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UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL AUTÓNOMA DE MÉXICO FACULTAD DE ESTUDIOS SUPERIORES ZARAGOZA DEPARTAMENTO DE LENGUAS EXTRANJERAS Active Reading Estrategias de comprensión de lectura en inglés Nivel 2 Nancy Alarcón Felipe Bustos Carlos Escamilla Alma Gopar Eréndira Maldonado 2016 PRE - EDICIÓN
Transcript of PRE - EDICIÓN
UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL AUTÓNOMA DE MÉXICO
FACULTAD DE ESTUDIOS SUPERIORES ZARAGOZA
DEPARTAMENTO DE LENGUAS EXTRANJERAS
Active Reading
Estrategias de comprensión de lectura en inglés
Nivel 2
Nancy Alarcón
Felipe
Bustos
Carlos
Escamilla
Alma
Gopar
Eréndira
Maldonado
2016
PRE - EDICIÓN
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FACULTAD DE ESTUDIOS SUPERIORES ZARAGOZA
DIRECTORIO
DR. VÍCTOR MANUEL MENDOZA NÚÑEZ
Director
DR. VICENTE J. HERNÁNDEZ ABAD
Secretario General
DRA. ROSALINDA ESCALANTE PLIEGO
Secretaria de Integración, Promoción y Desarrollo Académico
CD. YOLANDA L. GÓMEZ GUTIÉRREZ
Jefa de la Unidad de Desarrollo Integral
LIC. MA. DE LOS REMEDIOS ALMA GOPAR SILVA
Jefa del Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras
ACTIVE READING
Estrategias de comprensión de lectura en inglés
Nivel 2
Fue elaborado por los siguientes profesores del
Departamento de Lenguas Extranjeras
Nancy Alarcón Mendoza
Felipe Bustos Cruz
José Carlos Escamilla Huerta
Ma. de los Remedios Alma Gopar Silva
Ma. Eréndira Maldonado Arellano
The limits of my language are the limits of my mind.
All I know is what I have words for”
Ludwig Wittgenstein
ÍNDICE
UNIDAD TÍTULO PÁGINA
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Reading about scientific issues
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2
Current science topics
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Current social concerns
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4 Beyond the written word 91
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Reading for pleasure
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Unidad 1
Reading about scientific issues
Presentación
Uno de los principales intereses de este libro consiste en proporcionar al estudiante las
herramientas necesarias para enfrentar casi todo tipo de textos escritos en inglés, así la
presente Unidad está dedicada al tema de los documentos de divulgación científica. La
inclusión de las estrategias de lectura pertinentes y de las herramientas lingüísticas
necesarias permitirá al estudiante familiarizarse con textos científicos de cierta complejidad
léxica y morfosintáctica. Es decir, el estudiante tendrá un acercamiento con textos de
divulgación científica y, al reconocer su estructura (esto es, las partes que los conforman),
se adentrará en la información contenida en este tipo de escritos, en su organización y en
las estructuras gramaticales que le ayudarán a comprender el contexto con mayor facilidad.
De hecho, uno de los temas gramaticales que se introducen en esta Unidad es la Voz
Pasiva del inglés. La presentación de dicho tema lingüístico en esta parte del libro se debe
a su alta incidencia de aparición en las oraciones e ideas presentes en textos científicos en
este idioma.
Para un lector principiante es importante centrarse en los elementos que le permitan
identificar los distintos tipos de relaciones que se establecen entre las ideas y los conceptos
presentes en un texto. Dichos elementos son los llamados conectores. De esta manera, en
la presente Unidad, el estudiante no sólo podrá ubicar las ideas principales de un texto sino
que también reconocerá e interpretará la correlación entre éstas de una manera adecuada.
Esta unidad didáctica inicia con actividades de reconocimiento y familiarización con la
estructura de un texto de divulgación científica, lo que llevará al estudiante a identificar las
partes que conforman un texto de esta naturaleza y el tipo de información que contiene cada
sección. Más adelante, se incluye la presentación de la Voz Pasiva del inglés y de ejercicios
de práctica sobre el tema. Posteriormente, se incluyen ejercicios sobre los conectores y su
clasificación por funciones, lo que llevará al estudiante a comprender las relaciones que
establecen en el discurso. La Unidad termina con un ejercicio de integración de estrategias,
a partir de la cual el alumno podrá realizar un repaso de lo aprendido con anterioridad.
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Unidad 1
Reading about scientific issues
Objetivos
En esta unidad, los estudiantes:
Se enfocarán en los apartados que conforman los textos de divulgación científica.
Recordarán la función de los conectores.
Identificarán e interpretarán estructuras gramaticales en voz pasiva.
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A. LAS PARTES DE UN TEXTO DE DIVULGACIÓN CIENTÍFICA
1. Discute con tus compañeros tu respuesta a las siguientes preguntas.
¿Qué tipo de textos lees regularmente?
¿Has leído textos de divulgación científica?
¿En qué tipo de publicaciones los has encontrado?
¿Cuáles son los temas que has leído?
2. Lee los siguientes textos y comenten en grupo las diferencias entre los dos tipos
de documentos descritos.
Scholarly publications
A scholarly publication is one in which the content is written by experts in a particular field of study -
generally for the purpose of sharing original research or analyzing others' findings. Scholarly work will
thoroughly cite all source materials used and is usually subject to "peer review" prior to publication. This
means that independent experts in the field review, or "referee" the publication to check the accuracy and
validity of its claims. The primary audience for this sort of work is fellow experts and students studying the
field. As a result the content is typically much more sophisticated and advanced than articles found in
general magazines, or professional/trade journals.
In brief, scholarly work is:
written by experts for experts
based on original research or intellectual inquiry
provides citations for all sources used
is usually peer reviewed prior to publication
Popular sources
While many research projects require the reading of articles published in scholarly
journals, books or other peer reviewed source of information, there is also a wealth of
information to be found in more popular publications. These aim to inform a wide array
of readers about issues of interest and are much more informal in tone and scope than
scholarly articles. Examples of popular sources include general news, business and
entertainment publications such as Time Magazine, Business Weekly. Special interest
publications which are not specifically written for an academic audience are also
considered "popular", i.e., National Geographic, Scientific American, Psychology Today.
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3. Contesta la siguiente pregunta. Comenta con tus compañeros.
¿Cuál de los dos textos descritos arriba se refiere a artículos de divulgación científica?
Partes de un texto de divulgación científica
Este tipo de textos suelen tener una estructura
similar entre ellos. Además del título, una de las
partes que pueden presentar se llama epígrafe, el
cual es un breve resumen del contenido que
usualmente precede a la información principal. La
introducción es otra parte importante de un texto
de divulgación de la ciencia que usualmente
menciona los antecedentes y le da contexto a la
información. Asimismo, los subtítulos son
importantes porque separan las secciones del
artículo por subtemas. Casi siempre, al final del
documento, suele aparecer la conclusión, que
presenta las consideraciones finales del autor.
Los textos de divulgación de la ciencia se
consideran textos expositivos porque se usan para
presentar o aclarar el sentido real o verdadero de
un tema dado. Sirven para presentar información
objetiva de manera clara y ordenada.
En cuanto a los géneros, los textos expositivos se
adscriben a las siguientes formas del discurso:
- Trabajos de investigación
- Tesis
- Monografías
- Análisis y comentarios
- Artículos, informes, conferencias,
disertaciones, libros de texto, ensayos, etc.
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4. En la sopa de letras busca las partes que conforman un artículo de divulgación
científica.
5. ¿Qué partes encontraste? Menciónalas.
B. IDENTIFICACIÓN DE LAS IDEAS PRINCIPALES DE UN TEXTO
1. Observa los párrafos a y b y explica las diferencias entre ellos.
a)
One job of an athletic trainer is to treat injured athletes. But does it make a difference if the
trainer is male or female?. Sometimes, it does, if an injury or condition is a “male problem”
or a “female problem”. Then athletes say they are more likely to want treatment by someone
of their own sex. But what about a problem that could affect either sex, like a dislocated
shoulder? Researchers at North Carolina State University asked male football players at two
American colleges.
b)
Some years ago, people thought that television had a positive impact on family life .When
summer brings very hot weather, many people suffer more than they need. In many
industrialized countries, population is aging, that is, the average of population is older than
it was twenty years ago. These days, however, psychologists think that watching television
may not be good for family life.
F E P I G R A F E Z O M A
J T F W V S U E D Z Q A B
G T H S U B T I T U L O X
N J K Ñ U N O I T Y R F J
D L E T E G R N T J Y T O
Q E F U C S E A N U B V X
Q S F N M L S R D E L Y T
Z W Q J K L G T C D S O M
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¿Cuál párrafo (a o b) establece claramente un tema y una idea principal?_________
¿Por qué? ___________________________________________________________
2. Ahora vuelve a leer el párrafo a) y elige la opción correcta para la siguiente cuestión.
El párrafo trata sobre…
a) El trabajo de un entrenador al tratar lesiones en los atletas.
b) El tratamiento de lesiones que reciben los atletas por entrenadores varones.
c) Las diferentes lesiones que un atleta puede sufrir durante el entrenamiento.
d) Un atleta puede preferir ser atendido por un entrenador de su mismo sexo
dependiendo del tipo de lesión.
e) Las mujeres atletas sufren más lesiones que los atletas varones.
Un párrafo generalmente incluye una oración
completa que determina el tema y la idea
principal que el autor plasma. En torno a esta
idea giran las demás ideas que la sustentan y
están íntimamente relacionadas.
3. Lee cada uno de los siguientes párrafos y escribe sobre la línea cuál es su tema y
su idea principal (debes escribir una oración completa).
a)
Ants are found everywhere in the world. They make their home in buildings, gardens, etc. They live
in anthills. Ants are very hardworking insects. Throughout the summers, they collect food for the
season. Whenever they find a sweet lying on the floor, they stick to the sweet and carry it to their
home. Thus, in this way, they clean the floor. Ants are generally red and black in color. They have
two eyes and six legs. They are social insects. They live in groups or colonies. Most ants are
scavengers, they collect whatever food they can find. They are usually wingless but they develop
wings when they reproduce. Their bites are quite painful.
Tema: ___________________________________________________________
Idea principal: _____________________________________________________
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b)
Creativity is assumed to be present within every individual. Without creative minds, we would not live in a modern world like today. Creativity pushes people as their comfort zone is threatened. For example, the Wright Brother´s invention of the first practical fixed-wing aircraft. The aircraft first took flight in 1903, and fifty years later the first passenger jet airliner was introduced. Creativity is what defines human beings. Creativity has kept people alive during harsh conditions, and it has also made certain individual swealthy. We use creativity in our daily lives as well, such as finding a shortcut to a destination.
Tema: ___________________________________________________________
Idea principal: _____________________________________________________
c).
Science gives us safe food, free from harmful bacteria, in clean containers or hygienic tins. It also teaches us to eat properly, indicating a diet balanced in protein and carbohydrate and containing vitamins. The results are freedom from disease and prolonged life. In pre-scientific days, food was monotonous and sometimes dangerous; today it is safe and varied. It is varied because through improved sea, land and air transport food, can now be freely imported and exported. Science has also improved clothing and made it more appropriate for climatic and working conditions. Man-made fibers and versatile spinning machines, today enable us to dress in clothes both comfortable and smart without being expensive.
Tema principal: ___________________________________________________
Idea principal: ____________________________________________________
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C. VOZ PASIVA
1. Observa las ilustraciones A y B así como las oraciones que las acompañan,
después contesta las preguntas y comenta con tu grupo.
A B
An Italian architect built this bridge in 1635. This bridge was built in 1635.
¿Qué oración le da énfasis a quién realizó la acción? __________________
¿Qué oración le da énfasis a lo que sucedió? __________________
¿En qué tiempo verbal está la oración A? __________________
¿Cómo está compuesto el verbo de la oración B? _______________________
¿En qué tiempo está cada verbo de la oración B? _______________________
2. Completa el siguiente párrafo.
La oración B está en voz pasiva. La voz pasiva generalmente se compone de dos
verbos, el primero siempre es el verbo ___________ que en esta oración está en
el tiempo ______________; este verbo que puede estar en cualquier tiempo
(presente, pasado, futuro, etc.) es el que determina el tiempo verbal de toda la
oración. El segundo verbo siempre está en forma de ______________. La voz
pasiva da énfasis a _____________________________________ no a quién
realiza la acción. La voz pasiva, por lo general, se utiliza para describir eventos y
procedimientos.
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3. Lee el siguiente párrafo y encierra en un rectángulo los verbos que estén en voz
pasiva.
This prospective study was conducted by enrolling students from three randomly selected
schools from the locality .The sample size was calculated taking into consideration the
prevalence of bullying found in a pilot study (35%), variability of = 5% and the possible
refusal rate (20%). A pretested semi-structured questionnaire based on previously
validated tool developed by Olweus (11,12) was used for interviewing children studying
in 3rd-7th grades. These children were randomly selected using a random table so as to
obtain a sample size of 500 children.
¿Cuántos verbos hay en voz pasiva? ______________________.
4. Escribe la interpretación al español de cada oración del mismo párrafo.
1. This prospective study was conductive by enrolling students from three randomly
selected schools from the locality.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
2. The sample size was calculated taking into consideration the prevalence of
bullying found in a pilot study (35%) , variability of 5% and the possible refusal
rate (20%).
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
3. A pretested semistructured questionnaire based on previously validated tool
developed by Olweus (11.12) was used for interviewing children studying in 3rd -
7th grades.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
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4. These children were randomly selected using a random table so as to obtain a
sample size of 500 children.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
5. Fíjate en la siguiente oración y elige la mejor interpretación al español.
The prevalence of bullying, its frequency and prevalent types were determined.
a) El predominio del acoso, su frecuencia y los tipos de predominio fueron examinados.
b) Se determinaron el predominio del acoso, su frecuencia y las clases predominantes.
c) Fueron determinados el predominio del acoso, su frecuencia y los tipos
predominantes.
¿Cuál es la mejor interpretación para esta oración en voz pasiva? _____
¿ Por qué no la puedes interpretar en el orden en que aparece originalmente?
_________________________________________________________________
6. Interpreta al español las siguientes oraciones en voz pasiva; comienza la oración
usando la partícula “se” y el otro verbo, respetando siempre el tiempo verbal original
el cual lo marca el verbo TO BE.
Por ejemplo: Se analizaron . . .
Se seleccionó . . .
Se aplicó . . .
Symptoms were determined in the population of children bullied.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
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The sample size was calculated taking into consideration the prevalence of bullying found in a pilot study.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
7. Lee el siguiente fragmento y contesta en español las preguntas que le siguen.
Subjects and Methods
This prospective study was conducted by enrolling students from three randomly selected schools
from the locality .The sample size was calculated taking into consideration the prevalence of
bullying found in a pilot study (35%), variability of = 5% and the possible refusal rate (20%). A
pretested semi-structured questionnaire based on previously validated tool developed by Olweus
(11,12) was used for interviewing children studying in 3rd-7th grades. These children were
randomly selected using a random table so as to obtain a sample size of 500 children. Another
pretested semi-structured questionnaire was used to interview parents. The same investigator (RA)
interviewed all children and parents, so as to avoid inter-observer variability. The frequency of
bullying was graded as follows: Grade 1: Nearly every day ( 5 times / week);Grade II: Often
(3-4 times / week); Grade III: Some times (1-2 times / week); Grade IV: Hardly ever ( 1-2 times
/ month) and Grade V: Never; In addition, information about health-related symptoms was also
elicited from respondents.
The prevalence of bullying, its frequency and prevalent types were determined. Symptoms were
enumerated in the population of children bullied and others. Odds ratio with 95% confidence interval
was calculated. Chi-square test was applied for determining association of health related symptoms
with bullying. P values less than 0.05 were interpreted as significant.
1. Explica el proceso de selección de los estudiantes.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
2. Explica el procedimiento de aplicación de los cuestionarios.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
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3. Describe cómo se ponderó la frecuencia del acoso.
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
8. Estudia el cuadro de abajo, el cual integra la información gramatical de la Voz
Pasiva del inglés.
LA VOZ PASIVA EN INGLÉS
This house was built in 1785. Sujeto to be pasado complemento
participio
La voz pasiva se utiliza cuando no se sabe o no interesa mencionar quién
realiza la acción expresada por el verbo. El tiempo verbal de una oración en voz pasiva es determinado por el verbo TO BE. Verb Tense Structure PRESENT SIMPLE am/is/are + p.p
PRESENT CONTINUOUS am/is/are being + p.p
FUTURE (WILL) will be + p.p
FUTURE ( GOING TO) am/are/is going to be + p.p
PAST SIMPLE was/were + p.p
PAST CONTINUOUS was/were being + p.p
PRESENT PERFECT have /has been + p.p
PAST PERFECT had been + p.p
FUTURE PERFECT will have been + p.p
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D. CONECTORES
Los conectores son elementos del
discurso que establecen una relación
entre las ideas. Estas palabras se
clasifican de acuerdo a dicha relación,
existen conectores de adición,
contraste, alternativa,
ejemplificación, causa - efecto, etc.
Recuerda que en el nivel anterior se
estudiaron los conectores.
1. En la sopa de letras, encuentra los conectores del cuadro.
thus yet because so although but In order to therefore besides however
Z U N H O M F A J L K U
B V K O C X L L N M C C
Ñ J Y P F S D D W Q A X
M G T H E R E F O R E S
V X S I N O R D E R T O
F W E U O B H V Q R D X
B S Z C V Y E T Q H F N
E V C D Q W L S J H J N
C C F T O B N N I X S Q
A L T H O U G H R D S R
U F X U Z T C V N G E H
S W C S A A B C G V M S
E N M L Ñ O O T O Y Q W
M N R E E S G E W S Q G
K L T T F N R Z D F W T
X S W E E O R S S H J B
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2. Clasifica los conectores que encontraste en la sopa de letras. Escríbelos en el
grupo que les corresponde de acuerdo a la relación que establecen entre las
oraciones.
Actividad opcional: Realiza los ejercicios que están en el siguiente sitio web:
http://wps.personed.com/wps/media/objects/6524/6681325/Connectors.pdf
CONECTORES
adición
propósito contraste
resultado causal
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3. Completa los siguientes párrafos con los conectores que están en los cuadros.
Respeta la ortografía y signos de puntuación.
a
in order to therefore as a result because
I don´t like going to the beach in the summer (1) _________________ it´s always crowded.
(2) __________________________, sometimes people are sitting very close.
(3) ________________________________________ you can listen to their conversations.
You can even smell their sunscreen lotion. (4) ____________________ avoid the crowd, I
go to the beach after 6:00 p.m.
b
despite however
_______________ some media hysteria last week, it looks like the swine flu won't be
the death of us all. __________________, that does not mean the virus has stopped
spreading, or that it won't reach pandemic levels and possibly cause significant
economic damage.
c
in addition furthermore so although also
We learn to speak and write a second language in three important ways. Among these three
ways, one way is finding a model who speaks English very well, and trying to follow what
they say (1) _____________________, when you follow a model, you can (2)__________
find his or her good acquisition. (3) ______________________, you need to receive formal
instruction. Teachers are good ways to get knowledge of English. (4) ______________ do
your homework and behave well in school. (5) __________ the previous two things are
important, the most important part is to practice English constantly.
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E. INTEGRACIÓN DE ESTRATEGIAS
1. Completa el siguiente esquema con las secciones faltantes del texto de las
siguientes páginas. Contesta en español.
2. Con base en el mismo texto, proporciona la siguiente información.
Título del texto en español: _______________________________________
Epígrafe en español: _______________________________________
_______________________________________
_______________________________________
_______________________________________
3. Para continuar trabajando con el mismo texto, dividan la clase en equipos. Cada
equipo se hará responsable de la interpretación en español de un párrafo, así como
de presentarlo al grupo.
Título
Autores
Perros seniles, nuevos trucos de la investigación
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What Beagles Reveal about Alzheimer’s in Humans By Elizabeth Head. University of Kentuchy. Date: 11 January 2015.
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Every 67 seconds someone in the United States is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and new estimates suggest
that it may be the third leading cause of death of older people.
Alzheimer’s disease is associated with losses in memory in older people that become severe enough over time to
interfere with normal daily functions. Other signs of Alzheimer’s include changes in the ability to communicate,
losses in language, decreased ability to focus and to pay attention, impairments in judgment and other behavioral
changes. People with Alzheimer’s disease experience changes in their brains (which we can see in autopsies).
Over the course of the disease, clumps of protein (called senile plaques) and tangles in neurons
(called neurofibrillary tangles) accumulate. These plaques and tangles interfere with how the brain works and
disrupt connections that are important for intact learning and memory ability.
The majority of studies to develop treatments for Alzheimer’s disease use mice that are genetically modified to
produce human proteins with mutations. But these mutations are usually present in less than 5% of people with
Alzheimer’s disease. This limitation can make it difficult to translate benefits of a treatment tested in mouse studies
to people. However, there are several animals that naturally develop human-like brain changes that look much like
Alzheimer’s disease, including dogs.
Old dogs, new research tricks
Old dogs may teach us a great deal about aging. As dogs get older, some develop learning and memory problems,
much like we do. And like people, not all old dogs become impaired. Indeed, some old dogs remain bright and
able to learn just as well as younger dogs, although they may be a little slower in reaching high levels of
performance.
Staying sharp.
Credit: Soloviova Liudmyla/Shutterstock
When an older dog has cognitive problems, we may see them as changes in behavior that can be disruptive to the
relationship between owners and pets. For example, an old dog with cognitive problems may forget to signal to
go outside, may be up at night and sleep all day, or have trouble recognizing people or other pets in the family.
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This is similar to a person with Alzheimer’s disease who may have difficulty communicating, 30-disrupted
sleep/wake cycles and trouble remembering family and friends.
When aged dogs show cognitive changes not caused by other systemic illnesses, they are related to brain changes
that are strikingly similar to people. For example, old dogs develop senile plaques in their brains that are made of
a protein that is identical to one that humans produce. This protein, called beta-amyloid, is toxic to cells in the
brain.
Unlike mice and rats, old dogs naturally develop significant brain pathology like we see in people. In this way,
aging dogs may resemble aging humans in a more natural or realistic way than mice with genetic mutations.
There are many other changes in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease that are similar in aging dogs.
These include changes in the blood vessels of the brain, the accumulation of damaged proteins and losses in cells,
and chemicals that support cells in the brain. These changes may be modified by lifestyle factors.
Healthy living, healthy aging
There are many reports of how our lifestyle can be good or bad for aging. The food we eat can be a potent
contributor to how our brains age. For example, several studies in people show that antioxidant-enriched diets
(including lots of fruits and vegetables) and the Mediterranean diet are associated with healthier brain aging.
Physical exercise and good cardiovascular health also appear to be associated with a lower risk of developing
Alzheimer’s disease and cerebrovascular disease, which is a cause of dementia. Keeping your brain active and
challenged with puzzles, brain games and an engaging social life, are all linked to better memory and less risk of
disease and studies are ongoing in people to measure the effects systematically.
Eat well.
Credit: Nicki Mannix, CC BY
Beagles and the brain
Dogs may be very well suited to help us understand how these lifestyle factors help our brains as we get older.
Our lab initially began studying beagles in the early 1990s as there was interest in developing a drug to treat “dog
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dementia” based on pet owners observations of changes in behavior in their older dogs. At that time, little was
known about learning and memory changes in aging dogs (beagles over eight years of age) and our earliest
research was designed to find ways to systematically measure these changes.
The first step in doing this was to teach dogs to look at different objects (for example a Lego block or a toy truck)
and learn that one of the two always hid a food reward. When we switched the food reward to the object that was
previously not rewarded, older dogs kept choosing the wrong object. Young dogs very quickly switched over to
the new object.
When we counted the number of errors dogs make to learn the problem, old dogs made many more errors overall.
Interestingly, not all old dogs were impaired. Another subset of old dogs showed significant losses in their ability
to remember information and some showed changes in their ability to be “flexible” in changing behaviors.
This is very similar to people. Not everyone ages in the same way – some people remain sharp as tacks well into
their older years. After measuring learning and memory changes in dogs, we next studied the brain changes that
were most strongly linked to these cognitive losses. We found that senile plaques in the brains of old dogs were
more frequent in the animals that had learning and memory problems. In our more recent studies, we have been
seeking ways to improve brain health in old dogs with the hope that these approaches can translate to healthy
aging in people.
Keep running.
Credit: Marco Bellucci, CC BY
For instance, in several studies of aging in beagles, we have found that a diet rich in antioxidants that includes
vitamins E and C, and importantly, fruits and vegetables, can lead to wonderful benefits in learning and memory
ability that can be maintained for years
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For example, dogs that had trouble remembering where they had seen a food reward (this is an example of spatial
memory) showed significant improvements in their memory over time. Also, old dogs showed rapid improvements
in their ability to modify their behaviors when the rules had changed in the task they were learning (an example
of enhanced executive function).
In addition, providing dogs with physical exercise, social enrichment and “brain games” (like the food reward
game) can also significantly improve cognition as they get older.
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If we take these factors into account, we may be able to engage in strategies and lifestyle changes that will be good
for both species. Exercise, social interaction, learning new tricks – participating in the same activities with our
aged companion animals, the benefits will be twofold: for them and for us.
This article was originally published on The Conversation. The publication contributed this article to Live Science’s Expert Voices: Op-Ed& Insight. Texto tomado de :hhtp://m.livescience.com
4. Con base en el mismo texto, completa la tabla de abajo con la información
solicitada; escríbela en español.
Cambios que provoca el Alzheimer.
Porcentaje de mutaciones de proteínas humanas que se presentan en humanos con Alzheimer.
Nombre de la proteína que forma las placas seniles en el cerebro.
Dieta que ayuda a tener un cerebro saludable en edad avanzada.
Dos factores que contribuyen a tener menor riesgo de Alzheimer.
Raza canina que fue utilizada inicialmente en el laboratorio en los 1990’s.
21
5. Con base en el mismo texto, completa en español la tabla de referencias.
Referente Línea Se refiere a…
Their brains
6
These plaques
8
These mutations
11
This limitation
12
They
17
This
22
This protein
26
6. Con base en el mismo texto, contesta las siguientes preguntas en español. Redacta
tus respuestas de manera clara y precisa.
1. De acuerdo a las autopsias realizadas, ¿Qué han observado los investigadores en los
cerebros de personas con Alzheimer?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
2. ¿Cuál es la desventaja de utilizar ratones en la experimentación con respecto al
Alzheimer?
________________________________________________________________________
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22
3. Explica las similitudes que los investigadores han encontrado entre las personas con
Alzheimer y los perros seniles.
________________________________________________________________________
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________________________________________________________________________
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________________________________________________________________________
4. Explica qué efecto tienen las placas seniles y los nódulos neuronales en el cerebro.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
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________________________________________________________________________
5. Explica por qué los investigadores de este artículo comenzaron a realizar estudios con perros. ________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
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________________________________________________________________________
6. Explica detalladamente el estudio que llevaron a cabo los investigadores con los sabuesos para encontrar una manera de medir sistemáticamente los cambios en el comportamiento.
________________________________________________________________________
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23
Unidad 2
Current science topics
Presentación
La unidad dos, objetiva un plan de trabajo que de inicio presenta el reporte de investigación
como el último momento del proceso investigativo, el de difundir el conocimiento generado
entre los miembros de la comunidad científica y las personas interesadas. Es de vital
importancia que los estudiantes de licenciatura y posgrado se familiaricen con el formato
específico de un reporte de investigación y lo puedan diferenciar, efectivamente, de otros
géneros.
En esta unidad el alumno se familiariza con maneras estratégicas para enfrentar el
procesamiento de un texto científico especializado a partir de diferentes niveles de
profundidad de la lectura. Por ejemplo, una leída rápida o de barrido del texto para identificar
la estructura física del mismo. Existe una estructura convencional para presentar los
reportes de una investigación, donde el abstract o resumen va seguido de la introducción,
el método, los resultados y la discusión, el IMRD por sus siglas en inglés. Si un lector está
consciente de las partes de un reporte y del tipo de información que cada una de ellas
contiene, encontrará mucho más fácil y provechosa su lectura.
A lo largo de las actividades de esta unidad, el estudiante encuentra mucha oportunidad
para practicar las estrategias de lectura que se proponen, a partir de ejercicios graduados.
Al inicio se da suficiente práctica sobre la lectura y el análisis del abstract o resumen de un
reporte de investigación, dado que es un apartado que presenta mínimamente y de manera
resumida el por qué se realizó el estudio, la manera cómo se llevó a cabo, lo que se encontró
como hallazgos y qué se concluyó al final del trabajo investigativo.
