November 17, 2017

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New Bible Museum Opens in Washington

Washington D.C. is a city full of museums. Visitors have a large choice of places to go to learn about United States history, culture and art. The latest one to open in Washington is the Museum of the Bible. The 40,000-square-meter building is located near the U.S. Capitol, the National Mall and several Smithsonian museums. Unlike most major museums in Washington, the $500 million Museum of the Bible was not financed by the government. An American businessman, Steve Green, mostly paid for it. He is the president of Hobby Lobby, a large business that sells arts and crafts. Green’s idea for the museum came after he privately collected more than 300 Bible-related artifacts. He wanted a way to share these items with the rest of the world in a permanent home. Green says the goal of the museum is to educate people, not preach to them. “There’s just a basic need for people to read the book,” he told reporters. “We just want to present the facts and let visitors decide.” Museum officials have said the institution is not intended to represent the views of any particular religious or political group. They noted that more than 100 scholars representing a variety of groups helped design all exhibits in the museum. However, some religious scholars have questioned whether the museum provides a balanced view of the Bible and religious history. Joel Baden is a professor at Yale Divinity School and co-author of the book Bible Nation. He told Reuters the museum leaves out some important history relating to other major world religions. “They are telling a story of the Bible that is a particularly American Protestant one.” He said little attention was given to Roman Catholics, Jews, Muslims and Mormons. There are also concerns about the museum’s true intentions because of several controversies involving Steve Green and Hobby Lobby. Green and his family have been very public in opposing birth control and supporting efforts to include Bible teachings in U.S. public schools.  In 2014, Hobby Lobby won a U.S. Supreme Court case giving the right to deny workers at family-owned companies health coverage for birth control. In July, Hobby Lobby also was ordered to pay a $3 million fine and return artifacts the company bought without knowing the items had been smuggled out of Iraq. The company admitted it should have taken greater care in doing business with its dealers. Museum officials said none of those items were meant to be put in the Museum of the Bible. John Fea is head of the history department at Messiah College, a private, Christian college in the state of Pennsylvania. He said he thinks it will be very difficult for the museum to remain neutral in proving information about the holy book. “It’s going to be very, very hard to present the Bible in that way," he said. "Because the Bible is always so sort of ensconced, and so connected to a particular religious tradition and their way of interpreting it.” Visitors enter the museum through a dramatic 12-meter-tall bronze entrance containing writing from the first book of the Bible, Genesis. One museum official said about the design, "when you walk in, you’re really walking into the Bible.” The writing on the doors came from an early version of the Gutenberg Bible. The Gutenberg Bible was the first major book printed in Europe with movable type. Among the many Bibles shown at the museum is one called the Eliot Indian Bible. The museum says it was the first Bible printed in America in a Native American language. The Museum collection also includes several first editions of the King James Bible and early versions from Christian Reformation leader Martin Luther. Also shown are a large collection from the Dead Sea Scrolls, and what the museum describes as the “world's largest collection of Torah scrolls,” covering more than 700 years of history. In addition, visitors can explore an area on the Bible’s influence on cultures across the world, including education, literature and art. Included in this area are a Bible once owned by Elvis Presley and modern fashion designs inspired by biblical subjects. There is no cost to visit the museum, but donations are accepted. I’m Bryan Lynn. And I'm Caty Weaver.   Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from VOA News, the Associated Press and Reuters. Hai Do was the editor. We want to hear from you. Is the Museum of the Bible a place you want to visit? Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. _________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   artifact – n. things made by people in the past innovative – adj. using new methods or ideas engage – v. to do something preach – v. speak or write about something in an approving way basic – adj. simple, not including anything extra exhibit – n. collection of objects placed in one place for people to see or inspect controversy – n. strong disagreement over something among a large group of people ensconced – adj. positioned safely or comfortably somewhere  

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'The Ransom of Red Chief,' by O. Henry

