Summary and Composition English Language I PDF

Summary and Composition
Summary and Composition 1

To the Student
As a general rule, you should write your precis after you have answered the questions on the
passage, as you will then be better acquainted with the passage itself. You will find six questions
beside each text. Questions 1 and 2 test your understanding of the piece; questions 3 and 4 deal
with grammatical problems; questions 5 and 6 deal with vocabulary. You have a choice of four
answers to each question and are asked to choose the best one. An exercise on sentence
structure follows these questions. In this, you will be asked to rewrite or join sentences and you
can check your answer immediately by referring to the text.
How to write a precis
1. Read the passage carefully twice.

2. Read the instructions carefully to find out precisely what you are required to do, marking
on the original passage the point at which you should begin to write your precis and
when you should end it.
3. Read the passage a third time, making a list of all the points you will have to use. These
notes should be very brief.
4. Using this list of points, write a rough draft of the precis, referring to the original passage
only when you want to make sure of some point. This will help you greatly to reproduce
the substance of the passage in your own words. The number of words should be
counted when you have finished the rough draft, not after each sentence.
5. After having counted the number of words in the draft and made any alterations you
think necessary, write out a fair copy of your precis in a single paragraph, stating the
exact number of words you have used at the end.
When you re-read your fair copy, there are two more points you should bear in mind. First,
your precis must be accurate. You must learn to derive all your information from the
passage and never distort the meaning of the original or add to it. Secondly, your precis
should be written in such a way that it reads as a continuous paragraph. To achieve this,
you should use link-words like ‘but’, ‘and’, ‘however’, ‘also’, etc., to connect your points.
When you have become proficient at this, you should try connecting your points by writing
complex sentences, (i.e. beginning a sentence with words like ‘since’, ‘though’, ‘even
if’,’when’, ‘after’, ‘before’, etc.)

1
The motor-race was not due to begin until 2.30 and the large crowd cheered loudly when at 2.15
the first cars were wheeled out to take up their positions. So many racing-cars gathered
together were a rare and splendid sight. Shining red, blue, and silver in the bright sunshine, they
looked rather like jet-aeroplanes without wings. On the course, drivers dressed in helmets were
talking to each other or standing by their cars, while engineers checked the engines for the last
time. Soon a great many people began arriving at the starting-point and the crowd broke into
clapping when the two champions, Mercer and Torres, arrived on the scene.
At 2.30 sharp there was a pistol-shot followed by a roar of engines. The race had begun and in
a few seconds the cars were fighting for first place. All the cars got off well except No. 5, which
refused to start and was hurriedly wheeled off the track.
From the very beginning it seemed as if the race would be entirely between Torres and Mercer,
for they were soon in front of the others. A small blue car with an unknown driver at the wheel
was following close behind, but was not near enough to offer the champions any serious
challenge. The cars flashed by like bullets and there were cheers when Mercer’s car took the
lead. But this did not last long, for after a while he seemed to be having trouble and he stopped
his big silver car to have a wheel changed. Though this was done at great speed, it gave Torres
time enough to get well in front. There seemed little change for Mercer to catch up now. The
only car anywhere near Torres was the blue one – until something went wrong with it. On a
dangerous bend it got out of control, spun round several times, and shot up the side of the bank.
Its driver steered it skilfully back on to the course and went on as if nothing had happened.
Torres was now over half a lap in front and the race was nearing its end. Mercer was just coming
into third place when the blue car moved away at tremendous speed. There were gasps of
surprise from the crowd as the unknown driver drew closer and closer to Torres and finally sped
past him in the last lap to win the race.

