Town or country mouse?
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Town or country mouse?
by John Russell
This simple tale (taken from Aesop’s famous stories) shows that what may be a good place to live for one person, may not be good for another. Are you a town mouse or a country mouse?
Once upon a time, there were two mice – cousins. One lived in the town and the other in the country. The town mouse was a very superior mouse, who thought that living in the town was far better than living the country. So one day, he invited his country cousin to stay with him in his town house and experience the civilized lifestyle of the town. They sat down to a meal, which to the country mouse was a feast. “Goodness me” he said. “If I was in the country, I would be having only simple bread and cheese in the quiet of my peaceful home.” Suddenly, there was a loud noise at the door. “Don’t worry,” said the town mouse, “that’s just my neighbour - the dog, he wants to join us for dinner.” The country mouse ate a little faster. Another noise was heard outside, even louder this time. “Oh dear” said the town mouse, “the cat who lives facing my house wants to join us too.” Quickly eating the last of his meal, the country mouse said, “thank you, but I think I will return to the peace and quiet of my own house after all!” Then he ran back home as fast as his legs could carry him.
This simple tale (taken from Aesop’s famous stories) shows that what may be a good place to live for one person, may not be good for another. A modern version of this story might look like this:
Maria lives in a big city surrounded by the speed and convenience of urban life. She works in an office with 1000 other employees, and travels too and from there on a crowded Metro. Her home is a flat overlooking a busy city-street, which is always alive with the sound of traffic and people passing by. After work she meets with friends in a bar or restaurant before going on to a disco or nightclub. Weekends are spent in the shopping mall with its numerous shops, multi-screen cinemas, fast food and entertainment complexes.
Alex, however, lives in a small village in the countryside. He cycles to work down country lanes every morning, the sound of tractors, birds and animals in his ears. In the evening, he relaxes at home in front of the fire with a good book to read. At weekends, he goes for long walks in the fields with his dog.
Unfortunately, life is not as simple as stories make it. A lot of today’s ‘town mice’ such as Maria would be happy to live in the country. Many modern cities have very large populations (Tokyo or Mexico City - over 25 million) and can be crowded, dirty and dangerous places to live. More than half the world’s population now lives in cities. In much of Europe and North America this can be as high as much as 80% of a country’s population. (According to the United Nations, approximately 1 billion people in cities are living in slum conditions – overcrowded and unhealthy).
The 18th Century marked the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, the depopulation of the countryside and the move to towns. The towns became places of mass employment in factories and offices. Today, many town dwellers wish to reverse this trend and return to a slower pace of life like Alex, our modern ‘country mouse’. Yet, a modern country existence is not without its problems; poor transport, lack of access to hospitals and education, and services found in towns such as large shops, banks and entertainment.
The debate between town and country is meaningless these days, as so many people live in towns, and very few people are actually able to choose where they live; this is dictated by their work or birth. The internet and other mass media have linked country areas to the world, providing access to information – even to remote areas. If people are to be persuaded to stay in the countryside, other benefits of the city need to be available (employment, healthcare and education). Conversely, the introduction of city parks and forests, and traffic free zones, has helped in bringing a little of the countryside to the city streets.
The UN World habitat day (4th October) this year looks at this issue. It emphasises the need for strong links between town and countryside, and their mutual dependence upon each other.
Are you a town mouse or a country mouse?
Task
Rearrange the words to make correct sentences.
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Comments
i live in town and i never have tryed to live in a countryside .but sometimes i think that maybe would be great to live in countryside just for a short time .this way i could avoid all the country problems.
Now I live in suburban area and I have my house and small garden. I really want to live in countryside, but even now it takes more than one hour for commuting. Some companies allows to work in home, but my company doesn't allow to take out information from company , so I must go to my office every day. I always get on a train at 6 o'clock every mornig and I can sit in the train. But when I return to home, the train is overcrowded and I am always exhausted. Some day after my retirement, I wish to move to somewhere in southern islands with my wife.
Your texts
Ha Hoang Ty writes “It's wonderful if you live in country! Living in a big city is not easy! There are so many things for you to worry about, such as noise, air pollution, the cost of living, etc. Now I am living in the suburbs about 20 Km away from Ho Chi Minh City. That is a best place for me and my family to live. I think that if you have a chance you should buy a house in the country or a house in suburbs to relax!”
