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Comprehension
Strategies in the
Acquiring of a
Second Language
Harris Winitz
Comprehension Strategies in the Acquiring
of a Second Language
Harris Winitz
Comprehension
Strategies in the
Acquiring of a
Second Language
Harris Winitz
Psychology Department
University of Missouri–Kansas City
Kansas City, MO, USA
ISBN 978-3-030-52997-0 ISBN 978-3-030-52998-7 (eBook)

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52998-7
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2020

This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether
the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of
illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and
transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar
or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication
does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant
protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book
are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or
the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any
errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional
claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
To those whom I cherish
Shevie
Flora
Simeon
Jennifer
Adam
Dylan
Autumn
Preface
This volume represents the history and development of comprehension

as a second-language instructional strategy. Research findings from the
disciplines of psychology, psycholinguistics, child language learning, and
second-language comprehension instruction are summarized. Proposals
for the implementation of comprehension instructional strategies in the
teaching of a second language are presented.
Over the 50 years, beginning in 1970, that we undertook to study and
apply comprehension strategies in the teaching of a second language, a
large number of talented language scholars, teachers, artists, audio pro-
grammers, computer specialists, manuscript readers, and consultants
were involved. I am especially indebted to James Reeds and Paul García
for their early and important contributions. Additionally without the
contribution of the following participants the study and implementation
of comprehension strategies in second-language acquisition would not
have been possible. They are David Alcindor, Bernard Arnold, James
Asher, James Carroll, Cornelia Ayers, Michael Beatty, John Bennetts,
Werner Bleyhl, Natalie Brun, Laurence Conventry, Hernán Díaz, Renate
Frick, Rita Gombinski, Melitta Hanneman, Tobias von der Hyde, Zhao
Jinchuan, Michael Keef, Vera Korchak, James Lindauer, Fred Losch,
Peter McCandless, Greg Mackender, Tod Machin, Jacqueline Miller,
Gloria Nixon, Valerian Postovsky, Josef Rohrer, Victoria Rausseo, Taly
Rosen, Blanca Sagarna, Hélène Germain-Simões, Andrés Trimiño,
vii
viii Preface
Carmen Waggoner, Tami Winitz, Jean Yanes, Walter Zeller, and Josef
Zilbershatz.
Kansas City, MO Harris Winitz

Contents
1 Introduction 1
2 Our Magical Language 11
3 Development of the Comprehension Approach as a

Method of Second-Language Instruction 27
4 Models of Implicit Language Processing 61
5 Language Acquisition in Children: The Development of

Syntax101
6 Vocabulary Development131
7 The Relationship Between Comprehension and

Production157
ix
x Contents
8 Word Segmentation and Intelligibility, Parental

Simplification, and Frequency and Amount of Language
Input181
9 The Role of Conversational Interchanges in First- and

Second-Language Learning199
10 Considerations in the Development of Lessons in the

Comprehension Approach217
11 Instructional Principles Applied to the Several Stages of

Comprehension Learning239
12 Consideration of the Advanced Stages of Instruction

Using the Comprehension Approach309
13 Evaluation of the Comprehension Approach and Related

Considerations in Acquiring a Second Language341
References369
Index371
List of Figures
Fig. 3.1 40
Fig. 3.2 42
Fig. 3.3 43
Fig. 3.4 44
Fig. 3.5 45
Fig. 4.1 An illustration of the linear (left panel) and nonlinear
(right panel) models of language learning in Winitz,
H. Input considerations in the comprehension of first
and second language. Native language and foreign language
acquisition, Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences,
Vol. 379, H. Winitz, Edt. 72
Fig. 5.1 120
Fig. 11.1 242
Fig. 11.2 250
Fig. 11.3 251
Fig. 11.4 251
Fig. 11.5 252
Fig. 11.6 253
Fig. 11.7 254
Fig. 11.8 255
Fig. 11.9 257
Fig. 11.10 258
Fig. 11.11 258
xi
xii List of Figures
Fig. 11.12 260

Fig. 11.13 260
Fig. 11.14 262
Fig. 11.15 263
Fig. 11.16 264
Fig. 11.17 266
Fig. 11.18 267
Fig. 11.19 268
Fig. 11.20 269
Fig. 11.21 270
Fig. 11.22 271
Fig. 11.23 272
Fig. 11.24 284
Fig. 11.25 285
Fig. 11.26 285
Fig. 11.27 286
Fig. 11.28 287
Fig. 11.29 288
Fig. 11.30 289
Fig. 11.31 292
Fig. 11.32 293
Fig. 11.33 295
Fig. 11.34 303
Fig. 11.35 304
1
Introduction
If I were to recommend an essential first book for foreign language teach-

ers, it would be Kelly’s (1976) 25 Centuries of Language Teaching, for
within the covers of this book one can find ancient and modern refer-
ences to almost all current methods of language instruction. For example,
there is reference to audio-lingual, behavioral, cognitive, and classroom
approaches to language teaching. Under the heading “Mime and
Demonstration” there is recognition that some methods use objects and
activities, rather than translation to convey meaning in the second lan-
guage. Although Kelly provides a historical perspective of language
instruction, mentioning past and present approaches and activities, he
does not necessarily endorse a particular method of instruction.
This book, unlike Kelly’s book, is not a review or summary of current
or past language teaching methodologies, although a historical perspec-
tive of foreign language teaching methods is an important ingredient in
understanding new approaches and theoretical positions. The focus of
this book emphasizes comprehension-based instruction for consideration
in foreign language instruction. It provides for instructors of foreign lan-
guages and student majors in a foreign language the background and
© The Author(s) 2020 1

H. Winitz, Comprehension Strategies in the Acquiring of a Second Language,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52998-7_1
2 H. Winitz
development of the Comprehension Approach as an alternative teaching

methodology.
The critical issue in foreign language teaching and learning is that of
discovering the conditions under which the process of language learning
can be maximally effective.
There is a certain degree of disappointment among foreign language
professionals in that interest in achieving success in acquiring a second
language is not evident among the majority of high school and college
students. Students often become discouraged in their study of a foreign
language after taking a first course that entails memorization of gram-
matical structures and endless drill work.
After many centuries of discussion and deliberation, the art of teaching
a foreign language still remains an active area of study and disagreement
among language professionals. There are academic journals devoted to
investigation of almost every facet of foreign language learning. Some of
the current topics are theoretical linguistic issues and their relevance for
language teaching, when and how to introduce grammatical rules, the
role of listening in acquiring a foreign language, reading procedures to
teach vocabulary, the use of computer programs to deliver lessons, the age
at which language instruction should begin and a host of many other
important issues. The list of topics is lengthy as is the number of journal
articles that are devoted to these topics, all of which have the singular goal
of improving the effectiveness of foreign language teaching and learning.
Effective teaching and learning also includes consideration of atten-
tion to student retention rate. American universities generally require one
or two years of foreign language study, but it is generally known that the
majority of university students do not enroll in foreign language courses
beyond that which is required of their major area of study. Part of the
problem can be attributed to the evaluation students make of their for-
eign language courses. Generally they are unconvinced that by taking
additional foreign language courses they will become speakers of a new
language. Contributing also to the low retention rate of students in for-
eign language study is the knowledge students have of foreign language
course curricula. They know its primary emphasis is the study of litera-
ture and that the acquiring of conversational fluency in their respective
disciples is only incidentally emphasized.
1 Introduction 3
Despite the number of investigations and serious essays on foreign lan-

guage methodology, the American system of language instruction, with
the exception of programs that emphasize the immersion methodology,
has remained essentially the same since the beginning of the twentieth
century. To be sure grammar-translation foreign language textbooks have
been modified to include practice in listening and in conversation, but
the central core of the American introductory high school and college
beginning textbooks is an overwhelming emphasis on syntactic (sen-
tence) grammar and the acquiring of vocabulary by memorization of
paired lists of English and their respective foreign words. The general
teaching procedures of almost all textbooks is to introduce a grammatical
rule followed by a list of vocabulary items in English and the respective
foreign language, followed by sentences illustrating the application of the
grammatical rule. The grammatical principles are largely syntactic rules,
that is, rules of sentence construction, verb conjugations, noun declen-
sions, and case endings. These rules are not the complex and abstract
rules of linguistic grammars, but still these rules are relatively difficult for
beginning student to apply in conversation and writing.
In the majority of academic settings the foreign language course sylla-
bus makes use of the principles of the grammar-translation system of
language instruction. It is implemented in the following way: Note the
grammatical components and the vocabulary items of an English sen-
tence. Select the corresponding vocabulary items from the second lan-
guage and convert the grammar of the English sentence into the grammar
of the foreign sentence.
Consider the following English sentence which is converted into
Spanish.
English: She mixed the salad. Now she is serving it.
Spanish: Ella mezcló la ensalada. Ahora, la está sirviendo.
The translation of the above English sentences is indeed elementary
and yet it is not a simple reproduction of the English sentences. In addi-
tion to knowing the correct Spanish vocabulary elements, the student
must know that the gender of the word “ensalada” is feminine, and,
therefore, the definite article is “la” for the English “the.” The translation
of the second Spanish sentence is somewhat more complex than the first
Spanish sentence. The pronoun “she” can be omitted in Spanish, known
4 H. Winitz
as the pro-drop rule, and the pronoun “la” for “it” appears following
“Ahora,” the equivalent of the English word “now,” and not at the end of
the sentence as is the placement of “it” in the English sentence.
The English-speaking learner of Spanish, who uses a grammar-
translation method of instruction, must take into account the grammati-
cal correspondence between English and the foreign language and the
appropriate translation of English words into Spanish words. When
speaking, this process must be done at a normal conversational rate which
is perhaps slightly longer than the time it takes an English speaker to say
each of the above two English sentences, probably no more than five
seconds. Conversation involves relatively rapid responses if one is to keep
the attention of the listener. For sentences of greater complexity than
those listed above, a word-by-word conversion cannot easily be made
within the framework of normal conversational time limits. Excessive
pauses in conversation are not usually tolerated in conversation.
Let’s now turn the task around and consider the listening responsibili-
ties of the second-language learner. To understand a foreign language sen-
tence, the process of listening is essentially the reverse of speaking. In
order for the listener to derive the meaning of a sentence using a word-
by-word translation requires attention to the grammatical units and to
the meaning of the words. The listener must conduct the process of trans-
lation rapidly as the speaker moves from sentence to sentence. This pro-
cess is extraordinarily complex because the listener must perform the
translation rapidly for sentences that exceed ten words. If the translation
of a sentence is not done rapidly by the listener, attention to the immedi-
ate following sentences cannot be made. In fact the immediate following
sentences will not be heard by the listener who is completely engaged in
applying previously rote-learned grammatical rules that are not easily
retrieved from memory and cannot be quickly applied.
Trained language translators achieve their spectacular translation skills
by attending to the meaning of the source sentences. They do not engage
in word-for-word translation or apply directly grammatical rules. They
work at the meaning level. The meaning of the source sentences is trans-
lated using native or near native understanding of the two respective lan-
guages. That is, the translation process for trained translators involves
little or no conscious attention to grammar or to the isolated meaning of
1 Introduction 5
each of the words of the sentence, but rather attention is given to the
totality of meaning that is provided by each sentence.
In reading, translation time is not a consideration. The learner of a
second language can take time to convert a sentence by giving it consider-
able thought, seeking a translation rule from a grammar textbook, and
finding the meaning of unknown words, phrases, expressions, and idioms
from dictionaries and other source materials. This approach is recom-
mended by language teachers who take the position that reading is the
primary goal in foreign language education. Nonetheless, reading of for-
eign language texts is still a complex process for students because reading
material requires an understanding of many thousands of words and
expressions that cannot be translated directly.
The real time of sentences in spoken speech is not a critical component
in written homework assignments. Students can take as much time as
they need to identify the correct units necessary to compose or to trans-
late a sentence. However, written assignments for students in the first or
second year of foreign language study can prove to be difficult because
the grammatical units for a particular target sentence may not be the
same for two languages. Even if students know well the respective gram-
mars of two languages, they cannot translate a sentence correctly without
knowing the correspondence between the grammars of the two languages.
Additionally without knowing how a particular thought is expressed in a
foreign language a correct translation cannot be easily made. Language
textbooks may cite a few examples for sentences for which grammatical
units and expressions do not correspond directly between two languages,
but they do not provide a formula or set of correspondence grammatical
rules for the large set of non-convergent grammatical rules and expres-
sions among languages in order to enable students to formulate a correct
translation of sentences in a first language to sentences of a second lan-
guage. Also word usage may differ considerably between respective lan-
guages. In this regard the use of a bilingual dictionary is not particularly
helpful.
The process of applying the same grammatical units to the source lan-
guage and the second language would seem to work best when two lan-
guages are from the same language family, but nevertheless the differences
that prevail are still great. Consider the Spanish equivalent of the English
6 H. Winitz
sentence: What is in this soup?—¿Qué tiene esta sopa? (What has this
soup?). To translate this sentence correctly into Spanish, the student must
know that the use of the verb “is” in this particular English sentence cor-
responds to the Spanish verb “tiene” which is roughly the equivalent of
the English verb “has.”
Native speakers of a language do not have conscious knowledge of the
deep-rooted grammatical principles of their language. Consider the use
of “in” and “on” to describe the following events: The ball hit him on the
chest; the ball hit him in the stomach. The ball hit him in the eye. The
ball hit him on the leg. Two questions immediately surface: (1) Why do
we use “in” and “on” in English to describe what appears to be the same
kind of event? And (2) how, as native speakers of English, have we learned
when to use “in” and “on” correctly with regard to a ball hitting a body
part? A third question can immediately be asked: Were we teaching
English as a second language, what grammatical principle would we
apply to impart to our students the correct use of “in” and “on” for the
simple situation of a ball hitting various body parts?
In our description of the teaching procedures for second-language
learning, called the Comprehension Approach, we emphasize listening
for meaning similar to the now historic approach practiced by teachers of
the direct method (Kelly 1976) in which only the second language is used
in the classroom, with two differences: (1) Students are not asked to talk,
only to listen, but they are not prohibited from volunteering to talk, and
(2) there is no discussion of the grammatical rules of the second language.
The approach presented in this book will include a description of com-
prehension procedures that are employed to teach the vocabulary and
expressions of a second language without translation. The learning of
words by translation from one language to another can cause the words
in the second language to lose their flexibility because each newly learned
word in the second language is tied to the meaning or several meanings
of an English word. For example, in German it is common to say, “The
doctor measures the pulse” (Er misst den Puls.) rather than “The doctor
takes his/her pulse.” A beginning student would be inclined to use the
German word for take which would be inappropriate in German. In
English one waters a tree, but in German the word for “pour” is “gießen”
(giessen), which is used for the English “to water,” as in “Sie gießt den
1 Introduction 7
Baum” (She waters the tree.). In the Comprehension Approach, students

