What is Barbican Centre?
Barbican is a district of the City of London. It was greatly destroyed by bombing during the Second World War. Great construction has started since the end of the war. Nowadays Barbican is one of the most beautiful districts of London. It is also famous for the Barbican Centre.
The Barbican Centre is an enormous complex which contains two theatres, an art gallery, three cinemas, two restaurants and two exhibition halls.
The building itself is very interesting: it is built on eight levels. Four of these levels are underground. On the fifth level there is a lake, complete with 45 fountains, and an air terrace where you can have coffee.
The construction of the Centre was started in 1970. At that time it was expected to cost 190 million. At last on the 3d of March 1982 the Barbican Centre was opened by the Queen Elizabeth herself.
There are two resident companies which are now based in the Barbican Centre. They are the London Symphony Orchestra and the Royal Shakespeare Company. It is these two companies which are providing a good part of the cultural programme for the public.
ENGLISH TODAY
There are over 2,700 languages in the world, but English today is the most important international language. Four hundred million people speak English as their first language. Six hundred million people speak it either as a second or as a foreign language. That is 20 per cent of the world’s population.
English has become a world language, because it is spoken as a mother tongue in all the continents of the world. In the 17th century it was brought to North America by the first colonisers. Then in the 18th century English was brought to Australia, later on to Africa and India.
Millions of people are learning English today. It is the language of summit meetings and international conferences. It’s also the language of the United Nations. Foreign political leaders usually speak to international journalists in English. The latest discoveries and ideas in all spheres of science and medicine appear in special international journals, of which 60 per cent are in English. 80 per cent of all information in the world’s computers is in English.
Besides, there are a lot of brilliant world-famous English, American, Canadian and Australian writers and poets who gave the world their wonderful works. The reader can fully appreciate them only in the original.
And finally, many young people learn English as a foreign language because it is the language of rock and pop music.
So, English can be used for many different purposes and serve as a key to other cultures and their riches.
Over более
Important важный
first language, mother tonge родной язык
either…or или…или
20 per cent 20 процентов
population население
century век
later on затем
summit meeting совещание в верхах
the United Nations ООН
international journalists международные корресподенты
the latest discoveries последние открытия
sphere сфера, область
science наука
to appear появляться
besides кроме того
brilliant великолепный, замечательный
wonderful прекрасный
to appreciate оценить
in the original в оригинале
finally наконец
to use использовать
different разный, различный
purpose цель
to serve служить
key ключ
riches богатство
Answer the Following Questions:
1.What is the role of English among other foreign languages?
2.How many people speak it?
3.Why has English become a world language?
4.Who brought English to the American continent?
5.Where else is English an official language?
6.Why are millions of people learning English today?
7.How can readers best appreciate world literature in English?
8.Why do young people want to learn English?
9.Why do you learn English?