XII. Read the following extract from "Martin Eden" by Jack London and answer the questions given below.

He got up and tried to see himself in the dirty looking glass over the wash-stand. He saw the head and face of a young fellow of twenty. Above a square-domed forehead he saw a mop of brown hair, nut-brown, with a wave to it and hints of curls, making hands tingle to stroke it. But he passed it by, and dwelt long and thoughtfully on the high, square fore­head. What kind of brain lay behind it?

He wondered if there was soul in those steel-gray eyes that were often quite blue of color * and that were strong with the salty air of the sea. Well, they were honest eyes, he concluded. The brown sunburn of his face surprised him.

His mouth might have been a cherub's ** mouth, had not the full, sensuous lips a trick *** of drawing firmly across the teeth. At times, so tightly did they draw, the mouth became stern and harsh. The chin and jaw were strong and just hinting of square aggressiveness. And between the lips were teeth that were white and strong and regular.

Notes

* color — the American way of spelling the word colour.

** cherub — A legendary being belonging to one of the orders of angels.

*** a trick — In this text trick means habit.

Quest ions

How does Jack London describe: 1) Martin's hair, 2) Martin's eyes, 3) Martin's mouth?

XIII. Answer the following questions.

1. What colour eyes do you like most? 2) What is the difference between a near-sighted person and a long­sighted one? 3. How do you wear your hair? 4. What can happen to a person's voice if he shouts too loudly or too long? 5. What complexion do blond people usually have? 6. With which fingers do we hold a pen or a pencil? 7. What does a hairdresser do? 8. What happens to a child's milk teeth? 9.What do we call people who have lost their hair? 10) To what part of the ear are earrings attached? 1.1) What must the ap­pearance of a person deserving to be called well-preserved be like? 12. When do men's cheeks become stubbly? 13. What is the difference between a sunburned and a swarthy face? 14. What kind of gait do old people often have? 15. How does hard manual work affect people's hands?

XIV. Pick out from the following text and arrange in columns words and phrases which characterize the person's:

1) figure and bearing, 2) skin and complexion, 3) face, 4) hair, 5) limbs. Use these words and phrases in sentences of your own.

She was slender and graceful, so that she seemed taller than she was; she had beautifully shaped arms and a brightness in her face. Her fair, very slightly reddish hair flowed back from her low broad forehead; the colour under her delicate skin was bright and quick, and her mouth always smiled faintly. Her eyes were brightly blue except when the spirit of mischief took her and then they became black, and there was some­thing about the upper and the lower lids that made them not only the prettiest but the sweetest and kind­liest eyes in the world.

H. G. Wells