. What doesn't he approve of? Do you agree with him?

He does not approve of her affair with Tom. I agree with him, for Tom was much younger than she and wanted only her money and position.

 18. What were Julia's arguments to support her point of view about acting? Do you feel they are ground and serious? Why?

She said: “If an actress felt the emotions she represented she'd tear herself to pieces”.

19. How did their talk end?

Their talk ended with conversation about Tom and Julia. The scene was intolerable. But later they heard a car drive up. That was Michael.

20. What was the thing Roger said that bothered Julia most?

Julia had a sickening fear that Roger knew that Tom had been her lover. It was impossible, it was only her guilty conscience that made her think so; at Taplow there had been nothing; it was incredible that any of the horrid gossip had reached his ears; and yet there was something in his expression that made her certain that he knew. She was ashamed..

TASKS for Chapters 22-24

I. Give Russian equivalents of the following words and phrases:

 to make a clean breast of sth – сделать чистосердечно

to tear sb limb from limb – перемывать кому-то кости

a sleeping-draught снотворное

to and fro – взад и вперед

curtain calls – поклон

pull oneself together – собраться

magnanimous – щедрый

to cramp one's style – мешать

contrition – раскаяние

a succinct account of sth – краткое содержание

a bereavement- лишение

an austere and snug little town – аскетичный и уютный маленький город

to adhere to sth – придерживаться чего-то

VII. Answer the questions:

 1. Why couldn't Julie take her troubles to Charles or Dolly as usual?

She thought it would be cruel to tell Charles that she had given to a very ordinary young man what he would gladly have sacrificed ten years of his life for. As for Dolly, she’d be shocked and jealous when Julia made a clean breast of it, but she’d be so thankful that everything was over, she’d forgive.

 2. How different was Charles's circle from that of Tom's?

Tom was a man of no fame, he promoted only because of Julia. Charles was a man of a high society.

 3. Was Michael right when criticizing Julie's acting?

Absolutely, Julia was so disappointed about Tom that she lost control and let her emotions to overwhelm.

4. How did Julie react to her husband's criticism?

She could not imagine such a reaction and was furious at first but then she realized that his criticism was in time.

5. How did the breakup with Tom influence Julie's attitude to Michael and Charles?

Her tenderness for Michael and her ever-present sense of having been for years unjust to him filled her with contrition. She felt that she had been selfish and overbearing, and she wanted to atone for all that.  As for Charles, she decided to give him a chance.

6. Why did Julie decide to spend the summer with her mother and aunt?

Julia had a feeling that perhaps in the course of her brilliant and triumphant career she had a trifle neglected her mother. She was eager to sacrifice herself, and so wrote to her mother to announce her imminent arrival.

7. What kind of lifestyle did Aunt Carrie and Mrs Lambert have?

Aunt Carrie and Julia’s mother, Mrs. Lambert were very devout. They went to Mass every morning and to High Mass on Sundays. Otherwise they seldom went out. When they did it was to pay a ceremonious call on some old lady who had had a bereavement in the family or one of whose grandchildren was become engaged.

 8. How did the old ladies treat Julie? How did they feel about her occupation?

They treated her with cordiality, but disapprove her profession.

9. How did Julie imagine Charles's love for her?

She felt that Charles was a worthy object for its exercise. She laughed a little, kindly and compassionately, as she thought of his amazement when he understood what she intended; for a moment he would hardly be able to believe it, and then what rapture, then what ecstasy! The love that he had held banked up for so many years would burst its sluices like a great torrent and in a flood overwhelm her. Her heart swelled at the thought of his infinite gratitude. But still he could hardly believe in his good fortune; and when it was all over and she lay in his arms she would nestle up to him and whisper tenderly:

“Was it worth waiting for?”

“Like Helen, you make me immortal with a kiss.”

It was wonderful to be able to give so much happiness to a human being.

