OLIMPIADA DE LIMBA ENGLEZĂ, ETAPA LOCALĂ – 17 EBRUARIE 2018

CLASA a X-a, SECȚIUNEA A

SUBIECTUL A – USE OF ENGLISH

I. Read the following task and put the verbs in brackets in the correct form. (10 x 1p =
10p)

Ever since Dolly the sheep 1)......................................... (be) cloned in 1997, scientists, politicians and theologians
2) .......................................... (discuss) the question of whether or not the cloning of human beings
3) ..........................................(should/allow). If cloning does become a reality one day, it 4) ..................................(raise)
many questions. Many scientists want cloning 5)............................(be) legalised. They believe that if it
6) .....................................(be) legal to clone human beings, it 7) ....................................(be) possible to create a
superior race. Many childless couples also wish the government 8).......................................(allow) cloning. If this
9) ...............................(be) the only way for you to have a child, you 10).................................. (may) agree with them
too.

II. Use the word given in brackets to form a word that fits in each sentence. (10 x 1p =
10p)

1. The arguments in favour of direct action are ___________( REFUTE)

2. It is __________________ to fasten your seat-belts before take-off (ADVISE)
3. She claimed __________________ benefits for over six months. (EMPLOY)
4. Tax __________________ is one of the biggest problems that face the new country. (EVADE)
5. You can basically wear what you want but there is a/an _____________ law that says you must not
wear jeans. (WRITE)
6. The __________________ course is being paid for by the company. (MANAGE)
7. It’s a __________________ shame that she didn’t have a better chance in life. (CRY)
8. The farm house we stayed in was completely off the __________________ track. (BEAT)
9. The police searched the house _______________________ . (SYSTEM)
10. He is a __________________ -paid senior executive. (HIGH)

III. Read the following text and decide which answer A, B, C or D best fits in each gap. (10
x 1p = 10p)

The use of computers has meant students can study language programmes (1) ... their own speed when
and for how long they want. What's more, in the virtual classrooms of the future the student will (2) ...
on their headset, and be transported into an imaginary school, choose their class, take the books they
need off the shelf and (3) ... conversations with other computerised students.
They might (4) ... choose to pay a visit to the supermarket or the train station, the bank or the
restaurant. At the (5) ... of a button they would be transported to (6) ... realistic settings where they
could practice their English, maybe getting a hand from a virtual English companion. All this perhaps,
at the computer, from the comfort of their home: no (7) ... to catch the bus to college, or a plane to
England.
Exciting? Certainly, and an interesting alternative to traditional classroom lessons. But would it ever
(8) ... the classroom? Hopefully not. Surely the need to relate to real people talking about real issues
and generally learning a little more about others will always lead language learners to (9) ... at least a
little of their time with (10) ... people.

(1) A. WITH B. FOR C. AT D. IN

(2) A. PLACE B. PUT C. SET D. GET

(3) A. TAKE B. DO C. CATCH D. HOLD

(4) A. ALTHOUGH B. PREFERABLY C. INSTEAD D. CONTRARY

(5) A. FORCE B. HIT C. DEPRESS D. PUSH

(6) A. SO B. SUCH C. LIKE D. ALIKE

(7) A.ROLE B. DUTY C. OBLIGATION D. NEED

(8) A. REPLACE B. RESTORE C. SUCCEED D. RECOVER

(9) A. SPEND B. MAKE C. HAVE D. DO

(10) A. VALUE B. REAL C. TRUE D. GENUINE

IV. Translate the following text into Romanian. (10p)

For millions of people coming to America from Europe, the first proof that they had reached a new
world was the moment when they first caught sight of the skyline of Manhattan. Surrealistic,
superhuman, the skyline was like nothing they had ever seen in the old world — a concentration of
tall buildings, their tops scraping the sky, hundreds of feet above the ground. These were New York's
famous skyscrapers! This was America!
The first skyscrapers, however, did not develop in New York, but in Chicago, in the late nineteenth
century. Chicago at that time was the boom town of the United States — New York was just the front
door. Chicago was at the centre of the new American adventure, and the new adventure was the West.
Chicago was the point at which the West began.

SUBIECTUL B – INTEGRATED SKILLS

Read the text below and do the tasks that follow.

Robert Capa is a name that has for many years been synonymous with war photography. Born in
Hungary in 1913 as Friedmann Endre Ernő, Capa was forced to leave his native country after his
involvement in anti government protests. Capa had originally wanted to become a writer, but after his
arrival in Berlin had first found work as a photographer. He later left Germany and moved to France
due to the rise in Nazism. He tried to find work as a freelance journalist and it was here that he
changed his name to Robert Capa, mainly because he thought it would sound more American.
In 1936, after the breakout of the Spanish Civil war, Capa went to Spain and it was here over the next
three years that he built his reputation as a war photographer. It was here too in 1936 that he took one
of his most famous pictures, The Death of a Loyalist Soldier. One of Capa’s most famous quotes was
'If your pictures aren't good enough, you're not close enough.' And he took his attitude of getting close
to the action to an extreme. His photograph, The Death of a Loyalist Soldier is a prime example of
this as Capa captures the very moment the soldier falls. However, many have questioned the
authenticity of this photograph, claiming that it was staged.

