Exercise 2.
2.1 Chartism: a people's petition to Parliament
The early decades of the 1800s are well known as a period of discontent and social unrest. The
Industrial Revolution meant the decline of traditional rural communities and the growth of a
working class urban population, particularly in the new industrial towns of the North such as
Manchester. Living and working conditions for the urban factory worker were frequently
appalling and gave rise to a number of movements aimed at bettering working class conditions.
One such movement was Chartism, which aimed to present a people's charter, or petition for
reform , to parliament. It had a number of aims, but first and foremost among them was the
granting of universal suffrage, or the vote for all men over the age of 21.
There had been several previous attempts in the early 1800s to build a solid working-class
movement, most notably the attempt to establish a universal trade union known as the Grand
National Consolidated TYade Union or GNCTU. In 1834, however, this trade union collapsed.
The subsequent disillusionment led to a growth of interest in other possible ways of giving
voice to the desires and grievances of the workers. In 1836, the London Working Men's
Association was founded, led by William Lovett. Its aim was to reform parliament, and in 1838
it issued 20 a charter demanding six political reforms, including universal suffrage. Most of
these demands were to be taken up by the Chartist petitioners.
So began the Chartist movement. Other centres of this movement were located in Birmingham,
and in the north of England. In Birmingham, the movement was championed by Thomas
Attwood, a banker who was interested in leading the movement for parliamentary reform in the
Midlands, and Joseph Sturge, a wealthy corn merchant. The key figure in the north of England
was Fergus O'Connor, at that time the editor of the newspaper The Northern Star.
In 1839, a Chartist National Convention assembled in London. The 30 delegates talked of
proclaiming a 'sacred month' or general strike, and collected signatures for a great petition. This
petition was presented to parliament but it was rejected in the Commons by 235 votes to 46.
Thereupon the National Convention proclaimed a general strike, but week later cancelled the
proclamation and ignominiously dismissed itself. The government meanwhile had taken action
and additional troops had been sent to those areas where Chartism was strongest. Disturbances in
Birmingham were crushed, and William Lovett was arrested. The only other Chartist rising
occurred in Monmouthshire where a group of miners marched in Newport. Again, this Newport
Rising was quickly crushed and its leaders transported for life.
In 1842 , a second petition was presented to parliament but was again rejected by 287 votes to
49. A series of riots and strikes followed, most notably the Lancashire Plug Plot, where strikers
went round the mills removing the plugs from boilers. Again, government troops moved in to
crush all such disturbances and many chartists were arrested. William Lovett subsequently
abandoned the cause, and Fergus O'Connor rose to prominence as the main Chartist leader.
In 1848, under the leadership of O’Connor, a third Chartist petition was drawn up, known as
the ‘Monster Petition’. It was intended to be taken to parliament in a large procession, but the
government took elaborate military precautions, and the procession was forbidden to cross the
Thames. It was therefore taken to parliament in three cabs instead. O'Connor had claimed that
the petition contained five million signatures, but in the event it was found to contain less than
two million, and a great many of these were false. Parliament refused to discuss it, and the
Chartist movement was discredited.
Despite the fiasco of the third petition, the Chartist movement gave expression to a number of
proposals which were later adopted to produce a reformed parliamentary system. Universal
manhood suffrage, the abolition of the property qualification, and a secret ballot all featured
among the Chartists' demands and all of them were eventually granted. In essence, the demands
of the Chartists were too far ahead of the times, and consequently the government took very
resolute action to control and suppress their actions. Doubtless the contemporary essayist
Thomas Carlyle expressed the fear of many MPs when he wrote, 'These chartisms are our French
Revolution. God grant that we, with our better methods may be able to transact it by argument
alone.
Questions 1-7
Complete each sentence with the correct ending A-H .
1. The GNCTU → C
2. The London Working Men's Association → H
3. The Chartist National Convention → G
4. The first Chartist petition → D
5. The Newport Rising → E
6. The Lancashire Plug Plot → B
7. The third Chartist petition → → A
A was not debated in parliament.
B was a response to the government's rejection of the 1842 Chartist petition.
C was a failed attempt to establish a universal workers' movement.
D was an example of the unrest following the rejection of the 1839 petition.
E was a response to the transportation of a number of Chartist leaders.
F made an empty threat of industrial action.
G was rejected in parliament by a large majority.