hear the exact way in which native speakers express themselves in a large
number of contexts and situations.
Collocations are word sequences that are bound together. These bun-
dles of words in every language are enormous in number and differ in
their use across languages. Consider the collocation involving the word
sign in English. Sign is collocated with the word say, as in “The sign says.”
In German the word steht (stand), in this context, is equivalent to the
English word “says,” as in: Das Schild steht. (The sign says.). The English
phrase—sign says—is a commonly used collocation. With regard to cof-
fee there are two frequently used collocations: weak coffee and strong
coffee. These two adjectives, weak and strong, cannot be used with soup.
The collocations for soup are watery soup and thick soup. The term thick
coffee can be used, but not with the meaning of strong coffee.
Collocations are pervasive in every language and their number is enor-
mous (Benson, Benson, and Ilson, 1997). Almost every object referred to
in a language can be defined by a set of standard collocated modifiers.
Toast can be light, medium, and dark whereas the corresponding terms
for steak are rare, medium, and well done.
A Spanish colleague, a teacher of English in Spain, while visiting her
sister in the United States was offered some chocolate candy from a box
with two layers. When seeing the box, she remarked, “Oh a candy box
with two levels.” Her sister immediately corrected her, saying “Yes, the
box has two layers.” That incident alone reinforced my belief that the
learning of collocations in a second language requires extensive contact
with the second language.
Word extensions for second-language learners are difficult to acquire.
Recently, a newspaper reporter wrote, “Investors began to doubt Europe’s
ability to cauterize its worsening debt.” Although I have never heard the
medical term cauterize used in this particular way, it did not strike me as
particularly odd. Contemporary expressions often develop from the
media’s use of newly formed stylistic phrases. In this particular case
English speakers do not need to know the medical use of the term cauter-
ize to assume that the general meaning here of cauterize is “to stop quickly
or abruptly.” Those readers who know the meaning of cauterize will
reflect perhaps for a moment that the meaning of cauterize is “to stop
8 H. Winitz
bleeding quickly or abruptly by the burning of flesh.” In the

Comprehension Approach, students hear thousands of sentences as they
are spoken by native speakers of a second language.
Among foreign language specialists there is the widely held belief that
a variety of teaching approaches should be implemented in the class-
room. This point of view is held by most educational institutions respon-
sible for the teaching of a foreign language. The Ontario Canadian
Ministry of Education, as an example, clearly expresses this viewpoint in
a public document regarding the teaching of high school French stated in
the following way, “It is important that students have opportunities to
learn in a variety of ways individually and cooperatively; independently
and with teacher direction; through hands-on activities; and through the
study of examples followed by practice. There is no single correct way to
teach or to learn” (The Ontario Canadian Ministry of Education, The
Ontario Curriculum, Grades 11 and 12, p. 6, 2000).
The Ontario document seems to acknowledge that an eclectic approach
to second-language teaching is not only acceptable, but preferred, when
it is executed within the language teaching framework of the Ontario
Ministry guidelines. Among these guidelines is the restriction that the
language of communication in the classroom is only French; that with
respect to course procedures a “balance” of oral communication, reading,
and writing is used; and that students’ interests and concerns should be
taken into account. These last two teaching strategies are expressed in the
following way: “these skills (oral communication, reading and writing)
should be taught in contexts that reflect students’ interests and concerns
so that they can apply their knowledge of French in situations that are
meaningful to them” (The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 11 and 12,
p. 4, 2000).
The Ontario Ministry guidelines document provides a step-by-step set
of expectations for mastering each of the four language skills, listening,
reading, speaking, and writing, and the grammatical categories that are to
be acquired at each point in the teaching syllabus. Furthermore, the writ-
ers of this document make note of a common belief held by many foreign
language teachers that the classroom study of a foreign language, in this
case French, should enable students to expand their command of French
“through contact with French speaking people” (The Ontario Curriculum,
1 Introduction 9
Grades 11 and 12, p. 1, 2000). This last point demands critical theoreti-
cal and practical attention as there is no information available that indi-
cates at what point students can capably engage in conversation in the
second language that they have been studying and, therefore, gain
increased understanding and use of a second language. Placing students
in a second-language speaking environment in order to expand their
command of a second language by having contact with speakers of a sec-
ond language implies that language learning will take place, although the
second-language requirements of students necessary to accomplish this
goal are yet to be investigated.
With reference again to the Ontario Canadian Ministry of Education
(2000) guidelines the following position regarding the use of computers
was offered, “Students will be expected to use French computer programs
as well as computer-assisted learning modules developed for second-
language learners” (2000, p. 44). The Ministry curriculum guide acknowl-
edges the useful application of the internet and other audiovisual materials
in enhancing the students’ acquisition of French. We will present the
position that a successful comprehension-immersion teaching approach
should rely heavily on computer-assisted instruction, as the acquisition of
a foreign language requires intensive input which classroom one hour five
days a week courses cannot easily provide.
Concluding Remarks
Our goal in this book is to explain the Comprehension Approach and its
implementation. We will describe the development of lessons according
to this method and the research that has been conducted thus far to sup-
port comprehension second-language learning. We will support the posi-
tion that speaking develops from understanding a foreign language
through listening and reading over an extended period. Principles and
procedures for teaching understanding will be given considerable atten-
tion in this book. The understanding of language input, we will claim, is
the foundation on which the achievement of language learning rests. The
skills of speaking and composition are not separate skills to be acquired
but are the result of achieving a sturdy understanding of a second
10 H. Winitz
language, which includes a large vocabulary and a set of expressions,

vastly greater than what is taught in the standard four-year foreign lan-
guage college sequence.
Jerome Bruner (1968) writing in his book Toward A Theory of
Instruction outlined several preconditions for successful teaching and
learning. Of particular significance are Bruner’s second and third princi-
ples which direct our concern to the instructional format of a body of
knowledge and the sequence in which this knowledge should be taught.
Bruner (p. 41) said, “a theory of instruction must specify the ways in
which a body of knowledge should be structured so that it can be most
readily grasped by the learner.” Equally important, “a theory of instruc-
tion should specify the most effective sequences in which to present the
materials to be learned.” These considerations posed by Bruner are impor-
tant but often difficult to operationalize. How is knowledge reprocessed
in a form that is readily grasped by the learner and how should the lessons
be arranged? These questions form the basis for the subject matter of this
book as it applies to the teaching of foreign languages.
References
Benson, M., Benson, E., & Ilson, R. (1997). The BBI dictionary of English word
combinations. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Co..
Bruner, J. S. (1968). Toward a theory of instruction. New York: W. W. Norton.
Kelly, L. G. (1976). 25 Centuries of Language Teaching. Rowley, MA:
Newbury House.
(The) Ontario Curriculum, Grades 11 and 12, French as a Second Language –
Core, Extended, and Immersion French, Ministry of Education (2000).
2
Our Magical Language
The depth of native language knowledge and the skill with which it is
executed is rarely contemplated by individuals until confronted with the
academic responsibility to study the grammar of a language. Perhaps the
first occasion at which reflection on grammatical analysis in American
schools takes place is in the third grade when the mechanics of sentence
structure are introduced to young children. Students are taught that their
language skills which they so ably use can be described and analyzed. As
students mature, they recognize that their early confrontation with gram-
matical analysis doesn’t go away. It continues throughout their years of
academic study. To some it becomes a welcome area of study. For many
who enjoy writing and public speaking and desire to enter any one of a
number of disciplines in which language is used effectively and correctly,
the analytical study of language is a welcome area of study. Even those
whose interests lie outside the communication fields but are required to
write reports and memoranda recognize the importance of attending to
the study of their native language. Their recognition of knowing about
their language extends beyond syntactic grammar and parts of speech to
how one uses language to communicate in a multitude of academic, busi-
ness, and social settings.

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52998-7_2
12 H. Winitz
However, there is one discipline in which the study of grammar bluntly

confronts the student and is often not received well. Eager to learn a for-
eign language, but having a distaste for studying the rules of grammar,
some students are placed in the uncomfortable position of dismissing an
ideal that they had wished to attain. Although often told that knowing
the grammar of the foreign language that they are studying will lead to
speaking that language, they become unconvinced by one or two semes-
ters of high school or college study and opt to complete the high school
or college requirement quickly and without further study.
Some students faced with a grammatical approach to foreign language
study often reflect on the learning of their first language. One student
reported to me that she asked her mother what she did to teach her
English and when did she learn it. Her mother replied that she didn’t do
anything special, as far as she knew other than talk to her. Parents are
often as oblivious to their role in their children’s learning of a first lan-
guage as are their children in learning their native language, yet the role
of the parent is extremely important, as subsequently will be discussed.
For the moment let us consider the study of verb tenses. The verb
tenses of foreign languages can be memorized, but this learning tactic will
not ensure their accurate use. What must be acquired is their functional
use. On a visit to a foreign country, a tour guide who spoke reasonably
good English took a group of tourists to the country’s empty parliament
building. At one point he stood next to a podium in the assembly hall
and said, “This is where the speaker of the house is sitting.” I received a
slight jolt, knowing that the meaning in this case was clear, but that the
contextual use of this sentence was incorrect. A native English speaker
would have said: This is where the speaker of the house sits, using the present
tense to indicate a situation or a specific ongoing event. I thought to
myself that it is clear that the present progressive form of the verb sit, that
is, “he is sitting,” must require the presence of an individual. However, on
another occasion sitting in a restaurant with my nine-year-old grand-
daughter, I revised my belief that someone must be present in order to
use the progressive “is sitting.” Sitting next to my granddaughter was my
grandson who momentarily left the table. At that point a relative sat
down next to my granddaughter, and my granddaughter responded:
“Dylan is sitting here,” a perfectly acceptable use of the present
progressive form “is sitting.” She might have used the past progressive,
“Dylan was sitting here,” but she didn’t because she knew he was return-
ing to the table. She might have used the simple present tense, Dylan sits
here, but she didn’t because it would imply that he always sits at this place
at this table.
At this point two generalizations regarding the learning of the correct
use of verb tenses appear reasonable. Learning the grammatical forms of
verb tenses of a foreign language will not prepare an individual with the
correct implied meanings of verb tenses. What is important, I believe, is
to experience verb usage in a large number of occasions. The discipline of
semantics is concerned with the meaning of sentences whereas the disci-
pline of syntax is concerned with the structure of sentences. A sentence
can be grammatical but not appropriate in a particular context.
Our understanding of word knowledge, termed lexical knowledge,
contributes importantly to our use and understanding of sentences.
Nelson (1981) considers the issue of what it means to have knowledge of
the lexical item ball. Some of the lexical descriptors that she mentions are
that a ball is used on the playground; it can be picked up, thrown, and
caught; it rolls; it bounces; and so on. Children acquiring the meaning of
the word ball acquire early these several descriptors of the word ball. With
age they learn additional descriptors for the word ball, such as its fabric,
its size, and the various types of balls, such as baseball, basketball, moth-
ball, ballpark, oddball, hairball, cornball, and so on.
The language principles that underlie our native language are acquired
early in childhood. We do not necessarily know these language principles
at a conscious level; nonetheless we are capable of using them. The under-
standing we have of our native language falls within the realm of implicit
knowledge. Our understanding of the meaning of a sentence is not a
conscious endeavor.
The discipline of linguistics centers on the description of elements and
rules that define and explain the infinite set of sentences that users of
natural languages can generate. Recently I read the following sentence
which was novel for me in an article on interior design: “Make your great
room cozy.” It is a sentence that I believe I had not encountered before
and one that I probably would never have created, but it is a sentence that
I well understand for both its literal meaning and its clever word usage. I
14 H. Winitz
understood the word “great room” because family rooms that are large are
often labeled “great rooms.” “Cozy” implies a small and almost intimate
situation, but in this context cozy provides to the reader something about
the design of the great room, more specifically, the intimate placement of
the furniture. Novel sentences such as this one are encountered frequently
by native speakers of a language and in most cases are interpreted easily.
To understand novel sentences, that is, ones we have not heard before,
is an extraordinary creative process. Applying our understanding of the
fundamental principles of the English language, our knowledge of the
speaker, the occasion in which a sentence is spoken, and an understand-
ing of the physical, sociological, and psychological makeup of the world
in which we live, we put forward a hypothesis as to the meaning of a
sentence. Stated in another way, we test the meaning of each sentence,
not necessarily at a conscious level, with all our language and social capa-
bilities by providing for ourselves that which we believe to be the mean-
ing of the speaker’s or writer’s intent. On some occasions we may fail to
grasp a speaker’s intent, but under an almost innumerable thematic situ-
ation, the system works extraordinarily well in that it provides to the lis-
tener the speaker’s intended meaning.
There is much to learn when acquiring a new language. In fact what is
to be learned is massive in size not generally recognized by the beginning
foreign language student. The student of German, for example, is required
to distinguish between the meaning of Er geht unter den Baum and Er
geht unter dem Baum, of which both expressions can be translated into
English as: He walks under the tree. A precise English translation can be
made, but let us first look at the difference in meaning between these two
German sentences by focusing on the two definite articles den and dem.
Here the article den signals entering the walking space beneath the tree,
whereas dem indicates that the walking takes place while under the tree.
He walked under the tree in English can have the meaning of just enter-
ing the space under the tree and walking in the space under the tree. If
necessary, of course, a distinction can be made in English for just entering
the space under the tree by saying: Just now he has begun to walk under
the tree. But this sentence would only be used for clarification. It would
be uncommon in English to cite this event in this way. However, in
German the distinction between entering the space under the tree and
walking under the tree is used as a matter of course. In English we can

