📘 Part 3: Money and consumerism

This episode's vocabulary

Tablet (noun) - a medium-hard, sugary confection from Scotland.

Tartan (noun) - a pattern of different coloured straight lines crossing each other at 90-degree angles, or a cloth with this pattern.

Garment (noun) - a piece of clothing.

Cater to sb/sth (phrasal verb) - to satisfy a need or to provide what is wanted or needed by a particular person or group.

Sustenance (noun) - food, or the energy and other things food provides people and animals to keep them strong and healthy.

With sb/sth in mind (phrase) - while regarding or thinking about someone or something; keeping someone or something in consideration.

Poor impulse control - difficulty controlling yourself.

Stable (adj) - firmly fixed or not likely to move or change.

Income (noun) - money that is earned from doing work or received from investments.

Investment (noun) - the act of putting money, effort, time, etc. into something to make a profit or get an advantage, or the money, effort, time, etc. used to do this.

Notorious (adj.) - famous for something bad.

Thrifty (adj.) - showing a careful use of money, especially by avoiding waste.

Cheap (adj.) - unwilling to spend money.

Deprived (adj.) - not having the things that are necessary for a pleasant life, such as enough money, food, or good living conditions.

Assets (plural noun) - something valuable belonging to a person or organization that can be used for the payment of debts.

Lock sth away (phrasal verb) - to put something in a safe place and lock the door in order that someone else cannot get it.

Avenue (noun) - a method or way of doing something.

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Questions and Answers

M: What things do people like to buy in your country?

R: Well, I think they would buy everything and anything their heart's desired if they could. If we speak about what's popular, though, I doubt it's much different to anywhere else. People buy clothes and food and various kinds of entertainment, like festival tickets and video games. Maybe if we talk about people who come to the country like they're visiting, or they're tourists, then they'll probably want to buy these things, but maybe like specifically Scottish things like tablet, or tartan things?

M: What kinds of expensive things do people like to buy in your country?

R: Well, everyone likes the latest fashion, don't they? Though, how that manifests, I suppose depends on the individual. Sometimes it's about having the newest gadget, or garments, or other people prefer recently made games. It's the newness that caters to the tastes rather than the price I think.

M: Do people buy many things they don't need?

R: Well, assuming it's not sustenance, or shelter related, then everyone is buying things that aren't necessary. Though, one could argue that life isn't just about getting what you need, it's about striving for what you want. And with that in mind, I wonder if it's important whether they get what they don't need.

M: Why do young people tend to waste money?

R: I suppose it's because they are, well, they're completely clueless when it comes to responsible financial management, relative to adults, aren't they? And they have rather poor impulse control, but that's just because they're young. This is all just my opinion, though. I imagine in the eyes of many young people, what they buy is absolutely essential.

M: Why do some young people buy expensive things?

R: It's a status symbol, isn't it? It's a way of showing off that you're successful and worth getting to know. And it works in some cases, which is a bit depressing. If they have a stable income, though, it's also possible that a higher price means higher quality, and whatever it is, will last longer. So that's a responsible investment in terms of what you buy.

M: Why do people like to buy expensive things?

R: Possibly for the same reasons I mentioned that young people prefer to buy them. I don't think I could name any more if I want to do, like, higher price is an indication of higher quality, or it should be. That's not always the case. But it's often the case.

M: But do you think it's good for people to buy things which they perhaps can't afford, more expensive things, then cheaper things?

R: I don't think anyone thinks that's a good thing. But that wasn't the question, was it?

M: No, that's my follow up question. It's just in speaking, part three, the examiner might ask you follow up questions. And actually, the examiner may make up questions.

R: Well, they have to that's the purpose of the follow up question.

M: Yeah, that's, so kind of they have some questions in the booklet. But then when you say something, the examiner just listens to what you're saying. And then asks you to kind of explain more of what you have already said.

R: And then you go after them and say, how is that related to the previous question?

M: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Anyway, do people in your country like to save money?

R: I think Scottish people are rather notorious at this point, for being sort of thrifty, cheap, and cheerful people. I suppose that's because money is rather thin on the ground in Scotland, relative to the rest of the UK. Especially in more deprived communities. So I would definitely say they like to save money more than most other places. But I that's just my personal feeling. I don't know how you would go about proving something like that.

M: Why? Why do you think that it's in Scotland, that they have less money than the rest of the UK?

R: Oh, I didn't say they don't have money. I've said they don't have a lot of money relative to the rest of UK. We have a smaller population, and I suppose there are a lot of social problems here that are less of an issue in England, for example. And our economy is, I think, relatively less developed, although compared to other countries, it's more developed. But if we talk about in the context of the UK, then it's definitely less developed.

M: What's the best way to save money?

R: Well, I was always told it was in a bank as part of a good budget, but increasingly, I'm hearing about investments and buying assets as a way of sort of locking away wealth for the future. I'm not sure how much to believe in it, but it seems to be a rather popular choice these days. Someone was going on about investing in cryptocurrency the other day, so there's lots of options. But I'm still sticking with the bank as my best-saving avenue.

M: Thank you so much for me for your lovely, lovely money answers!

R: Hopefully they were high value. Hey, it's another pun.

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