872. The Birthday Party (Learn English with a Short Story)

Summary

In this episode of Luke's English podcast, the host narrates a poignant short story titled 'The Birthday Party' by Katherine Brush, set in a restaurant where a wife attempts to surprise her husband on his birthday. Despite her efforts, the husband reacts with embarrassment and anger, leading to a heartbreaking scene of the wife's silent, tearful despair. The story serves as a lesson in observing human behavior and relationships, and is followed by a detailed breakdown of vocabulary and phrases used in the narrative, aiming to enhance the listener's English language skills.

Takeaways

• 🎙️ The podcast episode features a story called 'The Birthday Party' by Katherine Brook, used as a tool for English learning.
• 📖 The story is about a married couple in their late 30s having dinner in a restaurant on the husband's birthday.
• 🎂 The wife plans a surprise for her husband with a small birthday cake, but her efforts lead to embarrassment and a negative reaction.
• 😔 The husband's reaction reveals a complex dynamic in their marriage, with the wife feeling heartbroken and hopeless.
• 👀 The podcast host encourages listeners to engage in people watching and consider the stories of those around them.
• 📚 The episode is divided into three parts: storytelling, explanation of the story, and vocabulary breakdown.
• 🌟 The story, despite being written in 1946, still feels fresh and relevant, showcasing the power of good writing.
• 📝 The vocabulary section focuses on phrases like 'unmistakably married', 'self-satisfied', and 'fading pretty' to understand character descriptions.
• 📊 The narrative explores themes of loneliness, the facade of appearances, and the potential sadness within a marriage.
• 🗣️ Podcast listeners are encouraged to practice English by repeating the story, retelling it in their own words, and engaging with vocabulary.
• 🎧 The host also mentions the availability of premium podcast episodes for further English learning opportunities.

Q & A

What is the main theme of the story 'The Birthday Party'?

The main theme of the story is the exploration of a strained relationship, particularly focusing on the emotional disconnect and loneliness that can exist within a marriage.

How does the author, Luke, introduce the couple in the story?

Luke introduces the couple as being in their late 30s and unmistakably married, sitting in a narrow restaurant. He describes the man as having a round, self-satisfied face with glasses and the woman as fading pretty in a big hat.

What surprise does the wife plan for her husband's birthday?

The wife plans a surprise for her husband's birthday by arranging for a small, glossy birthday cake with a single pink candle to be brought to their table, accompanied by the violin and piano orchestra playing 'Happy Birthday'.

How does the husband react to the surprise?

Contrary to the wife's expectation, the husband is not pleased with the surprise. He becomes hotly embarrassed and indignant, reacting negatively to the public attention and the gesture from his wife.

What is the significance of the wife's hat in the story?

The wife's hat symbolizes the contrast between her outward appearance and her inner emotional state. While the hat is described as 'gay' and 'big', suggesting happiness and exuberance, the wife is actually heartbroken and crying underneath it.

What does the narrator notice after the birthday celebration ends?

The narrator notices that the husband says something punishing, quick, curt, and unkind to his wife under his breath after the celebration ends, which leads to the wife crying quietly and heartbrokenly.

How does the story illustrate the concept of 'people watching'?

The story illustrates 'people watching' through the narrator's observation of the couple's interaction and emotions. It highlights the idea that one can observe others' behaviors and interactions in public spaces and imagine their personal lives and relationships.

What writing technique does the author use to convey the husband's negative reaction?

The author uses detailed descriptions of the husband's emotions and actions, such as 'hotly embarrassed' and 'indignant', along with the narrator's internal thoughts and observations to effectively convey his negative reaction to the surprise.

What is the significance of the story's setting in a narrow restaurant?

The setting in a narrow restaurant contributes to the intimate and somewhat claustrophobic atmosphere of the story. It emphasizes the husband's embarrassment and the wife's isolation, as their emotional drama unfolds in a close-knit space with few other people.

How does the story end, and what emotions does it leave the reader with?

The story ends with the wife crying quietly and hopelessly under her hat, leaving the reader with feelings of sadness and empathy for her situation, and a sense of frustration towards the husband's unkindness.

Outlines

00:00

🎤 Introduction to the Podcast Episode

The speaker introduces the podcast episode, explaining that it will feature a story followed by an analysis and vocabulary breakdown. The story, titled 'The Birthday Party' by Katherine Brook, is discussed in three sections: a straightforward telling, an explanation of the story, and a detailed line-by-line analysis with vocabulary explanations. The speaker also poses a question about 'people watching' to the listeners, setting the stage for the narrative to follow.

05:00

🎂 The Story of 'The Birthday Party'

The speaker recounts the story 'The Birthday Party,' focusing on a couple in their late 30s dining in a restaurant. The wife surprises her husband with a birthday cake, but his reaction is not one of joy. Instead, he is embarrassed and angry, leading to a tense situation. The story is set in 1946 but its themes remain relevant today. The speaker emphasizes the emotional impact of the story and the sadness it conveys about the state of the couple's relationship.

10:01

👫 Analysis of the Couple's Interaction

The speaker analyzes the interaction between the couple, highlighting the husband's negative reaction to the birthday surprise. The wife's efforts are met with hostility, and she ends up crying quietly. The speaker discusses the implications of the husband's behavior, suggesting it reveals his self-importance and lack of empathy. The story's setting in a narrow restaurant adds to the intimacy and尴尬 of the situation, and the speaker reflects on the loneliness that can exist within a marriage.

