Ministerul Educaţiei, Cercetării şi Inovării

Centrul Naţional pentru Curriculum şi Evaluare în Învăţământul Preuniversitar

Examenul de bacalaureat 2009

Proba E/F
Proba scrisă la Limba Engleză
L1 - Intensiv 3 - 4 ore
SUBIECTUL I ( 30 de puncte) Varianta 067

Read the text below and complete the following tasks.

If you think that you are the only creatures on Earth with a moral sense, (1) … Most experts
in behaviour believe that morality is a uniquely human trait, without which our complex social life
would never have emerged – yet there are many animals which can distinguish right from wrong.
Species living in groups often have a sense of fair play built on moral codes of conduct that help
cement their social relationship.
Biologists have had real problems trying to explain why people are frequently inexplicably
nice to each other. Perhaps we expect a payback somewhere down the line, (2) … Nobody has
really considered the possibility that being considerate to your neighbours might sometimes be the
best way to survive. There is evidence that a well-developed sense of fair play helps animals live
longer, more successful lives. (3) … because it has its own special rules of engagement, allowing
participants to reinterpret acts that might otherwise seem aggressive. Infant dogs, wolves and
coyotes use a special signal to prevent misinterpretation of playful actions. During play a dominant
animal will often allow a subordinate to have the upper hand. On rare occasions when an animal
says “Let’s play” and then beats up an unsuspecting animal, the culprit usually finds itself
ostracised by its former playmates.
(4) …, because there could be no social play without it, and without social play individual
animals and entire groups would be at a disadvantage.
Morality evolved because it is adaptive. It helps animals, including humans to survive and
flourish in their particular social environment.

1. Four sentences have been removed from the text. Select the appropriate sentence for
each gap in the text. There is one extra sentence which you do not need to use.
4 points

A. or maybe our good deeds are directed only towards family, with whom we share a biological
heritage.
B. Specialists are interested in social play amongst youngsters
C. then you’re in good company.
D. A sense of fairness is common to many animals
E. Individual animals benefit from play and fairness.

2. Give the synonyms of the underlined words. 6 points

3. Sum up the text in about 50 words. 10 points

4. For the following questions, choose the answer (A, B, C, D) which fits according to the
text. 6 points

1. In paragraph one, what does the writer state about morality?

A. Humans are the only creatures that demonstrate true emotional behaviour.
B. A well- developed moral code is not the main reason for civilisation.
C. Humans and animals share the same selfish instincts for survival.
D. There is a common misconception that animals are not moral.

2. The writer believes that people who ...

A. are generous to one another are not always sure why.
 Ministerul Educaţiei, Cercetării şi Inovării
Centrul Naţional pentru Curriculum şi Evaluare în Învăţământul Preuniversitar

B. don’t have good social skills achieve less in life.

C. behave considerately have selfish reasons for doing so.
D. behave better to acquaintances than to relatives are unusual.

3. What has the writer deduced about social play from his observation of animals?
A. It provides an opportunity for physically weaker animals to develop their survival
skills.
B. It allows animals to prove who is dominant in the group without using real
aggression.
C. It requires animals to live by the rules or they will be excluded from the rest of the
group.
D. It demonstrates that certain animals possess the same range of emotions as
humans do.

5. Comment on the following statement: Morality is a uniquely human trait, without which our
complex social life would never have emerged. (100 words) 4 points