“All I want is a chance.”
Why it's great
One plain sentence asks for nothing but a shot, and that is exactly why it lands.
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Use it yourself
All I want is a chance to show what I can do.
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Brad Asks for a Chance, Explained
Front of the Class · 2008
Chapter 1 of 17 · 5'03"
Brad is not asking anyone to feel sorry for him. In a job interview, he names the thing everyone is avoiding — "Maybe we should talk about the elephant" — and explains that his noises are like sneezes. What he wants is simple: interviews, and a chance to prove he can teach.
Key moments
Start here, then watch the full scene- 1:53–2:33
❝ Monologue · 4 lines Brad Talks About the Elephant
41s - 3:36–4:06
❝ Monologue · 5 lines Brad on His Father's Patience
30s
Brad Asks for a Chance, explained
What happens
Pulled over for speeding, Brad tells the officer he has Tourette's syndrome and that he is going to be a teacher. Later, in a job interview, he asks his interviewer to talk about the obvious subject, explains that his tics are like sneezes, and says all he wants is a chance.
What's really going on
Brad has learned to turn the awkward moment into an opening. When an interviewer cannot bring herself to mention his Tourette's, he takes the lead: "Maybe we should talk about the elephant." He is not looking for sympathy; he is controlling the story before someone else does. His explanation is deliberately ordinary — "They're like sneezes, irrepressible" — and his confidence rests on the law and on his record: "The Americans with Disabilities Act says I'm entitled to a chance." Every rejection soundbite he repeats to his friend is proof that the world still sees the barking before the teacher. So "All I want is a chance" is not a plea so much as a demand, and he keeps making it because the alternative is to disappear.
Key lines & what they mean
- “All I want is a chance.”
- Brad's bottom line: not pity and not special treatment, just the interviews and the opportunity to prove he can do the job.
- “Maybe we should talk about the elephant.”
- He raises the subject everyone is avoiding — his Tourette's — before it can quietly decide the interview for him.
- “I mean, I wore out his patience like nails on a chalkboard.”
- His image for how exhausting he could be to his father: a sound that grates on you until you cannot stand it.
- “Once they understand, they're fine with it.”
- His experience with children: explain the tics plainly and acceptance follows, which is why he trusts the same approach with adults.
Theme
- Courage — Brad names his Tourette's out loud instead of hiding it, and keeps asking for a chance after every rejection.
- Identity — He refuses to let his tics define him, insisting he was born to teach and that the classroom is where he belongs.
What this chapter teaches
Teaching points
Review right after watchingMy level6/7
A1–C2 is the CEFR scale. Cards above the level you pick fade, and playback will not auto-pause on them.
Language points
Click a card to jump to its moment in the videoGolden lines
A great line in its own right — why and how to use it“Maybe we should talk about the elephant.”
Why it's great
It names the awkward subject through an idiom, so courage arrives wrapped in politeness.
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Neutral
Use it yourself
Maybe we should talk about the deadline nobody mentioned.
“I mean, I wore out his patience like nails on a chalkboard.”
Why it's great
It turns a vague ache into a sound you can hear, making the self-blame sting and charm.
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Informal
Use it yourself
I wore out my roommate's patience like nails on a chalkboard.
“Once they understand, they're fine with it.”
Why it's great
It reduces a hard problem to one calm step: once people understand, the fear fades.
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Neutral
Use it yourself
Once they understand it's an allergy, they're fine with it.
Monologue
One character carrying the scene — shadow the whole passage❝ Brad explains his Tourette's
I know, but I would like to tell you just like I tell the kids in my classes. See, I explain to them that it's a brain thing that causes me to make these strange noises. They're like sneezes, irrepressible. When you have to, wah-waht, you have to.
He turns a frightening condition into something ordinary by comparing it to a sneeze.
❝ Brad on his father
Returning Dad's call... [chuckles] I had to prepare for that. See, Mom and Dad had divorced when I was a little kid and my relationship with Dad had always been... let's just say, complicated. Jah-jah-wah-waht! I mean, I wore out his patience like nails on a chalkboard.
A wry laugh leads into the ache of a childhood spent testing his father's patience.
Front of the Class: your progress
Chapter 1 of 17 · about 73 min to go
Up next · 02drive someone nutsThe scene: Brad's Tics Drive His Family CrazyTakeaways
What you walk away with- Brad asks for one opening instead of arguing his case.
- The elephant line turns a legal minefield into honesty.
- His comic tic never turns him into the joke.
- Talking to his father still costs him a moment of courage.
People also search
Questions, then the linesWhy does Brad tell the interviewer about his Tourette's?
Because he would rather define it himself than let it hang in the room. He explains it the way he does to his students, so the interview is about whether he can teach, not about his tics.
What does "the elephant" mean in the interview?
It is the idiom "the elephant in the room" — the obvious thing nobody wants to mention. Brad means his Tourette's, which the interviewer is carefully avoiding.
Why does Brad want to teach in Atlanta?
He tells the interviewer that Georgia honors his Illinois certificate, that he fell in love with the city while working there as a camp counselor, and that his father and stepmother live nearby.
What is the scene with the boy racing about?
It is a childhood memory of Brad and his brother playing. It cuts in to show how long his tics have shaped family life and how much patience he wore out at home.