15:01

📚 Vocabulary Breakdown and Learning

The speaker transitions from the story to a vocabulary lesson, focusing on phrases and words used in the narrative. Terms like 'unmistakably married,' 'self-satisfied,' and 'fading pretty' are discussed, with the speaker providing context and alternative uses for these expressions. The speaker encourages listeners to practice pronunciation by repeating lines from the story and to retell the story in their own words as a way to reinforce learning.

20:04

🎭 Reflecting on the Story's Impact

The speaker reflects on the emotional impact of the story, emphasizing the sadness and heartbreak it conveys. The story's exploration of loneliness within a marriage and the hidden sorrow behind a facade of happiness is highlighted. The speaker also discusses the effectiveness of the writing, noting how the story conveys deep emotions in a concise manner. Listeners are invited to share their thoughts and experiences related to the story's themes.

25:05

📱 Podcast and Premium Content Promotion

The speaker promotes the podcast's premium content, inviting listeners to subscribe for access to additional story episodes and language learning resources. The premium subscription includes true stories from the speaker's life, vocabulary and grammar exercises, and pronunciation practice episodes. Instructions on how to access the premium content and the benefits of subscribing are provided.

Keywords

💡People Watching

People watching refers to the act of observing others in public spaces, such as restaurants or parks, to infer details about their lives, emotions, or relationships. In the context of the video, it sets the stage for the story by discussing the narrator's habit of observing a couple in a restaurant, which leads to the unfolding of the story's main events.

💡Birthday Surprise

A birthday surprise is an unexpected event or gift planned to celebrate someone's birthday, typically intended to bring joy and happiness. In the video, the wife's attempt to surprise her husband with a birthday cake and a musical performance by the restaurant's orchestra backfires, leading to an emotionally charged situation.

💡Embarrassment

Embarrassment is a feeling of self-consciousness, awkwardness, or shame often resulting from being the center of attention in a negative way or having one's actions judged by others. In the story, the husband feels hotly embarrassed by his wife's public birthday surprise, which he perceives as an unwanted attention rather than a loving gesture.

💡Shy Pride

Shy pride refers to a sense of accomplishment or satisfaction that is modestly and quietly felt, often not wanting to draw too much attention to oneself. In the narrative, the wife exhibits shy pride when her surprise for her husband is revealed, indicating her pleasure in the surprise but also her discomfort with the attention it brings.

💡Heartbroken

Heartbroken describes an intense emotional state of sadness and despair, often resulting from a deep disappointment or loss. In the story, the wife is left heartbroken and crying quietly after her husband reacts negatively to her birthday surprise, highlighting the emotional impact of his response.

💡Self-satisfied

Self-satisfied refers to a person who is content with themselves and their achievements, often to the point of smugness or arrogance. In the video, the husband is described as having a round, self-satisfied face, suggesting that he has a high opinion of himself and may not appreciate the efforts of others, as evidenced by his reaction to the birthday surprise.

💡Fading Pretty

Fading pretty is a phrase that describes someone whose physical attractiveness is diminishing over time, often with a sense of melancholy or loss. In the context of the story, the wife is described as fading pretty, hinting at her aging beauty and possibly a decline in her self-esteem or happiness.

💡Narrative

A narrative is a story or account of events and experiences, often presented in a structured form. In the video, the narrative unfolds through the eyes of the narrator who observes a couple in a restaurant, leading to a deeper understanding of their relationship dynamics and the emotional impact of their interaction.

💡Vocabulary

Vocabulary refers to a set of words known to a person or used in a particular context. In the video, the narrator uses the story to teach and analyze various English vocabulary words and phrases, helping listeners to understand and learn new language elements.

💡Emotional Detachment

Emotional detachment is a state of being emotionally disconnected or aloof, often as a defense mechanism or due to a lack of emotional connection. In the story, the use of the term 'deposited' when referring to the cake being placed on the table suggests a transactional and detached approach to the husband's birthday celebration, indicating a lack of emotional warmth or connection.

Highlights

The podcast episode begins with an introduction to a storytelling method for English learning.

The story 'The Birthday Party' by Katherine Brook is selected for language learning purposes.

The story is brief, at about 300 words, making it suitable for a listening exercise.

The narrator sets a scene of people-watching in public places, like a restaurant, as a预热 (warm-up) activity.

The couple in the story is described as unmistakably married, with the wife planning a birthday surprise.

The surprise is a small birthday cake with a single pink candle, causing a mixed reaction from the husband.

The husband's negative reaction to the surprise, showing embarrassment and anger, is detailed.

The wife's emotional response to her husband's reaction is described as heartbroken and hopeless.

The story is used as a tool to teach English vocabulary and phrases related to the narrative.

The phrase 'unmistakably married' is discussed for its implications on the couple's relationship.

The use of 'past perfect' tense in the story is explained to show the sequence of events.

The story's setting in a narrow restaurant is highlighted to emphasize the intimacy and subsequent humiliation.

The language used to describe the wife's crying, such as 'quietly', 'heartbroken', and 'hopelessly', is analyzed.