Finalmente, es importante aclarar que esta unidad incluye algunos ejercicios que responden
a estrategias y formatos que ya fueron presentados a los estudiantes en el nivel uno de esta
serie; esto con el fin de reciclar estrategias. De igual manera, brinda la posibilidad de realizar
trabajo colaborativo en un esfuerzo por llevar a los estudiantes a compartir información y
sus propias estrategias de lectura para llegar a un objetivo específico que, en este caso, es
la comprensión de un texto.
24
Unidad 2
Current science topics
Objetivos
En esta unidad, el estudiante:
Se familiarizará con el formato y las características propias de un reporte de investigación científica en inglés.
Aprenderá a recuperar la información básica de un reporte a partir del abstract o resumen.
Procesará la información de un reporte de investigación a partir de la lectura selectiva.
Conocerá las formas gramaticales más usadas en este tipo de textos.
25
A. PRELECTURA
1. Antes de leer el texto de la siguiente página, responde estas preguntas y enseguida
compara tus respuestas con las de tus compañeros.
1. ¿Necesitas leer reportes de investigación en tu carrera?
2. ¿Estás familiarizado(a) con el formato de este tipo de materiales?
3. En caso de que conozcas el formato, ¿Qué apartados puedes mencionar?
4. ¿Qué tipo de información maneja cada apartado de los que mencionas?
4. ¿Tus profesores te asignan como tarea leer abstracts o resúmenes de investigación?
5. En caso de que la respuesta sea afirmativa, ¿Los lees en español o en inglés?
6. ¿Por qué consideras que puede ser importante recurrir a la lectura de abstracts?
7. ¿Has notado que la mayor parte de la investigación más reciente se publica en inglés?
¿Ha representado esto para ti alguna desventaja?
B. COMPRENSIÓN GENERAL
1. Revisa el texto de la siguiente página y contesta lo que se pide.
1. Escribe el título del texto en español
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
2. ¿De qué página de Internet fue tomado el texto original?
________________________________________________________________________
3. ¿Cuál crees que sea el objetivo del texto?
________________________________________________________________________
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26
4. ¿De qué trata en términos generales?
________________________________________________________________________
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Tips on How to Read a Scientific Article (paper)
Reading a scientific article is a complex task. You should begin by skimming the
article to identify its structure and features. As you read, look for the author’s
main points. Generate questions before, during, and after reading. Draw
inferences based on your own experiences and knowledge. And to really improve
understanding and recall, take notes as you read.
Strategies in more detail
Skim the article and identify its structure.
Most journals use a conventional IMRD structure: an abstract followed by an
introduction, Methods, Results and Discussion. Each of these sections normally
contains easily recognized conventional features, and if you read with an
anticipation of these features, you will read an article more quickly and
comprehend more.
Examples of scientific papers
27
Features of Abstracts
Abstracts usually contain four kinds of information:
Purpose or rationale of study (why they did it)
Methodology (how they did it)
Results (what they found)
Conclusion (What it means)
Most scientists read the abstract first. Others-especially experts in the field- skip
right from the title to the visuals because the visuals, in many cases, tell the
reader what kinds of experiments were done and what results were obtained. You
should probably begin reading a paper by reading the abstract carefully and
noting the four kinds of information outlined above. Then move first to the visuals
and then to the rest of the paper.
Features of Introductions
Introductions serve two purposes: creating readers’ interest in the subject and
providing them with enough information to understand the article. Generally,
introduction accomplish this by leading readers from broad information (What is
known about the topic) to more specific information (what is not known) to a focal
point (what question the authors asked and answered).Thus, authors describe
previous work that led to current understanding of the topic (the broad) and then
situate their work (the specific) within the field.
Features of Methods
The Methods section tells the reader what experiments were done to answer the
question stated in the Introduction. Methods are often difficult to read, especially
for graduate students, because of technical language and a level of detail
sufficient for another trained scientist to repeat the experiments. However, you
can more fully understand the design of the experiments and evaluate their
validity by reading the Methods section carefully.
Features of Results and Discussion
The results section contains statements of what was found, and reference to the
data shown in visuals (figures and tables). Normally, authors do not include
information that would need to be referenced, such as comparisons to other
results. Instead, that material is placed in the Discussion – placing the work in
context of the broader field. The Discussion also functions to provide a clear
answer to the question posed in the Introduction and to explain how the results
support the conclusion.
Conclusion
The report of the general findings
28
Tips for reading
1. Distinguish main points.
Because articles contain so much information, it may be difficult to distinguish
the main points of an article from the subordinate points. Fortunately, there are
many indicators of the author’s main points:
Document level
Title
Abstract
Keywords
Visuals (especially figure and table titles)
Paragraph level: words or phrases to look for.
In contrast with previous work
We hypothesize that
We propose
We introduce
We develop
The data suggest
2. Generate questions and be aware of your understanding.
Reading is an active process. Before and after your reading, ask yourself
questions like these:
Who are these authors? What journal is this? Might I question the
credibility of the work?
Have I taken the time to understand all the terminology?
Am I spending too much time reading the less important parts of this
article?
Is there someone I can talk to about confusing parts in this article?
What specific problem does this research address? Why is it important?
Is the method used a good one? The best one?
What are the specific findings? Am I able to summarize them in one or two
sentences?
Are the findings supported by persuasive evidence?
Is there an alternative interpretation of the data that the author did not
address?
What are some of the specific applications of the ideas presented here?
3. Draw inferences.
Not everything that you learn from an article is stated explicitly. As you read,
rely on your prior knowledge and world experience, as well as the background
provided in the article to draw inferences from the material. Research has
shown that readers who actively draw inferences are better able to
understand and recall information.
29
4. Take notes as you read.
Effective readers take notes – it improves recall and comprehension. This way
details won’t slip away.
Tomado y adaptado de:Original title: How to Read a Scientific ArticleMary Purugganan, PhD, Jan Hewitt,
PhD. Cain Project in Engineering and Professional Communication.
www.owlnet.rice.edu/~cainproj/courses
C. COMPRENSIÓN DETALLADA
1. A partir de la información del texto anterior, describe en español los rasgos o
características de cada una de las siguientes partes.
Strategies in more detail:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
The abstracts:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Introductions:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
30
Methods:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Results and discussion:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
Tips for reading
Distinguishing main points
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________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
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31
Generate questions and be aware of your understanding.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Draw inferences.
________________________________________________________________________
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32
2. Observa cómo queda conformado en español el informe de una investigación.
Los aspectos que no se hicieron explícitos en el texto anterior se explican para ti.
_
Incluye las fuentes consultadas como apoyo, aparecen por autor y en orden alfabético. Esto ayuda a los
lectores a localizar el material en caso de que deseen confrontarlo.
Este punto es importante para el lector porque se trata de la referencia de la publicación donde finalmente
aparece el reporte. Puede encontrarse registrada al inicio o al final del texto.
ESQUEMA INTEGRATIVO
TÍTULO
AUTOR (ES)
RESUMEN O ABSTRACT
INTRODUCCIÓN
MÉTODO
RESULTADOS
DISCUSIÓN
REFERENCIAS BIBLIOGRÁFICAS
LA FUENTE
33
Un reporte de investigación, generalmente, sigue una estructura prefijada a la que en este curso llamaremos esquema integrativo, es decir, una serie de apartados que representan la manera en que la información del texto se encuentra ordenada.
D. TRABAJO COLABORATIVO
1. Formar equipos de cinco pe
rsonas para trabajar el siguiente abstract. Cada participante lee un aspecto del
abstract del texto titulado “Cost of depression in Europe” y lo explica a sus
compañeros para que en comunidad aporten la información que se pide después del
abstract.
Cost of depression in Europe. Sobocki P, Jönsson B, Angst J, Rehnberg C Medical Management Centre, Department of Learning Informatics Management and Ethics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. [email protected] The Journal of Mental Health Policy and Economics [2006, 9(2):87-98] Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't. Abstract
BACKGROUND: Depression is one of the most disabling diseases, and causes a significant burden both to the individual and to society. WHO data suggests that depression causes 6% of the burden of all diseases in Europe in terms of disability adjusted life years (DALYs). Yet, the knowledge of the economic impact of depression has been relatively little researched in Europe. AIMS OF THE STUDY: The present study aims at estimating the total cost of depression in Europe based on published epidemiologic and economic evidence. METHODS: A model was developed to combine epidemiological and economic data on depression in Europe to estimate the cost. The model was populated with data collected from extensive literature reviews of the epidemiology and economic burden of depression in Europe. The cost data was calculated as annual cost per patient, and epidemiologic data was reported as 12-month prevalence estimates. National and international statistics for the model were retrieved from the OECD and Eurostat databases. The aggregated annual cost estimates were presented in Euro for 2004. RESULTS: In 28 countries with a population of 466 million, at least 21 million were affected by depression. The total annual cost of depression in Europe was estimated at Euro 118 billion in 2004, which corresponds to a cost of Euro 253 per inhabitant. Direct costs alone totaled 42 billion dollars, comprised of outpatient care (Euro 22 billion), drug
34
cost (Euro 9 billion) and hospitalization (Euro 10 billion). Indirect costs due to morbidity and mortality were estimated at Euro 76 billion. This makes depression the most costly brain disorder in Europe, accounting for 33% of the total cost. The cost of depression corresponds to 1% of the total economy of Europe (GDP). DISCUSSION: Our cost results are in good agreement with previous research findings. The cost estimates in the present study are based on model simulations for countries where no data was available. The predictability of our model is limited to the accuracy of the input data employed. As there is no earlier cost-of-illness study conducted on depression in Europe, it is, however, difficult to evaluate the validity of our results for individual countries and thus further research is needed. CONCLUSION: The cost of depression poses a significant economic burden to European society. The simulation model employed shows good predictability of the cost of depression in Europe and is a novel approach to estimate the cost-of-illness in Europe.
1. Antecedentes de la investigación:
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
2. Métodos que se usaron en la investigación: ___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
35
3. Resultados que se obtuvieron en la investigación:
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
4. Discusión: ___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
5. Conclusión que se establece en el estudio:
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
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36
2. Lee cuidadosamente el siguiente abstract y analiza su estructura. Nota que cada parte ha sido resaltada con un tipo de letra diferente.
Many plants in Australia have their seeds
buried in order for the species to survive fires.
The seeds start to germinate under the soil at
certain temperatures. Seeds of Acacia terminalis
and Dillwynia floribunda were examined in this
experiment. It was hypothesized that the seeds
need heat for the germination to start. Seeds of the
two species were treated in hot and cold water and left to start
germinating. Acacia terminalis showed a significant
response in germination after the hot water
treatment while Dillwynia floribunda did not.
Neither seed showed a response in germination
after cold water treatment. The results for
Dillwynia floribunda were unexpected but
may be explained by factors such as water
temperature and the length of time the seeds
remained in the heated water.
Antecedentes
Objeto de la
investigación
Hypothesis
Método
Resultados
Discusión
3. Ahora busca en Internet un abstract de una extensión semejante. Trabaja una tabla
en Word con el formato de la anterior donde resaltes cada uno de los elementos del
abstract. A la derecha informa de qué elemento se trata. Imprímela y pégala en esta
página. Finalmente, comparte tu trabajo con tu equipo y con tu profesor.
37
38
E. VISTAZO
I. Antes de leer el siguiente texto, revisa la información del cuadro y contesta las
preguntas que le siguen.
- We use the expression SLEEP LATENCY to talk about the amount of time it takes a person to fall asleep.
- The test called MULTIPLE SLEEP LATENCY TEST is used to measure the speed of falling asleep.
1. Selecciona la mejor opción en español para la expresión MULTIPLE SLEEP
LATENCY TEST.
a). Múltiple prueba de latencia del sueño
b). Prueba de latencia múltiple del sueño
c). Prueba de latencia del sueño múltiple
2. La mejor opción en español para la expresión OCCURENCE OF DREAMING sería:
a). Ocurrencia del sueño
b). Cuando ocurre un sueño
c). Inicio del sueño
3. La mejor opción para DAYTIME SLEEPINESS sería:
a). Somnolencia diurna
b). Horas para dormir
c). Dormir durante el día.
(Efectivamente, las respuestas correctas en cada caso son: 1. (b), 2. (c) y 3. (a).
2. Revisa cuidadosamente el siguiente reporte de una investigación y completa el
esquema integrativo del mismo. En el caso del título, escríbelo en español; asimismo,
cuando se trate de la fuente repórtala con todos sus datos.
39
Esquema integrativo 1. Título:
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
2. Autores
3. _____________________________________________________________
4. _____________________________________________________________
5. _____________________________________________________________
6. Resultados
7. _____________________________________________________________
8. _____________________________________________________________
9. Fuente: ______________________________________________________
F. ORGANIZADOR GRÁFICO
1. Lee cuidadosamente el abstract del siguiente reporte de investigación y subraya
toda la información que consideres relevante en cada aspecto del mismo. Sería ideal
que usaras un color para objetivo, otro para método, etc.
2. Ahora, con la información subrayada organiza un mapa conceptual, cuadro
sinóptico o cualquier otra forma de organizar las ideas de manera que te sean más
comprensibles y manejables.
40
41
3. Enseguida, utilizando la información de tu organizador gráfico, presenta la
información del abstract en un pequeño párrafo a manera de explicación de tu mapa
o el organizador que hayas utilizado.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________-_
42
Arq. Neuro-Psiquiatr. vol.64 no.4 São Paulo Dec. 2006
Comparative analysis of multiple sleep latency tests (MSLT) parameters and occurrence of dreaming in patients with daytime sleepiness of narcoleptic and non-narcoleptic origin
Eduardo Siqueira WaihrichI; Raimundo Nonato Delgado RodriguesII; Henrique
Aragão SilveiraI; Fernando da Fonseca Melo FróesI; Guilherme Henrique da Silva
RochaI
IMD, Hospital Universitário de Brasília, Brasília DF - Brazil (UnB) IINeurologista, MD, PhD, Chefe de Serviço, UnB
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To compare MSLT parameters in two groups of patients with daytime
sleepiness, correlated to the occurrence and onset of dreams.
METHOD: Patients were submitted to the MSLT between January/1999 and June/2002.
Sleep onset latency, REM sleep latency and total sleep time were determined. The
occurrence of dreams was inquired following each MSLT series. Patients were classified
as narcoleptic (N) or non-narcoleptic (NN).
RESULTS: Thirty patients were studied, 12 were classified as narcoleptics (N group;
40%), while the remaining 18 as non-narcoleptic (NN group; 60%). Thirty MSLT were
performed, resulting in 146 series. Sleep was detected in 126 series (86%) and dreams
in 56 series (44.44%). Mean sleep time in the N group was 16.0±6.3 min, while 10.5±7.5
min in the NN group (p<0.0001). Mean sleep latency was 2.0±2.2 min and 7.2±6.0 min
in the N and NN group, respectively (p<0.001). Mean REM sleep latency in the N group
was 3.2±3.1min and 6.9±3.7 min in the NN group (p=0.021). Dreams occurred in 56.9%
of the N group series and 28.4% in that of the NN group (p=0.0009). Dream frequency
was detected in 29.8% and 75% of the NREM series of the N and NN groups, respectively
(p=0.0001).
CONCLUSION: Patients from the N group, compared to the NN group, slept longer and
earlier, demonstrated a shorter REM sleep onset and greater dream frequency. NN
patients had a greater dream frequency in NREM series. Thus, the occurrence of dreams
during NREM in the MSLT may contribute to differentially diagnose narcolepsy and
daytime sleepiness.
Key words: narcolepsy, daytime sleepiness, multiple sleep latency test, dreams, REM.
Narcolepsy is a chronic neurological disorder, mainly characterized by uncontrollable
sleep attacks and cataplexy, although hypnagogic hallucinations and sleep paralysis may
also occur1-5. In spite of its low prevalence (0.02%) 2,3, this disorder is one of the most
debilitating diseases within Sleep Medicine (Hypniatry), leading to professional problems,
social stigmas and risks to the patients’ physical integrity2-5. Narcolepsy is highly under-
diagnosed, with a 10-15 year time lag between symptom onset and definite diagnosis2,4.
43
Thus, accurate early identification of these patients is very important. In this sense, the
Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT) has proved to be an important tool in differentially
diagnosing daytime sleepiness, one of the main complaints within Hypniatry1-6. From a
physiopathological perspective, narcolepsy characterizes a multi-level dysfunction of the
activation and control mechanisms of REM sleep, to which the absence of the thalamic peptide hypocretin is an important contributing factor7,8.
REM sleep, on the other hand, is mainly characterized by diffuse muscle atonia (except
for the diaphragm and extrinsic ocular muscles), intense cerebral activity and occurrence
of dreams 6,9-14. As dreams are initiated by a complex synaptic network, the study of its
patterns is of great scientific interest6,9,14,15. Although the functions of dreams have not
been fully elucidated, qualitative and quantitative differences between REM and NREM
dreams have been described13-18. In general, more complex, vivid and bizarre dreams
are reported during REM sleep12, 13, 15, 18. As numerous sleep disorders, including
narcolepsy, characteristically modify dream patterns or coexist with oniric
hallucinations3,4,14, a better functional and etiological understanding of the dream-related
mechanisms may provide a more efficient clinical and therapeutic approach to these
diseases3,4,14,19,20. This study thus aimed at analyzing specific MSLT parameters in two
distinct groups of patients with a general complaint of excessive daytime sleepiness, studying the frequency and moment of dreaming onset.
METHOD
An analytical case-controlled investigation was conducted on data obtained from patient
records who had been submitted to the MSLT as part of the investigation for excessive
daytime sleepiness complaints. The patients selected were young adults with complaints
of excessive daytime sleepiness, without any previous treatment. The study was held at
the Sleep Laboratory of the University Hospital of Brasilia, Brazil, between January/1999 and June/2002. Free and informed consent was obtained from all subjects.
For the MSLT, the patient was allowed 4 or 5 naps, at 2-h interval, with a maximum 20-
min duration (corresponding to one series)2. Electroencephalograms (EEG) were
recorded on three channels (C3-A1, C4-02, F3 -O2) with electrodes positioned according
to the 10-20 International System. A right and left electro-oculogram and an eletromyogram (mentonian electrodes) were also performed.
Patients were classified as narcoleptic- or non-narcoleptic-compatible using the
diagnostic criteria of the International Classification of Sleep Disorders, revised version
of 2005 (ICSD-2005)1,4,21. Patients presenting mean sleep latency under 5-min, and 2 or
more series with REM sleep, were considered as being narcoleptics (N) and the remaining
subjects as non-narcoleptics (NN). Mean sleep latencies under 5-min, associated to 2 or
more REM sleep episodes, are high suggestive of narcolepsy (sensitivity 70%, specificity
97%)2,3. Following each MSLT series, the patient was inquired as to whether he/she had dreamt in the preceding series.
Patients and series were also divided into groups according to the presence or absence
of dreams and total sleep time. Then absolute NREM and REM sleep latencies were
compared between series with and without the occurrence of dreams. The frequency of
dreams reported was also compared between NREM and REM series. Tests that were
interrupted without a minimum of 4 series, with a total sleep time greater than 20-min for one given series or with an inadequate EEG were excluded.
44
The study was submitted to and approved by the Ethics Committee of our Institution.
Statistical analyses were performed using the exact Fisher and Mann-Whitney tests. Statistical significance was set at p<0.05.
RESULTS
MSLT was performed on 82 patients during the study period 30 of which fulfilled the
selection criteria, being 23 (77%) men and 7 (23%) women, with the mean age of
31,6±6.87 (p=0,6). Twelve patients (40%) were classified as narcoleptics (N) and 18
(60%) as non-narcoleptics (NN). No significant differences in mean ages were found
between the two sexes. Besides, no correlation was found between sex and prevalence
of narcolepsy (Odds ratio= 0.86 with confidence interval = 0.15 to 4.8), as reported in
Table 1. Within the N group, a mean sleep time of 16±6.3 min was observed, while for
the NN group it was 10.5±7.5 min (p<0.0001). Furthermore, the mean sleep onset
latency was significantly shorter (p<0.001) in the N group (2.0±2.2 min) than the NN
group (7.2±6.0 min). A similar pattern was also observed for the mean REM sleep latency
(3.2±3.1 and 6.9±3.7 min, N and NN group, respectively) (p=0.021). The frequency of
dreams reported was significantly greater in the N (56.9%) than the NN group (28.4%)
(p=0.0009). A significantly higher frequency of dreams reported in the NREM sleep series
was observed in the NN group (75%), compared to the N group (21.87%) (p= 0.0001) (Table 2).
45
From the total of 146 series obtained, sleep was observed in 126 (86.3%). NREM and
REM sleep latencies, as well as sleep time of series with and without dreams are reported in Table 3.
DISCUSSION
Within our study sample, consisting essentially of individuals with excessive daytime
sleepiness, a 40% prevalence of narcoleptic-compatible patients was observed. Mean
sleep latency of patients from the N group (2.0±2.2 min) was considerably lower than
the 5-min minimum frequently employed in other studies2,4, as well as the values
observed in the NN group (7.2±6 min). Similarly, significant differences in mean REM
sleep latency were also seen between the N (3.2 ±3.1 min) and the NN groups (6.9±3.7
min; p= 0.021). These findings seem to corroborate the notion that REM sleep
mechanisms in narcoleptics are triggered earlier than in patients with excessive daytime sleepiness of non-narcoleptic origin.
In general, group N patients dreamt more, particularly during REM sleep. This result is
not surprising as in these patients REM sleep seems to be more critically involved. On
the other hand, neural circuits underlying REM mental activity, in addition to the
activation of REM sleep itself, may be facilitated in narcoleptic patients. However, the
earlier onset of REM sleep did not influence dream frequency, as REM sleep latency of
series with and without dreams were similar. Small sample size, however, may have
influenced this result. REM duration, continuity or stability in each series may, in fact, be
more directly related to the onset of dreams. This issue should be further investigated
employing a greater number of subjects. Among the non-narcoleptic patients, on the
other hand, dreams were predominantly reported to occur during NREM sleep series (75%). Changes in REM sleep onset mechanisms were not apparent in this group.
Mental activity, including the oniric type, has been reported for over 50 years. In fact,
dreams are reported by 5-10% of individuals awoken during NREM sleep14,22, although
this percentage is thought to be as high as 50%. In the present study, dreams were
46
registered in 25 of the 84 series in which REM sleep had not been electrographically
identified (29.8%). In general, such dreams are said to be less complex and vivid than
those occurring during REM sleep14,15,19,22,23. This result is corroborated by previous
studies describing the "covert REM sleep" model24. The later conceptualizes the existence
of an intermediate sleep stage; i.e. a transitional sleep period where REM sleep elements
(e.g. changes in physiological parameters, eye movements, oniric activity) may be
detected during a polysomnographically characterized NREM period. Several factors, such
as the absence of REM when it is physiologically expected (i.e. after approximately 90
min of sleep), the influence of certain compounds (reserpine, barbiturates) or even the
transitional period between wakefulness and stage 1 sleep, may contribute to the advent of this "intermediate sleep".
On the other hand, REM sleep pressure itself (secondary to sleep disorders or deprivation)
is known to induce the transition from "covert REM sleep" stage to a full REM sleep24. As
both groups in the present study (i.e. N and NN) had daytime sleepiness complaints, a
similar pressure upon total sleep time was expected. In addition, patients from the N
group also suffered specific pressure from REM sleep, typical of a narcoleptic condition,
which were not observed in the NN patients. Therefore, in the later group, REM sleep
may not have had sufficient pressure to favor the transition of the "intermediate state"
into a polysomnographically defined REM stage, which in turn could account for the
greater NREM dreaming frequency reported (75%).
Furthermore, the advent of dreams during REM sleep is known to be associated with
stimulation of dopaminergic pathways in the ventro-medial frontal lobe region14.
Theoretically, within an excessive daytime sleepiness population, the activation of such
circuits may also happen during NREM sleep, as the physiological mechanisms are due
to the direct interaction of anatomical and functionally proximate neural pathways
(brainstem, basal region of the frontal lobe)14,15,19. Thus, beyond certain intensity of sleep
pressure, features of NREM sleep may also possibly activate dreaming circuitry during
NREM sleep itself. In the general population, however, dreaming during NREM sleep may
be considered part of a physiological process14.
In conclusion, the present study demonstrated that narcoleptic-compatible patients had
longer sleep time, faster sleep onset, earlier REM onset and dreamt more than subjects
with daytime sleepiness of a different origin in the MSLT. The later group, on the other
hand, demonstrated a significantly higher dreaming frequency during NREM sleep. Such
findings may be explained, in part, by the "covert REM sleep" model15,23. Dreaming during
NREM sleep may be part of a homeostatic mechanism in cases of sleep disorders or
deprivation. Taken together, these results indicate that routine investigation of dreaming,
following each MSLT series, as well as the exact moment they occur (NREM, REM), may
contribute in a more objective way to the differential diagnosis between narcolepsy and excessive daytime sleepiness of a distinct etiology.
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http://www.emedicine.com/neuro/topic522.htm.)
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3. Douglas NJ. "Why am I sleepy?" sorting the somnolent. Am J Respir Crit Care Med
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4. Green PM, Stillman MJ. Narcolepsy: signs, symptoms, differential diagnosis, and
management. Arch Fam Med 1998;7:472-478.
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6. Bendadis SR, Wolgamuth BR, Perry MC, Dinner DS. Dreams and rapid eye movement
sleep in the multiple sleep latency test. Sleep 1995; 18:105-108.
7. Baumann CR, Basseti CL. Hypocretins (orexins) and sleep-wake disorders. Lancet
Neurol 2005;4:673-680.
8. Nishino S, Kanbayashi T. Symptomatic narcolepsy, cataplexy and hypersomnia, and
their implications in the hypothalamic hypocretin/orexin system. Sleep Med Rev
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9. Eiser AS. Physiology and psychology of dreams. Semin Neurol 2005; 25:97-105.
10. Lehtonen J. Origins of dreaming. Trends Cogn Sci 2002;6:23-30.
11. Reiser MF. The dream in contemporary psychiatry. Am J Psychiatry 2001;158:351-
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12. Russo MB. Normal sleep, sleep physiology, and sleep deprivation: general principles,
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13. Schwartz S, Maquet P. Sleep imaging and the neuro-psychological assessment of
dreams. Trends Cogn Sci 2002;6:23-30.
14. Solms M. Dreaming and rem sleep are controlled by different brain mechanisms.
Behav Brain Sci 2000;23:843-850.
15. Takeuchi T, Miyasita A, Inugami M, Yamamoto Y. Intrinsic dreams are not produced
without rem sleep mechanisms: evidence through elicitation of sleep onset REM periods.
J Sleep Res 2001;10:43-52.
16. Cartwright RD, Lloyd SR. Early REM sleep: a compensatory change in depression?
Psychiatry Res 1994;51:245-252.
17. Niiyama Y, Shimizu T, Abe M, Hishikawa Y. Phasic eeg activities associated with rapid
eye movementes during REM sleep in man. J Neuropsychiatry Clin Neurosci
2002;14:283-288.
18. Peterson ND, Henke PG, Hayes Z. Limbic system function and dream content in
university student. Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2002;56:345-354.
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19. Gottesman C. The neurochemistry of waking and sleeping mental activity: the
disinhibition-dopamine hipotesis. Am J Psychiatry 2002;159:459.
20. Lucchesi LM, Pradella-Hallinan M, Lucchesi M, Moraes WAS. O sono em transtornos
psiquiátricos. Rev Bras Psiquiatr 2005;27:27-32.
21. Americam Academy of Sleep Medicine. The internatinal classification of sleep
disorders, revised, 2005. (Acessed January 28,2006, at
http://www.absm.org/PDF/ICSD.pdf).
22. Suzuki H, Uchiyama M, Tagaya H, et al. Dreaming during non-rapid eye movement
sleep in the absence of prior rapid eye movement sleep. Sleep 2004;27:1486-1490.
23. Nielsen T, Stenstrom P, Takeuchi T, et al. Partial REM-sleep deprivation increases the
dream-like quality of mentation from REM sleep and sleep onset. Sleep 2005;28:1083-
1089.
24. Nielsen TA. A review of mentation in REM and NREM sleep: "covert" REM sleep as a
possible reconciliation of two opposing models. Behav Brain Sci 2000;23:851-866.
Received 16 May 2006, received in final form 28 July 2006. Accepted 19 September 2006.
