By G. C. Thronley. A man in ancient Greece who possessed a good pair of legs and a strong voice had a chance of employment in the advertising business

A man in ancient Greece who possessed a good pair of legs and a strong voice had a chance of employment in the advertising business. The shopkeepers of long ago discovered that they sold more if they called attention to their goods. These tradesmen, therefore, sometimes employed a crier to walk through the city, calling out the news that certain goods were for sale in a certain shop. The same custom has gone on for thousands of years and has not died out.

But even in early days it was not only the human voice that was used in advertisement. It is believed that the signboards were used three or four thousand years ago in China, and tradesmen also made use of them in Egypt, Greece and Rome. These boards could be placed in front of shops to show what kinds of goods were sold there. The ancient sign of wine-merchant and of a shoemaker have been found in Italy. The shoemaker's sign was a picture of Cupid, the God of love, holding a pair of ladies' shoes. A picture of two men holding a vessel of wine was the sign of an inn at Pompei. Such signs were useful because they could be understood even by those who were unable to read.

In Roman times the different kinds of public baths were also advertised by notices written up on walls at the sides of streets. Plays were advertised in the same way, and the Romans has a kind of daily newspaper (Called Acta Diurna — Daily Doings) which gave information about such things as marriages and deaths, speeches, the results of races, official news and laws. This was put up every day in a public place on a white board, where it stayed for a reasonable time and was kept as a record of events later. It was more of a newspaper than an advertiser, though it did contain a few private notices.

The public criers employed by the traders of ancient days were also a common sight in early England. These town criers were sometimes known as bellmen, because they carried bells as they walked through the streets, ringing them loudly to call attention to themselves, and then shouting their information. This was a fairly effective way of advertising in these days when few people could read. The shopkeepers themselves used their own strong voices in the market place, all shouting together as loudly as possible to make themselves heard above the terrible noise made by the others. A man who lives in a modern city often complains of noise, but he is wrong if he thinks that it is a new problem in the world.

2. Выпишите незнакомые слова и выучите их. Затем переведите термины ниже:

глашатай, зазывала, вывеска, события, работа, отрасль рекламы, рекламное объявление, частное объявление, рекламировать, рекламодатель, товары, торговец, нанимать на работу, обычай, лавочник, придорожная гостиница, ежедневная газета, содержать, держать, сохранять, жаловаться, довольно эффективный, обладать, размещать, обнаружить, привлекать внимание, не уметь читать, использовать.

3. Ответьте на вопросы по тексту.

1. What kind of people had a chance to be employed in in the advertising business in ancient Greece?

2. What kind of news did a crier call?

3. When did the signboards start being used in China, Egypt, Greece and Rome?

4. Give the example of the ancient signs found in Italy?

5. Why were such signs especially useful?

6. How were baths advertised in Ancient Rome?

7. What is Acta Diurna?

8. Was it a newspaper or an advertiser? Why?

9. Who were bellmen in early England?

10. What was another way of advertising by shopkeepers themselves?

4. Разметьте ударения в следующих словах, обращая внимание на часть речи и сдвиг ударения. Переведите и выучите слова.

1. advert/ advertisement
2. popular/ popularity
3. celebrate/ celebrity
4. photograph/ photographer
5. customer / customize
6. distributor / distribute
7. organise/ organization
8. publish/ publicity
9. contract/ to contract
10. content /content

5. Поставьте нужную форму степени сравнения прилагательных и наречий в скобках.

A: I like this picture of the couple on the boat. It’s a (1) __________________(good) image because it shows the lifestyle of our customers.

B: Yes, but I think the people in it need to be (2) __________________(young). If we’re going target a (3) __________________(wide) market we need something (4)__________________(exciting). How about this picture? It’s much (5)__________________(hard).

A: Yes, but the car is a bit male for me!

B: What do you mean?

A: Even the (6) __________________(cynical) female customer in the world would see that this is about men.

B: Women drive cars too!

A: But not ones as (7)__________________(large) as that. No, I think the brand image should be (8)__________________(soft). Something that women will respond more (9)__________________(positive) to.

B: The third picture gives the (10)__________________(easy) understood image because it actually shows the product.

B: I know but how many adverts feature the product anymore?

ВАРИАНТ 2

1. Прочитайте и письменно переведите текст.

" THE TOWN CRIER"