11. How did Julie slip out from the awkward situation with Charles?

She did the only thing possible. She continued the gesture. Counting so that she should not go too fast, she drew her hands towards one another, till she could clasp them, and then throwing back her head, raised them, very slowly, to one side of her neck. 
12. How did Julie explain to herself the fact that her amorous advances had been declined by Charles? She thought that Charles was impotent and used his devotion to her as a cover to’ distract attention from his real inclinations.

TASKS for Chapters 19-21

I. Give Russian equivalents of the following words and phrases:

an understudy – дублер

perfidy – измена

wanton temperament – своенравный темперамент

to cut the date – отменить встречу

an American conjurer –американский иллюзионист

to make a stab at acting in America –попытаться сделать актерскую карьеру в Америке

off the nail – быть навеселе

the R.A.D.A. – Королевская академия драмы

in point of fact – в действительности

insipid- безвкусный

hard as nails – в форме

for toffee – ни за что

be a sport – будь человеком

to beat about the bush – ходить вокруг да около

to feel all in – чувствовать себя в порядке

to give the air – не принять во внимание

to put one's foot down – занять твердую позицию

IV. Answer the questions:

1. Under what circumstances did Roger get acquainted with Joan Denver? What kind of favour did he ask of Julie?

Joan and Jill were acquaintances of Tom, who offered Roger to meet them and spend a good time. Joan wanted to work as an actress with Julia and Roger asked his mother to agree on it.

2. Why did Julie feel she had lost Roger? 

Her life had always been so full and so exciting that she had never had the time to busy herself much with Roger. She got in a state, of course, when he had whooping-cough or measles, but he was for the most part in robust health, and then he occupied a pleasant place in the background of her consciousness. But she had always felt that he was there to be attended to when she was inclined and she had often thought it would be nice when he was old enough really to share her interests. It came to her as a shock now to realize that, without ever having really possessed him, she had lost him.

3. How did Tom react to Julie's plans to take her play to New York?

He thought it would be a marvelous chance for her to make a stab in America.

4. What kind of new acquaintances and connections did Tom make through Julie?

There were many people from high society and he helped them with their income-tax records.

5. How did Julie receive Joan Denver?

She received Joan Denver the moment she had taken her last call. Julia could in the twinkling of an eye leap from her part into private life, but now without an effort she continued to play the imperious, aloof, stately and well-bred woman of the play.

6. How did Michael hear about Avice Crichton?

Michael hear about Avice Crichton through Tom.

7. Why does Maugham describe Julie's appearance at the Sunday night show as "beautifully timed?"

He wanted to show how famous Julia was.

 8. What impression did Avice Crichton and her acting produce on Julie?

Avice made an impression of a small-part actress who didn’t even begin to know how to act. It was grotesque. She couldn’t use her hands; why she didn’t even know how to walk across the stage.

9. Why did it irk Tom to have to come back with Julie after the Sunday night show?

He did not want to leave Avice and preferred to come with her at the party.

10. What kind of relationship did Tom and Avice have?

Tom really loved her, but she used him to promote as an actress.

TASKS for Chapters 15-18

I. Give Russian equivalents of the following words and phrases:

condescending letter – снисходительное письмо

pearl studs – жемчужные запонки

peevish – возбужденный

make head or tail of it – ничего не понимать

fatuous irony – глупая ирония

to get back on sb – отделаться от кого-то

song and dance – сцена, скандал

to spend a lot on green fees – тратиться на аренду поля для гольфа

despicable – презренный

to give sb a treat – доставить кому либо удовольствие

to wheedle sb into –впутывать кого-то во что-то

prudishness – высокомерие

to take liberties with sb – вести себя развязно с кем-то

to grudge sb – завидовать

conspicuous – очевидный

to take the rough with the smooth – стойко переносить превратности судьбы

to have a joke up your sleeve – держать шутку наготове

to mortify sb – усмирять

 disconcerted –смущенный

II. Explain the following metaphors. Who do they refer to?

·  It won't hurt him to discover that I'm not all milk and honey. – This statement refers to Julia while she is thinking about Tom and revenge on him. She wants to prove that she is not weak willed.