Dr. Eduardo Siqueira Waihrich - SQS 306 / Bloco B / Apartamento 403 / Asa Sul - 70353-
020 Brasília DF - Brasil. E-mail: eduwaihrich@ig.. br
49
G. REPASO DE LA VOZ PASIVA
1. Lee los siguientes enunciados tomados del texto anterior. Subraya los casos de
voz pasiva en cada uno y después da la versión en español de todo el enunciado.
Cada vez que sea posible utiliza la forma “se”, como se vio en la unidad uno.
1. Thirty patients were studied, 12 were classified as narcoleptics. ( Abstract )
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
2. Although the functions of dreams have not been fully elucidated, qualitative and
quantitative differences between REM and NREM dreams have been described.
( Introducción )
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
3. An analytical case-controlled investigation was conducted on data obtained from patient
records who had been submitted to the MSLT as part of the investigation for excessive
daytime sleepiness complaints.( Método )
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
4. Patients presenting mean sleep latency under 5-min, and 2 or more series with REM
sleep, were considered as being narcoleptics (N) and the remaining subjects as non-
narcoleptics (NN). (Método)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
50
5. REM duration, continuity or stability in each series may, in fact, be more directly related
to the onset of dreams. (Resultados)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
H. BÚSQUEDA DE INFORMACIÓN ESPECÍFICA
1. Revisa el texto y aporta la información que se solicita en cada caso.
1. Definición de narcolepsia. (Introducción)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
2. Características del sueño REM. (Introducción)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
3. Propósito de la investigación. (Introducción)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
51
4. Tipo de investigación que llevó a cabo. (Método)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
5. Fuente de los datos para la investigación. (Método)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
6. Características de los sujetos de la investigación. (Método)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
7. Lugar y fecha de la investigación. (Método)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
52
8. Número de pacientes en los que se aplicó la prueba. (Resultados)
________________________________________________________________________
9. Número de pacientes que se ajustaron a los criterios de selección y sexo de los
mismos. (Resultados)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
10. Número y porcentaje de sujetos que se clasificaron como narcolépticos y no
narcolépticos. (resultados)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
I. COMPRENSIÓN DETALLADA
1. Lee el texto cuidadosamente y contesta lo siguiente.
1. ¿Cómo se clasificaron los pacientes del estudio y qué instrumento se utilizó para ello?
(método).
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
53
2. ¿Con qué criterios se clasificó a los pacientes como narcolépticos y no narcolépticos?
(método).
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
3. ¿Cómo funcionó el grupo N con relación al sueño, especialmente durante el sueño
REM? Explica detalladamente. (Resultados)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
54
4. Explica de manera extensa cómo se observó la actividad mental, incluida la de tipo
onírico. (Discusión)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
5. Explica ampliamente la conclusión del estudio.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
55
Unidad 3
Current social concerns
Presentación
Un componente didáctico importante del presente volumen consiste en un reciclamiento
constante de los contenidos de aprendizaje; el propósito de esta aparición y reaparición de
temas de estudio consiste en lograr la consolidación de su adquisición, manejo y aplicación.
Específicamente, en esta Unidad se reciclan los temas sobre la estructura espacial,
lingüística y de contenidos de los reportes de investigación, que fueron presentados con
amplitud en la unidad didáctica anterior. La razón del repaso que sobre el asunto se hace
en el presente apartado obedece a la gran importancia que, para la población universitaria,
reviste el conocer cómo están hechos los reportes de investigación de diversas áreas del
conocimiento, en cuanto a su arquitectura textual, el tipo de estructuración lingüística que
los caracteriza y el ordenamiento de la información que les es propio. Con esto, se pretende
fomentar en los estudiantes la consulta irrestricta del tipo de documentos en cuestión, en
tanto elementos de comunicación científica de primera línea y portadores de hallazgos
disciplinares de actualidad.
Particularmente, los reportes de investigación de esta unidad tienen que ver con tópicos de
la vida social actual, que se encuentran presentes en los medios de comunicación y en las
conversaciones de la vida cotidiana, tales como la adicción al ejercicio físico y el llamado
acoso cibernético o ciberacoso.
En cuanto a los aspectos meramente lingüísticos, en esta unidad, de manera explícita, se
presentan dos temas gramaticales. Uno de ellos es en apoyo al nivel léxico de los
aprendientes, a partir de la comprensión y manejo de algunos sufijos característicos de
sustantivos y adjetivos en inglés. El otro tema se refiere a la estructura sintáctica que
caracteriza al llamado Tiempo Presente Perfecto del inglés. Dicho tema fue seleccionado,
entre varios tiempos verbales, debido a su uso y aparición profusa en el tipo de documentos
revisados en la unidad, es decir, en los reportes de investigación.
Finalmente, varias actividades de esta unidad apelan a la capacidad de análisis y síntesis
de los estudiantes, a quienes, como un recurso didáctico casi permanente, en diversas
oportunidades se les requiere la confección de documentos o mapas conceptuales
representativos de los textos revisados.
56
Unidad 3
Current social concerns
Objetivos:
En esta Unidad, el estudiante:
Consolidará su manejo y comprensión de reportes de investigación en inglés.
Recordará algunos componentes morfológicos de las palabras en inglés con objeto de facilitar la comprensión de vocabulario en un texto escrito.
Repasará la estructura gramatical del Tiempo Presente Perfecto del inglés con objeto de favorecer su comprensión lectora.
57
A. APOYO GRAMATICAL PARA LA LECTURA
En varios momentos de esta serie de comprensión de lectura en inglés, se han abordado aspectos gramaticales de este idioma, con objeto de tomarlos como puntos de apoyo para el procesamiento de textos. En esta Unidad, se estudiarán someramente algunos componentes morfológicos de las palabras en inglés, tales como los sufijos y la composición léxica, y se presentarán algunas nociones sobre el Tiempo Presente Perfecto, esto con la finalidad de favorecer la comprensión de reportes de investigación escritos en inglés. 1. REPASO DE SUFIJOS. Recuerda que el sufijo -er puede agregarse a adjetivos y a verbos. - Cuando se agrega a algún adjetivo forma el comparativo de superioridad, por lo que equivale a la palabra más del español. Ejemplos: high = alto higher = más alto long = largo longer = más largo young = joven younger = más joven - Cuando se agrega a algún verbo transforma a éste en un sustantivo que indica la persona u objeto que realiza la acción expresada. Ejemplos: drive = manejar driver = la persona que maneja = conductor, chofer heat = calentar heater = el objeto que calienta = calentador teach = enseñar teacher = la persona que enseña = profesor Con base en la información de arriba, completa la siguiente tabla anotando el significado en español de cada palabra.
1. older
5. reader
2. smaller
6. shorter
3. beginner
7. sticker
4. bigger
8. heavier
58
2. PALABRAS COMPUESTAS En inglés, es común encontrar palabras formadas por dos sustantivos. En algunas ocasiones, el segundo de dichos sustantivos suele contener la terminación -er. Asimismo, es importante saber que dichas palabras pueden aparecer separadas o juntas. Ejemplos: CD player = reproductor de discos compactos icebreaker = rompehielos, comentario o juego para relajar una situación dada life saver = salvavidas Con base en la información anterior, escribe el significado en español de las palabras de la siguiente lista. 1. bodybuilder ______________________________________
2. dog walker ______________________________________
3. distance runner ______________________________________
4. drug dealer ______________________________________
5. weight lifter ______________________________________
59
3. TIEMPO PRESENTE PERFECTO
El llamado Tiempo Presente Perfecto del inglés (Present Perfect Tense) se construye con
el verbo HAVE acompañando a otro verbo en participio (Past Participle). Hay que recordar
que para la tercera persona singular (he, she, it) la forma del verbo HAVE cambia a HAS.
PRESENT PERFECT TENSE have / has + Vpp
En inglés, los verbos en tiempo pasado y en participio pueden ser regulares e irregulares. Los regulares contienen la terminación -ed y los irregulares cambian de forma.
El Tiempo Presente Perfecto del inglés puede expresar:
1) Acciones ocurridas en un pasado inespecífico.
Ejemplo: I have studied Italian. (He estudiado italiano.)
2) Acciones iniciadas en el pasado y que aún continúan en el presente.
Ejemplo: Paul has lived in Canada for five years. (Paul ha vivido en Canadá durante cinco años.)
El Tiempo Presente Perfecto del inglés equivale al Antepresente de indicativo del español.
Así, en este caso, el verbo HAVE del inglés equivale al verbo HABER del español.
Asimismo, hay que recordar que el participio de los verbos en español contiene las
terminaciones -ado / -ido (o -to, -so, -cho, para los irregulares).
60
A continuación aparecen algunas oraciones en Tiempo Presente Perfecto que se
extrajeron del texto que se revisará en la siguiente parte de esta Unidad. Léelos
cuidadosamente y escribe un equivalente en español para cada uno.
1. Extensive research has shown that male bodybuilders are at high risk for exercise dependence.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
2. Prior research has postulated that muscular dysmorphia was more prevalent in men than women . . .
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
3. but several qualitative studies of female bodybuilders have indicated that female bodybuilders show the same body image concerns.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
61
B. LA ESTRUCTURA DE UN EPORTE DE INVESTIGACIÓN (REPASO) 1. Recuerda la estructura de un reporte de investigación que estudiaste en la Unidad 2 de este material y, en la siguiente lista, marca sus componentes con una palomita ( ). TÍTULO ( ) MÉTODO ( ) AUTOR o AUTORES ( ) COLOFÓN ( ) EPÍGRAFE ( ) RESULTADOS ( ) RESUMEN (ABSTRACT) ( ) EPÍLOGO ( ) PRÓLOGO ( ) DISCUSIÓN ( ) PREÁMBULO ( ) CONCLUSIÓN ( ) INTRODUCCIÓN ( ) BIBLIOGRAFÍA ( ) 2. Elabora una lista en la que incluyas únicamente los elementos que marcaste en el ejercicio de arriba.
62
3. Visualiza el texto de las siguientes páginas y elabora su esquema integrativo en el siguiente cuadro. NO es necesario que incluyas ninguna información; únicamente las partes que conforman el texto.
63
Exercise dependence and muscle dysmorphia1 in novice
and experienced female bodybuilders
BRUCE D. HALE*, DANIELLE DIEHL, KRISTA WEAVER and MICHAEL BRIGGS
Berks College, Pennsylvania State University, Reading, PA, USA
(Received: July 9, 2013; revised manuscript received: September 13, 2013; accepted: October 13, 2013)
ISSN 2062-5871 © 2013 Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest
Journal of Behavioral Addictions 2(4), pp. 244–248 (2013)
DOI: 10.1556/JBA.2.2013.4.8
* Corresponding author: Bruce Hale, PhD, Dept. of Kinesiology,
Penn State Berks, 114a BCC, Tulpehocken Rd., Reading, PA
19610, USA; Phone: +1-610-396-6156; Fax: +1-610-396-6155;
E-mail: [email protected]
Background and aims: Extensive research has shown that male bodybuilders are at high risk for
exercise dependence, but few studies have measured these variables in female bodybuilders. Prior
research has postulated that muscular dysmorphia was more prevalent in men than women, but
several qualitative studies of female bodybuilders have indicated that female bodybuilders show the
same body image concerns. Only one study has compared female bodybuilders with control
recreational female lifters on eating behaviors, body image, shape pre-occupation, body dissatisfaction,
and steroid use. The purpose of this study was to compare exercise dependence and muscle
dysmorphia measures between groups of female weight lifters. Methods: Seventy-four female lifters
were classified into three lifting types (26 expert bodybuilders, 10 or more competitions; 29 novice
bodybuilders, 3 or less competitions; and 19 fitness lifters, at least 6 months prior lifting) who each
completed a demographic questionnaire, the Exercise Dependence Scale (EDS), the Drive for Thinness
scale (DFT) of the Eating Disorder Inventory-2, the Bodybuilding Dependence Scale (BDS), and the
Muscle Dysmorphia Inventory (MDI). Results: Female bodybuilders scored higher than fitness lifters for
EDS Total, BDS Training and Social Dependence, and on Supplement Use, Dietary Behavior, Exercise
Dependence, and Size Symmetry scales of the MDI. Discussion and conclusions: Female bodybuilders
seem to be more at risk for exercise dependence and muscle dysmorphia symptoms than female
recreational weight lifters.
Keywords: exercise dependence, muscle dysmorphia, female bodybuilders
1 Informally called bigorexia
64
INTRODUCTION
Although medical practitioners agree that the majority of the population in western societies would
benefit from more regular exercise as part of a healthier lifestyle, a small percentage of individuals
may develop an obsessive approach that can be damaging physiologically, psychologically and
socially. Researchers and clinicians have recently reviewed the decades of emerging literature on
excessive exercise in weight lifters, and some have concluded that the behaviors are part of an
obsessive-compulsive disorder diagnosis (e.g., Pope, Phillips & Olivardia, 2000), while others suggest
that the symptoms are part of a body dysmorphia/body image disorder diagnosis (e.g., Lantz, Rhea
& Mayhew, 2001; McCreary & Sasse, 2000), and still others have sought to differentiate it from a
primary eating disorder (e.g., Hausenblas & Symons Downs, 2002). More recently, Berczik et al. (2012)
have argued forcefully that excessive exercise is a type of behavioral addiction. Unfortunately, almost
all of the research that has been reviewed to date on addictive anaerobic exercise behavior (Hale &
Smith, 2012; Tod & Lavallee, 2010) has involved male bodybuilding and weightlifting samples.
Whereas most western women seem to score high on the Drive for Thinness scale (DFT; Garner’s
(1991) Eating Disorder Inventory-2) and yearn to be thin and toned (Thompson, Heinberg, Altabe &
Tantleff-Dunn, 1999), men in the last three decades are showing increasing scores in the drive for
muscularity (e.g., McCreary and Sasse’s (2000) Drivefor Muscularity Scale). According to researchers,
some weight lifters develop muscle dysmorphia (MD), view themselves as too thin, and may feel
pressure to gain muscle size and/or strength even though they may actually be quite large and
muscular (Tod & Lavallee, 2010). Components of MD include: body image distortion/dissatisfaction,
dietary constraints, pharmacological aids, dietary supplements, exercise dependence, physique
concealment, and low self-esteem (Muscle Dysmorphia Inventory, MDI; Rhea, Lantz & Cornelius, 2004).
One of these components, exercise dependence (ED), has been defined as “a craving for leisure time
physical activity that results in uncontrollable excessive exercise behavior and that manifests in
physiological symptoms (e.g., tolerance, withdrawal) and/or psychological symptoms (e.g., anxiety,
depression)” (Hausenblas & Symons Downs, 2002, p. 90). It has also been measured by the Exercise
Dependence Scale (EDS; Symons Downs, Hausenblas & Nigg, 2004). In the bodybuilding realm, Smith,
Hale and Collins (1998) also created and validated the Bodybuilding Dependence Scale (BDS).
Leone, Sedory and Gray (2005) postulated that MD was more prevalent in men than women, but
several qualitative studies of female bodybuilders (Bolin, 1992; Guthrie & Castelnuovo, 1992; Klein,
1986, 1992) have stated that female bodybuilders show the same body image concerns, motivation
for muscularity, and workout behaviors as males. While extensive reviews of quantitative studies have
shown that male bodybuilders are at high risk for ED (Hale & Smith, 2012; Smith & Hale, 2011) and
may also suffer from MD (Tod & Lavallee, 2010), few quantitative designs (Smith & Hale, 2004;
Goldfield, 2009) have measured these variables in female bodybuilders.
Goldfield (2009) was one of the few studies to compare 20 female bodybuilders with recreational
female lifters on eating behaviors, body image, shape pre-occupation, body dissatisfaction, and steroid
use. He reported that bodybuilders scored higher on the Bulimia subscale, Drive for Bulk scale (Blouin
& Goldfield, 1995), and Drive for Tone scale (Goldfield, 2009). More recently Hale, Roth, DeLong and
Briggs (2010) found that male bodybuilders and power lifters were significantly higher than fitness
lifters on EDS Total, seven EDS-R scales, and the three BDS scales. No study to date has compared
measures of MD and ED between different groups of female weight lifters.
Although the estimates of bodybuilders suffering from ED and MD may be small in western populations,
the study of ED and MD in female weight lifters is warranted. This study hypothesized that female
65
bodybuilders would score significantly higher in ED, MD (Hale & Smith, 2012; Smith & Hale, 2011;
Tod & Lavallee, 2010), and lower in DFT (Goldfield, 2009) than female fitness lifters.
METHODS
Participants
Seventy-four female weight lifters volunteered and were classified (based on Hurst, Hale & Smith,
2000; Smith & Hale, 2004) as 26 “expert bodybuilders” (10 or more bodybuilding competitions), 29
“novice bodybuilders” (three or less competitions), and 19 “fitness lifters” (at least 6 months prior
lifting experience). Participants ranged in age from 18–48 years of age. Participants were recruited
from a Pennsylvania university fitness center, several Pennsylvania health clubs, and the annual
“Arnold Sports Festival” held in 2009 in Columbus, OH. All volunteers read implied informed consent
forms before anonymously completing questionnaires; prior approval was obtained by the University’s
institutional review board.
Measures
Demographic questionnaire
All participants completed a demographic questionnaire (adapted from Hale et al., 2010) to examine
prior lifting history. The questions concerned lifting experience (years lifting), typical frequency per
week (weekly frequency), length of typical workout duration (session time), and intensity (light,
moderate, or heavy intensity). In addition, a total lifting time per week variable was created by
multiplying the weekly frequency and session time. Participants checked a lifter type category (expert
bodybuilder, novice bodybuilder, or fitness lifter) based on their type of lifting experience.
Exercise Dependence Scale
The Exercise Dependence Scale (EDS; Symons Downs et al., 2004) is a 21-item multidimensional
questionnaire with 6-choice Likert scale ranging from “Always” to “Never” based on DSM-IV criteria
for substance dependence (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). The seven subscales (Tolerance,
r = .78; Withdrawal Effects, r = .90; Continuance, r = .90; Lack of Control, r = .82; Reductions in
Other Activities, r = .75; Time, r = .86; Intention, r = .89) have all shown acceptable scale score
reliability; internal consistency for total EDS score for this study was r = .92. Participants are
categorized by a total score as “exercise dependent”, “non-dependent symptomatic”, or “non-
dependent asymptomatic”. Hausenblas and Symons Downs (2002) and Hausenblas and Giacobbi
(2004) presented evidence of concurrent validity of the EDS.
Bodybuilding Dependence Scale
The Bodybuilding Dependence Scale (BDS; Smith et al., 1998) is a 9-item, 7-choice Likert scale
(“Strongly Disagree” to “Strongly Agree”) with three dimensions (Social Dependence, Training
Dependence, and Mastery Dependence) to measure the degree to which ED is exhibited in weight
lifters based on Veale’s (1987) biomedical and psychosocial diagnostic criteria. This measure has
demonstrated adequate psychometric internal reliability (Cronbach’s alpha of .83, .70, and .89,
respectively, in this study), construct and concurrent validity (Hurst et al., 2000; Smith & Hale, 2004),
and adequate test–retest reliability (Smith & Hale, 2005) for each scale (r = .97, .96, and .94,
respectively).
Muscle Dysmorphia Inventory
The Muscle Dysmorphia Inventory (MDI; Rhea et al., 2004) is a 27-item, 6-point Likert scale measuring
six subscales of MD: Size Symmetry, Supplement Use, Exercise Dependence, Pharmacological Use,
Dietary Behavior, and Physique Concealment. All subscales showed acceptable internal consistency
(Cronbach’s alpha = 0.84–0.92) in the present study. Significant correlations between the MDI subscales
66
and the BDS’s Training Dependence scale (Smith et al., 1998) and the DFT scale of the Eating
Disorder Inventory-2 (Garner, 1991) have provided evidence of convergent validity (Rhea et al., 2004).
Drive for Thinness Scale
The Drive for Thinness Scale of the Eating Disorder Inventory-2 (DFT; Garner, 1991) is a 7-item 6-
point Likert subscale to assess weight preoccupation. Research supports its validity and reliability
(Garner, 1991; r = .80 for internal consistency in this study). Hausenblas and Symons Downs (2002)
have used the subscale to categorize participants scoring above “14” as having a possible eating
disorder and demonstrating signs of “secondary exercise dependence”.
PROCEDURE
Data collection and analysis
After gaining permission from each health club facility and competition site, an implied consent form
and the questionnaire packet were distributed to each lifting participant. Participants were asked to
complete the packet honestly and anonymously; all volunteers completed their packet and
placed it in a sealed envelope to assure confidentiality. Participants took about 15–20 minutes to
complete each questionnaire packet.
Single imputation procedure
In one particular set of questionnaires, a question of the BDS was inadvertently omitted. Because
the other set of questionnaires did not have the missing question, a single imputation procedure for
missing data could be used. In this technique four of the five questions that made up the Social
Dependence subscale of the BDS were used to predict the fifth question. Using backwards selection
regression methodology, a model was constructed allowing for prediction of the fifth question. Though
single imputation can sometimes lead to underestimated standard errors (Little, 1992), rationalization
for this approach is based on the assumption that the incomplete data was matched to the complete
data with equal lifting types. Since the appropriate matching of observations was used, this single
imputation technique would be equivalent to doing a direct replacement (i.e., finding another lifter;
Donders, Van der Heijden, Stijnen & Moons, 2006).
Statistical analysis
One-way ANOVAs were undertaken on the five demographic questions, total EDS score, and the DFT
in order to examine potential group differences. One-way MANOVAs were also calculated on the
seven scales of the EDS, three scales of the BDS, and the six scales of the MDI with Tukey
post hoc tests used for significant univariate findings to further examine any possible group
differences.
Ethics
All volunteers read implied informed consent forms before anonymously completing questionnaires;
prior approval was obtained by the University’s institutional review board.
RESULTS
Demographic variables
No significant differences occurred in total lifting time between expert and novice bodybuilders and
fitness lifters, F (2, 71) = 1.60, p = .21. A one-way ANOVA was significant for years lifting, F(2, 71)
= 4.09, p < .05, with expert bodybuilders (M= 7.95) and novice bodybuilders (M= 7.48) significantly
67
more experienced than fitness lifters (M = 3.96). For weekly frequency data, there were also significant
group differences, F(2, 71) = 6.18, p < .05, with expert (M = 5.00) and novice (M = 5.13) bodybuilders
working out significantly more often than fitness lifters (M = 3.63). For session time, significant group
differences also occurred, F (2, 71) = 5.35, p < .05, with expert (M = 81.73) and novice (M = 76.55)
bodybuilders spending significantly more time per workout than fitness lifters (M= 52.21). Finally, for
workout intensity, there was another significant group main effect, F(2, 71) = 10.80, p < .05, with
expert (M = 2.58) and novice (M = 2.50) bodybuilders working out typically at a moderate - high
intensity, and fitness lifters (M= 1.84) typically exerting at a light-moderate intensity (see Table 1).
Exercise Dependence Scale
A significant between-groups result occurred with EDS total score, F (2,71) = 4.26, p < .05, and
Tukey-tests indicated that expert bodybuilders (M = 75.19) scored significantly higher than fitness
lifters (M= 60.42) (see Table 1). The MANOVA group main effect for the seven EDS scales was not
significant, Wilks’ lambda = .72, F (14,130) = 1.49, p = .07, so no further univariate analysis occurred.
A frequency analysis of EDS total scores was undertaken to find the percentage of participants
identified by the scale to be “at risk” for ED. A total of 13.5% (n = 10) were identified as “at risk”,
82.4% (n = 61) as “nondependent symptomatic”, and 4.1% (n = 3) as “nondependent asymptomatic”.
Of the 10 “at risk” for ED, nine were bodybuilders and one was a fitness lifter.
Bodybuilding Dependence Scale
A significant overall MANOVA group main effect (Wilks’ lambda = .66, F(6, 138) = 5.30, < .05) was
calculated. Univariate F-tests showed that Training Dependence was significant (F (2, 71) = 12.35, p
< .001), and Tukey-tests indicated that expert (M= 14.46) and novice (M= 14.41) bodybuilders were
significantly higher than fitness lifters (M = 9.79). A significant Social Dependence scale group main
68
effect (F (2, 71) = 16.68, p < .001) indicated that expert (M= 20.92) and novice (M = 21.59)
bodybuilders were significantly higher than fitness lifters (M = 12.47) (see Table 1). No significant
group main effect was found for Mastery Dependence, F(2, 71) = 2.56, p = .08.
Muscle Dysmorphia Inventory
A significant overall MANOVA group main effect (Wilks’ lambda = .44, F(12, 132) = 5.59, p < .05)
occurred. Univariate F-tests indicated significant differences in Supplement Use (F(2, 71) = 23.43, p
< .001), Dietary Behavior (F(2, 71) = 21.80, p < .001), Exercise Dependence (F(2, 71) = 27.24, p <
.001), and Size Symmetry (F(2, 71) = 11.09, p < .01). Follow up Tukey post hoc tests showed that
expert and novice bodybuilders scored significantly higher than fitness lifters on these four scales
(see Table 1).
Drive for Thinness Scale
No significant differences occurred in DFT score between the lifting groups, F(2, 71) = .12, p = .89.
DISCUSSION
In general, bodybuilders spent more years, time in the gym, and worked out harder than fitness
lifters. This finding is similar to differences in workout frequency reported for male bodybuilders and
fitness lifters (Hale et al., 2010), but as Hausenblas and Symons Downs (2002) reported, exercise
behavior and history alone are not adequate predictors of ED. The finding that bodybuilders’ typical
workout was moderate-high in intensity compared to fitness lifters’ light-moderate intensity was similar
to recent findings of Cook, Hausenblas and Rossi (2013), who reported that participants who wanted
to gain weight (e.g., bodybuilders) had significantly higher amounts of strenuous exercise than women
who wanted to lose weight (e.g., fitness lifters). Other antecedent variables must be examined to try
to understand the etiology of the disorder.
The hypothesis that bodybuilders would show higher scores in exercise dependence was partially
supported. Although a predicted higher score was calculated for expert bodybuilders over fitness
lifters in total EDS, the MANOVA for scale differences just failed to reach significance. Re-examination
showed that the statistical power was .87, which is barely adequate for a multivariate analysis
involving seven dependent variables and 74 participants. The finding for higher total EDS scores is
similar to other previous studies (Hale et al., 2010; Hurst et al., 2000) that have examined differences
between different lifting types. More participants should have been measured in each lifting group.
In this sample of female lifters, the prevalence of ‘at-risk’ behavior for ED behaviors (13.5%) was
found to be higher than other college-age samples measured by the EDS (3.4%, Hausenblas &
Symons Downs, 2002; 3.6–5%, Symons Downs et al., 2004). Past findings (Allegre, Souville, Therme &
Griffiths, 2006; Hausenblas & Symons Downs, 2002; Terry, Szabo & Griffiths, 2004) of mixed gender
samples have been conservatively in the 3–13% range. In this study nine out of 10 of the “at risk”
scores came from bodybuilder groups.
This at-risk finding is further supported by results from the BDS analysis. On two of the three scales,
female bodybuilders scored higher than fitness lifters. These findings are supported by Hale et al.
(2010) and Smith and Hale (2004) with male bodybuilders and fitness lifters.
The results for the MD assessment also provided partial support for the hypothesis that female
novice and expert bodybuilders would score higher. The significant finding on the Exercise Dependence
scale suggests that women bodybuilders, like male bodybuilders, are at extremely high risk for MD
symptoms (Smith & Hale, 2004; Tod & Lavallee, 2010). These findings further support the qualitative
69
findings of Bolin (1992), Guthrie and Castelnuovo (1992), and Klein (1986, 1992) and quantifiable
results of Goldfield (2009) with women bodybuilders. With no differences reported here between
novice and experienced bodybuilders, it suggests that women who are attracted to serious
bodybuilding programs may arrive with symptoms of MD intact already or may develop these
symptoms soon after committing to regimented training.
Finally, the non-significant findings between lifting groups on the Drive for Thinness scale rejected
our research hypothesis. Since Hausenblas and Symons Downs’ (2002) criteria for secondary exercise
dependence is a score of 14 or better, all three groups seem to be highly at risk for an eating
disorder. The high scores also suggest that in addition to a potentially high drive for muscularity
(McCrary & Sasse, 2000), all female weight lifters may also want to remain extremely lean.
Recently Berczik et al. (2012) have suggested that ED should be more appropriately labeled as
exercise addiction with six common symptoms (salience, mood modification, tolerance, withdrawal
symptoms, personal conflict, and relapse). Furthermore, they assert that exercise addiction is a form
of behavioral addiction because of its preoccupation with the behavior when it is prevented or
delayed. It is clear that measurement of ED (addiction?) needs improved diagnostic processes. A
recent study by Heaney, Ginty, Carroll and Phillips (2011) showed that ED participants produced a
blunted cardiovascular and cortisol reaction to stress, similar to those seen in alcohol and smoking
dependence; this finding may offer a more accurate, future objective measurement.