When World war II broke out, Capa was in New York, but he was soon back in Europe covering the
war for Life magazine. Some of his most famous work was created on 6th June 1944 when he swam
ashore with the first assault on Omaha Beach in the D-Day invasion of Normandy. Capa, armed only
with two cameras, took more than one hundred photographs in the first hour of the landing, but a
mistake in the darkroom during the drying of the film destroyed all but eight frames. It was the
images from these frames however that inspired the visual style of Steven Spielberg's Oscar winning
movie ‘Saving Private Ryan’. When Life magazine published the photographs, they claimed that they
were slightly out of focus, and Capa later used this as the title of his autobiographical account of the
war.

Capa’s private life was no less dramatic. He was friend to many of Hollywood’s directors, actors and
actresses. In 1943 he fell in love with the wife of actor John Austin. His affair with her lasted until the
end of the war and became the subject of his war memoirs. He was at one time lover to actress Ingrid
Bergman. Their relationship finally ended in 1946 when he refused to settle in Hollywood and went
off to Turkey. Work came first.

In 1947 Capa was among a group of photojournalists who founded Magnum Photos. This was a co-
operative organisation set up to support photographers and help them to retain ownership of the
copyright to their work.

Capa went on to document many other wars. He never attempted to glamorise war though, but to
record the horror. He once said, "The desire of any war photographer is to be put out of business."
Capa died as he had lived. After promising not to photograph any more wars, he accepted an
assignment to go to Indochina to cover the first Indochina war. On May 25th 1954 Capa was
accompanying a French regiment when he left his jeep to take some photographs of the advance and
stepped on a land mine. He was taken to a nearby hospital, still clutching his camera, but was
pronounced dead on arrival. He left behind him a testament to the horrors of war and a standard for
photojournalism that few others have been able to reach.

Capa’s legacy has lived on though and in 1966 his brother Cornell founded the International Fund for
Concerned Photography in his honor. There is also a Robert Capa Gold Medal, which is given to the
photographer who publishes the best photographic reporting from abroad with evidence of
exceptional courage. But perhaps his greatest legacy of all are the haunting images of the human
struggles that he captured.

I. For each question choose the correct letter A, B, C or D. (5 x 2p = 10p)

1. Why did Capa change his name?

A.To hide his identity
B. Because he had been involved in protests
C. To sound more American
D.Because he had to leave Hungary

2. Capa’s famous picture Death of a Loyalist Soldier

A. was taken by someone else.
B. was definitely genuine.
C. wasn’t even taken in Spain.
D. cannot be proven genuine or staged.

3. A mistake in the darkroom meant that

A. only one hundred of Capa’s photographs were published.
B. Capa lost both of his two cameras.
C. Capa’s images inspired an Oscar winning movie.
D. Most of Capa’s images of the D-Day landing were destroyed.

4. Capa wanted his work to

A. be very famous.
B. show how glamorous war can be.
C. show the true horror of war.
D. make lots of money.

5. Which sentence best paraphrases paragraph 4?

A. Capa had a tragic private life and was never able to settle down and find happiness.
B. Despite having many good friends and lovers, Capa always put his work first.
C. Capa wanted to make friends with important people in Hollywood so that he could move into the
movie industry.
D. Capa’s private life was very complicated. He could not choose between the two women he loved,
so he went off to work in Turkey.

II. Read the text again and write a narrative -descriptive essay based on the
situation described below:
You can travel back and forth in time. One day you wake up and find yourself caught in
Capa’s world. While witnessing his tumultous life before World War II, you are subjected to
an emotional incident, whose consequences are hard to anticipate. (250 -280 words). (50p)

NOTĂ
 Toate subiectele sunt obligatorii.
 Nu se acordă puncte din oficiu.
 Timp de lucru: 3 ore.
ANSWER KEY& MARKING SCHEME

CLASA a X-a SECTIUNEA A

SUBIECTUL A

I.. (10 x 1p = 10p)

1. was 6. were
7. would be
2. have been discussing
8. would allow/allowed
3. should be allowed
9. were
4. will raise
10. might
5. to be..

II. (10 x 1p = 10p)

1. irrefutable 2. advisable 3. unemployment 4. evasion 5. unwritten 6.management

7.crying 8. beaten 9. systematically10.highly

III. (10 x 1p = 10p)

1. C. AT 6. B. SUCH
7. D. NEED
2. B. PUT
8. A. REPLACE
3. D. HOLD
9. A. SPEND
4. C. INSTEAD
10. B. REAL
5. D. PUSH
IV. (10p) Suggested answer.
Pentru milioane de oameni care au venit în America din Europa, prima dovadă că ajunseseră
într-o nouă lume a fost momentul în care au privit pentru prima oară cerul deasupra
Manhattanului. Suprarealist, suprauman, cerul nu semăna cu nimic din ceea ce văzuseră
vreodată în lumea veche - o concentrație de clădiri înalte, vârfurile lor răzuind cerul, la sute
de metri deasupra solului. Acestea erau celebrele zgârie-nori din New York! Asta era
America!

Primii zgârie-nori nu au apărut însă în New York, ci în Chicago, la sfârșitul secolului al XIX-
lea. Chicago era în acel moment vârful de lance al Statelor Unite - New York era doar ușa
din față. Chicago a fost în centrul noii aventuri americane, iar noua aventură a fost Vestul.
Chicago a fost punctul de pornire spre Vest..

SUBIECTUL B

I. (5 x 2p = 10p) 1. C 2. D 3. D 4. C 5. B
II. 50 points