MAGISTER

OPOSICIONES AL PROFESORADO Inglés EOI

PRACTICE EXERCISES 11

1. TRANSLATIONS.

A. Translate the following text into English.

Seguros y fondos de pensiones

Los seguros cubren las necesidades de protección que los ciudadanos reclaman para poder hacer
frente a acontecimientos futuros e inciertos que pueden hacer cambiar sus vidas, afectándoles
personalmente (seguros de vida, fallecimiento, enfermedad, accidentes), a sus bienes básicos
(vivienda, vehículos), a su actividad profesional, comercial o industrial, o a su patrimonio en general
(responsabilidad civil). La contratación de un seguro permite trasladar los riesgos a los que
habitualmente estamos expuestos a las entidades aseguradoras, que los asumen mediante el cobro de
una prima, y que, para el caso de que el riesgo se materialice, responden pagando una indemnización,
que supondrá que la persona que ha sufrido el siniestro recupere una situación equivalente a la que
tenía con anterioridad a su producción.

El sector de seguros y fondos de pensiones en España está bajo la supervisión y control de la

Dirección General de Seguros y Fondos de Pensiones (DGSFP). Este organismo se encarga de
controlar el adecuado funcionamiento del sector y de dar la protección adecuada a los clientes de las
entidades aseguradoras, así como a los partícipes de los planes de pensiones. Para ello cuenta con
facultades de regulación, ordenación y supervisión sobre las entidades que componen el sector, lo que
garantiza un funcionamiento adecuado de acuerdo con la normativa vigente. Del mismo modo, la
DGSFP se ocupa de la autorización de nuevas entidades que quieran operar en el sector y de controlar
las operaciones societarias que estas entidades realizan. En la página web de la DGSFP se da la
información necesaria para que los clientes de entidades aseguradoras que se sientan desprotegidos
en sus intereses presenten las quejas o reclamaciones que estimen pertinentes ante el Servicio de
Reclamaciones de la DGSFP.

El Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros es una entidad pública empresarial dependiente del

Ministerio de Economía y Hacienda a través de la Secretaría de Estado de Economía. Desde sus
orígenes ha estado al servicio del sector asegurador complementando las coberturas de éste en la
atención de determinadas necesidades sociales especialmente difíciles de asumir por el mercado,
basándose en los principios de solidaridad, compensación, colaboración y subsidiariedad. Durante su
trayectoria el Consorcio ha ido abarcando distintos ámbitos del seguro, en función de las citadas
necesidades, y entre los que cabe citar las funciones que tiene encomendadas en la cobertura de los
riesgos extraordinarios (catástrofes naturales y actos de grave incidencia social como el terrorismo);
en el sistema del seguro agrario combinado; en el seguro de automóviles de suscripción obligatoria;
en la liquidación de entidades aseguradoras, y en otros terrenos de menor incidencia en cuanto a
cúmulo de actividad, como el seguro de crédito a la exportación, el seguro obligatorio de viajeros, el
seguro obligatorio del cazador y el seguro de riesgos nucleares.
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From <http://www.meh.es>

Insurance and pension funds

Insurance covers the requirements for protection sought by citizens in order to be able to deal with
possible future occurrences that may alter their lives and affect them personally (life, death, illness
and accident insurance), their basic assets (home, vehicles), their professional, commercial or
industrial activity or their resources in general (civil liability). Taking out an insurance policy makes
it possible to transfer the risks to which we are routinely exposed to insurance agencies, who accept
those risks subject to the payment of a premium. In the case of an event corresponding to such a risk
transpiring, the relevant insurance agency responds by making a compensatory payment to the
person who has suffered as a result thereof, with a view to restoring a situation equivalent to that in
which they found themselves prior to the occurrence of the event.

The Directorate-General of Insurance and Pension Funds (DGSFP) supervises and controls
Spain's insurance and pension fund sector. It is responsible for ensuring that the sector functions
properly and for providing customers of insurance agencies and members of pension funds with
appropriate protection. To that end, it is empowered to regulate, issue instructions to and supervise
the institutions that compose the sector, thus guaranteeing proper operation in accordance with
current legislation. The DGSFP is also charged with authorising new institutions wishing to work in
the sector and with monitoring the business operations undertaken thereby. The website of the
DGSFP contains the information necessary for insurance agency customers who feel that their
interests are not being protected to submit any complaints or claims which they deem relevant to the
Claims Service of the Directorate-General.