The contrast between the wife's emotional state and her外在 appearance, particularly her hat, is discussed.

The episode concludes with suggestions for further English practice, including repeating and retelling the story.

The podcast host invites listeners to engage with premium content for more language learning opportunities.

The host's sign-off encourages listeners to continue their English learning journey and look forward to future episodes.

Transcripts

hello welcome back to Luke's English

podcast in this episode I'm going to

tell you a story and then use it to help

you learn English okay and I'm going to

do this in three sections first I'll

just tell the story to you and you can

use that as a sort of little listening

exercise or listening test see if you

understand everything in the story and

especially things like how the

characters feel and exactly what

happened um it's a fairly short story

this one I mean it's a very short story

really it's 300 words about 300 words

long so it'll just take a couple of

minutes for for me to read the story to

you and then after that I will just

explain what happened in the story in my

own words and then I'll go through the

story again line by line and I'll

explain vocabulary for you so you can

learn uh various little phrases words

and other descriptive language from this

story okay so the story that we're

looking at here is called the birthday

party and it was written by Katherine

Brook

who was an American newspaper columnist

a short story writer a

novelist um this particular story was

published in

1946 uh but like all good writing it

Still Remains fresh today it feels like

it could have been written yesterday

really so although it was written a few

decades ago it still feels really sort

of fresh and new so I'm going to start

in just a second but first of all just

one question for you to consider before

you listen to this okay my my question

is about people watching do you know

what people watching is this is when

you're in a public place for example in

a restaurant and you kind of watch the

other people around you and sort of I

don't know imagine what their lives are

like observing other people I mean it's

a bit nosy right to do this to look at

other people and sort of spy on them but

I think we all do this so do you ever

people watch okay um when you're in a

public place like a restaurant or in a

queue for something so observing people

watching their behavior watching their

interactions with each other and then

imagining what kinds of people they are

what their lives are like what their

relationships are like it might also

include eavesdropping which means

actually listening to other people's

conversations but not necessarily so

people watching just watching people

watching strangers that you might see in

public places do you ever do this if

you're out in public do you ever

discreetly watch the other people around

you and try to imagine what their lives

are like for example if you're in a

restaurant do you subtly while you're

eating your food do you subtly without

being noticed have a look at the other

people on the other tables try to

imagine who they are what's going on in

their lives um and have you ever

observed something amusing or something

that made you feel a little

uncomfortable or embarrassed like maybe

you got an insight into someone's

personal

relationship um or family life and it

actually made you feel even a little bit

uncomfortable or embarrassed or awkward

or even sad so do you ever people watch

and have you ever noticed anything sort

of interesting uh when doing that that's

just something to think about before we

start the story um and in fact let's now

start the story all you need to do here

is just listen first just listen and try

and follow the main events how do the

characters feel okay I'll explain in my

own words in a moment and then we'll go

through all the vocabulary and stuff and

see what we can learn okay so here we go

this is the birthday party by Catherine

brush they were a couple in their late

30s and they looked unmistakably

married they sat on the bonquet opposite

us in a little narrow restaurant having

dinner the man had a round

self-satisfied face with glasses on it

the woman was fading pretty in a big

hat there was nothing conspicuous about

them nothing particularly

noticeable until the end of their meal

when it suddenly became obvious that

this was an

occasion in fact it was the husband's

birthday

and the wife had planned a little

surprise for

him it arrived in the form of a small

but glossy birthday cake with one pink

candle burning in the

center the head waiter brought it in and

placed it before the husband and

meanwhile the violin and piano Orchestra

played happy birthday to

you and the wife beamed with shy Pride

over her little surprise and such few

people as there were in the restaurant

tried to help out with a pattering of

Applause it became clear at once that

help was needed because the husband was

not

pleased instead he was hotly embarrassed

and indignant at his wife for

embarrassing

him you looked at him and you saw this

and you thought thought oh now don't be

like

that but he was like that and as soon as

the little cake had been deposited on

the table and the orchestra had finished

the birthday piece and the general

attention had shifted from the man and

the

woman I saw him say something to her

under his breath some punishing thing

quick and Curt and unkind

I couldn't bear to look at the woman

then so I stared at my plate and waited

for quite a long

time not long enough though she was

still crying when I finally glanced over

there

again crying quietly and heartbroken and

hopelessly all to herself under the gay

big bridge

of her best

hat so that's the

story I I think that's very good writing

I think that's really really well

written little story a perfect little

portrait of these two people and a

little interaction which seems to tell

you so much about what's going on

between them and it's sad is definitely

sad it's it's almost heartbreaking

really really good writing though

um but what

happened okay so the Story begins um

it's in a restaurant okay um the the

writer says that she saw this couple

they were probably in their late

30s um and they were definitely married

she could tell just by looking at them

and they were sitting on the they were

sitting just on the other side of the

restaurant just opposite them at a table

having dinner she described the two of

them she said that the man

um had a round face glasses and he had a

sort of self-satisfied look on his face

the woman uh was was fading pretty like

she kind of used to be pretty or she's

sort of her her beauty is fading or

maybe um getting less you know um as she

gets older maybe

um and um they just look like an

ordinary couple really they weren't

bringing too much attention to them to

themselves except for the the fact that

