Scribd
Upload
174 views

Stepehen Fry'S Letter To Himself: Dearest Absurd Child

This paragraph was taken from a letter Stephen Fry wrote to his 16-year-old self. In the letter, Fry acknowledges that society has become more accepting of homosexuality but notes there are still issues around sexuality. He admires the unhappy but lively person his younger self was and does not want to lose that aspect of himself as he ages.

Uploaded by

Laydy Hancco
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
174 views

Stepehen Fry'S Letter To Himself: Dearest Absurd Child

This paragraph was taken from a letter Stephen Fry wrote to his 16-year-old self. In the letter, Fry acknowledges that society has become more accepting of homosexuality but notes there are still issues around sexuality. He admires the unhappy but lively person his younger self was and does not want to lose that aspect of himself as he ages.

Uploaded by

Laydy Hancco
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 5

STEPEHEN FRYS LETTER TO HIMSELF: DEAREST

ABSURD CHILD
This paragraph was taken from the letter that Stephen Fry wrote to his 16-yearold self. The receiver seems to be another person, but its not. Stephen is just
answering, 35 years later, the letter that he had written to his future self when
he was an adolescent. He mentions how society has changed: gay people can
emerge from the shadows. Still, there is another problem: sexuality. Besides
that, he admires the person he was: unhappy, nervous, wild but alive an
adolescent who didnt want to grow up.

Dare: to be brave enough to do something


Repudiate: to refuse to accept something
Mock: to laugh at somebody in an unkind way
Grow away from somebody: to become less close to somebody
Betray: to hurt somebody that trusts you by not being loyal

Despair: the feeling of having lost all hope


Overpower: to gain control over somebody
Angst-ridden: anxious and worried about a situation or about your
life
Mask: to hide a feeling so that it cannot be easily seen or noticed

Shrivel: to become or make something dry and wrinkled


Stale: no longer fresh
Scorned: a strong feeling that somebody or something is stupid
Bedevil: to cause a lot of problems to sb
Trifling: small and not important

Flummoxed: confused

Spurn: to refuse or reject somebody in a proud way

Wrought: to cause something to happen, especially a change


Age: to become older
Coeval: having the same age or date of origin

Taunt: an insulting or unkind remark

Welter: roll around


Yearn: to want something very much, especially when its very
difficult to get

GIFT OF THE GAB


This paragraph was taken from the article Gift of the gab, which means the
ability to speak easily and to persuade other people with your words. In this
article, the author tries to define the word gossip providing the many
definitions the word has had throughout the years and a variety of synonyms.
After quoting different sources and famous people, the author comes to a
conclusion: gossips good enough for me.

Nattle: to talk for a long time, especially about unimportant things


Prattle: to talk a lot about unimportant things
Chatter: to talk quickly and continuously, especially about things
that are not important
Tittle-tattle: to talk about unimportant things, not true, about other
people. GOSSIP
Jabber: to talk quickly and in an excited way so that it is difficult to
understand what you are saying
Jaw: to talk, especially to talk a lot or for a long time
Grievous: very serious and often causing great pain or suffering
Gutter: water channel at roadside
Idle chatter: to chitchat. Informal conversation
Shrink: psychiatrist
Delve: investigate, research
Posit: to postulate sth
Ruminate: to think about
Ponder on: to think deeply about sth
Wisdom: sabidura
Sibyl: female oracle
Seer: sb who sees future
Diminish: to make somebody/something seem less important than
they really are
Meager: small in quantity

THE MUSIC OF THE SPHERE


This paragraph was taken from the article The music of the sphere, in which
the author starts telling us briefly his feelings towards a missal bound he
wanted so much as a child, but that he never got. However, the most relevant
part of the article is what comes next: the story of an object, a desired bauble
which then became a trophy, a talisman, for him, and which he thought to have
lost, but then returned from the attic.

Abate: calm, lessen


Missal: connected to Christianity, a book

Calfskin: young cows leather


Bauble: something that is cheap and has little artistic value,
especially jewellery
Knick-knack: a small decorative object in a house
Harpsichord: early keybord
Haystack: pile of drying hay
Trouvaille: a valuable discovery, or lucky find

ALL STOPS TO HELL


This paragraph was taken from the text All stops to hell in which
Edward Pilkington tells us about his trip on one of the oldest foulest
trains of Britain. The time he spends there is particularly annoying,
irritating, and undesirable. Unfortunately, thats what hundreds of people
experience every single day. And things go from bad to worse as the text
develops.