The Insurance Compensation Consortium (CCS) is a public business organisation answerable to

the Spanish Ministry of Finance and the Economy through the Office of the State Secretary for the
Economy. Since its inception, the CCS has served the insurance sector by complementing the cover
provided thereby for certain social needs that have proven to be particularly difficult for the market
to meet, working on the basis of the principles of solidarity, compensation, cooperation and
subordination. The Consortium has a history of dealing with different areas of insurance, in line with
the aforementioned needs, notably including its duties as regards cover for extraordinary risks
(natural disasters and acts with serious social repercussions, such as terrorism); in the combined
agricultural insurance system; where compulsory vehicle insurance is concerned; in relation to the
liquidation of insurance agencies; and in other fields of lesser significance in terms of the level of
activity involved, such as export credit insurance, compulsory travel insurance, compulsory hunting
insurance and insurance against nuclear risks.

From <http://www.meh.es>

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B. Translate the following fragment into Spanish.

‘Bruno, that’s enough,’ she said, snapping at him now and standing up to show him that she was
serious when she said that was enough. ‘Honestly, only last week you were complaining about how
much things have changed here recently.’

‘Well, I don’t like the way we have to turn all the lights off at night now,’ he admitted.

‘Everyone has to do that,’ said Mother. ‘It keeps us safe. And who knows, maybe we’ll be in less
danger if we move away. Now, I need you to go upstairs and help Maria with your packing. We don’t
have as much time to prepare as I would have liked, thanks to some people.’

Bruno nodded and walked away sadly, know-ing that ‘some people’ was a grown-up’s word for
‘Father’ and one that he wasn’t supposed to use himself.

He made his way up the stairs slowly, holding on to the banister with one hand, and wondered
whether the new house in the new place where the new job was would have as fine a banister to slide
down as this one did. For the banister in this house stretched from the very top floor — just outside
the little room where, if he stood on his tiptoes and held on to the frame of the window tightly, he
could see right across Berlin — to the ground floor, just in front of the two enormous oak doors. And
Bruno liked nothing better than to get on board the banister at the top floor and slide his way through
the house, making whooshing sounds as he went. Down from the top floor to the next one, where
Mother and Father’s room was, and the large bathroom, and where he wasn’t supposed to be in any
case.

Down to the next floor, where his own room was, and Gretel’s room too, and the smaller bath-room
which he was supposed to use more often than he really did.

Down to the ground floor, where you fell off the end of the banister and had to land flat on your two
feet or it was five points against you and you had to start all over again.

The banister was the best thing about this house — that and the fact that Grandfather and
Grandmother lived so nearby — and when he thought about that it made him wonder whether they
were coming to the new job too and he presumed that they were because they could hardly be left
behind. No one needed Gretel much because she was a Hopeless Case — it would be a lot easier if
she stayed to look after the house — but Grandfather and Grandmother? Well, that was an entirely
different matter.

Bruno went up the stairs slowly towards his room, but before going inside he looked back down
towards the ground floor and saw Mother entering Father’s office, which faced the dining room —
and was Out Of Bounds At All Times And No Exceptions — and he heard her speaking loudly to him
until Father spoke louder than Mother could and that put a stop to their conversation. Then the door
of the office closed and Bruno couldn’t hear any more so he thought it would be a good idea if he
went back to his room and took over the packing from Maria, because otherwise she might pull all his
belongings out of the wardrobe without any care or consideration, even the things he’d hidden at the
back that belonged to him and were nobody else’s business.
From The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, by John Boyne
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—Basta, Bruno —espetó ella con brusquedad, poniéndose en pie para demostrarle que lo decía en
serio—. Precisamente la semana pasada te quejabas de cómo habían cambiado las cosas en los
últimos tiempos.

—Bueno, es que no me gusta que ahora haya que apagar todas las luces por la noche —admitió él.

