“Are
bucket lists a good idea?”
 The
phrase “bucket list” derives from "kick the bucket", an expression
meaning “to die” of unclear origins, but which quite likely relates to the
bucket kicked away at a hanging. It was popularised by the 2007 film The Bucket
List, in which characters played by Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman meet in a
cancer ward of a hospital, then travel around the world, packing in
experiences.
As in that story, some people start these
lists when diagnosed with incurable illnesses. Swimming with dolphins, mountain-climbing,
meeting pop stars or throwing tomatoes at the Tomatina festival in Spain are
just a few of the popular items on the lists of things people want to do before
it is too late. Bill Clinton, Jane Fonda, and Cameron Diaz have spoken of having
a list. It can be useful to have defined goals, of course, but the lists seem
to encourage consumerist behaviour. There is an acquisitive note to many of the
lists, which usually include so many items to be obtained that they look like a
shopping list.
There is also
an innate air of competition to bucket lists, of trying hard to get the better
of yourself, but also of others. In some ways it is no surprise that they have
risen in popularity in a showy age when we are all encouraged to exhibit
ourselves, treating our Facebook pages as a shop window for our achievements.
Psychologist Linda Blair says that pursuing big experiences is worthwhile if
you enjoy the whole process. "But if you're constantly living in the
future, ignoring what's going on right
now because you're always trying to achieve difficult goals, you're not really
living."
I * COMPREHENSION
ANSWER QUESTIONS 1-3 ACCORDING TO THE
INFORMATION GIVEN IN THE TEXT. USE YOUR OWN WORDS.
1. In what sense do bucket lists
encourage consumerism?
2. Why isn’t the writer surprised at the
popularity of bucket lists nowadays?
3. What is the danger of these lists,
according to psychologist Linda Blair?
ARE THESE STATEMENTS TRUE OR FALSE?
JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWERS WITH THE PRECISE WORDS OR PHRASES
FROM THE TEXT, OR USE YOUR OWN WORDS.
4. The expression “to kick the bucket”
comes from the film The Bucket List.
5. According to the text, many American
celebrities are said to have a bucket list.
II * USE OF ENGLISH (3 points; questions
6-9, 0.25 points each; 10-13, 0.5 points each)
6. GIVE AN ADJECTIVE WITH THE SAME ROOT
AS “specify” (verb).
7. FIND IN THE TEXT ONE SYNONYM FOR “aim”
(noun).
8. FIND IN THE TEXT THE WORD WHICH HAS
THE FOLLOWING DEFINITION: “sufficiently important, rewarding, or valuable to
justify time or effort spent”.
9. WHICH WORD DOES NOT HAVE THE SAME
MEANING? help / aid / assume / assist
PRODUCTION
WRITE A
COMPOSITION OF APPROXIMATELY 120 WORDS ABOUT THE TOPIC PROPOSED AND FOCUS
STRICTLY ONIT:
What experiences would you like to live
before you are old, and why?
