Luyện nói tiếng Anh bằng Shadowing qua video: A poor worker suddenly became rich after finding the diary of someone who had died
Đang tạo bài học...
1
The story opened with Matthew, a perpetually single young man, deeply absorbed in finishing his first novel, titled Someone From Behind.
2
He was a struggling orphan, dreaming of becoming a renowned writer.
3
His greatest hope was that his novel would be accepted by a publisher, transforming his life and financial situation.
4
Day after day, he worked as a daily laborer, assisting with a cargo truck.
5
His job involved the endless task of loading and unloading all sorts of goods, from food and clothing to restaurant waste,
6
and sometimes even moving college students' belongings.
7
One day, while making a delivery to a university campus, Matthew coincidentally spotted a famous novelist giving a seminar to literature students.
8
The writer, Alice, appeared young and beautiful.
9
Matthew immediately felt an attraction.
10
It was a clear case of love at first sight.
11
However, as he was enjoying gazing at Alice, his friend abruptly snapped him back to reality, reminding Matthew that they were just common laborers.
12
Matthew then shrugged it off and went back to work.
13
Days later, Matthew received the long-awaited reply from the publisher.
14
Unfortunately, his novel was rejected, crushing his hopes in a matter of seconds.
15
Undeterred, he called the publisher to ask which parts of his writing were unappealing.
16
He hoped to revise his novel, but the call was immediately disconnected.
17
The very next day, Matthew was back at work, assigned to clean an apartment.
18
Its elderly tenant had passed away two days prior.
19
The apartment owner explained that the old man had rented the place for 35 years, living alone without any family, and no one had ever visited him.
20
They were instructed to take some furniture to a charity, while the remaining items should just be thrown away.
21
Inside the old man's bedroom, Matthew saw it was filled with books, newspapers, and various other odds and ends.
22
This clearly indicated the deceased had been fond of reading and writing.
23
Matthew quickly began putting the items into plastic bags.
24
He discovered the late old man's name was Leon.
25
He also found a photo of a young Leon, who was once a soldier and had fought in Algeria.
26
Suddenly, a dusty, leather-bound book tumbled from the top of a cabinet, startling him.
27
Curious, he opened it.
28
It turned out to be Leon's personal diary from his time as a French soldier in Algeria.
29
Matthew immediately recognized the exceptional quality of the writing.
30
It vividly recounted Leon's life, from his first kill to his profound anxieties on the battlefields of Africa.
31
Back at home, Matthew still struggled to write a new novel.
32
He couldn't figure out how to create a story that could truly move readers.
33
Then, an idea sparked.
34
He would write a novel based on Leon's diary.
35
It chronicled Leon's life as a soldier, describing a terrifying atmosphere where the sky turned dark, hands were red with sin,
36
and how he wrestled between harsh orders and his own conscience, especially as women and children also became victims in that Algerian conflict.
37
After days of rewriting Leon's story, carefully changing the original character names, the novel was finally complete.
38
However, Matthew was unsure what title would fit this tale.
39
He eventually found inspiration in a powerful phrase, Algerian sands blackened by blood.
40
He then titled his new novel, Black Sand.
41
The very next day, while working, Matthew received a phone call from the publisher.
42
They told him his novel, Black Sand was excellent and invited him to a meeting.
43
Matthew was overjoyed that his novel had been accepted.
44
However, since the story was not entirely his own idea,
45
he meticulously noted down all the important moments from Leon's diary so he could explain the narrative smoothly to the publisher.
46
After memorizing everything, he burned the diary, outwardly claiming the story as entirely his original work.
47
Unbeknownst to him, a major misfortune was about to haunt him for the rest of his life.
48
Matthew finally met the publisher, who was thrilled with his writing.
49
He praised Matthew's writing style and the novel's deeply moving story, saying it transported readers right into the battlefield.
50
Coincidentally, Matthew saw Alice there, who was also reviewing the novel.
51
Matthew, still smitten, approached her.
52
Alice seemed unfazed, not recognizing him.
