Text: “Getting Married in the usa”

Every state in the United States has its own legal requirements for marriage. All states require a marriage license, which costs a few dollars. A blood test is also required in 45 states (all but Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, South Carolina, and Washington). There is a minimum age for marrying in all 50 states. (With parental consent: females, 14 years; males, 16 in some states, higher in most states. Without parental consent: females, 18; males, 21 in most states.)

In the United States a couple may be married in either a religious or a civil ceremony. Nowadays young people decide by themselves whether to get married or not. They do not usually ask their parents for permission if they are over the legal age. Sometimes they do not tell their parents until after they are already married.

Some people have very simple weddings. They take their vows before a judge or a justice-of-the-peace, with two other people as legal witnesses.

It is customary for a wife to wear a wedding ring on her left hand. Some husbands also wear wedding rings if they want to. A widow usually wears a wedding ring, but a divorcee does not.

Ex. 1. Read and translate the text.

Ex. 2. Answer the questions.

1. Do young people in your native country ask their parents for permission to marry?

2. Is a religious ceremony legal in your native country? Is a civil ceremony legal there?

3. Who marries couples in a civil ceremony in your native country?

4. What are the usual steps that precede marriage?

5. Have you ever witnessed a wedding ceremony? Describe it naming all the participants and their activities.

6. Who wears a wedding ring in your native country? What finger do people wear a wedding ring on?

7. In your native country where does a young couple usually live after they get married? alone? with the husband’s family? with the wife’s family?

8. What does the choice of the future place of living depend on?

9. In your native country at what age do young women customarily marry? At what age do young men customarily marry?

10. In the United States it is illegal to be married to two people at the same time. A man with two wives or a woman with two husbands is called a bigamist. Is it legal to be married to more than one person at a time in your native country?

Text: “Early Marriage”

When my best friend told me she was going to get married, I was really surprised. “Marriage at 19?” – I asked myself, and I was very doubtful that a thing like this could have serious reasons. Explaining such an important act in her life, my friend just said: “Well, I just want to try out what marriage can be – it’s interesting for me”. And, to my surprise, everything turned out to be not so bad, and now they are doing well, I suppose.

So I decided to analyse everything that comes to mind when hearing of “early marriages”.

What makes a young couple decide to get married? Unfortunately, it mostly happens because the girl is pregnant – this is the quickest and the most frequent way of making an early marriage, but here everything is absolutely clear and banal. I’d like to search for other, more reliable reasons.

I think some young people, like my friend, just want to see what it is like to be married. They little imagine what awaits them, that’s why they are less cautious than those who have already had such an experience. And of course, youthful exuberance plays a role. The young are often more sure of their forces and possibilities than someone older. It is amazing that it is not a useless risk. Young married couples discover that they are on the same “wave length”. The major danger in this situation is their egoism. They may loose this “wave length” and their marriage may begin to sink.

Another problem, in my view, is having too little money. Early marriages almost always involve financial dependence on parents. Parents don’t often spoil them. Such couples cannot afford to constantly go to the cinema, buy new clothes, relax at Nice, for example. And they begin to wonder whether they really love each other or not. Or would they rather have a great number of comfortable things. But if (here there can be some exceptions) parents spoil their married children with money, it is a pity, for they doom themselves to do it all their life.

I think that what is the most typical for early married couples is that everyone tries to teach them how to do this or that. This usually causes serious conflicts, but on the other hand it stimulates a young couple to become more independent.

The most important and the most dangerous thing, which may happen to our young heroes, is their disappointment in each other. Very rarely it is possible for them to find the strength to fight against it and forgive the mistakes of their partner, it is also easier for a young couple to divorce because... hmm... because they are young. There’s nothing to explain. Anyway, early marriages show if you really need your partner and how much you can suffer for him/her.

Surely it’s impossible to mention all the problems which arise in early marriage. I think it’s useless to criticise those who decided to get married at the age of 16 – 19. Everything depends on the couple. Of course some become adults earlier than others. A system of values can be formed surprisingly early in some people and they can potentially be ready for an early marriage.

It’s also important to remember that some young people just don’t have enough courage to stand alone and be independent. Living with a partner stimulates them to become sure of themselves, to achieve self-realisation. But if they find the courage to get married, it is no small thing. It’s important that they have enough courage to sustain the relationship. It can be very hard, so only the strongest and the most patient can do it.

As for me, I believe in destiny for everyone, and that it will present us with what has to be, and an early marriage is just one of the possibilities, which checks people’s feelings; the first feelings and their ability not to turn off from the chosen way, the first way.

By Maria Yaylenko

Ex. 1. Read and translate the text.

Ex. 2. Answer the questions.

1. Do you agree with the author’s reasons as to what makes a young couple decide to get married?

2. What other reasons for early marriage would you add?

3. Would you marry under 20? Why/ Why not?

4. Are there any good features in an early marriage (under 20)?

5. What are common opinions about early marriage in our country and in Europe?

6. What disadvantages does early marriage have in terms of education?

7. What can cause disappointment in marriage and each other?

8. What might be the difficulties of a young married couple who have their first child while they are still studying?

9. How often do early marriages fall apart?

10. What advice would you give to a young married couple?