Tom: John Blake was trying to find out more about a certain pendant. The pendant had been stolen from a museum. With his friend, Mary Green, he went to see a collector of old things, Anthony Forset. Forset told them that the owner of the pendant was a dr. Haverel. He had given the pendant to the museum. Dr. Haverel was now dead, but his sister, Emily Haverel was still alive. Mary and John went home. John found a man, Mr. Egg waiting for him. Mr. Egg wanted to buy the pendant from John. When John said he didn’t have the pendant, Mr. Egg threatened him with a knife. The next morning John met Mary in a coffee bar. He told her all about Mr. Egg. “We’d better do something,” she said. But John said they couldn’t do anything. They knew a lot of things, but they couldn’t prove them.
Cathy: “Prove”? What is “prove”?
Child1: Margaret, you’ve eaten my bread and butter.
Child2: And? What if I have?
Child1: I’m going to tell the teacher.
Child2: Don’t tell him. If the teacher asks me, I’ll say I haven’t eaten it.
Child1: But I know you’ve eaten it.
Child2: Maybe you do know, so what? Can you prove it?
Child1: Well…
Child2: Of course you can’t prove it. Can you give the teacher anything that shows I’ve eaten your bread and butter?
Child1: No, I can’t.
Child2: Of course you can’t. No one has seen me eating your bread and butter. There’s no sign of me eating your bread and butter. The teacher can’t see into my stomach, so you can’t prove that I have been eating it.
Child1: All right. Run and tell the teacher.
Tom: Well, John told Mary about Mr. Egg. “We’d better do something, hadn’t we?” Mary said, but John reminded Mary that they couldn’t prove anything.
Mary: We’d better do something, hadn’t we?
John: What can we do?
Mary: We’d better go to the police.
John: Go to the police? But—
Mary: Yes, we’d better tell them what we know.
John: But what do we know?
Mary: Well, we know that Mr. Egg wants the pendant.
John: We can’t prove that.
Mary: We know that Mr. Forset is hiding something.
John: We can’t prove that either.
Mary: We know that the man with the scar knows Mr. Egg.
John: But who is the man with the scar?
Mary: Well, he’s Mr. Forset’s nephew. And he’s a thief, isn’t he?
John: I believe he’s the thief. But we can’t prove it. And we can’t go to the police. At least, not until we can prove it.
Mary: The pendant isn’t valuable, is it? Or… is it?
John: Forset says it isn’t valuable.
Mary: Then why did the thief steal it? And why did Mr. Egg want it?
John: Yes. Why did Mr. Egg offer a hundred pounds?
Mary: A hundred pounds is a lot of money. Perhaps the pendant is valuable.
John: Forset says it isn’t. I don’t know.
Mary: Let’s find out.
John: Find out? How?
Mary: Let’s go and see Miss Haverel.
John: Of course. Miss Haverel. Yes, her brother owned the pendant.
Mary: Let’s go and ask her. Come on, we’ll go now.
Tom: Why did the man with the scar steal the pendant? And why did Mr. Egg offer a hundred pounds for it? Why did he say he would give a hundred pounds for it?
Cathy: “Offer”? Is that to say I’ll give something or do something?
Tom: What a clever girl. Listen.
Child1: That’s a nice ball.
Child2: It’s nice, isn’t it?
Child1: Give it to me.
Child2: Give it to you? What for?
Child1: And I’ll give you something. I’ll offer you something for it.
Child2: What could you offer for such a nice ball?
Child1: I’ll offer you a rubber.
Child2: I’ve got five rubbers.
Child1: Then I’ll offer you a ball point pen.
Child2: I don’t need a ball point pen.
Child1: Well, a box of chocolates? I offer you a box of chocolates.
Child2: Oh, a box of chocolates? All right. Here is the ball. And where are the chocolates?
Cathy: Well, why is Mr. Egg offering so much money for the pendant?
Tom: Mary wanted to know that, too. “Let’s go and see Miss Haverel,” she said. They knew from Anthony Forset that Miss Haverel lived in Orchard Street, but they didn’t know where Orchard Street was.
Mary: Where is Orchard Street?
John: Oh, we’d better ask someone, hadn’t we?
Mary: There’s an old lady. Let’s ask that old lady.
John: Excuse me, do you know where Orchard Street is?
Old lady: Orchard Street?
John: Yes. Orchard Street.
Old lady: Oh, I don’t know Orchard Street. I know Oxford Street. Do you want Oxford Street?
John: No, we want Orchard Street.
Old lady: Oh, I don’t know Orchard Street.
John: Ah, thank you. (pause) She doesn’t know.
Mary: There’s a little girl. Let’s ask her. Excuse me, little girl, do you know where Orchard Street is? You don’t know where Orchard Street is.
John: Oh, come on, she doesn’t know.
Mary: No, she doesn’t know either.
John: There’s a man. Let’s ask him.
Mary: The tall man in the raincoat?
John: Yes. Let’s ask him. Excuse me.
Man: Yes?
John: We’re looking for Orchard Street.
