Unit 9 Online Worksheet 10.pp78-79

Royal University of Phnom Penh Core English 302
Institute of Foreign Languages Lecturer: TNG

Department of English Academic Year: 2019-2020
Unit 9: The Sound of Music

Name: Lay Mingthean
Class: M3.5
READING AND VOCABULARY (Helene Grimaud)
Ex. 1 Look at the pictures of Helene Grimaud and headings in the text.
1. What do you think she does for a living?
She is a professional pianist.
2. What can you deduce about her life?
Music and wolves are her two passions and vocations. She performs as a concert
pianist, while running the Wolf Conservation Center.
Ex. 3 Statements 1 – 10 about Helene Grimaud are all true. Find evidence in the text to
support them. Complete the answer notes.
1. Helene felt she should have been born a boy.

 She was a ‘tomboy’ who was content to do judo and tennis, but hated dolls.
2. Her parents worried about her behavior.
 ‘She was often an enigma even to her parents.’ ‘Wondering if his daughter suffered
from an excess of mental rather than physical energy ...’
3. She didn’t look forward to going to school.
 ‘At school in Aix-en-Provence, she had no playmates and spent break times hiding
behind coats in the corridor.’
4. She is sensitive to the suffering of animals.
 ‘an instruction to draw chickens on a farm resulted in Helene’s scrawled picture of
wire mesh.’ ‘wolves ... decided to create a center for the study and rehabilitation of
this much misunderstood animal, with which she felt a strong kinship.’
5. She had disagreements with some of her professors at the Paris Conservatory.
 ‘... she eventually became bored with the piano studies she was given to play ...’ ‘She
returned to the Conservatory, but left early, wanting to find her own style of playing,
despite warnings that she wouldn’t make it in the classical world without her
professors’ support.’
6. Musical success didn’t always bring fulfillment.
1
 ‘She had great success ... and yet she began to feel again that nagging sense of
something missing in her life ...’
7. Helene believes in fate.
 ‘... she felt destiny had drawn her there, and that something important awaited her.’
8. She doesn’t let fear dominate her approach to life, and feels we have to take risks
sometimes.
 She jumped at the chance to play in the USA even though she didn’t speak English.
She accepted an invitation to live in Tallahassee, where she knew nobody. She
walked around her neighborhood at night, even though she was told it was
dangerous.
9. Helene found it easy to identify with wolves.
 ‘wolves ... with which she felt a strong kinship.’
10. She feels the quality of the instrument music is played on isn’t so important.
 She was ‘content to rent whatever piano she could find for a couple of practice.’
Ex. 4 Read the highlighted words in the text and try to guess roughly what they might
mean. Match them with the meanings below.
1. howling
making a long, loud cry
2. impetuosity
acting or doing something quickly without thinking about the results
3. prescription
a plan or suggestion for making something happen or for improving it
4. kinship
a feeling of being close to somebody because you have similar origins or attitudes.
5. submission
the act of accepting that somebody had defeated you and that you must obey them
6. stir
to make somebody excited or make them feel something strongly.
7. retreated
escaped to a place that was quieter or safer
What do you think?
1. Why do you think wolves are ‘misunderstood’? How are they usually portrayed? What
do you know about their real nature? Complete the note.
2
 Wolves are misunderstood because they are feared as vicious killers. A lot of folk
tales have used wolves to symbolize cunning, greedy, and aggressive behavior (e.g.
Little Red Riding Hood) and many myths portray them as a threat to humans, but the
symbol is not the same as the reality. Wolves are in fact shy creatures, and stay away
from humans if possible. They are very intelligent and affectionate with each
other. They do not attack people, and will only eat farmers’ livestock if they have
been driven off their hunting grounds and are starving. They are an important part
of the environment and the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone National Park
has resulted in benefits to all its vegetation and animal life.
2. Why do you think Helene has a kinship with wolves? Which animal do you feel most
kinship with? Why?
Because she has some kind of energy trapped inside her and her behavior is similar to the
wolves. For me, the animal that I feel most kinship with is eagle because this creature can
fly up high in the sky and nothing can stop it since it is at the top of food chain. Also it
represents freedom.
3. Do you think someone needs to have suffered in life in order to be a great artist?
Why/why not?
I don’t think someone need to have suffered in life in order to be a great artist because
being a great artist is not connected to hardship, I mean it is all about the individual effort
and talent that put in to become a good artist.
4. Have you discovered an activity that makes you feel more complete?
No, I haven’t.

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Royal University of Phnom Penh Core English 302

Institute of Foreign Languages Lecturer: TNG

Unit 9: The Sound of Music

READING AND VOCABULARY (Helene Grimaud)

1. Helene felt she should have been born a boy.

What do you think?

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