We present the short story “The Ransom of Red Chief” by O. Henry. This story was adapted for VOA Learning English by Shelley Gollust. It was produced by Lawan Davis. Here is Shep O’Neal with the story. It looked like a good thing. But wait till I tell you. We were down south, in Alabama – Bill Driscoll and myself – when this kidnapping idea struck us. There was a town down there, as flat as a pancake, and called Summit. Bill and I had about $600. We needed just $2,000 more for an illegal land deal in Illinois. We chose for our victim -- the only child of an influential citizen named Ebenezer Dorset. He was a boy of 10, with red hair. Bill and I thought that Ebenezer would pay a ransom of $2,000 to get his boy back. But wait till I tell you. About 2 miles from Summit was a little mountain, covered with cedar trees. There was an opening on the back of the mountain. We stored our supplies in that cave. One night, we drove a horse and carriage past old Dorset’s house. The boy was in the street, throwing rocks at a cat on the opposite fence. “Hey little boy!” says Bill. “Would you like to have a bag of candy and a nice ride?” The boy hits Bill directly in the eye with a piece of rock. That boy put up a fight like a wild animal. But, at last, we got him down in the bottom of the carriage and drove away. We took him up to the cave. The boy had two large bird feathers stuck in his hair. He points a stick at me and says: “Ha! Paleface, do you dare to enter the camp of Red Chief, the terror of the plains?” “He’s all right now,” says Bill, rolling up his pants and examining wounds on his legs. “We’re playing Indian. I’m Old Hank, the trapper, Red Chief’s captive. I’m going to be scalped at daybreak. By Geronimo! That kid can kick hard.” “Red Chief,” says I to the boy, “would you like to go home?” “Aw, what for?” says he. “I don’t have any fun at home. I hate to go to school. I like to camp out. You won’t take me back home again, will you?” “Not right away,” says I. “We’ll stay here in the cave a while.” “All right!” says he. “That’ll be fine. I never had such fun in all my life.” We went to bed about 11 o’clock. Just at daybreak, I was awakened by a series of terrible screams from Bill. Red Chief was sitting on Bill’s chest, with one hand holding his hair. In the other, he had a sharp knife. He was attempting to cut off the top of Bill’s head, based on what he had declared the night before. I got the knife away from the boy. But, after that event, Bill’s spirit was broken. He lay down, but he never closed an eye again in sleep as long as that boy was with us. “Do you think anybody will pay out money to get a little imp like that back home?” Bill asked. “Sure,” I said. “A boy like that is just the kind that parents love. Now, you and the Chief get up and make something to eat, while I go up on the top of this mountain and look around.” I climbed to the top of the mountain. Over toward Summit, I expected to see the men of the village searching the countryside. But all was peaceful. “Perhaps,” says I to myself, “it has not yet been discovered that the wolves have taken the lamb from the fold.” I went back down the mountain. When I got to the cave, I found Bill backed up against the side of it. He was breathing hard, with the boy threatening to strike him with a rock. “He put a red-hot potato down my back,” explained Bill, “and then crushed it with his foot. I hit his ears. Have you got a gun with you, Sam?” I took the rock away from the boy and ended the argument. “I’ll fix you,” says the boy to Bill. “No man ever yet struck the Red Chief but what he got paid for it. You better be careful!” After eating, the boy takes a leather object with strings tied around it from his clothes and goes outside the cave unwinding it. Then we heard a kind of shout. It was Red Chief holding a sling in one hand. He moved it faster and faster around his head. Just then I heard a heavy sound and a deep breath from Bill. A rock the size of an egg had hit him just behind his left ear. Bill fell in the fire across the frying pan of hot water for washing the dishes. I pulled him out and poured cold water on his head for half an hour. Then I went out and caught that boy and shook him. “If your behavior doesn’t improve,” says I, “I’ll take you straight home. Now, are you going to be good, or not?” “I was only funning,” says he. “I didn’t mean to hurt Old Hank. But what did he hit me for? I’ll behave if you don’t send me home.” I thought it best to send a letter to old man Dorset that day, demanding the ransom and telling how it should be paid. The letter said: “We have your boy hidden in a place far from Summit. We demand $1,500 for his return; the money to be left at midnight tonight at the same place and in the same box as your answer. "If you agree to these terms, send the answer in writing by a messenger tonight at half past 8 o’clock. After crossing Owl Creek, on the road to Poplar Cove, there are three large trees. At the bottom of the fence, opposite the third tree, will be a small box. The messenger will place the answer in this box and return immediately to Summit. If you fail to agree to our demand, you will never see your boy again. If you pay the money as demanded, he will be returned to you safe and well within three hours.” I took the letter and walked over to Poplar Cove. I then sat around the post office and store. An old man there says he hears Summit is all worried because of Ebenezer Dorset’s boy having been lost or stolen. That was all I wanted to know. I mailed my letter and left. The postmaster said the mail carrier would come by in an hour to take the mail on to Summit. At half past eight, I was up in the third tree, waiting for the messenger to arrive. Exactly on time, a half-grown boy rides up the road on a bicycle. He finds the box at the foot of the fence. He puts a folded piece of paper into it and leaves, turning back toward Summit. I slid down the tree, got the note and was back at the cave in a half hour. I opened the note and read it to Bill. This is what it said: “Gentlemen: I received your letter about the ransom you ask for the return of my son. I think you are a little high in your demands. I hereby make you a counter-proposal, which I believe you will accept. You bring Johnny home and pay me $250, and I agree to take him off your hands. You had better come at night because the neighbors believe he is lost. And, I could not be responsible for what they would do to anybody they saw bringing him back. Very respectfully, Ebenezer Dorset.” “Great pirates of Penzance!” says I, “of all the nerve…” But I looked at Bill and stopped. He had the most appealing look in his eyes I ever saw on the face of a dumb or talking animal. “Sam,” says he, “what’s $250, after all? We’ve got the money. One more night of this boy will drive me crazy. I think Mister Dorset is making us a good offer. You aren’t going to let the chance go, are you?” “Tell you the truth, Bill,” says I, “this little lamb has got on my nerves, too. We’ll take him home, pay the ransom and make our get-away.” We took him home that night. We got him to go by telling him that his father had bought him a gun and we were going to hunt bears the next day. It was 12 o’clock when we knocked on Ebenezer’s front door. Bill counted out $250 into Dorset’s hand. When the boy learned we were planning to leave him at home, he started to cry loudly and held himself as tight as he could to Bill’s leg. His father pulled him away slowly. “How long can you hold him?” asks Bill. “I’m not as strong as I used to be,” says old Dorset, “but I think I can promise you 10 minutes.” “Enough,” says Bill. “In 10 minutes, I shall cross the Central, Southern and Middle Western states, and be running for the Canadian border.” And, as dark as it was, and as fat as Bill was, and as good a runner as I am, he was a good mile and a half out of Summit before I could catch up with him.   Download activities to help you understand this story here. Now it’s your turn. Have you ever known a “wild” child like the boy in this story?  How did you deal with the child? Let us know in the comments section or on our Facebook page. ______________________________________________________________ QUIZ _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   ransom – n. money that is paid in order to free someone who has been captured or kidnapped carriage – n. a large vehicle with four wheels that is pulled by a horse and that carries people paleface – n. a name supposedly used by North American Indians for a white person. sling – n.  a strap usually with a pocket in the middle that is used to throw something (such as a stone) funning – v. joking or teasing someone  

