New Concept English III - 27 (09/27/09)

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Lesson 27 Nothing to sell and nothing to buy

Listen to the tape then answer the question below.

What is the most important thing /for a tramp?

It has been said /that everyone lives by selling something. In the light of this statement/, teachers live by selling knowledge, philosophers by selling wisdom and priests by selling spiritual comfort. Though it may be possible to measure /the value of material good /in terms of money, it is extremely difficult to estimate /the true value of the services /which people perform for us. There are times /when we would willingly give everything we possess /to save our lives, yet we might grudge paying a surgeon a high fee/ for offering us precisely this service/. The conditions of society are such /that skills have to be paid for /in the same way/ that goods are paid for/ at a shop. Everyone has something to sell.

Tramps seem to be the only exception /to this general rule. Beggars almost sell themselves as human being /to arouse the pity of passers-by. /But real tramps are not beggars/. They have nothing to sell/ and require nothing from others/. In seeking independence/, they do not sacrifice their human dignity. /A tramp may ask you for money,/ but he will never ask you to feel sorry for him. He has deliberately chosen /to lead the life he leads /and is fully aware of the consequences. He may never be sure/ where the next meal is coming from/, but he is free from the thousands of anxieties /which afflict other people. His few material possessions /make it possible for him/ to move from place to place with ease/. By having to sleep in the open, he gets far closer to the world of nature /than most of us ever do. He may hunt, beg, or steal occasionally /to keep himself alive; he may even, in times of real need, do a little work;/ but he will never sacrifice his freedom. We often speak of tramps with contempt /and put them in the same class as beggars, but how many of us can honestly say /that we have not felt a little envious of their simple way of life /and their freedom from care?
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I think most of us envy the freedom that tramps have but few would like the same lifestyle as theirs.