Reading Exam 2

Part 1 EOI Topic: History and culture

See: English File 4th edition B2.1
Read the excerpt from a chapter of a historical novel. For Files 5A, 5B, 6A, 7B, 8B, 9B, 10A
questions 1–8, decide if the statements are true (T) or false English File 4th edition B2.2
(F). 0 is the example. Files 1A, 3B, 6B, 7B, 8B, 10B

0 For a little extra money, Meg would make sure you looked nice for your
sweetheart.
1 Although life was difficult the people were generally happy.
2 The houses were far apart from each other.
3 The King thought the plague was spread by the houses being so close
together.
4 The writer’s employer saw the fire start.
5 The writer was surprised by how noisy the fire was.
6 The Lord Mayor decided to destroy the houses to stop the spread of fire.
7 Many Londoners moved away from the city after the fire.
8 The writer’s sweetheart was one of six people who died in the fire.

Question 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Option T

TOTAL

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 My Sweet Joan
When I look back on it now, 20 long years ago, it’s difficult to remember what our street
looked like, never mind all the folk who lived there. There was old Meg, with her gnarled
hands, who did the washing. If you gave her an extra copper she’d be happy to iron a shirt for
you, and she’d sprinkle it with lavender water if you were going out with your sweetheart. Yes,
it could be noisy and smelly – and when Old Tom threw his night soil out of the window, the
whole street knew about it – but most of the time we all got along.
Our wooden houses were so packed together that I could lean out my top window and kiss
Joan’s cheek without Ma and Pa downstairs knowing anything about it. The King, so much
more popular than his father, had tried to stop us building houses that close together after the
Black Death had taken so many fine English souls. He had some new-fangled ideas that he’d
got in France, about how the plague travelled. We scorned the fancy French ideas, but of course
those closely-packed houses would be our undoing…
The first I knew of the Great Fire was very early one morning. I was hard at work, tending to
the horses in the stables near the bridge. The Duke, my employer and master, had ridden hard
home from Gloucester the night before, and knocked me up at two in the morning to deal with
his horses. I was half asleep, but there was no mistaking the smell that came drifting across
from the south. Soon after, we saw the dark smoke beginning to rise over the rooftops, and then
we heard people shouting, ‘Fire! Fire!’ There weren’t many people about in the early
morning…but those who were awake were pounding frantically on doors.
Along with that came the sound of the fire: I can still hear it to this day. It cracked, it snarled, it
breathed like a dragon, just as in the stories Mr Brown had told us as infants to frighten us on
our way to bed…it was blue and red and yellow, and it moved faster than the fastest horse in
my master’s stables. Three days it raged, and it seemed the Lord Mayor had no idea what to do
about it. At last the King, our handsome leader Charles II, took charge. He dynamited the
streets and blocked its way until finally, on the Wednesday, the fire had burned itself out.
The authorities moved us out. There was nothing left of the streets, and they say that the King
was frightened of revolt from the Protestant immigrants. Like so many others, we went to the
country, out to Kent. I was lucky because my master had a manor there and I could work with
his horses, but my poor Joan…Well, I never did see her again. They say that only six people
died in the Great Fire. How can that be so, when the blaze raged through the city of London for
nearly three whole days? What they mean is that six important people died – six noblemen.
They were buried in churchyards and remembered with beautiful marble gravestones. There
were no graves for Meg, nor for Old Tom, nor for my sweet Joan.

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 EOI Topic: History and culture
See: English File 4th edition B2
Part 2 Files 5A, 5B, 6A, 7B, 8B, 9B, 10A
Read the text about the early Olympic Games. For gaps 1–6 English File 4th edition C1
choose the correct option (a, b, or c). 0 is the example. File 1A, 3B, 6B, 7B, 8B, 10B

0 a Of course, most legends are unlikely to be true.

b However, the name indicates more than the original location.
c Most of the people at that time were farmers, although there were some cities.

1 a One of these temples, designed by Phidias, was considered to be one of the seven wonders
of the world.
b Other examples include Hera, Poseidon and the mighty Ares.
c Most Greek statues that survive today are in fact copies from Roman times.

2 a I expect the fighting started again soon after the Games were finished.
b In fact, during the ancient Games all fighting between competing states was stopped.
c On the other hand, these were violent times and all city states had their own small army.

3 a Music, and musicians, were also highly prized.

b Slaves were not able to compete in any of the events.
c Winning in the Games at Olympia was therefore a huge honour.

4 a The ‘gold’ medals at today’s Olympics are actually made mostly of silver.
b The songs were written by famous poets of the time to commemorate the victories.
c By contrast, wreaths made from laurel are traditionally given to students when they graduate.

5 a Few people today realise that events for female athletes, the Heraean Games, also took place in
Olympia.
b Examples included chariot racing, and running events while wearing armour.
c Women were not allowed to watch the events because the competitors were naked.

6 a They therefore constructed facilities so they could continue with athletic events in their new
countries.
b Unfortunately, there is little reliable information on the sizes of the tracks and stadiums.
c ‘Hellenistic’ comes from the word ‘Hellas’, meaning ‘Greece’, but the term did not exist in
ancient times.

Question 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
Option b

TOTAL

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 The origins of the Olympic Games
Legend has it that the first Olympic Games were held in 776 BC, in a valley surrounded by woods
in Olympia, Greece. 0__b_ It comes from the term ‘olympiad’, meaning a four-year period or
epoch, and reflects the four-year cycle of the ancient Greek calendar. The location was of particular
religious importance and the Games were closely connected to the worship of gods and goddesses.
In the valley, the Greeks had built statues and temples dedicated to Zeus, the greatest of all the
ancient Greek gods. 1___
Studies about the origins of the Games have suggested that there might have been large-scale
sporting competitions before 776 BC. However, the first four-yearly events were probably
organized as a result of a peace treaty between the city-states of Pisa and Elis. 2___ This tradition
continues to this day and is known as ‘the Olympic truce’.
The importance of the games to the ancient Greeks cannot be underestimated. They were
competitive people, who believed in the principle of ‘agon’, meaning the honour of challenge and
competition. The principal objective of Greek life was to be the best, and this concept was linked to
every activity they approached, especially sport. 3___ This is demonstrated by the fact that the only
prizes awarded to the victors were wreaths from a sacred olive tree. Honour was more important
than material prizes, and the victorious winners marched in front of the spectators, to the sound of
singing from the admiring crowd. 4___
When it came to a well-balanced education for boys and young men, athletics were as high on the
list as music, or academic subjects like philosophy. However, sport wasn’t only important for men.
5___ The events are thought to have included various running races on smaller versions of the
track.
Across Greece, the Olympic Games created a strong bond and gave the people a strong feeling of
national unity. Those who went to live in foreign places like Syria, Asia, and Egypt during the
Hellenistic period were keen to maintain links with their home’s culture and traditions. 6___
The extension of the Olympic Games to the world at large really began in the second century AD,
and many centuries later, they now attract thousands of competitors from all over the globe.

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