Kuzncot writes “In my opinion, the best thing is to be both town and country mouse. I like to work and entertain in the city and live in the countryside. When I was younger, I used to live in a small town and dreamed about the big city. Life in a small town, where everyone knows each other seemed boring for me. But now I prefer to live in my own house with a garden, not in a flat. In summer we live in my country-house, but in winter it isn't comfortable to go to work by train. Buying a car can solve this problem. So I prefer the lifestyle of a country mouse with city benefits accessible.”
Ojong Gerrald writes “Life, above all, is what you make of it. And living (an integral part of the latter) in the city or country is how you make of it too. Thus, I prefer living in the city - a town mouse! – and a city dweller hitherto. Ultimately because of its continued bureaucracies and educational stance, nonetheless. I don’t want to imagine a situation whereby I’d be exhausted and limited to the countryside’s (local) artisans and woodland parks’ sights and sounds, or other terrestrial niches and origin bounds. But I’d enjoy and practise a life in which there’s a tendency for innovation in all walks of life and the respect for the value of money, a life of plenty domain ambitions, trustworthiness and reliability; the respect, rigour and adherence for the truth and inclined situations – a city life indeed!”
Yu PengFei writes “I am a town mouse now. When I look back to the days living in the country, I always want to go back there someday, but when I went back for some days, I desired to go back to town. There is a concept that a writer says:" The people inside want to go outside, the people outside want to go inside." I think this idea is not only used in marriage – hah!”
Bao Tan writes “I don't like living in the city because the sound of vehicles, pollutants and expensive living give me a headache, and sometimes there is too much stress. All I need is somewhere peaceful, silent and comfortable.When you have lived a long time in a busy city, with lots of noise, dust and smoke, the countryside is really a paradise for you. Fresh-air, green fields, lovely animals, scarecrows ... you can not find anywhere else. What could be better than flying a kite among enormous bliss, going fishing in a gorgeous sunset, boating in a peaceful river, listening to the birds singing in the trees every morning ... there are many many interesting thing waiting to be discovered. That's great, isn't it? Let’s forget the overcrowded life, the lack of space in cities, don't worry about business and take a some days off from your company, then enjoy yourself with the friendly people in the country.I still remember, when I was in the second or third grade, my parents used to take me to the countryside, especially in summer. You can't imagine how excited I was. I can bet you that the Vietnamese countryside is the most beautiful place that can be found anywhere.No matter what I were, no matter where I were, no matter how my life changed, the Vietnamese countryside has been engraved in my mind permanently.”
GiManil writes “As everyone knows 'a coin has two sides, a bad one and a good one.' It is up to you what you prefer. People come to town for better work, life and money. But, do they get these things? They get work in town but they do not get a better life. Today people do not even get good work in town. The people living in town like country life but they can't leave town. The problem is that more and more people are coming to town. The reason may be work, lifestyle and education. Nowadays the life in town has become very fast, stressful and dangerous.If people get work, education and hospitals in the country then there is no question of moving to town. Like most of the writers here, I also like country life. Living in the country is far better than in town. But everybody has their own limits and boundaries!”
Moe Moe Kyaw writes “I am now a town mouse and am often complaining about living in the city but I cannot do anything. When I feel upset about my lifestyle in the city, I sometimes want to run away to the countryside. I know how life is in the country because I lived in the countryside when I was young. There was a forest with beautiful flora and fauna, a stream flowing near the area, plenty of fresh vegetable farms and open paddy fields. We could play in the wide open air and life was easy going and people were simple and sociable. The population was not as crowded as in the city. I enjoyed it very much.Although I am sometimes upset by the lifestyle in town - in a narrow apartment located in the most densely populated area with much noise - I think that if I stayed in the country for a month, I'd be happy in the first two weeks enjoying the fresh air, easy going lifestyle and fresh food but I am sure that I would feel a little bit bored in my third week - I would be missing my narrow apartment, my friends, my computer and internet, shopping centres - and in the fourth week, I couldn’t stand it and would go back to my town.In fact, I am too greedy because I want to live not only in town but also in the country at the same time. But as soon as modern materials and facilities are introduced into the country side, and parks and forests and traffic free zones in the city, my greediness will be fulfilled to some extend.”
Deshpande Nikhil writes “It’s always better to be a country person with all its positive aspects by accepting dark sides, too. Too often, a person fades away with city living with its traumas, tensions, and monotonous way.”Pristinely pleasant breezes, freshness, purity, trueness, genuineness, sincerity, hygienic conditions, etc. are seen in the countryside. Humanity can be reversed in the countryside. Hence, live like a country person.”