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Vietnam's Tech Company Says Free Trade Will Help Expansion

Vietnam’s largest technology company may profit from a free trade deal agreed to at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, or APEC, meetings in Da Nang this month. The new agreement replaces the Trans-Pacific Partnership, from which the United States withdrew in January. Eleven countries meeting at  APEC agreed to the new deal. “On the basis of the results of four rounds of negotiations, Ministers…have agreed on some important contents, including an agreement of a new name for TPP with 11 members, the Comprehensive Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP),” said Tran Tuan Anh, Vietnam’s Trade Minister on Saturday. The redesigned deal came after President Donald Trump took the United States, the world’s largest market, out of the TPP. Trump said he preferred bilateral agreements to large treaties. Truong Gia Binh, chairman of Vietnam’s largest technology company FPT, spoke to VOA about protectionism as a barrier to free trade. He said he believes the U.S. will return to trade talks. “I strongly believe at a certain point the U.S. will come back to discuss strong commitment to growth. And I think that’s going to be the way America goes as the leader in the world,” Binh said. Vietnam hopes to be one of the biggest beneficiaries of free trade as it expands in the Pacific. Vietnam has rapidly growing exports, including technology. FPT is growing its operations at home. It opened a large new building in Da Nang in April. Speaking at the new building, Binh discussed his belief in free trade. “I think that’s very important for Vietnam, not only open to the world, but also to improve the regulations for trading and manufacturing and make Vietnam more international,” he said.   Technology is growing fast in Vietnam. “For domestic, we normally got 15 percent annually. For export, we normally get 25 percent per year,” said Binh. “Intel and Samsung are among the biggest investors in the country,” he added. In 2010, Intel opened a $1 billion chip factory in Vietnam. Samsung makes half of its mobile phones in the country. By some estimates, they account for 20 percent of Vietnam’s exports. Free trade and investment are driving Vietnam’s economy. It has one of the strongest growth rates in Asia, at more than 6 percent a year. Vietnam has trade deals with a number of other countries, including South Korea and Japan. Binh said His company's largest operation is in Japan. He said the country is a big market where the company sees continued growth. A trans-Pacific deal, even without the United States, would also help the economy since Vietnam would trade more with its neighbors. FPT says it will not miss the worldwide, digital revolution. “Vietnam was late for the last three industrial revolutions,” said Binh. He said this may be the last chance for the country to catch up with the rest of the world. I'm Susan Shand   Daniel Schearf wrote this report for VOANews. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   bilateral - adj. involving two groups or countries beneficial - adj. producing good or helpful results or effects: producing benefits regulation - n. an official rule or law that says how something should be done

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Lesson 10: Come Over to My Place

Summary Ashley is visiting Anna. She calls to find out how to go to Anna's apartment. Ashley learns about Anna's neighborhood.   Speaking In this video, learn to say the new words. Learn to give directions to a place. You can also download the Activity Sheet and practice giving directions to a friend.   Pronunciation In this video, you  learn what it means when Americans make their voice go up after a sentence. Conversation Anna: Hi! Today, my friend Ashley, is coming over. I am showing her my new apartment! Oh! That’s Ashley calling. Anna: Hi Ashley! Ashley: Hi Anna! I’m coming to your apartment. Where is your apartment? Anna: My apartment is near the Columbia Heights Metro. Ashley: It is near the Columbia Heights Metro? Anna: Yes. Exit the Metro and turn right. Then at the bus station turn left. Then walk straight ahead. Ashley: Okay. Exit Metro, turn right, turn left, then go straight ahead? Anna: Yes. My apartment is near a coffee shop. Ashley: Okay. See you soon! Anna: Hi,  Ashley. Ashley: Anna,  Which coffee shop? There are three coffee shops. Anna: Okay, my apartment is across from a big department store. Ashley: A big department store? Ah, I see it! Anna: Okay! Bye, Ashley. See you soon! Ashley: Okay. See you soon. Anna: Ashley! Ashley! Ashley! Over here! It’s Anna! It’s Anna! Hi! Anna: I love having my friends over. Come on! Ashley: Great!   Writing How do you tell someone how to find your school? Or where you work? Try writing directions to a place near you. Send us an email or give us directions in the Comments section. Click on the image below to download the Activity Sheet and practice with a friend.             Learning Strategy Learning Strategies are the thoughts and actions that help make learning easier or more effective. The learning strategy for this lesson is Use Images. When we listen to directions, it helps to use an image in our mind or on a screen or paper to understand them better. Here is an example. Marcos wants to go to his friend Lucia's house. He asks her to give him directions. As he listens, he draws a map on a piece of paper. Lucia says, "Turn right at the supermarket." Marcos draws a box with an 'S' on his map. He draws an arrow (=>) to the right. When he is walking to Lucia's house, he thinks of the map. He remembers the supermarket and the arrow. He turns right and finds Lucia's house. How do you use images to understand and remember English? Write to us in the Comments section or send us an email. Teachers, see the Lesson Plan for more details on teaching this strategy.   Listening Quiz Test your understanding by taking the listening quiz. ______________________________________________________________ New Words ahead - adv. to or toward the place where someone is going bus - n. a large vehicle that is used for carrying passengers especially along a particular route at particular times coffee shop - n. a small restaurant that serves coffee and other drinks as well as simple foods department store - n. a large store that has separate areas in which different kinds of products are sold exit - v. to go out of a place left - adj. located on the same side of your body as your heart       adv. to or toward the left Metro - n. an underground railway system in some cities (also called subway) right -  adj. located on the side of your body that is away from your heart station -  n. place where buses, trains, etc., regularly stop so that passengers can get on and off straight - adv. in a straight or direct way then - adv. used to indicate what happened or happens next turn -  v. to cause your body or a part of your body to face a different direction walk - v. to move with your legs at a speed that is slower than running ______________________________________________________________ Free Materials   Download the VOA Learning English Word Book for a dictionary of the words we use on this website. Each Let's Learn English lesson has an Activity Sheet for extra practice on your own or in the classroom. In this lesson, you can use it to practice giving directions.   For Teachers See the Lesson Plan for this lesson for ideas and more teaching resources. Send us an email if you have comments on this course or questions. Grammar focus: Locating places; Imperatives; There is /There are Topics: Giving directions; Sequence of events with then Learning Strategy: Use Images Speaking & Pronunciation Focus:  Giving simple directions; Using rising intonation to check understanding ______________________________________________________________ Now it's your turn. Send us an email or write to us in the Comments section below or on our Facebook page to let us know what you think of this lesson.