This study contains several design limitations. It was a correlational, cross-sectional design that could
not provide cause-and-effect findings which might help predict the etiology of ED and MD. In addition,
the sample was voluntary and limited to a small group of bodybuilders from one major competition
and several health clubs with a non-random fitness group used as a comparator, which reduced
statistical power for internal validity and decreased the potential for external validity. The
questionnaires selected are only indicative of ‘at risk’ symptoms inherent in ED and MD; only clinical
diagnostic procedures combined with questionnaires and possible biochemical analyzes can lead to
clear diagnosis. Future research needs more diverse samples of female weight lifters and ED and MD
self-report measures given in random order that include measures that control for social desirability.
In conclusion, the overall findings of this study support the hypothesis that female bodybuilders,
whether new or experienced competitors, show the same high risks for ED and MD that male
bodybuilders have shown (Hale & Smith, 2012; Tod & Lavallee, 2010). This study is one of the first
quantifiable cross-sectional designs to compare differences in potentially pathological exercise
behaviors and eating disorders in different female weight lifting groups. The findings suggest that
either gender of bodybuilders may be at high risk for potentially addictive behavioral disorders
(exercise dependence, muscle dysmorphia).
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Blouin, A. G. & Goldfield, G. S. (1995). Body image and steroid use in male bodybuilders. International
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exercise dependence symptoms. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 2(1), 51–55.
doi:10.1556/JBA.1.2012.010
Donders, A. R. T., Van der Heijden, G. J. M. G., Stijnen, T. & Moons, K. G. M. (2006). Review: A gentle
introduction to imputation of missing values. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 59, 1087–1091.
Garner, D. M. (1991). Eating Disorder Inventory-2 manual. Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment
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Goldfield, G. S. (2009). Body image, disordered eating, and anabolic steroid use in female bodybuilders.
Eating Disorders, 17, 200–210. doi: 10.1080/10640260902848485
Guthrie, S. R. & Castelnuovo, S. (1992). Elite women bodybuilders: Models of resistance or compliance?
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Hale, B. D., Roth, A., DeLong, R.&Briggs,M. (2010). Exercise dependence and the drive for muscularity
in male bodybuilders, power lifters, and fitness lifters. Body Image, 7, 234–239.
Hale, B. D. & Smith, D. (2012). Bodybuilding. In T. Cash (Ed.), Encyclopedia of body image and human
performance (Chapter 46). Oxford, UK: Elsevier.
Hausenblas, H. & Giacobbi, P. (2004). Relationship between exercise dependence symptoms and
personality. Personality and Individual Differences, 36, 1265–1273.
Hausenblas, H. & Symons Downs, D. (2002). Exercise dependence: A systematic review. Psychology of
Sport and Exercise, 3, 89–123.
Heaney, J., Ginty, A., Carroll, D. & Phillips, A. (2011). Preliminary evidence that exercise dependence
is associated with blunted cardiac and cortisol reactions to acute psychological stress. International
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Hurst, R., Hale, B. D & Smith, D. (2000). Exercise dependence in bodybuilders and weight lifters. British
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Klein, A. M. (1986). Pumping iron: Crisis and contradiction in bodybuilding subculture. Society of Sport
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Klein, A. M. (1992). Man makes himself: Alienation and self-objectification in bodybuilding. Play and
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4. Resuelve las siguientes cuestiones con base en la información del Abstract del texto de las páginas anteriores.
1. Explica los antecedentes del trabajo reportado.
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
2. ¿Cuál fue el propósito del estudio?
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
3. Menciona cuantos sujetos participaron en el estudio, de qué sexo eran y cómo se clasificaron.
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
4. ¿Qué instrumentos se aplicaron en el estudio?
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
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5. ¿Cuál fue la conclusión del estudio?
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
5. Indica en qué parte del reporte de investigación anterior se encuentra la información indicada en la columna izquierda de la siguiente tabla.
INFORMACIÓN
PARTE DEL REPORTE
Uno de los componentes de la dismorfia muscular es la baja autoestima.
En cuanto al tiempo total empleado para el levantamiento de pesas, no hubo diferencias significativas entre los fisicoculturistas expertos, los fisicoculturistas novatos y las personas que levantan pesas para una buena condición física.
En el estudio reportado participaron 74 mujeres.
La dependencia del ejercicio se define como la ansiedad por la actividad física que resulta en una conducta incontrolable manifestada en síntomas fisiológicos.
Un reporte en el sentido de que los participantes que desean subir de peso hacen cantidades mucho más altas de ejercicio vigoroso que las mujeres que quieren bajar de peso.
En el estudio se utilizaron cinco instrumentos de medición.
Los hallazgos generales del estudio apoyan la hipótesis de que las fisicoculturistas mujeres, ya sea competidoras nuevas o experimentadas, muestran los mismos altos riesgos de desarrollar dependencia del ejercicio o dismorfia muscular que los fisicoculturistas hombres.
74
6. Elabora un resumen del reporte de investigación anterior. Proporciona la información de la siguiente lista. - Propósito del estudio.
- Número de participantes y manera en que se clasificaron.
- Nombre y contenido de los instrumentos utilizados.
- Resultados obtenidos de acuerdo con cada instrumento utilizado.
- Conclusiones.
75
E. PRÁCTICA ADICIONAL CON REPORTES DE INVESTIGACIÓN
1. El siguiente texto de esta Unidad trata sobre el ciberacoso o acoso cibernético. Comparte con tus compañeros la información que tengas al respecto. En caso de que la información en la clase resulte nula o escasa, pueden buscarla o ampliarla en Internet. 2. Elabora el esquema integrativo del reporte de investigación de las siguientes páginas. 3. Elabora un resumen o un mapa mental del mismo reporte de investigación de las siguientes páginas. Incluye la siguiente información. - Contenido del abstract
- Definición de acoso escolar
- Tipos de acoso escolar
- Definición de ciberacoso
- Dos antecedentes importantes al estudio reportado
- Características del ciberacoso
- Objetivos del estudio reportado
- Descripción del método empleado en cuanto a:
- instrumento,
- participantes y
- procedimiento
- Resultados del estudio en cuanto a:
- datos generales de frecuencia,
- tipos de ciberacoso dentro y fuera de la escuela,
- participación en distintos tipos de acoso,
- las víctimas de acoso escolar tradicional y las de ciberacoso,
- edad, género y tipos de ciberacoso,
- los ciberacosadores,
- impacto del ciberacoso comparado con el acoso tradicional,
- la búsqueda de ayuda y
- la oportunidad de los adultos de darse cuenta del ciberacoso
- Conclusiones del estudio
76
Cyberbullying: Another main type of bullying?
ROBERT SLONJE and PETER K. SMITH
Article first published online: 26 NOV 2007
DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9450.2007.00611.x
© 2007 The Authors.
Scandinavian Journal of Psychology
Volume 49, Issue 2, pages 147–154, April 2008
ABSTRACT
Cyberbullying has recently emerged as a new form of bullying and harassment. 360
adolescents (12–20 years), were surveyed to examine the nature and extent of cyberbullying
in Swedish schools. Four categories of cyberbullying (by text message, email, phone call and
picture/video clip) were examined in relation to age and gender, perceived impact, telling
others, and perception of adults becoming aware of such bullying. There was a significant
incidence of cyberbullying in lower secondary schools, less in sixth-form colleges. Gender
differences were few. The impact of cyberbullying was perceived as highly negative for
picture/video clip bullying. Cybervictims most often chose to either tell their friends or no
one at all about the cyberbullying, so adults may not be aware of cyberbullying, and (apart
from picture/video clip bullying) this is how it was perceived by pupils. Findings are discussed
in relation to similarities and differences between cyberbullying and the more traditional
forms of bullying.
Key words: Bully, victim, cyber, text message, email, mobile phone, internet. Robert Slonje, Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths College, New Cross, London SE14 6NW, UK. Tel: +44-207-919-7898; fax: +44-207-919-7873; e-mail: [email protected]
INTRODUCTION
“Bullying” is often defined as being an aggressive, intentional act or behavior that is carried
out by a group or an individual repeatedly and over time against a victim who cannot easily
defend him or herself (Whitney & Smith, 1993; Olweus, 1999). Bullying is a form of abuse
that is based on an imbalance of power; it can be defined as a systematic abuse of power
(Smith & Sharp, 1994; Rigby, 2002).
Most researchers in the area of bullying, and of aggression more generally, distinguish
several main types (Rigby, 1997). The most common categories are physical, verbal, and
indirect or relational. Physical aggression includes hitting, kicking, punching, taking or
damaging belongings; of these, attacks on property might be considered separately (e.g.
Kristensen & Smith, 2003). Verbal aggression includes teasing, taunting, threatening. Both
these are usually direct or face-to-face types of aggression. In the 1980s, aggression and
bullying were primarily seen as direct physical or verbal attacks.
During the 1990s, through the work of Björkqvist (Björkqvist, Lagerspetz and Kaukiainen,
1992), Crick (Crick & Grotpeter, 1995), and others, the scope has been broadened to include
indirect aggression (done via a third party); and relational aggression (done to damage
someone's peer relationships), or the similar social aggression (done to damage self-esteem
and/or social status) (Underwood, 2002). Most researchers, and indeed most pupils (Monks
& Smith, 2006) now consider indirect aggression, such as spreading nasty stories, and
relational/social aggression or social exclusion, such as telling others not to play with
someone, as forms of bullying.
77
In recent years a new form of aggression or bullying has emerged, labeled “cyberbullying”,
in which the aggression occurs through modern technological devices, and specifically mobile
phones or the internet. Research on this topic is still at an early stage of investigation; the
phenomenon only appeared a few years ago, as the use of electronic devices such as
computers and mobile phones by young people has increased.
Previous research on cyberbullying
The studies carried out so far have been mostly confined to examining just one aspect of
cyberbullying (for example, text messaging), or have been carried out as just one part of a
larger research program. None, so far as we are aware, have been carried out in Scandinavia.
In the UK, the NCH (formerly National Children's Home) (2005) surveyed 770 children aged
11–19 years in England; 20% had been cyberbullied or threatened, and 11% claimed to
have sent a bullying or threatening message to someone else. Noret and Rivers (2006)
reported a study of 11,227 pupils in England aged 11–15 years, who were asked if they had
ever received any nasty or threatening text messages or emails. Nearly 7% reported this at
least “once in a while”, girls more than boys. Over a 4-year period from 2002 to 2005 there
was some increase, mainly in girls.
Smith, Mahdavi, Carvalho and Tippett (2006) reported a detailed study of 92 students aged
11–16 years, from 14 schools in London. They divided cyberbullying into seven different
subcategories: text message bullying, picture/video clip bullying (through mobile phones),
phone call bullying (via mobile phones), email bullying, chat-room bullying, bullying through
instant messaging and bullying via websites. Prevalence rates over the last couple of months
differed in terms of various subcategories as well as where the cyberbullying occurred, i.e.
at school or outside school.
In Canada, Li (2006) surveyed 264 students from three junior high schools. About 25% had
been victims of cyberbullying, and about 17% had cyberbullied others (these figures
presumably referring to if students had ever done this). In Australia, Campbell (2005)
reported that 14% of 120 year eight students from one school had been targeted by
cyberbullying, and 11% had cyberbullied others in the past year.
In the USA, Ybarra and Mitchell (2004) surveyed internet use in 1,501 youths aged 10–17
years who were all regular internet users. Over the last year, 12% reported being aggressive
to someone online, 4% were targets of aggression, and 3% were both aggressors and
targets. These authors hypothesized that some victims of conventional bullying may use the
internet to attack others, in a form of compensation. In a follow-up, Ybarra, Mitchell, Wolak
and Finkelhor (2006) found that 9% of the youths had been targets of internet harassment
– 38% of internet victims reported distress as a result (this was greater for preadolescents
aged 10–12 years; and less for harassment in chat rooms compared to blogging or instant
messaging).
Raskauskas and Stoltz (2007) surveyed 84 students from two high schools in the USA, aged
13–18 years, on experiences of three types of cyberbullying over the last school year; 49%
reported being electronic victims (compared to 71% being traditional victims; these high
figures stem from including “1–2 times” in the definition). In addition, 21% reported being
electronic bullies (compared to 64% traditional bullies). Many cybervictims were also
traditional victims, and most cyberbullies were also traditional bullies. The hypothesis that
traditional victims might also be cyberbullies (from Ybarra & Mitchell, 2004) was also tested,
but was not supported.
78
Some emerging themes from the cyberbullying literature
The published literature on cyberbullying, together with an increasing number of websites
on the topic, has identified a number of features of cyberbullying that often distinguish it
from most traditional forms of bullying. One is the difficulty of getting away from it. Unlike
traditional forms of school bullying, where once the victim gets home they are away from
the bullying until the next day, with cyberbullying the victim may continue to receive text
messages or emails wherever they are. Another is the breadth of potential audience.
Cyberbullying can reach particularly large audiences in a peer group compared with the small
groups that are the usual audience in traditional bullying. For example, when someone
downloads a picture or video clip with intention to embarrass the person in the clip, the
audience that may see these clips/videos can be very large. Another common characteristic
of cyberbullying is the invisibility of those doing the bullying: cyberbullying is not a face-to-
face experience, and (like rumor-spreading) provides those doing the bullying with some
degree of “invisibility” and at times anonymity. Following on from this, compared to most
traditional bullying, the person carrying out cyberbullying may be less aware or even
unaware of the consequences caused by his or her actions. Without such direct feedback
there may be fewer opportunities for empathy or remorse and there may also be less
opportunity for bystander intervention.
AIMS AND HYPOTHESES
The aims of the current study were to explore the nature of cyberbullying in a sample of
Swedish adolescents. There has been no published research on cyberbullying in Sweden (to
our knowledge), even though Sweden is a nation with one of the longest usage of mobile
phones. Furthermore, Sweden has a long culture of work on traditional bullying, with lower
prevalence rates as one possible outcome: Sweden and England actually have had the lowest
reported rates of bullying behavior among 13-year-olds, in 1997–98 (World Health
Organization, 2002).
We aimed to investigate prevalence rates in four main categories of cyberbullying (text
messaging, email, phone call and picture/video clip). Although phone call bullying may not
always be included as cyberbullying, we included it here as one of the three aspects of mobile
phone use. The four categories were chosen due to their high prevalence rates in Smith et
al.'s (2006) study (the other internet categories apart from email – bullying via chat-room,
instant messaging, and websites – were not used, due to their low incidence, and to keep
the questionnaire length within the attention span of adolescents).
We examined incidence both inside and outside school. Despite some difficulty in
demarcating where an episode of cyberbullying occurs, this aspect is of importance to
investigate; if more cyberbullying occurs outside school, as found by Smith et al. (2006) in
the UK, then schools may perceive that the responsibility to tackle cyberbullying issues does
not lie mainly with them.
There is little data on whether those involved in cyberbullying as bullies or victimized) are
involved in just one type, or several types. We aimed to address this; and also to see if there
was evidence for traditional victims being cyberbullies, as found by Ybarra and Mitchell
(2004). We were also interested in whether victims knew the identity and number of those
who cyberbullied them.
We also examined age and gender differences. Both theory and empirical findings provide
mixed expectations in this respect. Regarding age, most self-report studies of being bullied
in traditional ways find a decrease with age after 11 years through to school leaving age
(Smith, Madsen & Moody, 1999). On the other hand, the opportunity for cyberbullying may
increase with age as older pupils more often will have mobile phones or access to the
internet. Most studies on cyberbullying have not examined age as a factor. Smith et al.
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(2006) found no age differences in the 11–16 year age range, but the sample was small.
Ybarra and Mitchell (2004) found that older students (15+ years) were more often internet
aggressors than younger students (10–14 years).
Expectations regarding gender might also be mixed. Boys have rather consistently been
more frequent perpetrators of physical bullying; with less difference for verbal aggression,
and many findings of at least relatively more girl involvement in indirect or relational
bullying. Because most cyberbullying is not face-to-face, the gender balance in bullying
might be skewed more towards girls than is found for conventional bullying. Many studies
have not reported on gender differences, but where they have, discrepancies have emerged.
Smith et al. (2006) found that girls were significantly more likely to be cyberbullied,
especially by text messages and phone calls, than boys. Li (2006) found no gender difference
for being a cyberbullying victim; but that cyberbullying others was nearly twice as high in
boys than girls. Ybarra and Mitchell (2004) found no significant gender differences for
internet aggressors or victims.
Another aspect we aimed to study was the perceived impact of cyberbullying, compared to
traditional bullying. Again, expectations are diverse here. On the one hand, the common
characteristics of cyberbullying reviewed above (difficult to escape from, breadth of potential
audience, anonymity of perpetrator) might be expected to lead to greater negative impact
on those experiencing it. On the other hand, nasty text messages or emails can be simply
deleted and future messages blocked; and there is no actual physical hurt. Ybarra and
Mitchell (2004) reported that 33% of victims felt very or extremely upset after the
occurrence of internet aggression, whilst Ybarra et al. (2006) reported that 38% of the
victims felt distress. Smith et al. (2006) compared the effect of cyberbullying to traditional
bullying and found that picture/video clip and phone call bullying were perceived as having
a higher negative impact compared to that of traditional bullying, text message roughly equal
and email bullying as having a lower impact. We examined impact from the general
perceptions of our student sample. These perceptions are of interest in their own right, but
also as an indication of how sympathetically students might respond to the plight of a victim.
Most often victims turn to their friends (non-victims) for help, and if their friends
underestimate the impact of cyberbullying, victims may find it hard to receive adequate
support.
A final aim of the study was to examine whether victims seek help by telling anyone of
experiences of cyberbullying, and if so, whom. Since bullying is by definition something that
it is difficult for the victim to defend him or herself against, seeking help or telling someone
is a generally recommended strategy by schools. NCH (2005) found that 28% of victims of
cyberbullying had told nobody about it, and Smith et al. (2006) found that around one-third
had told no one. These proportions are in fact comparable to findings for traditional bullying.
However, combined with the new nature and incidence of much cyberbullying, it does raise
the issue of the extent to which teachers and parents are aware of the possibility of the
different forms of cyberbullying, and would notice if it was happening. In relation to this, we
also asked students for their perceptions of how much adults are aware of the occurrence of
cyberbullying, compared to traditional bullying. We hypothesized that pupils would perceive
adults as less aware of cyberbullying than traditional bullying, due to the recency of the
cyberbullying phenomenon. If students believe that adults are less aware of cyberbullying,
they may be less willing to report it to them.
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METHOD
Questionnaire
The questionnaire used was adapted from Smith et al. (2006); but omitting the three least
frequent categories of cyberbullying and adding a question on perception of whether adults
would notice the occurrence of cyberbullying. It gave a standard definition of bullying taken
from the Olweus Bully/Victim questionnaire (Olweus, 1996) [mobbning in Swedish], and
mentioned cyberbullying [cybermobbning] as bullying through text messaging, email, mobile
phone calls or picture/video clip. It started with general questions on the frequency of being
a victim of bullying (of any kind) (“First of all, have you been bullied at school in the past
couple of months (any kind of bullying, including cyberbullying)?”), and of cyberbullying, at
school (“Now, just thinking about cyberbullying, how often have you been cyberbullied at
school in the past couple of months?”). It followed with a series of questions on each type
of cyberbullying (email is given as the exemplar); first for frequency of being victimized
(“How often have you been bullied through email in the past couple of months?”), and
frequency of taking part in bullying others (e.g. “Have you bullied others through email in
the past couple of months?”), separately for “in school”[under skoltid in Swedish] and
“outside of school”[efter skoltid]; followed by perceived impact of this kind of bullying (“Do
you think email bullying compared to ‘ordinary, traditional’ bullying has less/same/more of
an effect on the victim?”, with the opportunity to give reasons), the chance of adults noticing
the occurrence of cyberbullying to a smaller, equal or greater proportion in comparison to
traditional bullying (“Do you think email bullying compared to ‘ordinary, traditional’ bullying
has less/same/more of a chance to be noticed by an adult?”, with the opportunity to give
reasons), who did the bullying (“In which class is the student or students who bullies you
through email?”, “Have you been bullied through email by boys or girls?”), and who if anyone
was told of the bullying (“Have you told anyone that you have been bullied through email?”).
It ended with space for any further comments to be written in.
The questionnaire asked about what had occurred in the last 2–3 months. In practice pupils
were told both in writing and verbally to think of incidences that had happened since the
start of term (in late August) and since questionnaires were given in November 2005, this
represented about two and a half months. The frequency questions had a five-point scale,
from e.g. “I have not been bullied/bullied others” (scored 1), “only once or twice” (2), “two
or three times a month” (3), “once a week” (4), to “several times a week” (scored 5).
The original questionnaire was in English, so a translation to Swedish was made by the first
author who is bilingual. A small-scale pilot was carried out to ensure clarity and ease of use
in a Swedish school, asking participants to read through all of the vital information and
comment on any unclear statements. A few minor changes were made in wording as a result.
Participants
Eight mixed gender schools in the city of Gothenburg, Sweden, were approached on a
random basis. All pupils at the schools that were approached agreed to participate. The
schools included pupils that varied in terms of socioeconomic status. Four schools were lower
secondary (students aged 12–15), and four were sixth-form colleges (students aged 15–
20). (The age groups overlap since it is possible to start sixth-form college at age 15
dependent upon what time of year the student is born, as well as at what age the pupil starts
his/her first grade). At each school one class of each grade (grades 7, 8 and 9 in lower
secondary and grades 1, 2 and 3 in sixth-form college) were randomly chosen to participate
in the study. Following exclusion of eight participants from analysis due to highly incomplete
questionnaires or very inconsistent answers, the final number of participants was 360
students. Of these 210 were in lower secondary (111 boys, 99 girls) and 150 were in sixth
form (92 boys, 58 girls). The mean age of the whole sample was 15.3 years. Some analyses
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were carried out just on lower secondary pupils, splitting into 12–13 years (41 boys, 39
girls), 14 years (39 boys, 43 girls), and 15 years (31 boys, 17 girls).
In Gothenburg, all lower secondary students as well as sixth-form college students receive
and have access to an individual email through their school. In Sweden 96% of 15–17 year
olds own a mobile phone (Orvesto Konsument, 2005); we do not have Swedish data for
younger pupils, but in the UK the Mobile Life Report (2006) found that from 12 years over
91% of young people have a mobile phone; there is no reason to suppose that Sweden is
very different in this respect.
Procedure
Pupils were handed the questionnaire in their classrooms, by the first author, who explained
the term cyberbullying and supervised the filling in of the questionnaire. The anonymity of
the study was emphasized. It was stressed that no one at their school would have the
opportunity to read any specific questionnaires. Each pupil was handed an envelope in which
to enclose their completed questionnaire, and seal it. The questionnaire took approximately
20 minutes to complete. All students agreed to participate informally; formal and written
consent was given by each head teacher. Students were advised that participation was
optional, they were free not to answer any specific questions, and that they could withdraw
at any time (in fact, no pupils did withdraw). At the end, all participants were handed a
debriefing sheet including information about how to seek help or advice if they or a friend
was experiencing any problems due to bullying or cyberbullying. This procedure was
approved by the appropriate institutional ethical committee.
Analysis
Analysis of categorical data is made using chi-square. The frequency data (five-point scales)
were used for MANOVA and ANOVA, as in previous studies using the Olweus questionnaire
on which this was based (Solberg & Olweus, 2003). We also add pupil comments from open-
ended questions, where appropriate to particular sections.
RESULTS
Overall frequency data
When participants were initially asked whether they had been bullied at school (any type of
bullying) in the last couple of months, 10.0% said yes: 6.4% just once or twice, and 3.6%
more frequently. The rate for being bullied was much higher in lower secondary (15.2%)
than for sixth-form college (2.7%); highly significant on a two-way (school system; gender)
ANOVA on frequency scores, F(1,356)= 14.01, p < 0.001.
For being cyberbullied in the last couple of months inside school, the incidence was 5.3%;
2.8% just once or twice, and 2.5% more frequently. Again the rate was much higher in lower
secondary (9.0%) than in sixth-form college (0%), highly significant on a 2-way ANOVA,
F(1,355)= 11.61, p < 0.001.
Gender was not significant for either being bullied (any type) or for being cyberbullied; nor
was the gender by school system interaction.
Rates for being a cybervictim were somewhat increased when pupils came to answer the
specific questions on the four different types of cyberbullying, both inside and outside school.
Looking at whether pupils responded yes to being a victim of any of the four types of
cyberbullying, either in or out of school, 11.7% said yes; rates were 17.6% in lower
secondary, 3.3% in sixth-form college. The incidence of being cyberbullied inside school was
5.8%, more than the 5.3% in the initial global question (an extra two students, perhaps
prompted by the detailed questions into greater recognition or recall that the four types were
examples of being a cybervictim).
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The overall cybervictim rate (i.e. someone who checked any one of the four types, in or
out of school, for “once or twice” or more frequently), was 17.6% in lower secondary and
3.3% in sixth-form college (inline image= 17.33, p < 0.001), corresponding to 11.7% in
the whole sample. Gender was non-significant, with 5.6% girl victims, and 6.1% boy
victims.
Taking a similar definition of cyberbullying others, this was admitted by 10.3% of pupils:
11.9% in lower secondary, 8.0% in sixth-form college. Neither school type nor gender were
significant on chi-square, although there was a trend for more boys (7.2%) to be cyberbullies
than girls (3.1%), (inline image= 3.23, p= 0.102).
In the sixth-form sample there were only 1.4% cybervictims, and no more than 0.6% for
any one form of cyberbullying; so analyses on the other aspects of being cyberbullied were
confined to the lower secondary sample. One participant in sixth-form college commented
on how it might be less frequent in that setting: “I don't really know how usual this
phenomena is but I have heard about it on Aktuellt [a news program] and similar. I believe
it is more common amongst younger [pupils], because in my class (grade 3) I can't imagine
that any one would expose anyone else to such an insulting treatment. I find this treatment
extremely immature and a sign of lacking respect for people's equal worth and freedom”.
Types of cyberbullying in and out of school
The percentages of lower secondary pupils involved in different types of cyberbullying (both
victims and bullies) are shown in Table 1, by location (inside or outside school; and total for
either inside or outside). The total at the bottom refers to participation in any type of
cyberbullying. Overall, email bullying was most frequent. However frequencies vary by
location, and by victim/bully perspective.
Table 1. Prevalence rates of cyberbullying, in percentages, for lower secondary pupils that have been cyberbullied in the last 2–3 months (n= 210)
Type of cyberbullying Inside Outside Inside or school school outside school Text message Victim 2.4 4.8 4.8 Bully 4.3 2.4 4.3 Email Victim 3.8 8.1 9.0 Bully 5.2 8.1 8.6 Phone call Victim 2.9 6.7 6.7 Bully 2.9 3.8 4.3 Picture/video clip Victim 4.8 5.2 8.6 Bully 1.9 2.9 3.8 Total: any type of cyberbullying Victim 9.0 16.2 17.6 Bully 9.0 10.5 11.9
Being a victim of cyberbullying occurred to a greater extent outside school compared to
inside school, for all types. This difference was significant separately for frequency of text
message victimization, t(209)= 2.38, p < 0.05, and phone call victimization, t(209)= 2.94,
p < 0.05. For bullying others, the trend was similar (except for text message bullying); but
only significant for email bullying, t(209)= 2.35, p < 0.05.
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One participant reflected on the impact cyberbullying outside school may have: “I believe
that cyberbullying most often can be worse for the victim. Partly because the bullies spend
so much energy on the bullying, but also because the bullying takes place outside school, in
other words when the victim is at home. Home is usually a sanctuary for most people. But
the bullies take this sanctuary away from the victims by cyberbullying them.”
Involvement in several types of cyberbullying
The 17.6% who were victims of any type of cyberbullying consisted of 9.5% who experienced
a single type and 8.1% who experienced more than one type; 11.9% had reported
cyberbullying others, 5.7% by one type, and 6.2% by more than one type.
Are traditional victims also cyberbullies?
Is cyberbullying for some students a mean of asserting dominance over others as
compensation for being bullied in the “traditional” sense, as suggested by Ybarra and Mitchell
(2004)? Looking at our measure of whether someone had been bullied in any way, we
subtracted those who had been cyberbullied, leaving 9.0% who had only been bullied in
traditional ways. Of these, only 1.0% had also cyberbullied others, whereas 8.1% had not.