—Eso lo hace todo el mundo. Así nos protegemos. Y quién sabe, quizá estemos más seguros si nos
marchamos. Bueno, ahora quiero que subas y ayudes a Maria a hacer tus maletas. No tenemos tanto
tiempo como me habría gustado para prepararnos, gracias a ciertas personas.

Bruno asintió y se alejó cabizbajo, consciente de que «ciertas personas» era una expresión que
utilizaban los adultos y que significaba «Padre», y que él no debía emplearla.

Subió despacio la escalera, sujetándose a la barandilla con una mano mientras se preguntaba si en
la casa nueva de aquel sitio nuevo donde estaba el trabajo nuevo de su padre habría una barandilla
tan fabulosa como aquélla para deslizarse. Porque la barandilla de su casa arrancaba del último
piso —justo enfrente de la pequeña buhardilla desde donde, si se ponía de puntillas y se aferraba al
marco de la ventana, podía contemplar todo Berlín—, discurría hasta la planta baja y terminaba
justo enfrente de la enorme puerta de roble de doble hoja. Y no había nada que a Bruno le gustara
más que montarse en la barandilla en el último piso y deslizarse por toda la casa haciendo
«zuuum».Bajaba desde el último piso hasta el siguiente, donde se encontraban el dormitorio de sus
padres y el cuarto de baño grande que no le dejaban utilizar.

Continuaba hasta el siguiente, donde estaba su dormitorio y el de Gretel, y el cuarto de baño más
pequeño que sí le dejaban utilizar y que en realidad habría debido utilizar más a menudo.

Y seguía hasta la planta baja, donde se caía del extremo de la barandilla. Debía aterrizar con los dos
pies si no quería recibir una penalización de cinco puntos y verse obligado a empezar de nuevo.

La barandilla era lo mejor de la casa —eso y que los abuelos vivían muy cerca—. Cuando reparó en
aquello, Bruno se preguntó si ellos irían también al sitio del nuevo trabajo y supuso que sí, porque
¿cómo iban a dejarlos allí? A Gretel nadie la necesitaba mucho porque era tonta de remate —todo
habría sido más fácil si ella se hubiera quedado al cuidado de la casa—, pero los abuelos... Hombre,
aquello era muy distinto.

Subió despacio la escalera hacia su dormitorio, pero antes de entrar miró hacia abajo y vio a Madre
abriendo la puerta del despacho de Padre, que se comunicaba con el comedor —y donde estaba
Prohibido Entrar Bajo Ningún Concepto y Sin Excepciones—, y la oyó gritarle hasta que Padre gritó
mucho más fuerte que ella, poniendo fin a la conversación. Entonces la puerta del despacho se cerró
y Bruno no oyó nada más, de modo que le pareció buena idea volver a su habitación y encargarse
personalmente de hacer las maletas; de lo contrario, María sacaría todas sus cosas del armario sin
cuidado ni consideración, incluso las pertenencias que él había escondido en el fondo del mueble y
que eran suyas y de nadie más.

From El niño con el pijama de rayas, by John Boyne (translated by Gemma Rovira Ortega)

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2. TEXT ANALYSIS. Read the following text and answer the questions below:

The gilded light of the late-afternoon sun sheened the marsh grass, the mudflats, the flat fields of row
crops. With the windows down he caught the scent of water as he bypassed the little town of St.
Christopher.

He’d considered swinging into town, heading first to the old brick boatyard. Boats by Quinn still
5 custom-made wooden boats, and in the eighteen years since the enterprise had started—on a dream,
on guile, on sweat—it had earned its reputation for quality and craftsmanship.

They were probably there, even now. Cam cursing as he finished up some fancywork in a cabin.
Ethan quietly lapping boards. Phil, up in the office conjuring up some snazzy ad campaign.

He could go by Crawford’s, pick up a six-pack. Maybe they’d have a cold one, or more likely Cam
10 would toss him a hammer and tell him to get his ass back to work.

He’d enjoy that, but it wasn’t what was drawing him now. It wasn’t what was pulling him down the
narrow country road where the marsh still crept out of the shadows and the trees with their gnarled
trunks spread leaves glossy with May.

