What qualities are in those who tight their way through triumphantly that are lacking in those who go under…
? I only know that the survivors used to call that quality 'gumption'. So I wrote about the people who had gumption and the people who didn't."
"Gone with the Wind" was published in June 1936, and she was awarded the Pulitzer Price for her sweeping novel in May 1937. The novel was made into an equally famous
motion picture starring Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable. The movie had its world premiere at the Loew's Grand Theater in Atlanta on December 15, 1939 with Margaret Mitchell and all of the stars in attendance.
On August 11, 1949 while crossing the crossroads, Margaret Mitchell was struck by a speeding taxi. She died five days later and is buried in Atlanta Oakland Cemetery with other members of her family.
Margaret Mitchell died but her book is still alive and it is still popular among readers. To my mind the
novel "Gone with the Wind' is one of the best books I've ever read, which leaves lasting impression and unforgettable feelings. It holds your attention from the start and becomes exciting as it progresses.
"Gone with the Wind" is a sort of historical novel
s where the Civil War (1861-1865) between two hostile camps of South and North is depicted. The author of the novel blames the war and shows all its horrors and burdens, hunger and collapses, nonsense and inhumanity. One of the most interesting aspects of

the story is the portrayal of the main hero Scarlet O'Hara, who is a beautiful, proud and spirited girl with practical mind. In youth she passionately falls in love with Ashley, but he prefers another girl and marries her. Scarlet's fanatical devotion to
h
er first love prevents her from an opportunity to estimate at Rhett Butler's love. Rhett is a strong-willed, bold man who is quite similar to her in temperament and spirit. Finally Scarlet understands that all her life she has loved not real Ashley, but h
er own child's dream only when Rhett leaves and she remains alone. But Scarlet isn't defeated, she hopes for the next day. That's why not without reason the novel ends with the words: "But tomorrow will be another day."
As for me I have a really high opinio
n of this book, as I got the whole pleasure from it. This is the book which, once you have started, is impossible to put down. "Gone with the Wind' includes strong elements of realism, it portrays life very truthfully and it can make people laugh and cry.

The characters are depicted so vividly that people immediately recognize themselves; it amuses the readers and arouses the feeling of admiration. From my point of view all these facts make the book unforgettable and peculiar. And I think if I met a person
who hasn't read the novel, I would certainly recommend to read it; as "Gone with the Wind' is a real masterpiece of American literature.
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MY DAY OFF

What is the life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare
Sometimes it is very hard to find some free time even on our days off, because we are often busy with our work and we don't see all
kinds of other activities. Besides we don't save our minutes, that's why we have no time to relax. Until recently staying busy relieved me of the need to make decisions about how I was spending my time. Business gave me a sense of control over my life. Fr
a
nkly speaking my dilemma is deeper than shortage of time; it is the problem of priorities I want to spend time at work, but not for the lack of good rest. Physical rest is very important, but we also need spiritual relaxation - the peace and refreshment i
n
our soul. It has been wisely noted that after spiritual rest we feel strengthened, dashing and patient. So, at present I try to maximize my time in such a way in order to have enough time for work but also have some spare time for entertainments. This is
usually connected with my weekends or in other words days off.
I should say that this year was not an easy one in my life. Apart from everyday preparation for the lessons at lyceum, I had to do quite a number of additional studies in English, Belarusian an
d History because I started getting ready for the entrance examinations. During the school week I got so tired and exhausted that I anxiously looked forward to the weekend when I could relax and have a good rest. A day off for me was a nice possibility to
escape from the daily lyceum routine. Every day off came like a reward and like all nice things it flashed by quickly.
To my mind every day off needs some special planning. Time passes quickly and if you have no plans you can be sure to get no results, as you may spend your time on trifles.
In general I'm for an active rest I like to go somewhere with my friends and to spend my free time in a good company. I hate staying at home at the weekend. While studying at lyceum, I tried to do all my homework right a
fter the classes on Saturday, because I didn't want to remember about it during my weekend. Also I did something about the house like cleaning my room, placing books on the shelves which were piled up in different places and then I was free and could do e
v
erything I wished. I enjoyed my Saturday evenings most of all. I never knew about boredom even when I spent the evening on my own listening to music or reading an exciting book. I'm fond of reading. Books help me to continue my self-education, besides I'm

sure that a reader lives much richer and interesting life than a non reader. I prefer reading psychological books. In my opinion, the time spent on such a book is never wasted, as these books help me to understand the world and people in it, teach me what
is right and what is wrong and at the same time they mould my character.
But I should mention that usually I spent my Saturday evenings in another way. I met my friends and we went for a walk or to the disco. I'd like to say that a lot of clubs have been o
pened recently in our town. The entrance ticket isn't very expensive, wonderful music is played there and you can dance there and get acquainted with interesting people. I can't explain all the feelings I experience while dancing, but it gives me so much
e
nergy that I even don't feel my tiredness. I always returned home brisk and in a good mood. I should say that on Saturdays I tried to return home early, because I wanted to have a good sleep which was a well-deserved reward for the six days of hard work a
nd early rising.
I'm in the habit of getting up late on Sundays. Especially when the weather was nasty, I afforded myself to relax and not to be in a hurry. I hate the cold that's why I usually tried to stay in bed as long as possible. So I could stay in it
and not get up till 11 or even 12 o'clock in the morning. Only then I dressed and had my breakfast.
I could do everything I wished till 5 o'clock. Usually I watched TV, visited my friends or chatted with them on the phone. But sometimes if I had known tha
t the next week was hard I could spend half of the day reading numerous pages in literature, writing essays or compositions. I should say that it helped me a lot and I had more free time during the workweek.
I tried to end all my duties till 4 o'clock, as
at 5 o'clock my trainings on shaping began. To my mind not without reason people say that sport is a world of its own and it can't mean the same to everybody. I'm absolutely sure that doing sports is the best way to keep fit, healthy and strong. It is wid
e
known that there is a sound mind in a sound body. But for me sport is also a means of relaxation and entertainment, a way of acquainting with other people. I should say that I have met a great amount of interesting people there, communication with whom m
ade my day off brighter and more enjoyable But to my great regret I had to give up my trainings some months ago, because of lack of spare time.
After the trainings, tired but happy, I returned home. It was usually about 8 o'clock. The rest of the day I pref
erred to spend with my family members, as my family has always meant very much for me I like most of all when the whole family gather in the kitchen and we all sit chatting for hours It happens especially often on long winter evenings. We usually drink te
a or coffee and share our news, joys and sorrows and discuss our plans for the next week. I have always enjoyed the honest and open relattons in our family and I think that my family is the most valuable thing I have in my life.
I have described you my typi
cal day off, but of course, my weekends vary depending on the season. Summer weekends are more pleasant than long winter evenings, but I don't mean to say that I never enjoy weekends like these. Honestly, an ideal weekend for me is going for a picnic some
w
here in the country or in the forest with my friends, sitting around the fire and singing songs to the guitar. That is the kind of weekend we sometimes have in spring or early autumn. But frankly speaking, it happens quite rarely, as I and my friends are
busy people. Take me for example: studying at lyceum left little time for entertainment but the English say: He, who knows how to work, knows how to rest, and I think I'm not the exception.
I believe that in future when I have more spare time and ,hopefully
, more money, then I'll have other preferences and choices in rest and relaxation, but now I'm an exceptionally lucky person, because I get a good deal of what I want, and I can work actively for the rest. So my life is full of interesting and varied acti
vities. Frankly speaking, I feel pity for those people, whose lives are boring and who don't see anything except work and TV.
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