the woman was wearing a a nice uh big

hat with a wide brim and the the

narrator of the story realizes that this

is not just an ordinary dinner but in

fact it's a special occasion in fact

it's the husband's birthday and the wife

has planned a special little surprise

for him and she she seems to be kind of

a bit shy about it and and quite proud

of the fact that she's organized this

little special thing for his birthday

and what is the special thing it's a

little birthday cake a cute little

birthday cake a red glossy cake with a

single pink candle in the middle of it

and she's obviously asked uh the head

waiter of the restaurant to bring the

cake over and the orchestra uh just like

a couple of instruments playing in the

corner of the restaurant they start

playing Happy Birthday the staff come

over they're probably singing happy

birthday and the the cake is brought

down the wife seems very sort of um

proud of of this moment um and the

people in the restaurant all give a

little clap they all

applaud and um it seems like a very

sweet moment but um what the narrator

notices is that when all the people have

gone away and the no one when no one's

looking at them she notices that the

husband is not happy with this at all

now why why would you not be happy with

that situation it's not really clear I

don't know either really uh cuz I'd be

delighted if you know my wife had

organized a sweet little thing like that

um in a in a nice little restaurant but

this man is not happy about it in fact

he's very

embarrassed which seems to tell you

something about him like he's probably

you got quite a high opinion of himself

he probably takes himself very seriously

and the idea that like a little cake and

people in the restaurant singing happy

birthday to him and everyone looking at

him is actually very uh something that

he's ashamed of and something that made

him feel very embarrassed and he's

unhappy and in fact he's angry about it

and he try you know they're trying not

to show this to everyone in the

restaurant but he's really unhappy with

her and when no one's looking except for

the the narrator of the story who

notices this the husband said something

to his wife and it's really something

very nasty uh he says it quietly so

other people can't hear it but he says a

nasty comment to her which is really

sad and she's obviously very very

upset um and she's heart she's

heartbroken the the the writer of the

story can't really bear to watch so she

looks at her her plate and stuff for

quite a long time but when she does have

a little look again she sees that the

the woman is still

crying and you know under the under the

brim of her lovely happy big hat

uh she's still crying so this it's a

really sad little story and a story

about observing a relationship observing

a marriage

which perhaps is not that happy not the

happiest marriage or at least I don't

know it's a sensitive situation or at

least the woman you know she's obviously

crying because uh the her husband's

unhappy but also probably I imagine in a

situation like that when you've planned

something and goes so wrong it probably

makes not only makes you feel happy in

that unhappy in that moment but I

imagine she's feeling very sad and

depressed and it makes you wonder about

the state of their marriage and whether

this woman is you know trapped in in a

sort of a Loveless marriage despite the

fact that she's trying her best you know

she's she's m making efforts

um and it's also quite heartbreaking

because it makes you realize that you

know a broken heart or happiness um

loneliness sometimes these things can be

hidden you know they're not obvious they

can be hidden

behind appearances which could otherwise

be very glamorous or very sort of um

smart um in this case a lovely hat and a

nice special occasion in a nice

restaurant but behind this this facade

there's a sort of a a deep loneliness

and the sense that people in

marriages can actually be very lonely it

can be one of the loneliest things not

alwayss of course often marriage is a

beautiful and happy situation but you

know in some cases it can be actually a

very sad

situation um and loneliness is something

that is often most deeply felt when

you're in the company of other people

especially when you feel trapped in that

situation and when you're having to hide

your feelings because other people can

see you and this story like perfectly

captures all of those things in a in a

in an efficient way only in about 300

words so it's really really well written

now let's go through the story again and

this time I'm going to look at um

specific uh words and phrases right this

is where I'm going to teach you some

some vocabulary by using the story so

here we go again the birthday party by

Katherine brush uh vocabulary and I've

highlighted some vocab here for us to

look at okay if you're listening to the

audio version of this episode you can

find um you can find the script for this

I'll put a link to it on the episode

page so you can actually check the text

and stuff like that if you're looking at

the video version you'll be able to see

the text on the screen another thing

actually to mention is pronunciation so

just earlier there in this episode I

read through the story line by line now

what you could do if you want to

practice your pronunciation you could

actually try to repeat those lines after

me okay try to repeat the story after me

with exactly the same

delivery so just try and copy the way I

do it and then maybe practice it again

on your own practice trying to deliver

the story with the right pausing the

right emphasis and so on okay and

another exercise you could do would be

to try to retell the story in your own

words right try to um try to you know

tell the story again but sort of

spontaneously in your own words without

actually reading it uh from the uh from

the text so all all of those things can

be good uh ways to practice but anyway

let's have a look now at some vocabulary

so the first

line they were a couple in their late

30s and they looked unmistakably married

so the first thing is just this phrase

in their late 30s so you know you can

can be in your you're in your 30s which

means you're either 30 you're between

the ages of 30 and 39 so you can be in

your in your teens that's when you're a

teenager you can be in your 20s in your

30s in your 40s in your 50s and so on

but also you can say you could be in

your early 30s or your mid-30s or your

late 30s okay in this case the couple

were in their late 30s okay and they

looked unmistakably married so it's

fairly easy to understand they looked

married it looked like they were married

so they looked married but they looked

unmistakably married okay they they were

obviously married you couldn't mistake

them for anything else right um so if

something is unmistakable it just means

it's it's really not easily confused for

something else like when you see it you

immediately identify it as that thing