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What It Takes - Coretta Scott King

00:00:02     OPRAH WINFREY: "Hattie Mae, this child is gifted," and I heard that enough that I started to believe it.   00:00:08     ROGER BANNISTER: If you have the opportunity, not a perfect opportunity, and you don't take it, you may never have another chance.   00:00:14     LAURYN HILL: It all was so clear. It was just, like, the picture started to form itself.   00:00:19     DESMOND TUTU: There was no way in which a lie could prevail over the truth, darkness over light, death over life.   00:00:27     CAROL BURNETT (quoting CARRIE HAMILTON): “Every day I wake up and decide, today I'm going to love my life. Decide.”   00:00:35     JOHNNY CASH: My advice is, if they're going to break your leg once when you go in that place, stay out of there.   00:00:40     JAMES MICHENER: And then along come these differential experiences that you don't look for, you don't plan for, but boy, you’d better not miss them.   00:00:52     ALICE WINKLER: Welcome to What It Takes, a podcast about passion, vision, and perseverance from the Academy of Achievement. I'm Alice Winkler, and just a quick reminder: our Twitter handle is @WhatItTakesNow. When Coretta Scott was growing up on a farm on the outskirts of Marion, Alabama, she dreamed of a career in music. She had no intention of marrying a minister. She had no inkling that she, alongside her husband, would become one of the country’s leading figures in the movement that won civil rights for African Americans.   00:01:27     She could not have imagined she’d be an icon worldwide of dignity, of righteousness, and of hope. These were all far beyond the grasp of a young black girl growing up in Alabama during the 1930s and '40s.   00:01:44     CORETTA SCOTT KING: I know something about what it is like to be a young person struggling to succeed against adversity. As an African American child growing up in the segregated South, I was told, one way or another, almost every day of my life that I wasn't as good as a white child. When I went to the movies with other black children, we had to sit in the balcony while the white kids got to sit in the better seats below.   00:02:15     We had to walk to school while the white children rode in school buses paid for by our parents' taxes. Such messages, saying we were inferior, were a daily part of our lives. But I was blessed with parents who taught me not to let anyone make me feel like I wasn't good enough, and as my mother told me, "You are just as good as anyone else. You get an education and try to be somebody. Then you won't have to be kicked around by anybody, and you won't have to depend on anyone for your livelihood, not even a man."   00:03:02     ALICE WINKLER: Coretta Scott King was speaking here to an Academy of Achievement gathering in 1999. It was at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. She stood at the pulpit, that same pulpit where her husband, Martin Luther King Jr., stood 31 years before to deliver what would be the last Sunday sermon of his life. Coretta told her audience on that day she spoke that she was often asked how she managed to be so involved in the civil rights struggle while raising four children.   00:03:37     CORETTA SCOTT KING: I can only reply that when God calls you to a great task, he provides you with the strength to accomplish what he has called you to do. Faith and prayer, family and friends were always available when I needed them, and of course, Martin and I always were there for each other. I learned that when you are willing to make sacrifices for a great cause, you will never be alone because you will have divine companionship and the support of good people.   00:04:13     This same faith and cosmic companionship sustained me after my husband was assassinated and gave me the strength to make my contribution to carrying forward his unfinished work.   00:04:27     ALICE WINKLER: Coretta Scott King spoke many times to the Academy of Achievement, and she sat for two interviews, in 2003 and 2004, but before I play another of those excerpts, I want to play you a little of the eulogy for Mrs. King that her dear friend, Maya Angelou, a fellow Academy member, delivered in 2006. It beautifully captures what Coretta Scott King meant to America.   00:04:55     MAYA ANGELOU: In the midst of national tumult, in the medium of international violent uproar, Coretta Scott King’s face remained a study in serenity. In times of interior violent storms, she sat, her hands resting in her lap calmly, like good children sleeping. Her passion was never spent in public display.   00:05:30     She offered her industry and her energies to action toward righting ancient and current wrongs in this world. She believed religiously in nonviolent protest. She believed it could heal a nation mired in a history of slavery and all its excesses.   00:05:58     She believed nonviolent protest, religiously, could lift up a nation rife with racial prejudices and racial bias.  She was a quintessential African American woman, born in the small-town repressive South, born of flesh and destined to become iron, born...   00:06:30     Born a cornflower and destined to become a steel magnolia.   00:06:36     ALICE WINKLER: When Coretta Scott King was still a budding steel magnolia, she walked five miles to school every day to the one-room schoolhouse for black children, while the white children drove past on a bus to their school, which was closer. But her parents were determined she get the best education possible under the circumstances. They sent her to a private high school where she graduated valedictorian.   00:07:03     CORETTA SCOTT KING: I had wonderful parents who inspired me to be the best person that I could be. My mother always told me that I was going to go to college, even if she didn't have but one dress to put on, and so I grew up knowing that I was going to somehow find a way out of the situation I grew up in.   00:07:22     ALICE WINKLER: Her way out, she thought at the time, was going to be through music.   00:07:27     CORETTA SCOTT KING: I always wanted to study music. That was my first love. In high school, I had a teacher who influenced me greatly, Miss Olive J. Williams, and she was versatile in music, and I wanted to be like her. She exposed me to the world of classical music. Before then, I had never heard classical music. She exposed me also to the great composers of the world, as well as black performers, which I didn't know about at the time — Marian Anderson, Paul Robeson, Roland Hayes, and Dorothy Maynor.   00:08:05     MUSIC: AVE MARIA   00:08:28     ALICE WINKLER: Her parents’ hopes and dreams came to fruition. Coretta got a partial scholarship to Antioch College in Ohio, a school with a devotion to social justice and to diversity. Coretta continued to study music there, as well as education. She also joined the campus chapter of the NAACP and the college's race relations and civil liberties committees. After she graduated, she moved to Boston to continue her studies. She was on the path to become a concert singer.   