A2–B1 Listening Practice | Two Friends | A Powerful Anti-War Story

Improve your English listening skills with Two Friends, Guy de Maupassant’s moving short story about friendship, loyalty, war, courage, and the terrible destruction of ordinary lives. The story takes place in Paris during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. The city is under siege. Enemy soldiers surround Paris, food is running out, and the people inside the city are cold, hungry, and exhausted. In the middle of this difficult time lives Monsieur Morissot, a quiet watchmaker who once had a simple passion: fishing. Before the war, Morissot spent many peaceful Sundays beside the river with his close friend Monsieur Sauvage. One day, while walking through the miserable streets of besieged Paris, Morissot unexpectedly meets Sauvage again. The two friends begin talking about the old days. About sunshine. About the river. About fishing. And for a moment, they remember what peace used to feel like. Then they make a dangerous decision. They decide to leave Paris and go fishing one more time. Their favourite fishing place lies outside the French lines, in dangerous territory between the French and Prussian armies. They know it is risky. But the desire to escape the war, even for a few hours, is too strong. After receiving a secret password from a French officer, they pass through the French lines and reach their old fishing spot. For a short time, everything feels normal again. The sun shines. The river is peaceful. The fish are biting. Morissot and Sauvage sit side by side just as they once did before the war. For a few precious moments, they forget the siege, the hunger, and the violence around them. Then the peace ends. Prussian soldiers suddenly surround them. The two friends are captured and taken to an enemy officer. Because they came through the French lines, the officer assumes they are spies. Morissot and Sauvage explain that they are only fishermen. The officer does not care. Instead, he offers them a terrible bargain. He knows they must have used a secret password to pass through the French lines. If they tell him the password, he will let them live. If they refuse, they will be shot. The two friends now face the hardest choice of their lives. They can save themselves by betraying their country. Or they can remain silent and die. Morissot and Sauvage refuse to speak. Even when the officer questions them separately and gives them repeated chances to save themselves, neither man betrays the password. They choose loyalty over survival. At last, the officer gives the order. The two friends stand together beside the river. They look at each other one final time. Then the soldiers shoot them. The place where they once spent so many peaceful Sundays becomes the place where they die together. But the story ends with an even colder detail. After their deaths, the Prussian officer notices the fish they caught earlier. He casually orders the fish to be cooked for his supper. Their bodies are thrown into the river. And life continues as if the deaths of two ordinary men mean nothing at all. Two Friends is a powerful story about friendship and courage, but it is also a strong condemnation of war. Morissot and Sauvage are not soldiers or spies. They are simply two ordinary men who want one peaceful afternoon together. War destroys even that. Their quiet courage stands in sharp contrast to the cold indifference of the officer who kills them. Perfect for English learners interested in A2–B1 listening practice, classic short stories, Guy de Maupassant, war stories, friendship, vocabulary building, listening comprehension, and learning English through stories. 🎧 Listen carefully and follow two old friends as a simple fishing trip becomes a story of courage, loyalty, and sacrifice. Would you risk your life rather than betray your country? 👉 Subscribe for more classic stories and English listening practice. #TwoFriends #GuyDeMaupassant #EnglishListening #LearnEnglish #EnglishStory #ListeningPractice #A2English #B1English #ClassicStory #LearnEnglishThroughStories