Alumno: SANTIAGO CARBONELL MATARREDONA

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1.

Chapter TWO (second part)

i) Reading comprehension.
1. Read the text and answer the following questions. Give short
answers. You can use exactly the same words that appear in the
text or you can even use quotations.
1. What does he think all that stuff about family reunions on the further
shore is false?
He thinks that the human imagination has created a lot of
anthropomorphic representations of the life beyond death, which tend
to believe in a post mortem continuity of our earthly way of life,
without being really founded in the Sacred Scriptures.
2. What do people think Heaven is like?
They think about Heaven being a
3. Who says Do not mourn like those that have no hope?
The apostle St. Paul, in his first letter to the Thessalonians, chapter 4,
verse 13.
4. Why can the mother he talks about be comforted for his childs death?
Because the child has not lost the end for which it was created, and
because she is sure of not having lost a greater thing, that she may
still hope to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
5. Why does he doubt about the peaceful state of those who are
supposedly at rest?
Because he cannot withstand that the separation of lovers could be
painless.
6. What is the logical conclusion of thinking that H. doesnt exist
anymore? What philosophical argument supports this conclusion?
He concludes that If H. is not, then she never was . Hes following
the materialist thesis, and deriving a logical conclusion from it.
According to the materialist belief (I emphasize that of belief) the
matter / substance is eternal.
7. Why does he have some evidence to suggest that God is not good?
is that a reasonable thinking process?
Because it is supposed that, if God is good, His goodness is
inconsistent with hurting us; but, due to the fact that we experience
many dangers and pains in our daily life, he concludes that God is

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responsible for these pains inflicted to His creatures. Therefore,

either God is not good or there is no God.
It seems to be a quite reasonable syllogistical process. But he commits
the mistake of assigning to God the cause of every evil in the world, or
at least, the lack of protection or prevention of it.

8. How does he call God? Why?

The Cosmic Sadist, for in his faithless cosmovision, God appears to
be a thief of the happiness of his creatures, seeking the chance to
inflict the next torture.
9. What is the logical consequence of thinking of a bad God? Is he
trying to make an intellectual attempt to put forward reasonable
arguments in favour of the existence of a bad God?
Probably the awareness of evil spread all over the human reality;
specially the perception of joys and pleasures as baited traps, with
baits like love, or laughter, or daffodils, or a frosty sunset.
10.

How does he understand grief?

He experiences his grief like fear, like suspense, like waiting,

giving life a permanently provisional feeling.

2. Say if these statements are True (T) or False (F) according to the
text.
1. He thinks he can find consolation in religion.

T/F

2. The image of family reunions on the further shore doesnt appear in

the Bible. T/F
3. St. Pauls words comfort him.

T/F

4. His wife didnt believe in God.

T/F

(the text doesnt assert it clearly, but her last

words were: I am at peace with God)

5. He is afraid of realizing that living creatures are only a cloud of atoms

(a piece of material).
T/F (for his real fear is not of materialism)
6. The death of Christ makes him understand God is good.

T/F

7. He comes to the conclusion that theres no other possibility but to

suffer suffering.
T/F
8. His experience of time has changed. Now it seems there isnt
anything but time. T/F
9. He writes down what he feels without giving it a second thought.

T/F

(because the next morning he tries to explain better his feelings)

10.

He thinks there must be a mechanism not to feel such pain.

ii) Grammar

T/F

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1. Further shore. What type of word is the underlined one? Where does it
come from?
Its the comparative form of the adjective far, in its superlative form.
2. To make negative statement we can use the word not (which goes with
the auxiliary verb) and no (which goes with a noun). Find in the text
examples of both negative structures.
[(verb) + not]
Theres not a word of it in the Bible.
Things on this side are not so different after all.
it is a comfort to believe that the child has not lost the end for which it
was created
[no + noun]
either God is not good or there is no God.
We have no motive for obeying Him.
even when no need compels them
3. Can you find reflexive pronouns in the text? Specify which verb or
structure they go with. Copy and translate.
- And it is a comfort to believe that she herself [] has not lost
a greater thing.
o [subject] + [emphasising pronoun]
o

Do I hope that if feeling disguises itself as thought I shall feel

less?
o [subject (= feeling)] + [verb] + [direct object (=reflexive
pronoun)]
o

Es un consuelo creer que ella misma [] no ha perdido ms (algo

mayor).

Espero (acaso) que si el sentimiento se disfraza (a s mismo) de

pensamiento puedo sufrir menos?