Exercises
Multiple Choice Questions
Choose the best answer in each exercise : a, b, c or d.
1. Car No. 5
a. broke down after it had gone a few yards.
b. refused to start and remained on the track.
c. didn’t take part in the race at all.
d. was the only car that got off well.
2. When the race was nearing its end it looked as if
a. Mercer would win.
b. Torres would win.
c. the blue car would win.
d. Torres and Mercer would tie for the first place.
3. The motor-race was due to begin … 2.30.
a. until; b: on; c; at ; d: towards
4. It … the race would be entirely between Torres and Mercer.
a. seemed if ; b.: appeared as; c: showed that ; d: looked as though
5. Checked means
a. controlled; b: counted; c: examined ; d: overlooked
6. Fighting for first place means
a. coming first; b: getting ahead; c: trying hard to get in the lead;
d: remaining in front
Sentence Structure
Rewrite this sentence, then check your answer against the text:
It was too far away to offer the champions any serious challenge.
It was not near ______________________________________________________ .
1. Suppose you had been watching the race. In not more than 80 words describe what you
saw after Car No. 5 was wheeled off the track up to the end of the race.
2. Write a composition of about 200 words describing the fastest (or slowest) journey you
have ever made in your life.

2
As my train was not due to leave for another hour, I had plenty of time to spare. After buying
some magazines to read on the journey, I made my way to the luggage office to collect the heavy
suitcase I had left there three days before. There were only a few people waiting, and I took out
my wallet to find the receipt for my case. The receipt did not seem to be where I had left it. I
emptied the contents of the wallet, and railway-tickets, money, scraps of paper, and
photographs tumbled out of it; but no matter how hard I searched, the receipt was nowhere to
be found.
When my turn came, I explained the situation sorrowfully to the assistant. The man looked at
me suspiciously as if to say that he had heard this type of story many times and asked me to
describe the case. I told him that it was an old, brown-looking object no different from the many
cases I could see on the shelves. The assistant then gave me a form and told me to make a list
of the chief contents of the case. It they were correct, he said., I could take the case away. It
tried to remember all the articles I had hurriedly packed and wrote them down as they come to
me.
After I had done this, I went to look among the shelves. There were hundreds of cases there
and for one dreadful moment, it occurred to me that if someone had picked the receipt up, he
could have easily claimed the case already. This had not happened fortunately, for after a time,
I found the case lying on its side high up in a corner. After examining the articles inside, the
assistant was soon satisfied that it was mine and told me I could take the case away. Again I
took out my wallet: this time to pay. I pulled out a five-pound note and the ‘lost’ receipt slipped
out with it. I could not help blushing and glanced up at the assistant. He was nodding his head
knowingly, as if to say that he had often seen this happen before too!

Exercises
Choose the best answer in each exercise: a, b, c or d.
1. The writer needed the receipt

a. to claim his suitcase.
b. to pay at the luggage office.
c. to prove that he had paid at the luggage office.
d. to prove that he had bought the suitcase.
2. The writer felt foolish because
a. he couldn´t find his receipt.
b. he hadn´t really lost his receipt at all.
c. he has to fill in a form.
d. the assistant was laughing at him.
3. There weren’t ......... people waiting at the luggage office.
a. very much; b: a lot; c: lots ; d: very many
4. If they were correct, he said, I ……… to take the case away.
a. was able ; b.: could; c: would be allowed ; d: would be possible
5. situation means
a. condition; b: event; c: place ; d: position
6. wrote them down means
a. copied them ; b: made a note of them ; c: signed them; d: pointed at them
Sentence Structure
Rewrite in indirect speech, then check your answer against the text:
‘Make a list of the chief contents of the case,’ he said to me.
He_____________ ______________________________________________________ .
1. Describe in not more than 80 words the writer’s experiences after he found that his
receipt was ‘lost’ to the end of the passage.
2. Supposing you had left a suitcase on a train. Write an email to a lost property office
describing the case and its contents and asking if it has been found. Use about 100
words.