Age, gender, and types of cyberbullying
A MANOVA was carried out with independent variables of gender (2 factors) and age (3
factors, 12–13, 14 and 15 years); the dependent variables were frequencies of the four types
of being cyberbullied, summing inside school and outside school. There were no significant
age differences, but one significant difference for gender; girls (mean = 2.35) were more
often victims of email bullying than boys (mean = 2.09), F(1,204)= 3.93, p < 0.05. Age by
gender interactions were not significant.
An equivalent MANOVA was carried out for cyberbullying others. No significant age
differences were found. For gender, boys were found to be slightly more frequently bullies
compared to girls in all categories of cyberbullying, only significant for text message bullying,
F(1,204)= 5.01, p < 0.05 (boys mean = 2.15, girls mean = 2.01).
Who does the cyberbullying?
Summing over the various types of cyberbullying, 36.2% of victims reported most often
being bullied by one boy, and 36.2% did not know the gender of who bullied them; only
12.1% were bullied by one girl, and 5.2% each by several girls, several boys, or both boys
and girls. Regarding year group of the bully or bullies, 32.8% of victims did not know, 27.6%
said in the same class, 12.1% in a different class but same year group, 12.1% in different
grades, 10.3% not in my school; and 2.2% in a higher grade (2.9% missing data).
One pupil commented on the anonymity issue: “It is an easy way to get to someone
anonymously, I believe. It is probably going to become more and more common”.
Perceived impact of cyberbullying compared to traditional bullying
We calculated an impact factor to display the severity of each subcategory of cyberbullying
in comparison to traditional bullying (−1 = less effect, 0 = same effect and +1 = more effect,
divided by total number of respondents excluding “don't know's”). If an impact factor is
positive, that category is perceived as having more of an effect compared to traditional
bullying; if negative, then less of an effect. For example, for text message bullying, the
impact factor was (37 – 76)/(208 – 25) =−0.21. Most pupils thought that text message and
email bullying (impact factor −0.34) had less impact than traditional bullying. Most saw
phone call bullying as comparable in impact to traditional bullying (impact factor =−0.01).
However, a high impact factor was given to picture/video clip bullying (impact factor = 0.53).
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Pupil opinions were divided. One commented: “This kind of bullying is quite inoffensive
compared to traditional bullying. Concentrate on getting rid of that”; and another: “A quite
new form of bullying which has to be noticed. I think it hurts as much as ‘ordinary’ bullying
but maybe it is not experienced as serious by the one who bullies”. A third stated: “I believe
that cyberbullying hurts the person more psychologically, I don't mean that ordinary bullying
does not do it but I think that the effect becomes more psychological. You become more
frightened if you e.g. get a sms [text message] that says: ‘I will kill you’”.
We also wanted to investigate whether victims compared to non-victims perceived the
impact differently. The trend was that victims perceived cyberbullying as having more of a
negative impact than did non-victims. However, sample sizes of victims in each sub-category
of cyberbullying were small, so statistical analyses were not performed.
Seeking help
Summing over the various types of cyberbullying, 50% of victims reported not telling
anyone, 35.7% told a friend, 8.9% told a parent/guardian and 5.4% someone else; telling
a teacher was never reported.
Several pupil comments were that often no one knows about the cyberbullying except for
the victim: “I think it is good you take this up, since I believe cyberbullying is equally serious
as real-life bullying, but through internet there are few who get involved in caring or know
anything about”; “Have never thought much about that there is cyberbullying going on. But
of course, it is not seen as easily”; “I think it is very hard to notice”; “For those who get
bullied that way it can't be much fun. Because no one else is probably going to find out about
it, then it is harder to get help”.
The chance of adults noticing cyberbullying
Do pupils think that different types of cyberbullying have less, the same or more chance of
being noticed by an adult? An awareness factor was calculated for each subcategory of
cyberbullying in comparison to traditional bullying, in a corresponding way to the impact
factor (−1 = less awareness, 0 = same awareness and +1 = more awareness, divided by
total number of respondents excluding “don't know's”). For picture/video clip bullying
(awareness factor =−0.03) most pupils thought this was as likely to be noticed by adults as
traditional bullying. However, the three other types were seen as less likely to be noticed by
adults: Text message bullying (awareness factor =−0.55), Email bullying (−0.53), and
Phone call bullying (−0.53). As one pupil commented: “Parents obviously don't know what
kind of sms [text message] you get or email”.
DISCUSSION
Victimization inside school (from any kind of bullying) was not infrequent in the overall
sample: 10.0% at least once or twice in the last couple of months, and 3.6% more often.
Being a victim of cyberbullying in school was obviously less, 5.3% at least once or twice,
2.8% more often; but is nevertheless an appreciable fraction of overall school bullying. The
most common type was email victimization, but all four types were experienced by a number
of pupils.
One reason for such a large proportion experiencing cyberbullying compared to all types of
bullying may be the long history of work on traditional bullying issues in Swedish schools,
with lower prevalence rates as one possible outcome. However, work on cyberbullying is
virtually non-existent and thus may show relatively similar incidence to that found in other
countries (e.g. Campbell, 2005; Li, 2006; Smith et al., 2006).
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However, as noted by Smith et al. (2006) in the UK, being cyberbullied is just as much if not
more a phenomenon of outside school. Prevalence rates were higher outside school for most
types of cyberbullying, whether as victim or bully (see Table 1). It may well be others from
school who do the cyberbullying; we found that when victims knew the identity of a
cyberbully, 57% were in the same school and only 10% outside school (with 33% unknown).
The restrictions that many schools put on mobile phone and computer use within school
grounds are probably effective in reducing the incidence of cyberbullying within school; but
with cyberbullying, the victim is no longer safe in their own home from nasty or threatening
text messages or emails.
The cyberbullying rates were much lower in students at sixth-form college; as were
victimization rates generally. Only 3.3% (5 pupils out of 150) were cybervictims of any kind;
although there were 8% (12) cyberbullies. By this stage in education, only students
interested in educational achievement are likely to be attending, so they are a select sample;
this, combined with the general age decline in reported victim rates (Smith et al., 1999),
suggests that the problem is much more acute during the period of compulsory schooling,
even for cyberbullying that escapes the school boundaries.
Despite significant differences between lower secondary and sixth-form college students, we
did not find significant age differences within the 12- to 15-year-old age period, for any types
of cybervictimization or cyberbullying. This is in line with Smith et al. (2006) in the UK.
Ybarra and Mitchell (2004) reported more internet aggressors among 15 to 17-year-olds
than 10 to 14-year-olds, but we found no significant age difference in email bullying (means
12–13 = 2.28, 14 = 2.12, 15 = 2.19; F(1,204)= 0.70, p= 0.496). Future research should
investigate prevalence of cyberbullying amongst even younger ages, especially as mobile
phone use seems to be quite high even by 8 years.
We found few significant gender differences, more in line with Li (2006) in Canada than with
Smith et al. (2006) in the UK. However, we found girls more likely to be email victims
(compared to them being text message and phone call victims, in Smith et al., 2006); and
a trend for boys to be more involved in cyberbullying, significant for text message bullying.
When victims reported on who had cyberbullied them, if this was known (often it was not),
boys were much more often referred to than girls.
What about the impact of cyberbullying on the victim? As indicated by the pupil quotes, there
are differing views on this, although some aspects of cyberbullying may heighten its negative
impact. In agreement with Smith et al. (2006), we found that picture/video clip bullying had
a high impact factor. This kind of cyberbullying is the most obviously public of the four that
we examined, and can actually show the victim in some embarrassing or hurtful situation.
The two most common reasons given by pupils were the large audience size (if the
picture/clip was on the internet) and the concreteness effect, i.e. actually seeing the
picture/clip. The fear of not knowing who had seen the picture/clip was also given as a reason
by some participants.
Phone call bullying was rated next in impact; this was perceived as more personal (the bully
knew your mobile number) and sometimes more negative due to the bully actually taking
his/her time to find out a number; thus it was not perceived as something spontaneous,
rather very planned and intentional. These more private forms of nasty messages or threats
may superficially seem no worse than direct threats and insults. It would be desirable for
future research to investigate larger sample sizes in order to explore whether there is a
difference in perception of impact between victims and non-victims. Media interest in
cyberbullying may also affect the awareness of the impact cyberbullying may have.
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Pupils rated email and text message bullying as less harmful than traditional bullying. A
common reason given was that email bullying was not seen as personal, since most often
the victims did not know who the bully was, and hence thought that the email could have
been meant for anyone and not specifically for them. In addition, possibly emails are less
used and less salient for this adolescent age group, than text messaging and mobile phone
calls.
Since most victims turn to their friends for support or do not tell anyone of cyberbullying
(current study; NCH, 2005; Smith et al., 2006) they may never receive adequate support;
their friend might not perceive it as such a serious issue, and adults may lack awareness of
cyberbullying. We calculated perceived adult awareness ratings for each type of
cyberbullying, from the perspective of pupils generally; and in addition pupils could write in
reasons for their choices. There was general pupil consensus that adults are less aware of
text, email and phone call bullying, than of traditional bullying. Reasons given by pupils
usually related to these types of bullying occurring without any audience. However, a
minority of pupils argued the opposite: that there was a greater chance for adults to notice
these kinds of cyberbullying, because of available proof (one could save the text message
or email). It was felt that adults would be just as aware of picture/video clip bullying. This is
a much more public type of bullying, more widely disseminated (hence its high impact
factor), but therefore also more visible to adults.
The issue of adult awareness is crucial when it comes to effective action by schools against
cyberbullying. Teachers as well as parents need to be aware of the various kinds of
cyberbullying, and of what actions can be taken (there are various sources of advice now
becoming available; see for example Willard (2006); and many websites). The issue is also
important since pupil's perception may influence their behaviour. If students perceive adults
to be unaware of cyberbullying they may not tend to go to them in order to receive support,
and a worrying feature of our findings was that none of the cybervictims said they had told
a teacher (and very few had told parents).
In conclusion, our findings contribute to a deeper understanding of the nature of
cyberbullying. It is important to distinguish different types of cyberbullying; we found
variations in gender differences, and perceived impact factor, and perceived adult
awareness, across the four types we investigated. These deserve continuing study. It will be
important to state the year in which studies are carried out, since the penetration of new
technologies to younger age groups, and the development of new potentials such as instant
messaging, Bluetooth, etc., are evolving rapidly and changing the nature of the cyberbullying
phenomenon. This presents new challenges to researchers and practitioners.
Some weaknesses of the study should be noted. First, the distinction between cyberbullying
“inside school” and “outside school”, which was just asked in that way in the questionnaire,
merits more definition and investigation. For example, a text message might be received
inside school, but only read outside school. Although we supposed that “inside school” was
taken as referring to when the message was received or the picture/video clip was made,
we cannot be sure of this.
Second, we did not have information on the student's use of mobile phones and the internet.
We know that use of these is very high from 11 years up (e.g. Mobile Life Youth Report,
2006); but future research should include a measure of this for those participating.
Our study does also bring forward two issues of concern to researchers. One relates to the
definition of cyberbullying. There is common agreement that bullying includes a repetitive
behavior (Olweus, 1999); even though disagreements exist about what “repeatedly” actually
includes, and over how long a period of time the bullying has to occur. Since cyberbullying
is a form of bullying, this notion should hence also include repetitive behavior in its definition.
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However, what is actually the repetitive behavior that defines cyberbullying? This question
arises most acutely for photo/video clip bullying: taking a picture or video clip with a mobile
phone of someone in order to use it in an abusive manner, by sending it to others or
uploading it onto a webpage on the internet. We found
that 8.6% of lower secondary school participants reported that they had at some point been
victims of photo/video clip-bullying in the last couple of months. Even though most stated
that it only happened on one occasion, this may fit into the notion of repetition. The behavior
of taking the picture or clip may have occurred merely once; yet if the bullying child sends
that picture to more than one other person, or if the person receiving the image forwards it
to anyone else, it could be argued that this falls under the category of repetition. If the
picture or clip is uploaded onto a webpage, every hit on that specific page could count as a
repetition. Figures based on the victim's awareness of frequency may thus be less reliable
than for traditional bullying; and the use of repetition as a criterion for more serious bullying
(as often used traditionally, e.g. Solberg & Olweus, 2003) may be less reliable for
cyberbullying.
The second aspect concerns the idea of proof, or of evidence which a victim can use in
seeking help from others, especially teachers or parents. In response to the open-ended
question about why adults might be more or less aware of cyberbullying, some pupils cited
this issue in an apparently positive way – that an email or text message could be saved and
shown to an adult. Some of the reasons given by the pupils could be interpreted as that the
adult has proof to proceed with appropriate actions to address the bullying, whilst others
may be understood as that it is the victim that has the proof to proceed with the action. Do
adolescents have the perception of not being believed by adults if they have no proof to
show, or are adults perceived as unsuccessful in giving support, if proof is lacking? Either
way, this aspect should be investigated further, especially given that very few cybervictims
had actually told an adult about their suffering, and none of our sample said they had told a
teacher.
REFERENCES
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Developmental trends in regard to direct and indirect aggression. Aggressive Behavior, 18,
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Campbell, M. A. (2005). Cyber bullying: An old problem in a new guise? Australian Journal
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(hypothetical) types of bullying. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 44, 479–488.
Li, Q. (2006). Cyberbullying in schools: A research of gender differences. School
Psychology International, 27, 157–170.
Mobile Life Youth Report (2006). The impact of the mobile phone on the lives of young
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of the term, and the role of experience. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 24,
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NCH (2005). Putting U in the picture – Mobile phone bullying survey 2005.
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of a four year study. Poster presented at British Psychological Society Annual Conference,
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P.Slee (Eds.), The nature of school bullying: A cross-national perspective (pp. 7–27 ).
London: Routledge.
Orvesto Konsument (2005).
Http://www.sifomedia.se/public/corporate/products/orvestokonsument.aspx Raskauskas, J. & Stoltz, A. D. (2007. Involvement in traditional and electronic bullying
among adolescents. Developmental Psychology, 43, 564–575.
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Rigby, K. (2002). New perspectives on bullying. London: Jessica Kingsley.
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cyberbullying, its forms, awareness and impact, and the relationship between age and
gender in cyberbullying. Research Brief No. RBX03-06. DfES, London.
Smith, P. K., Madsen, K. & Moody, J. (1999). What causes the age decline in reports of
being bullied in school? Towards a developmental analysis of risks of being bullied.
Educational Research, 41, 267–285.
Smith, P. K. & Sharp, S. (Eds.) (1994). School bullying: Insights and perspectives. London:
Routledge.
Solberg, M. & Olweus, D. (2003). Prevalence estimation of school bullying with the Olweus
Bully/Victim Questionnaire. Aggressive Behaviour, 29, 239–268. Underwood, M. K. (2002). Sticks and stones and social exclusion: Aggression among girls
and boys. In P. K.Smith & C. H.Hart (Eds.), Blackwell handbook of childhood social
development (pp. 533–548). Oxford: Blackwell.
Whitney, I. & Smith, P. K. (1993). A survey of the nature and extent of bullying in
junior/middle and secondary schools. Educational Research, 35, 3–25.
Willard, N. E. (2006). Cyberbullying and cyberthreats. Eugene, OR: Center for Safe and
Responsible Internet Use.
World Health Organisation. (2002). World report on violence and health. Geneva: WHO.
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Ybarra, M. L. & Mitchell, K. J. (2004). Online aggressor/targets, aggressors, and targets: a
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Ybarra, M. L., Mitchell, K. J., Wolak, J. & Finkelhor, D. (2006). Examining characteristics
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91
Unidad 4
Beyond the written word
Presentación
Esta unidad didáctica presenta una introducción al texto literario en inglés con la finalidad
de que el lector conozca la organización o estructura de textos distintos a los de corte
científico y que, además, desarrolle y reafirme sus capacidades para consolidar o adquirir
el gusto por la lectura. Esto, aunado a las estrategias desarrolladas en unidades anteriores,
dotará al estudiante de herramientas para su vida académica, laboral y social.
Las actividades que contiene este apartado tienen como objetivo que el receptor entienda
palabras dentro de un todo integrado y cuyo sentido de las ideas sea comprendido a dos
niveles: comprender el sentido explícito del texto, es decir, el contenido literal así como el
sentido implícito o lo que se puede leer entre líneas para deducir los conceptos expresados
por el autor. De esta manera, el estudiante llegará a conclusiones y razonamientos basados
en la lectura para así formarse una opinión personal sobre lo comprendido.
Los textos que conforman la unidad son de tipo narrativo: fábulas y cuentos cortos en los
que se encuentran combinados la narración con el diálogo para dar paso al desarrollo del
hilo conductor de las historias, no sin antes haberlos abordado y reflexionado en relación a
la universalidad y actualidad de los temas que se presentan en cada una. Sin embargo, no
se debe perder de vista el hecho de que cada lector interpreta lo que lee según sus
expectativas propias y conocimientos previos.
El trabajo que realiza el estudiante en esta unidad le permitirá conocer las características
del texto narrativo y sus partes constitutivas que le servirán para cimentar y para concretar
sus procesos cognitivos e interactuar con el texto, así como atribuir significado al contenido,
lo que finalmente le facilitará la comprensión de las ideas que no siempre resultan tan
evidentes en los textos literarios
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Unidad 4
Beyond the written word
Objetivos
En esta unidad, el estudiante:
Conocerá las características del texto narrativo.
Diferenciará las partes constitutivas de un texto narrativo.
Podrá llevar a cabo el análisis de una narración.
Realizará transferencia de información.
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A. REFLEXIÓN 1. Responde de manera oral las siguientes preguntas y comenta en grupo al respecto. 1. ¿Lees por iniciativa propia? 2. ¿Leías en tu infancia? ¿Qué recuerdos tienes sobre tus experiencias de lectura? 3. ¿Qué lecturas recuerdas? 4. ¿Qué lees, comics, cuentos, novelas, artículos? 5. ¿Has leído algún tipo de historia en inglés? 6. ¿En qué puede favorecerte la lectura de historias en inglés? 7. ¿Puedes recomendar a tu grupo algún cuento, novela o historia? B. CARACTERÍSTICAS DEL TEXTO NARRATIVO 1. Lee cuidadosamente las características del texto narrativo y discute en grupo la información respectiva.
a. A short story is a piece of prose fiction which can be read at a single sitting.
b. It ought to combine matter-of-fact description with poetic atmosphere.
c. It ought to present a unified impression of temper, tone, color, and effect.
d. It mostly shows a decisive moment of life.
e. There is often little action, hardly any character development, but we get a snapshot
of life.
f. Its plot is not very complex (in contrast to the novel), but it creates a unified
impression and leaves us with a vivid sensation rather than a number of
remembered facts.
2. Escribe una paráfrasis en español sobre las características del texto narrativo.
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3.1 La fábula es un tipo de texto narrativo cuyo fin es revelar una moraleja al lector. A continuación lee los siguientes textos y comenta en grupo con cuáles de las características explicadas anteriormente cumple cada uno.
3.2 Posteriormente realiza las actividades indicadas para cada fábula.
Aesop's Fables (Tomadas de: http://www.saberingles.com.ar/stories/28.html)
Lee detenidamente la siguiente fábula y escribe su paráfrasis en español en las líneas de abajo.
The Frog and the Ox
"Oh Father," said a little Frog to the big one sitting by the side of a pool, "I have seen such a terrible monster! It was as big as a mountain, with horns on its head, and a long tail, and it had hoofs divided in two." "Tush, child, tush," said the old Frog, "that was only Farmer White's Ox. It isn't so big either; he may be a little bit taller than I, but I could easily make myself quite as broad; just you see." So he blew himself out, and blew himself out, and blew himself out. "Was he as big as that?" asked he. "Oh, much bigger than that," said the young Frog. Again the old one blew himself out, and asked the young one if the Ox was as big as that. "Bigger, father, bigger," was the reply. So the Frog took a deep breath, and blew and blew and blew, and swelled and swelled and swelled. And then he said: "I'm sure the Ox is not as big as this. But at this moment he burst. Self-conceit may lead to self-destruction.
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Revisa el siguiente texto y en las líneas de abajo anota la moraleja que revela.
The Dog and the Wolf
A gaunt Wolf was almost dead with hunger when he happened to meet a House-dog who was passing by. "Ah, Cousin," said the Dog. "I knew how it would be; your irregular life will soon be the ruin of you. Why do you not work steadily as I do, and get your food regularly given to you?" "I would have no objection," said the Wolf, "if I could only get a place." "I will easily arrange that for you," said the Dog; "come with me to my master and you shall share my work."
So the Wolf and the Dog
went towards the town
together. On the way there
the Wolf noticed that the
hair on a certain part of the
Dog's neck was very much
worn away, so he asked
him how that had come
about.
"Oh, it is nothing," said the
Dog. "That is only the place
where the collar is put on at
night to keep me chained
up; it chafes a bit, but one
soon gets used to it."
"Is that all?" said the Wolf.
"Then good-bye to you,
Master Dog."
Better starve free than be a
fat slave.
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C. LAS PARTES DEL CUENTO
1. Revisa las partes de un cuento y comenta con tu grupo la información que se
presenta.
THE PLOT OF A SHORT STORY
The plot is how the author arranges events to develop his basic idea; It is the
sequence of events in a story or play. The plot is a planned, logical series of
events having a beginning, middle, and end. The short story usually has one
plot so it can be read in one sitting. There are four essential parts of the plot:
Introduction - The beginning of the story where the characters and the
setting is revealed.
Rising Action - This is where the events in the story become
complicated and the conflict in the story is revealed (events between the
introduction and climax).
Climax - This is the highest point of interest and the turning point of the
story. The reader wonders what will happen next; will the conflict be
resolved or not?
Ending - This is the final outcome or untangling of events in the story.
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2. Lee el siguiente texto e identifica en la historia la información que revele las etapas del hilo conductor de un cuento. Revisa el glosario al final del texto si lo consideras necesario.
THE DAY DEATH CAME TO TOWN
Mark Hull Source: New English Digest
Three men search for a thief who killed their friend – and find more than they bargained for.
Long ago, in a little town not so far away, three young
men sat outside a tavern. They saw a funeral
procession passing by. They asked a young man who
worked in the tavern to find out the identity of the
dead person. The boy returned and said, “It is your old
friend Lively. He was murdered by a thief named
Death.”
The oldest man in the group turned to his friends and said, “Who is this fellow Death?
Why is everyone so afraid of him? I am not scared. Let us find this Death and get rid of
him.”
The three men agreed. They shook hands. They were going to find Death and put an
end to his evil deeds. They went into the tavern and asked the keeper where they might
find this fellow called Death. The man said, “Ten miles down the road there is a village.
Recently, a plague went through there. Men, women and children all died. I am certain
you will find Death in that unhappy place.”
The three men got up and set off to the village. They were in high, good spirits. They
had only gone a few miles when they met an ugly old woman. They laughed at her
wrinkles and her wispy grey hair. They made fun of her old, torn clothing. They would
not let her pass even though she looked frightened.
“Please, please, get out of my way,” the old lady cried. “I tell you Death is following me.
I must get away from him to survive. I do not want to die. Get out of my way!”
“We will not let you pass,” the leader of the three men said. “Tell us where we can find
this Death. He has murdered our friend. When we find him, we will kill him.”
“Gentlemen,” said the old lady, “if you want to find Death, all you have to do is look
under that old oak tree, up there at the top of the hill.”
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On hearing this, the three men allowed the old woman to pass. They ran up to the oak
tree. When they got there, they did not find Death. Instead, they found a chest filled
with gold coins! They sat down to count their newfound treasure. They quickly forgot
about finding Death.
Finally, the leader said, “We must be careful with this gold. The townspeople will say we
stole it. We will be hanged as thieves. Let us draw straws. The one who draws the
shortest straw will go back to town and get some food. The other two will stay and keep
watch over the gold. Tomorrow we will divide the treasure and go our separate ways.
That way no one can accuse us of being thieves.”
They agreed to this plan. They drew the straws. The shortest straw was drawn by the
youngest of the three men. The other two gave him a few gold coins. He went off to
town to buy some food.
The two men guarding the gold quickly made a plan. They decided to kill their friend
when he returned with the food. First, they would eat the food. Then they would divide
the treasure two ways instead of three.
The youngest man walked into town. He thought, “I will buy the food. I will also buy
poison and put it in the food. My two friends will die and I will have all the treasure to
myself.” So he bought a strong poison. He put it into the food and the drinks he
purchased. That night he went back to his friends.
When he returned, his companions jumped on him and murdered him. They quickly
buried his body. “Now,” the leader said, “let us relax and eat. We are very wealthy men.”
They spread out the food and drink. They ate their dinner with satisfaction, not noticing
any strange taste. In a few minutes, both men were dead from the poison.
So it came to be that the three men found Death – just the person they had been looking
for. And they found him under the old oak tree, just as the old woman they had
tormented had promised.
GLOSSARY
bargained: looked for (buscaban, esperaban) tavern: pub for alcoholic drinks (taberna) to find out: to investigate (para investigar) dead =/= alive (muerto =/= vivo) scared: frightened (asustado) get rid of: remove, kill (sacarse de encima, matar) shook hands: (to shake/shook/shaken) (se dieron la mano) put an end to: finish (acabar, terminar) evil deeds: very bad actions (maldades) plague: serious infection (plaga) set off to: went towards (partieron para)
wrinkles: slight skin depressions (arrugas de la piel) wispy: thin and weak (débil, ralo) made fun of: laughed at (se rieron de) oak: hard wood tree (roble) on hearing this = when they heard this (al escuchar esto) chest: large box (arcón, baúl) treasure: wealth (tesoro) stole: (to shake/shook/shaken) (robamos) draw straws: to draw anything (straws or pebbles etc.) chosen at random (elegir una pajilla al azar) wealthy: rich (ricos)
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3. Después de leer el cuento completa la siguiente tabla con base en su desarrollo.
INTRODUCCIÓN
ACCIÓN EN
AUMENTO
PUNTO ÁLGIDO
FINAL
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D. ANÁLISIS DE UNA NARRACIÓN
1. Revisa y comenta la siguiente información que te servirá de guía para
comprender mejor un cuento.
Setting
How is the setting created? Consider geography, weather, time of day,
social conditions, etc. What role does setting play in the story? Is it an important part of the
plot or theme? Does it take place in the present, the past, or the future?
Characterization
Who is the main character?
Are the main character and other characters described through dialogue? Has the author described the characters by physical appearance,
thoughts and feelings, and interaction (the way they act towards others)?
Are they static/flat characters who do not change? What type of characters are they? What qualities stand out? Are they
stereotypes? Are the characters believable?
Plot and structure
What is the most important event?
How is the plot structured? Is it linear, chronological or does it move around?
Is the plot believable?
Narrator and Point of view
Who is the narrator or speaker in the story? Does the author speak through the main character? Is the story written in the first person “I” point of view?
Is the story written in a detached third person “he/she” point of view?
Conflict
How would you describe the main conflict? Is it an internal conflict within the character?
Is it an external conflict caused by the surroundings or environment? The climax is the point of greatest tension or intensity in the short story.
When does the climax take place?
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Theme
The theme is the main idea, lesson or message in the short story. It is usually an abstract idea about the human condition, society or life.
How is the theme expressed?
Are any elements repeated that may suggest a theme? Is there more than one theme?
2. Lee las siguientes preguntas y contéstalas con base en el cuento que se presenta
después.
a. ¿Dónde ocurre la historia?
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b. ¿Cómo son los personajes del cuento?
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c. ¿Es creíble lo que muestra el hilo conductor?
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d. ¿Quién es el narrador?
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e. ¿En qué momento se presenta el conflicto principal?
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f. ¿Qué mensaje encontraste en la historia?
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g. ¿Podrías agregar un comentario sobre lo que encontraste interesante en el cuento y
que no se preguntó?
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MRS. BIXBY AND THE COLONEL'S COAT
Roald Dahl
http://cuentoseningles.com.ar/shortstories/english/mrsbixby.html
Mr. and Mrs. Bixby lived in a small apartment in New York City. Mr. Bixby was a dentist, who earned an average amount of money. Mrs. Bixby was a woman who was full of life...
Once a month she would get on a train and travel to Baltimore to visit her old Aunt Maude. At least
that was what she told her husband. What she really did was see a gentleman known as the Colonel and spend all her time in Baltimore in his company.
The Colonel was wealthy and lived in a charming house just outside of town. He had no wife and
no family, only a few loyal servants, and in Mrs. Bixby's absence he amused himself by riding
horses and hunting. Year after year the pleasant friendship between Mrs. Bixby and the Colonel
continued without a problem, and never once did Mrs. Bixby's dentist husband suspect the truth.