Of all the places he’d seen—the great domes and spires of Florence, the florid beauty of Paris, the
15 stunning green hills of Ireland—nothing ever caught at his throat, filled up his heart, like the old
white house with its soft and faded blue trim that sat on a bumpy lawn that slid back into quiet water.

He pulled in the drive, behind the old white ‘Vette that had been Ray and Stella Quinn’s. The car
looked as pristine as the day it had rolled off the showroom floor. Cam’s doing, he thought. Cam
would say it was a matter of showing proper respect for an exceptional machine. But it was all about
20 Ray and Stella, all about family. All about love.

The lilac in the front yard was smothered with blooms. That was a matter of love, too, he reflected.
He’d given Anna the little bush for Mother’s Day when he was twelve.

She’d cried, he remembered. Big, beautiful brown eyes flooded with tears, laughing and swiping at
them the whole time he and Cam planted it for her.

25 She was Cam’s wife, and so that made Anna his sister. But inside, he thought now, where it counted,
she was his mother.

The Quinns knew all about what was inside.

He got out of the car, into the lovely stillness. He was no longer a scrawny boy with oversized feet
and a suspicious eye.

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30 He’d grown into those feet. He was six-one with a wiry build. One that could go gawky if he
neglected it. His hair had darkened and was more a bronzed brown than the sandy mop of his youth.
He tended to neglect that as well and, running a hand through it now, winced as he recalled his
intention to have it trimmed before leaving Rome.

The guys were going to rag on him about the little ponytail, which meant he’d have to keep it for a
35 while, out of principle.

He shrugged and, dipping his hands into the pockets of his worn jeans, began to walk, scanning the
surroundings. Anna’s flowers, the rockers on the front porch, the woods that haunted the side of the
house and where he’d run wild as a boy.

The old dock swaying over the water, and the white sailing sloop moored to it.

40 He stood looking out, his face, hollow-cheeked and tanned, turned toward the water.

His lips, firm and full, began to curve. The weight he hadn’t realized was hanging from his heart
began to lift.

From Chesapeake Blue, by Nora Roberts

a. Discuss both the textual genre and the textual type to which this text belongs.

Regarding genre, this text belongs to a prose text, a fictional book, a novel. We can extract this
conclusion on two bases: first, the knowledge we have of the author of the book—a best-seller writer
of romance novels; second, the fact that the text presents characters having some life experiences in a
particular location in a particular period of time, which is a typical characteristic of novels.

Regarding text type, this text is a combination of descriptive and narrative text:

- It is descriptive because:
1. Its purpose is to inform about the state of things and present agents and objects in space
and time. In this case, there is a comparison between the past and the present time.
2. There is presence of verbs that do not denote action or movement: had considered, were,
would have, had seen, looked, reflected, remembered...
3. The use of continuous tenses or –ing forms: lapping, drawing, swiping, dipping,
scanning, swaying...
4. The abundance of adjectives: gilded, little, old, custom-made wooden, snazzy, narrow,
gnarled, glossy, great, florid, stunning...
5. The presence of adverbs of manner: quietly...
6. There are location indicators: the little town of St. Christopher, boatyard, marsh,
Florence, Paris, Ireland, house, the drive ...

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- It is narrative because:
1. Its purpose is to inform about actions and events: in this case, a man’s return to his home
town of St. Christopher after spending an indefinite period of time, though probably quite
long (He was no longer a scrawny boy...) in Europe (Florence, Paris, Ireland, Rome are
mentioned in the text).
2. There is abundance of action verbs, such as: pulled in, got out..., shrugged, began to
walk...
3. Most of the action verbs are in the past simple tense, a tense typically used in narrative
pieces.
4. There are time and location indicators: late-afternoon, St. Christopher, town, marsh,
May...

b. Comment on the communicative functions of the text.

The communicative function that dominates the text is the referential or representational, used to
present the situation to the reader. The narrator explains what is happening to the characters and what
they can see and think.

The expressive or emotional function is also present since the texts allows us to perceive the
nostalgia the character feels when returning to his home town after spending years abroad. There are
some sentences that can help us feel what the character feels: He’d enjoy that, but it wasn’t what was
drawing him now; Of all the places he’d seen—the great domes and spires of Florence, the florid
beauty of Paris, the stunning green hills of Ireland—nothing ever caught at his throat, filled up his
heart, like the old white house with its soft and faded blue trim that sat on a bumpy lawn that slid
back into quiet water; She was Cam’s wife, and so that made Anna his sister. But inside, he thought
now, where it counted, she was his mother.

c. Describe the style of the text.