almost make this distinction of entering a space and walking within a
space by using the two prepositions in and into. “He walked into the
house” has the meaning of entering the house and “He walked in the
house” has the meaning of walking in the house and walking inside the
house. When “in” is used the meaning of the sentence is ambiguous
because it can mean that the person is walking into the house and walk-
ing inside the house. Note, of course, that in an instructional manual in
which this distinction must be made clear, the writer of the instructional
manual would most likely use “into” rather than “in” to designate the
unambiguous meaning of entering the house. However, the meaning of
the prepositions “on” and “onto” in English is clear with regard to enter-
ing the particular designated space as in the difference in meaning for
these two sentences: They walked on the table and They walked onto
the table.
A student of German who does not understand the difference in mean-
ing between the above two German sentences in which the articles “den”
and “dem” are used would not be expected to make this distinction when
speaking German. Accordingly, understanding the meaning of the two
German definite articles, den and dem, for this situation and similar situ-
ations, must take place before these two definite articles can be used cor-
rectly in speech. No measure of practice in the speaking of German will
result in the correct use of these articles. Their functions must be under-
stood before they are used correctly in speech. Similarly for the native
speaker of English, understanding of the contrast between “on” and
“onto” must be understood before these two prepositions can be used
correctly in speech.
It is important to underline that understanding the meaning of sen-
tences in one’s native language, in most cases, is not a conscious endeavor.
We invoke this process of understanding sentences within an almost
instantaneous time span without engaging in conscious reasoning of the
structural components of the sentences we hear. When teaching foreign
languages, using the perspective of comprehension learning, the goal is
the same for the second-language learner: to understand a foreign lan-
guage rapidly and correctly without engaging in conscious reasoning of
the structural components of the sentences of the second language.
16 H. Winitz
Acquiring our native language has largely been a function of an immer-

sion process that began, as some language scientists believe, at birth, and
continued throughout our school years. Individuals whose interests lie in
the use of language beyond its everyday listening and conversational
needs hone their language skills in a variety of ways often taking courses
that emphasize advanced writing principles, creative writing, and meth-
ods of scientific writing, while concentrating on expanding their vocabu-
lary by extensive reading and by giving conscious attention to the meaning
of words. But before explicit attention is given to the development of
one’s second-language skills, implicit language knowledge of the second
language must be well established. Implicit knowledge of the second lan-
guage is the foundation upon which successful language usage rests.
Implicit use of language rules for native-speaking adults can best be
illustrated by a now well-known sentence assessment procedure.
Individuals are given sentences and asked to identify the sentences that
English speakers would say or would not say. The linguistic journals and
books are filled with thousands of such comparative examples because the
first step in formulating a linguistic rule is to compose sentences which
are regarded as allowable and those sentences that are unallowable accord-
ing to a linguistic principle or a set of linguistic principles.
In the following examples, sentences that are regarded as unallowable
are marketed with an asterisk.
*He spoke her to about the fire. (1)

*She has the apple eaten. (2)
We recognize that in sentences (1) and (2) that English word order has
been violated without consciously attending to the rules of pronoun and
verb placement in English.
The ordering of adjectives is an intricate process in English. Sentence
(3) would be considered grammatical whereas sentence (4) would not be
considered well formed.
The big red rubber ball is on the table and the small yellow plastic ball is
on the floor. (3)
*The rubber red big ball is on the table and the plastic yellow small ball is
on the floor. (4)
Radford (1981, p. 59) points out that the coordinate and cannot be
applied willy nilly when conjoining sentences. He cites the following ill-
formed sentence:
*John rang up his mother and up his sister. (5)
Parts of the sequence in (5) are grammatical: John rang up his mother;
John rang up his sister, but these two separate sentences are not gram-
matical when the conjunction and is used, as in (5).
Another example of an ungrammatical use of “and” involves conjoin-
ing the following two sentences to form a third sentence, indicated as
8 below:
He ran quickly. (6)

He ran outside. (7)
*He ran quickly and outside. (8)
Instead of conjoining sentences (6) and (7), we would much pre-

fer to say:
He ran quickly outside. (9)
It is instructive to examine a few sentences from the work of Fillmore

(1968) who studied the grammatical category case. Some cases he dis-
cussed were the following: agentive, the agent or instigator of an action;
instrumental, the inanimate force or instrument used to carry out the
action; and objective, the noun that is affected by the action specified by
the verb.
Consider the following sentences provided by Fillmore (1968, p. 22)
John broke the window. (10)

A hammer broke the window. (11)
John broke the window with a hammer (12)
18 H. Winitz
In (10), the subject John is the agent and in (11) the subject hammer
is the instrument. In (12) hammer is the instrument in the prepositional
phrase introduced by the preposition “with.” Fillmore notes that the con-
joining of sentences (10) and (11) is ungrammatical as the agentive and
instrumental cases cannot be conjoined to form (13).
*John and a hammer broke the window. (13)
However, the sentence “Bill broke the window” (14) can be conjoined
with sentence (10) “John broke the window” to form sentence (15):
John and Bill broke the window (15)
For every commonly used sentence, one word change can produce a
sentence that native speakers, in this case English, will reject as ill formed.
Consider the following sentences:
She mows the grass. (16)

She cuts the grass. (17)
She mows the lawn. (18)
*She cuts the lawn. (19)
What are the language considerations for sentence (19) that makes it a
sentence we would probably not say? A linguistic analysis would begin by
examining the difference between the words grass and lawn recognizing
that grass is a plant and plants vegetate. A lawn contains the crop grass.
To mow is to beautify by leveling and smoothing. These factors would be
used to define the language properties of the above sentences when a
linguistic analysis is made. However, native speakers of English do not
engage in an explicit linguistic analysis of a sentence prior to uttering it.
They reject sentence (19) because it “doesn’t sound right.”
The term generative grammar is used in formal linguistic analysis
because the grammar is said to generate the structural descriptions of the
sentences of a language. The grammar operates somewhat like a formula
which if carried out correctly will generate well-formed sentences. It is
generally accepted that generative grammars provide explanations and
provoke questions about sentence construction that are not possible with
traditional grammatical procedures of the type found in introductory for-
eign language textbooks.
In Chomsky’s (1965) seminal treatise on syntax, the complexity of
addressing a theory of grammaticality is illustrated by the following two
sentences:
John is easy to please. (20)

John is eager to please. (21)
Standard sentence diagramming would allocate to John the category of

subject and to the words “easy” and “eager” the category of adjective. Yet
the differing deep structures of the two sentences, that is the underlying
grammatical descriptors, reflect a difference not accounted for when
applying standard surface grammatical procedures. In (20) John is the
object of the sentence. He is a person that is easy to please. In (21) John
is the subject of the sentence in that what he does, he does eagerly.
Applying the linguistic transformation cleft “it” rule to the underlying
grammatical structures of the two sentences, the resulting sentences are:
It is easy to please John. (22)

*It is eager to please John. (23)
Sentence (22) is grammatical because John is the object of “to please”

whereas (23) is not grammatical because John is not the object of “to
please.”
Reflecting on the grammatical components of the plural form of the
hyphenated word e-mail, we recognize that the underlying unit for
e-mails is letters; therefore the word e-mail can be pluralized, producing
the sentence: I sent five e-mails today. The word mail cannot be plural-
ized. The sentence, “I sent five mails today,” would not be regarded as
grammatically well formed, but perhaps understandable.
One headline, I read several years ago, appeared on the front page of a
major newspaper: Two terms is enough for the mayor of Boston. The use
of the plural subject “terms” and the singular verb “is” appears to contra-
dict the count rules of English. In this case, the plural noun “terms” was
20 H. Winitz
followed by the singular verb “is.” Why does “two terms is enough” sound
right? Perhaps because the underlying meaning is: The office of two terms
is enough. Underlying components may be absent in the realization of
sentences. Their meaning is inferred.
Lastly we cannot ignore the linguistic area of pragmatics, the “gram-
matical” system that involves the language of social usage (Bates 1976;
Halliday 1985, and many other writers). Under the heading of pragmat-
ics, an expression can reflect a compliment, an insult, an expression of
love, a threat, a warning, a command, a show of respect, and so on.
Consider the situation of children who may want their parents to do
something, such as to take them to an amusement park. The parent not
willingly to commit himself or herself might say: “We’ll see.” In the con-
text of the workplace, an administrator or manager not willing to commit
himself/herself might say: “Let me think about that” or “Send me an
e-mail with more specifics and I will get right back to you.” A superior
would never dismiss a formal request with the phrase: “We’ll see.”
In our native tongue we know how to use our language to be pleasant,
to be sarcastic, to be angry, to show annoyance, to blame someone, and
so on. Our wording can be direct or subtle. At a gasoline station I observed
this notice hanging above the cash register: “Safe can only be opened after
closing hours by armed guards,” of which the underlying meaning is “If
you attempt to rob us, you can’t get the money from the safe.”
The foreign language student will be faced with a large number of
expressions that reflect the social and cultural milieu of the country in
which the foreign language is spoken. Some words may be direct transla-
tions of English expressions, but they do not necessarily have the same
meaning. In German Gute Nacht is a direct translation of good night;
however, it is used quite differently in German discourse. Gute Nacht is
usually used within the confines of the home or at night among very
good friends. Its connotative meaning is personal, often reflecting an inti-
mate relationship. Good evening, Guten Abend, is spoken in the eve-
ning. One can characterize the misuse of an evening greeting in English
by picturing one spouse saying to another spouse in America, “Good
evening,” as the final greeting at bedtime.
In Spanish buenos noches is a direct translation of good night also, but
this greeting can be said when meeting and leaving. It can be said quickly
as a greeting when wishing to avoid a person who comes upon you with-
out notice, enabling you to continue on your way.
Speakers of English have acquired a language of social context for
countless occasions. Consider the area of socially accepted address forms.
A salesclerk cannot be directly addressed by profession, such as “Salesclerk
can you help me?” whereas a waiter can be called “waiter” and a bus
driver can be called “driver.” An American colleague who spoke excellent
German addressed a German bus driver with the German term for driver
(Fahrer), later being told by a German colleague that it is an impolite
address form.
The final set of sentence examples are from the writings of Halliday
(1985, p. 109) which cogently show the relationship between grammati-
cal structure and meaning.
*She is liking the gift. (24)

*Are you knowing the city? (25)
*I am seeing the stars. (26)
Halliday points out that these three examples reflect mental processes,
in particular, liking, knowing, and seeing, and, in general, sensing, feel-
ing, perceiving, and thinking. According to Halliday, the above sentences
cannot be expressed with the progressive construction (verb+ing),
although one might find an unusual situation where they might be used.
Under normal circumstances, as Halliday points out, they are expressed
with the simple present tense:
She likes the gift. (27)

Do you know the city? (28)
I see the stars. (29)
These examples provided by Halliday (1985) and many other exam-

ples that have been presented by linguists in their systematic study of
grammar demonstrate that memorizing verb tenses (and other grammati-
cal categories) without knowing the semantic and pragmatic underpin-
nings that operate in the formulation of sentences falls short as a
language-learning methodology.
22 H. Winitz
In contrast to an immersion system of language training, the grammar-

translation method appears to be scholarly and complete. Yet its
conscious-learning procedures are deficient because the information that
it provides deprives the foreign language learner of the richness inherent
in the language of study. On the other hand, to many educators a
comprehension-immersion system of instruction appears unacademic
and simplistic perhaps because the language information to which the
student is exposed is processed without explicit awareness and under-
standing of grammatical elements and rules.
Linguists in their quest to understand the grammar of a language write
rules and offer formulations to account for sentences that are and are not
grammatical. In this regard their approach to the study of grammar dif-
fers from the classical procedure of parsing sentences. Sentence diagram-
ing involves selecting well-formed sentences and analyzing their
component parts, usually beginning by determining the subject and
predicate of a sentence. In linguistic analysis sentences and non-sentences
are analyzed with the goal of formulating rules that generate grammatical
sentences without error. We can think of this process as that of writing
rules that instruct a computer to generate only grammatical sentences
and no ungrammatical sentences. We might begin with the constructs
noun phrase and verb phrase and through a series of logical steps develop
as the end product all and only all the grammatical sentences that humans
have said and might say.
Grammatical systems are linguistic formulations and/or proposals. For
linguists they are explicit analytical systems used in their study of the
grammar of sentences. For children acquiring their first language, the use
of analytical linguistic systems is not part of the process. Children acquire
their first language by listening and comprehending the language
addressed to them not by studying grammatical rules. In this book we
will explore the conditions that enable children to learn their first lan-
guage and describe the application of these conditions in the develop-
ment of a language instructional system called the Comprehension
Approach.
In developing comprehension-based second-language learning lessons,
we take note of each of the several language systems in formulating the
sentences of each lesson, but we make no attempt to teach the second
language according to how linguists study the several language systems.

