Classic Stories: Pygmalion
Learning English Stories

Classic Stories: Pygmalion

B2Upper-intermediateSeptember 11, 20263 min
  • Fiction & stories

Enjoy a classic story in English and learn 8 uses of ‘round’ - in 5 minutes. FIND BBC LEARNING ENGLISH HERE: Visit our website ✔️ https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish Follow us ✔️ https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/followus LIKE PODCASTS? Try some of our other popular podcasts including: ✔️ 6 Minute English ✔️ Learning English from the News ✔️ Learning English Conversations They're all available by searching in your podcast app.

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Sentence 2 of 12 · 1:14

Hello, I'm Miriam. Today I've got a story that dates back thousands of years. It involves

, , ,

woman. This man is called Pygmalion. A group of prostitutes are in the street, not behaving

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  • B21:14
  • C11:34
  • B21:43
  • B22:05
  • B22:05
  • B22:14
  • B23:30
  • B23:42

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B2

B2 · Upper-intermediate

Comfortable if you already follow TV news

A1 32%A2 29%B1 25%B2 14%C1 0%
  • 86% of the words are B1 or easier.
  • 118 words a minute: slow, clear speech.
  • 10 harder words (B2 and up) in the whole episode.

Transcript

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1:00

Hello, I'm Miriam. Today I've got a story that dates back thousands of years. It involves a man who's a sculptor, and who, through his skilful work, hopes to find the perfect woman. This man is called Pygmalion. A group of prostitutes are in the street, not behaving very well. These women have been punished by the goddess Aphrodite for not believing

1:34

in her, by removing their inhibitions, and their wild behaviour, is driving him around the bend. Pygmalion is not impressed. He hasn't met many women, but soon he comes round to the idea that this is how all women behave, and decides that he's going to ignore all women

1:57

from now on. Instead of talking to and meeting women, he decides to make his ideal woman by carefully and delicately sculpting an ivory statue. He works his way round and round the block, chiselling and carving away at pieces. He works round the clock, until eventually he creates a beautiful sculpture. In fact, it is so lifelike that Pygmalion actually

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