The text is written in the third person, the narrator being, thus, outside the narrative and
omniscient. The narrator knows everything that happens within the world of the story, including
what the characters are thinking (She was Cam’s wife, and so that made Anna his sister. But inside,
he thought now, where it counted, she was his mother), and feeling. The godlike all-knowing
perspective of the third-person omniscient allows the narrator to tell the reader things that none of the
characters know, or indeed things that no human being could ever know.

As regards language, the text is written in a combination of informal and formal speech. The
informal use of language predominates and can be recognized in the following stylistic features of the
text:

- The use of contractions: He’d considered, He’d enjoy, it wasn’t...

- The use of phrasal verbs: finished up, conjuring up, pick up...
- The use of colloquial idioms: get his ass back to work, the guys were going to rag on him
about...

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- Ellipsis in the construction of sentences: Boats by Quinn still custom-made wooden boats, and
in the eighteen years since the enterprise had started...; Cam cursing as he finished up some
fancywork in a cabin. Ethan quietly lapping boards. Phil, up in the office conjuring up some
snazzy ad campaign.

The formal use of language can be recognized in the following stylistic features of the text:
- The use of words deriving from Latin: florid, pristine, bronzed...
- The use of words of rare occurrence in everyday speech: gilded, guile, gnarled, smothered...

The reason why informal language predominates although with some formal expressions might be
that the author is presenting what the main character is thinking about or remembering, probably
trying to use the words he would use. Thus, one could presume that the character is quite educated,
for he would use words like florid and pristine.

Other stylistic features that can be highlighted include:

- enumerations or syntactic repetitions in which and has been eliminated: the marsh grass, the
mudflats, the flat fields of row crops; on a dream, on guile, on sweat; the great domes and
spires of Florence, the florid beauty of Paris, the stunning green hills of Ireland;
- other syntactic repetitions: it wasn’t what was drawing him now. It wasn’t what was pulling
him down...; it was all about Ray and Stella, all about family. All about love.
- Paragraphs are normally short, with one or two sentences, though there are also one-sentence
paragraphs. The author writes such short paragraphs for two likely purposes:
a. To highlight the information in them provided.
b. To create a rhythmical pattern when reading the text.

d. Find examples of the following figures of speech in the text:

- Metaphor: The weight he hadn’t realized was hanging from his heart began to lift.
- Personification: the marsh still crept out of the shadows; nothing ever caught at his throat,
filled up his heart, like the old white house...
- Simile: nothing ever caught at his throat, filled up his heart, like the old white house with its
soft and faded blue trim that sat on a bumpy lawn that slid back into quiet water; The car
looked as pristine as the day it had rolled off the showroom floor; His hair had darkened and
was more a bronzed brown than the sandy mop of his youth.
- Synecdoche: get his ass back to work.
- Oxymoron: eyes flooded with tears, laughing...

e. Provide definitions or synonyms for the following words or phrases from the text:

1. gilded: covered or highlighted with gold or something of a golden colour.

2. guile: insidious cunning in attaining a goal; crafty or artful deception; deceit.
3. lapping: wrapping up; enveloping or enfolding something.
4. snazzy: extremely attractive or stylish; flashy; fancy
5. toss: to throw, pitch or fling, especially lightly or carelessly.
6. gnarled: bent, twisted, covered with knots.
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7. spire: a tall, acutely pointed pyramidal roof or rooflike construction upon a tower, roof, etc.
8. smothered: covered closely or thickly; overwhelmed; surrounded.
9. scrawny: excessively thin; lean; skinny.
10. gawky: awkward; clumsy; rude.

f. This passage has been extracted from Chesapeake Blue. Chesapeake Bay was the site of the
Battle of the Chesapeake in 1781, during which the French fleet defeated the Royal Navy in
the decisive naval battle of the American Revolutionary War. What do you know about this
war?

