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Cowboys and the Wild West : le Far West (4e)

Fiche à imprimer : le cours, les trois exercices et le corrigé (sur une page à part). Revenir au cours en ligne

AnglaisFrançais
a cowboyun cow-boy
a cattle driveune transhumance de bétail
a ranchun ranch
the frontierla frontière (limite des terres colonisées)
Cowboys used to work very long days.Les cow-boys travaillaient de très longues journées.
About one in four cowboys was Black.Environ un cow-boy sur quatre était noir.

Après la guerre de Sécession (1865), des cow-boys conduisent d'immenses troupeaux de bœufs du Texas jusqu'aux gares du Kansas : ce sont les cattle drives, qui durent des mois. La réalité est bien loin des westerns : la plupart des cow-boys étaient jeunes et mal payés, et beaucoup étaient noirs ou mexicains (le mot buckaroo vient de l'espagnol vaquero). La conquête de l'Ouest s'est aussi faite aux dépens des peuples amérindiens. Habitudes passées : used to + verbe.

Mise en situation : le musée de l'Ouest

Guide : Forget the films! Real cowboys used to work sixteen hours a day.
Oubliez les films ! Les vrais cow-boys travaillaient seize heures par jour.
Ethan : What did they do exactly?
Que faisaient-ils exactement ?
Guide : They used to drive thousands of cattle from Texas to the railway in Kansas. It took months.
Ils conduisaient des milliers de bœufs du Texas jusqu'au chemin de fer du Kansas. Ça prenait des mois.
Jade : Were they all like the cowboys in westerns?
Ils étaient tous comme les cow-boys des westerns ?
Guide : Not at all. About one in four cowboys was Black, and many were Mexican. Most were young and poor.
Pas du tout. Environ un cow-boy sur quatre était noir, et beaucoup étaient mexicains. La plupart étaient jeunes et pauvres.
Ethan : So Hollywood didn't tell the whole story!
Donc Hollywood n'a pas raconté toute l'histoire !

À retenir

  • a cowboy, cattle, a ranch, a horse, a saddle, a lasso, a saloon, the frontier, the railway.
  • used to + verbe (habitude passée) ; It took months ; one in four ; myth or reality?

Exercice 1 : Le Far West : exercice 1 (QCM)

  1. « du bétail »
    1. cattle
    2. kettle
    3. castle
  2. « une transhumance de bétail »
    1. a cattle drive
    2. a castle drive
    3. a cattle dive
  3. Les cow-boys conduisaient les troupeaux du Texas au...
    1. Canada
    2. Kansas
    3. Mexique
  4. « Ils travaillaient 16 heures par jour. » (habitude)
    1. They used to work sixteen hours a day.
    2. They used to working sixteen hours a day.
    3. They use to work sixteen hours a day.
  5. Environ quelle part des cow-boys était noire ?
    1. aucun
    2. tous
    3. un sur quatre
  6. Le mot buckaroo vient de l'espagnol...
    1. bandido
    2. amigo
    3. vaquero
  7. « une selle »
    1. a puddle
    2. a saddle
    3. a sadness
  8. « Ça prenait des mois. »
    1. It taked months.
    2. It took months.
    3. It takes months yesterday.
  9. « Pas du tout. »
    1. No at all.
    2. Not at all.
    3. Not of all.
  10. Les cattle drives ont commencé après...
    1. la guerre de Sécession
    2. la Première Guerre mondiale
    3. 1066

Exercice 2 : Le Far West : exercice 2 (à compléter)

  1. Real cowboys .......................... to work sixteen hours a day.
  2. They used to .......................... thousands of cattle.
  3. It .......................... months. (take)
  4. Were they all .......................... the cowboys in westerns?
  5. Not at .......................... .
  6. About one in .......................... cowboys was Black.
  7. Most were young and .......................... .
  8. Hollywood didn't tell the whole .......................... .
  9. He rode his .......................... every day. (cheval)
  10. from Texas to the .......................... in Kansas

Exercice 3 : Le Far West : mise en situation

  1. Oubliez les films !
    1. Forget the films!
    2. Forget films the!
    3. Forgot the films!
  2. Ils travaillaient 16 heures par jour.
    1. They were used to work sixteen hours a day.
    2. They used to work sixteen hours a day.
    3. They use to work sixteen hours a day.
  3. Que faisaient-ils exactement ?
    1. What did they did exactly?
    2. What they did exactly?
    3. What did they do exactly?
  4. Ça prenait des mois.
    1. It taked months.
    2. It take months.
    3. It took months.
  5. Ils étaient tous comme dans les westerns ?
    1. They were all like the cowboys?
    2. Was they all like the cowboys in westerns?
    3. Were they all like the cowboys in westerns?
  6. Pas du tout.
    1. No at all.
    2. Not at all.
    3. Not of all.
  7. Un cow-boy sur quatre était noir.
    1. About one in four cowboys were Black of.
    2. About one on four cowboys was Black.
    3. About one in four cowboys was Black.
  8. La plupart étaient jeunes et pauvres.
    1. The most were young and poor.
    2. Most was young and poor.
    3. Most were young and poor.
  9. Hollywood n'a pas raconté toute l'histoire.
    1. Hollywood didn't tell the whole story!
    2. Hollywood didn't told the whole story!
    3. Hollywood didn't tell the hole story!
  10. Ils dormaient sous les étoiles.
    1. They used to sleeping under the stars.
    2. They used to sleep under the stars.
    3. They use to sleep under the stars.

Corrigé

Exercice 1

1. a) cattle · 2. a) a cattle drive · 3. b) Kansas · 4. a) They used to work sixteen hours a day. · 5. c) un sur quatre · 6. c) vaquero · 7. b) a saddle · 8. b) It took months. · 9. b) Not at all. · 10. a) la guerre de Sécession

Exercice 2

1. used · 2. drive · 3. took · 4. like · 5. all · 6. four · 7. poor · 8. story · 9. horse · 10. railway

Exercice 3

1. a) Forget the films! · 2. b) They used to work sixteen hours a day. · 3. c) What did they do exactly? · 4. c) It took months. · 5. c) Were they all like the cowboys in westerns? · 6. b) Not at all. · 7. c) About one in four cowboys was Black. · 8. c) Most were young and poor. · 9. a) Hollywood didn't tell the whole story! · 10. b) They used to sleep under the stars.