It astonishes me, the way we are invited to apply to ourselves

words
o [verb] + [indirect object (= [to + reflexive pronoun])] +
[direct object]
o

Me sorprende el modo en que somos invitados a aplicar a nosotros

palabras

4. Look at the following words (taken from the text). What is the base word?
With the suffix, what part of speech do they become? What conclusions
can you draw?
BASE WORD

SUFFI

Mother
Pain

-hood
-less

PART

OF SPEECH

TRANSLATION

Motherhood
Painless

Noun
Adjective

Maternidad
Indoloro

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Happiness
Goodness
Consciousness
Meaningless
Unreasonable
ness
Senseless
Successivenes
s

Happy
Good
Conscious
Meaning
Unreasonabl
e
Sense
Successive

-ness
-ness
-ness
-less
-ness
-less
-ness

Noun
Noun
Noun
Adjective
Noun
Adjective
Noun

Felicidad
Bondad
Conciencia
Insignificante
Irrazonabilidad

Insensible
Sucesividad

CONCLUSIONS:
-

The [-hood] & [-ness] suffixes turn the base word into a noun.
The [-less] suffix turn the base word into an adjective (even
though that base word is a noun).

5. S0/such look in the text for expressions with so and such. What types of
words go after each one. Copy the examples you find in the text and
translate them.
[so (adverb)]:
[before an adjective without its noun]
- Things on this side are not so different after all
o Las cosas en este lado no son tan diferentes, despus de todo.
[before an adverb]
- apply to ourselves words so obviously addressed to our betters
o aplicarnos palabras tan obviamente dirigidas a nuestros
-

mejores

What makes them so sure of this?

o Qu los hace estar tan seguros de esto?
Sometimes it is hard to say so much
o A veces es duro decir tanto.
The trap, so long and carefully prepared and so subtly baited
o La trampa, tanto tiempo y tan detalladamente preparada, y tan
ingeniosamente atrayente

[such (adjective)]: used before a noun.

- And how or why did such a reality blossom?
o y cmo o porqu floreci una realidad tal?
- if we are such total imbeciles
o si es que somos unos tales imbciles totales
- Why do I make room in my mind for such filth and nonsense?
o Por qu dejo espacio en mi mente para tal porquera y
sinsentido?

iii) Vocabulary
Look up the following words in a dictionary. Write down a definition
in English and then give an equivalent in Spanish.

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1. Endearments: something that endears that is, tending to make dear or

beloved, such as an affectionate utterance // que encaria o que
resulta encantador es decir, que tiende a resultar querido o afecto
como un susurro afectuoso.
2. End: the last part or extremity, lengthwise, of anything that is longer than
it is wide or broad
// la parte ltima o extremidad, en sentido
longitudinal, de algo que tiene mayor longitud que anchura o
profundidad.
3. (in)consistent with: Compatible or in agreement with something
compatible o coherente con algo.

//

4. Anguish: Severe mental or physical pain or suffering // severo dolor o

sufrimiento fsico o mental.
5. Forgive: Stop feeling angry or resentful towards (someone) for an
offence, flaw, or mistake // dejar de sentir resentimiento o ira hacia
alguien, debido a alguna ofensa, falta o error.
6. Unbearable: Not able to be endured or tolerated // Que no puede ser
soportado o tolerado.
7. Anthropomorphic: Having human
caractersticas / aspectos humanos.

characteristics

//

Que

tiene

8. Fallen (from the verb fall): having come or gone down quickly from a
high place or position // que ha cado o venido abajo rpidamente desde
un lugar o posicin elevada.
9. Archetype: A very typical example of a certain person or thing //
ejemplo muy tpico (prototpico) de una determinada person o cosa.

un

10.
Materialism: A tendency to consider material possessions and
physical comfort as more important than spiritual values // Tendencia a
considerar las posesiones materiales y el confort fsico como ms
importantes que los valores espirituales.

iv) Thesis
What do you think is the most important idea (or ideas) of this
excerpt. Specify in which sentence (or sentences) you think that
idea (or those ideas) are expressed.
I feel the incomprehension of St. Pauls quote to be the most remarkable fact
in this excerpt. And that disbelief appears to be the peak of an enormous
iceberg of confusion and misunderstanding mixed with grief and rebellion
of the real christian hope.
The author evidences the scandal and disagreement that the christian faith
produces to anyone which is not illuminated with the grace of faith, as the
very St. Paul said: for the preaching of the Cross is to them that perish
foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God (1Co 1, 18).
Thats why, without the light of faith, its so difficult to have an Anthropology
that exhaustively gives the whole answer to human existence in all its
extent, even to its end.

Alumno: SANTIAGO CARBONELL MATARREDONA

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Thus, all the authors painful and desperate reasoning comes from a
sorrowful heart in which there isnt yet an answer to sorrow and death,
because the divine Light has not yet been able to spread his pure light into
these grievous issues, revealing their real meaning.