Bài thi thử kỳ thi tốt nghiệp Trung học Phổ thông môn Tiếng Anh - Năm học 2017-2018 - Đề số 05

SỞ GIÁO DỤC ĐÀO TẠO BÀI THI THỬ KỲ THI TỐT NGHIỆP TRUNG HỌC PHỔ THÔNG 
 ĐỀ CHÍNH THỨC NĂM HỌC 2017- 2018
 (Đề gồm có 04 trang) MÔN TIẾNG ANH ~ MÃ ĐỀ 001
 5 Thời gian: 60 phút - không tính thời gian giao đề
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word that differs from the other three in the position of primary stress in each of the following questions.
 Question 1:A. machine	B. confine	C. engine	D. entail
 Question 2:A. develop	B. envelope	C. telescope	D. antelope
Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks from 03 to 07.
CHANGING MANNERS
 Many Americans believe that manners have gotten worse and official figures confirm this. In a recent survey, nearly 70% said that people are ...(3)... than they were 20 or 30 years ago. This is true of both large and small towns, although 74% of ...(4)... living in cities said that people have become ruder, compared with 67% in rural areas. However, few people believe that they have bad manners themselves! For example, only 8% in the questionnaire ...(5)... they have ever used their cell phones in public in a loud or annoying way. Many people ...(6)... new technology for our changing manners. Computers, MP3 players, and cell phones take us away from face-to-face contact, as well as being very annoying in public places. "All of these things result in a world with more stress, more chances for people to be rude to each other," said Peter Post, an instructor on business manners.
 But what can we do about it? Some people would like to see a rail car ...(7)... for cell phone users so that the rest of us can travel in peace and quiet. In fact, one train company, Amtrak, has banned cell phones in one car of some trains, which is called a "Quiet Car".
 Question 3:A. ruder	B. older	C. wiser	D. smarter
 Question 4:A. those	B. them	C. they	D. ones
 Question 5:A. confess	B. admit	C. accept	D. agree
 Question 6:A. reproach	B. reprimand	C. command	D. blame
 Question 7:A. founded	B. prepared	C. reserved	D. suited
Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 08 to 14.
COMEDIANS
 What drives moderately intelligent persons to put themselves up for acceptance or disparagement? In short, what sort of individual wants to be a comedian? When we hear the very word, what does the label suggest? Other professions, callings and occupations attract separate and distinct types of practitioner. Some stereotypes are so familiar as to be cheaply laughable examples from the world of travesty, among them absent-minded professors, venal lawyers, gloomy detectives and cynical reporters. But what corny characteristics do we attribute to comedians? To a man or woman, are they generally parsimonious, vulgar, shallow, arrogant, introspective, hysterically insecure, smug, autocratic, amoral, and selfish? Read their superficial stories in the tabloids and so they would appear.
 Rather than look at the complete image, perhaps we need to explore the initial motives behind a choice of career. Consider first those who prefer a sort of anonymity in life, the ones who’d rather wear a uniform. The psychological make-up of individuals who actively seek to resign their individuality is apparent among those who surrender to the discipline of a military life. The emotional and intellectual course taken by those who are drawn to anonymity is easily observed but not easily deflected. They want to be told what to do and then be required to do it over and over again in the safety of a routine, often behind the disguises of a number of livery. If their egos ache with the need for recognition and praise, it’s a pain that must be contained, frustrated or satisfied within the rut they occupy. The mere idea of standing up in front of an audience and demanding attention is abhorrent.
 Nor will we find our comics among the doormats and dormice, the meek. There’s precious little comedy in the lives of quiet hobbyists, bashful scholars, hermits, anchorites and recluses, the discreet and the modest, ones who deliberately select a position of obscurity and seclusion. Abiding quietly in this stratum of society, somewhere well below public attention level, there is humour, yes, since humour can endure in the least favourable circumstances, persisting like lichen in Antarctica. And jokes. Many lesserknown comedy writers compose their material in the secret corners of an unassuming existence. I know of two, both content to be minor figures in the civil service, who send in topical jokes to radio and TV shows on condition that their real names are not revealed.
