1st Year English

Reading Comprehension
Read the following article and answer the questions.
Here, have one of mine.
OK. So here are the facts. Theres an Englishman called B J Cunningham who has been smoking since he
was eleven. Hes a chain smoker whos in love with smoking. He smokes between two and three packets a
day, and already, at the age of 30, has a weak chest. He was in hospital for six days when his lungs
collapsed. It was at that point that I did actually give up cigarettes for six months. But then he returned to his
true love. He wears black leather cowboy clothes and has a fondness for classic Harley-Davidson
motorbikes, which he has been riding for the past fifteen years. (1)__________, he says coolly.
So far, not a very remarkable life. But then, B J Cunningham (no one actually knows what the initials B J
stand for) had an idea one night in a bar in LA. Lets market a cigarette called Death, he said to a business
partner. Why? said the partner.
Its obvious, he explains to me. When you take a packet of cigarettes out of your top pocket and put it on
the bar in front of you, youre making a statement about yourself, exactly as you do with the clothes you
wear, the music you like, and the newspaper you read. Youre saying, (2)__________.
So, if you take out a packet of Benson and Hedges, youre saying, Im classy gold packet part of high
society. If you take out a packet of Marlboro, youre saying, Im an outdoor type, I like wearing a cowboy hat
and riding horses
Now, if you produce a packet of Death cigarettes, he continues, producing a packet of Death cigarettes to
illustrate his point, what youre saying is
He looks at me to make sure that Im going to write down what youre saying about yourself if you smoke
Death cigarettes. But do I need to? We all know what Death cigarettes are about. B J Cunningham has been
telling us about them ever since he started his Enlightened Tobacco Company (ETC) some years ago.
Everyone has now got the joke, thank you very much. Weve seen the black packets with their deaths head
on the front and the white packets which are called Death Lights; and weve heard about the coffin-shaped
vending machines in pubs and clubs.
However, for anyone who has managed to avoid B Js publicity, here goes. Death cigarettes are for the
smoker who wants to say, Yes, Im killing myself, but at least I know it, and I smoke a brand which doesnt try
to hide the fact. Death cigarettes, concludes B J, say, (3)__________!
B J Cunningham, now on his ninth cigarette of the interview, says he wants to expose the hypocrisy behind
the tobacco industry. Governments cant afford to ban smoking because they receive huge amounts of
money in tax. Tobacco companies try to improve their image by sponsoring sports events such as motor
racing, rugby, football, cricket, and tennis, at vast expense. What everybody wants to forget is that smoking
kills. Thats why Im here, to remind people that smoking and death are linked.
The ETC hoped to win a good share of the UK market. Cigarettes in Britain are a 12 billion industry in
which four companies control 95% of the market. The question is: How do we get a share? He knows the
question but he cant afford the answer. The ETC cant afford to advertise like the big companies. It has been
losing about 1 million a year.
Personally, I have a very different opinion as to why so few people choose to smoke a brand of cigarettes
called Death. B J Cunningham has misunderstood human psychology. Of course smokers know that their
habit is probably going to kill them, but they prefer not to think about it. The only people who are going to
smoke his cigarettes are people like himself. When I offered one to a friend recently, his reaction was,
(4)__________. And this is what Death cigarettes are all about. Its a joke that was funny, but isnt funny any
more.
But B J is still obsessed by fags. Do you know the main reason I love my job? he says. Its because it gives
me a chance to attack the anti-smoking killjoys! Those puritans who try to control our lives. Ive met many
people who dont smoke, but who tell me that if smoking were made illegal, they would fight it. You just cant
have laws which control every aspect of the way people live.
I finally started to warm to this character B J Cunningham. It was the end of the interview, and the number of
fag ends in the ashtray had increased to fifteen. Perhaps he had something important to say after all. Not
just, Hey, everybody! Look at me! Im weird, and Im killing myself!

Write all answers on the blank answer-sheet provided, and not on this question-sheet. In order to earn
maximum points, you should give answers which are both complete and to the point; and you should use
your own words wherever possible.

1.

The following expressions have been removed from the text. On your answer sheet, indicate
where you think they should go by linking the letters to the numbers.
a) You must be joking
b) Ive had about ten of them
c) These cigarettes are a part of me
d) Dont you dare tell me to stop

2.

Why, according to B J Cunningham, do people choose to smoke a particular brand of cigarettes?

3.

Everyone has now got the joke, thank you very much. What does the author mean?

4.

If a person smokes Death cigarettes, what statement are they making, according to Cunningham?

5.

B J Cunningham wants to expose the hypocrisy behind the tobacco industry. Explain.

6.

Why, in the authors opinion, do so few people smoke Death cigarettes?

7.

What does Cunningham like most about his work?

Writing
Tobacco should be made illegal, just like any other dangerous drug. Do you agree? Your answer should be
80100 words in length.

Sample Answers

1. 1-b, 2-c, 3-d, 4-a.

2. According to Cunningham, people choose to smoke a particular brand of cigarettes in order
to say something about who they are. So, for example, if a person smokes Benson and
Hedges, they are saying that they are sophisticated; or if they smoke Marlboro, they are
saying that they are outdoor, adventurous types.
3. Although everyone knows that smoking is harmful, this is never emphasised by tobacco
companies, naturally. Cunninghams company, by contrast, does not hide the fact that
smoking can damage ones health. In fact, it highlights the danger by putting an image of a
skull on the front of the cigarette packets, and selling them in vending machines shaped like
coffins. This is done for ironical effect, which is the joke the author is referring to. When he
says everyone has now got the joke he means that it is not funny anymore.
4. Cunningham maintains that if a person smokes Death cigarettes, they are saying that they
are perfectly aware that they are harming themselves, and do not need to be reminded.
5. He is referring to the fact that, although it is common knowledge that smoking is bad for
peoples health, governments will not ban smoking because they receive so much money in
taxes from tobacco sales. Furthermore, tobacco companies try to appear as if they are
actually promoting health by sponsoring sports events.
6. The author believes that the reason so few people smoke Death cigarettes is that they prefer
not to be reminded that smoking is bad for them, even though they know it perfectly well.
7. The thing that B J Cunningham loves most about his work is that it gives him the
opportunity to attack those who wish to make smoking illegal: he is very much against
people who would like to control every aspect of other peoples lives.