53
She commented that Black Sand was an excellent novel, far exceeding her expectations.
54
Just then, a bookstore owner called out to Matthew and congratulated him.
55
Alice suddenly realized that the man she had been talking to was Matthew, the author of Black Sand.
56
This, of course, impressed her.
57
Three years later, Matthew had become a renowned author.
58
His novel was a huge bestseller, bringing him considerable income.
59
Even better, Alice was now his girlfriend.
60
She invited him to meet her wealthy parents, Alain and Helen, who lived in a luxurious mansion on the beach.
61
There, Alain proudly showed off his collection of rare French royal-era weapons.
62
Afterward, Alice took Matthew for a walk along the coast
63
and even showed him a shed where she used to play hide-and-seek with her father as a child.
64
While spending his dear time with Alice, his publisher suddenly called.
65
Matthew had violated his contract.
66
It had been three years since Black Sand was released, and Matthew had not submitted a new novel.
67
His fans were waiting for more work, and his contract obliged him to produce new material.
68
Yet he had not sent a single page.
69
In his room, Matthew was utterly frustrated.
70
He could not write a good novel because, deep down, he knew he lacked the natural talent.
71
To make matters worse, his royalties were now being withheld by the publisher
72
because he had not fulfilled his contract to produce a new novel.
73
The contract stipulated at least two novels per author for royalties to continue indefinitely.
74
Then Stanislaus, or in short, Stan, Alan, and Helen's slightly arrogant godson, came to visit and met Matthew.
75
They had a few drinks.
76
From his demeanor, it was clear Stan had a crush on Alice and was not happy about Matthew being her boyfriend.
77
The next day, Matthew still struggled with what to write.
78
He revisited his first rejected novel, Someone From Behind, and gave it to Alice for her review.
79
He didn't tell her it was his own work, instead claiming the publisher had sent it to him for review and, feigning busyness, asked Alice to read it to gauge her reaction.
80
Shortly after, Stan arrived and chatted with Matthew.
81
Stan boasted about his extensive knowledge of Algeria, where his father had served, and expressed his awe that Matthew, despite never having been there,
82
could write such a detailed and atmospheric account of the war in black sand.
83
However, Stan consistently sought weaknesses to corner Matthew, even remarking that Alice's standards for an ideal man were very high, which made Matthew uncomfortable.
84
That evening, Alice told Matthew that the writing he'd given her was terrible.
85
She couldn't even finish it because it was so uninteresting, and she was certain no publisher would accept such a novel.
86
Matthew silently seethed, disappointed with himself.
87
Days passed.
88
At breakfast, Matthew received a call from the bank.
89
His credit card had exceeded its limit, and they demanded immediate payment.
90
Matthew panicked.
91
His account was empty because his royalties were withheld due to breaching his contract with the publisher.
92
He couldn't write another novel as good as Black Sand, which only added to his stress and self-doubt.
93
Desperate, he faked an accident and went to the hospital, claiming he had been attacked by robbers.
94
This was a lie to prevent Alice and her family from realizing he was actually stressed and self-harming himself.
95
Meanwhile, Stan seemed to sense something suspicious about Matthew.
96
Back home, the publisher relentlessly hounded Matthew for the new novel manuscript, but Matthew only offered empty promises.
97
He hadn't even written a single paragraph.
98
On the other hand, Alain, Alice's father, seemed worried about his future son-in-law.
99
He informed Matthew that a letter for him had arrived.
100
When Matthew opened it, he found a photograph of Leon, the diary's owner, who Matthew believed was dead.
101
Time passed.
102
Matthew visited a bookstore with Alice for a fan signing event.
103
Suddenly, a man approached, claiming to be a friend of Leon and saying that Matthew had misused a dead man's diary.
104
The man, identified as Arno, demanded $500 million as hush money, threatening to expose to the public that Black Sand was not Matthew's original work.
105
The next day, Arno called, demanding the money.
106
Matthew asked for time, explaining that his account was empty.
107
Arno then revealed he knew Alice and her family were hanging out in the yard, implying he had been spying on their house.