·   I'm not the woman to desert a sinking ship. – This metaphor is used by Dolly de Vries, during her conversation with Michael about his wife, Julia, and how her love affairs with Tom which could effect her career in the negative way.

II. Give a character sketch of Dolly de Vries. Pay special attention to the description of hr appearance: "Dolly de Vries was now a woman of sixty. …and a slight cockney accent revealed itself." Dwell on her relationship with Michael and Julia. How did she feel about Tom?

Mrs. de Vries was a widow, brie was a short stout woman with a fine Jewish nose and fine Jewish eyes, a great deal of energy, a manner at once effusive and timid, and a somewhat virile air. She had a passion for the stage. When Julia and Michael had decided to try their luck in London Jimmie Langton, to whose rescue she had sometimes come when it looked as though he would be forced to close his repertory theatre, had written to her asking her to do what she could for them. She had seen Julia act in Middlepool. She gave parties so that the young actors might get to know managers, and asked them to stay at her grand house near Guildford, where they enjoyed a luxury they had never dreamt of. She did not much like Michael. Julia accepted the flowers with which Dolly de Vries filled her flat and her dressing-room, she was properly delighted with the presents she gave her, bags, vanity cases, brooches; but Dolly’s generosity was due to anything but admiration for her talent. When Michael went away to the war Dolly pressed her to come and live in her house in Montagu Square, but Julia, with protestations of extravagant gratitude, refused in such a way that Dolly, with a sigh and a tear, could only admire her the more. When Roger was born Julia asked her to be his godmother. She had a big fortune, more than that she knew a lot of famous people. And Michael and Julia understood that Dolly could be usefull for them.

IV. Speak on Julia's reputation and talent. Do you agree that no one expects an actress to be a pattern of propriety?

Being a really great actress of her time, Julia didn’t find any difficulty for her to think over every detail, every scene of her life, not only on the stage: the way she was dressed, the way she turned her head and what she sayed. The woman was not aware that she deliberately observed people, but when she came to study a new part vague recollections surged up in her from she knew not where, and she found that she knew things about the character she was to represent that she had had no inkling of. It helped her to think of someone she knew or even someone she had seen in the street or at a party; she combined with this recollection her own personality, and thus built up a character founded on fact but enriched with her experience, her knowledge of technique and her amazing magnetism. People thought that she only acted during the two or three hours she was on the stage; they did not know that the character she was playing dwelt in the back of her mind all day long, when she was talking to others with all the appearance of attention, or in whatever business she was engaged.

V. Answer the questions:

1. Why did Julia offer Tom the money for servants' tips? Do you think she made the right decision?

Tom didn’t pay her any attention while they were in Taplow, so it was her revenge on him. She understood well enough that it was very painful for Tom such remaidance about money, attitude to him as a servant.  

2. Did Julia manage to induce Tom to see her again after that?

Yes, Julia managed to induce Tom to see her again after that

3. Did Dolly believe that Julia didn't have a lover? Why?

No, Dolly didn’t believe that Julia didn’t have a lover because of the gossips.

4. Whom did Dolly finally decide to talk to about Julia's cheating?

She chose Michael. She had never liked Michael, but after all he was Julia's husband and it was her duty to tell him at least enough to make him put a stop to whatever was going on.

5. Why did Dolly not confess to Michael that she suspected Julia of having a love affair?

Dolly had no proof; she only had an intuition that she could not mistrust; she wanted to say yes, but she controlled it. The woman couldn’t give Julia away. Her husband might go and tell her and Julia would never speak to her again. He might have Julia watched and catch her out. No one could tell what might happen if she told the truth.

6. Why did Michael suggest buying Dolly's share out?

He thought the woman could suffer from Julia’s broken reputation.

7. What was the reason for Dolly's desperate jealousy?

When Dolly got into her magnificent and very expensive car and drove back to Montagu Square she could not hold back the heavy, painful tears that filled her eyes. She felt old, lonely, unhappy, and desperately jealous, because there was somebody else who loved and wanted to help Julia, her husband Michael.