 In both cases I've noticed that their comic invention, though clever, is based upon wordplay, puns and similar equivoques, never an aggressive comic observation of life. Just as there may be a certain sterility in the self-effacement of a humble life, so it seems feasible that the selection process of what’s funny is emasculated before it even commences. If you have no ginger and snap in your daily round, with little familiarity with strong emotions, it seems likely that your sense of fun will be limited by timidity to a simple juggling with language.
 If the comedian’s genesis is unlikely to be founded in social submission, it’s also improbable among the top echelons of our civilisation. Once again, humour can be found among the majestic. Nobles and royals, statesmen and lawmakers, have their wits. Jokes and jokers circulate at the loftiest level of every advanced nation, but being high-born seems to carry no compulsion to make the hoi polloi laugh. Some of our rulers do make us laugh but that’s not what they’re paid to do. And, so with the constricted comedy of those who live a constricted life, that which amuses them may lack the common touch.
 Having eliminated the parts of society unlikely to breed funnymen, it’s to the middle ranks of humanity, beneath the exalted and above the invisible, that we must look to see where comics come from and why. And are they, like nurses and nuns, called to their vocation? As the mountain calls to the mountaineer and the pentameter to the poet, does the need of the mirthless masses summon forth funsters, ready to administer relief as their sole raison d’etre? We’ve often heard it said that someone’s a ‘born comedian’ but will it do for all of them or even most of them? Perhaps we like to think of our greatest jesters as we do our greatest painters and composers, preferring to believe that their gifts are inescapably driven to expression. But in our exploration of the comedy mind, hopefully finding some such, we are sure to find some quite otherwise.
[Source: PROFICIENCY TESTBUILDER 4th Edition, Macmillan, 2013]
Question 8: In the fourth paragraph, the writer criticises the kind of comedy he describes for its lack of......
A. spirit.	B. originality.	C. sophistication.	D. coherence.
Question 9: What does the writer wonder in the last paragraph?
A. whether comedians can be considered great in the way that other people in the arts can
B. whether people’s expectations of comedians are too high
C. whether comedians realise how significant they are in the lives of ordinary people
D. whether it is inevitable that some people will become comedians
Question 10: What does the writer imply about comedians in the first paragraph?
A. People in certain other professions generally have a better image than them.
B. It is harder to generalise about them than about people in other professions.
C. They often cannot understand why people make negative judgements of them.
D. It is possible that they are seen as possessing only negative characteristics.
Question 11: The writer says that people at the top of society......
A. are unaware of how ridiculous they appear to others.
B. would not be capable of becoming comedians even if they wanted to.
C. take themselves too seriously to wish to amuse anybody.
D. have contempt for the humour of those at lower levels of society.
Question 12: Which word/phrase can be a substitution for “the hoi polloi”?
A. the eliete	B. the mass media	C. ordinary people	D. the showbitz
Question 13: The writer says in the third paragraph that shy people......
A. fear that what they find humorous would not amuse others.
B. are capable of being more humorous than they realise.
C. may be able to write humorous material but could not perform it.
D. do not get the recognition they deserve even if they are good at comedy.
Question 14: What does the writer say about people who wear uniforms?
A. The desires they have are never met when they are at work.
B. They are more aware of their inadequacies than others may think.
C. They criticise performers for craving attention.
D. It is unusual for them to break their normal patterns of thought.
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word(s) CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined word(s) in each of the following questions.
Question 15: It's not my cup of tea.
A. the kind of thing I like.	B. my field of study
C. my responsibiltity.	D. my best choice.
Question 16: He looked at her aghast. 
A. shocked and worried	B. amazed	C. frightened	D. surprised
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word whose underlined part differs from the other three in pronunciation in each of the following questions.
 Question 17:A. seizure	B. heifer	C. sheila	D. receive
 Question 18:A. apostrophe	B. rhyme	C. recipe	D. psyche
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the sentence that best completes each of the following exchanges.
Question 19: ~ A: “.................” ~ B: “She must be vexed and forlorn, I’m sure.”
A. No one was invited to her farewell party.
B. What would she say if he came back to her?
C. How did Jenny feel when they broke up?
D. Guess what? I saw Annetta driving a new Audi to class.
Question 20: ~ A: “I’'m really excited about my holiday.” ~ B: “......................”