108
Matthew, cornered, promised to give Arnaud a very expensive pistol from Alain's collection.
109
Unbeknownst to Matthew, Stan was standing behind him, overhearing the conversation about the pistol.
110
Later that night, it was time for Matthew to steal that collector's pistol.
111
He used Alain's golf glove and broke a window to make it look like a burglary.
112
The next morning, the police finished investigating the supposed break-in at Alain's house.
113
Matthew and Alice suggested installing an alarm system.
114
Meanwhile, Stan, suspicious of Matthew's conversation from the day before, bravely ventured to search Matthew's room.
115
At the same time, Alice and her father went for a walk on the beach for some fresh air, with Matthew opting not to join them.
116
Back in Matthew's room, Stan discovered a wooden book box.
117
At the same time, Matthew walked in and found Stan holding the pistol he had hidden.
118
Stan immediately attacked Matthew, declaring that he would never have Alice.
119
In a desperate struggle, Matthew hit Stan on the head with the pistol.
120
Tragically, Stan died from that head wound, leaving Matthew bewildered.
121
His intention was never to kill.
122
Moments later, Alice's voice echoed from a distance, prompting Matthew to quickly hide Stan's body in the closet, along with his belongings.
123
As he cleaned himself, Matthew noticed Stan's scratch marks on his neck, which he then covered with a collared shirt.
124
Soon Elaine and Alice arrived, wondering why Stan had left so abruptly without saying goodbye.
125
Alice tried to call him, which made Matthew panic.
126
He quickly silenced Stan's phone and sent a text message to Alice, claiming Stan had left due to an urgent matter.
127
That evening, they all had dinner together when suddenly something dripped from the ceiling onto the dining table.
128
Matthew immediately feared it was blood from Stan seeping through, but it turned out to be only his own fear.
129
The liquid was actually blood from his nosebleed.
130
Alice tried to help him but Matthew refused and left the table, rushing to check the closet.
131
To his relief, there was no red liquid leaking or pooling on the floor.
132
Shortly after, Alice came to check on Matthew bringing her dog.
133
The dog began barking intensely at the closet door, which angered Matthew slightly and he told Alice to leave immediately.
134
Later that night, as everyone slept soundly, Matthew retrieved tools from his in-law's shed.
135
He wrapped Stan's body in a mat, and with his slender build, he exerted all his strength to push the bundle from the upper floor.
136
He then carried it to the beach, planning to sink the body.
137
Matthew found heavy metal weights to submerge Stan in the sea, and the gruesome scenario finally began.
138
After successfully executing his plan, Matthew rushed back, but strangely, the boat's engine stalled.
139
Soon, a Marine police patrol boat appeared on the water.
140
Panicked, Matthew immediately dove to the seabed, fearing discovery, and swam desperately toward the shore.
141
The morning sun had already arrived.
142
Matthew hurried back home before the household woke up, wanting to appear as if he hadn't gone anywhere.
143
He quickly got into bed, but Alice was already awake and silently wondered where Matthew had been all night.
144
Later that afternoon, Matthew woke up and looked for Alice, thinking she might be at the beach, And sure enough, Alice was engrossed in reading a novel.
145
She was startled to see a wrapped bundle floating by the rocks.
146
However, it was just Matthew's nightmare.
147
He then took a refreshing shower and quickly handed the stolen collector's pistol to Arnaud.
148
Arnaud was thrilled, knowing the antique pistol's high value.
149
He then revealed he was Leon's son.
150
He had never visited his father when Leon was alive, but now that his father's diary had become a best-selling novel, he was claiming kinship and extorting money from Matthew.
151
Upon returning home, Matthew was shocked by Alice's changed demeanor.
152
She accused him of cheating the previous night, which Matthew vehemently denied.
153
Alice also pointed out numerous calls on Matthew's phone, assuming they were from another woman, when in fact they were from Arnaud.
154
Matthew desperately tried to explain that she was the only woman he loved.