there's no mistaking the fact that these

people were married they were

unmistakably married

right so unmistakable is the adjective

unmistakably in this case is the adverb

So unmistakably Married um you know we

we use you know you can use that for

other things as well if if something's

obvious for example

um you smell as you walk past the bakery

you you you can smell the unmistakable

smell of fresh bread right that's using

the word as an adjective

unmistakable um other things in instead

of saying they looked unmistakably

married it could be other things right

for example they they looked

unmistakably English right I don't know

what what would they look like if they

looked unmistakably English just like

typical English people or they looked

unmistakably

French okay um handwriting handwriting

you know um stuff that's written by hand

handwriting you could say for example

this is unmistakably his

handwriting Okay so unmistakably

in this case unmistakably married

um

so a question about the writing or just

the thought why are they unmistakably

married what does the writer mean here I

think she's probably alluding to subtle

Behavior right which it's interesting

that she chose this phrase because it it

does tell us something about this

couple so what did she mean when she

said they were unmistakably married

she's probably referring to certain

Behavior now when a couple are are new

when they've just got together right

when they're in the early stages of a

relationship often you can tell that

they're a brand new couple because they

sort of their body language tells you

everything you need to know like they

can't stop looking at each other they

can't stop touching each other they're

still enjoying sort of exploring each

other exploring each other's personal

space they get lost in a love Bubble you

know the rest of the world disappears

but when a couple has been together for

a long time if they're married they're

in their late 30s they've been married

for 10 15 years or something like that

um their body language might show this

and maybe they we also know that they

were sitting on the on the bench right

so they're not sitting opposite each

other they're sitting next to each other

and well what kind of body language do

you imagine could be seen here maybe

they just weren't really there wasn't a

lot of interaction going on maybe maybe

little moments of interaction showed

that they were very close and they

obviously spent a lot of time together

but maybe it was obvious that there

wasn't Maybe there wasn't a lot of love

between

them right and you know that sense of

mystery or attraction maybe wasn't there

or maybe there was a sense of

familiarity and closeness I don't know

but it's good writing because it does

sort of it does tell you so

much next line they sat on the bonquet

opposite us in a little narrow

restaurant having dinner so a bonquet is

just a long like a long seat which could

be fitted uh to the wall for example

typical in restaurants so a long kind of

bench that's probably attached to the

wall in some way that's the bonquet um

they sat opposite us in a little narrow

restaurant having dinner so narrow is

just the it's the opposite of wide so

that this tells us that the restaurant

was quite long but narrow so you imagine

a long um restaurant but where the walls

on either side are actually very close

because the restaurant is narrow a bit

like a corridor or something and this is

interesting because we get that sense of

intimate space right the the writer and

this married couple are actually

probably quite close to each other

everyone's probably fairly close in this

restaurant which for me

emphasizes the the kind of the

humiliation which happens later the the

man's humiliation but also the wife's

sadness is emphasized by the the

intimacy of this restaurant that they're

sitting in this narrow place um with

probably tables quite close together

right um okay so next the man had a

round self-satisfied face with glasses

on it the woman was fading pretty in a

big hat so the man had a round face I

mean just round sort of

circular self-satisfied is interesting

now generally if you describe someone as

being self-satisfied it's a negative

phrase so if someone is self-satisfied

it means they're rather satisfied with

themselves you know someone who thinks

that they're someone who has a high

opinion of themsel someone who's rather

satisfied with them with themselves so

you can imagine he's got a sort of

a rather a sort of a smug look on his

face or an arrogant look on his face you

know a self-important self-satisfied

look on his face in any case it's not

very Charming um she does the writer

doesn't paint a very Charming attractive

picture of this

man um right it he seems smug and not

that attractive whereas the woman was

fading pretty in a big hat so fading

fading pretty fading L is the adverb

fading would be the adjective and if

something is fading it means it's

gradually becoming less clear less

bright

less colorful so her prettiness her

attractiveness was fading as she was

getting older which um you know is often

a kind of a sad thing for many people um

it doesn't have to be but it it can be

and it also tells you something as well

doesn't it there you know

there's just a a certain sadness here

okay fading L pretty so she's still

pretty but the her prettiness is fading

now that doesn't happen to to every

everyone some people are pretty when

they're young and they stay pretty when

they're old they grow old gracefully but

I don't know again I'm speculating about

this relationship but maybe there's

something not quite right in the

relationship and the sadness that she

feels is starting to show you know on

her face and it's actually affecting her

beauty in a in a way so she was fading

pretty her her prettiness was

fading there was nothing conspicuous

about them nothing particularly

noticeable so those two lines they

basically mean the same thing because uh

conspicuous if something is conspicuous

it means it's noticeable easy to notice

eye-catching okay I mean the the fact

that she she was wearing a big hat is

fairly noticeable but maybe in those

days in what I assume is like New York

in a nice restaurant in New York in the

in the 1940s a woman dressed nicely and

wearing a big hat was probably not

uncommon right but other than that it

seems that there wasn't anything

particularly noticeable about these this

couple there was nothing conspicuous so

conspicuous noticeable easy to notice

eye-catching right those are all

synonyms um nothing particularly

noticable so they were just a fairly

ordinary couple I suppose for this kind

of

restaurant and nothing obvious about

them nothing noticeable until the end of

their meal when it suddenly became

obvious that this was an occasion so an

occasion could be a special occasion

like a particular event a birthday an

anniversary a reason to celebrate so