3
The house next door had been empty for so long that we had quite forgotten what it was like to
have neighbours. One day, however, a great furniture-van drew up near our front gate, and in
a short time, tables, chairs, beds, pictures, and countless other things were heaped up on the
pavement. A small car arrived out of which emerged seven people: a man, a woman, and five
children of various ages. The children hurried out and began laughing delightedly as the whole
family trooped into the house. Windows were flung open; furniture was put into place; and little
faces peered inquisitively at us over the fence and disappeared. It was our first introduction to
the Robinsons.
Though we became firm friends with our new neighbours, we often had cause to be irritated by
them. We lent them so many things, that we never quite knew whether something had been
lost or borrowed. Our garden became an unsafe place: little boys dressed as cowboys or Indians
would leap up from behind bushes, point wooden pistols at us and order us to put our hands
up. Sometimes our lives were spared; at others, we were mown down pitilessly, in cold blood,
at point-blank range, with a sharp ‘Bang! Bang!’ Even more dangerous were the arrows that
occasionally came sailing over the garden fence. They had no sooner fallen, than robin Hood
would appear to retrieve them, dragging his unwilling sister, Maid Marian, behind him.
But we did not always go in fear of our lives. The Robinsons were friendly and helpful and when
we left our house for the holidays, we knew we had nothing to fear so long as our neighbours
were around. We understood what it was to have company in the long, friendless, winter
evenings when Mrs. Robinson would drop in for a cup of tea and a chat; or when Mr. Robinson
would lean over the fence and talk endlessly with father about gardening problems. The plot
next door which had been so unsightly, so overgrown with weeds, blossomed in time into a
delightful garden; and the empty house, so long deserted, was flooded with life and laughter.

Exercises
1. The house next door

b. had been occupied for a long time.
c. had been vacant for a long time.
d. had just been sold.
e. had just been let.
2. The new neighbours’ children
a. were badly behaved.
b. were really dangerous.
c. loved playing games.
d. were very unpleasant.
3. Our garden ......... an unsafe place.
a. got; b: fell; c: turned into; d: grew
4. We had nothing to fear ……… our neighbours were around.
a. so; b: while; c: that; d: why
5. our lives were spared means
a. we were killed; b: we weren’t killed; c: we were freed;
d: we weren’t punished
6. chat means
a. cake; b: argument; c: meal; d: talk
Sentence Structure
Join these sentences, then check your answers against the text:
What was it like to have neighbours? We had quite forgotten.
We had_______________________________________________________________ .
1. Deriving your information from the passage, in not more than 80 words give an account
of the advantages and disadvantages of having neighbours.
2. You have just moved into a new house. Write a letter of about 250 words to a friend
describing the house and mentioning some of the things you have to do to get it in order.

4
I soon realized that I had entered an unusual kind of shop. There were no goods on display; there
was no shop-window: nothing but a number of empty shelves at one end of the room in front
of which a man was standing on a raised platform, and shouting loudly that the greatest sale of
the year was about to begin. I decided to stay and see what would happen.
A harassed assistant began to pile all sorts of odds and ends on the shelves: table-lamps, cutlery-
sets, clocks, electric razors, crockery, vases, and a large quantity of small packets all similarly
wrapped in bright red paper. When the man at the table was satisfied that a sufficiently large
crowd of people had collected, he began distributing the packets, asking for the small sum of
three-pence in return, and declaring that the value of the contents was fifty times as much.
I paid three pence for my packet and was immediately informed that I should not open it until
after the sale. The money I had given, I found, entitled me to bid for anything on the shelves. All
these beautiful and extremely valuable objects, the man announced, would be given away,
simply given away. He was as good as his word, for he held up an electric razor and asked a
young man (who from the look on his face needed it) whether it was worth six pence. The man
had no doubt about the matter and was promptly handed the razor for the sum asked. The same
occurred with a number of other articles.
Then, instead of asking for small sums like sixpence, the man began to demand larger amounts
for ‘very rare, high-quality antiques’. The people present, thinking that these too were ‘given
away’, soon found themselves paying a great deal of money for useless, yacht-like lamps and
ugly clocks in carved, heavy frames. I decided I had better go quickly before being tempted into
buying something I did not want. I went into the street and opened my prize-packet, only to find
that I had been rewarded with a cheap bottle of scent!