9. Why couldn't Julia fall asleep after the lunch with Dolly?

Julia was shocked that Dolly blamed her in love affair and she realized that the gossips about her are truth.

VI. Summarize the events of chapters 15-18

On vacation Julia expected to spend a lot of time with her lover Tom but the latter preferred to be with her son Roger who was nearly at the same age as Tom. Julia was so jealous and his actions make her disappointed so much. The woman decided to revenge her lover. She knew that Tom was poor but she left him money. The man gave her money back and Julia realized that she made a mistake. She loved Tom and wanted him to return. Julia met Dolly who told her the gossips about the actress and Nom but Julia tried to make Dolly sure that was not true. However Julia did not believe her and told Michael that.

TASKS for Chapter 14

I. Find in the text the following words and phrases and translate them into Russian:

on one excuse and another – то с одной, то с другой отговоркой

to confess to oneself – признаться кому-либо

that was all to the good – все, что не делается - все к лучшему

shrewd – проницательный

vanity – тщеславие

to have an affair with sb. – иметь с кем-либо интрижку

sallow – болезненный

to feel compassion for sb. – чувствовать сострадание к кому-либо

eminent persons – выдающиеся люди

to lay no claims on sb. – ничего не предъявлять

to use all her arts of cajolery – использовать все ее умение льстить

stale food – несвежая еда

to overcome one's scruples – преодолеть сомнения

to find someone a trifle dull – находить кого-либо немного скучным

to have no inclination – не иметь склонностей

a man of the world – человек с опытом

she was modest about herself – она была скромного мнения о себе

a smack in the face – пощечина

sulkily – сердито

Julia's heart was wrung – сердце Джулии екнуло

chivalrous courtesy – рыцарская учтивость

a vile disposition – отвратительный нрав

alacrity – готовность

wistful – тоскливый

to act with great naturalness – играть очень естественно

to make a scene – закатывать сцену

she was in a black rage – она была в праведном гневе

she'd get even with him – расплатиться с ним

to rack one's brains – думать над чем-либо

II. Answer the following questions:

1. Was Julia really in love with Tom Fennell? And he?

I think that she was in love with the man, she felt passion and desire to be with him anytime. But Julia did not confess in her feelings even herself until he realized she could hide and overcome it. As for Tom, I don’t think he loved Julia because he was too young and she too old for him. He was interested in her, not more.

 2. How old was Tom? What did he do? Why was he a success with women?
Tom was only 22 years old. He was a highly-sexed young man and enjoyed sexual exercise. From hints, from stories that she had dragged out of him, she discovered that since he was seventeen he had had a great many women. He loved the act rather than the person. He looked upon it as the greatest lark in the world. And she could understand why he had so much success. There was something appealing in his slightness, his body was just skin and bone, that was why his clothes sat on him so well, and something charming in his clean freshness. His shyness and his effrontery combined to make him irresistible.

3. How can you characterize Roger? Where was he educated? What were his relations like with his parents? Did he know what he wanted to be? Did he want to go on the stage?

Roger was seventeen. He was a nice-looking boy, with reddish hair and blue eyes, but that was the best you could say of him. He had neither his mother's vivacity and changing expression nor his father's beauty of feature. Julia was somewhat disappointed in him. As a child when she had been so constantly photographed with him he was lovely. He was rather stolid and he had a serious look. His only good features were his teeth and his hair, while his figure was rather lumpy. Roger led his own life. Thus once he told Julia that he desired to leave Eton at Christmas, he thought he had got everything out of it that he could, and he wanted to go to Vienna for a few months and learn German before going up to Cambridge. And speaking about his future, the young man didn’t know what he wanted to be but he for sure didn’t want to go on the stage.

4. How did Tom and Roger get on together?

They were almost at the same age and spent all the time together. They had a great fancy to one another.