that was that's an occasion so it became

obvious that this was an occasion it was

actually a special moment in fact it was

the husband's birthday and the wife had

planned a little surprise for him so I

just wanted to highlight the use of past

perfect here the wife had planned a

little surprise for him so past past

perfect had planned that's used because

it shows that the wife planned this

before the other events of the story

right okay it just shows us that the

planning part happened before all the

rest of the events so past perfect is

there to you is used there to just to to

show us that the planning happened

before um now if we didn't if if the

writer hadn't used past perfect if she'd

said it was the husband's birthday and

the wife planned a little surprise for

him now that could mean that she planned

the surprise right there at the table

right it was the husband's birthday and

the wife planned a surprise that could

mean that she planned it there you see

but uh we want to show that the the

planning happened before those events in

the restaurant so that's why past

perfect is

used and um so the surprise it arrived

in the form of a small but glossy

birthday cake with one pink candle

burning in the center so the it arrived

uh in this case the surprise arrived in

the form of a cake so in the form of

here um this means that this is how the

surprise was actually this is how the

surprise happened this is how the

surprise manifested I mean what was the

surprise how did the surprise take shape

it it arrived in the form of this

birthday cake so the birthday cake was

the surprise right um quite a nice nice

phrase like you know you could use that

in different situations uh the gift came

in the form of a beautifully wrapped

package for example uh their

support the the support from my friends

came in the form of encouraging words

the solution to the problem arrived in

the form of innovative new technology

help arrived in the form of my wife who

came to rescue me from an awkward

conversation okay in this case the

surprise arrived in the form of a

birthday cake a small but glossy

birthday cake so the birthday cake is

small but glossy so glossy this

adjective just means shiny and

smooth so that for example the light

reflects off the top of it so this means

it's one of those

quite smart quite fancy cakes that you

see in sort of good quality cake shops

so it's got a a a kind of cover of I

don't know what the cover would be like

a glazed cover on the top of the cake

which means it's shiny right a glossy

cake so it's a fairly fancy cake even

though it's small and it's got one pink

candle I mean the pink candle is a

detail an interesting detail um is this

part of the reason why the the husband

seems to be embarrassed is it because of

the the the way the cake looks it's a

little bit ridiculous or a little bit

funny or even a little bit sad just one

single birthday one single candle in the

middle of this small

cake I mean the little pink candle might

make him feel a bit ridiculous

especially if he is full of himself and

self-satisfied and smug and arrogant and

he thinks he's very important

person you know

and then I'm an important person in in

you know in society and then this cake

arrives this little cake with one pink

candle I mean it's a lovely sweet

gesture and you know um we just want him

to be touched by this but in fact no

he's that's not the way he this guy

works instead he's embarrassed by this

what we want is for him to I mean he

could feel embarrassed like he that's

okay but you'd want him to feel

embarrassed and then to kind of blush

you know to go red in the face and then

maybe to to kiss his wife and say thank

you to her and tell her how much he

loves her you know because she made the

effort to get this cake for him but he

doesn't do that he doesn't instead he's

just angry and embarrassed by it which

is just really

sad the head waiter brought it in and

placed it before the husband and

meanwhile the violin and piano Orchestra

played happy birthday to you so the head

waiter this is like the the most

important waiter in the restaurant the

person who's in charge of all the other

waiters so this probably this means that

the wife probably asked the restaurant

to make a special effort here which

again shows us how much care she put

into this that she actually spoke to the

Head waiter and everything and uh it was

the head waiter who brought the cake so

they're taking it you know fairly

seriously he placed it before the

husband he placed it so this is a sort

of thing a good waiter would do waiters

don't just put the plate on the table

they place it meaning they put it down

very carefully exactly in the right spot

so the waiter the head waiter came in

and he placed the cake down in front of

him and meanwhile the the the Orchestra

played happy

birthday right so meanwhile just means

at the same time okay you could replace

the word meanwhile with the phrase at

the same time so the head waiter brought

the cake and at the same time the

Orchestra played happy

birthday happy birthday to you oh

god um and the wife beamed with shy

Pride over her little

surprise she beamed with pride so to

beam in this case this means that her

her face glowed her face sort of uh

glowed with with pride right now to beam

means that light comes out for example

um a torch if you've got a torch which

you use to you know to see in the dark

you turn the torch on a flashlight they

call it in American English uh a

torch um uh when the light comes out the

end of the torch it beams out similarly

the headlights of your car the light

beams out of your headlights a

lighthouse the light beams out so in

this case her face

beamed uh with pride right with shy

Pride okay Pride to feel proud she's

happy she's satisfied with what she's

done she's put a lot of effort into this

she's hoping this is going to go well uh

she's really trying hard and when the

cake comes in her face beamed with shy

Pride I mentioned a torch and a

flashlight torch in British English and

flashlight in American English there is

a there's only a couple of moments in

this story where it's obviously American

English for example the spelling of the

word Center uh the birthday cake with

one pink candle burning in the center c

n t r in American English c n t r e in

British English but it's otherwise it's

this is just an example of how for the

most part this story just shows how

American English and British English are

just like identical because there aren't

really many other differences that I can

notice um so

the the wife beamed with shy Pride over

her little surprise and such few people

as there were in the restaurant meaning

you know the the even the small number

of people in the restaurant tried to

help out with a pattering of Applause so

Applause

is when people clap right at the end of

a theater play or at the end of a a

music concert people applaud and there

is applaud

[Music]

