cours ter 4

Ter 4
Friday the 23 rd of Ocotber
Task: study of the text on Ellis island
Presentation + vocabulary on the Mexican/American Frontier

Word of the day :
make a quick buck = make a quick fortune

STUDY OF THE TEXT
GLOBAL UNDERSTANDING
Who? Where when what
cf paper distributed to the class

DETAILED UNDERSTANDING
1)What were the passengers’s feelings ?
notion Fear
the passengers were afraid of the immigration officers
they dreaded the arrival on Ellis island and their meeting with the officials
2)Imagine what they were afraid of ?
notion fear
they feared being sent back home/ being sent packing

3) What was the narrator feeling?
Notion contrast
on the contrary, the narrator was quite calm and composed.
While/ whereas the passengers were terrified, the narrator was master of his emotions
Unlike the other passengers,the narrator was thrilled by his arrival on the new continent.

4)From the beginning of the passage , Why had he come to America?
his purpose was to make his American dream come true.
As for him, it was a major opportunity
He wishes he made it in the US
He intended to escape/run away from the police and the IRA (Irish Republican Army)

5)Where is Ellis Island situated ?
it is set / located next to/opposite ( en face) Manhattan

6)Why is Ellis Island called the island of tears?
some people will have to go back home and thus/so they will leave their family behind and therefore they will cry/shed tears



7) Which room did they reach first ?
they first reached the great Hall : they found themselves in the great hall

7)What is the narrator ‘s medical condition?
there is nothing wrong with him: he is in perfect health

8)Complete the following grid :
L meant ……………lameness /lungs /be handicapped/ be crippled
E meant …………….. eyes / sore eyes/ sore (douloureux)

J meant……………….. jewish
C meant ………………chinese/Communist
SE meant …………..South and East of Budapest
H meant …………… heart
SC meant …………scalp
X meant …………… mental/lunatic/crazy


Which letters were actually (reellement) used ?
Only L and E, that is the letters related to actual diseases

9)Why did the narrator have to read some lines?
to check if he knew how to read and write .It was a literacy test which was imposed to all since 1917

10)What was inside the passport and why?
a ten dollar bill /he wants to corrupt him/ to bribe him

11)Complete the following grid
What the narrator tells the inspector The truth
Marital status single married
Place of departure London Dublin
Nationality English Irish


He is terrified of being caught by the IRA and being taken for a terrorist
So what can we imagine about the passport?
it was either stolen or faked
11)Right or wrong: the immigration officer knew the narrator was lying.
he found out the truth because of his accent
12)Find the sentence which proves that the narrator views the United States as a land of opportunities .
line 60
“ america was everything possible “

Homework :
Révision pour annabac sur immigration pour le Jeudi 12 + vendredi 13