The American Revolution is understood as the conflict between Britain and thirteen of its colonies on
the Atlantic coast of North America in the second half of the eighteenth century. During the course of
the American Revolution, the thirteen colonies declared their independence from the mother country
and concluded an alliance with France. In order to analyse the reasons of the American Revolution, it
is necessary to study the decades prior to the conflict.

The English and the French had vied for control over the Indians, for possession of the territory lying
to the north of the American colonies, for access to the trade in the Northwest, and for commercial
superiority. The culmination of these struggles came in 1754 with the Great War for the Empire. In
the Treaty of Paris of 1763, England took possession, in practical terms, of all North America, and
some possessions in the Caribbean, such as Dominica.

The cost of winning the war was so high that most Englishmen thought that the American colonies
should help pay the cost. However, the American colonists in 1763, freed for the first time in the 18th
century from the French and Indian threats, were more reluctant than ever to be taxed for a military
establishment. The English in turn would institute a programme reorganizing the structure of the
empire and imposing taxes on the colonies to pay for that reorganization. The American colonies,
now economically powerful, culturally distinct, and steadily becoming more independent politically,
would ultimately rebel before submitting to the English plan of Empire.

Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, the crown pursued a sporadic policy of “royalization” and
centralization. But this increase in direct crown control was paralleled by the development and rise to
power of the native, elected representatives of the colonists. The 18th century up to the Revolution
centres largely on the struggle for power between royal authority—represented by royal governors—
and the elected representatives. When England, after 1763, attempted to reform and tighten the
machinery for administration and enforcement, the colonists stoutly resisted. There were three
important crises:

1. The Stamp Act (1765): it was the first internal tax levied directly on the colonies by
Parliament and designed to produce colonial revenues and thus reduce the tax burden in
England.
2. The Townshend Duties (1767), which imposed external taxes on lead, glass paint, paper, and
tea imported into America. Colonial resistance boycotted English imports into America.
3. The Tea Act (1773): to save the East India Company from bankruptcy Parliament passed a
complicated act giving it new privileges, including a refund of import duties already paid on
tea stored in London if it was reshipped to America. Consequently, high-quality English-
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Indian tea could be sold in America cheaper than Dutch tea, which Americans habitually
consumed because of its lower price.

Finally, Americans decided to vote their own Constitution and become a new country. There were
several clashes between British troops and colonial militiamen. Brilliant young propagandists
(Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, James Wilson, and Alexander Hamilton) denied all power of
Parliament over the colonies. Then in January 1776 Thomas Paine’s pamphlet “Common Sense”
appeared, dissolving every claim that had been advanced for loyalty to kings. On July 2, 1776, the
Continental Congress voted for independence, publishing the Declaration of Independence two days
later.

Until early in 1778 the War of Independence, also known as the American Revolution, was a civil
war within the British Empire; later, as France in 1778, Spain in 1779, and the Netherlands in 1780
joined the colonies against Britain, the war became international. The entrance of these allies meant
that the British naval troops were tied down in Europe, thus not being able to maintain an effective
blockade of the American coast. The military verdict in North America was set, but not until the
Treaty of Paris in 1783 would Britain recognize the independence of the United States.

3. LISTENING. Listen to the recording and answer the following questions.

a. What were the most important things for James Nave before he found out he had cancer?
Poetry, travel, freedom, and creativity.

b. What did Nave decide to do to confront the disease?

He vowed to write a poem a day for the hundred days following surgery.

c. Fill in the gaps to complete one of Nave’s poems.

This morning, by the Carolina mountainside, I climbed down my spine one bone at a time into
unfamiliar territory. I saw veins, arteries, cells, blood, connective tissue, nerves, heart, lungs,
liver, kidneys and bladder. As I descended I realize that I was in a rain forest filled with things I
didn't expect to see: iguanas, bats, lizards, snakes, scaly tails swirls, fairy bluebirds, and
butterflies - beautiful, graceful, complicated butterflies. I'd never imagined millions of butterflies
were free inside my body. A purple one landed on a bush. Then another, red with pink dots. Then
another, big brown eyes. I arrived at my pelvis, stood between my hips; I thought I've been
attacked by blades and fingers. As I surveyed the cavernous territory, I saw a repair. Nothing to
weep about here, I thought. With that I climbed in my spine one bone at a time. This afternoon,
my surgeon called. He said my margins were clear—the cancer had not spread

d. What surgical procedure did Nave have made?