right a pattering of Applause means like

a little bit of Applause like just a few

people kind of clapping a little bit in

the background okay right the sound of a

few people

clapping it became clear at once that

help was needed because the husband was

not pleased so it became clear meaning

it became obvious it became clear at

once at once meaning

immediately so it became obvious

immediately it it became clear at once

that help was needed it's interesting

that the writer has used was needed

which is passive voice because needed by

who

right she doesn't actually say it

directly but we know that we're talking

about the wife that the wife needed

help and you know the the writer is the

narrator obviously sees that the woman

is helpless in this situation she's in

trouble but nobody can help her without

making it

worse it became clear that help was

needed by not mentioning by not saying

it directly it somehow makes it a bit

more powerful it became clear at once

that the wife needed help it's a bit too

direct but saying it became clear at

once that help was

needed um somehow is a bit more discret

by not putting the wife right into the

middle of the

sentence you know it makes it a little

bit more

impersonal anyway it became clear at

once that help was needed by the wife

because the husband was not pleased

instead he was hotly

embarrassed so we know embarrassed but

hotly embarrassed now that's not a very

common collocation we don't often say

hotly embarrassed but it's good use of

language because it does tell us about

how the husband felt and he wasn't just

embarrassed but he was angry Ang and

embarrassed right and embarrassed and

angry and you can imagine that his face

was bright red and uh you know we

associate heat in Emotion we associate

heat and being hot with anger and strong

emotions so he was hotly embarrassed

suggests that he was like really

embarrassed and also angry and he was

indignant so indignant means angry

annoyed

frustrated which is a pity that that was

his

reaction um you looked at him and you

saw this and you thought oh now don't be

like that don't be like that don't be

that way okay don't be don't be angry

don't be like

that but he was like that and as soon as

the little cake had been deposited on

the

table and the orchestra had finished the

birthday piece and the general attention

had shifted from the man and the woman

so as soon as the birthday cake had been

deposited so uh deposited it's fairly it

just means uh put on the table it's

slightly formal slightly impersonal

language right just deposited on the

table it

sounds I don't know it just sounds

slightly transactional language like you

know normally we'd say money is

deposited into a bank account right so

it's kind of slightly cold transactional

language as soon as the cake had been

deposited on the table

we start to get a sort of sense

of an emotional Detachment or something

maybe I'm reading too much into it but

it was interesting the the use of the

word deposited just means put on the

table delivered and the orchestra had

finished the birthday piece and the

general attention had shifted from the

man and the woman so attention shifted

it had

shifted as soon as right as soon as and

then passed perfect meaning as soon as

when all these things had been completed

the man said something so once all th he

waited for all those things to be

done right so once they were done and

finished that's when he chose to say

what he said so the general attention

had shifted from the man and the woman

shifted just means moved right moved

away so everyone was looking at the

couple when the cake arrived but then

people's attention shifted away from

them it moved away from them and when

all of those things had happened I saw

him say something to her under his

breath some punishing thing quick and

Curt and unkind so I saw him say

something to her under his breath so

under to say something under your breath

means to say something in a very quiet

voice in a whisper so that other people

can't hear

[Music]