00:09:01     CORETTA SCOTT KING: So I attended the New England Conservatory on a scholarship, a scholarship to Antioch and a scholarship to the conservatory. And of course, after my first semester in Boston in 1951, I met Martin Luther King Jr. And of course, Martin Luther King Jr. was studying for his doctorate in systematic theology, and he was going to go back south and pastor a church, a Baptist church, and he was looking for a wife.    00:09:28     And I wasn't looking for a husband, but he was a wonderful human being, and he made everyone feel special, and he made me feel very special, you know, as a woman. But I still resisted his overtures, but after he persisted, I had to pray about it because I've had — my parents were religious; I was brought up in the church, and I had a strong faith.   00:09:56     I always believed that there was a purpose for my life and that I had to seek that purpose, and that if I discovered that purpose, then I believed that I would be successful in what I was doing. And I thought I had found that purpose when I decided that music was going to be my career. I studied voice the first year, and after I met Martin and prayed about whether or not I should open myself to that relationship, I had a dream.   00:10:28     And in that dream, I was made to feel that I should allow myself to be open and stop fighting the relationship, and that's what I did, and of course the rest is history.   00:10:48     ALICE WINKLER: But history can often be distorted in the telling. Coretta Scott King is sometimes portrayed in books and film as primarily the dutiful wife of the magnetic young leader, Martin Luther King Jr., but Andrew Young has some words to correct that misperception. Andrew Young was in Martin’s inner circle and went on to become a congressman, an ambassador, and the mayor of Atlanta.   00:11:13     He is also a member of the Academy of Achievement, and, in fact, we’ll be playing his amazing interview in the next episode of this podcast. Andrew Young first met the Kings in 1957, and they hit it off because it turned out that Coretta and Andrew Young’s wife, Jean, were both from the same small county in Alabama. But the two women had something else in common — their families had both withstood intensely harsh treatment at the hands of racists.   00:11:44     ANDREW YOUNG: I mean Coretta's father had three different businesses that were destroyed by white people — a trucking company, a sawmill, and a grocery store. They were all sabotaged or burned because it was a county that resented black people having — being able to progress and being hard workers, and so both Coretta and Jean were more committed, I think, to get into the struggle to do something about race than either me or Martin.   00:12:19     ALICE WINKLER: Andrew Young says Martin Luther King actually chose to move to Montgomery, Alabama, to avoid controversy, because, of all the churches that made him an offer, Dexter Avenue Baptist was the most conservative, and he needed time to write, to finish his dissertation and get his Ph.D. Of course, history refused to cooperate, as it sometimes does, because no sooner had King sent off his dissertation than a group of women decided to make a bold statement in Montgomery, protesting the severe treatment of blacks on the city’s buses.   00:12:55     They famously chose Rosa Parks for the job. When her action and arrest sparked the idea of a bus boycott, they needed someone to lead it. Twenty-six-year-old Martin Luther King Jr. was uncontroversial, pretty new to town with his wife, Coretta, and he had shown great potential. As Andrew Young tells it, King was in the back room of the church, copying flyers for the boycott on a mimeograph machine, when they elected him. Coretta was at home with their newborn, Yolanda.   00:13:28     CORETTA SCOTT KING: I don't think that my husband — although he said he was going to go back south and fight to change the system so that everybody could participate — although he talked about that, at that time, we never dreamed that we would have an opportunity, that we would be projected into the forefront of the struggle as we were.   00:13:57     We were just going to work from, as he said, a black Baptist church pulpit. That was the freest place, you know, in the society at that time, but we had no idea that — what God had in store for us, and I do believe it was divine intervention that we were thrust into the forefront of the struggle.   00:14:22     ALICE WINKLER: But the dangers of being in the forefront became instantly clear. During the bus boycott — this is in January of 1956 — the Kings’ house was bombed. Coretta and her baby were at home but were in a different part of the house and survived.   00:14:38     CORETTA SCOTT KING: After my house was bombed and, of course, all the threats on my husband's life — on my life, too — I realized I could have been killed as well because I was in the house when the bomb hit the front porch, with my young baby. And the callers had been calling, and they said that they were going to bomb our house — told my husband they were going to bomb his house and kill his family if he didn't leave town in three days.   00:15:07     And of course, he didn't leave town in three days, and they did bomb the house, so knowing that they meant what they said, because they actually did bomb the house, that they — it wasn't — the bomb was not strong enough to destroy the house. But the fact is that I had to deal with the fact that if I continued in the struggle, I too could be killed.   00:15:32     And that's when I started praying very seriously about my commitment and whether or not I would be able to stick with my husband to continue in the struggle. And of course, I wasn't — it wasn't that difficult. It was a struggle, but I felt really a sense of fulfillment that I hadn't felt before, that this was really what I was supposed to be doing. And it was a great blessing to have discovered this and to be doing what was God's will for your life.   00:16:12     I remember feeling very distinctly that I was married to the cause. I was married to my husband, whom I loved — I learned to love; it wasn't love at first sight. But I also became married to the cause. It was my cause.   00:16:30     ALICE WINKLER: The threats and attacks against the family continued, unrelenting, but Coretta Scott King, like her husband, was never deterred.   00:16:39     CORETTA SCOTT KING: It was the belief that we were doing the right thing, because the Supreme Court decision had been rendered in 1954, and this was in 1955, and we were all motivated by that and knowing that this meant the beginning of breaking down the system of segregation. We recognized that if the schools could desegregate, this means that other things can desegregate as well. So with Montgomery happening, it was like an intervention there, that God had planted Rosa Parks and also Martin Luther King Jr.   00:17:17     And so you had the sense that something very, very significant was happening, that we were not only struggling to free the people of the South, but oppressed people around the world. And each time there were things — for instance, the stabbing incident, where Martin was stabbed in a home — I mean it's like it made no sense, except that God was preparing us for something even bigger, and that kept you going.   