A. I’'m not surprised. Have a safe trip!	B. Who with, may I ask?
C. You haven’'t had one for years. Take this for free.	D. No wonder. It’s a long way to travel.
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word(s) OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined word(s) in each of the following questions.
Question 21: "Can I try out your new bicycle?" ~ "Be my guest." 
A. Sorry, you can't.	B. You're kidding.	C. Never mind	D. No problem.
Question 22: They managed to surmount all objections to their plans. 
A. give in	B. yield to	C. give up	D. lose
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the underlined part that needs correction in each of the following questions.
Question 23: Ocean currents have an enormous affect on life on this planet.
A. Ocean	B. on life	C. enormous affect	D. have
Question 24: Petroleum is composed of a complex mix of hydrogen and carbon.
A. Petroleum	B. and	C. composed of	D. mix
Question 25: A vast quantity of radioactive material is made when a hydrogen bomb explode.
A. A vast quantity	B. explode	C. material	D. is
Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 26 to 33.
SO MUCH TO SAVE
 The idea of preserving biological diversity gives most people a warm feeling inside. But what, exactly, is diversity? And which kind is most worth preserving? It may be anathema to save-the-lot environmentalists who hate setting such priorities, but academics are starting to cook up answers.
 Andrew Solow, a mathematician at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and his colleagues argue that in the eyes of conservation, all species should not be equal. Even more controversially, they suggest that preserving the rarest is not always the best approach. Their measure of diversity is the amount of evolutionary distance between species. They reckon that if choices must be made, then the number of times that cousins are removed from one another should be one of the criteria.
 This makes sense from both.a practical and an aesthetic point of view. Close relatives have many genes in common. If those genes might be medically or agriculturally valuable, saving one is nearly as good as saving both. And different forms are more interesting to admire and study than lots of things that look the same. Dr Solow's group illustrates its thesis with an example. Six species of crane are at some risk of extinction. Breeding in captivity might save them. But suppose there were only enough money to protect three. Which ones should be picked?
 The genetic distances between 14 species of cranes, including the six at risk, have already been established using
a technique known as DNA hybridisation. The group estimated how likely it was that each of these 14 species would become extinct in the next 50 years. Unendangered species were assigned a 10% chance of meeting the Darwinian reaper-man; the most vulnerable, a 90% chance. Captive breeding was assumed to reduce an otherwise endangered species' risk to the 10% level of the safest. Dr Solow's computer permed all possible combinations of three from six and came to the conclusion that protecting the Siberian, white-naped and black-necked cranes gave the smallest likely loss of biological diversity over the next five decades. The other three had close relatives in little need of protection. Even if they became extinct, most of their genes would be saved.
 Building on the work of this group, Martin Weitzman, of Harvard University, argues that conservation policy needs to take account not only of some firm measure of the genetic relationships of species to each other and their likelihood of survival, but also the costs of preserving them. Where species are equally important in genetic terms, and - an important and improbable precondition - where the protection of one species can be assuted at the expense of another, he argues for making safe species safer, rather than endangered species less endangered.
 In practice, it is difficult to choose between species. Most of those at risk - especially plants, the group most likely to yield useful medicines - are under threat because their habitats are in trouble, not because they are being shot, or plucked, to extinction. Nor can conservationists choose among the millions of species that theory predicts must exist, but that have not yet been classified by the biologists assigned to that tedious task.
 This is not necessarily cause for despair. At the moment, the usual way to save the genes in these creatures is to find the bits of the world with the largest number of species and try to protect them from the bulldozers. What economists require from biologists are more sophisticated ways to estimate the diversity of groups of organisms that happen to live together, as well as those which are related to each other. With clearer goals established, economic theory can then tell environmentalists where to go. [from The Economist]
Question 26: Dr Solow believes that.........
A. very rare species can't be saved	B. all very rare species should be saved
C. all species should be saved	D. only some species are worth saving
Question 27: Dr Solow's work depended on......
A. the premise that all cranes should be protected	B. previous biological research
C. the cost of preserving cranes	D. the premise that not all species are the same
Question 28: Three of the six species of endangered cranes........
