Speakout Advanced p 58. Marriage. Extra Speaking



A. Have a conversation as natural as possible with a partner about the topic. Use the pictures above and the questions below to help you.


  1. Do you think people still marry in church and brides in white because it’s always been done this way?
  2. To tie the knot in Spain, do you have to have a religious ceremony and a civil ceremony?
  3. Do people buy their clothes off the peg for a wedding?
  4. Do emotions get the better of people at weddings sometimes? of whom?
  5. Does anybody in particular pay for the wedding reception?
  6. Is getting married costly or extravagant?
  7. What are the Spanish traditions in relation with the dowry?
  8. What superstitions related to weddings in Spain can you think of?
  9. What do you think of prenuptial agreements?
  10. What are the differences between Spanish and English weddings? Are there any special people who take part in one and not in the other?
  11. Everyday, more than 25,000 girls under the age of 18 are married worldwide. For many child brides, a future of poverty, exploitation and poor health awaits. What do you think can be done about forced marriages?
  12. What do you think about arranged marriages?
B. MONOLOGUE
  

Student A

  1. Think about a wedding you attended. Whose big day was it? Do you know who popped the question, and where? Who proposed a toast? Who did you raise your glass to? Did they sing someone's praises? If so, whose? Did anyone break down in tears? If so, who and why? Did the wedding go off without a hitch? If not, what happened?
  2. Can you tell us about the last time you went to a stag/ hen party? How did you celebrate it?
  3. What is the right age to get married? And to have children?

Student B

  1. What are the most important qualities for a partner to have?
  2. What kind of presents do the guests to the wedding offer the newly-wed couple? What do you think about the fact that together with the invitation to the wedding the guests also receive the bank account details to deposit money?
  3. Do you think weddings can break the bank? What would you prioritise?
Vocabulary

tie the knot: (informal) to get married. E.g. The couple - who each have been married twice before - tied the knot 11 years ago in a register office.

off the peg (British English) (North American English off the rack) (of clothes) made to a standard average size and not made especially to fit you. E.g. He buys his clothes off the peg. Off-the-peg fashions.

prêt-à-porter: (of designer clothes) sold ready-to-wear as opposed to made to measure. E.g.‘in 1982, the duo presented their first prêt-à-porter collection in Milan’

tailor-made: (of clothes) made by a tailor for a particular person. Bespoke. E.g. a tailor-made suit

Bespoke /bɪˈspəʊk/ made specially, according to the needs of an individual customer. E.g. bespoke software. a bespoke suit

get the better of somebody/ something to defeat somebody/something or gain an advantage. If your emotions get the better of you, they are too strong to control, and you behave in a way that you do not want to. E.g. No one can get the better of her in an argument. She always gets the better of an argument. His curiosity got the better of him (= he didn't intend to ask questions, but he wanted to know so badly that he did). If your emotions get the better of you, they are too strong to control, and you behave in a way that you do not want to. His emotions got the better of him and he broke down in tears.


extravagant: /ɪkˈstrævəɡənt/ costing a lot more money than you can afford or is necessary. E.g. an extravagant present.

dowry: /ˈdaʊri/
1 money and/or property that, in some societies, a wife or her family must pay to her husband when they get married.
2 money and/or property that, in some societies, a husband must pay to his wife's family when they get married.

prenuptial agreement: an agreement made by a couple before they get married in which they say how their money and property is to be divided if they get divorced

best man /ˌbest ˈmæn/ a male friend or relative of the bridegroom at a wedding, who helps him during the wedding ceremony
bridesmaid /ˈbraɪdzmeɪd/ a young woman or girl who helps a bride before and during the marriage ceremony. E.g. Jo asked her sister to be (a) bridesmaid.
pageboy: a small boy who helps or follows a bride during a marriage ceremony.
ring bearer: a person, usually a boy, who carries the rings for the bride and groom at a wedding

Forced marriage is a marriage in which one or both of the parties is married without his or her consent or against his or her will.

Arranged marriage is a marriage in which both parties consent to the assistance of their parents or a third party in identifying a spouse, although the difference between the forced and arranged marriages may be indistinct.



big day: a very important day (often a wedding day). E.g. It's Laura's big day tomorrow. 

pop the question: to ask somebody to marry you. E.g. My sister's boyfriend, John, finally popped the question.

propose a toast (to somebody)/ propose somebody's health: to ask people to wish somebody health, happiness and success by raising their glasses and drinking. E.g. I'd like to propose a toast to the bride and groom.
raise your glass (to somebody): to hold up your glass and wish somebody happiness, good luck, etc. before you drink. E.g. let's raise our glasses to the bride and groom.

sing the praises of: express enthusiastic approval or admiration of. E.g. Uncle Felix never stopped singing her praises.

break down:  to lose control of your feelings and start crying. E.g. He broke down and wept when he heard the news. The groom's mother broke down in tears.

go off to happen in a particular way. The meeting went off well. The wedding went off without a hitch (a problem or difficulty that causes a short delay. E.g. The ceremony went off without a hitch). 


break the bank:  cost a lot of money, or more than you can afford. E.g. We can just get a sandwich if you want—that won't break the bank. 

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