Talking about famous people

There are lots of famous and outstanding people in each country of the world. Among these people we can find musicians, sportsmen, scientists, writers, dancers, explorers and so on.

Each country is proud of its famous people. That’s why there are many statues and sculptures of famous people around the world. For example, you can find:

the statue of Charles Dickens in Portsmouth,

the statue of William Shakespeare in London,

the sculpture of Marilyn Monroe in Chicago,  

the statue of Michael Jackson in London, etc.

So, today in the lesson we will:

● talk about famous Russian and British people;

And

● put the knowledge into practice.

First, let’s talk about famous Russian people.

In the history of Russia there are a lot of famous names. For example, Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin is the most important Russian writer and poet of all time. He was born in 1799 and died in 1837. He provided the standards for Russian arts and literature in the 19^th century.

His first poem was published in the magazine “The Messenger of Europe” in 1814 he was 15 years old.

Pushkin is famous for such works as “Ruslan and Ludmila”, “The Captain’s Daughter”, “Eugene Onegin” and so on.

One of the other famous poets and writers in Russia was Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov. He was born in 1814 and died in 1841. He won fame after the publication of his poem “Death of a Poet”. It was dedicated to the death of Alexander Pushkin.

Lermontov’s poems “Demon” and “Mtsyri”, his great novel “A Hero of Our Time” and his play “Masquerade” are masterpieces of Russian literature. Lermontov was the embodiment of Russian romanticism.

Another famous Russian writer and novelist was Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. He was born in 1821 and died in 1881. He is commonly regarded as one of the greatest psychologists in the history of literature. He specialized in the analysis of pathological states of mind that lead to insanity, murder and suicide.

Dostoyevsky is best known for his novella “Notes from the Underground”. He is also famous for his four long novels “Crime and Punishment”, “The Idiot”, “The Possessed” and “The Brothers Karamazov”.

Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy was a Russian writer who is regarded as one of the greatest authors of all time. He was born in 1828 and died in 1910. In addition to writing novels, Tolstoy also authored short stories, essays and plays.

Lev Tolstoy is best known for his two longest works “War and Peace” and “Anna Karenina”. He is also famous for his novella “The Death of Ivan Ilyich”.

Everybody knows the name of Sergey Vasilyevich Rachmaninov. He was born in 1873 and died in 1943. He was an outstanding Russian composer and pianist who became famous for his piano performances. Rachmaninov is especially known for his work “Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini”.

Russia is also proud of many other famous people. For example:

Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev, who was a Russian novelist, poet and playwright,

Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka, who was a Russian composer,

Vasily Ivanovich Alekseyev, who was a famous Soviet weightlifter

And so on.

We’ve talked about some famous Russian people. Now…

Match the two parts of the sentences!

Let’s check the right answers!

1. Lev Tolstoy is famous for his works… “War and Peace” and “Anna Karenina”.

2. Ivan Turgenev was a Russian…  novelist, poet and playwright.

3. Fyodor Dostoyevsky is best known for… his novella “Notes from the Underground”.

4. Pushkin is famous for his works… “The Captain’s Daughter”, “Eugene Onegin” and so on.

5. Sergey Rachmaninov is best known for… his work “Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini”.

6. Mikhail Lermontov won fame after… the publication of his poem “Death of a Poet”.

Now let’s talk about some famous British people.

Great Britain is proud of its famous people. One of outstanding British writers was Arthur Conan Doyle. He was born in 1859 and died in 1930. He was a doctor. Conan Doyle’s medical knowledge was a great help in his detective stories.

Arthur Conan Doyle is best known for his creation of the detective Sherlock Holmes. He wrote many short stories and novels that feature Holmes and his assistant Dr. Watson. His detective novel “A study in Scarlet” marks the first appearance of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson.

Another famous British writer was Charles Dickens. He was born in 1812 and died in 1870. His first efforts at writing were little stories about the ordinary Londoners he saw.

Charles Dickens is best known for his works “The Pickwick Papers”, “Oliver Twist” and “Nicholas Nickleby”. He is also famous for his Christmas stories “The Cricket on the Hearth” and “A Christmas Carol”. In his Christmas books Dickens wished to awaken kind and loving feelings in the hearts of people.

Great Britain is also proud of Charlie Chaplin who was the first and the greatest movie star of all time. He was born in 1889 and died in 1977. When he was twenty-four years old, an American producer offered him a film contract.

From the very beginning Charlie Chaplin’s films were successful and his popularity grew. The absence of sound in the motion pictures of that period may have contributed to Chaplin’s popularity. Since he spoke no language on the screen, people from different countries could easily watch his films.

Charlie Chaplin is best known for such films as “City Lights”, “Modern Times” and “The Gold Rush”.

We can’t imagine Great Britain without the name of William Shakespeare. He was born in 1564 and died in 1616. He was famous British playwright, poet and actor. Shakespeare is considered to be the greatest dramatist of all time.

In the early 1590s William Shakespeare went to London. He set up his own theatre “the Globe” where his company performed his plays.

 William Shakespeare’s works are about life, love, death, revenge, grief, jealousy, murder and mystery. He is best known for such works as “Romeo and Juliet”, “Hamlet” and “Macbeth”.

Another famous British writer and novelist was Jane Austen. She was born in 1775 and died in 1817. Her novels describe the everyday life of people in the upper-middle class circles.

During her lifetime Jane Austen published such novels as “Sense and Sensibility”, “Pride and Prejudice”, “Emma” and “Mansfield Park”. Jane Austen’s distinctive literary style relies on a combination of parody, irony, free indirect speech and a degree of realism.

Great Britain is also proud of many other famous people. For example:

Charles Darwin, who proposed a scientific theory of evolution by natural selection,

Alexander Fleming, who was a physician and microbiologist best known for discovering penicillin,

Freddie Mercury, who was a famous British rock singer and songwriter

And so on.

We’ve talked about some famous British people. Now…

Complete the sentences!

Let’s check the right answers!

1. William Shakespeare is famous for his works “Romeo and Juliet”, “Hamlet” and “Macbeth”.

2. Jane Austen’s novels describe the everyday life of people in the upper-middle class circles.

3. Freddie Mercury was a famous British rock singer and songwriter.

4. Charles Dickens is famous for his works “The Pickwick Papers”, “Oliver Twist”, etc.

5. Charlie Chaplin was the first and the greatest movie star of all time.

6. Arthur Conan Doyle is best known for his creation of the detective Sherlock Holmes.

That’s all for now! In conclusion, I would like to say that in the history of Russia and the UK there are a lot of famous names. Many talented and outstanding people played their role in shaping Russian and British life and culture. And their names will remain forever in the memories of millions of people.