Then, after one visit just before Christmas, Mrs. Bixby was standing at the station in Baltimore,
waiting for the train to take her back to New York. It had been a thoroughly enjoyable visit and
Mrs. Bixby was thinking how different it all was from her dull husband at home, when suddenly one
of the Colonel's servants appeared through the crowd and presented her with a large cardboard box.
Mrs. Bixby: "Good heavens! What's he brought? What a big box! Was there a message?"
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There had been no message, and as soon as she was on the train, Mrs. Bixby found a place where she could open the box in private.
Mrs. Bixby: "How exciting! A Christmas present from the Colonel... I think it's a dress. It might
even be two dresses. Or it might be a lot of beautiful underclothes. I won't look. I'll just feel around
and try to guess what it is. I'll try to guess the color as well, and exactly what it looks like. Also how much it cost... Good heavens! It can't be true."
What the Colonel had given her was the most magnificent mink coat she had ever seen. The fur
was almost pure black, with a touch of blue in it, as well, as deep rich blue. But what had it cost?
She hardly dared to think. Then she saw there was a letter in the box, as well... a farewell note
from the Colonel! He had heard her say once how fond she was of mink and asked her to accept it
as a farewell gift. For his own personal reasons he would not be able to see her anymore.
Mrs. Bixby: "Well! Imagine that! Well, I've lost one thing, but gained another. Wait... there's
something written on the other side: 'Just tell them that nice generous aunt of yours gave it to you
for Christmas'." "The man must be mad! Aunt Maude doesn't have that sort of money... she couldn't possibly give me this... but if Aunt Maude didn't, then who did?"
In the excitement of finding the coat and trying it on, she had completely forgotten the most
important detail. In a couple of hours she would be in New York, and even a man like her husband
Cyril would start asking questions if his wife suddenly walked in from a weekend wearing a fabulous
new mink coat.
Mrs. Bixby thought to herself: "I think he's done this on purpose just to annoy me. He knew
perfectly well I wouldn't be able to keep it. But I must have this coat! I must! Very well, my dear.
You shall have the coat, my dear. But don't be afraid. Sit still and keep calm and start thinking.
You've fooled him before. The man has never been able to understand very much apart from his business. So sit absolutely still and think."
Sometime later Mrs. Bixby stepped off the train in New York and walked quickly to the exit. She
was wearing her old red coat again, and was carrying the box in her arms. She signaled for a taxi.
Mrs. Bixby: "Driver, do you know of a pawnbroker that is still open around here? Stop at the first one you see, will you please?"
At the pawnbroker's Mrs. Bixby told the driver to wait for her. Inside she made up a story about
losing her purse and all her money, and left the fur coat with the pawnbroker in exchange for fifty
dollars in cash and a pawn-ticket which she insisted have no name or address on it, but simply the
word 'ARTICLE.'" The important thing was not to lose that ticket. Anyone finding it could go there
and claim the coat. But Mrs. Bixby was not about to let that happen. She would tell her husband
that she'd found the ticket in the back seat of the taxi and could hardly wait to claim whatever it was on the following Monday morning. A most ingenious plan... if it hadn't been for her husband.
Mrs. Bixby: "Wouldn't it be wonderful if it were a real treasure?"
Mr. Bixby: "We can't know what it is yet, my dear. We shall just have to wait and see."
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Mrs. Bixby: "I think it's absolutely wonderful! Give me the ticket and I'll go over immediately on
Monday morning and find out!"
Mr. Bixby: "I think I'd better do that. I'll pick it up on my way to work."
Mrs. Bixby: "But it's my ticket! Please let me do it. Why should you have all that fun?"
Mr. Bixby: "I'd rather you didn't handle it if you don't mind."
Mrs. Bixby: " But I found it. It's mine. Whatever it is, it's mine, isn't that right?"
Mr. Bixby: "I suppose you haven't thought that it might be something for a man, a pocket watch,
for example."
Mrs. Bixby: "In that case, I'll give it to you for Christmas. But if it's a woman's thing, I want it
myself. Is that agreed?"
Mr. Bixby: "That sounds fair. Why don't you come with me when I pick it up?"
She was about to say yes to this, but stopped herself just in time. She had no wish to be greeted
like and old customer by the pawnbroker in her husband’s presence.
Mrs. Bixby: " Uhh... no, I don't think I will. You see, it'll be more exciting if I stay here and wait"
Monday morning came at last, and as Mr. Bixby was about to leave for the pawnbroker's on his
way to work, his wife made him promise to telephone her if it turned out to be something really
nice. About an hour later, when the phone rang, Mrs. Bixby rushed to answer it before the first ring had finished.
Mr. Bixby (on the telephone): "I've got it!"
Mrs. Bixby: "You have? Oh, Cyril, what is it? Was it something good?"
Mr. Bixby: "Good? It's wonderful. You wait till you see this. You'll faint.
Mrs. Bixby: "Darling, what is it? Tell me quickly."
Mr. Bixby: "You're a lucky girl, that's what you are."
Mrs. Bixby: "It's for me then?"
Mr. Bixby: "Of course it's for you, though I can't understand how it was pawned for fifty dollars.
You'll go crazy when you see it."
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Mrs. Bixby: "What is it?"
But Mrs. Bixby couldn't guess. Instead she insisted on going down to her husband's office herself
to get it, even though it might disorganize his day. Later when she rang his bell, her husband in his white dentist's coat opened the door himself.
Mrs. Bixby: "Oh, I'm so excited."
Mr. Bixby: "So you should be. You're a lucky girl, did you know that? We´re through for now. Go
and have your lunch, Miss Pulteney. You can finish that when you get back."
This last was directed to his assistant, who was busy putting his instruments away. He waited until
the girl had gone, then walked over to a cupboard that he used for hanging up his clothes and
stood in front of it, pointing with his finger.
Mr. Bixby: "It's in there. Now shut your eyes for a moment... all right now. You can look!"
Mrs. Bixby: "I don't dare to."
Mr. Bixby: "Go on, have a look... mink! Real mink!"
At the sound of the magic word she opened her eyes quickly, and at the same time she started
forward to grab the coat in her arms. But there was no coat. There was only a stupid little fur
neckpiece in her husband's hand. Mrs. Bixby put a hand up to her mouth and started to back away.
She was sure she was going to scream.
Mr. Bixby: "What's the matter, my dear" Don't you like it?"
Mrs. Bixby: Why, yes... I... I think it's very nice... beautiful..."
Mr. Bixby: "It quite took your breath away for a moment, didn't it?"
Mrs. Bixby: "Yes, it did."
Mr. Bixby: Very good quality. Fine color, too. Here. Try it on... it's perfect. It really suits you. It
isn't everyone who has a mink, my dear."
Mrs. Bixby: "No, it isn't."
Mr. Bixby: "I'm afraid you mustn't expect anything else for Christmas. Fifty dollars was rather more
than I was going to spend, anyway. Go and buy yourself a nice lunch, my dear."
Mrs. Bixby moved towards the door. She was going to go over to that pawnbroker's and throw that
miserable neckpiece right into his face and if he refused to give her back her coat, she would kill
him.
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Mr. Bixby: "Did I tell you that I was going to be late tonight? It'll probably be at least 8:30, it may even be 9:00"
Mrs. Bixby: "Yes, all right. Good-bye."
Mrs. Bixby went out closing the door loudly behind her. At that exact moment, Miss Pulteney, her
husband's assistant, came sailing past her on her way to lunch and greeted Mrs. Bixby, smiling
brightly. She walked in a very proud and confident way, and she looked like a queen, exactly like
a queen in the beautiful black mink coat that the Colonel had given to Mrs. Bixby.
E. TRANSFERENCIA DE INFORMACIÓN
1. Lee el cuento de la siguiente página y transfiere su contenido a un mapa
conceptual, mental o un cuadro sinóptico, el cual contenga por ejemplo:
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MISS BRACEGIRDLE'S NIGHT OF FEAR
Stacey Aumonier Source: Simply Suspense (Penguin Readers)
This was Miss Bracegirdle's first visit to France. She did not usually take holidays away from home.
Luckily she spoke a little French. 'It is not so difficult to live in France,' she thought. 'The thing
to understand is that it is quite different from Easingstoke.'
She took her things one by one out of her bag and put them away carefully. She thought about
her home in Easingstoke, with flowers in all the rooms and photographs of the family. She
thought about her poor brother, working so hard. She felt a little sad, but only for a minute.
Her time in France was to be quite short. She was going to be home again soon. Now she must
get a good night's sleep. But first that hot bath...
She took off her day things and put on her nightdress. Then she picked up her washing things
and went to the bathroom, closing her bedroom door quietly. She lay in the hot water and
thought about the nice young girl in the hotel getting her bath ready. People in this hotel were
very friendly – always ready to help. There was so much she wanted to tell her brother when
she got home.
She got out of the bath and put on her nightdress again. She cleaned the bath very carefully.
She did not want French people to think that the English were dirty. Then she left the bathroom
and went back to her bedroom. She went in quickly, put on the light and shut the door.
Then, one of those unlucky things happened: the door-handle came off in her hand. She tried
to put the handle back on the door but she could not. 'How do I do it?' she thought. 'It is going
to be very difficult to open the door now. Do I ask that nice girl to come and help me? Perhaps
by now she is in bed.'
She turned away from the door, and suddenly, she saw something much, much worse than the
door-handle. There was a man in her bed! She took one look at his thick black hair and his big
black moustache and immediately felt quite ill with fear. For a minute or two, she could not
think. Then her first thought was: 'I must not scream!' She stood there but she could not move.
She just looked at the man's dark head and the big line of his back under the bedthings. She
began to think very quickly.
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Her next thought was: 'I am in the wrong room. It is the man's room.' She could see his jacket
and trousers lying on a chair and his big black shoes on the floor. She must get out quickly. But
how? She tried again to open the door with her fingers but she could not.
Here she was, shut in a hotel room with an unknown man – a Frenchman! She must think, she
must think! She turned off the light.
'Perhaps with the light off, he is not going to wake up,' she thought.
'That gives me more time to do something. But if he does wake up, what do I do? He is not
going to believe my story. Nobody is going to believe me.
In England perhaps but not here. How can they understand? So, I must get out of this room. By
waking him? By screaming? By calling the young girl?
No, it is no good. If I scream or call out, people are going to come running immediately. And
what do they find? Miss Bracegirdle from Easingstoke in a man's bedroom after twelve o'clock
at night. Just think of all the talk back home when my friends hear about that!
And if I climb out of the window?' She thought of the big hairy man pulling her back by the legs
as she tried to get out. He could wake up at any minute. She thought that she heard somebody
going past outside the door. But it was too late to scream now.
Suddenly, she had an idea. It was now nearly one o'clock in the morning. Perhaps the sleeping
man was not dangerous. At seven or eight o'clock, he must get up and go out to work. 'I can
get under the bed and wait there until he goes. Men never look under the bed. When he sees
the door-handle on the floor, he is going to open the door with something or call the girl to
come. Later, I can come out from under the bed and go quietly back to my room. Nobody is
going to know.'
She lay down on the floor and got under the bed. No sound came from the man above her, but
from down here it was difficult to hear anything. She tried to think of her nice little bedroom in
Easingstoke with its nice white bed but the floor was getting harder every minute. She tried to
think what her room number was. One hundred and fifteen? Or was it one hundred and sixteen?
She was always bad at remembering numbers.
She began to think of her schooldays and the interesting things she learned then. Suddenly, she
felt that she was going to sneeze. She could not stop it. The sneeze came – a long, hard one.
'This is the end of me,' Miss Bracegirdle thought. 'Now this Frenchman is going to jump out of
bed and turn on the light. Then he is going to look under the bed and pull me out.
And then...And then? What can I do then? I can scream if he puts his hands on me. Perhaps it
is better to scream first, before that happens. If not, he can put his hand over my mouth and
stop me from screaming.'
But no shout came out of her mouth. Her fear was much too strong. She stayed very quiet and
listened. Was he going to hit her – with one of those heavy shoes, perhaps? But nothing
happened. Miss Bracegirdle suddenly knew that she could not stay under that bed a minute
longer. It was better to come out, wake up the man and tell him everything. With difficulty she
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got out from under the bed and stood up. She went over to the door and put on on the light.
She turned to the bed and said, as strongly as she could, 'Monsieur!'
Nothing happened. She looked at the man and said again, 'Monsieur! Monsieur!'
But again there was no answer. She went closer to the bed. His hair and moustache were very
black but his face had no colour in it. His mouth was open but his eyes were shut.
Then for the third time that night, Miss Bracegirdle nearly died of fear. Suddenly, her legs felt
as weak as water. She nearly fell down. Because the man in the bed was dead! It was the first
time that she stood face to face with a dead person, but there was no mistake. The man was
dead. Miss Bracegirdle could only say, 'He's dead! He's dead!'
Her difficulties now were not important. She began to feel sorry for him, lying here dead in a
hotel room. But a sudden sound broke into her thoughts. Somebody outside the door put down
some shoes: the shoe-cleaning boy. She heard the sound of his feet die away and remembered
where she was.
To be in an unknown man's bedroom was bad, but to be in a room with a dead man was much,
much worse! If they found her here, people were going to think she killed him! A picture came
into her head: the police taking her off to the police station, asking her questions, shutting her
away... And her sister arriving in just a few hours' time too! She must get out of the room
immediately. 'I cannot call for help now,' she thought, fighting back her fear. 'Do something,
Millicent. It is now or never!'
But what? She went round the room, looking for something to open the door with. She could
find nothing. Finally, she picked up the man's jacket. Inside it she found a small knife. She took
the knife and put it in the side of the door. Very slowly she turned the knife and the door opened.
She wanted to run out of the room immediately but she stopped first and listened. Nobody was
there. Feeling very afraid, Miss Bracegirdle shut the door quickly behind her and ran as fast as
she could to her bedroom.
She lay down on the bed and the fear slowly began to leave her. All was well!
But then she had another unhappy thought. The living fear came back.
Her washing things were in there. They were lying there in the dead man's room! And her name
was on them. To go back again now was far worse than the first time but she had no choice.
She could not leave her things lying there. 'If they find them, they are going to ask me how they
got there,' she thought. She had to go back.
She went. She did not look at the bed. She quickly took her washing things and ran back again
to her bedroom. Now that the danger was over, she suddenly felt very, very tired. She got into
bed and put out the light. She lay in the dark, trying to forget her fears. Finally, she went to
sleep.
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It was eleven o'clock when she woke up. The sun was high in the sky and the fears of the night
were far away. In the light of the day, it was all very difficult to believe. Miss Bracegirdle tried
to think about other things.
Finally, the young girl arrived to wake her up. Her eyes showed that she was excited. 'Oh
madame!' she said, 'a very bad thing happened here last night. The man in room one hundred
and seventeen – he is dead!
Please do not say that I told you but the police were here, the doctor, everybody.'
Miss Bracegirdle said nothing. There was nothing to say. But the young woman was too excited
to stop. 'And do you know who this dead man was, madame? They say that he was Boldhu, the
famous killer, wanted by the police. Last year, he killed a woman and cut her up and threw her
into the river. And last night, he died here in our hotel – in the room next door! We do not know
how. Did you say coffee, madame?'
'No thank you, just a cup of tea – strong tea, please.'
very well, madame.'
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Unidad 5
Reading for pleasure
Presentación
Los lectores de literatura se enfrentan a una dificultad compleja: la multiplicidad de
significados de las palabras. El texto literario juega y se regodea con esa multiplicidad de
voces. El lector encontrará que un mismo texto le “habla” de diferentes maneras, según se
ubique ante el texto. Por eso se dice que quien lee literatura (y la comprende) es capaz de
leer y comprender casi cualquier tipo de texto.
Esta Unidad presenta una serie de textos que corresponden a diversos géneros literarios,
como la leyenda y el mito, la novela y la historia de ciencia ficción, además de incluir textos
biográficos y artículos que describen el contexto histórico de los autores.
Sin ser exhaustivos, ni pretender realizar un análisis literario de alto alcance, la unidad cinco
introduce algunos elementos básicos que permiten al estudiante comprender los diferentes
tipos de texto narrativo, como la leyenda y el mito, la novela y la historia de ciencia ficción.
Asimismo, se incluye una definición sencilla y los elementos más relevantes de cada género,
así como información bibliográfica del autor y algunos datos relevantes acerca del contexto
histórico. Todo lo anterior, con el objeto de alcanzar una comprensión integral de los textos
elegidos.
El proceso de lectura propuesto en esta unidad se centra en dar significado a un texto
completo como unidad lingüística, de manera que para poder realizar las actividades
propuestas, el alumno deberá poner en juego lo aprendido con anterioridad.
Las actividades orientan la práctica de la lectura extensiva y crítica, además de la lectura
detallada en contextos diferentes al ámbito de especialidad de los alumnos de la FES
Zaragoza.
La lectura extensiva permitirá incorporar elementos como la estructura de los textos, las
culturas de habla inglesa, parte de su historia y de sus autores. Al incorporar los dos tipos
de lectura -la detallada y la extensiva-, el alumno tendrá una visión integral del significado
de los textos, tal como ocurre en el proceso de lectura cotidiano.
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La lectura detallada proporciona al alumno la oportunidad de aplicar las estrategias
aprendidas en las unidades precedentes desde una visión diferente. Así, el alumno adquirirá
más vocabulario, practicará el manejo de elementos lingüísticos, como diferentes tiempos
verbales, el uso de pronombres y conectores, entre otros, como parte del proceso de dar
significado a un texto.
Una vez alcanzada la comprensión del texto, se orienta al estudiante a relacionar lo leído
con su propia experiencia. Lo anterior facilita la internalización de la información contenida
en un texto, ya sea que éste se trate de corte literario, científico o tecnológico.
Las actividades de inferencia buscan orientar al alumno hacia la lectura crítica, que le
permitirá leer entre líneas, cuestionar el texto y apoyar sus respuestas y comentarios en
evidencia proporcionada por la misma lectura bien comprendida.
En congruencia con la metodología propuesta en esta serie, la presente unidad cierra el
ciclo del proceso de lectura: en un primer acercamiento al texto, el proceso se enfoca en la
inferencia a través del título y las claves de lectura y la detección del tema central. En el
proceso de lectura detallada, nos centramos en la detección de ideas principales y
secundarias y en la resolución de problemas de vocabulario y de gramática. Continuamos
con la lectura extensiva, en la que detectamos la organización del texto, descubrimos cómo
se relacionan las partes que componen el texto y le damos significado al mismo como unidad
lingüística. Todo lo anterior nos lleva a la lectura crítica. Inferimos entre líneas y
relacionamos lo que hemos leído con nuestra experiencia, aportamos a las ideas del autor,
enriquecemos el texto.
La unidad cinco pretende también aportar al disfrute del proceso lector de nuestros
estudiantes por medio del acercamiento a textos, autores y épocas relevantes para el
desarrollo de la literatura universal.
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Unit 5
Reading for Pleasure
Objectives
In this unit, students will:
Get to know with different literary genres like myth and legend, novel or novella, descriptive article, and science fiction narrative.
Talk about the elements of a literary work, like characters, setting, plot, theme, conflict and mood.
Make connections with a literary text, either from personal experience or cultural knowledge.
Make inferences by reading between the lines, making educated guesses based on appearance, dialogue and thoughts of characters and narrators.
Practice detailed reading.
Enjoy reading.
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A. MYTHS AND LEGENDS
Telling stories has always been an important part of any society. Stories have been
transmitted from one generation to another as a means of preserving knowledge and the
history of peoples. Legends and myths are the first narratives recorded. First through oral
tradition then in written form.
1. MYTHS
According with the scholars, a myth is a traditional, typically ancient story dealing with supernatural beings, ancestors, or heroes that serves as a fundamental type in the worldview of a people. The purpose of myths is to account for the origins of something, explain aspects of the natural world, or delineate the psychology, customs, or ideals of society. Ancient myths show a way of explaining the world, like the myths of the creation of the world and of man. They also reflect the idiosyncrasy of a culture, like the first story you are about to read.
Pre-reading
Are you familiar with the myths of the ancient cultures in your country? What do they
explain, natural phenomena, psychological features? Share some examples with your
classmates.
Reading
The Lakotas are an indigenous people of the Great Plains of North America. To the Native Americans the birth of a white buffalo is a symbol of rebirth and world harmony. (Lakota: Pte Ska Win / Pteskawin / Ptesanwi) is a sacred woman of supernatural origin, central to the Lakota religion as the primary cultural prophet. Oral traditions relate that she brought the "Seven Sacred Rituals" to the Teton Sioux or Lakotas. The woman's name was PtesanWi, which translates to White Buffalo Calf Woman. She taught the Lakotas seven sacred rituals and gave them the chanunpa or sacred pipe which is the holiest of all worship symbols. After teaching the people and giving them her gifts, PtesanWi left them promising to return. Later, the story became attributed to the goddess Wohpe, also known as Whope, or Wope.
When Roman Catholic missionaries first came among the Lakota, their stories of the Virgin Mary and Jesus became associated with the legend of White Buffalo Calf Woman. The syncretic practice of identifying Mary with PtesanWi and Jesus with the chanunpa continues among Lakota Christians to this day.
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White Buffalo Calf Woman
Images taken from http://www.crystalinks.com/calfwomanmen.jpg
When the buffalo had disappeared and hunger was upon the land, White Buffalo Calf Woman was sent down to the Lakota people. She appeared to two young Lakota warriors. Her white hide-skin dress glowed; her feet hovered above the ground. One warrior recognized her beauty and power; the other reached out to touch her roughly. He disappeared in a cloud — and reappeared as nothing but a pile of bones. The remaining warrior rushed to his people. They prepared for the coming of White Buffalo Calf Woman by building a special tipi. She arrived carrying sacred herbs and a tightly wrapped bundle. Inside was the most sacred peace pipe. White Buffalo Calf Woman taught the Lakota the peace prayers and the pipe ceremony. Then she bade them follow her. White Buffalo Calf Woman walked eastward. The Lakota trailed behind her and watched in amazement as the beautiful woman turned back into a white buffalo. She rolled over four times, becoming a red, black, brown, and finally a white buffalo again. Then she disappeared over the horizon. And just as suddenly a great herd of buffalo appeared. To Native Americans, the supernatural world has a tremendous impact on the natural world. There is a spirit quality to all things in the natural world. Contact with these spirits, through ceremonies such as the peace pipe ritual or the buffalo dance, is not only desirable, it is essential for the well-being of the community and for a deeper understanding of the world. Retrieved from http://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/mff/northamerica.htm, March 10, 2015
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1. Story map
Read White Buffalo Calf Woman and create the story map. Use Spanish.
Title of the story:
Characters (names and descriptions) Important events
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Problem:
Solution:
Theme:
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Post reading
Can you identify the story map of a myth of the culture in your country? Work with a
classmate and create a poster like the one you just did for a myth you choose. Then share
with the group.
2. LEGENDS
A legend is a traditional tale handed down from earlier times and believed to have an historical basis. Legend, typically, is a short (mono-) episodic, traditional, highly ecotypified -that is to say, specifically located in place and time- historicized narrative performed in a conversational mode, reflecting on a psychological level a symbolic representation of folk belief and collective experiences and serving as a reaffirmation of commonly held values of the group to whose tradition it belongs." An important element in legends are the main characters or “heroes” A hero (masculine or gender-neutral) or heroine (feminine) (Ancient Greek: ἥρως, hḗrōs) is a person or character in literature who, in the face of danger and adversity or from a position of weakness, displays courage or self-sacrifice—that is, heroism—for some greater good. Historically, the first heroes displayed courage or excellence as warriors. The word's meaning was later extended to include moral excellence. Stories of heroism may serve as moral examples.
Pre-reading
William Tell was a real person in Swiss history who has inspired legends, theater plays and
operas. What do you remember about him? What can you say about his deeds? Share with
your classmates.
Reading
1. Focus on the hero while you read The Legend of William Tell. Then identify his
personality traits from the text. You can choose from the words in the chart.
Character traits
angry brave calm caring cooperative
dishonest energetic fair friendly
honest kind lazy loud
mean noisy rude
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THE STORY OF WILLIAM TELL
THE people of Switzerland were not always free and happy as they are to-day. Many years
ago a proud tyrant, whose name was Gessler, ruled over them, and made their lot a bitter one
indeed.
One day this tyrant set up a tall pole in the public square, and put his own cap on the top of
it; and then he gave orders that every man who came into the town should bow down before
it. But there was one man, named William Tell, who would not do this. He stood up straight
with folded arms, and laughed at the swinging cap. He would not bow down to Gessler himself.
When Gessler heard of this, he was very angry. He was afraid that other men would disobey,
and that soon the whole country would rebel against him. So he made up his mind to punish
the bold man.
William Tell's home was among the mountains, and he was a famous hunter. No one in all the
land could shoot with bow and arrow so well as he. Gessler knew this, and so he thought of a
cruel plan to make the hunter's own skill bring him to grief. He ordered that Tell's little boy
should be made to stand up in the public square with an apple on his head; and then he bade
Tell shoot the apple with one of his arrows.
Tell begged the tyrant not to have him make this test of his skill. What if the boy should move?
What if the bowman's hand should tremble? What if the arrow should not carry true?
Image: http://www.mainlesson.com/books/baldwin/fifty/zpage065.gif
Will you make me kill my boy?" he said.
"Say no more," said Gessler. "You must hit the apple with your one arrow. If you fail, my
soldiers shall kill the boy before your eyes."
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Then, without another word, Tell fitted the arrow to his bow. He took aim, and let it fly. The
boy stood firm and still. He was not afraid, for he had all faith in his father's skill.
The arrow whistled through the air. It struck the apple fairly in the center, and carried it
away. The people who saw it shouted with joy.
As Tell was turning away from the place, an arrow which he had hidden under his coat
dropped to the ground.
"Fellow!" cried Gessler, "what mean you with this second arrow?"
"Tyrant!" was Tell's proud answer, "this arrow was for your heart if I had hurt my child."
And there is an old story, that, not long after this, Tell did shoot the tyrant with one of his
arrows; and thus he set his country free.
Retrieved from The Baldwin Project.
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=baldwin&book=fifty&story=tell,
March, 2015.
2. Do the following exercise using the words you previously chose and give evidence
from the text.
Trait 1: William Tell is
________________________________________________________
Shown by (mark with an X): said ______________ deed ___________________
Evidence from the text:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
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Trait 2: William Tell is
________________________________________________________
Shown by (mark with an X): said ______________ deed ___________________
Evidence from the text:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Trait 3: William Tell is
________________________________________________________
Shown by (mark with an X): said ______________ deed ___________________
Evidence from the text:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
3. Identify the lesson or moral of The Legend of William Tell. Then continue with
activities a to g.
Remember: the lesson of a story will
teach us something
influence us
tell us how to act
tell us how to think
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Think:
a) Are there more characters in this story? What are they like?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
b) Who learned a lesson? Can you identify what kind of lesson they learned?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
c) What are the main events of the story? Identify the beginning, the middle and the end.
Beginning:________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Middle:__________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Ending:__________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
123
d) What is the problem? How was it solved?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
e) Did the characters change? If so, how did they change?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
f) What did the characters learn?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
g) What did you learn from the story?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Post-reading
1. Discuss the following questions with your classmates. Give your opinion based on
evidences in the text,:
Would someone like William Tell be a good leader or governor? Why?
Do the other characters remind you of anyone you know? Of whom and why?
124
B. SHORT NOVEL OR NOVELLA
A novella is a written, fictional, prose narrative normally longer than a short story but shorter than a novel. The English word "novella" derives from the Italian "novella", feminine of "novello", which means "new". The novella is a common literary genre in several European languages. A good example of a novella is A Christmas Carol, written by Charles Dickens, and first published in London by Chapman & Hall on 19 December 1843. The novella met with instant success and critical acclaim. The carol tells the story of a bitter old miser named Ebenezer Scrooge and his transformation into a gentler, kindlier man after visitations by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of Christmases Past, Present and Yet to Come.
Pre-reading
1. Discuss with your classmates:
Christmas is the most celebrated holiday in the world. Do you know its origins? What
do you know about it? Share with your classmates.
This is the introduction to A Christmas Carol written by Charles Dickens himself:
I HAVE endeavoured in this Ghostly little book, to raise the Ghost of an Idea, which shall not put my readers out of humour with themselves, with each other, with the season, or with me. May it haunt their houses pleasantly, and no one wish to lay it. Their faithful Friend and Servant, C. D. December, 1843.