A. were less interesting to admire than others	B. could be allowed to become extinct
C. were so rare they couldn't be saved	D. shouldn't be protected
Question 29: Dr Weitzman believes that if two species are equally important genetically we should protect.......
A. the one that is more attractive	B. them both
C. the less endangered one	D. the rarer one
Question 30: Endangered species of cranes can be saved by......
A. stopping hunters from killing them	B. protecting their habitats
C. encouraging them to mate with their cousins	D. keeping them in zoos or wildlife parks
Question 31: Most species are endangered because.......
A. biologists haven't classified them	B. they are hunted or picked
C. we don't care enough about them	D. the places they live in are being destroyed
Question 32: Dr Weitzman's ideas.......
A. confirm Dr Solow's	B. contradict Dr Solow's
C. disregard Dr Solow's	D. take Dr Solow's ideas one step further
Question 33: According to the writer what has to be done first is for.........
A. biologists to instruct economists	B. biologists to classiry undiscovered species
C. developers to stop destroying habitats	D. economists to instruct biologists
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions.
Question 34: ‘You and Terry seem to be good mates.’ ~ ‘Well, I ......him all my life.’
A. have known	B. know	C. have been knowing	D. knew
Question 35: ‘Will Rebecca help with the Christmas party?’ ~ ‘Well, ......other years so I’m sure she will this year, too.’
A. she was helping	B. she’s helped	C. she’d helped	D. she’s been helping
Question 36: Ella is......of sitting still for two minutes together.
A. unwilling	B. disable	C. unable	D. incapable
Question 37: ‘Are flights with this company often delayed?’ ~ ‘No, they ......on schedule.’
A. usually left	B. have usually left	C. are usually leaving	D. usually leave
Question 38: Sarah blushes,easily......she is always getting blamed for things she hasn’t done.
A. this means	B. that means	C. which means	D. what means
Question 39: I wish I had someone of my own age ......I could trust.
A. in whom	B. in which	C. with whom	D. which
Question 40: Alana ......halfway to the shops when she realized she’d left her purse at home.
A. was getting	B. had got	C. had been getting	D. has got
Question 41: The depletion of the rain forests has...to a decline in the number of species there.
A. resulted	B. attributed	C. got	D. led
Question 42: Shining her torch, Maria could just......a shadowy figure crouched behind a tree.
A. draw out	B. work out	C. make out	D. put out
Question 43: With a sigh, Paul...himself that he was visiting the city for the very last time.
A. reminded	B. reminisced	C. remembered	D. recalled
Question 44: The results of the experiment were studied with......interest by the scientists.
A. sharp	B. keen	C. firm	D. utter
Question 45: I don’t get on with my brother but I’m extremely......of my sisters.
A. affectionat	B. close	C. attached	D. fond
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the sentence that is closest in meaning to each of the following questions.
Question 46: It was only when we arrived in Kenya that we saw hippos and giraffes.
A. When we arrived in Kenya we only saw hippos and giraffes.
B. We arrived in Kenya only when we saw hippos and giraffes.
C. We only arrived in Kenya when we saw hippos and giraffes.
D. Only when we arrived in Kenya did we see hippos and giraffes.
Question 47: I’d hardly unpacked in my hotel room when my phone rang.
A. Had I hardly unpacked in my hotel room, my phone rang.
B. I was unpacking in my hotel hard when my phone rang.
C. Hardly had I unpacked in my hotel room when my phone rang.
D. It was hard for me to unpack in my hotel when my phone rang.
Question 48: The local people are in no way to blame for the destruction of the forest.
A. In no way are the local people to blame for the destruction of the forest.
B. The local people have no way to blame for the destruction of the forest.
C. It no use to blame the local people for the destruction of the forest.
D. There is no way for the local people to blame for the destruction of the forest.
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the sentence that best combines each pair of sentences in the following questions.
Question 49: Tam Vy loved travelling in Europe very much. She decided not to go to France because of her fears of terrorism.
A. Tam Vy would have gone to France if she hadn‘t been scared of terrorism so much because Europe was her favourite travel spot.
