British English · C1 · Unit 8
History and memory
History and memory
By the end you can
- Discuss how a historical event shaped a country
- Compare different readings of history
- Understand a text about history
Words and phrases
| British English | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| a turning point | a moment when things changed | The closing of the mine was a turning point for the town. |
| shape | have a strong influence on | The mines shaped the whole region. |
| the legacy of | what remains from (the past) | The legacy of the slave trade is still visible in Bristol. |
| in the context of | considering the situation of (a time) | You have to see it in the context of the time. |
| rewrite history | change how the past is told | Taking down a statue doesn't rewrite history. |
| controversial | causing strong disagreement | The statue has always been controversial. |
| commemorate | officially remember (a person or an event) | We should commemorate the miners somehow. |
| the dark side of | the bad part of | Museums should show the dark side of the past too. |
| historians disagree about | experts on history have different views on | Historians disagree about what really happened. |
| erase | remove completely | You can't erase the past. |
| collective memory | what a society remembers together | The strike is still part of the town's collective memory. |
| the Industrial Revolution | when Britain changed to factory production, from the late 1700s | Manchester grew fast during the Industrial Revolution. |
Then talk it through
A debate about whether a town should take down a statue. In the app you have this conversation out loud or typed, with the unit's goals to tick off and corrections at the end.