Man: Why?
Cathy: Why did the man ask, “Why?” It wasn’t his business. And anyway, who was the tall man in the raincoat?
Tom: Well, Cathy, you’ll find out later, but now exercise—
Cathy: Wait a minute! May I ask you a question?
Tom: Go ahead.
Cathy: John used an expression that I don’t really understand. Mary said, “Mr. Egg wants the pendant.” And John answered, “We can’t prove that.” Then Mary said, “Mr. Forset is hiding something.” John replied, “We can’t prove that either.”
Tom: Oh, I see. You want to know about the word “either”.
Cathy: Yes.
Tom: Listen. I’ll explain it to you. But we must begin at the beginning. Someone is speaking about himself. You are in the same position or situation as he is. How can you express it? For instance, I say to you, “I can speak English”. How would you reply?
Cathy: “I can also speak English.”
Tom: Very good. Let’s have another example. “I have a dog.”
Cathy: “I have a dog, too.”
Tom: Excellent. So, you can use “also” or “too” in that case. But if you don’t want to repeat the whole sentence, there’s another expression instead of “also” or “too”.
Cathy: “I can speak English.”
Tom: “So can I.”
Cathy: “I have a dog.”
Tom: “So have I.” Now, let’s change the roles. I’ll give you a sentence, and you’ll have to reply.
Cathy: All right.
Tom: “I can drive a car.”
Cathy: “So can I.”
Tom: “He has a house.”
Cathy: “So have I.”
Tom: “We must work hard.”
Cathy: “So must I.”
Tom: “They have seen the film.”
Cathy: “So have I.”
Tom: “I’m going to England.”
Cathy: “So am I.”
Tom: “She speaks English.”
Cathy: “So do I.”
Tom: “They learnt well.”
Cathy: “So did I.”
Tom: Excellent, Cathy.
Cathy: And what happens if the speaker’s statement is negative?
Tom: In that case instead of “so”, you use “nor” or “neither”. For example, “I can’t speak English.” “Nor can I.” or “Neither can I.” It’s all the same, which one you use: “nor” or “neither”.
Cathy: Oh, that’s easy. Let’s have a try.
Tom: All right. “I can’t drive a car.”
Cathy: “Nor can I.”
Tom: “He hasn’t a house.”
Cathy: “Nor have I.”
Tom: “I’m not going to England.”
Cathy: “Nor am I.”
Tom: “She doesn’t speak English.”
Cathy: “Nor do I.”
Tom: “They didn’t work hard.”
Cathy: “Nor did I.”
Tom: Very good.
Cathy: And where does my problem come in? I mean, the problem of “either”.
Tom: Here. If the original sentence is negative, you can repeat the sentence, and use “either” at the end of it, like John did. “I can’t speak English.” “I can’t speak English either.”
Cathy: I see. Then, let’s do our exercise.
Tom: All right. “I can’t drive a car.”
Cathy: “I can’t drive a car either.”
Tom: “He hasn’t a house.”
Cathy: “I haven’t a house either.”
Tom: “I’m not going to England.”
Cathy: “I’m not going to England either.”
Tom: “She doesn’t speak English.”
Cathy: “I don’t speak English either.”
Tom: “They didn’t work hard.”
Cathy: “I didn’t work hard either.”
Tom: That was marvellous, Cathy. But now, let the listeners work, too.
EXERCISE YOUR ENGLISH.
Exercise 1
And to start with, here is a short exercise with “either”.
Listen to the example:
A: He can’t prove it.
B: You can’t prove it either.
Listen, speak, listen.
A: He can’t prove it.
[Your response]
B: You can’t prove it either.
A: She doesn’t know her.
[Your response]
B: You don’t know her either.
A: They didn’t believe it.
[Your response]
B: You didn’t believe it either.
A: He wasn’t listening.
[Your response]
B: You weren’t listening either.
A: They won’t ask them.
[Your response]
B: You won’t ask them either.
A: She hasn’t met him.
[Your response]
B: You haven’t met him either.
A: He’s not allowed to visit her.
[Your response]
B: You’re not allowed to visit her either.
A: You weren’t invited.
[Your response]
B: You weren’t invited either.
Exercise 2
These are the same sentences, but this time use “neither” in your answer. Example:
A: He can’t prove it.
B: Neither can you.
Listen, speak, listen.
A: He can’t prove it.
[Your response]
B: Neither can you.
A: She doesn’t know her.
[Your response]
B: Neither do you.
A: They didn’t believe it.
[Your response]
B: Neither did you.
A: He wasn’t listening.
[Your response]
B: Neither were you.
A: They won’t ask them.
[Your response]
B: Neither will you.
A: She hasn’t met him.
[Your response]
B: Neither have you.
A: He’s not allowed to visit her.
[Your response]
B: Neither are you.
A: You weren’t invited.
[Your response]
B: Neither were you.
Exercise 3
Listen to the example:
A: Where’s Orchard Street?
B: Why not ask somebody?
A: Excuse me, do you know where Orchard Street is?