B. As France had become a high-risk terrorism spot, Tam Vy, who normally loved Europe, was afraid to go there.
C. Although Tam Vy liked touring Europe ever since the threat of terrorism started, she hadn‘t been to France.
D. Even though Tam Vy liked touring Europe very much, she was afraid of the terrorism in France, so she chose not to go there.
Question 50: Mum regretted not having planted a garden this year. She felt bad when buying vegetables at the supermarket.
A. If Mum had planted a garden this year, she wouldn‘t have had to buy her vegetables from the supermarket.
B. When she realized that the vegetables at the supermarket were so bad, Mum decided to grow her own from then on. 
C. Feeling sorry that she hadn‘t planted a garden this year, Mum did not feel good about purchasing vegetables from the supermarket.
D. The garden that Mum had not planted, which she regretted not doing, would have produced better vegetables than the ones she got at the supermarket.
The End
SỞ GIÁO DỤC ĐÀO TẠO BÀI THI THỬ KỲ THI TỐT NGHIỆP TRUNG HỌC PHỔ THÔNG
 ĐỀ CHÍNH THỨC NĂM HỌC 2017- 2018
 (Đề gồm có 04 trang) MÔN TIẾNG ANH ~ MÃ ĐỀ 002
 Thời gian: 60 phút - không tính thời gian giao đề
Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks from 01 to 05.
CHANGING MANNERS
 Many Americans believe that manners have gotten worse and official figures confirm this. In a recent survey, nearly 70% said that people are ...(1)... than they were 20 or 30 years ago. This is true of both large and small towns, although 74% of ...(2)... living in cities said that people have become ruder, compared with 67% in rural areas. However, few people believe that they have bad manners themselves! For example, only 8% in the questionnaire ...(3)... they have ever used their cell phones in public in a loud or annoying way. Many people ...(4)... new technology for our changing manners. Computers, MP3 players, and cell phones take us away from face-to-face contact, as well as being very annoying in public places. "All of these things result in a world with more stress, more chances for people to be rude to each other," said Peter Post, an instructor on business manners.
 But what can we do about it? Some people would like to see a rail car ...(5)... for cell phone users so that the rest of us can travel in peace and quiet. In fact, one train company, Amtrak, has banned cell phones in one car of some trains, which is called a "Quiet Car".
 Question 1:A. smarter	B. older	C. ruder	D. wiser
 Question 2:A. ones	B. they	C. those	D. them
 Question 3:A. confess	B. admit	C. accept	D. agree
 Question 4:A. reproach	B. reprimand	C. command	D. blame
 Question 5:A. founded	B. suited	C. reserved	D. prepared
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word whose underlined part differs from the other three in pronunciation in each of the following questions.
 Question 6:A. rhyme	B. recipe	C. psyche	D. apostrophe
 Question 7:A. heifer	B. seizure	C. sheila	D. receive
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions.
Question 8: ‘Will Rebecca help with the Christmas party?’ ~ ‘Well, ......other years so I’m sure she will this year, too.’
A. she’s been helping	B. she’d helped	C. she was helping	D. she’s helped
Question 9: Ella is......of sitting still for two minutes together.
A. unable	B. incapable	C. disable	D. unwilling
Question 10: Shining her torch, Maria could just......a shadowy figure crouched behind a tree.
A. put out	B. work out	C. make out	D. draw out
Question 11: ‘Are flights with this company often delayed?’ ~ ‘No, they ......on schedule.’
A. usually leave	B. have usually left	C. usually left	D. are usually leaving
Question 12: With a sigh, Paul...himself that he was visiting the city for the very last time.
A. recalled	B. remembered	C. reminisced	D. reminded
Question 13: Sarah blushes,easily......she is always getting blamed for things she hasn’t done.
A. this means	B. which means	C. that means	D. what means
Question 14: ‘You and Terry seem to be good mates.’ ~ ‘Well, I ......him all my life.’
A. know	B. have been knowing	C. have known	D. knew
Question 15: The results of the experiment were studied with......interest by the scientists.
A. sharp	B. keen	C. firm	D. utter
Question 16: I wish I had someone of my own age ......I could trust.