like you say something under your breath

if you're trying to whisper uh so other

people can't hear

you

right so to whisper to say something

under your breath um some punishing

thing punishing so a comment that was

designed to punish her to make her feel

bad because in his mind the thing that

she'd done was not good and so he says

something nasty to her as a sort of

punishment a punishing

comment a comment that's going to make

her feel bad

we don't know what it is right we don't

know what he said to her we can only

imagine what he said to

her right but I mean it's probably

something like you know how dare you

embarrass me like this in public you

know some stupid cake or something

that's you know going to really

hurt some punishing thing quick and Curt

and unkind so quick meaning just a few

words Kurt Kurt this adjectives mean

this adjective means

brief right with a few only like a short

thing to say but rudely brief right rude

because it's so

short and unkind unkind meaning cruel so

it would be something like how dare you

or how stupid of you something like

that and then the writer continues I

couldn't bear to look at the woman then

so I stared at my plate and waited for

quite a long time I couldn't bear to

look right can't bear couldn't bear now

if you can't bear to do something it

just means you you can't stand doing it

you just can't it's too painful too

uncomfortable to do it for example

looking at the the couple because the

this poor woman is so upset and the man

is so angry and so unreasonable and mean

and it's just she couldn't bear to

look so we say can't bear to do

something

we say can't stand doing something and

we also can say can't bring myself to do

something I just couldn't I couldn't

bear to look I couldn't bring myself to

look I can't stand seeing things like

that um and the story continues not long

enough though so she because she looked

at her plate and waited for quite a long

time but not long enough

though no is the the use of the word

though at the end I've mentioned this

before but um though at the end like

that it's like saying

but right but we normally put but in

between two contrasting things so I I

looked at my plate for a long time but

not long

enough but we can use though at the end

right I looked at my plate for a long

time not long enough though so it does

the same job as saying but in the middle

but we just put it at the end it's very

common in spoken English so not long

enough though because she was still

crying when I finally glanced over there

again so when I

glanced uh to glance is just to look

quickly so she was looking at her plate

and

she had a quick look so just glanced

looked

quickly cuz she was still crying when

she glanced over at

them crying quietly and heartbroken and

Hope l ly alter herself under the gay

big brim of her best hat so this is

really heartbreaking like the really

heartbreaking

part right it does tell you the way in

which she's crying that she just feels

so sad and lonely at this point and it's

from a language point of view there's

adverbs here right how was she crying

she was crying quietly she was crying

heartbroken she was crying hopelessly

she was crying all to herself and she

was crying under the gay big brim of her

best hat so crying quietly I think we

understand that crying heart brokenly

because she felt

heartbroken because of the behavior the

actions the the the reaction of this

husband this horrible

husband cry crying

hopelessly

where yeah I suppose even when she's

tried really hard hard to do something

cute and special on his birthday the way

he reacted was just like so far away

from what she hoped that that kind of

couldn't break someone's hope right so

she's crying with a deep sense of

hopelessness all to

herself so she was doing it all by

herself meaning on her own but also

crying to

herself not crying to anyone else so you

got crying all by herself which means

she was crying on her own but crying all

to herself means that she was the only

audience of her crying like the husband

didn't even really care or wasn't even

giving her attention to the fact giving

attention to the fact that she was

crying so she was just all on her own

crying to herself she was the only

witness the only audience to her

crying right the husband apparently

doesn't

care and doing this under the gay big

brim of her best hat

so this is a particularly sad image

because of the contrast between this

lovely otherwise um exuberant uh

hat and the actual feeling of the woman

underneath it uh it should have been a

happy Carefree occasion but she's just

heartbroken so that emphasizes the

sadness the the contrast between the two

things but the gay big brim of her hat

so the brim the brim is the part the the

bit that goes around the edge of the Hat

the widest part that's the edge of the

Hat the brim of the Hat okay if it's a

baseball cap the baseball cap has a brim

at the front and you can slide it around

the back if you want you can bend the

brim of the hat if it's a you know

another type of hat the brim goes all

the way around in this case it was a big

brim um and the gay big brim of her hat

so I mean this this shows I guess the

age of the story because we don't

normally use the word g like that these

days because it used to just mean happy

Carefree happy uh these days obviously

it means something else but in those

days it just meant carefree and happy so

that's why that's why the word gay is

being used here her her happy uh

Carefree um exuberant hat that she was

wearing uh she was crying all by herself

uh all to herself underneath the the

brim of this of this of this hat um and

that's the end of the story

okay H what do you think of that I'd

like to know your comments uh feel free

to leave your comments in the comments

section what do you think of the

situation um so you know what do you

think the husband said any idea what he

might have said uh how do you think the

woman uh felt in that moment the wife

have you ever witnessed something you

know when when people

watching um what did you think of the

story um

other things remember you could practice

repeating that story after me just go

back to the beginning of the episode to

the moment where I told the story line

by line you could just practice reading

through it again and again um and as I

said before you should try perhaps

retelling the story in your own words

too and another exercise you could do

another little speaking challenge that

you could do would be to um remember a

time when you saw some people doing

something when you people watched and

you saw something happen could you

describe that do you think you could

make that into a story it would be a

good exercise for your English practice

practice practice practice practice

practice the five PS okay that's the end

of this episode if you like uh my story

episodes obviously I've done a few of

these now which you can find in my

episode archive um learn English with a

short story but I've got others as well

I've done uh about 10 story episodes in

my premium podcast

and so you can subscribe to the premium

podcast you can add all the premium

episodes to a podcast app on your phone

uh and when you do that you can listen

to the episodes you can also access

links in the show notes for each episode

links for PDFs and video versions and

I've done yeah about 10 story episodes

most of those stories in the premium

section are true stories about my own

life that I've written myself including

stories of my childhood like stuff that

sort of funny stuff that happened to me

uh and I I do a similar thing to what I

do in these uh learn English with a

short story episodes tell you the story

and then break it down for vocabulary

and then give you various of grammar

vocabulary practice exercises um memory

exercises to help you remember the

vocabulary and then dedicated

pronunciation episodes to help you

practice repeating after me that's what

you can find in those Story Time

episodes in uh my premium

subscription yeah okay the way it works

is you sign up and when you've signed up

you can just really easily add your

premium subscription to a podcast app on

your phone and then it gives you the

full list of all of my episodes all of

my free episodes with no advertising and

also all my premium episodes in there

too and then you can just listen to the

normal episodes listen to the premium

episodes and then find the notes uh in

the the show notes that's where you find

links for video versions and PDFs okay

so if you want to do that you can just

you know be my gu guest of course

teacher luke.

co.uk premium info or just click the

link in the description uh to find out

about Luke's English podcast premium

okay great have a lovely day afternoon

morning evening night wherever you are

in the world whatever you're doing I

hope that you are having a nice time out

there in podcast land thank you for

listening to this episode I will speak

to you again soon uh in the next one but

for now it's just time to say goodbye

bye bye boy boy boy