Prueba de Acceso a la Universidad
Bachillerato LOGSE, curso 2005-06, supuesto 4
Ramón Sampedro was paralyzed from the neck down in a diving accident as a young man. He had his music, his radio and television, his visitors, his window view. He could control a computer, and write using a pen he held in his mouth. He was cared for by his family, his brother and sister-in-law, his nephew, the lawyer from a Right-to-Die organization, and Rosa, the woman from town who worked as a disc jockey and pedalled her bike out one day to meet him. His family loved him and didn't complain about the burden; his brother, in fact, was completely opposed to euthanasia.
The film "The Sea Inside" is based on Ramón's life. In 1998 he succeeded in dying after planning his death in such an ingenious way that, even if all the details were discovered, no one could be legally charged with the crime. Sampedro is played by Javier Bardem, an actor of charm and gentle masculine force. In "The Sea Inside", Ramón does not care to live any longer and demands the right to die. He argues his point with great conviction.
Bardem and Alejandro Amenábar, the film's director, do not believe everyone in Sampedro's position should die. "This is simply the story of one man," they say.
QUESTIONS
I. READING COMPREHENSION. (2 POINTS) (0.5 points for each correct answer)
Add TRUE or FALSE and copy the evidence from the text to support your answer. NO marks are given for only true or false.
1. Ramón could move neither his arms nor his legs.
2. Sampedro could write messages by using a typewriter.
3. All the members of Ramón's family agreed with his determination to die.
4. The details of Ramón's death were carefully planned by himself.
II. EXPRESSING THE MAIN IDEAS. (1 POINT) (0.5 points for each correct answer)
Answer the following questions according to the information given in the text. Where possible, use your own words.
1. How did the main character in The Sea Inside plan his death? Why?
2. Does the director of the film consider that all people in the same condition as Ramón Sampedro should die?
III. LEXICON/ PHONETICS. (1 POINT). Choose ONLY ONE of the options.
A. LEXICON. (1 POINT) (0.25 points for each correct answer)
Find words or phrases in the text that mean the same as these given.
(a) Unable to move all or part of your body.
(b) The son of your brother or your sister.
(c) Rode a bicycle somewhere.
(d) The practice of killing without pain a person who is suffering.
B. PHONETICS. (1 POINT) (0.25 points for each correct answer)
(a) Write two words from the text that include the same diphthong sound as "pie". Underline the part of the word which contains the diphthong. (0.5)
(b) Write a past form from the text that sounds the same as "lived" /d/. (0.25)
(c) Write a word from the text that includes the same vowel sound as "eight". Underline the part of the word which contains the phoneme. (0.25)
IV. USE OF ENGLISH. (3 POINTS) (0.5 for each correct answer)
Rewrite the following sentences starting with the words given.
1. "Will you open the door, please?" he said to me.
He asked…
2. They gave John a prize for winning a medal in the last Olympics.
John…
3. I hadn't expected this task to be so difficult.
This task…
4. I spoke to a shop assistant at Harrods. She was very polite.
The shop assistant…
5. I can't go on holiday because I can't afford it.
If I…
6. Despite the good weather, we stayed indoors.
Although…
V. COMPOSITION. (3 POINTS)
Write a composition of between 100 and 125 words on ONE of the following topics. Specify your option.
1. Write a story about a person you know and say what you like and don't like about him/her.
2. Everyone has the right to decide when and how to die. Do you agree with this statement?