Listen, speak, listen.
A: Where’s Orchard Street?
B: Why not ask somebody?
[Your response]
A: Excuse me, do you know where Orchard Street is?
A: Where’s the nearest bus stop?
B: Why not ask somebody?
[Your response]
A: Excuse me, do you know where the nearest bus stop is?
A: Where’s the Left Luggage Office?
B: Why not ask somebody?
[Your response]
A: Excuse me, do you know where the Left Luggage Office is?
A: Where’s the Hungarian Embassy?
B: Why not ask somebody?
[Your response]
A: Excuse me, do you know where the Hungarian Embassy is?
A: Where’s the Tate Gallery?
B: Why not ask somebody?
[Your response]
A: Excuse me, do you know where the Tate Gallery is?
Exercise 4
Listen to the example:
A: I can’t lend you all these books.
B: Lend me at least one of them.
Listen, speak, listen.
A: I can’t lend you all these books.
[Your response]
B: Lend me at least one of them.
A: I can’t give you all these photos.
[Your response]
B: Give me at least one of them.
A: I can’t buy you all these dresses.
[Your response]
B: Buy me at least one of them.
A: I can’t invite all my friends.
[Your response]
B: Invite at least one of them.
A: I can’t listen to all these programmes.
[Your response]
B: Listen at least one of them.
A: I can’t believe all your excuses.
[Your response]
B: Believe at least one of them.
A: I can’t fulfil all your wishes.
[Your response]
B: Fulfil at least one of them.
Exercise 5
Listen to the example:
A: I think I’ll have to call the police.
B: You’d better call them straight away, hadn’t you?
Listen, speak, listen.
A: I think I’ll have to call the police.
[Your response]
B: You’d better call them straight away, hadn’t you?
A: I think I’ll have to do my homework.
[Your response]
B: You’d better do it straight away, hadn’t you?
A: I think I’ll have to leave soon.
[Your response]
B: You’d better leave straight away, hadn’t you?
A: I think I’ll have to ask the director.
[Your response]
B: You’d better ask him straight away, hadn’t you?
A: I think I’ll have to visit Miss Haverel.
[Your response]
B: You’d better visit her straight away, hadn’t you?
A: I think I’ll have to take this job.
[Your response]
B: You’d better take it straight away, hadn’t you?
A: I think I’ll have to meet Scarface.
[Your response]
B: You’d better meet him straight away, hadn’t you?
A: I think we’ll have to listen to the story now.
[Your response]
B: We’d better listen to it straight away, hadn’t we?
Tom: Well, you can listen to our story once again. John and Mary are in a coffee bar, talking about what to do next.
Mary: We’d better do something, hadn’t we?
John: What can we do?
Mary: We’d better go to the police.
John: Go to the police? But—
Mary: Yes, we’d better tell them what we know.
John: But what do we know?
Mary: Well, we know that Mr. Egg wants the pendant.
John: We can’t prove that.
Mary: We know that Mr. Forset is hiding something.
John: We can’t prove that either.
Mary: We know that the man with the scar knows Mr. Egg.
John: But who is the man with the scar?
Mary: Well, he’s Mr. Forset’s nephew. And he’s the thief, isn’t he?
John: I believe he’s the thief. But we can’t prove it. And we can’t go to the police. At least, not until we can prove it.
Mary: The pendant isn’t valuable, is it? Or… is it?
John: Forset says it isn’t valuable.
Mary: Then why did the thief steal it? And why did Mr. Egg want it?
John: Yes. Why did Mr. Egg offer a hundred pounds?
Mary: A hundred pounds is a lot of money. Perhaps the pendant is valuable.
John: Forset says it isn’t. I don’t know.
Mary: Let’s find out.
John: Find out? How?
Mary: Let’s go and see Miss Haverel.
John: Of course. Miss Haverel. Yes, her brother owned the pendant.
Mary: Let’s go and ask her. Come on, we’ll go now.
Mary: Where is Orchard Street?
John: Oh, we’d better ask someone, hadn’t we?
Mary: There’s an old lady. Let’s ask that old lady.
John: Excuse me, do you know where Orchard Street is?
Old lady: Orchard Street?
John: Yes. Orchard Street.
Old lady: Oh, I don’t know Orchard Street. I know Oxford Street. Do you want Oxford Street?
John: No, we want Orchard Street.
Old lady: Oh, I don’t know Orchard Street.
John: Ah, thank you. (pause) She doesn’t know.
Mary: There’s a little girl. Let’s ask her. Excuse me, little girl, do you know where Orchard Street is? You don’t know where Orchard Street is.
John: Oh, come on, she doesn’t know.
Mary: No, she doesn’t know either.
John: There’s a man. Let’s ask him.
Mary: The tall man in the raincoat?
John: Yes. Let’s ask him. Excuse me.
Man: Yes?
John: We’re looking for Orchard Street.
Man: Why?
John: You!
Man: It’s you again, is it?
John: Mary, it’s the man with the scar!
(theme music)