5. Course requirements:

1. Get ready for every class with oral and written assignments.

2. Learn topic vocabulary and use it in class discussions.

3. Have all written assignments done in a special exercise-book.

4. Make a final oral presentation

5. Write a final written test.

Assignment 1 (to p.4-22)

1. Get ready to answer the questions in class, make a list of topic vocabulary for each question and use it in your speech:

1. What was the partners’ dinner at Winthrop, Hawkins & Co dedicated to? Why did the partners remember such dinners better than their wedding day?

2. How were the participants of the partners’ dinner at Winthrop, Hawkins & Co dressed? Describe a tuxedo and make a list of occasions to wear it.

3. Speak about the relationship between A. Falcon and G. Winthrop before the partners’ dinner.

4. Collect all the information and get ready to describe the company’s policies regarding bonuses, partnership, inside information, income figures. Express your own opinion on each item.

5. Prove that there was a strong hidden tension among the participants of the dinner party and give reasons for it. When do you think work is stimulating? When does stimulation turn into stress?

6. Comment on Falcon’s feelings and thoughts regarding his huge bonus.

7. What made Falcon leave Winthrop, Hawkins & Co? How does this decision characterize him?

8. Sum up the dialogue between G.Winthrop and A.Falcon on pp.12-13). Why did it result in a rupture?

9. Make up a summary of MD Limited performance. Comment on its failure to fit the statistical data for new enterprises. What did Reid Bernstein accuse Falcon of? Do you agree with him?

10. What kind of a man was William Rutherford and why did G. Winthrop value him so much?

11. What transaction did Rutherford and Winthrop discuss?

12. Explain Winthrop’s scheme to make $1 billion. Try to predict Andrew Falcon’s role in this endeavor.

13. What happened at the Harvard-Penn basketball game and how was Rutherford involved in it? What was odd about the sum of money donated?

2. In the copy-book start taking notes on the main characters according to the table below. Leave enough space to add information from further units. Get ready to make brief oral class presentations on Andrew Falcon, Granville Winthrop, William Rutherford, and Jenny Cagle.

1. Portrait
2. Age
3. Origin
4. Parents
5. Education
6. Marital status
7. Career
8. Accommodation place
9. Hobbies and habits
10. Plans for the future
11. Strong character features
12. Weak character features
13. Topic words

3. Pick out 5 words essential to describe every character and ask your classmates whom these words describe.

4. Write a short company profile for Winthrop, Hawkins & Company and get ready to make its brief presentation in class.

Headquarters____________________________________________

Business activities _______________________________________

Business reputation ______________________________________

Legal status ____LLP (limited liability partnership)_____________

Corporate structure ______________________________________

Executive Officers ______________________________________

Revenue ______________________________________________

Corporate culture _______________________________________

5. What types of companies are Winthrop, Hawkins & Company and MD Link Ltd.? What does it mean in terms of profit sharing?

6. Search the text of the unit for the following words and expressions and comment on the context in which they are used:

a) You are too driven

b) Form 13-D

c) Phoenix Grey

d) Pleiade Project

e) seven

7. a) Find in the text the English equivalents for the word combinations given below and recollect the context in which they were used:

1. (p.4) сохранять спокойствие

2. (p.4) срок пребывания в должности

3. (p.5) заучивать, запоминать

4. (p.6) пожелать к-л процветания

5. (p.6) Правильно! Верно сказано!

6. (p.6) совершить оплошность, ударить в грязь лицом

7. (p.6) быть знатоком, сведущим в ч-л

8. (p.6) служебная (секретная) информация

9. (p.7) резюме, конспект, краткий обзор

10. (p.8) протянуть руку к

11. (p.20) возмещать, компенсировать

b) Fill the gaps with English expressions from Task 7a.

1. The tradition was not to be revealed outside the room, but Andrew hadn't ________a beat. 2. Andrew needed to ________his stone-calm composure. 3. Mr. President, would you please give a __________of the financial results for the fiscal year? 4. They would talk for hours, and Falcon would _________ to memory any shred of advice Granville imparted. 5. It meant that their newest partner was _________at obtaining ____________ informa­tion. 6. The other partners were seated on either side of Winthrop according to their _________with the firm. The most ________ of the partners sat immediately to Granville's left and right. 7. Prices have risen in order to _________ the increased cost of materials. 8. Falcon _________ _____ the box next to his unused dessert fork.

8. Fill the gaps with prepositions about, at, for, into(2), on, to, with:

1. Andrew Falcon was about to come ____ a tremendous amount of money. 2. Granville Winthrop sat ___ the head of the ar­rangement. 3. The other partners were seated on either side of Winthrop according to their tenure _____ the firm. 4. Andrew relaxed ___ the comfortable chair. 5. After dinner Andrew and Granville would retire ____ the mansion's study to break open a bottle of Scotch and discuss business and politics. 6. Falcon glanced ______ the room. 7. The profit decrease is an unacceptable development, even __ the face of a diffi­cult economy. 8. Falcon reached ____ his unused dessert fork.

9. Translate into English

1. Остальные партнеры занимали места по обе стороны от Уинтропа в соответствии со сроком их пребывания в фирме. 2. Фолкен запоминал до мельчайших подробностей все советы, которые давал ему Грэнвил. 3. Господа, желаю вам преуспевания в новом году! 4. Это означало, что новый партнер умел добывать секретную информацию. 5. Господин Президент, сделайте, пожалуйста, краткий обзор основных результатов истекшего финансового года.

10. a) Write out the following business terms, translate them and be ready to explain their meaning and usage in class:

to go public/ to take public, share, stock, stake, equity, securities, controlling interest, bylaws, entity, leveraged buyout, public tender

b) Translate the sentences into Russian, pay special attention to the italisized words.

1. MD Link would select Winthrop, Hawkings to take the company public. 2. MD Link should have gone public by now, and his 500 000- dollar investment ought to be worth multimillions. 3. The firm would buy back his partnership interest immediately at full value – which means millions, even on an after-tax basis. 4. Because you have been a partner for only one year, you are not entitled, under the bylaws of the partnership, to receive any money for your partnership interest. 5. His disability to resurrect the system was crushing Falcon’s plans into a pipe dream and turning his 500 000-dollar investment into worthless stock. 6. Once any entity owns more than 5% of a public company’s stock, that entity is supposed to file a Form 13-D. 7. What has the stock price done since we started buying? 8. Our first purchase six months ago was at twenty-four dollars a share. The stock closed Friday at twenty-five and an eighth. 9. He is simply reporting to us the names of stocks being scrutinized. 10. Actually we have another billion left, but that will be used as part of the equity for the leveraged buyout when we publicly announce our offer to pur­chase. 11. At what price will we announce the public tender? 12. But remember, that two-billion-dollar gain will be offset by the one billion we'll lose in the leveraged buyout.

11. Write a short item for the newspaper on the tragic fate of the MD Link Limited as a vivid example of how risky private entrepreneurship is.

LISTENING The Stock Market

Part 1. You are going to hear Isobel Mendelson talking about investments that she has made on the stock market and her reasons for doing so. Listen to Part 1 and complete the table.

Types of investment	Reasons for investing

Part 2. How does she check on her shares?