Exercises
1. One of these statements is true. Which one?

a. The prices of the objects were clearly marked.
b. Anyone could walk into the shop and buy what he wanted.
c. Everything in the shop was auctioned.
d. Nobody bought any of the small packets
2. The writer
a. didn’t bid for anything.
b. only bid for one of the small red packets.
c. bought an electric razor for sixpence.
d. paid a lot of money for an antique.
3. The greatest sale of the year ......... begin.
a. would just; b: was due to; c: would be going to; d: should
4. I decided ……… to go quickly.
a. in order; b: it would be best; c: I must; d: for
5. entitled me means
a. rewarded me; b: prevented me; c: gave me the right to;
d: gave me the honour to
6. he was as good as his word means
a. he wasn’t to be trusted; b: he kept his promise; c: he talked a lot;
d: he was a very good person
Sentence Structure
I was told not to open it until after the sale.
I was told I_____________________________________________________________ .
1. Describe in not more than 80 words all the writer saw and heard after the shelves were
made ready for the sale to commence.
2. Supposing you bought some things in a department store. In about 250 words write the
dialogue between the shop-assistant and yourself. Begin: ‘Can I help you, madam/sir?’

5
The next day, Bob insisted that he should do the cooking for a change. He had always fancied
himself as a cook and never failed to remind his wife, Susan, of the grand parties he had had
before they married. How was it, Bob would ask, that in those days he had managed to feed as
many as twenty people. Susan, however, had other ideas. She remembered Bob´s parties well–
especially the kitchen which, when the party was over, looked as though it had been hit by a
hurricane. But Bob was so insistent, that in the end Susan reluctantly agreed to let him have a
free hand.
Susan determined to make the most of the situation and went into the parlour to read. She had
no sooner settled down than Bob began calling to her from the kitchen. She had half expected
this would happen, smiled to herself, and continued to read. Bob shouted louder than ever and
seeing that there was no response, finally came into the parlour himself, obviously in an agitated
state. How could he possibly work with no equipment, he demanded. He could not find bowls,
cups, dishes, or even a single spoon. What he had thought was flour turned out to be icing-sugar
and there was not a pinch of salt in the whole house. Susan calmly told him where everything
was and Bob rushed back only to find that the milk had boiled over. He mopped the mess up
hastily and set to work. In no time, nearly everything that had been in the side-board and in the
pantry was splendidly arrayed before him on the kitchen table. Now he could really commence,
he thought.
About two hours passed and Susan could not understand why things were so quiet. Bob must
be managing after all! The smell of something burning quickly proved her wrong and caused her
to drop her book and dash to the kitchen. Thick smoke greeted her when she opened the door.
She could dimly make out the figure of Bob trying to extract something from the oven and
burning himself in the process. Bob produced a blackened object, quickly dropped it into the
sink and turned on the tap. His cake was a little over-done, he explained, but otherwise all right.
Apart from this, he had put sugar into the stew instead of salt, but he did not think it would do
the stew any harm. When the smoke cleared, Susan saw to her horror, that her once spotless
kitchen now resembled a battlefield.

Exercises
1. Susan
a. was glad Bob would do the cooking.
b. didn´t trust Bob to do the cooking.
c. had a high opinion of Bob´s cooking
d. suggested Bob should do the cooking.
2. Susan realized Bob had been unsuccessful when
a. the milk boiled over.
b. Bob couldn´t find utensils and ingredients.
c. she smelt something burning.
d. she saw the smoke-filled kitchen.
3. Bob insisted …… the cooking.
a. to do; b. to doing; c. on doing; d. in doing
4. … …she had settled down, he began calling to her.
a. No sooner; b. Hardly; c. As soon as; d. At once
5. reluctantly means:
a. at last; b. unwillingly; c. willingly; d. at once
6. determined means.
a. agreed; b. decided; c. insisted; d. tried
Sentences Structure
Join these sentences, and then check your answer against the text:
Thick smoke greeted her. She opened the door.
1. In not more than 80 words describe Bob´s experiences when he was trying to cook.
2. Write the recipe of your favourite dish or cake. Arrange your material under two
headings: Ingredients and Method.

