Esta série Conversações Diárias é sobre uma família em viagem pelos 50 estados dos EUA. Junte-se a eles à medida que vão conhecendo as atividades de lazer e a história de cada lugar. Essas conversas são para alunos de inglês de nível intermediário ou superior.
Se você preferir acompanhar a lição apenas em inglês, clique aqui.
Neste diálogo, a família conversa sobre a estrada de ferro subterrânea enquanto estão em Connecticut.
Sam: Grand Central was incredible!
Claudine: Yes, I loved the painted ceiling the best.
Sam: It’s hard to believe that it’s just a couple of hours later, and we’re in a rural area of Connecticut. But why exactly are we here?
Paul: This was part of the Underground Railroad.
Sam: You mean like a subway?
Gina: No, not at all. The Underground Railroad was neither underground nor a railroad. During the time of slavery in the U.S., many slaves chose to escape from their owners and find a safe place.
Paul: The Underground Railroad was part of the abolitionist movement, and it gave safe places to fugitive slaves to stay as they went north to escape slavery. People helped them along the way. It was a dangerous trip for slaves, and the people who helped them ran a risk too.
Claudine: Wow, and this area of Connecticut was part of the Underground Railroad?
Gina: This part and other places in the state too.
Agora vamos rever o vocabulário.
Grand Central (also called Grand Central Terminal or Grand Central Station) is a large, commuter train terminal — or train station — in Manhattan. There is an elaborate painted ceiling in the Main Concourse.
Rural means of or relating to the countryside; not urban.
The Underground Railroad [estrada de ferro subterrânea] provided safe places for fugitive slaves as they made their way to the Northern states, Canada, or other places. People helped them along the way.
A subway [metrô] is a system of underground trains.
Neither … nor [Nem … nem]: We can use neither as a conjunction with nor. When used together, these words connect two options and give a negative meaning. Here’s an example. Neither Ted nor Helen can come to the party. This means that both Ted and Helen are not able to come to the party.
Slavery [escravidão] legally existed in the U.S. in the 18th and 19th centuries. A slave is someone who is owned by another person and forced to work for that person without getting paid.
The abolitionist movement [movimento abolicionista] in the U.S. was the movement (by a group of people who shared similar ideas) before and during the U.S. Civil War whose purpose was to end slavery in the U.S.
During the time of slavery in the U.S., fugitive slaves [escravos fugitivos] were slaves who left their masters and traveled without permission. Fugitive slaves usually tried to reach states, territories, or other countries where there was no slavery.
To run a risk [Arriscar-se] means to do something that may result in something bad happening.
[table id=106 /]