00:17:53     ALICE WINKLER: Mrs. King had given up her singing career to raise her children — four of them by 1963 — but she found ways still to combine her music and her activism and her faith. You can hear her singing here with a choir in this short clip, believed to be from the funeral of Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, and Carol Denise McNair, three of the four girls killed in the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham.   00:18:24     MUSIC: THERE IS A BALM IN GILEAD   00:18:24     There is a balm in Gilead              To heal the sin-sick soul   00:18:53     ALICE WINKLER: Coretta Scott King also put her musical talents to work, staging what were called “freedom concerts.” These were performances around the country, with music and poetry and narration about the movement, to raise awareness and money for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Sometimes the freedom concerts included celebrities, like Joan Baez, Harry Belafonte, and Aretha Franklin. Mrs. King also began giving speeches at times when her husband was unavailable.   00:19:25     When Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968, Coretta took up the mantle of the movement and dedicated the rest of her life to promoting her husband’s teachings of nonviolent activism. Just a few weeks after his death, she addressed an anti-war demonstration in New York’s Central Park, and she continued speaking in public around the world, promoting education, peace, and human rights, including those of women and gays and lesbians.   00:19:57     She also was the force behind the King Center in Atlanta, and worked to secure passage of Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday as a national holiday. In 1997, the first time Coretta Scott King spoke to the Academy of Achievement, she wanted to talk to the students gathered about Martin’s “I Have a Dream” speech. She always felt moved by young people and knew how to inspire them to continue the work she and her husband had begun. I want to close this episode of What It Takes with part of her talk that day.   00:20:32     CORETTA SCOTT KING: Many of you have seen excerpts of the “I Have a Dream” speech. You've probably studied it in your classes, and other speeches of Martin's, but each time you hear it, I think it gives you that same special kind of feeling, the kind of America that we want to see for our children, the kind of America that we are still trying to build.   00:21:06     It's what Martin talked about in that speech, and I hope that all of you will dream big dreams, dream impossible dreams, and work throughout the rest of your lives to fulfill those dreams, because success is a lifetime's struggle and achievement.   00:21:38     And what I mean by success, I think, I'm talking about the quality of your life, not how much money you accumulate, not how many degrees you earn, not how many awards you receive, not how much you're seen on television, or whether you become the president of the United States.   00:22:05     It is the quality of your life that's important. After I was married and we had gone to Montgomery, both sets of parents, mine and Martin's, were pulling on us to come to where it was safer, either at my home in Marion, Alabama for me and my baby, or to Atlanta, where Martin's parents were.   00:22:35     And, of course, we chose to stay in Montgomery because we felt that we were part of a worldwide struggle that was connected. Any oppression anywhere in the world, we were somehow connected to it. I had that sense back in 1955, '56. A few days after the bombing, I had to do a lot of soul-searching.   00:23:10     And I remember feeling that, “Now I know why Martin chose Montgomery. Now I know why we came back south to the cradle of the Confederacy. We are supposed to be here.” It's a great feeling of satisfaction you get when you sense that you are in the right place at the right time and that we were chosen.   00:23:35     I felt chosen, as well, and I looked back on the path that I had taken: Antioch College from high school in Marion, Alabama; then to Boston, the New England Conservatory of Music; and all the time I realized I had been preparing for the leadership roles and the coworker, partner, wife, mother, civil rights/human rights activist that I was becoming.   00:24:12     And it was a tremendous feeling of satisfaction. And I said, "What a privilege. What a privilege it is to be a part of a struggle that's bigger than we are, that we don't know where it's going, but we know that it's moving toward bringing about greater justice, equality, peace, freedom, for all people."   00:24:44     And so, I say to young people, you young people, as you're preparing your life and your life's career, make sure that you choose well in your profession and see it, whatever it is, as a service to improve the human condition. I believe this is possible no matter what choice you make.   00:25:17     Martin Luther King Jr. is remembered by one of his sermons, which was preached about two months before his assassination, called “The Drum Major Instinct.” He talked about how he wanted to be remembered, and very often when I'm being interviewed, the interviewer will say, "How do you want to be remembered, Mrs. King?"   00:25:45     And I’ve found it difficult to say how I want to be remembered. As I get older, I guess I have to start thinking about it. You have to think about what your legacy is going to be, but Martin Luther King Jr. said, "I'd like to be remembered as one who tried to love and serve humanity. Don't talk about the fact that I have a Ph.D. degree and all the other awards and honorary degrees that I have."   00:26:20     "Don't even talk about the fact that I have a Nobel Peace Prize. That's not important. All I want you to say is that Martin Luther King Jr. tried to love and serve humanity. I tried to be right on the war question. I tried to visit those who were in prison. I tried to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked."   00:26:48     Those are the things that Martin Luther King Jr. wanted to be remembered by. It seems to me that the greatest contribution you can make and the greatest gift that you can give is of yourself. And when you give to others, give of yourself. And I hope that each one of you will, if you've not already started doing it — and I'm sure you have — that you will start from this moment forward to start giving something back, even in small ways.   00:27:24     And if you do that you will be fulfilled, and you will be happy. Thank you.   00:27:36     ALICE WINKLER: That's Coretta Scott King speaking in 1997. This is What It Takes from the Academy of Achievement. I’m Alice Winkler, and again, make sure to check in for the next episode, when we’ll hear Andrew Young’s inspiring stories from the Civil Rights Movement. Trust me, it’s an incredible conversation you will not want to miss.     00:27:58     And thanks, as always, to the Catherine B. Reynolds Foundation for funding What It Takes.  