6
About 20 of us had been fortunate enough to receive invitations to a film studio to take part in
a crowd scene. Although our ‘act’ would only last for three minutes in all, we were given the
opportunity to see quite a number of interesting things. We all stood at the far end of the
studio as workmen prepared the scene which was to be filmed. Several bare trees had been
set up at the edge of the winding path, and the Art Director was giving some last-minute
instructions to his assistants.
Very soon, bright lights were turned on and the path was covered with what looked like salt.
The big movie camera was wheeled into position. The producer of the film shouted something
to the camera operator who waved his hand in reply, and then went to speak to the two
famous actors who were standing nearby. Since it was very hot in the studio, it came as a
surprise to us to see one of the actors put on a heavy overcoat. He pulled a hat down over his
eyes, put his hands in his pockets and started walking along the path. A big fan began blowing
tiny white feathers down on him, and soon the bare trees were covered in ‘snow’. Two more
fans were turned on, and a ´strong wind´ whistled through the trees. The first actor was
plodding through the snow when the second, now dressed as a beggar, began walking towards
him trembling with cold. The picture looked so real and wintry that it made us shiver.
The next scene was a complete contrast. The way it was filmed was quite extraordinary.
Pictures taken on an island in the Pacific were shown on a glass screen. An actor and an
actress stood in front of the image so that they looked as if they were at the water’s edge on
an island. By a simple trick like this, palm trees, sandy beaches, and blue, clear skies had been
brought into the studio!
Since it was our turn next, we were left wondering what scene would be prepared for us. For a
full three minutes in our lives we would be experiencing the thrill of being film ‘stars’!

Exercises
1. Why had twenty people been invited to a film studio?

a. So they could see how a film was made.
b. They were to be given important parts in a film.
c. They were to take part in a film.
d. They were to be interviewed.
2. One of the actors put on a heavy overcoat because

a. he felt cold.
b. it was cold in the studio.
c. it was snowing.
d. he had to wear it in a scene.
3. …….. would it last? Three minutes.

a. How; b. How much; c. How long; d. How far
4. Pictures ……… taken on an island were shown on a screen.
a. who had been; b. which had been; c. whom had been; d. what had
been
5. fortunate means:
a. chancy; b. fated; c. lucky; d. happy
6. last minute means:
a. final ; b. latest; c. complete; d. end
Sentences Structure
The picture looked real and wintry and it made us shiver.
The picture looked so ……………………………………………………………………………………………………….. .
1. Suppose you had been present when the film was being made. In not more than 80
words describe what you saw after the camera was brought into position.
2. Suppose you were writing an article for a newspaper. In about 250 words give an
account of a film or play you have seen and enjoyed.

7
In 1928, Sir Alexander Fleming noted that some common green mould had grown among
bacteria which had previously been planted in a culture plate. As the mould grew, it formed a
liquid which destroyed the nearby microbe-colonies. Fleming tried this liquid out on other types
of bacteria and found that some were dissolved while others were left unharmed. He named
the fluid “penicillin”, unaware that this chance discovery was to have tremendous
consequences.
Fleming realized that penicillin had great antiseptic qualities, but the active principle in the
mould was too unstable and difficult to extract. For a time, the only practical purpose of
penicillin was to separate different types of bacteria from each other.
Ten years passed before any serious attempt was made to produce penicillin from liquid cultures
of mould. Two scientists, Florey and Chain, carried out a great number of experiments and
eventually succeeded in deriving a yellow powder from the liquid. The powder was crude and
full of impurities; but it was a hundred times more active than the original discovery. It was
found to possess two very important properties: it annihilated bacteria and did not harm body-
tissues when applied locally to cuts and wounds. The next step was to find out whether penicillin
could be introduced into the bloodstream and so be carried to every part of the body. When
experiments were made with mice, penicillin acted in the same way in blood as it had done in
water: the bacteria were killed and the blood-cells remained unaffected. The time had now
arrived to see whether this powerful antiseptic could be used to combat human disease. Even
though tests proved extremely difficult because only small amounts of the substance could be
produced under laboratory conditions, results were miraculous. The remaining problem was to
produce penicillin in large quantities. Because of the war, it was impossible for Britain to embark
on large-scale production, and Florey was obliged to go to America. Soon, sufficient quantities
were available to effect a low mortality-rate among battle casualties. After the war, penicillin
came into general use.
Fleming has taken his place among the great benefactors of mankind. That the mould had grown
by chance is of no consequence. What matters is that he was there to observe it. Without his
presence, this ”chance” would have gone undetected, and might never have occurred again.