H anticipated many of the demands of later Chartist petitions
Questions 8-11
Look at the following statements (Questions 8-11 ) and the list of people in the box below.
Match each statement with the correct person A-C .
NB You may use any letter more than once.
A William Lovett → 2
B Thomas Attwood → 1 + 3
C Fergus O'Connor → 4
1. He led the Chartist movement in the North of England.
2. He was head of the London Working Men's Association.
3. He campaigned for parliamentary reform in the Midlands.
4. He was the movement's figurehead when the third 'Monster' petition was compiled.
Questions 12-14
Choose THREE letters, A-F.
NB Your answer may be in any order.
Which THREE of the following are mentioned as reasons for the failure of the Chartist
movement?
A the government's response to Chartist uprisings
B warnings about the movement from contemporary writers
C improved conditions in factories in the North
D false claims made about the third petition
E excessively radical demands
F communication problems between London and the North
💡 Exercise 3
3.1 Label the diagram using no more than TWO words from the passage below
for each blank space. ( đề bài kiêur gì vậy)
Thomas Newcomen's steam engine was one of the first devices to use the power of steam for
mechanical work. It was originally used to pump water from mines. A boiler, encased in brick
and sitting over a coal fire, generated steam, which drove the piston in the open top cylinder
above the boiler. When the steam built up, the pressure opened a valve allowing the steam to fill
the cylinder and push the piston up. When the piston reached the top of the cylinder, the first
valve was closed and the second valve opened. This second valve sprayed cold water into the
cylinder from a cistern, condensing the steam and creating a vacuum. The air pressure from the
open-top cylinder pushed the piston down again, thus pulling the rod down with it. The cycle
then repeated itself all over again
3.2 Decide if the following sentences about machines are true or false. Use a dictionary to
help you.
a A washing machine contains a pump and a motor, T
b An air conditioning unit contains a coil and a fan. F
c A photocopier has various components, including rollers and a piston, T
d A filter and a tube can be found in a television , T
e A lever and a spring are component parts of a toaster, T
f A valve and a switch can be found in an aerosol spray, F
g Inside a hoover, there is a filter and rotating brushes. T
3.3 Before look at the below, decide which of are advantage disadvantage are associated
with advantage and which with disadvantage
The future of energy sources
A The future for petroleum use at the moment looks rather uncertain, despite enjoying the major
benefit of a very advanced infrastructure already in place. The downsides from the
environmental point of view are patently obvious: harm to public health through carbon dioxide
emissions in exhaust fumes, which are linked to respiratory problems, and to precious
ecosystems from oil spills and seepage. But the most significant weakness is that oil is a finite
resource.
B The picture for natural gas is similarly mixed. While its main strength lies in its being a
relatively clean fuel involving little processing and being easily transportable via pipelines,
natural gas requires compression or low temperatures if it is to be used for cars or other vehicles.
Thus, it has not previously been a serious contender to provide private transportation. There are
now signs, however, that this obstacle may have been overcome.
C Yet there is another problem with natural gas. It may produce less carbon dioxide than other
fossil fuels, but the major stumbling block to its use is that the methane released lives for a long
time in the atmosphere. In addition, as it is a nonrenewable energy source like petroleum, in
coming years natural gas will not be in use. But in the short term at least, the situation looks rosy.
D Ethanol, despite the drawback of a dearth of commercial outlets, heralds a new dawn for the
energy market. But, before we consider ethanol in depth, let us look at hydrogen. It is perhaps
the most attractive of all renewable fuels. Its greatest appeal is that it is readily available
everywhere in the form of water (H20). Solar energy is used to split the water into hydrogen and
oxygen and then recombine it, with water being the waste by-product in the form of steam in
vehicles. Perhaps its main drawback is making the hydrogen production units small enough
to fit cars. But once this happens, the future of hydrogen is bright indeed.
3.4 Complete the table. Use no more than TWO words from the text above
Main Main
Types of fuel Future
advantage disadvantage
1.public health Uncertai
Very advanced infrastructure Petroleum
…. n
Relatively Produces 2 3 rosy
Natural Gas
clean methane ……. ……….
Lack of Signals a
Ethanol None given 4commercial 5 energy
outlets………. market
7……
6…small
Hydrogen production units for cars not small bright
Hydrogen enough to fit
enough indeed
car ……..
….
