Discuss the view that tolerance is essential
for peace and harmony in any community or country
The progress of any community or country depends largely onthe conduct of the people who reside in it Discontent,jealousies, prejudices, and intolerance among a few of thepeople can cause great damage to the whole community orcountry
Gregarious by nature, men hate to live in isolation The urge forassociation, therefore, enables men to tolerate the views andhabits of others, to great extent Most men have come to realisethat the cohesion of society cannot be secured without theexercise of tolerance on the part of its members
Trang 2susceptibilities of some people The racial and religious clashesthat have occurred in various parts of the world indicate thedamage that the expression of hatred and prejudice can cause ina country Even differences in the colour of the skin can causetrouble and violence in a community, and when passions arearoused, men lose their reason and sense of proportion andindulge in the most barbaric acts Innocent lives become thevictims of insensate cruelty
That tolerance is essential for peace and harmony in a countrycould be illustrated by reference to the people in Malaysia, acountry in which people of various races reside Despitecultural, racial and religious differences among themselves, thepeople here have lived for generations in peace and harmony.They have also helped one another in various ways at varioustimes It must be admitted, however, there have been a fewincidents from time to time caused by communal differences incertain localities, yet they can hardly be attributed to the generaluprising of the races against one another In fact, the goodwillthat prevails among the different races of people here hascontributed to the development of a new nation, which hasbecome the envy of many countries The racial unity among thepeople is the main factor that has contributed to the progress ofthe country in all spheres of activity
Trang 3diversity of races and cultures Yet, by tolerance, co-operationand goodwill among the people as a whole, it has become therichest country in the world All this proves what could beachieved by the people of a community or country who exercisetolerance among themselves
New words:
1 tolerance (n): sự khoan dung, lòng khoan dung, sự tha thứ2 conduct (n): hạnh kiểm, tư cách đạo đức
3 reside (v): có nhà của mình ở một nơi nhất định, cư trú4 prejudice (n): định kiến, thành kiến
5 gregarious (adj): sống thành tập thể6 psychological (adj): thuộc tâm lý
7 temperamental (adj): thất thường, hay thay đổi không bìnhtĩnh
8 diversity (n): tính đa dạng
9 necessitate (v): đỏi hỏi cần phải có
10 refrain (v): kiềm chế làm việc gì, cố nhịn, cố nín11 susceptibility (n): tính nhạy cảm, dễ xúc cảm, tự ái12 clash (n): sự xung đột, sự va chạm
13 hatred (n): lòng căm thù, căm hờn, căm ghét14 proportion (n): sự cân xứng, sự cân đối
Trang 415 barbaric (adj): dã man, man rợ
17 insensate (adi): không cảm xúc, nhẫn tâm, điên rồ18 despite (prep): bất chấp, mặc dù
19 communal (adj) (thuộc) các nhóm chủng tộc và tôn giáo đốilập ở 1 vùng
20 attribute (v) : cho là do, quy cho
21 uprising (n) cuộc nổi dậy, cuộc khởi nghĩa22 contribute (n) : đóng góp, góp phần
23 envy (n) : sự thèm muốn, sự ghen tị, sự đố kỵ24 sphere (n) : lĩnh vực, phạm vi ảnh hưởng
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of having too many university graduates in your country
Trang 5of university graduates today in almost every country
The advantages of having too many university graduates in acountry, however, are many In my country, for example, thepresence of a large number of graduates would enable thegovernment of my country lo find sufficient men to assumeresponsible positions in the various administrative departments.It would also raise the status of the country in the eyes of theworld, as one with a high literacy rate The efficiency of theadministrative organs of the state would also be increased, andin time of national crises, the government could draw on theintellectual resources of the people Even the youngergeneration of men would benefit from the contacts withuniversity graduates They would draw inspiration from thework of the graduates and themselves develop, consciously orunconsciously, some of the mental abilities of the graduates Inother words, the presence of a large number of universitygraduates would create an atmosphere conducive to the mentaldevelopment of the younger people in the country
Trang 6country The worst of them would be that people withoutuniversity qualifications would find themselves in a precariousposition Good positions in the various professions would beclosed to them Thus, they would have to be content withhumble positions and meagre incomes, Without any prospects ofpromotion in their respective places of work Besides, thegeneral drop in salary scales owing to the competition amonggraduates for position, would further add to the misery of thosewithout university training, for employers would always lookfor university graduates, even for low positions
Another disadvantage would be that those without universitydegrees would be regarded as ignorant and of no consequence.They would receive little respect, unless they were wealthy.Though the university graduates may not deliberately adopt suchan attitude towards them, yet they would always remainsensitive to any remarks upon their abilities Such a situationwould produce a group of disgruntle men, and there would bemuch unemployment among those without university education,thus giving rise to many problems in the country
New words:
1 confer (v): trao hoặc tặng
2 intellect (n): khả năng hiểu biết, trí tuệ, trí năng3 discriminate (v): phân biệt
Trang 75 sufficient (adj) : đủ
6 assume (v) : nắm lấy, chiếm lấy7 literacy (n) : sự biết viết, biết đọc
8 efficiency (adj): hiệu quả, năng lực, khả năng9 conducive (adj): có ích, có lợi
10 facilitate (v) : làm cho dễ dàng, làm cho thuận tiện11 substantially (adv): về thực chất, căn bản
12 precarious (adj) : tạm thời, nhất thời, không ổn định13 humble (adj) : thấp kém, hèn mọn
14 meagre (adj) : nghèo nàn, xồng, đạm bạc15 scale (n) : quy mơ, phạm vi
16 owing to (prep): do vì, bởi vì
17 deliberately (adv): một cách tính toán, có chủ tâm 18 adopt (v): chấp nhận, thông qua
19 disgruntled (adj): bực tức
War and peace
Trang 8communities and nations.