5. Was Julia as successful in the movies as in the theatre? Did she envy the film-stars?
She had not the world-wide notoriety of the film-stars; she had tried her luck on the pictures, but had achieved no success; her face on the stage so mobile and expressive for some reason lost on the screen, and after one trial she had with Michael's approval refused to accept any of the offers that were from time to time made her. She had got a good deal of useful publicity out of her dignified attitude. But Julia did not envy the film-stars; they came and went; she stayed. 

 6. Describe in detail how Julia managed to play different characters on the stage. What thrilled her? Why did she sometimes fell like God?
Julia was not aware that she deliberately observed people, but when she came to study a new part vague recollections surged up in her from she knew not where, and she found that she knew things about the character she was to represent that she had had no inkling of. It helped her to think of someone she knew or even someone she had seen in the street or at a party; she combined with this recollection her own personality, and thus built up a character founded on fact but enriched with her experience, her knowledge of technique and her amazing magnetism. People thought that she only acted during the two or three hours she was on the stage; they did not know that the character she was playing dwelt in the back of her mind all day long, when she was talking to others with all the appearance of attention, or in whatever business she was engaged. It often seemed to her that she was two persons, the actress, the popular favourite, the best-dressed woman in London, and that was a shadow; and the woman she was playing at night, and that was the substance. It was not the popularity, the celebrity if you like, that she cared for, nor the hold she had over audiences, the real love they bore her, it was certainly not the money this had brought her; it was the power she felt in herself, her mastery over the medium, that thrilled her. She could step into a part, not a very good one perhaps, with silly words to say, and by her personality, by the dexterity which she had at her finger-tips, infuse it with life. There was no one who could do what she could with a part. Sometimes she felt like God.

7. How did Julia revenge herself on Tom?

Julia decided to revenge on him by turning him out bag and baggage.

III. Make up a list of words and phrases describing Tom Fennell. Comment on the repetition of "a young man" in the text. First "he was a blushing young man" for Julia. Did her attitude change when she was better aquainted with him? Prove it by giving examples from the text.

• sweet with his blue eyes and pale brown hair
• What he's got, of course, is sex appeal
• Lips were soft and there was a perfume of youth about him which was really rather delightful
• There was something charming in his clean freshness
• Young, fresh and ingenuous

IV. Find in the text epithets and similes which characterize Julia and Michael and say what effect the author achieves by using them.

Sometimes she felt like God – Julia realize how powerful and important she was
She read his mind like an open book –There was no unpredictable in his mind and behavior.

V. What stylistic device did Maugham employ at large to characterize Julia? Illustrate your answer with the examples from the text. Comment on the lexicon used by Julia. To what stylistic layer of the vocabulary does it belong? How does it characterize Julia?

The author uses metaphors like poor lamb, sweet little thing, poor little thing, silly little fool to show Julia’s attitude to the man she was thinking about (Tom).
There is inner speech like “Gosh, I’m going down like a barrel of oysters.” "Bloody fool, bloody fool" by means of which we can understand Julia’s true feelings and reactions.

VI. Give a summary of chapter 14. (in written form)

How strongly Julia did not try, she could not overcome her feeling to the young man Tom, the relationship with whom was in progress. The time of vacation Julia supposed to spend in a good company of Tom but the man preferred her seventeen years old son Roger to Julia. They were almost at the same age and had a lot in common. That was the reason why the men spent all the vacation together. Julia was not glade about this fact; moreover, she was jealous Tom but did not show that. However, she decided to revenge on him by turning him out bag and baggage. He returned her money and she realized he was aggrieved. Being afraid she can lose him Julia made her best to repair their relations.

TASKS for Chapters 11-13

I. Find the following words and phrases in the text and translate them into Russian:

a profound contempt – глубокое презрение

to have first nights – премьерные показы

to be exemplary – быть достойным подражания

a pattern of conjugal fidelity – образец супружеской верности

to separate – разделять

be ingenuous – быть искренним

to cry almost at will –плакать по собственному желанию

common sense – здравый смысл

to elope with sb. –сбежать (с любовником)

preposterous – несообразный

curtain calls – поклоны

prudish –излишне скромный

in for a penny, in for a pound – назвался груздем-полезай в кузов

this was all a put-up job – сфабрикованное дело

indecent – недостойный

in a flash – мгновенно

to take liberties with sb. – распускать руки

a matinee – дневной спектакль

amiably –приветливо

well-chosen words – хорошо подобранные слова

to have no sequel – не иметь продолжения

to erase the episode from her memory – стирать эпизод из памяти

pleasant reveries sauntered through her mind – приятные воспоминания проскальзывали в ее мыслях

hectic flush – лихорадочный румянец

to hurt one's pride – задеть самолюбие

to have an inkling – осторожный намек

to pawn - заложить.