Our purpose in presenting the above example sentences was to illustrate
briefly the methodology of linguistic inquiry. These sentences were pre-
sented to emphasize that speakers of a language can identify easily gram-
matical and non-grammatical sentences almost entirely without conscious
awareness or understanding of grammatical rules. It is a brilliant psycho-
logical exercise of the human mind in which the brain seems to work by
itself without our personal intervention. It works almost instantaneously
without explicit knowledge of grammatical rules, without conscious fore-
thought and serious deliberation, and with a high degree of accuracy.
We can now make a number of conclusions about our ability to judge
the grammaticality of sentences. First, like the sentences above, we can
make a determination as to whether a sentence is well formed or not,
even though we may have never encountered it, that is, we can make this
judgment for the many sentences we have never heard or read. Second,
our decisions regarding grammaticality are made quickly and without
recourse to explicitly stated rules. Third, in making judgments of gram-
maticality the knowledge-based system that we use is a consequence of
acquiring our native language and not the result of explicit study of gram-
matical rules. Fourth, if we are able to make grammatical determinations
about sentences in our native tongue without explicit reference to gram-
matical rules, we may conclude that the development of this knowledge
in childhood is also an implicit learning process.
Burling (1982) employs the term “implicit instruction” to refer to chil-
dren’s acquisition of their native language, supporting conclusion four
above. Burling (1982, p. 28) states “To those who have struggled with
deliberate classroom (foreign language) instruction, the most astonishing
thing about children is that they seem to be able to learn so successfully
even without any deliberate instruction.” Burling (1982, p. 28) noted
that children are able to “abstract from their environment whatever it is
they need to know about their new language.” Burling (1982, p. 28) con-
cludes by asking “whether adults need as much explicit instruction as we
usually offer them.” Bialystok (1990, p. 119) concurs with Burling, stat-
ing, “For several years, possibly as many as six or seven, the knowledge
that governs children’s linguistic performance, permitting them to speak
in well-formed and appropriate sentences, is wholly implicit.”
24 H. Winitz
Halliday (1985, Introduction, p. xxxii) indicates that memorizing lin-

guistic paradigms, such as noun cases and verb conjugations, will proba-
bly not lead to the mastering of a foreign language. He says, “Our Latin
textbooks used to set out word paradigms: mensa, mensa, mensam, men-
sae, mensae, mensa. The purpose was to state the potential of a Latin
noun.” Halliday continues: “Whether paradigms have a role in learning a
language is highly doubtful. But they do have a role in learning linguis-
tics, and in carrying out linguistic research.”
The distinction between implicit and explicit learning has become an
important area of psychological study. According to Rieber et al. (1991,
p. 888) “implicit learning is the process whereby a complex, rule-governed
knowledge base is acquired largely independently of awareness of both
the process and the product of the acquisition.” Rieber et al. (p. 894)
further comment that implicit learning is viewed as “a process of knowl-
edge acquisition that occurs largely independently of conscious attempts
to learn and that yields a knowledge base that is largely outside of aware-
ness.” An interesting quality of implicit processes, Rieber et al. (p. 894)
note, is that “owing to their phylogenetic antiquity, will show less
individual-to-individual variation than comparable explicit processes.”
This conclusion by Rieber et al. is in accord with the position taken by
psychologists and linguists regarding the relative uniformity in children’s
acquisition of their native language. Children without mental or physical
impairments acquire their native language in childhood at almost the
same age regardless of the language spoken in their community and in
the circumstances in which they live. This relative uniformity in language
acquisition takes place even though there are substantial differences in
the grammatical systems of the languages of the world and the social and
psychological milieu in which children are reared. However, because the
cognitive process of language acquisition takes place without conscious
deliberation by children, it is less subject to the variation found in the
development of cognitive processes that require explicit reasoning.
There are additional considerations in fully grasping the concept that
children’s learning of their native language is an implicit acquisition pro-
cess. Children may have available to them at birth knowledge of a univer-
sal grammar, from which they can select or reject grammatical elements
based upon the language input which they receive from their parents and
caretakers (Chomsky 1968). The concept of an inherited universal gram-

mar that enables children to acquire the particular grammar of their com-
munity language will not be given consideration in this book. Our
emphasis will be directed to the study and implementation of
comprehension-based language-learning systems of instruction.
In the design of the language lessons to be reported in the chapters
ahead, we have from the beginning accepted the premise that adults can
capably acquire a second language when procedures of instruction involve
only implicit reasoning processes (Winitz and Reeds 1973, 1975). The
teaching method that fosters implicit language learning through under-
standing of language rather than through practice in speaking is called
the Comprehension Approach. We recognize that this approach is not
universally accepted by language instructors (McLaughlin 1990) who
insist that the distinction between implicit and explicit reasoning cannot
be clearly stated or effectively implemented in second-language instruc-
tion. McLaughlin speaks of automatic processing, as perhaps a more effec-
tive description of language use than the terms implicit or unconscious.
However, Abrams and Reber (1988, p. 426) assign automatic language
use as one of the functions of implicit language processing. They state as
follows: “an implicit process is marked by two essential features: The
acquisition operation is unconscious and automatic, and the resulting
knowledge base is abstract and rule-governed.”
Concluding Remarks
Adults can capably identify whether sentences of their native language are
ill formed or well formed. This identification process is conducted with-
out conscious knowledge or understanding of grammatical rules.
Children acquire their first language by attending to the meaning of sen-
tences without explicit study of grammatical rules. It is proposed that
adults can capably acquire a second language when the procedures of
instruction emphasize implicit language reasoning processes. The method
of instruction is called the Comprehension Approach.
26 H. Winitz
References
Abrams, M., & Reber, A. S. (1988). Implicit learning: Robustness in the face of
psychiatric disorders. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, 17, 425–439.
Bates, E. (1976). Language and context, The acquisition of pragmatics. New York:
Academic Press.
Bialystok, E. (1990). Communication strategies, a psychological analysis of second-
language use. Cambridge, MA: Basil Blackwell.
Burling, R. (1982). Sounding right. Rowley, MA: Newbury House.
Chomsky, N. (1965). Aspects of the theory of syntax. Cambridge, MA: The
MIT Press.
Chomsky, N. (1968). Language and mind. New York: Harcourt, Brace
&World, Inc.
Fillmore, C. J. (1968). The case for case in Universals. In E. Bach & R. T. Harms
(Eds.), Linguistic Theory. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
Halliday, M. A. K. (1985). An introduction to functional grammar. London:
Edward Arnold.
McLaughlin, B. (1990). “Conscious” versus “unconscious” learning. TESOL
Quarterly, 24, 617–634.
Nelson, K. (1981). Social cognition in a script framework. In J. H. Flavell &
L. Ross (Eds.), Social cognitive development, frontiers and possible futures.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Radford, A. (1981). Transformational syntax, a student’s guide to Chomsky’s
extended standard theory. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Rieber, A. S., Wakenfeld, F. F., & Hernstadt, R. (1991). Implicit and explicit
learning: Individual differences and IQ. Journal of Experimental Psychology:
Learning, Memory and Cognition, 17, 888–896.
Winitz, H., & Reeds, J. (1973). Rapid acquisition of a foreign language
(German) by the avoidance of speaking. IRAL, 11, 295–317.
Winitz, H., & Reeds, J. (1975). Comprehension and problem solving as strategies
for language training. The Hague: Mouton.
3
Development of the Comprehension
Approach as a Method of Second-
Language Instruction
When one reads the early articles published in the Modern Language
Journal, from its beginning in 1916, it is easy to sense the concern among
instructors of the modern foreign languages of Spanish, French, and
German that serious consideration should be given to almost every facet
of foreign language instruction. Often symposia were held to discuss
methods of instruction, class size, and extending the years of foreign lan-
guage study beyond minimum requirements. These topics and many oth-
ers continue to be active areas of discussion among members of the
foreign language profession.
Discussion of an appropriate and effective teaching methodology is an
ever apparent theme throughout the many years after 1916. Foreign lan-
guage teaching is a discipline that seems never to be comfortable with
itself (Firth and Wagner 1997; Hall 1997; Kasper 1997; Liddicoat 1997;
Long 1997; Poulisse 1997; Rampton 1997). It seems always to be search-
ing for that ideal method that will achieve its stated goals of which two
are (a) to retain students beyond the minimum semester requirements of
high school and college programs and (b) to define the goal which stu-
dents and instructors should strive for in the beginning, intermediate,
and advanced courses and whether the goal at each level should be the

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52998-7_3
28 H. Winitz
ability to read the classic works of a foreign language, to achieve near-

native fluency in a foreign language, or to understand the cultural, politi-
cal, and economic framework of a foreign country.
Interest of Students in the Study

of a Foreign Language
There has always been concern among foreign language instructors with
respect to the interest college students have regarding the taking of a for-
eign language course. In a report conducted at Michigan State University
(Roberts 1992), entering student freshman indicated three primary rea-
sons for studying a foreign language in the following order: the under-
standing of foreign cultures, use in business, and the desire to travel. Of
interest is that 82% of the students who were enrolled from two to four
years in high school foreign language courses rated their perceived per-
ception of success as follows: 23% very successful, 62% moderately suc-
cessful, and 8% not successful. Furthermore, when asked to indicate
whether they anticipated further study of a foreign language 47% indi-
cated yes, 52% indicated no, and 5% indicated maybe. The above indi-
cated percentages do not total 100% presumably because not all students
responded appropriately when surveyed. In a more recent study by
Magnan et al. (2014) students enrolled in foreign language courses indi-
cated that their goals in the study of a foreign language were to commu-
nicate with others, to go abroad, to comprehend texts, to advance one’s
career, and to a lesser extent to develop cultural interests.
Student beliefs regarding how many years of study of a foreign lan-
guage is necessary to achieve fluency was examined by questioning first
semester German, French, and Spanish students during the first three
weeks of the first semester of required foreign language study at the
University of Texas (Horwitz 1988). They were asked how long it would
take to become fluent in a foreign language when one has spent one hour
a day learning the foreign language. Eight percent or less of the students
from the three language groups indicated that a foreign language could
3 Development of the Comprehension Approach as a Method… 29
be learned in under one year, whereas about 35% of the students answered
that fluency in a foreign language could be achieved in two years of study.
Benseler and Schulz in a 1980 (p. 88) article commented that “Indeed,
in non-requirement situations, we feel safe in asserting that well over
50% of those students who begin foreign language study on the college
level do not continue into the second year of such study.” Benseler and
Schulz (p. 93) concluded that the reason many students do not continue
into the second year of foreign language study is because “many students
readjust their initial goals after they discover that speaking proficiency is
the most difficult skill to acquire.” Our experience has been that students
are eager to continue their foreign language study when comprehension-
based instruction is used. Students enrolled in our several comprehension
classes (McCandless and Winitz 1986; Winitz and Yanes 2002) have con-
sistently commented that their ability to understand a foreign language
encourages them to believe that in time they will acquire the skill of
speaking a foreign language.
The Pennsylvania Study

Two prominent procedures of instruction, the direct approach and the
grammar-translation method, dominated the writings of the professional
foreign language instructors in the early years of the Modern Language
Journal. The direct approach emphasizes using primarily the second lan-
guage in the classroom and affording students considerable practice
speaking the second language while using procedures of induction to
teach the grammar. The grammar-translation method emphasizes explicit
memorization of grammatical rules with descriptions in English to
explain differences between the grammatical systems of English and a
second language and with considerable emphasis on reading and writing.
In the 1929 edition of the Modern Language Journal, Louis Marchand
commented that “in the mother tongue word and idea are indissolubly
linked, the method of translation separates them.” Marchand (1929,
p. 4) also recognized that the number of different vocabulary items that
students are to learn is an essential consideration, suggesting that at least
6000 words need to be acquired before the student “may begin a
30 H. Winitz
consistent study of all the great classic works.” He noted that concrete
words were to be represented by drawings and that the meaning of
abstract words was to be understood from reading texts.
The grammar-translation approach has achieved dominance as the
method of instruction in American schools and colleges, although accord-
ing to Purin (1916, p. 43), “The ‘direct’ process of modern foreign lan-
guage teaching is as ancient as the human race.” Purin (1916, p. 43)
further notes, “this was precisely the manner in which for example French
was taught on German soil as early as the 12th century.” Purin (1916,
p. 43) continues saying “The aim of instruction in those days was of a
purely practical nature, i.e. the acquisition of a speaking ability in the
foreign tongue in the briefest possible time.” In his concluding remarks
Purin cites the need for the establishment of institutes to conduct experi-
mental work “in the field of foreign language study … to test the value
and applicability of the various educational theories, and thus to place
the teaching of foreign languages on a solid scientific basis.”
As the American profession of foreign language instruction has evolved,
numerous investigations and experiments have been conducted to assess
various aspects of second-language instruction and learning. However, it
was not until 1970 that a large-scale study of two prominent methods of
foreign language instruction involving many student classes and teachers
in a number of school districts was conducted in the state of Pennsylvania
(Smith 1970). Investigations of the magnitude of the Pennsylvania study
are not possible without extraordinary financial support and the coopera-
tion of many administrators and teachers.
By 1960 a relatively new method of foreign language instruction called
the audio-lingual approach was gaining wide acceptance as a method of
language instruction and yet within the foreign language profession there
was a certain uneasiness as to its effectiveness. The audio-lingual approach
emphasizes the memorization of dialogues in the second language with
little or no grammatical explanations. Furthermore, this method makes
extensive use of the language laboratory to enable students to listen to the
foreign language and sometimes to listen to one’s own recorded speech in
the foreign language with the underlying premise that listening to oneself
will facilitate one’s ability to reduce errors in pronunciation. As we look
back at the audio-lingual language training approach we can understand
its major premise. It emphasized speaking as its major outcome and used
speaking practice in the form of memorized dialogues as the method to
achieve this purpose. Although the audio-lingual system is now regarded
as a failed system of instruction, it stimulated many textbook writers to
include conversation practice segments in first-year grammar-translation
foreign language textbooks.
The Pennsylvania investigation involved three different experimental
groups to which intact classrooms of foreign language students were
assigned. More than 2000 students from grades 8 through 12 were
involved. The three groups were (1) grammar-translation approach
emphasizing grammar and word-for-word translation equivalents in the
first and second languages; (2) audio-lingual plus grammar approach
involving the use of the second language in the classroom, first language
used only to explain grammatical components, and student desks
equipped with microphones and headsets to monitor individual student’s
performance in the pronunciation and production of sentences; and (3)
audio-lingual approach involving use of the second language in the class-
room, first language used only to explain grammatical components, and
active use of recording facilities. Although the procedures of each method
of instruction were outlined carefully for the teachers, the method of
instruction was largely determined by the grammar-translation or audio-
lingual textbooks assigned to each of the three experimental groups. In
this regard there was no control of type and amount of vocabulary across
the three methods of instruction. The investigation was carried out over
a four-year period, although with diminishing student numbers as stu-
dents either moved or were graduated from the school in which they were
in attendance.
The designers of this project were largely disappointed with the out-
come of the investigation in that their inclination was to reform the
grammar-translation method to include more in class use of the second
language by both teacher and students and the use of a language labora-
tory to enable individual students to increase their listening and pronun-
ciation skills. On almost all of the standardized language tests that were
used in the first two years of the investigation including the speaking test,
the students receiving the grammar-translation method marginally out-
performed the students in the other two groups. Although listening skills
32 H. Winitz
were not emphasized in the grammar-translation course of study, the lis-

tening scores of the grammar-translation students in the last two years of
study were about the same as the students in the other two groups.
Although the grammar-translation group, in general, marginally out-
performed the other two groups, the student’s speaking performance in
this group was considered to be only average, leaving open again the
question of what procedures might be introduced to improve the speak-
ing performance of students learning a second language.
Experimental Study of Language Performance