Wars are caused mainly by human greed and ambition In theearly days of men's existence, many communities lived a veryhard life, owing perhaps to the lack of geographical advantagesor intellectual ability As a result, the prosperity of othercommunities aroused their greed and envy, and wars betweencommunities became inevitable One side fought to conquer theprosperous communities in order to gain control of the means ofprosperity, and the other side fought to defend its independenceand way of life With the passage of time, the communitiesdeveloped into nations, and wars were fought on a bigger scale;but the basic causes of war remained the same It was onlyoccasionally that battles were fought with other aims such as thecapture of a woman to satisfy the sexual of a conqueror or ruler However, success in wars stirred the ambition of many nations.Wars were then fought for domination and extension of power.Several small nations soon came under the dominion of apowerful country, which then developed into an Empire TheRoman Empire, for example, was created mainly by conquest.Even the personal ambitions of some individuals have been thecause of wars at times The ambitions of Napoleon and Hitlerfor world conquest caused many battles, in which millions ofpeople, young and old, gave their lives
Trang 9the conscience of several nations, and attempts have been madeby such nations to prevent wars in the future Their leaders havemet at various times, in the course of history, to discuss peaceand to find a way of removing the causes of war It is this urgethat led to the creation of the United Nations, after the failure ofthe League of Nations, which today is doing its utmost tomaintain peace between nations
But the desire peace has instead led to further wars, for peaceoften demands the destruction of the ambitions of those whobegin wars The wars begun by Napoleon and Hitler could beended only by fighting further wars to destroy these men, whohave been responsible for the greatest sufferings in the history ofthe world Human ambition, however, is indifferent to thelessons of history In times of wars, men seek peace; but whenthere is peace, there are attempts to begin wars Once a war isbegun, however, those responsible for it are crushed in the end.Yet ambitious countries and individuals are still trying to extendtheir power but they are being opposed by those who lovepeace Thus, wars will continue to exist, while at the same timeattempts will be made to attain peace in the world
New words:
1 at regular intervals (n): đều đặn2 greed (n): tính tham lam
Trang 104 conquer (v): chinh phục, xâm chiếm5 defend (v): bảo vệ6 lust (n): sự thèm khát, lòng tham7 stir (v): kích thích, khích động, xúi giục8 domination (n): sự thống trị9 dominion (n): quyền thống trị, quyền chi phối10 devastation (n): sự tàn phá, sự phá hủy
11 conscience (n): lương tâm
12 failure (n): sự thất bại, cố gắng không thành công13 League of Nations (n): Hội Quốc Liên
14 destruction (n): sự phá hủy, sự tiêu diệt
1S crush (v): tiêu diệt địch, dẹp tan, làm tiêu tan16 oppose (v): chống đối, phản đối
17 attain (v): đạt được, giành được
Courage
Trang 11began to domesticate many of them for his own advantage.Soon, even the most ferocious and largest of animals learnt torespect his courage They began to avoid him as far as theycould
Indeed, without courage man would never be able to advancefrom the primitive stage He would never try to reach the skiesor explore the depths of the oceans; but impelled by courage, heleft his immediate confines to defy nature, and soon made theworld more hospitable and secure for himself It is thisirrespressible energy of man, aided by his courage, that hascontributed to the comfort and happiness that people everywhereenjoy today
Courage is therefore indispensable to almost all humanactivities Men need courage to face their enemies and theuncertainties of life They need courage to operate machinery, tofly aeroplanes, to construct tall buildings In fact, they needcourage to meet all the dangers that constantly threaten them inall their pursuits Even to accept the responsibilities of a familyrequires extreme courage
Trang 12other dangers They have defied dangerous currents in rivers tobring food for their families by boats and rafts They have alsodefied storm and battled the waves of the oceans to extract foodfrom them
Courage, however, does not assert itself always The instinct ofself- preservation usually impels men to seek safety in fight orconcealment whenever there is a threat to personal security It isin moments of desperation that courage asserts itself and enablesone to meet all threats; and it is in such moments that men alsodiscover their own physical strength, and other advantages ofresistance For instance, a man who is attacked by an animalwill fiercely in an effort to avert tragedy to himself, and in theprocess discover his own strength and the advantages of usingcertain weapons to overpower his adversary.
Feelings of loyalty and devotion too have often aroused thecourage of amen A person who is devoted to his family fightstooth and nail to protect his family from destruction orextinction, whatever the consequences to himself Similarly, aloyal servant may give his life for the protection of his master Thus, courage is the most important quality in man He needs itfor his own advancement and to meet all the challenges of hisexistence
New words:
Trang 132 endow (v): phú cho, ban cho3 manual (adj): thủ công
4 challenge (n): sự thách thức
5 ferocious(adj): dữ tợn, hung ác, dã man, tàn bạo6 hospitable (adj): mến khách, hiếu khách
7 irrepressible (adj): không thể kìm nén được
8 indispensable (adj): tuyệt đối không thể thiếu được9 strikingly (adv): nổi bật, đáng chú ý
10 assert oneself (v): khẳng định, quả quyết
11 self-preservation (n): sự thúc bách tự nhiên để sinh tồn12 desperation (n): sự tuyệt vọng
13 fiercely (adv): dữ dội, mãnh liệt
14 overpower (v): áp đảo, chế ngự, khuất phục15 adversary (n): kẻ địch, kẻ thù, đối phương