Question 136
MediumOriginal questionDoctor: So, Mr Iyer. What brings you here?
Mr Iyer: Nothing, really. My daughter made the . She worries.
Doctor: What does she worry about?
Mr Iyer: A little cough. It's nothing. Everybody has a cough in winter.
Doctor: How long have you had it?
Mr Iyer: A few weeks.
Daughter: Since August, Appa.
Mr Iyer: Since August, then. She keeps the calendar in this family.
Doctor: Does it keep you awake at night?
Mr Iyer: Not much. Sometimes.
Daughter: He sleeps in the chair in the drawing room now, so he doesn't wake my mother.
Doctor: I see. Mr Iyer, your daughter was right to bring you. A cough that lasts more than two months a proper look, whatever the season. We'll do a simple test today, and then we'll talk.
Mr Iyer: It really is only a little cough.
Doctor: Then the test will tell us so, and your daughter can stop worrying. , somebody in this room gets good news.
What does Mr Iyer's attitude to his cough seem to be?
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: B
Explanation
He says "Nothing, really", "It's nothing" and "only a little cough", and says his daughter made the appointment.
He is trying to make the problem sound smaller than it is.
Worth noting
His daughter's facts, that the cough began in August and he now sleeps in a chair, show it is more serious than he admits.
- Concept
- Inferring a speaker's attitude
- Typical timeTypical
- 45 s
- Your timeYours
- —
Ten questions from Poems and conversations, at your own pace.