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2. Answer the questions.
a) Do you think Charles Dickens liked Christmas? Provide some evidence from the same
introduction.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
b) How does Dickens hind the reader about the development of the story?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
c) How is this holyday celebrated around the world? How do you celebrate it?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
126
Reading
1. Read an extract of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens on page 129 to 132 and
do exercises a) to e). Support your answers with evidence from the text, when
necessary.
a) From the dialog between Ebenezer Scrooge and his nephew, complete the charts.
Character Character Description
Ebenezer Scrooge
Traits:
Interests:
Believes:
Quote that shows personality:
Character Character Description
Nephew Fred Holywell:
Traits:
Interests:
Believes:
Quote that shows personality:
127
Character Character Description
Clerk Bob Cratchit:
Traits:
Interests:
Believes:
Quote that shows personality:
b) What does Scrooge mean by the expression “Humbug”? How do you know?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
c) From the conversation between Scrooge and the gentlemen, what can you say about
the life conditions in London in the IXX century?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
d) Do you remember what was happening in the world during that period? What aspects of
the story are related to reality?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
128
e) Do you feel identified with any of the characters in this story? Which one and how?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
129
A Christmas carol in prose being a ghost story of christmas
pp. 9 to 13
“A merry Christmas, uncle! God save you!” cried a cheerful voice. It was the voice of Scrooge’s nephew, who came upon him so quickly that this was the first intimation he had of his approach.
“Bah!” said Scrooge, “Humbug!”
He had so heated himself with rapid walking in the fog and frost, this nephew of Scrooge’s that he was all in a glow; his face was ruddy and handsome; his eyes sparkled, and his breath smoked again.
“Christmas a humbug, uncle!” said Scrooge’s nephew. “You don’t mean that, I am sure?”
“I do,” said Scrooge. “Merry Christmas! What right have you to be merry? What reason have you to be merry? You’re poor enough.”
“Come, then,” returned the nephew gaily. “What right have you to be dismal? What reason have you to be morose? You’re rich enough.”
Scrooge having no better answer ready on the spur of the moment, said, “Bah!” again; and followed it up with “Humbug.”
“Don’t be cross, uncle!” said the nephew.
“What else can I be,” returned the uncle, “when I live in such a world of fools as this? Merry Christmas! Out upon merry Christmas!
What’s Christmas time to you but a time for paying bills without money; a time for finding yourself a year older, but not an hour richer; a time for balancing your books and having every item in ’em through a round dozen of months presented dead against you? If I could work my will,” said Scrooge indignantly, “every idiot who goes about with ‘Merry Christmas’ on his lips, should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart. He should!”
“Uncle!” pleaded the nephew.
“Nephew!” returned the uncle, sternly, “keep Christmas in your own way, and let me keep it in mine.”
“Keep it!” repeated Scrooge’s nephew. “But you don’t keep it.”
“Let me leave it alone, then,” said Scrooge. “Much good may it do you! Much good it has ever done you!”
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“There are many things from which I might have derived good, by which I have not profited, I dare say,” returned the nephew.
“Christmas among the rest. But I am sure I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round—apart from the veneration due to its sacred name and origin, if anything belonging to it can be apart from that—as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys. And therefore, uncle, though it has never put a scrap of gold or silver in my pocket, I believe that it has done me good, and will do me good; and I say, God bless it!”
The clerk in the tank involuntarily applauded. Becoming immediately sensible of the impropriety, he poked the fire, and extinguished the last frail spark for ever.
“Let me hear another sound from you,” said Scrooge, “and you’ll keep your Christmas by losing your situation! You’re quite a powerful speaker, sir,” he added, turning to his nephew. “I wonder you don’t go into Parliament.”
“Don’t be angry, uncle. Come! Dine with us to-morrow.”
Scrooge said that he would see him—yes, indeed he did. He went the whole length of the expression, and said that he would see him in that extremity first.
“But why?” cried Scrooge’s nephew. “Why?”
“Why did you get married?” said Scrooge.
“Because I fell in love.”
“Because you fell in love!” growled Scrooge, as if that were the only one thing in the world more ridiculous than a merry Christmas.
“Good afternoon!”
“Nay, uncle, but you never came to see me before that happened.
Why give it as a reason for not coming now?”
“Good afternoon,” said Scrooge.
“I want nothing from you; I ask nothing of you; why cannot we be friends?”
“Good afternoon,” said Scrooge.
“I am sorry, with all my heart, to find you so resolute. We have never had any quarrel, to which I have been a party. But I have made the trial in homage to Christmas, and I’ll keep my Christmas humour to the last. So A Merry Christmas, uncle!”
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“Good afternoon!” said Scrooge.
“And A Happy New Year!”
“Good afternoon!” said Scrooge.
His nephew left the room without an angry word, notwithstanding. He stopped at the outer door to bestow the greetings of the season on the clerk, who, cold as he was, was warmer than Scrooge; for he returned them cordially.
“There’s another fellow,” muttered Scrooge; who overheard him: “my clerk, with fifteen shillings a week, and a wife and family, talking about a merry Christmas. I’ll retire to Bedlam.”
This lunatic, in letting Scrooge’s nephew out, had let two other people in. They were portly gentlemen, pleasant to behold, and now stood, with their hats off, in Scrooge’s office. They had books and papers in their hands, and bowed to him.
“Scrooge and Marley’s, I believe,” said one of the gentlemen, referring to his list. “Have I the pleasure of addressing Mr. Scrooge, or Mr. Marley?”
“Mr. Marley has been dead these seven years,” Scrooge replied.
“He died seven years ago, this very night.”
“We have no doubt his liberality is well represented by his surviving partner,” said the gentleman, presenting his credentials.
It certainly was; for they had been two kindred spirits. At the ominous word “liberality,” Scrooge frowned, and shook his head, and handed the credentials back.
“At this festive season of the year, Mr. Scrooge,” said the gentleman, taking up a pen, “it is more than usually desirable that we should make some slight provision for the Poor and destitute, who suffer greatly at the present time. Many thousands are in want of common necessaries; hundreds of thousands are in want of common comforts, sir.”
“Are there no prisons?” asked Scrooge.
“Plenty of prisons,” said the gentleman, laying down the pen again.
“And the Union workhouses?” demanded Scrooge. “Are they still in operation?”
“They are. Still,” returned the gentleman, “I wish I could say they were not.”
“The Treadmill and the Poor Law are in full vigour, then?” said
Scrooge.
“Both very busy, sir.”
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“Oh! I was afraid, from what you said at first, that something had occurred to stop them in their useful course,” said Scrooge. “I’m very glad to hear it.”
“Under the impression that they scarcely furnish Christian cheer of mind or body to the multitude,” returned the gentleman, “a few of us are endeavouring to raise a fund to buy the Poor some meat and drink, and means of warmth. We choose this time, because it is a time, of all others, when Want is keenly felt, and Abundance rejoices.
What shall I put you down for?”
“Nothing!” Scrooge replied.
“You wish to be anonymous?”
“I wish to be left alone,” said Scrooge. “Since you ask me what I wish, gentlemen, that is my answer. I don’t make merry myself at Christmas and I can’t afford to make idle people merry. I help to support the establishments I have mentioned—they cost enough; and those who are badly off must go there.”
“Many can’t go there; and many would rather die.”
“If they would rather die,” said Scrooge, “they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population. Besides—excuse me—I don’t know that.”
“But you might know it,” observed the gentleman.
“It’s not my business,” Scrooge returned. “It’s enough for a man to understand his own business, and not to interfere with other people’s. Mine occupies me constantly. Good afternoon, gentlemen!”
Seeing clearly that it would be useless to pursue their point, the gentlemen withdrew. Scrooge resumed his labours with an improved opinion of himself, and in a more facetious temper than was usual with him.
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2. Read about Charles Dickens.
Why is Charles Dickens famous?
Who was Charles Dickens?
Charles Dickens is a famous English writer. People all
over the world enjoy his stories. One of them is Oliver
Twist, the story of a poor boy in Victorian times.
Books by Dickens can be funny and sad. His stories
are full of interesting 'characters' (people).
IMAGE: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/primaryhistory/famouspeople/charles_dickens/
When did Dickens live?
Dickens was born in England in 1812. He died in 1870.
His first big success was The Pickwick Papers. This was in 1837, the year Victoria became
Britain's Queen.
Dickens lived through the Industrial Revolution (a time of changes in work and science from the
1700s through to the 1800s). He wrote about how life was changing, especially for poor people.
Why do people read Dickens?
Many of Dickens' stories came out in weekly or monthly parts, as serials. Each month people
could read a new chapter in the story. Perhaps this is why Dickens' books make good films and
TV serials too.
Readers like a good story, with interesting characters. Dickens was very clever at making up
characters. People all over the world know Oliver Twist, Scrooge and David Copperfield, even if
they have not read the books in which these characters appear.
Early life
Where was Dickens born?
On 7 February 1812, Charles Dickens was born in Portsmouth. His parents named him Charles John Huffam Dickens.
Portsmouth was the home of the Royal Navy. His father, John Dickens, worked as a clerk for
the Navy. His mother's name was Elizabeth Barrow. She wanted to be a teacher and run a school.
Happy times
The Dickens family never had much money. Charles had seven brothers and sisters. Mr Dickens
dreamed of being rich. Mrs Dickens dreamed of owning a school. Somehow things never went right.
In 1816 the family moved to Chatham, in Kent. Charles was happy there. He went to school. He explored the countryside. He loved the old castle at Rochester.
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Hard times
In 1822 the family moved to London. Now times were hard. Mr Dickens was sent to prison for six months for not paying his bills.
Charles (aged 12) had to work in a dirty old factory, beside the River Thames. He could hear
rats squeaking and running about. His job was to put labels on pots of 'blacking', used to clean
fireplaces. Dickens never forgot this unhappy time. He wrote about it later.
Growing up
By 1824 Mr Dickens had enough money to send Charles back to school. At 15, Charles got a job in a lawyer's office. He hated it. In his books he makes most lawyers horrid!
Charles learned shorthand. He got a job writing about Parliament. He travelled around England by stagecoach, writing for newspapers. He wrote stories about the people he met.
Dickens the writer
Dickens is a success In 1833, he sold his first story. At first Dickens called himself 'Boz'. This was his pen-name.
In 1836, he married Catherine Hogarth.
Suddenly he became famous. His funny stories called The Pickwick Papers were a success.
Oliver Twist
Oliver Twist came out in 1837. It was a grim tale about an orphan boy (Oliver), who is sent to the workhouse. Oliver ends up in the London underworld, in a gang of thieves led by Fagin.
The story ends happily for Oliver, but people were shocked. Were poor children really treated so badly?
Life for poor children
Life for poor children in Victorian times was very hard. Small children worked in coal mines and
factories. Little boys were made to climb inside chimneys and clean them. Oliver Twist almost becomes a 'chimney-boy'. Instead he is made to work for an undertaker.
Life in London
London was a big, crowded city. Many poor people lived in slums. Homeless children slept on
the streets. Many people died from diseases. Almost half the funerals in London in the 1830s
were of children under 10.
London did not have a police force until 1829. Even young children were sent to prison.
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Dickens the celebrity
A famous man
Dickens became so famous people knew him as he walked about London. He was a celebrity.
Dickens walked for miles around the city, watching and listening. He made notes for new stories.
Dickens keeps busy
In 1846 Dickens became editor of the Daily News, a newspaper. He did not like being told what
to do by the owners, so in 1850 he started his own magazine, Household Words. Now he could
write what he liked.
Dickens was a show-off. He loved to give public readings from his books. In 1842, he visited America.
Two famous books
Of his many books, Dickens liked David Copperfield best. In it he wrote about Mr Micawber, who seems very like Dickens' father.
In 1843, Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol. It is one of his most famous stories. In it, we meet
the miser Scrooge - and three ghosts!
Why did people like long books?
In Victorian times, there was no radio, no television, no internet, and no cinema. People read lots of books. Readers liked long stories, to pass the time.
Grown-ups read novels and magazines. Children had their own books too.
Dickens was the most famous novelist in Britain. There were lots of others, such as Sir Walter Scott and Charlotte Brontë.
Family life
Dickens and his wife had 10 children. But their marriage was not happy. In 1858, they split up.
Dickens loved acting. He had his own little theatre at home. While acting in a play in 1857,
Dickens fell in love with Ellen Ternan, an actress.
What happened to Dickens?
How was Britain changing? Dickens saw many changes during his life, made by the Industrial Revolution.
In 1820 most people in England worked on farms. When Dickens died in 1870, most people worked in towns. Many poor people worked in factories and lived in.
What made Dickens angry?
Dickens was angered by the sad things he saw. In his books, he tried to show what was wrong.
In Nicholas Nickleby, he wrote about a terrible school, Dotheboys Hall, where unwanted children were cruelly treated.
He wanted to make life better for people. He wanted new libraries, hospitals and schools.
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Pictures in Dickens
Many of Dickens's books had pictures. The pictures helped readers follow
the story. Two artists were famous for their Dickens drawings. They were George Cruikshank and Hablot K Browne, known as 'Phiz'.
How did Dickens die?
In 1864 Dickens and Ellen Ternan were in a train crash. Dickens was not
badly hurt, but he was never very well after this accident.
In 1868 he went on a tour of the United States. He read to large
audiences, on stage. It was very tiring. He came home worn out and sick.
Dickens died in June 1870, at home in Kent. He was working on a new book. It was The Mystery of Edwin Drood.
Charles Dickens was buried in Westminster Abbey.
Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/primaryhistory/famouspeople/charles_dickens/ on May 17,
2016.
2. Complete the timeline about Charles Dickens with information from the previous
pages. Add as many dates as necessary. Say what happened on each date. See the
example.
1700
1812. Charles Dickens nació en
Postmouth, Inglaterra.
1837
1870
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3. What do you know about Dickens times? Work in pairs. Complete the chart. Use
Spanish. Then, share with the group.
Topic Meet the Author
Describe how Dickens reflects the conditions of the poor in A Christmas Carol.
Identify how Dickens talked about his own life in his books.
Why do people read Dicken’s books? Name some titles and what they are about.
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C. SCIENCE FICTION
Science fiction explores the consequences of scientific innovations and discoveries. It is likely to be set in the future and involve high technology. It also deals with fantastical things not possible in our world.
Pre-reading
Have you read any of the books written by Roald Dhal? Have you seen any of the movies
based on his books (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Gremlins, James and the Giant
Peach, Matilda)?
Do you consider his stories science fiction? Why?
1. Read a short biography of Roald Dahl on the next page. Then complete the chart.
Use Spanish.
Date and place of birth:
Important events in his life:
How Dahl started his career as a writer:
Title of his first story, written in 1969:
Date of death:
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The author Roald Dahl
Roald Dahl in his Writing Hut with Sophie from The BFG, illustrated by Quentin Blake http://www.roalddahl.com/home/teachers
Roald Dahl was one of the greatest story-tellers of all time. He was born in Llanduff,
South Wales, of Norwegian parents, in 1916, and educated in English boarding-schools.
Then, in search of adventure, the young Dahl took a job with Shell Oil in Africa. When
World War II broke out he joined the RAF as a fighter pilot, receiving terrible injuries and
almost dying in a plane crash in 1942.
It was following this “monumental bash on the head” and a meeting with C. S. Forester
(author of the famous Captain Horatio Hornblower stories) that Roald Dahl's writing career
began, with articles for magazines such as The New Yorker. He wrote successful novellas
and short stories for adults, such as Tales of the Unexpected, before concentrating on
his marvelous children's stories. The first of these, James and the Giant Peach, in 1960,
was followed by Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and an unbroken string of hugely
successful, best-selling titles.
Roald Dahl worked from a tiny hut in the pale orchard of the Georgian house in Great
Missenden, Buckinghamshire which he shared with his wife, Liccy. He was always brimming
with new ideas and his many books continue to bring enormous enjoyment to millions of
children and their parents throughout the world.
Roald Dahl died on November 23, 1990.
Retrieved from http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/contributor/roald-dahl on May 17, 2016.
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Reading
You will read Royal Jelly by Roald Dahl on pages 142 to 150.
The story is about a new mother that is worried because her baby has been losing weight
since birth. Her husband, a bee expert, adds royal jelly to their baby’s formula.
1.1 Divide the group in five teams. Each team will read one part of Royal Jelly.
1.2 Answer the question related to each part of the story.
1.3 Rearrange team so there is one person who has answered each question.
1.4 Share answers to complete the activity.
Part I
1. What do you know about the baby?
_____________________________________________________________________
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2. How do her mother and father react?
_____________________________________________________________________
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Part II
1. Describe Albert’s interest for bees.
_____________________________________________________________________
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2. What do you think Albert’s great idea is?
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Part III
1. Why did the baby start eating so well?
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
2. What does Mabel think about royal jelly? And Albert?
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
Part IV
1. What do you know about royal jelly?
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
2. How does royal jelly affect the development of bees?
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Part V
1. Mabel is worried about the baby’s changes. What are those changes?
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
2. What are the effects of royal jelly on both, the baby and Albert?
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
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Royal Jelly by Roald Dahl Part I
‘It worries me to death, Albert, it really does,’ Mrs. Taylor said. She kept her eyes fixed on the baby who was now lying absolutely motionless in the crook of her left arm. ‘I just know there’s something wrong.’ The skin on the baby’s face had a pearly translucent quality, and was stretched very tightly over the bones. ‘Try again,’ Albert Taylor said. ‘It won’t do any good.’ ‘You have to keep trying, Mabel,’ he said. She lifted the bottle out of the saucepan of hot water and shook a few drops of milk on to the inside of her wrist, testing for temperature. ‘Come on,’ she whispered, ‘Come on, my baby. Wake up and take a bit more of this.’ There was a small lamp on the table close by that made a soft yellow glow all around her. ‘Please,’ she said. ‘Take just a weeny bit more.’ The husband watched her over the top of his magazine. She was half dead with exhaustion, he could see that, and the pale oval face, usually so grave and serene, had taken on a kind of pinched and desperate look. But even so, the drop of her head as she gazed down at the child was curiously beautiful. ’You see,‘ she murmured. ‘It’s o good. She won’t have it.’ ‘She held the bottle up to the light, squinting at the calibrations. ‘One ounce (29 g) again. That’s all she takes. No – it isn’t even that. It’s only three quarters. It’s not enough to keep body and soul together. Albert, it really isn’t. It worries me to death.’ ‘I know,’ he said. ‘If only they could find out what was wrong.’ ‘There’s nothing wrong, Mabel. It’s just a matter of time.’ ‘Of course there’s something wrong.’ ‘Doctor Robinson says no.’ ‘Look,’ she said, standing up.’ You can’t tell me it’s natural for a six-week-old child to weigh less, less by more than two whole pounds (900 g) than she did when she was born! Just look at those legs! They’re nothing but skin and bone!’ The tinny baby lay limply on her arm, not moving. ‘Doctor Robinson said you was to stop worrying, Mabel. So did that other one.’ ‘Ha!’ she said. ‘Isn’t that wonderful! I’m to stop worrying!’ ‘Now, Mabel!’ ‘What does he want me to do? Treat it as some sort of a joke?’ ‘He didn’t say that.’ ‘I hate doctors! I hate them all!’ she cried, and she swung away from him and walked quickly out of the room towards the stairs, carrying the baby with her. Albert Taylor stayed where he was and let her go. In a little while he heard her moving about in the bedroom directly over his head, quick nervous footsteps going tap tap tap on the linoleum above. Soon the footsteps would stop, and then he would have to get up and follow her, and when he went into the bedroom he would find her sitting beside the cot as usual, staring at the child and crying softly to herself and refusing to move. ‘She’s starving, Albert,’ she would say. ‘Of course she’s not starving.’ ‘She is starving. I know she is. And Albert?’ ‘Yes?’ ‘I believe you know it too, but you won’t admit it. Isn’t that right?’ Every night now it was like this. Last week they had taken the child back to the hospital, and the doctor had examined it carefully and told them that there was nothing to matter. ‘It took us nine years to get this baby,’ Mabel had said. ‘I think it would kill me if anything should happen to her.’ That was six days ago and since then it had lost another five ounces. (140g) But worrying about it wasn’t going to help anybody, Albert Taylor told himself. One simply had to trust the doctor on a thing like this. He picked up the magazine that was still lying on his lap and glanced idly down the list of contents to see what it had to offer this week: - Among the Bees in May - Honey Cookery - The Bee Farmer and the B. Pharm. - Experiences in the Control of Nosema - The Latest on Royal Jelly - This Week in the Apiary - The Healing Power of Propolis - Regurgitations - British Beekeepers Annual Dinner - Association News
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Part II
All his life Albert Taylor had been fascinated by anything that had to do with bees. As a small boy he often used to catch them in his bare hands and go running with them into the house to show to his mother, and sometimes he would put them on his face and let them crawl about over his cheeks and neck, and the astonishing thing about it all was that he never got stung. On the contrary, the bees seemed to enjoy being with him. They never tried to fly away, and to get rid of them he would have to brush them off gently with his fingers. Even then they would frequently return and settle again on his arm or hand or knee, any place where the skin was bare. As he grew older, Albert Taylor’s fascination with bees developed into an obsession, and by the time he was 12 he has built his first hive. The following summer he had captured his first swarm. Two years later, at the age of 14, he had no less than 5 hives standing neatly in a row against the fence in his father’s small backyard. He never had to use smoke when there was work to do inside the hive and he never wore gloves on his hands or a net over his head. Clearly there was some strange sympathy between this boy and the bees, and down in the village, in the shops and pubs, they began to speak about him with a certain kind of respect, and people started coming up to the house to buy honey. When he was 18, he had rented one acre of rough pasture and there he had set out to establish his own business. Now, eleven years later, he was still in the same spot, but he had six acres (2,4 hectares) of ground instead of one, two hundred and forty well-stocked hives, and a small house he’d built mainly with his own hands. He had married at the age of 20 and that, apart from the fact that it had taken them over nine years to get a child, had also been a success. In fact, everything had gone pretty well for Albert until this strange little baby girl came along and started frightening them out of their wits by refusing to eat properly and losing weight every day. He looked up from the magazine and began thinking about his daughter. This evening, for instance, when she had opened her eyes at the beginning of the feed, he had gazed into them and seen something that frightened him to death – a kind of misty vacant stare, as though the eyes themselves were not connected to the brain at all but were just lying loose in their sockets like a couple of small grey marbles. Did those doctors really know what they were talking about? One could always take her along to another hospital, somewhere in Oxford perhaps. He might suggest that to Mabel when he went upstairs. He could still hear her moving around in the bedroom, but she must have taken off her shoes now and put on slippers because the noise was very faint. He switched his attention back to the magazine and went on with his reading. He finished the article called ‘Experiences in the Control of Nosema’, then turned over the page and began reading the next one. ‘The Latest on Royal Jelly’. He doubted very much whether there would be anything in this that he didn’t know already: ‘What is this wonderful substance called royal jelly?’ Royal jelly is a glandular secretion produced by the nurse bees to feed the larvae immediately after they have hatched from the egg. The pharyngeal glands of bees produce this substance in much the same way as the mammary glands of vertebrates produce milk. The fact is of great biological interest because no other insects in the world are known to have evolved such a process. All old stuff, he told himself, but for want of anything better to do, he continued to read. Royal jelly is fed in concentrated form to all bee larvae for the first three days after hatching from the egg; but beyond that point, for all those who are destined to become drones or workers, this precious food is greatly diluted with honey and pollen. On the other hand, the larvae which are destined to become queens are fed throughout the whole of their larvae period on a concentrated diet of pure royal jelly. Hence the name. Above him, up in the bedroom, the noise of footsteps had stopped altogether. The house was quiet. (...) Royal jelly must be a substance of tremendous nourishing power, for on this diet alone, the honeybee larva increases in weight 1500 times in five days.(...) This is as if a seven-and-a-half pound baby (3,5 kg) should increase in that time to five tons. (...) Albert Taylor stopped and read that sequence again. He read it a third time. This is as if a seven-and-a-half pound baby (3,5 kg)... ‘Mabel!’ he cried, jumping up from his chair. ‘Mabel! Come here!’ He went out into the hall and stood at the foot of the stairs calling for her to come down. There was no answer. He ran up the stairs and switched on the light on the landing. The bedroom door was closed. He crossed the
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landing and opened it and stood in the doorway looking into the dark room. ‘Mabel,’ he said. ’Come downstairs a moment, will you please? I’ve just had a bit of an idea. It’s about the baby.’