He had his prostate removed.

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e. When is Nave going to publish his 100th poem?

Nave believes his poem is going up on July the 9th.

f. What is Nave’s prognosis?

He has to be very careful with my health and pay attention. But the cancer is gone and everything
looks like it's going to be fine.

g. Summarise the main ideas of the recording.

The recording is an interview with James Nave, a poet who underwent treatment for prostate
cancer and decided to write one poem a day for the hundred days following surgery. These
poems are published on the author’s website and Facebook, and they are like reading the diary of
his recovery. Nave tells the interviewer how he decided to carry out this enterprise, the effects
the cancer and the operation have had on him, and the prognosis he’s been given. Furthermore,
Nave reads one of his poems to let the audience know what his poems are about.

TRANSCRIPT

Poet Battles Cancer With A Hundred Poems

by Jacki Lyden
June 12, 2011 - JACKI LYDEN, host:

I met James Nave for the first time 25 years ago while working on a story for NPR. He was a
whirlwind of energy, performing poems out loud in grade schools in his home town of Asheville,
North Carolina. He went on to perform poetry all over the world, from La Paz to Paris to the
Philippines.

For Nave, it was all about poetry and travel and freedom and creativity. He co-founded workshops
like the imaginative Storm Writing Salon. And then, wham, he made an all-too common mid-life
discovery. He had health issues; prostate cancer—the big memento mori. He confronted the disease
the best way he knew how, with words, vowing to write a poem a day for the hundred days following
surgery.

James Nave joins us now from our bureau in New York. Welcome to the show.

Mr. JAMES NAVE (Co-Founder, Storm Writing Salon): Thank you, Jacki. Good to be here.

LYDEN: You know, I really love reading your poems on your website and on Facebook. And it was
like peeking into a diary of your recovery. But I kept thinking to myself why is he doing this, setting
himself up this chore from the get-go?

Mr. NAVE: What happened was April 1st rolled around, which was the first day after surgery and it
was also poetry month. And poets around the country write 30 poems in 30 days. So I thought, well,
what else do I have to do? I'm here in the hospital room, nowhere to go, so why not write a poem? So

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I wrote the first one, the second one, the third one. And then after I arrived at 15, I thought why not
go to a hundred.

And I was starting to see themes emerge even in the first 15 poems. So I thought I have to track this
all the way through to a hundred.

LYDEN: I wouldn't say your recovery looked fun, but it did look interesting.

Mr. NAVE: Well, it was. On some level it was fun, in the sense that things were changing all the time
and my identity was changing. And I work up from the surgery in this space that I'd never been in
before. So I told somebody was like going on a really nice vacation and all I had to do is climb
Everest.

(Soundbite of laughter)

LYDEN: Can we hear the poem "Sunday April 7th, I Had to Look?" You were recovering at some
friend's home in the Carolinas.

Mr. NAVE: (Reading) This morning, by the Carolina mountainside, I climbed down my spine one
bone at a time into unfamiliar territory. I saw veins, arteries, cells, blood, connective tissue, nerves,
heart, lungs, liver, kidneys and bladder. As I descended I realize that I was in a rain forest filled with
things I didn't expect to see: iguanas, bats, lizards, snakes, scaly tails swirls, fairy bluebirds, and
butterflies - beautiful, graceful, complicated butterflies. I'd never imagined millions of butterflies
were free inside my body. A purple one landed on a bush. Then another, red with pink dots. Then
another, big brown eyes. I arrived at my pelvis, stood between my hips; I thought I've been attacked
by blades and fingers. As I surveyed the cavernous territory, I saw a repair. Nothing to weep about
here, I thought. With that I climbed in my spine one bone at a time. This afternoon, my surgeon
called. He said my margins were clear - the cancer had not spread.

LYDEN: Can you talk to us a little about your prostate cancer and what effect it's had on you, and
why you're eager to talk about it?

