1. Text I The Discus Thrower
Unit 9
Text I
The Discus Thrower

2. Pre-reading Question
How do you think a dying man will most probably behave?

3. Structural Analysis Part I (paragraph 1):
serves as an introduction to the background of the story.
(spying on patients: a habit of mine)

4. Part II (paragraphs 2-13):
presents the author’s meeting with the particular patient dubbed the discus thrower, his conflict with the head nurse and a detailed portrayal of how the patient “throws the discus”.
(encounters with a particular patient)

5. Part III (paragraphs 14-15):
tells of the patient’s death.
(the death of the patient)

6. Paraphrase 1 “Yes, down,” he says.
“Yes, I am going down,” he says, meaning literally that he is going down with the bed but intentionally that his physical condition is going from bad to worse.

7. Paraphrase 2
It is a sound you have never heard. It is something new under the sun. it could cure cancer.
The wild, relaxed laughter is a totally new sound in the world that nobody has ever heard. The joyful laughter could even give a promising future to cancer patients.

8. Paraphrase 3
She looks over at me shaking her head and making her mouth go.
The aide looks across at me, shaking her head to express her helplessness and making a facial signal to show her dissatisfaction with the patient.

9. More Exercises
I walked around for two hours yesterday, and the doctor said I was for it.
I know there’s danger ahead, but
I’m on driving forward.
There was something about his behavior and I immediately felt suspicious.

10. More Exercises
I walked around for two hours yesterday, and the doctor said I was none the worse for it.
I know there’s danger ahead, but
I’m on driving forward.
There was something about his behavior and I immediately felt suspicious.

11. More Exercises
I walked around for two hours yesterday, and the doctor said I was none the worse for it.
I know there’s danger ahead, but
I’m all the more set on driving forward.
There was something about his behavior and I immediately felt suspicious.

12. More Exercises
I walked around for two hours yesterday, and the doctor said I was none the worse for it.
I know there’s danger ahead, but
I’m all the more set on driving forward.
There was something furtive about his behavior and I immediately felt suspicious.

13. More Exercises He her chin in the palm of his hand.
His mood between elation and despair.
I a suitcase.
A 1970s fashion revival is Europe.

14. More Exercises He cupped her chin in the palm of his hand.
His mood between elation and despair.
I a suitcase.
A 1970s fashion revival is Europe.

15. More Exercises He cupped her chin in the palm of his hand.
His mood swings between elation and despair.
I a suitcase.
A 1970s fashion revival is Europe.

16. More Exercises He cupped her chin in the palm of his hand.
His mood swings between elation and despair.
I hefted a suitcase.
A 1970s fashion revival is Europe.

17. More Exercises He cupped her chin in the palm of his hand.
His mood swings between elation and despair.
I hefted a suitcase.
A 1970s fashion revival is sweeping Europe.

18. Dictation
The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on me. Attitude to me is more important than facts. It is more important than past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do.

19. It is more important than appearance, gifted ability, or skill
It is more important than appearance, gifted ability, or skill. It will make or break a company, a church, a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace form that day. We cannot change our past, we cannot change the fact that people will act in certain ways.

20. We cannot change the inevitable
We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing that we can do is play on the one string that we have and this string is Attitude. I am convinced that life is ten percent what happens to me and ninety percent how I react to it. And so it is with you.

21. The end!