Listening comprehension activity - DAVID CRYSTAL

Listen to linguist and scholar David Crystal discussing Shakespeare´s language and pronunciation and fill in the gaps in the following sentences according to what he says.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDAp_KTQewY

1.    Shakespeare ___________ us to ____________ with language.

2.    The English of Shakespeare´s day had about ____________ words.

3.    As there were no dictionaries back then, Shakespeare ___________     _____________   _____________

4.    “____________” was the same as “vast”, but Shakespeare chose it because of the ____________

5.    Other invented words are ____________ or _____________

6.    There were two big anniversaries ____________  ___________ when the video was recorded: the one of Shakespeare´s _____________ in 1564 and that of his ____________ two years later.

7.    David Crystal´s ____________ is a ______________ actor.

8.    At the end of __________ a _____________ of _______________    _______________ is going to be released.

9.    We never hear Shakespeare´s plays in the ____________ which ___________   _____________   ____________ used in his time.

10. A performance of __________ ________ __________ was the first one done in the original pronunciation in the ___________ Theatre.

11. Since then about a ___________ plays and _____________ have been done in “OP”.

Now listen to a few examples of Shakespeare´s verses recited in the original pronunciation. Can you hear the differences? How do scholars know that the pronunciation used to be different back in Shakespeare´s times?

KEY

1.    TAUGHT / DARE

2.    150,000 WORDS

3.    MADE WORDS UP

4.    VASTY / RHYTHM

5.    UNSHOUT / UNCURSE / UNSEX

6.    COMING UP

7.    BIRTH / DEATH

8.    SON / SHAKESPEARE

9.    2016 / DICTIONARY OF SHAKESPEAREAN PRONUNCIATION

10. ACCENT / WOULD HAVE BEEN USED

11. ROMEO AND JULIET / GLOBE

12. DOZEN / SONNETS