II. Answer the following questions:

1. How did Julia and Lord Tamerly get acquainted? Was Julia his mistress? What did Julia owe to Charles Tamerly? They got acquainted at a luncheon party. Though Charles was madly in love with Julia, she was not his mistress.

2. Describe Julia's acting when Lord Tamerly declared his love to her. How can you prove that it was only make-believe? She sat down and for a minute looked silently at the miniature. Timing it perfectly, she raised her eyes till they met Charles's. She could cry almost at will, it was one of her most telling accomplishments, and now without a sound, without a sob, the tears poured down her cheeks. With her mouth slightly open, with the look in her eyes of a child that has been deeply hurt and does not know why, the effect was unbearably pathetic. Then she just cried and nodded.

3. Why do you think Julia agreed to have tea with the young man? What was his name? Did Julia know it or not?

I think she agreed to have tea with him because it was something new and interesting for her. His name was Tom Fennel but Julia did not know the name.

4. Was the young man as shy as he seemed to be?

No, for he started to take liberties with Julia.

5. How did he show his admiration for Julia? He had seen her in every play she had acted in since he was twelve years old. He told her that once when he was fourteen he had stood outside the stage door after a matinee and when she came out had asked her to sign her name in his autograph-book.

6. What feelings did Julia experience after the date with the young man? How did she act after that? How old was Julia at that time? What's your opinion of Julia's behaviour?

She thought it was too absurd, of course she had no intention of seeing him again, it was stupid of her to have let him behave like that, but it was just as well to temporize. But at the same time she felt like a two-year old, though she was 40. I think she behaved that way because she didn’t love Michael anymore.

 7. Describe the episode of Julia's adventure on the train to Cannes. What was Julia's attitude towards this accident? Give quotations from the text and comment on them. What do you think of this adventure?

 On her way to Cannes she met the attache at the Spanish Embassy in Paris who was going down to Cannes for Easter. He gave her his place in the sleeper, for there were no free ones. They spent the night together, and after a while it turned out that he had a family. But as time passed Julia's indignation was mitigated, and she had often thought of the adventure since with a good deal of pleasure. After all it had been fun. Sometimes she allowed her reveries to run away with her and she went over in her fancy the incidents of that singular night. He had been a most agreeable lover. It would be something to look back on when she was an old woman. He remained in her recollection, and in her bones, without a name.

8. When did Julia see Tom Fennell again? Under what circumstances?

He called her after several days and she invited him to come to her dressing-room for a tea.

 9. What do you think attracted Julia to Tom? How old was he?

He was very young, no more than 20. I think that his youth attracted her. Though he was of no more than average height his slimness made him look tall.

10. Why do you think Tom was interested in grand people?

I think, he wanted to become rich and famous just like them.

11. Do you approve or disapprove of Julia's love affair with Tom Fennell?

I disapprove of her love affair. The man was too young for she, and might be interested only in her money and fame, and all that it might gave him.

III. Make up a list of words and phrases which the author uses to show Julia's attitude towards Tom Fennell. Comment on their semantics and stylistic value.

·  when she saw him, so slight, with his hectic flush and his blue eyes, so charmingly boyish, she felt a sudden pang.

·  Oh, my good resolutions. My God, I can't have fallen in love with him.

·  What the devil's the matter with me? God, I can hardly breathe

·  She had been as excited all the evening as a girl going to her first ball. She could not help thinking how absurd she was.

