Маугли / Mowgli. Редьярд Киплинг

and where did the wolves meet? Why?

      2. Who was their leader?

      3. How could a man-cub stay in a wolf pack?

      4. Who spoke for the man-cub?

      5. What did they say?

      4. Переведите на русский язык:

      Council Rock, inspection, member, anxiety, carefully, busy, to stay, Laws of the Jungle, voice, lair.

      3

      Mowgli spent a wonderful time among the wolves for ten whole summers. He loved Father and Mother Wolf. They in turn loved him as one of their cubs. Mother Wolf was very kind to him. She would often say, “I love him more than any son of mine.”

      Their cubs were his brothers and they all played together. Mowgli was really very happy.

      Father Wolf taught him many things about the jungle, its sounds and dangers.

      Mowgli roamed the jungle. He ate when he was hungry, slept when sleepy, and swam in the jungle pool when he felt hot, or when he wanted to wash himself.

      Baloo taught him the Laws of the Jungle and the Hunting Verse: “Feet that make no noise, eyes that can see in the dark, ears that can hear the winds, and sharp white teeth, all these are the marks of our brothers.”

      Baloo also taught him the Wood and Water Laws: how to tell when a branch was rotten or strong before climbing it, how to speak politely to bees if he came upon a hive, and how to warn the water snakes before he dived into pools and rivers.

      Mowgli was also taught the calls of all the creatures living in the jungle. These would be of use to him when he was in danger and had to seek their help.

      Mowgli often felt tired of learning so many things. Baloo made him repeat everything. Sometimes, Mowgli would not listen to him. Then Baloo would cuff him.

      Bagheera frequently sat on the branch of a tree and watched Baloo and Mowgli. He loved the man-cub and called him Little Brother. So did Baloo.

      One day, when Baloo had cuffed him, Mowgli ran off and hid behind a tree. He was very angry. Bagheera said to Baloo, “Why do you cuff him so much? He is very young.”

      “Not too young to get killed,” replied Baloo. “A cuff from me is better than that, is it not?”

      “A soft cuff, yes, but just now you cuffed him straight over that rock! You will kill him some day.”

      “It was a hard cuff, was it?” asked Baloo. He loved Mowgli. Had he really hurt him?

      “Mowgli,” he called gently, “come and show Bagheera all the wonderful things you have learnt.”

      Mowgli was never angry for long, and he loved to show off. He came out from behind the tree and asked, “What do you want to hear?”

      “Say the word for the Hunting People, the Bears.”

      “We be of one blood, you and I,” said Mowgli in the correct bear talk.

      “And for the Birds?”

      Mowgli let out a kite’s whistle.

      “And now for the Snake People.”

      The answer was a perfect hiss. Mowgli clapped his hands happily and jumped on Bagheera’s back.

Exercises

      1. Переведите на английский язык:

      в свою очередь, когда ему было жарко, гнилой, улей, предупредить, крик (животного, птицы), живые существа, обращаться за помощью, шлепать (в качестве наказания), мы с тобой одной крови, коршун, шипение (змеи)

      2. Заполните пропуски словами из списка.

      clapped, frequently, to show off, made, danger

      1. Baloo __________ him repeat everything.

      2. These would be of use to him when he was in ___________ and had to seek their help.

      3. Bagheera _____________ sat on the branch of a tree and watched Baloo and Mowgli.

      4. Mowgli was never angry for long, and he loved _____________.

      5. Mowgli _____________ his hands happily and jumped on Bagheera’s back.

      3. Ответьте на вопросы.

      1. How many years did Mowgli spend in the jungle?

      2. What did Baloo teach him?

      3. What things did he have to learn?

      4. What did Baloo do when Mowgli did not want to learn?

      5. What did Mowgli proudly do, when Baloo asked him to show Bagheera all the wonderful things he had learnt?

      4. Переведите на русский язык:

      pool, Hunting Verse, wood, branch, politely, straight, to hurt, gently, to let out, perfect

      4

      “See how well Mowgli has learnt everything,” Baloo said to Bagheera. “Without my cuffs, he would not have learnt. Now he does not have to fear anybody.”

      “Of course, he has to,” replied Bagheera. “He must fear man, his own tribe.”

      Mowgli was jumping on Bagheera’s back, pulling and pushing him.

      “What is the matter, Little Brother?” Bagheera asked.

      “One day I will have a tribe of my own,” Mowgli replied proudly. “I shall be its leader. We will go from branch to branch and have a wonderful time.”

      Baloo and Bagheera were shocked.

      “What are you talking about?” asked Baloo, very angry.

      Mowgli was surprised. He looked at Bagheera and saw that he was angry too.

      “Have you been with the Bandar-log, the Monkey People?”

      “The Bandar-log are the grey apes, who have no law and eat everything,” added Bagheera.

      Mowgli nodded his head.

      He said, “One day, when Baloo had cuffed me, I went into the jungle and met the Bandar-log. They were very good to me and gave me nuts and many other things to eat. They carried me from tree to tree. It was wonderful. They said that I was their brother without a tail. They even said that they would make me their leader one day.”

      Baloo was furious.

      “They are liars,” he said. “They have never had a leader and never will. You are not to meet them again.”

      “But why not?” Mowgli wanted to know. “They were kind and good to me, and have invited me to go with them again. They are like me – they stand on their feet and use their hands to pluck nuts and fruit. They really are very kind. I liked playing with them.”

      “Listen to me, man-cub,” said Baloo sternly. “I have taught you the laws of the jungle and the calls of all the creatures that live here. The only thing I have not taught you is about the Bandar-log. Why? It is because they have no law and no call. They have no speech. They chatter all the time, living on the branches. We, of the jungle, do not go where they go, or drink water from the same waterhole. You, too, will do the same.”

      Mowgli had never seen Baloo so angry. He was always kind. Mowgli knew that he had not done the right thing, so he nodded. Suddenly nuts and sticks hit