Exercises
1. Answer the following question in your own words as far as possible.
a. For what purpose was penicillin used before Florey and Chain began their experiments?
b. What are the properties of penicillin?
c. Why did Florey go to America?
2. Explain the meanings of the following words and phrases as they are used in the passage:
tried this liquid out (l.3); tremendous consequences (ll. 5-6); antiseptic (l. 7); unstable (l. 8);
crude (l. 12); annihilated (l. 14); locally (l. 15); to combat human disease (ll. 19-20); to embark
on large-scale production (l. 23); mortality-rate (l. 24).
Sentence Structure
a. The mould grew. It formed a liquid. This destroyed the nearby microbe-colonies. ( ll. 2-3)
b. Tests proved extremely difficult. Only small amounts of the substance could be produced
under laboratory conditions. Results were miraculous. (ll.20-21)
1. Deriving your information from the third paragraph (lines 10-25) write an account of how
penicillin was developed in not more than 80 words.
2. Write a composition on one of the following:
a. Hospitals.
b. Man versus disease.

8
Friendship is above reason, for, though you find virtues in a friend, he was your friend before
you found them. It is a gift that we offer because we must; to give it as the reward of virtue
would be to set a price upon it, and those who do that have no friendship to give. If you choose
your friends on the ground that you are virtuous and want virtuous company, you are no nearer
to true friendship than if you choose them for commercial reasons. Besides, who are you that
you should be setting a price upon your friendship? It is enough for any man that he has the
divine power to determine who his friends shall be. For, though you may choose the virtuous
to be your friends, they may not choose you: indeed, friendship cannot grow where there is
calculated choice. It comes, like sleep, when you are not thinking about it; and you should be
grateful, without any misgiving, when it comes.
So no man who knows that friendship is ever gave up a friend because he turns out to be
disreputable. His only reason for giving up a friend is that he has ceased to care for him; and,
when that happens, he should reproach himself for this mortal poverty of affection, not the
friend for having proved unworthy. For it is inhuman presumption to say of any man that he is
unworthy of your friendship, just as it is to say of any woman, when you have fallen out of love
with her, that she is unworthy of your love. In friendship and in love we are always humble,
because we see that a free gift has been given to us; and to lose that humility because we have
lost friendship or love is to take a pride in what should shame us.
We have our judgements and our penalties as part of the political mechanism that is forced upon
us so that we may continue to live; but friendship is not friendship at all unless it teaches us that
these are not part of our real life. They have to be; and we pay men, and clothe them in wigs
and scarlet, to sit in judgement on other men. So we are tempted to play this game of judgement
ourselves, even no one has paid us to do it. It is only in the warmth of friendship that we see
how cold a thing it is to judge and how stupid to take a pleasure in judging; for we recognize this
warmth as a positive good, a richness in our natures, while the coldness that sets us judging is a
poverty.

Exercises
1. What connection has the second paragraph with the third? Confine your answer to about
50 words.
2. Explain the meanings of the following words and phrases as they are used in the passage:
above reason (l. 1); on the ground that (l.4); setting a price upon (l.6); calculated choice (l.9);
misgiving (l.10); he turns out to be disreputable (ll.11-12); reproach (l.13); presumption (l.14).
Sentence Structure
a. Friendship is above reason. You find virtues in a friend. He was your friend before you found
them. (ll. 1-2)
b. You may choose the virtuous to be your friends. They may not choose you. (ll. 7-8)
c. In friendship and in love we are always humble. We see that a free gift has been given to us.
( l.16)
d. We are tempted to play this game of judgement ourselves. No one has paid us to do it.
(ll.22-23)
1. In not more than 110 words summarise the author’s view of friendship as expressed in the
first two paragraphs.
2. Write a composition on one of the following:
a. Getting to know people.
b. Friendship.

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Summary and Composition

Summary and Composition 1

How to write a precis

1. Read the passage carefully twice.

Summary and Composition 2

Summary and Composition 3

Multiple Choice Questions

Choose the best answer in each exercise : a, b, c or d.