·  They danced and he did not dance very well, but she found his slight awkwardness rather charming. People recognized her, and she was conscious that he enjoyed the reflected glory of their glances.

·  She could have taken him in her arms then and there and kissed his blue eyes. She adored him.

The author used his phrase to show Julia’s attitude to Thomas Fennel. She realized that she fall in love with him bur at the same tome she thought it to be wrong.

IV. The author uses a number of theatrical allusions. Find them in the text and say what you know about them. (Consult the Oxford Guide to British and American Culture or any other culture dictionary).

·  Dame Ellen Terry was an English stage actress who became the leading Shakespearean actress in Britain. Born into a family of actors, Terry began acting as a child in Shakespeare plays and continued as a teen, in London and on tour. At 16 she married the much-older artist George Frederic Watts, but they separated within a year. She was soon acting again but began a relationship with the architect Edward William Godwin and retired from the stage for six years. She returned to acting in 1874 and was immediately acclaimed for her portrayal of roles in Shakespeare and other classics. In 1878 she joined Henry Irving's company as his leading lady, and for more than the next two decades she was considered the leading Shakespearean and comic actress in Britain. Two of her most famous roles were Portia in The Merchant of Venice and Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing. She and Irving also toured with great success in America and Britain. In 1903 Terry took over management of London's Imperial Theatre, focusing on the plays of George Bernard Shaw and Henrik Ibsen. The venture was a financial failure, and Terry turned to touring and lecturing. She continued to find acting success until 1920, while also appearing in films until 1922. Her career lasted nearly seven decades.

·  The Way of the World is a play written by English playwright William Congreve. It premiered in 1700 in the theatre in Lincoln's Inn Fields in London. It is widely regarded as one of the best Restoration comedies and is still occasionally performed. The play is based around the two lovers, Mirabell and Millamant(originally played by John Verbruggen and Anne Bracegirdle). In order for the two to get married and receive Millamant's full dowry, Mirabell must receive the blessing of Millamant's aunt, Lady Wishfort. Unfortunately, she is a very bitter lady, who despises Mirabell and wants her own nephew, Sir Wilfull, to wed Millamant.

·  George Farquhar (1677– 29 April 1707) was an Irish dramatist. He is noted for his contributions to late Restoration comedy, particularly for his plays The Recruiting Officer (1706) and The Beaux' Stratagem (1707).

·  Oliver Goldsmith (10 November 1730 – 4 April 1774) was an Irish novelist, playwright and poet, who is best known for his novel The Vicar of Wakefield (1766), his pastoral poem The Deserted Village (1770), and his plays The Good-Natur'd Man (1768) and She Stoops to Conquer (1771, first performed in 1773). He also wrote An History of the Earth and Animated Nature. He is thought to have written the classic children's tale The History of Little Goody Two-Shoes, the source of the phrase "goody two-shoes".

·  Alfred Louis Charles de Musset-Pathay ; 11 December 1810 – 2 May 1857) was a French dramatist, poet, and novelist. Along with his poetry, he is known for writing La Confession d'un enfant du siècle (The Confession of a Child of the Century, autobiographical) from 1836.

V. In chapter 11 you can find the following phrase: "... like Venus rising from the waves." What is the source of this allusion? Comment on it and its stylistic effect.

:"... like Venus rising from the waves” is an artistic allusion. It is related to the 1486 painting by Sandro Botticelli “The Birth of Venus”. It depicts the goddess Venus, having emerged from the sea as a fully grown woman, arriving at the sea-shore (which is related to the Venus Anadyomene motif). The painting is on display at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy.

VI. Give a summary of chapters 11-13. (in written form)

The flowers and letter which Julia receives from the young Tom Fennel did not impress her, however, the man called her and invited to his house. Julia came and remained the time her youth. Thomas suddenly kissed her and she did not resist despite she even did not remember his name. Lately the adventure on the train to Cannes  happened with Julia, she spent the night the man who just met. Then her relationship with Tom continued and they went to an expensive restaurant and to pay for the meal the man pawned his watch. After the dinner they went to his home again.