Mai4e i Fati writes “I think that sooner or later people get bored with living either in the country or in a city. So it's difficult to say which place is better to live in. Each one has its advantages. Perhaps the best solution is to alternate between the two. For example, if you live in a city, you should make trips out, however short they are; and vice versa - why not go to crowded shopping malls just for a new pair of jeans?”
Aaron Huang writes “I am a country mouse and so I prefer living the country. Fresh air, low house rent. We can communicate with each other through the Internet.”
Jensen writes “In fact, I am a country mouse. I have lived in the country for more than 19 years. I enjoy and like country life, it is relaxing, always not too rushed. I have also lived in city for 7 years, so I have living experience in town and country. In comparing the two life styles, both have advantages and disadvantages. It is convenient to live in the city, you can buy things just around the corner. The public facilities make life easier in the city. Life differs in the country from the city. It is much more quiet in the country, you won't hear the sound of motors; everyone acts naturally, there’s no fear or competition. Life runs slowly and people live a simple and enjoyable life. If I make enough money in the future, I will build a new house in the country and spend the rest of my life with my family. Isn't that a great idea? I am dreaming about it.”
MuhammadYousaf Khan writes “Personally I prefer to live in the country. There are a number of reasons: fresh & healthy environment, fresh edibles like fruit, vegetables etc and pure dairy products are available. These pure things are missing from town life.People have a relatively slow pace of life, they pay more attention to their own family lives, their neighbours and relatives as compared to town life.Above all, the lush green crops, green trees, singing birds and enchanting breeze bounds the inhabitants. People living in the country are closer to nature as compared to dwellers of towns and cities.One thing that I would like to add as narrated above, as per UNO study, there should be a link between the life of town & the country, so to maintain that link and balance, some basic facilities like medical care, education and utilities must be provided in the countryside.If this is happened so many people would like to stay in their country homes instead of shifting to towns. So the towns will also feel less burdened as to provide better education, health and other facilities to the residents.”
Yasaman Khoshkam writes “I'm living in a town but I don't like it except at weekends because I like to spend my time on the weekend with my friends. In general I like to live in the country because of the quiet and peace. I would like living and staying in a remote place without any noise. I would like to build my house on the top of a green hill as I could see a valley. I would like my home to have a beautiful view such as mountains or forest or sea.”
Alfredo Pedraza writes “I’m a town mouse but always dream of being a country mouse. Another situation is when you are married with someone that loves the city and you prefer the country … a big problem.”
Subbu writes “When it comes to me I prefer living in the countryside because the relations are much stronger in the country than the city and also there other things such as the air, birds, animals and spacious houses.When it comes to the city the congested apartments, artificial smile, pollution and stress make me think about the country side. Recent observations are telling that heart attacks have increased in youths because of the stress they are facing in city life. In the city what we are living for we don't know.When you ask someone they will say they are living in the city to earn money. Whatever you learn or do in the city your final target is to earn money.But in the country side we live for a cause, there people help others. Always someone will be there to help you. Nowadays the countryside doesn't mean a backward area.There is a lot of development going on in the countryside, but compared to city it may be less. But the peace that the countryside gives you is incomparable with the city.”
jl-larranaga writes “I have lived all my life in little towns, and I think that this is the best situation. Sometimes big cities are stressing and dirty, but the countryside can be boring. In little towns you can enjoy the advantages of urban life, without the problems.”
Pei Shi writes “I can’t say that I’m a town mouse or country mouse. I consider myself as a town-country mouse. Nowadays, with the development of education, information technologies and also migration to the city making life move fast, fast like the wind, nowhere, you don’t know where it may go. I, myself, like the challenges in the big town, with ambitions, career-mindedness, high buying power and the colourful city. It is very attractive to all people. Don’t just look at the cons, but try to look at the opportunity and the chances. Meanwhile, I like to stay in the countryside, somewhere to give me peace, freshness and real life. That’s why I bought a house away from the city. I travel an hour to work every day. Whenever I pass by a winding mountain path after work, I feel that I’m back to nature. Whenever I step into my house, the green and fresh air surround me. It is full of love and peaceful. It’s time for me to relax my mind and prepare for tomorrow’s battle.”
Loyalist College CAPsite writes “I enjoyed the short article and found myself divided by the same things outlined in the last paragraph. Both city and country have their pros and cons. What my choice came down to is the amount of family in the area. My choice was the country, but we call it the bush.”