B, страница 23 - гдз по английскому языку 11 класс рабочая тетрадь Афанасьева, Михеева

Unit One. Steps to Your Career. VI. Bonus for Eager Learners - страница 23.

Условие.

B. Read the text and think of at least one object that can be called a white elephant.

A White Elephant

If you say that something is a white elephant, you mean to say it’s a burden to those who possess it. The story of the origin of this expression is distant and unusual. Back in the days when Thailand was known as Siam, white elephants were highly prized animals. Whenever one was found, it was automatically given to the king. What is more, it was considered a serious crime to neglect or mistreat a white elephant, in fact, even riding it was an offense. As a result, keeping these rare animals became extremely expensive, especially as they didn't do any kind of work.

Eventually some clever king had an idea of how he could get rid of a useless animal and at the same time punish a courtier he disliked: he simply gave him a white elephant as a special royal gift. The courtier could not refuse the present and the care of the animal easily ruined its new owner financially. The idiom was brought from Siam to colonial England. Nowadays it is often used to describe expensive but impractical public buildings.

Решение.

Решение 2.

B. Прочитайте текст и придумайте хотя бы один предмет, который можно назвать «белым слоном».

Ответ: A fancy treadmill that was bought as a New Year's resolution gift but is now just used for hanging clothes. It's expensive, takes up a lot of room, and is a burden because it's hard to get rid of. / Навороченная беговая дорожка, которую купили в качестве подарка на Новый год, но теперь на ней просто вешают одежду. Она дорогая, занимает много места и является обузой, потому что от неё трудно избавиться.