155
He had always dreamed of her since the very first sight, but he was no one back then.
156
Then Black Sand changed everything.
157
They started to get to know each other, and that was the happiest day of his life.
158
Matthew finally confessed that he wasn't a great writer and that the novel wasn't truly his.
159
He had only been afraid that if Alice knew the truth, she would leave him.
160
But to his relief, Alice still loved Matthew, even knowing he wasn't the brilliant writer she had believed him to be.
161
Their love, she said, was true and needed no reason.
162
They reconciled and spent the rest of the day together.
163
Days later, Matthew found inspiration to write a novel about his own story.
164
It began with his past as a nobody, his falling in love with a high society girl, his intense struggles, and everything that had happened in his life,
165
including the murder and the lies he had experienced.
166
Of course, he changed all the character names so Alice and everyone else wouldn't suspect it was his real story.
167
Matthew wanted to prove that he could write a good novel with his own hand, while Alice continued to encourage him never to give up.
168
Finally, the novel was complete.
169
He titled it False Pretenses and confidently wrote his name as the author.
170
However, when he went to find Alice on the beach, he instead saw that the police had discovered Stan's body in the sea.
171
Panic surged through him.
172
His problem seemed endless.
173
The police soon arrived at their house and informed the residents that skin had been found under Stan's fingernails, suggesting Stan had scratched his assailant.
174
The police requested that every member of the household including neighbors and anyone known to Stan, undergo a DNA test in Paris on Sunday.
175
As if that wasn't enough, Arnaud called Matthew again, demanding more money.
176
Matthew grew increasingly frustrated.
177
He was in a dilemma.
178
If he took the DNA test, he would surely be caught for Stan's murder and sent to prison.
179
He began frantically thinking of a way to escape this impossible situation.
180
The next day, Alice and her parents left to meet Stan's parents in Paris for the funeral.
181
Matthew couldn't join them, feigning a meeting with his publisher.
182
He then gave Alice the novel about his life story, asking her to read it, and promised to meet her in Paris for the DNA test on Sunday.
183
It was time for his meeting with Arnaud, who continued to extort money from him.
184
Matthew planned to harm Arnaud by inserting a coin into the seatbelt buckle slot, hoping to disable it.
185
Arnaud, feeling superior, threatened to harm Alice and her family if Matthew didn't give him the money, even planning to take antique items from their home himself.
186
Matthew, now utterly disgusted, crashed the car into some rocks.
187
Fortunately, Matthew survived, but Arnaud had perished.
188
His seatbelt clearly failed.
189
Matthew then conceived a desperate plan to escape the DNA test and imprisonment.
190
He moved Arnaud's body to the driver's seat and put his watch, wallet, and phone on him, hoping everyone would believe Matthew himself had died.
191
The risk, of course, was that he would be presumed dead and could never live with Alice again.
192
To ensure the scenario's perfection, he doused the car and the body with gasoline and set them ablaze.
193
Matthew then vanished, with the entire world believing he had died in the accident.
194
Two days later, Matthew watched the news from a hotel, seeing reports that he, the phenomenal author of Black Sand, had tragically died in a car crash.
195
Two years passed.
196
Matthew had reverted to his old self, working as a junk hauler.
197
He had come to terms with the fact
198
that he was not a great writer and that this was perhaps his true fate.
199
For him, it was better to be an ordinary person than to be famous in rotten prison.
200
Though his wages were meager, his life was finally peaceful, free from the burden of living a lie.
201
Soon rain fell, drenching the city streets.
202
As he walked past a bookstore on his way home, Matthew was stunned to see his own photograph displayed prominently.
203
The novel about his life, false pretenses, which he had given to Alice, had been accepted by a publisher and was now a bestseller across Europe.
204
Not only that, but he also saw Alice inside with a baby who was in fact his own son.
205
Matthew looked devastated, unable to embrace his adorable child.
206
Suddenly Alice glanced toward the door and the story ended.
Tại sao nên luyện nói với video này?