Large-scale educational investigations are difficult to design and the
results are difficult to interpret because they involve large numbers of
students in which teacher and student differences as well as school district
administration policies and textbook adoptions must be random factors
so as not to confound the experimental teaching and testing procedures.
Furthermore, large-scale educational investigations are expensive to orga-
nize and to administer and school districts are generally not sympathetic
to experimentation because it involves the active involvement of teachers
and students in a course of study that is a significant deviation from a
standard curriculum. A much more reasonable approach is to assess the
effect of specific experimental factors with small groups of students over
fairly brief periods of time. Learning conditions that are found to be
effective can then be included in the design of foreign language curricula.
An example of research dedicated to the study of a specific grammati-
cal rule is an investigation, conducted by Winitz and Sagarna (2007), in
which the learning of an explicit grammatical rule in Spanish was assessed.
It involved the examination of high school students understanding of
what is often referred to as the “ser-estar” rule. “Ser” and “estar” are the
infinitives of the two “to be” verbs in Spanish. They provide an interesting
difference between Spanish and English with regard to the use of the “to
be” verb. When purchasing coffee from McDonald’s you will see inscribed
on the cup in Spanish the directive: Precaución está caliente. Está is one
of the two Spanish translations for the English verb “is” in present tense,
as indicated in the following sentences:
El hombre está en la cocina.

(The man is in the kitchen)
El hombre es alto.
(The man is tall.)
In English the verb “is” serves as the verb for both English sentences
whereas in Spanish the two different verbs “está” and “es” are required.
The translated meaning in English of these two Spanish verbs is the verb
“is.” The rule in Spanish that determines the correct use of these verbs is
lengthy and is almost impossible to monitor, that is, refer to, in conver-
sational speech for Spanish language learners. In writing Spanish prose, a
student might be fairly successful in selecting the correct Spanish verb
from the ser and estar grammatical rules of use, but only by taking con-
siderable time in each case to determine the relevant Spanish rule.
Before citing some of the definers for the Spanish ser-estar rules of use,
it is instructive to note that the ser-estar rule is an excellent example of
why learning the correspondence between the grammar of one’s native
language and the grammar of a second language of study is not helpful in
learning a second language. To use this Spanish rule correctly in conversa-
tion, language students must learn that “is” in English evokes the Spanish
ser-estar rule, at which point they must place in memory the Spanish rule
and examine it carefully to determine whether to use “es” or “está” in
third-person present tense, for example. To produce a correct translation
while engaging in conversation, the language students must translate the
English word “is” by calling up from memory the equivalent Spanish
verbs “ser” and “estar” and the rule which defines their use and then must
make a decision as to which of the two Spanish verbs to use.
Here is a partial list of the attributes of the Spanish verbs “ser-estar.”
Ser is used to describe basic traits and relatively permanent characteristics
whereas “estar” is used to describe states and conditions especially when
they are temporary and subject to change, such as feelings, emotions, and
physical conditions. Beyond this point the rule lists particular attributes
for “ser” and “estar,” such as nationality, destination, time, location, and
so on. The process of translating correctly English “is” into either a form
of “ser” or “estar,” as one is speaking Spanish, is to project a metal image
of this complicated rule on a blackboard or on index cards and then to
34 H. Winitz
make a judgment for a particular sentence as to whether to use “ser” or

“estar.” At the same time multiple grammatical decisions also must be
made that involve other components in the same sentence and in sur-
rounding sentences. It can become an overwhelming task for beginning
students. Native speakers of Spanish, however, do not use explicit state-
ments that define the use of the “ser-estar” rule. They have acquired the
underlying principles of the “ser-estar” rule through experience with the
Spanish language and, therefore, have learned how to use this rule with-
out conscious awareness of its defining principles.
In the grammar-translation approach, students of Spanish explicitly
study the “ser-estar” rule. In order to ascertain the success of high school
students in mastering the “ser-estar” rule a list of 100 written sentences in
Spanish was prepared in which students were given the choice of selecting
either a form of the “ser” or “estar” verb (Winitz and Sagarna 2007). The
verb forms for “ser” and “estar” vary for number and person in Spanish as
does the verb “is” in English, as for example “I am” is “Yo soy” (for ser)
and “Yo estoy” (for estar). Each of the 100 test sentences contained in
parentheses a simple present or continuous present form of “ser” and
“estar.” Students were instructed to “circle the correct form of the verb.”
An example sentence was La comida (es, está) lista. [The food is ready.]
The correct answer is “está” because it involves a state or a condition.
The students were from two high schools in the Kansas City area, a
rural city high school in Missouri, and a South Carolina city high school.
The students in the schools involved several different classes taught by
different teachers. The years of Spanish study at the time of the investiga-
tion for the three different city classes were 1, 1.5, and 2 years, respec-
tively, and the textbooks for the first year were either Juntos Uno (1997a)
or Abordo 1 Bienvenidos (Schmitt and Woodford 1995) and for the sec-
ond year Juntos Dos (1997b) or Abordo 2 Bienvenidos (Woodford and
Schmitt 1995).
In the rural Missouri high school Spanish was taught using The
Learnables self-study immersion course. Students completed the first year
of study and a few students completed the second year of study. For the
first year the books were The Learnables, Book 1 (Winitz 1997) and Basic
Structures 1, Spanish (Sagarna and Winitz 1997) and Basic Structures Book
2, Spanish (Winitz and Sagarna 1996). For the second year the books
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– Köszönöm, köszönöm, – mondogatta. Én rám úgysem
várakozik pihenés és nem tenném alaposan meggondolva, ha
kényeztetném magamat. Íme itt van minden átadni valóm. (És
kabátja oldalán az egyik zsákból kulcsokat, a másikból irásokat
húzott elő.) A számadások eddig az óráig vannak vezetve. Bocsáss
meg, hogy írásom egy kissé kuszált – mélyen tisztelt barátom
szarkalábaknak szokta nevezni; – de szemeim egy-két napja még
gyöngébbek, mint rendesen. Azt hiszem, két tétel fel fog tünni a
számadásban. De tudakozódjál csak utána és mindenki
egyértelműleg oda fog nyilatkozni, hogy a mi asztalosunk, a ki a
koporsót készítette, általánosan ismert nagy csaló. A másik a
kántistáknak kiszolgáltatott bor nagy mennyisége lesz. De a deákok
mind részegesek és követelők. Fogd kérlek a kulcsokat is, és vedd
figyelembe abbeli kérésemet, hogy a tételeket azonnal vesd össze a
pénzes ládával, mert nem szeretném, ha úgy tekintenének, mit a ki
megszökött a kastélyból, hova utóvégre nagylelkű barátsággal
fogadtatott.
– Hogy-hogy? Mit mondasz, Istók? – kérdé Béla nagy szemeket
meresztve az öregre, ki minden ellenzése daczára fölemelkedett
helyéről, és így folytatá:
– Mélyen… azaz szerelmes öcsém, igen, én megyek és még ma
szeretnék benn lenni Karámoson. Mert, ha meggondolom, mire
magyarázhatnák az emberek tovább itt tartózkodásomat, okvetlen
arra kellett határozni magamat, hogy távozzam e házból. Eddig csak
volt mit tennem, hogy senkise vethesse szememre kenyeremet. Az
én mélyen tisztelt, boldogult barátom kissé hiányos volt a
klasszikusokban, a jusban és a theologiában, melyek nélkül az
életben sok lépésünkben fennakadunk. Az én kötelességem volt e
hiányosságokat tőlem telhetőleg kipótolni. Mostanában pedig, hogy
a szobához kötötte a betegség, gyönge tehetségeimen kívül
lábaimmal is igyekeztem szolgálatára lenni. Minderre azonban a te
fényes elmédnek és fiatal erődnek semmi szüksége s ennélfogva
énnekem ebben a házban semmi tennivalóm.
– Istók bátyám! – csitítá a már-már elérzékenyülő öreget Béla,
megragadva kezeit. De ez alig figyelt rá és megindúltan beszélt
tovább:
– Igen, öcsém, én megindulok innen, hol ennekutána mindenki
csak ingyenélőnek tartana. És méltán. Tisztán állok előtted; ha hinni
akarsz nekem, elhiheted, hogy semmit sem szereztem és egy garas
nélkül távozom. Nemzetségem: a Pallérosi Pallérok a Tiszán túl
virágzanak; majd azok szereznek nékem valami kenyeret. Nézd,
ebben az öltözetben állítottam be először – már több harmincz
esztendejénél – a karámosi vármegyeházán az én mélyen tisztelt
barátomhoz, kinek akkor egy reprezentácziót kellett készítenem.
Ugyanezek a csizmák, ugyanez a kabát, ugyanez a kalap volt
rajtam. Ugyancsak azokban indulok most meg, – csupán csak a
kalapomra varrott Kata egy gyászfátylat. Ha meggondolom… Már
össze van kötve odalenn a batyum; a könyveim is mind akkorról
valók. Ha eszembe veszem… De nem. Mit mondjak egyebet? Iszen
te sorra meg tudsz gondolni magad is mindent. Íme, ezekben
óhajtottam eléd terjeszteni nyomós okaimat, melyek arra az alázatos
kérésre bátorítottak, hogy a számadásokat és a pénzes ládát
minden további haladék nélkül vizsgáld át.
A mentor, erőt véve magán, ismételt csuklások és fennakadások
között valahogyan bevégezte szavait, melyek sajátságos keveréke
voltak a beszámoló előadásnak, védbeszédnek és a
búcsúszónoklatnak. Béla félrelökte maga elől a kulcsokat és
papirosokat, s borús szívének igazi, meleg elérzékenyedésével
szólalt meg:
– Nem úgy, nem úgy, hajdani pártfogóm te! Az én lelkemet sok
teher nyomja már s nincs kedvem még a hálátlanság vádjával is
megszaporítni őket. Kinek köszönök én mindent, a mim van? Ki
mentette meg egykor szegény anyámat az éhenhalástól? Ki hozott
engem ide? Ki szerezte meg nekem bátyám derék szívét? Csak
törüld meg szemeidet, Istók. Akkor lenne okod a fájdalomra, ha most
hálátlanúl elfogadnám búcsúra nyujtott kezedet s kivezetnélek az
utczaajtóig, hogy vén napjaidra szélnek eresszelek.
– Te mester vagy a logikában, Béla, – akadozott Istók, könnyei
közt gyönyörködve kedvenczében. Akaratod ellenére is azt
bizonyítja minden szavad, hogy itt én rám és az én gyönge
tehetségeimre semmi szükség. A hálát ne emlegesd, mert abból
csak a te éles okoskodásod tudja azt a következtetést vonni, hogy
maradjak. A mi neked igazságnak tetszik, az csak látszat. Ha
meggondoljuk, hogy az én mélyen tisztelt barátomnak (halála óta
mindig a legünnepélyesebb formában emlékezett meg róla)
tulajdonképen nem is volt mást mit tennie, mint a mit tett, egészen
más eredményre jutunk. Mert Ágnes… no de nem fizetem rosszal a
jót. Most egy kenyéren vagyunk vele, pedig mindig igen büszke volt
hozzám. Neki sincs semmije a rajta valón kívül, csakhogy az ő
viselője még divatos, az enyém meg már ócska. Bekövetkezett,
hogy íme, csak ez a különbség köztünk. De nem is panaszkodom rá,
inkább beismerem, hogy a mi boldogult jótevőnk nagyon hirtelen
indulatú volt. Nem hiába keveset törődött a klasszikusokkal.
Istók beszédközben észrevette, hogy egészen eltávolodott a
tárgytól, melyről tulajdonképen szólani akart. De a jó vitatkozó
szokása szerint hamar összeszedte magát s egy ugrással helyén
termett.
– Ne emlegesd a háladatosságot, Béla. Mert kisértetben vagyok,
hogy azt a kérdést intézzem magamhoz: nem alacsony számítás
vezérelte-e eleitől fogva lépéseimet, hogy helyemet napjaim végeig
biztosítsam? És ha valami kételkedés maradna bennem, vagy ha
mások is azt hinnék – pedig a ti gyanakodó prókátortok mindenkiről
maga után itél – az még rosszabb lenne, mint ha ingyenélőnek
tartanának. Azért csak nézd át gyorsan, pontosan és kímélet nélkül
számadásaimat s engedd meg, hogy a kis Pirók utánam hozza a
batyut.
Béla azonban az iratok helyett újra az ő vonakodó kezeit ragadta
meg.
– Nem hallottad-e soha, öreg barátom, – mondá, – hogy a hű
tiszt, életének derekasan végzett munkája után, nyugalomba tétetik.
Ki meri mondani, hogy nem érdemli meg a kenyerét? Te harmincz
esztendeje töröd fejedet, őrködől híven és sáfárkodol becsületesen;
ki érdemli meg nálad jobban a pihenést? A mivel csak elláthatlak, a
mit kedvedre tehetek, azt te mind-mind sokszorosan megszolgáltad.
Míg ez a ház áll, te úr leszel abban, akár én. Ez az utolsó szavam,
Istók, és nem várok rá feleletet.
Pallérosi Pallér István izgatottan mozgott ide-oda, elővette meg
zsebre dugta kék tarka keszkenőjét és Béla kezét szorongatva,
mondatait be nem fejezve, dadogta:
– Mégis, ha meggondolom… ha megfontolom…
És meggondolta, hogy a klasszikus irodalom, a jus és theologia
terén való harmincz esztendős működésével bizonyára elég fontos
és terhes szolgálatott tett e családnak arra, hogy kénytelen
nyugalomba lépését a világon senki se hányhassa szemére.
XII. FEJEZET.
Frank és Kordélia.
Hónapok teltek el s Béla eléggé unta magát a nagy,