Part III The light from the landing behind him cast a faint glow over the bed and he could see her dimly now, lying on her stomach with her face buried in the pillow and her arms up over her head. She was crying again. ‘Mabel,’ he said, going over to her, touching her shoulder. ‘Please come down a moment. This may be important.’ ‘Go away,’ she said. ‘Leave me alone.’ ‘Don’t you want to hear about my idea?’ ‘Oh, Albert, I’m tired,’ she sobbed. ‘I’m so tired I don’t know what I’m doing any more. I don’t think I can go on. I don’t think I can stand it.’ There was a pause, Albert Taylor turned away from her and walked slowly over to the cradle where the baby was lying, and peered in. (...) ‘What time is the next feed?’ he asked. ‘Two o´clock, I suppose.’ ‘And the one after that?’ ‘Six in the morning.’ ‘I’ll do them both,’ he said. ‘You go to sleep.’ She didn’t answer. ‘You get properly into bed, Mabel, and go straight to sleep, you understand? And stop worrying. I’m taking over completely for the next 12 hours. You’ll give yourself a nervous breakdown going on like this.’ ‘Yes,’ She said.’ I know.’ I’m taking the nipper and myself and the alarm clock into the spare room this very moment, so you just lie down and relax and forget all about us. Right?’ Already he was pushing the cradle out through the door. ‘Oh, Albert,’ she sobbed. ‘Don’t worry about a thing. Leave it to me.’ ‘Albert...’ ‘Yes?’ ‘I love you Albert.’ ‘I love you too, Mabel. Now go to sleep.’ Albert Taylor didn’t see his wife again until nearly 11 o’clock the next morning. ‘Good gracious me!’ she cried, rushing down the stairs in dressing-gown and slippers. ‘Albert! Just look at the time! I must have slept twelve hours at least! Is everything all right? What happened?’ He was sitting quietly in his armchair, smoking a pipe and reading the morning paper. The baby was in a sort of carry-cot on the floor at his feet, sleeping- ‘Hullo, dear,’ he said smiling. She ran over to the cot and looked in. ‘Did she take anything, Albert? How many times have you fed her? She was due for another one at 10 o’clock, did you know that?’ Albert Taylor folded the newspaper neatly into a square and put it away on the side table. ‘I fed her at two in the morning,’ he said, ‘and she took about half an ounce, no more. I fed her again at six and she did a bit better that time, two ounces....’ ‘Two ounces! Oh, Albert, that’s marvellous!’ ‘And we just finished the last feed ten minutes ago. There’s the bottle on the mantelpiece. Only one ounce left. She drank three. How’s that? He was grinning proudly, delighted with his achievement. The woman quickly got down on her knees and peered at the baby. ‘Doesn’t she look better?’ he asked eagerly. ‘Doesn’t she look fatter in the face?’ ‘It may sound silly,’ the wife said,’ but actually I think she does. Oh, Albert, you’re a marvel! How did you do it?’ ´She’s turning the corner,’ he said. ‘That’s all it is. Just like the doctor prophesied, she’s turning the corner.’ ‘I pray to God you’re right, Albert.’ ‘Of course I’m right. From now on, you watch her go.’ The woman was gazing lovingly at the baby. ‘You look a lot better yourself too, Mabel.’ ‘I feel wonderful. I’m sorry about last night.’ ‘Let’s keep it this way,’ he said. ‘I’ll do all the night feeds in future. You do the day ones.’ She looked up at him across the cot, frowning. ‘N0,’ she said. ‘Oh no, I wouldn’t allow you to do that.’ ‘I don’t want you to have a breakdown, Mabel.’ ‘I won’t, not now, I’ve had some sleep.’ ‘Much better we share it.’ ‘No, Albert. This is my job and I intend to do it. Last night won’t happen again.’ ‘All right,’ he said. ‘In that case I’ll just relieve you of the donkey work; I’ll do all the sterilizing and mixing of the food and getting everything ready. That’ll help you a bit, anyway. I’ve been thinking that up until last night I’ve never even raised a finger to help you with this baby.’ ‘That isn’t true.’ ‘Oh yes it is. So I’ve decided that from now on I’m going to do my share of the work. I’m going to be the feed-mixer and the bottle-steriliser. Right?’ ‘It’s very sweet of you, dear, but I really don’t think it’s necessary...’ ‘Come on!’ he cried. ‘Don’t change the luck! I’ve done it the last three times and just look what happened! When’s the next one? Two o’clock, isn’t it?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘It’s all mixed,’ he said. ’Everything’s all mixed and ready and all you’ve got to do when the time comes is to go out three to the larder and take it off the shelf and warm it up. That’s some help, isn’t it?’ The woman got up off her knees and went over to him and kissed him on the cheek. ‘You’re such a nice man,’ she said. ‘I love you more and more every day I know you.’ Later, in the middle of the afternoon, when Albert was outside in the sunshine working among the hives, he
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heard her calling to him from the house. ‘Albert!’ she shouted. ‘Albert, come here!’ He started forward to meet her, wondering what was wrong. ‘Oh, Albert! Guess what!’ ‘What?’ ‘I’ve just finished giving her the two-o’clock feed and she’s taken the whole lot!’ ‘No!’ ‘Every drop of it! Oh, Albert, I’m so happy! She’s going to be all right! She’s turned the corner just like you said!’ She came up to him and threw her arms round his neck and hugged him, and he clapped her on the back and laughed and said what a marvellous little mother she was. Naturally, there was a certain amount of suspense in the air as the time approached for the 6 o’clock feed. By five thirty both parents were already seated in the living-room waiting for the moment to arrive. The bottle with the milk formula in it was standing in a saucepan of warm water on the mantelpiece. The baby was asleep in its carry-cot on the sofa. At twenty minutes to six it woke up and started screaming its head off. ‘There you are!’ Mrs. Taylor cried. ‘She’s asking for the bottle. Pick her up quick, Albert, and hand her to me here. Give me the bottle first.’ He gave her the bottle, then placed the baby on the woman’s lap. Cautiously, she touched the baby’s lips with the end of the nipple. The baby seized the nipple between its gums and began to suck ravenously with a rapid powerful action. ‘Oh, Albert, isn’t it wonderful?’ ‘It’s terrific, Mabel.’ In seven or eight minutes, the entire contents of the bottle had disappeared down the baby’s throat. ‘You clever girl,’ Mrs. Taylor said- ‘Four ounces again.’ Albert Taylor was leaning forward in his chair, peering intently into the baby’s face. ‘You know what?’ he said. ‘She even seems as though she’s put on a touch of weight already. What do you think?’ The mother looked down at the child. ‘Doesn’t she seem bigger and fatter to you, Mabel, than she was yesterday?’ ‘Maybe she does, Albert. I’m not sure. Although actually there couldn’t be any real gain in such a short time as this. The important thing is that she’s eating normally.’ ‘She’s turned the corner,’ Albert said. ‘I don’t think you need to worry about her anymore.’ ‘I certainly won’t.’ ‘You want me to go up and fetch the cradle back into our bedroom. Mabel?’ ‘Yes, please,’ she said. Albert went upstairs and moved the cradle. The woman followed with the baby, and after changing its nappy, she laid it gently down on its bed. Then she covered it with sheet and blanket. ‘Doesn’t she look lovely, Albert?’ she whispered. ‘Isn’t that the most beautiful baby you’ve ever seen in your entire life?’(...) After they had finished eating, the parents settled themselves in armchairs in the living-room, Albert with his magazine and his pipe, Mrs. Taylor with her knitting. ‘Albert,’ she said after a while. ‘Yes, dear?’ ‘What was it you were going to tell me last night when you came rushing up to the bedroom? You said you had an idea for the baby.’ Albert Taylor lowered the magazine on to his lap and gave her a long sly look. ‘Did I?’ he said. ‘Yes.’ She waited for him to go on, but he didn’t. ‘What’s the big joke?’ she asked. ‘ Why are you grinning like that?’ ‘It’s a joke all right,’ he said. ‘Tell it to me, dear.’ ‘I’m not sure I ought to,’ he said. ‘You might call me a liar.’ She had seldom seen him looking so pleased with himself as he was now, and she smiled back at him, egging him on. ‘I’d just like to see your face when you hear it, Mabel, that’s all.’ ‘Albert, what is all this?’ He paused, refusing to be hurried. ‘You do think the baby is better, don’t you?’ he asked. ‘Of course I do.’ ‘You agree with me that all of a sudden she’s feeding marvellously and looking one hundred percent different?’ ‘I do, Albert, yes.’ ‘That’s good,’ he said, the grin widening. ‘You see, it’s me that did it.’ ‘Did what?’ ‘I cured the baby.’ ‘Yes, dear, I’m sure you did.’ Mrs. Taylor went right on with her knitting. ‘You don’t believe me, do you?’ ‘Of course I believe you, Albert. I give you all the credit, every bit of it.’ ‘Then how did I do it?’ ‘Well, she said, pausing a moment to think. ‘I suppose it’s simply that you’re a brilliant feed-mixer. Ever since you started mixing the feeds she’s got better and better.’ ‘You mean there’s some sort of an art in mixing the feeds?’ ‘Apparently there is.’ ‘I’ll tell you a secret,’ he said. ‘You’re absolutely right. Although, mind you, it isn’t so much how you mix it that counts. It’s what you put in. You realize that, don’t you, Mabel?’ Mrs. Taylor stopped knitting and looked up sharply at her husband. ‘Albert,’ she said, ‘don’t tell me you’ve been putting things into that child’s milk?’ He sat there grinning. ‘Well, have you or haven’t you?’ ‘It’s possible,’ he said. ‘I don’t believe you.’ He had a strange fierce way of grinning that showed his teeth. ‘Albert,’ she said. ‘Stop playing with me like this.’ ‘Yes, dear, all right.’ ‘You haven’t really put anything into her milk, have you? Answer me properly, Albert. This could be serious with such a tiny baby.’ ‘The answer is yes, Mabel.’ ‘Albert Taylor! How could you?’ ‘Now don’t get excited,’ he said. ‘I’ll tell you all about it if you really want me to, but for heaven’s sake keep
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your hair on.’ ‘It was beer!’ she cried. ‘I just know it was beer!’ ‘Don’t be so daft, Mabel, please.’ ‘Then what was it?’
Part IV
Albert laid his pipe down carefully on the table beside him and leaned back in his chair. ‘Tell me,’ he said, ‘did you ever by any chance happen to hear me mentioning something called royal jelly?’ ‘I did not.’ ‘It’s magic,’ he said. ‘Pure magic. And last night I suddenly got the idea that if I was to put some of this into the baby’s milk...’ ‘How dare you!’ ‘Now Mabel, you don’t even know what it is yet.’ ‘I don’t care what it is,’ she said. ‘You can’t go putting foreign bodies like that into a tiny baby’s milk. You must be mad.’ ‘It’s perfectly harmless, Mabel, otherwise I wouldn’t have done it. It comes from bees.’ ‘I might have guessed that.’ ‘And it’s so precious that practically no one can afford to take it. When they do, it’s only one little drop at a time.’ ‘And how much did you give to our baby, might I ask?’ ‘Ah,’ he said. ’That’s the whole point. That’s where the difference lies. I reckon that our baby, just in the last four feeds, has already swallowed about 50 times as much royal jelly as anyone else in the world has ever swallowed before. How about that?’ ‘Albert, stop pulling my leg.’ ‘I swear it,’ he said proudly. She sat there staring at him, her brow wrinkled, her mouth slightly open. ‘You know what this stuff actually costs, Mabel, if you want to buy it? There’s a place in America advertising it for sale this very moment for something like five hundred dollars a pound jar! Five hundred dollars! That’s more than gold, you know!’ She hadn’t the faintest idea what he was talking about. ‘I’ll prove it,’ he said, and jumped up and went across to the large bookcase where he kept all his literature about bees. He took down the last issue of the American Bee Journal and turned to a page of small classified advertisements at the back. ‘Here you are,’ he said. ‘Exactly as I told you, “We sell royal jelly - $ 480 per lb jar wholesale.”’ He handed her the magazine so she could read it herself. ‘Now do you believe me? This is an actual shop in New York, Mabel. It says so.’ ‘It doesn’t say you can go stirring it into the milk of a practically newborn baby,’ she said. ‘I don’t know what’s come over you, Albert, I really don’t.’ ‘It’s curing her, isn’t it?’ ‘I’m not sure about that, now.’ ‘Don’t be damn silly, Mabel. You know it is.’ ‘Then why haven’t other people done it with their babies?’ ‘I keep telling you,’ he said. ‘It’s too expensive. Practically nobody in the world can afford to buy royal jelly just for eating except maybe one or two multimillionaires. The people who buy it are the big companies that make women’s face creams and things like that. They’re using it as a stunt. They mix a tiny pinch of it into a big jar of face cream and it’s selling like hot cakes for absolutely enormous prices. They claim it takes out the wrinkles.’ ‘And does it?’ ‘Now how on earth would I know that, Mabel? Anyway,’ he said, returning to his chair, ‘that’s not the point. The point is this. It’s done so much good to our little baby just in the last few hours that I think we ought to go right on giving it to her. Now don’t interrupt, Mabel. Let me finish. I’ve got 240 hives out there and if I turn over maybe a hundred of them to making royal jelly, we ought to be able to supply her with all she wants.’ ‘Albert Taylor,’ the woman said, stretching her eyes wide and staring at him. Have you gone out of your mind?’ ‘Just hear me through, will you please?’ ‘I forbid it,’ she said, ‘absolutely. You’re not to give my baby another drop of that horrid jelly, you understand?’ ‘Now, Mabel... Do me a favour, will you?’ he said. ‘Let me explain some of the marvellous things this stuff does.’ ‘You haven’t even told me what it is yet.’ ‘All right, Mabel. I’ll do that too. Will you listen? Will you give me a chance to explain it?’ She sighed and picked up her knitting once more. ‘I suppose you might as well get it off your chest, Albert. Go on and tell me.’ He paused, a bit uncertain now how to begin. It wasn’t going to be easy to explain something like this to a person with no detailed knowledge of apiculture at all. ‘You know, don’t you,’ he said, ‘that each colony has only one queen?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘And that this queen lays all the eggs?’ ‘Yes, dear. That much I know.’ ‘All right. Now the queen can actually lay two different kinds of eggs. She can lay eggs that produce drones, and she can lay eggs that produce workers. Now if that isn’t a miracle, Mabel, I don’t know what is.’ ‘Yes, Albert, all right.’ ‘The drones are the males. We don’t have to worry about them. The workers are the females. So is the queen, of course.’ ‘Now what happens is this. The queen crawls around on the comb and lays her eggs in what we call cells. She lays one egg to each cell, and in three days each of these eggs hatches out into a tiny grub. We call it larva. Now, as soon as this
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larva appears, the nurse bees – they’re young workers – all crowd round and start feeding it like mad. And you know what they feed it on?’ ‘’Royal jelly,’ Mabel answered patiently. ‘Right!’ he cried. ‘That’s exactly what they do feed it on. They get this stuff out of a gland in their heads and they start pumping it into the cell to feed the larva. And what happens then? You want to know what happens then?’ he asked, wetting his lips. ‘I can hardly wait.’ ‘”Royal jelly,”’ he read aloud, ‘”must be a substance of tremendous nourishing power, for on this diet alone, the honey-bee larva increases in weight 1500 times in five days!”’ ‘How much?’ ‘Fifteen hundred times, Mabel. And you know what that means if you put it in terms of a human being? It means, ‘ he said, lowering his voice, leaning forward, fixing her with those small pale eyes, ‘it means that in five days a baby weighing seven and a half pounds to start off with would increase in weight to five tons!’ For the second time, Mrs. Taylor stopped knitting. ‘Now you mustn’t take that too literally, Mabel.’ ‘Who says I mustn’t?’ ‘It’s just a scientific way of putting it, that’s all.’ ‘Very well, Albert. Go on.’ ‘But that’s only half the story,’ he said. ‘There’s more to come. The really amazing thing about royal jelly, I haven’t told you yet. I’m going to show you now how it can transform a plain dull looking little worker bee with practically no sex organs at all into a great big beautiful fertile queen.’ ‘Are you saying our baby is dull-looking and plain?’ she asked sharply. ‘Did you know that the queen bee and the worker bee, although they are completely different when they grow up, are both hatched out of exactly the same kind of egg?’ ‘I don’t believe that,’ she said. ‘It’s as true as I’m sitting here, Mabel, honest it is. Any time the bees want a queen to hatch out of the egg instead of a worker, they can do it.’ ‘How?’ ‘Ah,’ he said, shaking a thick forefinger in her direction. ‘That’s just what I’m coming to. That’s the secret of the whole thing. Now – what do you think it is, Mabel that makes this miracle happen?’ ‘Royal jelly,’ she answered. You already told me.’ ‘Royal jelly it is!’ he cried, clapping his hands and bouncing up on his seat. His big round face was glowing with excitement now, and two vivid patches of scarlet had appeared high up on each cheek. ‘Here’s how it works. I’ll put it very simple for you. The bees want a new queen. So they build an extra-large cell, a queen cell we call it, and they get the old queen to lay one of her eggs in there. The other one thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine eggs she lays in ordinary worker cells. Now. As soon as these eggs hatch into larvae, the nurse bees rally round and start pumping in the royal jelly. All of them get it, workers as well as queen. But here is the vital thing, Mabel, so listen carefully. Here’s where the difference comes. The worker larvae only receive this special marvellous food for the first three days of their larval life. After the third day they’re put straight away on to more or less routine bees’ food – a mixture of honey and pollen – and then about two weeks later they emerge from the cells as workers. ‘But not so the larva in the queen cell! This one gets royal jelly all the way through its larval life. The nurse bees simply pour it into the cell, so much so in fact that the little larva is literally floating in it. And that’s what makes it into a queen!’ ‘You can’t prove it,’ she said. ‘Don’t talk so damn silly, Mabel, please. Thousands of people have proved it time and time again, famous scientists in every country in the world. All you have to do is take a larva out of a worker cell and put it in a queen cell (...) and just so long as the nurse bees keep it well supplied with royal jelly, then presto! – it’ll grow up into a queen! And what makes it more marvellous still is the absolutely enormous difference between a queen and a worker when they grow up. The abdomen is a different shape. The sting is different. The legs are different. The.... (...) ‘It’s pretty hard to believe,’ she said, ‘that a food can do all that.’ ‘Of course it’s hard to believe. It’s another of the miracles of the hive.’ He stood beside the bookcase with the magazine in his hand, smiling a funny little furtive smile of triumph, and his wife watched him, bewildered. He was not a tall man; he had a thick plump pulpy-looking body that was built close to the ground on abbreviated legs. The legs were slightly bowed. The head was huge and round, covered with bristly short-cut hair, and the greater part of the face – now that he had given up shaving altogether – was hidden by a brownish yellow fuzz about an inch (2,5 cm) long. In one way and another, he was rather grotesque to look at; there was no denying in that. Looking at him now as he buzzed around in front of the bookcase with his bristly head and his hairy face and his plump pulpy body, she couldn’t help thinking that somehow, in some curious way, there was a touch of the bee about this man. Up until now it had never occurred to her that her husband might look like a bee. It shocked her a bit. ‘You know something? She said, staring at him but
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smiling a little all the same.’ You’re getting to look just a teeny bit like a bee yourself, did you know that?’ He turned and looked at her. ‘I suppose it’s the beard mostly,’ she said. ‘I do wish you’d stop wearing it. Even the colour is sort of bee-ish, don’t you think?’ ‘What the hell are you talking about, Mabel?’ ‘Albert,’ she said. ‘Your language.’ ‘Do you want to hear any more of this or don’t you?’ ‘Yes, dear, I’m sorry. I was only joking. Do go on.’ He turned away again and pulled another magazine out of the bookcase and began leafing through the pages. ‘Now just listen of this, Mabel.’ ‘”Still and Burdett found that a male rat which hitherto had been unable to breed, upon receiving a minute daily dose of royal jelly, became a father many times over”’. ‘Albert,’ she cried, ‘this stuff is much too strong to give to a baby! I don’t like it at all.’ ‘Nonsense, Mabel.’ ‘Listen!’ Mrs. Taylor said, interrupting him. ‘I think the baby’s crying.’ Albert glanced up from his reading. Sure enough, a lusty yelling noise was coming from the bedroom above. ‘She must be hungry,’ he said. His wife looked at the clock. ‘Good gracious me!’ she cried, jumping up. ‘It’s past her time again already! You mix the feed, Albert, quickly, while I bring her down! I don’t want to keep her waiting.’
Part V In half a minute, Mrs. Taylor was back, carrying the screaming infant in her arms. ‘Do be quick, Albert!’ she called, settling herself in the armchair and arranging the child on her lap. ‘Please hurry!’ Albert entered from the kitchen and handed her the bottle of warm milk. ‘It’s just right,’ he said. ‘You don’t have to test it.’ She hitched the baby’s head a little higher in the crook of her arm, then pushed the rubber teat straight into the wide-open yelling mouth. The baby grabbed the teat and began to suck. The yelling stopped. Mrs. Taylor relaxed. ‘Oh, Albert, isn’t she lovely?’ ‘She’s terrific, Mabel – thanks to royal jelly.’ ‘Now, dear, I don’t want to hear another word about that nasty stuff. It frightens me to death.’ ‘You’re making a big mistake,’ he said. ‘We’ll see about that.’ The baby went on sucking the bottle. ‘I do believe she’s going to finish the whole lot again, Albert.’ ‘I’m sure she is,’ he said. And a few minutes later, the milk was all gone. ‘Oh, what a good girl you are!’ Mrs. Taylor cried, as very gently she started to withdraw the nipple. The baby sensed what she was doing and sucked harder, trying to hold on. The woman gave a quick little tug and plop, out it came. ‘Waa! Waa! Waa! Waa! Waa! Waa!’ the baby yelled. ‘Nasty old wind,’ Mrs. Taylor said, hoisting the child on to her shoulder and patting its back. It belched twice in quick succession. ‘There you are, my darling, you’ll be all right now.’ For a few seconds, the yelling stopped. Then it started again. ‘Keep belching her,’ Albert said, she’s drunk it too quickly.’ His wife lifted the baby back on to her shoulder. She rubbed its spine. She changed it from one shoulder to the other. She lay it on its stomach on her lap. She sat it up on her knee. But it didn’t belch again, and the yelling became louder and more insistent every minute. ‘Good for the lungs,’ Albert Taylor said, grinning. ‘That’s the way they exercise their lungs, Mabel, did you know that?’ ‘There, there, there,’ the wife said, kissing it all over the face. ‘There, there, there.’ They waited another five minutes, but not for one moment did the screaming stop. ‘Change the nappy,’ Albert said. ‘It’s got a wet nappy, that’s all it is.’ He fetched a clean one from the kitchen, and Mrs. Taylor took the old one off and put the new one Mrs. Taylor on. This made no difference at all. ‘Waa! Waa! Waa! Waa! Waa! Waa!’ the baby yelled. ‘You didn’t stick the safety pin through the skin, did you, Mabel? ‘Of course I didn’t,’ she said, feeling under the nappy with her fingers to make sure. The parents sat opposite one another in their armchairs, smiling nervously, watching the baby on the mother’s lap, waiting for it to tire and stop screaming. ‘You know what?’ Albert said at last. ‘What?’ ‘I’ll bet she’s still hungry. I’ll bet all she wants is another swig at that bottle. How about me fetching her an extra lot?’ ‘I don’t think we ought to do that, Albert.’ ‘It’ll do her good,’ he said, getting up from his chair. ‘I’m going to warm her up a second helping.’ He went into the kitchen, and was away for several minutes. When he returned he was holding a bottle brimful of milk. ‘I made her a double,’ he announced. ‘Eight ounces. Just in case.’ ‘Albert! Are you mad! Don’t you know it’s just as bad to overfeed as it is to underfeed?’ ‘You don’t have to give her the lot, Mabel. You can stop any time you like. Go on,’ he said, standing over her. ‘Give her a drink.’ Mrs. Taylor began to tease the baby’s lip with the end of the nipple. The tiny mouth closed like a trap over the rubber teat and suddenly there was silence in the room. The baby’s
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whole body relaxed and a look of absolute bliss came over its face as she started to drink. ‘There you are, Mabel! What did I tell you?’ The woman didn’t answer. ‘She’s ravenous, that’s what she is. Just look at her suck.’ Mrs. Taylor was watching the level of milk in the bottle. It was dropping fast, and before long three or four ounces out of the eight had disappeared. ‘There,’ she said. ‘That’ll do.’ ‘You can’t pull it away now, Mabel.’ ‘Yes, dear. I must.’ ‘Go on, woman. Give her the rest and stop fussing.’ ‘But, Albert....’ ‘She’s finished, can’t you see that? Go on, my beauty,’ he said. ‘You finish that bottle.’ ‘I don’t like it, Albert,’ the wife said, but she didn’t pull the bottle away. ‘She’s making up for lost time, Mabel, that’s all she’s doing.’ Five minutes later the bottle was empty. Slowly, Mrs. Taylor withdrew the nipple, and this time there was no protest from the baby, no sound at all. It lay peacefully on the mother’s lap, the eyes glazed with contentment, the mouth half open, the lips smeared with milk. ‘Twelve whole ounces (340g), Mabel!’ Albert Taylor said. ‘Three times the normal amount! Isn’t that amazing?’ The woman was staring down at the baby. And now the old anxious tight-lipped look of the frightened mother was slowly returning to her face. ‘Come here, Albert,’ she said. ‘What?’ ‘I said come here.’ He went over and stood beside her. ‘Take a good look and tell me if you see anything different.’ He peered closely at the baby. ‘She seems bigger, Mabel, if that’s what you mean. Bigger and fatter.’ ‘Hold her,’ she ordered. ‘Go on, pick her up.’ He reached out and lifted the baby up off the mother’s lap. ‘Good God!’ he cried. ‘She weighs a ton!’ ‘Exactly.’ ‘Now isn’t that marvellous!’ he cried, beaming. ‘I’ll bet she must be back to normal already!’ ‘It frightens me, Albert. It’s too quick.’ ‘Nonsense, woman.’ ‘It’s that disgusting jelly that’s done it,’ she said. ‘I hate the stuff.’ ‘There’s nothing disgusting about royal jelly,’ he answered, indignant. ‘Don’t be a fool. Albert! You think it’s normal for a child to start putting on weight at this speed?’ ‘You’re never satisfied!’ he cried. ‘You’re scared stiff when she’s losing and now you’re absolutely terrified because she’s gaining! What’s the matter with you Mabel?’ The woman got up from her chair with the baby in her arms and started towards the door. ‘All I can say is,’ she said, ‘it’s lucky I’m here to see you don’t give her any more of it, that’s all I can say.’ She went out, and Albert watched her through the open door as she crossed the hall to the foot of the stairs and started to ascend, and when she reached the third or fourth step she suddenly stopped and stood quite still for several seconds as though remembering something- then she turned and came down again rather quickly and re-entered the room. ‘Albert,’ she said. ‘Yes.’ ‘I assume there wasn’t any royal jelly in this last feed we’ve just given her?’ ‘I don’t see why you should assume that, Mabel.’ ‘Albert!’ ‘What’s wrong?’ he asked, soft and innocent. ‘How dare you!’ she cried. Albert Taylor’s great bearded face took on a painted and puzzled look. ‘I think you ought to be very glad she’s got another big dose of it inside her,’ he said (...) The woman was standing just inside the doorway clasping the sleeping baby in her arms and staring at her husband with huge eyes. She stood very erect, her body absolutely stiff with fury, her face paler, more tight-lipped than ever. ‘You mark my words,’ Albert was saying, you’re going to have a nipper there soon that’ll win first prize in any baby show in the entire country. Hey, why don’t you weigh her now and see what she is? You want me to get the scales, Mabel, so you can weigh her?’ The woman walked straight over the large table in the centre of the room and laid the baby down and quickly started taking off its clothes. ‘Yes!’ she snapped. ‘Get the scales!’ Then she unpinned the nappy and she drew it away and the baby lay naked on the table. ‘But Mabel!’ Albert cried. ‘It’s a miracle! She’s fat as a puppy!’ Indeed, the amount of flesh the child had put on since the day before was astounding. The small sunken chest with the rib bones showing all over it was now plump and round as a barrel, and the belly was bulging high in the air. Curiously, though, the arms and legs did not seem to have grown in proportion. Still short and skinny, they looked like little sticks protruding from a ball of fat. ‘Look!’ Albert said. ‘She’s even beginning to get a bit of fuzz on the tummy to keep her war!’ He put out a hand and was about to run the tips of his fingers over the powdering of silky yellowy-brown hairs that had suddenly appeared on the baby’s stomach. ‘Don’t you touch her!’ The woman cried. She turned and faced him, her eyes blazing, and she looked suddenly like some kind of little fighting bird with her neck arched over towards him as though she were about to fly at his face and peck his eyes out. ‘Now wait a minute,’ he said, retreating. ‘You must be mad!’ she cried. ‘Now wait just a minute, Mabel, will you please, because if you’re still thinking this stuff is dangerous...That is what you’re
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thinking, isn’t it? All right, then. Listen carefully, I shall now proceed to prove to you once and for all, Mabel, that royal jelly is absolutely harmless to human beings, even in enormous doses. For example – why do you think we had only half the usually honey crop last summer? Tell me that.’ His retreat, walking backwards, had taken him three or four yards away from her, where he seemed to be more comfortable. ‘The reason we had only half the usual crop last summer,’ he said slowly, lowering his voice, ‘was because I turned one hundred of my hives over to the production of royal jelly.’ ‘You what?’ ‘Ah,’ he whispered. ‘I thought that might surprise you a bit. And I’ve been making it ever since right under your very nose.’ His small eyes were glinting at her, and a slow sly smile was creeping around the corners of his mouth. ‘You’ll never guess the reason, either,’ he said. ‘I’ve been afraid to mention it up till now because I thought it might...well...sort of embarrass you.’ There was a slight pause. He had his hands clasped high in front of him, level with his chest, and he was rubbing one palm against the other, making a soft scraping noise. ‘You remember that bit I read you out of the magazine? That bit about the rat? Let me see now, how does it go? ‘”Still and Burdett found that a male rat which hitherto had been unable to breed...”’ He hesitated, the grin widening, showing his teeth. ‘You get the message, Mabel?’ She stood quite still, facing him. ‘The very first time I ever read that sentence, I just jumped straight out of my chair and I said to myself if it’ll work with a lousy rat, I said, then there’s no reason on earth why it shouldn’t work with Albert Taylor.’ He paused again, craning his head forward and turning one ear slightly in his wife’s direction, waiting for her to say something. But she didn’t. ‘And here’s another thing.’ He went on. It made me feel so absolutely marvellous, Mabel, and so sort of completely different to what I was before that I went right on taking it even after you’d announced the joyful tidings. Buckets of it I must have swallowed during the last 12 months.’ The big heavy haunted-looking eyes of the woman were moving intently over the man’s face and neck. There was no skin showing at all on the neck, not even at the sides below the ears. The whole of it, to a point where it disappeared into the collar of the shirt, was covered all the way round with those shortish hairs, yellowy black. ‘Mind you,’ he said, turning away from her, gazing lovingly now at the baby, ‘it’s going to work far better on a tiny infant than on a fully developed man like me. You’ve only got to look at her to see that, don’t you agree?’ The woman’s eyes travelled slowly downward and settled on the baby. The baby was lying naked on the table, fat and white and comatose, like some gigantic grub that was approaching the end of its larval life and would soon emerge into the world complete with mandibles and wings. ‘Why don’t you cover it up, Mabel?’ he said. ‘We don’t want our little queen to catch a cold.’
The End
Retrieved from https://englishinwonderland.wikispaces.com/file/view/27_Royal_Jelly_by_JRoald_Dahl.pdf on May 17, 2016.
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Post reading
1. Comprehension Dice Game.
Now that you have read Royal Jelly, let’s remember some language issues. Work in
pairs. Roll a dice and tell your partner the answer.
If you roll 1, in part I…
Find a pronoun (I, you, he, she, it, we, you,
they, me, him, her, its, us, them) and say who or
what they refer to.
If you roll 2, in part II…
Find three verbs in past perfect or three verbs in
past tense.
If you roll 3, in part III…
Find two sentences in the imperative (orders,
suggestions, advice)
If you roll 4, in part IV…
Identify two different kinds of bees.
If you roll 5, in part V…
Find two expressions of time or sequence.
If you roll 6, in all the story…
Find out two new words and use them in a
sentence.
2. Choose a story that you like. It can be a book, a movie or a theater play. It has to be
written in English. You will create a poster or comic booklet to retell the story in
Spanish. Be sure to include the following elements:
1. Main characters description
2. Time, place and context of the story
3. Summarize the story:
4. Three arguments that convince your classmates and teacher to read this story.
5. Finally, present your work to the group.
(This activity may be used to evaluate Unit 5)