NOW WHERE WAS I?


This paragraph was taken from the article Now where was I? Its a humorous
text based on the narrators experience in losing things. At the beginning, he
provides sentences using the same word lose but with different meanings.
Then, the author mentions two things that he had lost during his trip, but that
then appeared: his glasses and his wallet. After that, in France, he realised that
he had lost his passport. From then on, the narrator describes his feelings and
addresses the reader many times in order to focus on one worrying subject:
discrimination. The text ends with him saying that he lost his marbles.

Grill: interrogate
Bearer: person who carries, brings sth
Hindrance: impediment, obstacle
Peruse: read thoroughly
Lose your marbles: to become mentally ill. To lose your mind

QUARRELLING
This paragraph was taken from the article Quarrelling in which the author
tells us what the essential characteristics of a quarrel are. The text starts by
stating that to be a good quarreller is a craft that must be learned. Then, two
main stages at which you can develop this skill are mentioned: a childhood
with fractious siblings and a bad marriage. The main purpose of the text seems

to be to inform us about the requirements for a quarrel and its real reason.
Besides, the difference between an argument and a quarrel is also mentioned.

MOHANDAS GANDHI
This paragraph was taken from the article Mohandas Gandhi in which the
author shows how the image of Gandhi has been distorted throughout the
years: Gandhi-as-guru, Gandhi-as-Christ, totem, a revolutionary symbol, creator
of the political philosophy of passive resistance and constructive nonviolence,
etc. The text opens with a polemic Apples advertisement that is described and
criticized because the image of Gandhi was used to represent modernity and
technology nothing to do with this Indian mans opinion. Then, a contrast
between Gandhis dreams and todays India is made.

Loincloth: cloth covering genitals

TERMINUS
This paragraph was taken from the article Terminus in which the narrator
describes a different and unusual trip by train. He says to have seen his father
on a parallel train, and provides a full description of how he looked like: sad,
thoughtful, and almost morose. However, the image of his father was only a
reflection of himself. Towards the end of the text, this metaphor can be
noticed as he admits being a walking dead. He is lacking love.

Dwell on: to think or talk a lot about something, especially


something it would be better to forget

NEIGHBOURS
This extract has been taken from the article Neighbours (by Lu Forgan
in the Guardian). The text is about the people that live next to your
house and their everyday behaviour along with its consequences. The
writer focuses especially on bad neighbours and how to deal with them
taking into account the three basic responses to what the law calls
Nuisance: surrender, retaliate or sue.
-

Launderette: a place where you can wash and dry your clothes in
machines that you operate by putting in coins
Dry rot: wood that has decayed and turned to powder

Platitudes: a comment or statement that has been made very


often before and is therefore not interesting
Nuisance: a thing, person or situation that is annoying or causes
trouble or problems
Surrender: to admit that you have been defeated and want to stop
fighting; to allow yourself to be caught, taken prisoner, etc.
Retaliate: Revenge. to do something harmful to somebody because
they have harmed you first
Sue: to make a claim against somebody in court about something
that they have said or done to harm you
Recourse: the fact of having to, or being able to, use something
that can provide help in a difficult situation
Mower: a machine that cuts grass
Trimmer: a machine for cutting the edges of bushes, grass
and hedges
Hostility: unfriendly or aggressive feelings or behaviour
Deed: a thing that somebody does that is usually very good or
very bad
Merciful: ready to forgive people and show them kindness

THE PSYCHIATRIST
The Psychiatrist is an old sketch about a conversation between Dr.
Braintree, the specialist, and Roger. The psychiatrist seems to be doing a
great job with his patient, but Roger confesses to being in love with Dr.
Braintrees wife. The psychiatrist does not get angry; he just finds things
reasonable and understandable, perfectly understandable. Its a
comedy, a humorous dialogue, and a parody of psychiatrists
personalities, and their calm way of reacting to things.

You might also like