barátságtalan kastélyban, mely gazdáját gyászolta. A temetés után
még egy-két napra ott maradt nála hajdani tanulótársa, a kántus-
prézes s tőle telhetőleg igyekezett fölvidítani egyhangú óráit.
Dunaszögön esze ágába sem jutott volna valakinek kétségbe vonni,
hogy hét vármegyén Mányóki Bertalannál különb mulató akad. A
híres Győri Mikének te-tu pajtása volt, ki – mikor negyvenhárom
esztendős korában végre sikerült megválnia a kollégiumtól és
elszakadnia Szlavoniába lévitának, (mire nézve nem kívántatott meg
a papi cenzura,) – minden dicsőségét Bertalanra hagyta. Az utód
nem volt méltatlan nagy nevű mesterére, ki a kálvinista
deákmulatságok hahotára keltő fűszerének hosszú időn keresztül
legünnepeltebb szállítója volt. A tanítvány más agyagból gyuratott;
de nem kisebb szerepre és hírre hivatva. Mike halavány, puffadt,
örökkomoly arczát nála borvirágos, örök-nevető kép helyettesítette;
a komoly méltósággal elkövetett csínyeket víg meggondolatlanság; a
szónoki páthoszt a versíró könnyelműsége. A Mányóki-féle hiteles
és apokryph versek gyűjteménye ma is megvan sok, Dunaszögről
került lelkipásztor titkos fiókjában, honnan a szentlélektől kevésbbé
bolygatott órákban elő-elővétetik a megbecsülhetetlen kézirat. Víg
czimborák közt poharazva, vagy a kollegiumban pipájával az ágyra
heveredve, neki egy-egy vers csak annyi volt, mint másnak egy jóízű
nevetés. Egy tekintetben hasonlított a nagy vallásalapítókhoz, noha
a papi vizsgán már három ízben megbukott. (Mondják ugyan, hogy
csak készakarva, mert Mike példája elrettentette a Bergengócziába
meneteltől.) Ez a hasonlatosság abban állt, hogy maga nem igen írt
le semmit; gondolatait, rímeit és tréfáit a körüle sereglett tanítványok
tették papirra és adták kézről-kézre. Még az a komoly versezet is,
melyet nagys. Kálozdi Kálozdy Benedek úr halálára készített és Béla
megvígasztalására magával hozott, idegen kézírás volt. A többit
aztán estéről estére úgy rögtönözte az ebédlő nagy asztala mellett,
melyen négy különféle pohár állott előtte s egyiknek sem igen volt
hosszú pihenője. Istók kedvét a tréfás poéta – különösen a Biró
Eulália kisasszonyra készített versezettel, (ő jelent meg Bogádról
egyedül a temetésen,) – szinte könnyekre fakasztotta. Került
mindenre vers, csak a pohár tele legyen előtte. Adomáinak, iskolai
tréfáinak sem volt vége-hossza. Egyszer előhozakodott Hajós
professzorról is, kit az ő kedves barátja, Mátyás, a faképnél hagyott
s már tovább is akarta fűzni a beszédet, mikor hirtelen csak eszébe
jutott valami és félbeszakította. Egy késő este Mihály huszárral volt
valami koczódásuk, melynek oka alig lehetett más, mint Zsuzska
menyecske. A poéta kétségkívül igen jól érezte magát a kastélyban s
nem épen kellemesen érintette a szénior sürgető levele, melyet
nagyobb nyomaték kedvéért a kollégium pecsétjével is ellátott.
Hivatalos tekintélylyel hivatott föl ebben Bertalan a haladék nélkül
való hazatérésre, miután a dunaszögi kántusban olyan fejetlenség
tört ki, hogy legutóbbi fellépéseik már inkább macskazenéhez, mint
műelőadáshoz hasonlítván, az iskolai hatóság figyelmét is magokra
vonták. Mit volt mit tennie a poétának?! Összeszedte holmiját,
rímekben vett búcsút a fenyves madaraitól és a kis ér békáitól s
hazafelé indúlt, a vendégszerető kastélynak egyebek közt ezeket
kívánva:
Fala romlást soh’se lásson,

Idő foga rajt’ elvásson.
Földindulást, vakandturást
Föl se vegyen, – ugy legyen.
Béla magára maradt s a tisztesség úgy parancsolta, hogy még