A. which	B. with whom	C. in whom	D. in which
Question 17: The depletion of the rain forests has...to a decline in the number of species there.
A. got	B. resulted	C. attributed	D. led
Question 18: I don’t get on with my brother but I’m extremely......of my sisters.
A. close	B. attached	C. fond	D. affectionat
Question 19: Alana ......halfway to the shops when she realized she’d left her purse at home.
A. was getting	B. had been getting	C. has got	D. had got
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the underlined part that needs correction in each of the following questions.
Question 20: Petroleum is composed of a complex mix of hydrogen and carbon.
A. mix	B. composed of	C. and	D. Petroleum
Question 21: Ocean currents have an enormous affect on life on this planet.
A. Ocean	B. on life	C. enormous affect	D. have
Question 22: A vast quantity of radioactive material is made when a hydrogen bomb explode.
A. material	B. explode	C. is	D. A vast quantity
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word(s) OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined word(s) in each of the following questions.
Question 23: They managed to surmount all objections to their plans. 
A. lose	B. give in	C. yield to	D. give up
Question 24: "Can I try out your new bicycle?" ~ "Be my guest." 
A. You're kidding.	B. No problem.	C. Sorry, you can't.	D. Never mind
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the sentence that best completes each of the following exchanges.
Question 25: ~ A: “.................” ~ B: “She must be vexed and forlorn, I’m sure.”
A. No one was invited to her farewell party.
B. What would she say if he came back to her?
C. Guess what? I saw Annetta driving a new Audi to class.
D. How did Jenny feel when they broke up?
Question 26: ~ A: “I’'m really excited about my holiday.” ~ B: “......................”
A. No wonder. It’s a long way to travel.	B. Who with, may I ask?
C. I’'m not surprised. Have a safe trip!	D. You haven’'t had one for years. Take this for free.
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word that differs from the other three in the position of primary stress in each of the following questions.
 Question 27:A. confine	B. machine	C. entail	D. engine
 Question 28:A. telescope	B. envelope	C. develop	D. antelope
Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 29 to 35.
COMEDIANS
 What drives moderately intelligent persons to put themselves up for acceptance or disparagement? In short, what sort of individual wants to be a comedian? When we hear the very word, what does the label suggest? Other professions, callings and occupations attract separate and distinct types of practitioner. Some stereotypes are so familiar as to be cheaply laughable examples from the world of travesty, among them absent-minded professors, venal lawyers, gloomy detectives and cynical reporters. But what corny characteristics do we attribute to comedians? To a man or woman, are they generally parsimonious, vulgar, shallow, arrogant, introspective, hysterically insecure, smug, autocratic, amoral, and selfish? Read their superficial stories in the tabloids and so they would appear.
 Rather than look at the complete image, perhaps we need to explore the initial motives behind a choice of career. Consider first those who prefer a sort of anonymity in life, the ones who’d rather wear a uniform. The psychological make-up of individuals who actively seek to resign their individuality is apparent among those who surrender to the discipline of a military life. The emotional and intellectual course taken by those who are drawn to anonymity is easily observed but not easily deflected. They want to be told what to do and then be required to do it over and over again in the safety of a routine, often behind the disguises of a number of livery. If their egos ache with the need for recognition and praise, it’s a pain that must be contained, frustrated or satisfied within the rut they occupy. The mere idea of standing up in front of an audience and demanding attention is abhorrent.
 Nor will we find our comics among the doormats and dormice, the meek. There’s precious little comedy in the lives of quiet hobbyists, bashful scholars, hermits, anchorites and recluses, the discreet and the modest, ones who deliberately select a position of obscurity and seclusion. Abiding quietly in this stratum of society, somewhere well below public attention level, there is humour, yes, since humour can endure in the least favourable circumstances, persisting like lichen in Antarctica. And jokes. Many lesserknown comedy writers compose their material in the secret corners of an unassuming existence. I know of two, both content to be minor figures in the civil service, who send in topical jokes to radio and TV shows on condition that their real names are not revealed.
 In both cases I've noticed that their comic invention, though clever, is based upon wordplay, puns and similar equivoques, never an aggressive comic observation of life. Just as