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Explainer: Thanksgiving

On Thursday, November 23, Americans celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday. It is a day for all people, religions and cultures in the country to give thanks. VOA Learning English takes a brief look at the history and traditions of Thanksgiving.

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Mugabe Makes First Appearance Since House Arrest

Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe made his first public appearance since the military placed him under house arrest this week. Zimbabwe’s long-time leader attended a graduation ceremony at Zimbabwe Open University near Harare. The military, however, has announced “significant progress” on talks aimed at having Mugabe step down. Zimbabwe’s military continues to show respect for the 93-year-old leader by referring to him as the president and the commander-in-chief. Mugabe is the world’s oldest head of state. However, the military said Friday it was arresting or seeking the arrest of some people close to Mugabe and his wife. During the ceremony on Friday, Mugabe wore an academic gown and hat. He walked slowly to a podium, and he joined the crowd singing the national anthem and opened the ceremony. But he did not make a speech. The state-run Herald newspaper and Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation said military leaders are “engaging with the Commander-in-Chief President Robert Mugabe on the way forward and will advise the nation of the outcome as soon as possible.” Negotiations appear to be seeking to get Mugabe to agree to hand over power to a new government. But, timing the process may be difficult. The ruling ZANU-PF party is to meet next month. Mugabe’s term as president ends next year, but an election date has not been set. The statement from the military said it had made progress “to weed out criminals around President Mugabe.” The military is seeking to remove Cabinet ministers and other top officials associated with first lady Grace Mugabe. The Herald also published photos of Mugabe shaking hands with General Constantino Chiwenga. Chiwenga is the man who ordered Mugabe’s arrest. The military action follows Mugabe’s dismissal of Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa. The dismissal appeared to position Mugabe’s wife, Grace, as the next leader. The first lady was not seen at the graduation ceremony Friday. Little public reaction has been reported. Zimbabweans went about their daily business as soldiers and armored vehicles continued to patrol the capital, Harare. Headlines in some of Zimbabwe’s newspapers declared the Mugabe era over. “Dawn of a new era,” one said. “Mugabe remembered for brutal 37-year rule,” said another. I’m Mario Ritter.   Hai Do adapted this story for VOA Learning English from an AP story. Mario Ritter was the editor. _________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   house arrest –n. to be detained by officials in one’s own home significant –adj. important, notable podium –n. a small stand from which people give speeches weed out –v. to selectively remove We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.  