egy ideig magára maradjon. Tétlenül hevert pamlagán, únottan és
ásítva forgatta könyveit s a kényszerű magány már-már visszaterelte
melanchóliájába. Az emlékek, melyeket párizsi kedvesétől vett, azok
is csak emlékek voltak, melyeknek ama régibbekkel, tisztábbakkal,
szíve szerint valóbbakkal folytatott küzdelmökben háttérbe, a ködös,
távoli, hatástalan háttérbe kellett vonulniok. Az első emlék egy nem
jelentéktelen összegről szóló adóslevél volt, melyet be kellett
váltania. A vasasláda nem volt tele s Istók nem tudott jobb módot,
mint Landsman Emánuelhez folyamodni, ki az egykori Péterfi-
jószágok nagy részét kezére kerítette. Az új földesúr mindig tiszta
fehér mellényt viselt, fénymázas magyar csizmákban járt, paripát
tartott, hazai bajuszpedrővel élt és mindenben gavallért adott.
Egyszerüen átnyújtotta Bélának tárczáját s a tárczával együtt
tenyerét is, hogy barátok között az efféle írás nélkül is megeshetik.
Béla nem volt ósdi gondolkodású ember, felcsapott az eléje nyújtott
tenyérbe s ajánlotta Landsmannak, hogy változtassa meg a nevét
Hazafira. A kölcsön nagy része Párizsba vándorolt. No, de nem
hiába. Megérkezett érte a másik emlék: a Vénus-kép. Béla
elragadtatása fölötte korántsem volt akkora, mint vágya utána, mikor
Párizstól búcsút vett. Fölakasztatta ágya fölé a legelésző tehenek és
ebédvivő parasztasszonyok idylljei közé. De nem igen állt meg előtte
s szó sem volt róla, hogy elmélázott volna rajta, mint ama kis
haszontalanságok fölött nem egyszer tette, melyeket íróasztalának
fiókjai rejtegettek. Erélyesen megvédelmezte azonban a szép
jövevényt Istók ellen, ki Kata asszony, Zsuzska és Sára által
felbujtogatva, s teljesen megfeledkezve ifjúságának sikamlós
emlékeiről, a legpuritánabb szempontból fejtette ki, hogy: ha
meggondoljuk, miszerint az, ki ilyen paradicsomi meztelenségben
kész volt a piktornak megmutatni magát, semmiesetre sem lehet
tisztességes személy; egy jófélének arczképe pedig nem méltó arra,
hogy Kálozdy Béla szobáját ékesítse, minek folytán vagy a kulcsárné
által nagy kitartással sürgetett tűzhalálra, vagy legalább örökös
számüzetésre lenne itélendő. Béla mosolygott, egy tekintetet vetett a
rózsaarczra, nefelejts-szemekre és liliom-tagokra s Vénus a helyén
maradt.
A hogy a környékbeli ismerősök elvégezték részvét-
látogatásukat, nem igen jött vendég a kastélyba; kivéve a papot, ki a
hazafias társaságnak s patrónusai iránt való tisztelet köteles
kifejezéseinek sohasem szokott ellenállani, s a doktort, ki
ütemdorongjával igen gyakran megjelent, miután éles szemei a
messze földeken járt Béla társaságában a legjobb alkalmat fedezték
fel arra, hogy a földleírásban magát az olvasás fáradsága nélkül és
lehető legjutányosabban tökéletesítse. Mások nem igen jöttek,
különösen mivel Béla a vidék fiatalsága előtt tudós hírben állt. Így
hát sokáig egyedül barangolta be a környéket, puskáját vállára vetve
s Flóra csaholó, kéznyaldosó társaságában vizi szárnyasokra
leskelődve. De e magányos, merengő, vadászgató séták nem igen
voltak jó hatással zavart kedélyére. A gazdasággal mitsem törődött;
az ingó kalászok, megdőlt rendek, gondosan kötözött kévék, sorjába
rakott keresztek, telő magtár nem igen érdekelték. Hanem meg-
megállította a buzavirág rejtőzködő mosolya s a pipacs messze rikító
színe; elhallgatta az aratók nótáit, s ki tudja, mi fölött mosolygott
olyan keserűen, mikor az örökké egy körben járó nyomtató lovak
végetlen munkája előtt álldogált. Csak mámorra és gyönyörökre
áhító, mindent lemosolygó szíve ismét és ismét benne volt ábrándjai
kellős közepén. Minden, a mi körülötte mindenki számára élet volt,
neki romokat jelentett. Íme, a maga ura végre, senki parancsa alatt
nem áll, emberi hatalom szíve vágyainak nem állhatja útját,
vagyonáért ezer az irígye; és íme mit ér neki mindez?! Ama királyok
boldogságára gondolt, kik leszálltak trónjaikról és harczba indúltak
az ismeretlen ellen. Az ő élete kardvillogás, sebek és dicsőség
nélkül fog eltelni: egyetlen sebben vérzik el. Nem az ismeretlen áll
vele szemben, hanem a lehetetlen, mely ellankasztja, kineveti,
semmivé teszi. Egy halálos bűn, melyet semmiféle harcz nem tehet
erénynyé; egy, csak neki látható virág, melyet sohasem szakíthat le;
egy ki-kiújuló fájdalom, melyet sohasem gyógyíthat meg; egy vég
nélküli szerelem, mely sohasem találhatja fel többé tárgyát. Minden,
minden haszontalan; ha küzdelmében a világ minden hatalma
oldalán lenne is, az is haszontalan. Kivel, kivel ossza meg uraságát?
A mezei virágokból kötött bokrétát kinek adja? Hol van legalább a
sír, melyre letegye? A szőllőlugasban a kert végén ki mellé üljön? E
régi családi ékességek a szekrényben: a grófnő függői, karpereczei,
igazgyöngyei kire várnak? Hisz semmi, semmi egyéb nincsen belőle,
mint az a kis arczkép. Micsoda menedéke van egyéb a kaczagás
bölcsességénél, melyet Párizsban tanult? A sok ködképben előtte mi
az igazság? Eh! – és Flórának füttyentve hazafelé indult.
E czéltalan és emésztő merengés azonban kénytelen volt
nemsokára más gondolatoknak engedni helyet. Béla semmi részletet
nem tudott, nem is tudhatott azok felől, a mik bátyja halálát a
kanczelláriában megelőzék. Csak annyit tudott, hogy Ágnes minden
nélkül maradt s betegen fekszik Bogádon. A hányszor Mihály huszár
odaát járt, mindig azzal a hírrel jött haza: a kisasszony azt izeni,
hogy egészen jól van, csak gyönge egy kicsit. De mikor Kurz doktor
hallotta ezeket az üzeneteket, a doronggal igen sokáig egész
határozottsággal ütött a markába és azt erősítette, hogy ha ő most is
élet és halál közt lebegőnek állítja Ágnes kisasszonyt, meg van
győződve róla, hogy fején találta a szeget. Suum cuique etc. Béla
nem tudta ráhatározni magát, hogy átlovagoljon Bogádra. A későbbi
hírek nem kevésbbé szomorúak voltak. A szegény Ágnest, kinek
immár senkije és semmi reménysége az ég alatt, a két vén
kisasszony csak társalkodónőnek és mindenesetre nem csekély
tehernek nézi. Eufrozina csípős és türelmetlen iránta: fürteit minden
reggel vele fésülteti, sütteti, bodoríttatja, pakoltatja és bámultatja.
Eulália kegyesen kijelentette, miután az első gyászruhája elkopott és
másikat akart varratni magának, hogy sajátképen nem is lehet tudni,
kije volt neki a boldogult; hogy továbbá az ő fiatal korában nem
hónapokig, hanem esztendőkig tartott egy ruha; hogy végül az igazi
keresztyén lélekben és szívben gyászol, nem pedig ruhában és
czifrálkodásban. Mindaketten pedig igen nagy igyekezettel
csalogatnak egy szegény, félszeg, nevetséges, koravén falusi
embert, valami Biró Mártont, (ágról-szegről rokonuk is,) hogy nem
tenne rosszúl, ha Ágnessel megpróbálkoznék.
E hírek, melyeket Palkóné, Ágnes egykori szobaleánya,
kegyetlen és hajmeresztő részletekkel színezett ki, gyakran
foglalkoztatták Béla lelkét. Emlékei, melyekben egykori
menyasszonya mindig sötéten és visszataszítólag jelent meg szemei
előtt, epesztették ugyan rossz óráiban, de keserű végük rendesen az
volt, hogy egy vén kastély víg czimborák és szép asszony nélkül ép
oly unalmas, mint maga az élet. Mindig többet és többet forgott
fejében Ágnes sorsa, kivel szenvedéseinek hírei napról-napra
jobban kiengesztelték tévútakon járó, de nem romlott szívét.
Sárának minden méltatlankodó, panaszkodó, síró-rívó szava
érdekelte, foglalkoztatta, bántotta. Megemlékezett a leány igéretére,
hogy mire hazatér, minden kötelezettsége alól fel fogja szabadítani
és atyjának egész haragját kész a fejére venni. Istók elejtett,
összefüggetlen szavaiból azt kell hinnie, hogy épen ezt tette ama
gyászos, márcziusi napon. Ha hatalmában áll, bizonyára nem
fogadja el az áldozatot; de a haragos ég gyorsabban vetette magát
közbe nála. Sokszor, mind gyakrabban, egyre kevesebb
megszakítással nehezedett lelkére a sejtés, hogy Ágnes egész
szerencsétlenségének ő az oka. Az útszéli bokrokat keservesen
megvagdosta vesszejével. Ez a szerelem, Béla, ez a szerelem! E
lány, e bátor szívű és elszánt teremtés, kit te megvetettél és
gyűlölsz, tiszta lelkének nyugalmát és életének minden reménységét
feláldozza érted. Mit tehetsz érette, hogyan szabadíthatod meg?
Béla megszégyenülve hallgatta a sok mendemondát, mely hol
gúnyolódó, hol szánakozó hangon jutott füleihez s az utolsó hírre,
mely már Ágnes jövőjével játszott, látható zavarba jött. Míg a tarolt
mezőkön bolyongott s a nyugvó nap bearanyozta mögötte a kastélyt,
szívének legnemesebb húrjai rezdültek meg s tétova, kóválygó,
alaktalan gondolatai férfias elhatározássá szilárdultak. Az út, melyen
idáig jutott, kanyargó, mocsáros, csalékony volt; de mégis csak
odavezette, a hova jutnia kellett. Miért legyen ő rosszabb a frank
királynál, ki egy miatta megátkozott menyasszonyt vitt udvarába?! És
még hozzá áldozat-e az, a mit hozni szándékozik? Hisz neki nincsen
semmi, de semmi terve az életre, melyet lerontana. Mindegy,
valóban mindegy, asszonynyal tölti-e el napjait vagy asszony nélkül.
Egészen egyre megy, hogy vele vagy egy mással. De nem,
mégsem. A kéz, mely után nyúl, hű, feláldozó, szerető kéz, és ez is
valami. Levette kalapját, hogy a föllebbent szellő fujja ki egy kissé
fejét. A csöndesen folydogáló ér mellett megállt és körültekintett.
Régen mosolygott rá oly jó szívvel a természet, mint ez este. Egy
vidám dallamot fütyörészve ért haza.
– Bátyám, – mondá Istóknak, – a tizenegyedikiből hozass fel ma
estére. Bátorságot kell szereznem valahogy, mert holnap
leánynézőbe indulok.
Nem mondhatott volna semmit a mentornak, a min akár jobban
elcsodálkozzék, akár jobban megörüljön. Egy darabig némán nézett
rá, azután csöndesen emelni kezdte két foltos karját és gyöngéden
Béla vállára nyugtatta.
– Értelek, fiam, – mondá és kis szürke szemei boldogan
mosolyogtak. Tudom, kire gondolsz, és tudom azt is, hogy meg
akarod szabadítani a nyomoruságtól. Egyetlen pillanatra sem
ingadoztam soha abbeli meggyőződésemben, hogy te (ne vedd
sértésnek) a legnemesebb anyagból vagy formálva. Ha eszembe
jutott, hogyan jártál a parasztgyerekekkel együtt betlehemezni meg
háromkirályozni, hogy egy-két fillért vihess haza szoronkodó
szülédnek, nem mondhattam egyebet, mint hogy ennek a ficzkónak
(bocsáss meg,) helyén van a szive. Ime, most is ott látja és egész
életében ott fogja látni maga előtt a betlehembeli csillagot s az után
indul. Az én áldásom… de ha fontolóra veszem, egy ilyen szegény
ember áldjon meg, Béla.
– Köszönöm, öreg barátom, köszönöm, – mondá az ifju és
megrázta Istók kezeit. De a mentor, a mint kiszabadithatta jobbját,
megint csak átölelte kedvenczét.
– Úgy, úgy, Béla, – folytatta. Már-már tartottam tőle, hogy az ilyen
magamféle magányos életre adod a fejedet. Pedig én is csak azért
maradtam így, mivel az én mélyen tisztelt néhai barátomtól sohasem
tudtam elszakadni. Mint Pallérossi Pallér István, kinek jogi és
theologiai bizonyítványai egészen rendben vannak, kaphattam volna
én leányt eleget, talán kedvemre valót is. A leányok sokat adnak a
nemeslevélre, meg a végzett emberekre. A te jövendőbelid, az igaz,
egy kicsit büszke hozzám; de azt hiszem, ha a te fényes logikáddal
megmagyarázod neki, hogy ki vagyok, és megérteted vele, hogy
eddigi szolgálataimmal kiérdemeltem mostani nyugodalmamat,
akkor meg vagyok győződve róla, hogy a szíve jobban fog felém
hajlani. Hát a tizenegyedikiből mondtad ugy-e?
– Abból, bátyám. Hanem megállj egy perczre. Hivasd fel a papot
is, meg az ispánt s hozass kártyát. Az éjszaka úgysem tudnék aludni
s nem szívesen maradnék szobámban. Töltsük vigan az időt
reggelig.
A vigan töltött éjre következő hüvös, szeles reggelen már híre
ment a dolognak a kastélyban, a mikor Béla föl akart lépni a könnyü
kocsiba, lelkendezve szaladt feléje Sári ifjasszony egy frissen
szakított rózsával, hogy azt tüzze gomblyukába; isten őrizz, hogy a
nélkül meginduljanak, mert nem lesz szerencsés az utjok. Az öreg
János is lám megegyengette, kiigazgatta kalapja mellett a bokrétáját
és vigan hajtattak Bogád felé.
Már bámultak rájuk a Biróék sárgára festett kastélyának magas
oszlopai, e sok kapitulácziót kiszolgált strázsák; a tágas udvar egész
rideg tisztaságában terült el előttük; a kút körül a három szomorúfűz
bólintgatva köszöntötte őket. Míg a kapunyitással vesződtek, a két
házi kisasszony kisietett Béla elé, kinek hazaérkezte óta ez volt első
látogatása Bogádon. Eufrozina fürtjei kifogástalan rendben rezegtek
ránczos arcza körül, Eulália kegyes kezei szokás szerint
összekulcsolva.
– Mikép vigasztaljuk fájdalmában mi, világtól elzárkódott szegény
leányok! – mondá az első s csókra nyújtott kezével finoman és
uriasan szorongatta az ifju jobbját.
– Ilyen csapások megpróbálják a hitet, – szólt a második. De a
mai világ oly keveset törődik a vallással!
– Köszönöm kegyességöket, kedves nénéim, – mondá Béla, –
nagyon köszönöm. Remélem, semmi bajt nem találok a háznál.
Ágnes is bizonyára már egészen jól van. Vele szeretnék egy-két szót
szólani minél előbb.
– Azonnal, kedves öcsém, azonnal, – biztatta Eufrozina,
miközben befelé indultak. Szegény gyermek, mily nagy öröme lesz,
ha önt viszontlátja! Ivánfi van nála épen, azért nem jöhetett ki. Mi
igazán nem szeretjük, sem én, sem Eulália, hogy ez az úr annyit jön
ide, mióta Ágnes árván maradt. Nincs modorában semmi finomság
és olyan ügyetlen, akár egy deák. És senki sem tudja látogatásainak
okát. Mit akar ő egy vagyontalan leánynyal? Ha szegény
gyermekünk nem lenne annyira eszes és vigyázó, már komolyabb
aggodalmak is ébredtek volna bennünk.
– Mert a világ rossz, – egészíté ki az ájtatos testvér. Foglaljon
helyet, Béla. Ágnes egy pillanat mulva itt lesz.
A vendég egy perczre magányosan maradt a sárga szobában.
Kissé fel volt indulva s izgatottan jártatta körül tekintetét a sárga
társalgóban. A dusan megrakott pipere-asztal ezüst sárkányai
fogaikat mutogatták neki s a copfos porczellán-khinaiak jóizüen
mosolyogtak rajta. A szél zirgett-zörgött odakünn s Béla minden
neszre összezörrent.
Egyszer csak kinyilt előtte csöndesen, zajtalanul a szemközti ajtó
s egyszerű, fekete ruhában előtte állott Ágnes. Szintelenül,
nyugodtan, mozdulatlanul állt ott. Mintha tegnap, tegnapelőtt s
mindennap látta és sohasem szerette volna Bélát. Semmit, egy
hangot sem hallhatott ez, a mint eléje sietett, a kéz, az arcz, a kebel,
a szemek meleg beszédéből. Csak ajkai szólaltak meg:
– Jó napot, Béla.
– Jobbakat kivánok neked, Ágnes, mint az enyimek.
Leültek. Béla soká nézegette a szőnyeg rózsáit lábainál,
megfordult tekintete a csufondáros khinaiakon is, csak a leánynak
nagy, okos, megtört szemeit kerülte, melyek rajta nyugodtak. A
csöndet utoljára is Ágnes törte meg.
– Eufrozina néném azt mondta, hogy beszéded van velem.
Áteshetünk rajta?
– Igen, Ágnes. Elfeledtem, hogy vendéged van s perczeidhez
előbbvaló joga van másnak, mint nekem. Rövid leszek, pedig sok
mondanivalóm van. Ágnes!
Kezét nyujtotta Béla a lány elé, de ez visszahúzódott tőle. E
vonakodás, e váratlan hidegség, e meglepő nyugalom még nagyobb
zavarba ejtette a kérőt, ki kesztyüjét tépve s akadozva beszélt:
– Fogadd, fogadd el kezemet. Nemcsak e pillanatokra nyujtom.
Megértem, megcsodáltalak, megismertelek és nőül akarlak venni.
Nemesnek tudlak, szépnek látlak, enyimnek óhajtanálak. Megvan
még a gyűrüm? A régi még a szíved? Feledd el azt a sebet, mely az
enyimen van; hisz az csakis az enyim, s te talán boldog is lehetsz
miatta. Nem voltam mindig az, – Istenem, nem voltam; – de most jó
vagyok. Becsülj meg, Ágnes és fogadj el.
A lányt nem lepte meg kérőjének izgatott, heves beszéde.
Arczáról nem kergette el a fájó nyugalmat, nem volt képes megnyitni
szívét. Meggondoltan és hevülés nélkül adatott meg a felelet:
– Ismerlek, Béla, jobban ismerlek, mint te engem. Tudom, hogy
nem szeretsz. Tudom, hogy bátyám rettentő halála – bocsássa meg
nekem az ég – meghatott és rövid pillanatokra kijózanított
mámorodból. Tudom, hogy szívednek egy nemes hangja hitt ide,
hogy összeilleszd az elszakított iratot, leródd háládat jótevőd iránt és
megmentsd egy szegény leány jövendőjét. Azt hiszed, hogy ma
könyörülettel is beérem, mert szíved mást semmit nem adhat
nekem. Ez pedig nagyon kevés ár azokért a rettenetes éjtszakákért,
melyek a kálozdi kastélyban várnának rám. Maradj meg te utadon.
Hagyd a földön a gyűrüt, melyet elhajítottál és keresd az örömeket
azoknál, kikhez nem irgalommal közelitettél, mint hozzám.
– Ágnes, hát remény nélkül bocsátasz el?
– Maradj hű magadhoz, Béla, és ne akarj senkit megcsalni
remények emlegetésével. Neked nincsenek reményeid. Ennyi volt, a
mit kelletlenül mondtam. Most itt a kezem, melyet azért a perczért
megérdemlesz, mikor reám gondoltál. Fogd meg, egy pillanatra a
tied. Így. És most bocsáss engem is a magam utjára. Hadd
imádkozom le vétkemet és tegyek jóvá a mennyit lehet, egy minden
izében derék ember boldogításával, kinek önzetlen szerelme
meghatott.
Kinyitotta az ajtót és bevezette Ivánfit. A báró sugárzó arczczal
köszöntötte Bélát. A sok elpazarolt esztendő bizonyítványa mind
eltünt homloka pergamentjéről. Boldog és fiatal volt, mintha csak
most kezdené az életet.
– Legyenek jó rokonok, – mondá ujolag fölcsendülő hangon
Ágnes. A régi barátságot kössék atyafisággá. Béla, ki majdnem
testvérem volt, – és leendő férjem.
– Im, itt a kezem, Béla barátom, – szólt a báró s minden
pillanatban Ágnesre szökött a szeme. Sokat beszélnek róla, hogy ön
milyen tudós. Én nem vagyok az; de tudomány nélkül is boldog, igen
boldog ember vagyok. Nem kivánok egyebet, mint hogy önt is
ennyire segítse bölcsessége. Ejnye, ez nem is volt épen rosszul
mondva. Szorítsunk hát még egyszer kezet. Iszen olykor a
tudósoknak is szükségük van ilyen magamféle egyszerű barátokra.
A hosszú ebéd, melyre a nénék Bélát erőnek erejével ott fogták,
nem igen izlett neki. Szerelmi nyil nem törött szívébe; de hát a minap
a kis kertész – kinek fiatal lelkesedése sokáig kerülgette a ránczos,
vén Sörösné pénzes ládáját – mikor kikosarazták, világgá akart
bujdosni. Béla a nélkül, hogy nyugtalan vagy bánatos lett volna,
kedvetlenségét nem tudta egészen legyőzni. Híven megtette
kötelességét; nemesnek érezte a sugallatot, mely után indult;
becsületesnek a kezet, melylyel kényszerítetlenül akart aláírni egy
kötelezőt. Ezen a napon bizonyára semmi oka elégedetlennek lenni
magával. De a kudarcz mégis csak kudarcz marad s várakozó
házanépének, mely rózsával bocsátotta el, kosarat visz haza.
Össze-összekoczintotta poharát a boldog vőlegénynyel s a
kisasszonyok mind a husz fogás étel után újra kezdték az ámulást-
bámulást a dolgoknak nem várt fordulata fölött.
Már estére járt az idő, hogy az öreg János kifordult a bogádi
kastély udvaráról, melyben minden kavics a maga helyén volt. Az idő
egyre gonoszabbul viselte magát. Az ég egészen szürkés sárgába
borult, mintha a kavargó förgeteg telehordta volna porral. A szél
esze nélkül nyargalt jobbra balra; rohanó paripáját verte, csapdosta
s füttyögetett neki. A völgyben, szántóföldeken, réteken, a halmok
oldalán, a szőllők közt mindent összetiport s valósággal
tébolyodottan csapkodta hol erre, hol arra óriási porköpönyegét.
Nem vetett rohanásának határt az erdő; a szélső fáknak hajába
kapott, tépte, czibálta őket, mig sikerült neki kiszakítani gyökerestől
és lehajigálni az árokba. Aztán tüszkölve, jajgatva, tombolva
befurakodott a sűrűbe, ott törte-marta magát, dühöngött, pusztított,
féktelenkedett és mikor a tulsó oldalon nagy-nehezen ki tudott
szabadulni a kelepczéből, melybe maga keverte magát,
megkönnyebbülten és nagyokat sóhajtozott. De csak ujra felhangzott
szilaj füttye s a szabadban folytatta veszett tánczát. A lenyugvó nap
széles, vörös karikáját, mocskos, sárga köd homályosította s az
egész láthatárt letiprott áldozatok, hajlongó tehetetlenség, messze
siró jajszavak, erőszakos dulakodás és lomhán hullámzó, nehéz,
szürke felhők töltötték be.
E csúf időben vergődtek hazafelé Béla és az öreg János. A mint
az esőmosta fakereszthez értek, hol a kálozdi és karámosi út külön
válik, egy furcsa jelenet állította meg őket. Két, szörnyen megrakott
és feldült szekér egész csapat szitkozódó, szaladgáló, sántító,
fejevesztett embertől, asszonytól és gyerektől körülfogva. Béla
kivehetett annyit, úgy a hallottakból, – csak egy-két ölnyire voltak
tőle, – mint a látottakból, hogy az első szekérnek egyik igavonó
állatja sánta volt, elesett és ezzel minden szerencsétlenség főfő
okozójává lett, mert az utószállítmány négylábu vezetői vakok lévén,
neki mentek az előttük heverő romoknak, megbotlottak és azon
vakon követték előljáróik szomorú példáját. A baj, melyet
tétovázásuk és előrenemlátásukkal előidéztek, sokkal nagyobb volt,
semhogy joguk lett volna oly nyugodtan, minden további lelkifurdalás
nélkül féloldalt elnyujtózni az árokszélen. A tornyokká rakott
szekerek kötelei megoldozódtak s a legcsodálatosabb mindenféle
hevert és röpült szerteszét. Mintha az egyik valami fejedelmi
kincstárból, a másik meg egy zsibárus-boltból rakodott volna meg. Itt
egy aranyos trónus egyik lábát keresik a számtalan csónakorru
paraszt csizma közt; a szél kaczagva kap fel egy koronát és egész
tuczat fehér, fekete, vörös parókával indíttat hajrá-versenyt utána,
mely hol a levegőben, hol a földön foly, de mindig távolabb a
szekerektől; rettenetes fejező pallosok, ijesztgető gyiklesők, rozsdás
kardok és dárdák élére egy szinehagyott, jámbor reverenda került;
czifra menték, sárga csizmák, tollas barétek, apró selyem czipők
fölött egy kis kutya jajgat, melynek a lábával történt
szerencsétlensége; bilincsek, könyvek, puskák, végetlen vászon-
végek, óriási és érthetetlen mázolások, nagyszemű gyöngyök, fekete
álarczok, rongyos dominók, mindenféle papiros-szörnyetegek,
rézgyertyatartók, szemfedők, koporsók, keresztek, félig leégett
fáklyák, mindez összevissza martalékául a víg kedvre kerekedett
viharnak.
A mint az esőmosta fakereszthez értek, egy furcsa jelenet
állította meg őket.
A csoport, mely hol dolgozva, hol lármázva, hol kétségbeesve

