Unit 1 Task 8

【原文】 Matthew: Geth, how do people set about getting married in England? Geth: I suppose the most common way is still for people to go home. For example, people who live in London now will go back to their homes in the provinces where they'll meet all their relatives and their parents, and they'll get married in a church, with the bride wearing white, the traditional white. Then they'll go off and have a booze-up with their relatives and friends and a jolly good time will be had by all. Otherwise you can get married in a registry office, which means you turn up with your bride-to-be or bridegroom-to-be with two witnesses only. The ceremony takes about five minutes, I suppose. You sign the form and that's it. Matthew: There are many today who say that marriage is a complete waste of time. What's your view of marriage in the twentieth century? Goth: Well, I live in London as you know. I think in London, the tendency is to... for a... boy and girl, man or woman to live together before marriage and often to live together without any prospect of marriage at all. I think this probably is... is true of London and the other big cities than elsewhere, because after all people in London are living in a big place where home ties are obviously less restrictive. They can do more or less as they please and I think this is the pattern. Matthew: But do you think it helps for people to live together before taking their vows? Geth: I think in a sense the habit of living together before marriage may, in a strange sort of way, make marriage stronger, because after all the people will know each other better when they do get married and it might be suggested that divorce would be less likely between such a couple. Matthew: Sue, you've been married for two or three years now. How's it working out? Sue: I think it's a successful marriage. It's... I mean, it's difficult to say why, because we basically suit each other very much. We have a good friendship, apart from anything else, and, you know, we just go together very well because we respect each other's freedom and individuality, but on the other hand we really need each other, you know, it's... Matthew: What about.., have you thought of having children? Sue: Well, obviously, like most young couples, we have thought about it, but, you know, we both feel rather, sort of, loath to lose our freedom just yet. I think we'll probably wait another few years. Matthew: Is it easy in England today to people to get divorced, or is that quite difficult? Chris: I think technically it's probably fairly easy, I think, because I'm not English but, I think technically it's fairly easy to be... to get divorced. But it's not just the technicality of it which is the problem. Divorce is... is a social stigma which people can probably Cope with to varying degrees, but it's also a lot easier for the man because the woman, after she is divorced is, in fact, frowned upon by... by a lot of people in society. She is... is... at a... a much more difficult social position in terms of... of meeting other men, or whatever, simply because she is a divorcee.