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English @ the Movies: 'Don't Jinx Me'

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AP-GF-Q1

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James Bond Can Teach You About English Grammar

  In the 1964 action film Goldfinger, actor Sean Connery plays the British secret agent James Bond. Bond, also called agent 007, is well-known for his drink of choice -- a martini. He always wants his martinis prepared just the right way. Let’s listen to a short exchange from the movie:   Can I do something for you, Mr. Bond?  Just a drink. A martini. Shaken, not stirred.   Today, we will show you how this kind of exchange can teach you something about English grammar. Specifically, it shows you how English speakers use sentence fragments in everyday situations.  We will also use fictional conversations to show two common ways in which English speakers use these fragments. But first, let's start with some definitions.   Complete sentences and incomplete sentences  Complete sentences are sentences that have both a subject and a predicate. A predicate tells something about the subject. For example, in the sentence "James Bond likes to order martinis," the subject is James Bond and the predicate is "likes to order martinis." In this case, the predicate gives us information about Bond.   In writing, you should use complete sentences. However, in conversation, you can use partial or incomplete sentences.   Incomplete sentences are not wrong. In other words, English speakers are not breaking rules when they use them. Instead, speakers leave out parts of sentences because the sentence's full meaning is clear from the setting or context.   Today, we will explore two kinds of incomplete sentences: one group called "Minimal Responses," and another called "Short Answers."   #1 Minimal responses   Minimal responses* are simple words or expressions that speakers use to react to what somebody else has said. These are not complete sentences -  they sometimes lack a subject, verb, or other important part of a sentence.  Americans commonly use minimal responses for two purposes: showing approval and giving a polite or respectful answer. We will now look at examples of both types.   Minimal responses can show approval   Imagine you tell your friend that you received a great grade on a difficult test:  I got an A on my test!   Nice!   Here, your friend uses the adjective "nice" as a way to express approval about your statement. The reason your friend does not use a full subject and predicate is because his or her answer is understood in the context of a conversation.   Some other words and expressions that show approval are "good," "good job," "great," "nice," and "nice work."   All of these terms have similar meanings. However, some are more forceful or less official-sounding than others. Think back to the example you just heard:  I got an A on my test!   Nice!   A speaker could replace the word "nice" with almost any of the other terms we provided. They could say "good job" or "great job," for example. "Great job" is a stronger statement than "good job."  Minimal responses can give a polite response  Americans also limit their responses to make points in a respectful way during a conversation. Some of these are polite, yet informal. The most common examples include “no problem,” “no worries,” “sorry,” and “thanks.”   Imagine someone has just given you directions. You want to thank them before going on your way. The exchange might sound like this:  Thanks.  No problem.   The other person could respond in even more informal way by saying "no worries" instead of "no problem."   In both cases, the speaker's response takes the place of a much longer sentence. For example, the speaker could have said, "I was happy to be able to help you out." "No problem" is a short, polite way to express this same idea.   #2 Short answers:   A second type of incomplete sentence is the short answer. In short answers, speakers leave out subjects, verbs, or predicates. In general, the missing words appeared earlier in the conversation. Speakers do not repeat these words because repetition would make the exchanges much longer.   Let's consider an example. Imagine you are looking for the nearest bank. The person you ask might provide a short answer:  Where is the nearest bank?  Right over there.   In the example, the speaker omits the subject and verb of the sentence. The speaker said, "Right over there" instead of the full sentence, "The nearest bank is right over there."   If the speaker says "right over there," he or she means that the bank is very close to you – probably within eyesight. In many situations, speakers will point with their fingers to show the direction of the bank.   Think back to the lines you heard earlier in this report:  Can I do something for you, Mr. Bond?  Just a drink: A martini. Shaken, not stirred.   In the example, James Bond uses the same type of short answer: an answer that omits the subject and verb. Bond could have said, "I would like a drink: A martini. I want you to shake it, but please do not stir it."  This way of speaking is much more detailed, a lot longer, and polite. It does not fit with James Bond's personality. He is not a very polite, talkative man.  That said, you can still learn from how he uses language!    What can you do?  The next time you are watching a film or with an America, try listening for examples of incomplete sentences. When the speaker uses an incomplete sentence, ask yourself if they used it for one of the reasons we talked about today. Does the sentence leave out important words, such as a subject, verb, or predicate?  If it does … no worries! I'm Jill Robbins.  And I'm John Russell.   John Russell wrote this story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.   *Please see Conrad, Susan, and Biber, Douglas. Real Grammar: A Corpus-Based Approach. Pearson-Longman. 2009 pg. 145  _____________________________________________________________ Words in the Story     stir – v. to mix by making circular movements grammar – n. the study of words and their uses in a sentence fragment – n. Grammar : a group of words that is written out as a sentence but that lacks a subject or verb  fictional – adj. conversation – n. an informal talk involving two people or a small group of people :the act of talking in an informal way  response – n. a reaction to something; something that is said or written in answer to something grade – n. a number or letter that shows how a student performed on a test or in class fit – v. to be suitable or appropriate for (someone or something)​

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