állta körül a romokat, nem volt érdektelen. Uroknak és mesteröknek
egy sovány ember látszott, ki mérges tekintetét egész tragikus
vadsággal jártatta körül a pusztulás képein. Kis fejével, csontos,
régen borotvált, tüskés arczával, kidüledt szemeivel, nagy, horgas
orrával és hosszú nyakán sokszorosan körülcsavart piszkos sáljával
rendkivül hasonlított az örves keselyühöz, mely tudvalevőleg szintén
hussal táplálkozik, mint a tragikus hősök. A vihar elől kissé védett
erdőszélben ült egy fatörzsön s balját méltóságosan térdére
illesztve, jobbjával pedig egy pálinkás üveget tartogatva, a
szomorujátékokból megszokott erőteljes kifejezésekkel osztogatta
parancsait két nyurga és egy, a természet érthetetlen csodája által
jócskán meghízott alattvalójának, kik a feldűlt kocsik és szerteheverő
ruhatár körül izzadtak, s az elszunnyadt lovakkal vesződő
parasztoknak. Mint erős tölgyre a gyönge folyondár, úgy kuszott fel
hozzá egy megviselt arczu, de szende szemű nő-alak, kinek
főkötőjén ezüstös csipkék voltak s erősen igyekezett szakadt
keztyűs kezeivel minél szorosabbra kötni egy batyut, melyből a szél
különféle szinű, alaku és tömöttségű bajuszokat és szakállakat
ragadozott el. Távolabb egy másik nőt élesztgettek, ki úgy látszott,
legrosszabbul járt a balesetben.
– Förtelem és ocsmányság! – kiabált a keselyü, egyet-egyet
húzva a butykosból. Bendeguz, jobban húzd meg azt a nyomorult,
kötelet, mert porrá omlik az egész trónus! Rajta fiaim, munkához!
(Megint egyet húzott s a parasztok felé fordult.) A kendtek gebéi
alávaló párák. Kálmánka édes, a szél megint ott viszi a Friczi-
parókát! (A sápadt, kis Kálmánka, kinek a paróka-vadászatban már
egészen elfogyott a lélegzete, megint futásnak eredt.) Gézenguzok!
Mária, te is megerőltethetnéd egy kissé a kacsóidat!
A folyondár úgy felpattant e méltatlanságra, mintha a legerősebb
paprika lett volna.
– Azt hiszed, Pető? Hát a kisasszony ellen semmi kifogásod, a ki
amott oly édesdeden szunnyad? Mi csak teszünk valamit és
segítünk, (egyszerre három bajusz röpült ki kezei közül,) hanem neki
úgy látszik, kiváltsága van az ájulásokra. Sohasem hittem, hogy az ő
hősnői idegei oly gyöngék, mikor a dolgot kell kikerülni.
Ekkor lépett hozzájok Béla.
– Uraim, – mondá, – úgy látom, önök művészek és bajba
keveredtek. Azonnal besötétedik egészen; nem segíthetnék-e
valamivel?
– Azok vagyunk, – felelt a keselyű, – művészek. A művészet
pedig és a sorsharag egy méhből születtek. A hires Hollaki-társaság
vagyunk. Magam lennék az igazgató, Hollaki Pető. Mint
hősszinészről bizonyosan hallott rólam az úr; direkczióba még nem
régen fogtam. Ez nőm, utólérhetlen szende. A ki ott el van ájulva, az
a drámai hősnő, még pedig…
– Az ott vele az intrikus, – vágott férje szavaiba a megviselt arczu
szende. Amazok…
– De talán ne vesztegetnők az időt, – mondá Béla, – mert
egészen ránk esteledik. Bizonyára szerencsém lesz majd
megismerkedni valamennyiükkel. Hisz, a mint tudom, Karámosra
készülnek. Talán a nőket bevihetném kocsimon?
– Igen, a nőket vigye be az úr kocsiján, – kapott rajta az igazgató.
Az egyik úgyis el van ájulva, a másik meg itt sorba eregeti szélnek
valamennyi bajuszomat. Mi megfeszített munkánkkal is úgysem
tudom, mikor leszünk készen s kérdés, az új felpakolás után jut-e
mindnyájunknak hely a szekereken. Meg Kálmánkát is bevihetné, ha
már igazi nagylelküség dagasztja kebelét. Csak a Fekete Sas előtt
tegye majd le őket az úr. Hé Miklós meg Bendeguz, hozzátok ide
Ilonát!
A folyondár egy percz alatt felkúszott a kocsira, elfoglalta a jobbik
helyet és maga mellé húzta a fuldokló Kálmánkát. Az éledező hősnőt
is oda szállították s miután a szende állandóan félrefordította volna
fejét, elhelyezték a szabadon hagyott sarokban. Kisérője, az intrikus
– egy kiélt arczu, sötét szemű ficzkó, – a mint Bélát megpillantotta,
szinte hátratántorodva, vadul borzongott össze. De az már kezébe
vette az ostort és gyeplüt, közéjük csapott a lovaknak és nem látott
belőle semmit, a mi mögötte történt. Útközben tisztulni kezdett az idő
s a kóválygó, sűrű fellegek közül ki-kibukkant a teli hold. Béla
egyszer hátratekintett világánál s szenvedő vendégében egyikét látta
a leghódítóbb nőalakoknak. Fekete öltözetében, hosszas,
szenvedélyes és halavány arczával, a két ezüstös csillaggal nagy,
fekete szemeiben, a hold titokzatos világánál úgy tetszett neki,
mintha az éj királynéja lenne. Azután visszatekintett még többször,
sőt egy kerülőt is tett a Fekete Sasig. A hogy beértek a nagy, ronda
udvarra és leszálltak:
– Remélem, lesz szerencsénk a holnapi előadáson, – mondá
kecses mosolylyal a szende.
– Köszönöm, uram, – szólt a királyné és egy szép, vékony, fehér
kezet nyujtott eléje.

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Comprehension Strategies in the

Acquiring of a Second Language 1st ed.

Spontaneous Play in the Language Classroom: Creating a

Language Before Stonewall : Language, Sexuality,

The Palgrave Handbook of Romani Language and

Speaking English as a Second Language: Learners'

McGraw-Hill Connect Resources for Jones, Acquiring

The Business of Teaching: Becoming a Teacher in a

Environmental Sustainability in a Time of Change 1st

The Language of Surrealism 1st ed. Edition Peter

ISBN 978-3-030-52997-0 ISBN 978-3-030-52998-7 (eBook)

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2020

This volume represents the history and development of comprehension

Kansas City, MO Harris Winitz

2 Our Magical Language 11

3 Development of the Comprehension Approach as a

4 Models of Implicit Language Processing 61

5 Language Acquisition in Children: The Development of

7 The Relationship Between Comprehension and

8 Word Segmentation and Intelligibility, Parental

9 The Role of Conversational Interchanges in First- and

10 Considerations in the Development of Lessons in the

11 Instructional Principles Applied to the Several Stages of

12 Consideration of the Advanced Stages of Instruction

13 Evaluation of the Comprehension Approach and Related

Fig. 11.12  260

If I were to recommend an essential first book for foreign language teach-

© The Author(s) 2020 1

development of the Comprehension Approach as an alternative teaching

Despite the number of investigations and serious essays on foreign lan-

Baum” (She waters the tree.). In the Comprehension Approach, students

bleeding quickly or abruptly by the burning of flesh.” In the

language, which includes a large vocabulary and a set of expressions,

© The Author(s) 2020 11

However, there is one discipline in which the study of grammar bluntly

walking under the tree is used as a matter of course. In English we can

Acquiring our native language has largely been a function of an immer-

*He spoke her to about the fire. (1)

*John rang up his mother and up his sister. (5)

He ran quickly. (6)

Instead of conjoining sentences (6) and (7), we would much pre-

He ran quickly outside. (9)

It is instructive to examine a few sentences from the work of Fillmore

John broke the window. (10)

*John and a hammer broke the window. (13)

John and Bill broke the window (15)

She mows the grass. (16)

John is easy to please. (20)

Standard sentence diagramming would allocate to John the category of

It is easy to please John. (22)

Sentence (22) is grammatical because John is the object of “to please”

*She is liking the gift. (24)

She likes the gift. (27)

These examples provided by Halliday (1985) and many other exam-

In contrast to an immersion system of language training, the grammar-­

language according to how linguists study the several language systems.

Halliday (1985, Introduction, p. xxxii) indicates that memorizing lin-

caretakers (Chomsky 1968). The concept of an inherited universal gram-

Kansas City, MO Harris Winitz

2 Our Magical Language 11

3 Development of the Comprehension Approach as a

4 Models of Implicit Language Processing 61

5 Language Acquisition in Children: The Development of

7 The Relationship Between Comprehension and

8 Word Segmentation and Intelligibility, Parental

9 The Role of Conversational Interchanges in First- and

10 Considerations in the Development of Lessons in the

11 Instructional Principles Applied to the Several Stages of

12 Consideration of the Advanced Stages of Instruction

13 Evaluation of the Comprehension Approach and Related

Fig. 11.12 260

In contrast to an immersion system of language training, the grammar-

ability to read the classic works of a foreign language, to achieve near-

Interest of Students in the Study

The Pennsylvania Study

Experimental Study of Language Performance