Luyện nói qua các video không chỉ giúp nâng cao khả năng nói tiếng Anh mà còn tạo cơ hội cho người học hòa nhập vào ngữ cảnh của các câu chuyện thực tế. Video "Một công nhân nghèo bỗng trở nên giàu có sau khi tìm thấy cuốn nhật ký của người đã mất" mang đến cho bạn một câu chuyện hấp dẫn về sự nỗ lực và ước mơ. Khi bạn luyện nghe nói qua video này, bạn không chỉ rèn luyện kỹ năng phát âm mà còn học cách diễn đạt cảm xúc và suy nghĩ của nhân vật trong tình huống cụ thể. Việc áp dụng phương pháp shadow speak sẽ giúp bạn cải thiện khả năng giao tiếp và tự tin hơn khi nói tiếng Anh.
Ngữ pháp & Biểu thức trong ngữ cảnh
- Thì Hiện Tại Hoàn Thành: Câu chuyện sử dụng thì hiện tại hoàn thành để diễn tả những hành động có liên kết đến hiện tại, ví dụ như "Matthew đã làm việc chăm chỉ để hoàn thành tiểu thuyết đầu tay của mình." Đây là một cấu trúc ngữ pháp quan trọng giúp bạn nói về kinh nghiệm cá nhân.
- Câu Điều Kiện: Các tình huống như "Nếu tiểu thuyết của tôi được chấp nhận, cuộc sống của tôi sẽ thay đổi" giúp người học làm quen với cách diễn đạt điều kiện trong tiếng Anh.
- Mạo Từ và Tính Từ: Cách sử dụng mạo từ trong các cụm từ như "một công nhân nghèo" và tính từ miêu tả như "đẹp" trong "Alice, trẻ trung và xinh đẹp" là những ví dụ điển hình về cách tạo hình ảnh rõ nét trong văn bản nói.
Các cạm bẫy phát âm phổ biến
Khi luyện nghe nói qua video này, người học có thể gặp khó khăn với một số từ ngữ và phát âm. Các từ như "perpetually" (vĩnh viễn) có thể gây khó khăn cho cả người học tiếng Anh lẫn người bản ngữ vì sự nhấn nhịp và âm điệu. Tương tự, cụm từ "financial situation" (tình hình tài chính) cũng có nhiều âm sắc khác nhau, mà nếu không chú ý, người học dễ dàng phát âm sai. Việc thực hành shadowspeaks sẽ giúp bạn nhận diện và chỉnh sửa chính xác cách phát âm những từ và cụm từ này.
Sử dụng phương pháp shadow speech một cách thường xuyên sẽ giúp nâng cao khả năng nghe và nói, biến những cạm bẫy phát âm thành cơ hội học hỏi và cải thiện. Hãy bắt đầu luyện nghe nói qua video ngay hôm nay để trải nghiệm sự phát triển kỹ năng ngôn ngữ của bạn!
Phương Pháp Shadowing Là Gì?
Shadowing là kỹ thuật học ngôn ngữ có cơ sở khoa học, ban đầu được phát triển cho chương trình đào tạo phiên dịch viên chuyên nghiệp và được phổ biến rộng rãi bởi nhà đa ngôn ngữ học Dr. Alexander Arguelles. Nguyên lý cốt lõi đơn giản nhưng cực kỳ hiệu quả: bạn nghe tiếng Anh của người bản xứ và lặp lại to ngay lập tức — như một "cái bóng" (shadow) đuổi theo người nói với độ trễ chỉ 1–2 giây. Khác với luyện ngữ pháp hay học từ vựng bị động, Shadowing buộc não bộ và cơ miệng phải đồng thời xử lý và tái tạo ngôn ngữ thực tế. Các nghiên cứu khoa học xác nhận phương pháp này cải thiện đáng kể phát âm, ngữ điệu, nhịp điệu, nối âm, kỹ năng nghe và độ lưu loát khi nói — đặc biệt hiệu quả cho người luyện IELTS Speaking và muốn giao tiếp tiếng Anh tự nhiên như người bản ngữ.