Language and Indirect Speech (Listening)

The following talk by psychologist and linguist Steven Pinker is quite similar to IELTS Listening Section 4.(This lecture does contain references to sex and dating, which are not likely to appear on the IELTS exam!)

The specific topic of the lecture is indirect language. He explains why people often avoid making commands or asking directly for something. It is partly due to politeness, but also due to the speaker's wish to avoid embarrassment and awkwardness.

Watching this video may help you to understand English-speakers better!

Before listening, look at the vocabulary words below. If necessary use an English to English Dictionary to find their meanings.


hostage        proffer        bribe       euphemism        infer

veiled         threat         literal     metaphorical     ethos

ubiquity       dominance      altruism    anomalous        cheeky

awkwardness    reciprocity    naive       innuendo    deniability


Now read the fill-in-the-blank questions below the video and look for key words. Make a guess about what word might logically complete each sentence. Then listen as many times as necessary to complete the exercise. Some words will appear within the video, so you'll have an advantage if you're a quick reader. It's ok if you don't understand everything! 

Complete the sentences below with NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS.

1. Language is a ______________ into social relations.

2. A kidnapper has a hostage tied up in the back seat of a car and, inconveniently, is ______________ by the police because he's missing ______________.

3. So the puzzle is why are bribes, ______________, seductions,solicitations and threats so often veiled when both parties presumably know _________________ they mean?

4. Behaviour that is acceptable in one ________________ type can be anomalous in another.

5. You wouldn't go up to your boss and ________________ to a prawn off his plate because what you can get away with in a communality relationship you can't get away with in a ________________ relationship.

6. One remaining ________________, which is why we resort to indirectness even when there is no ________________.

7. What is the psychological status of an overture that ________________ to be out there or on the record that makes it feel so much more ________________ than a veiled overture that is conveyed indirectly?

8. When a little boy said the emperor is ________________ he was not telling anyone anything that they did not already know and even if they could not see with their ________________.

9. Once again, that gave them the collective power to _______________ the dominance of the emperor through their  _______________. 

10. The moral of the story is that explicit language is an ________________ of creating mutual knowledge.

To read a transcript of the talk, and to check your answers, CLICK HERE.

Should Students Study Overseas? (Task 2 Writing)

One of the criteria on which your writing is judged is Coherence and Cohesion. In other words, organisation!

Essays that do not have a clear structure will lose points in the area of Coherence and Cohesion. They may also receive a lower score because your lack of organisation causes the essay to become confusing or wander off topic. The following structure is most useful for Thesis essays or Report-style essays. For more about what those terms mean, Click Here.

1. The first paragraph should clearly state the topic and give your opinion (assuming an opinion is needed.)
2. The second paragraph should give a clear reason to support your opinion, plus examples or personal experiences to support your reason.
3. The third paragraph should give a new, different reason for why your opinion is correct. Try to avoid repeating points from the second paragraph.
4. You many want to have a fourth paragraph with a third distinct reason, but this is not always necessary or possible due to time limitations.
5. The conclusion should RESTATE your opinion in another way. This is a necessary step.

Let's look at the structure for the following topic:

Going overseas for university study is an exciting prospect for many people. However, while it may offer some advantages, it is probably better to stay home because of the difficulties a student inevitably encounters living and studying in a different culture.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

     

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The introduction, conclusion, and main supporting reasons are given. You can see that each reason is slightly different from the others. We should include examples to support each point.

Here is a suitable introduction for this topic:

                These days, more and more students decide to leave their home countries and travel overseas to attend foreign universities. Although this decision is a difficult one which poses many challenges to young people, I believe that the advantages of studying overseas far outweigh the disadvantages.

You can see that the writer clearly sees more advantages than disadvantages to studying abroad. Let's give a reason for this opinion:

First Point: Studying overseas allows students to learn about other cultures, which makes them more valuable in an increasingly globalised society.

Now we need to give an example to support this idea. Why are students more valuable after studying overseas?  

Students who study overseas are often able to master a second language and learn about new cultures, both of which are essential skills in the increasingly globalised world marketplace.

Here are two more points to support the original opinion. Can you think of suitable examples to illustrate them?

Second Point: It’s true that studying abroad is very challenging. However, the ability to solve challenging problems is an important life skill.

What are some challenges that foreign students face? How might this help them in the future?

Third Point: Last but not least, when students travel outside their home country, they can have amazing new experiences and create long-lasting friendships.

What are some fun things you can experience while traveling abroad? How might having international friends help me in the future?

Now that we've given three reasons to support our opinion and given examples, we can add our conclusion:

For the above reasons, I believe that spending time studying in another country is a very valuable experience for young people. It provides them with experiences and opportunities that can improve the quality of their lives and advance their careers. As such, it is the best choice a student can make.   

NZ© Andrea Holland 2014