PROCESSO SELETIVO 2007 3O DIA

LÍNGUA INGLESA – QUESTÕES DE 06 A 10

Cybercourtship
01 It is hard to imagine the basic human behavior called “flirting” ever changing significantly. Yet, recently,
02 there has been a strange new twist put on romantic courtship.
03 Internet technology has now made it possible for more people to meet and, in some cases, develop a
04 romance online. There are numerous chat rooms, bulletin boards, online dating services and personalad
05 posting services available on the World Wide Web – which some are discovering is a virtual meeting
06 ground for couples. If you’re shy, meeting online can be a much less frightening experience than meeting
07 in person for the first time. And if you’re busy, you can email and develop an online relationship at your
08 convenience. These days, the Internet allows users to meet in virtual reality and communicate the process
08 of first love without going through those awkward moments in traditional facetoface flirtation sequence.
10 Traditionally, humans have recognized their growing attraction for other people via stages of physical
11 proximity. Except for maybe the platonic relationship that one might develop with a pen pal, it is natural that
12 you want to see and know the other person before developing any genuine desire for that person. But
13 Internet social life demonstrates that it is not necessary to see someone in order to begin to feel something
14 for that person. Sometimes it is easier to get to know someone because online there are fewer of the
15 inhibitions that normally go with visual contact.
16 With virtual romance there is no chaperone. The boundaries between people’s thoughts quickly become
17 very “permeable,” that is, easy to pass or flow through. People say things to one another online that they
18 would never mention to a new acquaintance at a party or in a bar. It can be easy to form a quick, intense
19 bond online. This does not happen simply because the inhibitions of physical proximity are removed.
20 Talking (writing) online has its own characteristics of freedom and speed – grammar and syntax rules no
21 longer apply as they do in formal writing or even in speaking, and words therefore flow much faster and
22 more expressively. It seems to be so free, completely without boundaries or rules. But is it?
23 Although informational boundaries and government controls are certainly decreased through the internet,
24 strangely enough there still exist subtle interpersonal boundaries. In fact, although Internet
25 communications technology has made some boundaries more permeable than they were before and
26 allows us to make certain kinds of direct connections much faster, it has actually made the boundaries
27 much more sensitive and difficult to predict. Anyone who has used email much has noticed how easily
28 one’s casual, quickly typed comment can be misunderstood, how suddenly the tone of emails can change,
29 how small conflicts can develop rapidly from a few lines. That is, in cyberspace, because of the lack of
30 physical cues and feedback, it is much easier to misunderstand, upset and insult the receiver, and
31 likewise, become bothered by the message. Because communication happens very quickly and is based
32 solely on written words without any physical feedback from body language, it becomes hard to control the
33 interaction. In short, flirtation and courtship in cyberspace often require more, not less, sophistication in
34 approaching complex interpersonal boundaries.
35 “Oh, I think I’m in love. This woman I met online writes the most beautiful things. I look forward to each
36 email. We are going to arrange to meet soon, and I’m so excited about it. But…I have this fear that she
37 will be a disappointment in person,” writes one Internet romance seeker. Well yes, she may indeed be a
38 disappointment, maybe even a disaster! You may be a disappointment to her, too. Too many singles
39 seeking partners online have mistakenly concluded that cyberspace connections mean “real love,” without
40 all the difficult effort of the actual relationship. But eventually we have to face the real, physical person in
41 order to complete the courtship sequence toward marriage.
(BUSHELL, B.; DYER, B. Global Outlook: high intermediate reading. New York: McGraw Hill, 2003, p. 5152.)

ALL THE QUESTIONS MUST BE ANSWERED IN ENGLISH.

06. Answer the following questions, according to the text:

a) What are the advantages of cybercourtship? Write a paragraph (46 sentences), using your own words.

b) What are the problems of cybercourtship? Write a paragraph (46 sentences), using your own words.

07. Use Reported Speech to rewrite the following passage, according to the suggestion below:

“Oh, I think I’m in love. This woman I met online writes the most beautiful things. I look forward to each email. We are going to arrange to meet soon, and I’m so excited about it. But…I have this fear that she will be a disappointment in person.” (lines 3537)

The Internet romance seeker said that ________________________________________________________

PROCESSO SELETIVO 2007 3O DIA

  1. According to the text, “Internet technology has now made it possible for more people to meet” (line 3). What is your opinion about this statement? Do you agree or disagree? In your own words, write a paragraph (46 sentences) to discuss your point of view.
  2. According to the author, “flirtation and courtship in cyberspace often require more not less, sophistication in approaching complex interpersonal boundaries” (lines 3334). Explain what the author means by this, using your own words.

10 Look at the cartoon below and answer the following question, using your own words:

What does this cartoon suggest about technology and communication in family relationships nowadays? Write a paragraph (46 sentences) to illustrate your answer.