Trying to make some money before entering university, the author applies for a teaching job. But the interview goes from bad to worse...
My First Job
While I was waiting to enter university, I saw advertised in a local newspaper a teaching post at a school in a suburb of London about ten miles from where I lived. Being very short money and wanting to do something useful, I applied, fearing as I did so, that without a degree and with no experience in teaching my chances of getting the job were slim.However, three days later a letter arrived, asking me to go to Croydon for an interview. It proved an awkward journey: a train to Croydon station; a ten-minute bus ride and then a walk of at least a quarter to feel nervous. The school was a red brick house with big windows, The front garden was a gravel square; four evergreen shrubs stood at each corner, where they struggled to survive the dust and fumes from a busy main from a busy main road.It was clearly the headmaster himself that opened the door. He was short and fat. He had a sandy-coloured moustache, a wrinkled forehead and hardly any hair.He looked at me with an air of surprised disapproval, as a colonel might look at a private whose bootlaces were undone. 'Ah yes,' he grunted. 'You'd better come inside.' The narrow, sunless hall smelled unpleasantly of stale cabbage; the walls were dirty with ink marks; it was all silent. His study, judging by the crumbs on the carpet, was also his dining-room. 'You'd better sit down,' he said, and proceeded to ask me a number of questions: what subjects I had taken in my General School Certificate; how old I was; what games I played; then fixing me suddenly with his bloodshot eyes, he asked me whether I thought games were a vital part of a boy's education. I mumbled something about not attaching too much importance to them. He grunted. I had said the wrong thing. The headmaster and I obviously had very little in common. The school, he said, consisted of one class of twenty-four boys, ranging in age from seven to thirteen. I should have to teach all subjects except art, which he taught himself. Football and cricket were played in the Park, a mile away on Wednesday and Saturday afternoons.The teaching set-up filled me with fear. I should have to divide the class into three groups and teach them in turn at three different levels; and I was dismayed at the thought of teaching algebra and geometry-two subjects at which I had been completely incompetent at school. Worse perhaps was the idea of Saturday afternoon cricket; most of my friends would be enjoying leisure at that time.I said shyly, 'What would my salary be?' 'Twelve pounds a week plus lunch.' Before I could protest, he got to his feet. 'Now', he said, 'you'd better meet my wife. She's the one who really runs this school.'This was the last straw. I was very young: the prospect of working under a woman constituted the ultimate indignity.
NEW WORDS
applyvi. write to ask for (a job, membership. etc.), esp. officially 申请applicationn.interviewn. 面试;接见;会见advertisevt. make know to people by printing a notice in a newspaper, etc. or by broadcasting on television, ets. 为...做广告advertisementn.localof, special to, a place or district 当地的;地方性的postn. job or position 职位suburbn. outer area of a town or city, where people live 郊区slima. small, slight; slender 微小的;苗条的depressvt. make sad 使沮丧depressionn.brickn. 砖graveln. 砾石evergreena. with green leaves throughout the year 常绿的shrubn. low bush with several woody stems 灌木fumen. strong-smelling smoke, gas or vapour 浓烈难闻的烟,气,汽headmastern. (中,小学的)校长sandy-coloureda. yellowish-red 沙色的,黄中带红的moustachen. hair growing on the upper lip 小胡子disapprovaln. unfavorable opinion or feeling; dislike 不赞成;不满coloneln. 上校privaten. soldier of the lowest rank 列兵;士兵bootlace n. shoelace for a high shoe or boot 靴带undovt. untie, unfasten 解开;松开ahinterj. (a cry of surprise, pity, pain, joy, dislike, etc.) 啊gruntvt. 咕哝着说出unpleasantlyad. 令人不愉快地stalea. not fresh 不新鲜的cabbagen. 卷心菜crumbn. very small, broken piece of bread or cake 面包屑;糕饼屑carpetn. heavy woven material fir covering floors or stairs 地毯certificaten. 证(明)书bloodshota. (眼睛)充血的vitala. very necessary; of the greatest importance 必不可少的,极其重要的mumblevt. speak (words) unclearly 含糊地说attachvt. give (to); fasten (to) 把...给予;系,贴importancen. the quality of being important obviouslyad. it can be easily seen; plainly 明显地,显然obviousa. consist (of)vi. be made up (of) 组成,构成rangevi. vary between certain limits (在一定的范围内)变动cricketn. 板球 set-upn. arrangementdismayvt. make discouraged or afraid 使灰心,使害怕algebran. 代数学geometryn. 几何学incompetenta. completely unskillful; not good enough at doing a job, etc. 无能力的;不胜任的competenta. opposite of incompetentleisuren. free time; time which one can spend as one likes 闲暇;悠闲salaryn. fixed (usually monthly) pay for regular work 薪水plus prep. with the addition of 加(上)protestvi. express a strong objection 抗议;反对strawn. 稻草;麦杆prospectvi. sth. expected or considered probable; possibility 期望中的事;展望;前景constitutevt. form; make up; be 组成,构成ultimatea. greatest; utmost; last or final 最大的;终极的,最终的indignityn. injury to one's dignity; insult 侮辱PHRASES & EXPRESSIONSbe short of not having enough of 缺少 smell of have, give out the smell of 有...的气味judging byforming an opinion based on attach importance toconsider important 重视in commonshared with someone else 共有的,共同的consist of be made up of in turnone after another 轮流
PROPER NAMES
London伦敦(英国首都)Croydon克洛伊登(英国地名)