Mr. NAVE: I'm not sure exactly when I first realized, maybe it was two or three days after the
surgery, that this was a permanent change and that I was going to have to do something to adjust to it.
And I was going to have to be very active in that. So I think that's one of the things that propelled me
with these poems.

LYDEN: What about the question of virility? I mean that's something that's really important to
human beings of both sexes.

Mr. NAVE: Well, it's true. And I've been as vital a male as anybody could be. Even so, having this
change which basically when you have your prostate removed it alters the way you think sexually, it's
certainly a little more refined and it's more creative. And I'm responding to women in more open
ways than I responded in the past, and it's much more creative.

LYDEN: When is your 100th poem due?

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Mr. NAVE: I think my 100th poem is going up on July the 9th.

(Soundbite of laughter)

LYDEN: Well, we wish you all good luck with that.

Mr. NAVE: Thank you so much, Jacki. It's been a real pleasure to be here and talk about this a bit.

LYDEN: And to be with you. And you have a good prognosis, right?

Mr. NAVE: I do. It's great actually. I have to be very careful with my health and pay attention. But
the cancer is gone and everything looks like it's going to be fine.

LYDEN: Well, thanks again for spending the time.

My friend and poet James Nave. For more of Nave's poems, go to our Facebook page,
Facebook.com/nprweekend.

4. USE OF ENGLISH. MULTIPLE-CHOICE. Choose the word or phrase (A, B, C, or D)

which best completes each sentence.
1. Your son has the ____ of a fine musician.
A. beginnings B. makings C. looks D. talents

2. In the ____ climate, it is difficult to anticipate what the political reaction will be.
A. current B. topical C. contemporary D. actual

3. People expect their representatives on the council to be ready and willing to ____ the important
local issues.
A. address B. target C. hit D. criticise

4. The children have such ____ appetites that I have to cook them double portions.
A. devouring B. delicious C. voracious D. omnivorous

5. He found that the test was child’s ____.

A. play B. games C. matches D. delight

6. The teacher is only too ____ with the difficulties caused by disruptive students.
A. used B. aware C. familiar D. accustomed

7. Her ability, ____ with a determination to succeed, should make her very successful.
A. connected B. coupled C. joined D. related

8. The troops were positioned in ____ for action.

A. anticipation B. alert C. standby D. readiness

9. Householders were told not to use hose-pipes as a(n) ____ against a serious water shortage.
A. preparation B. precaution C. attempt D. provision
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10. The minister received ____ a show of support that it was impossible to think he would resign.
A. such B. so C. as D. alike

11. You have failed to pay the outstanding bill and, ____, we have been forced to take the matter
further.
A. finally B. consequently C. subsequently D. eventually

12. ____ his love of swimming, it’s hardly surprising he enjoys spending his holidays by the sea.
A. Recognising B. Given C. Providing D. Granted

13. He’s a tough politician—he knows how to ____ the storm.

A. ride out B. run down C. keep up D. push back

14. ‘Relax,’ said Harry. ‘We’re ____ the worst.’

A. over B. against C. done with D. finished off

15. Sebastian got ____ for damaging his bicycle.

A. ticked off B. browned off C. frightened off D. bitten off

16. He always wants to have things his own ____.

A. way B. road C. path D. direction

17. He broke his arm in two places and it was a long time before the bones would ____.
A. cure B. seal C. knit D. join

18. We couldn’t have afforded to buy the house if our parents hadn’t helped us to ____ the cost.
A. pay B. meet C. manage D. achieve

19. John’s observation was a bit wide of the ____.

A. target B. mark C. point D. goal

20. There are hundreds of endangered ____ in the world.

A. species B. breeds C. clans D. varieties

21. The helicopter ____ over the ship and lowered a doctor onto the deck.
A. flew B. stationed C. hovered D. stayed

22. Before you start making the pudding, make sure you have all the necessary ____ ready.
A. food B. pieces C. elements D. ingredients

23. Continue ____ the sauce to prevent it sticking to the pan.

A. turning B. moving C. stirring D. agitating

24. Because of the ice, drivers found their cars ____ on the road.
A. squealing B. slipping C. squeaking D. skidding

25. The cut on his face needed twelve ____.

A. threads B. links C. stitches D. joins

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