Most customs connected with the wedding ceremony go back thousands of years.
The bride, when she puts on her white dress, is wearing the sacred colour of the Greeks for whom marriage was a sacrament, or mystery. Like a modern bride, the ancient Greek bride wore a veil and a crown, and was carried over the threshold. In the rhyme, something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue, blue stands for truth, as in True blue. White is for purity. Blue and white are considered to be the lucky colours for a wedding.
Throwing rice or some grains (a symbol of harvest) has always been usual at wedding, and it signifies fertility, in Roman times nuts were thrown for the same reason.
Fruits, figs, and the scattering pomegranate seeds are all symbols of fertility which have been practiced at weddings in different countries.
Good and bad luck. The choice of date is important. May is traditionally unlucky for weddings, because in ancient Rome, this was a month for remembering the dead and ill-omened time for lovers. In contrast to this, there exists the Christian belief that you shouldnt marry in Lent.
The bridegroom shouldnt see the bride on the wedding day until he meets her at the altar.
Pearls and opals are supposed to be unlucky.
The wedding ring shouldnt be tried on before the ceremony. Its unlucky to meet a pig on your way to church.
A small spider on the wedding dress means money.
If there is a cat in the house, the bride must feed it personally on her wedding day.
On the other hand, the bride may feel that, what with one thing and another, if she has chosen the right man, it wouldnt matter much if she got married in green, on Friday, May the 13th, wearing a necklace of pearls and opals.
V. Explain the meaning of the bold type words and expressions.
VI. Read the text and ask 5-6 questions to its content. Pay attention to the general slant of the text.
On Marriage
By G.Mikes
Marriage is different from love. It is a good institution but I must add that a lot depends on the person you are married to.
There is no such thing as a good wife and a good husband there is only a good wife to Mr.A. or a good husband to Mrs.B.
If a credulous and gullible woman marries a pathological liar, they may live together happily to the end of their days one telling lies, the other believing them.
A man who cannot live without constant admiration should marry a God, you are wonderful type of woman. If he is unable to make up his mind, he is right in wedding a dictator. One dictator may prosper in a marriage: two are too many.
The way to matrimonial happiness is barred to no one. It is all the matter of choice. One should look for perfection; one should look for the complementary half of a very imperfect other half.
If someone buys a refrigerator, it never occurs to him that it is bad refrigerator because he cannot play gramophone records on it; nor does he blame his hat for not being suitable for use as a flower-vase. But many people who are very fond of their stomach marry their cook or a cook and then blame her for being less radiantly intelligent and witty than George Sand. Or a man may be anxious to show off his wifes beauty and elegance, marry a mannequin and be surprised to discover in six months that she has no balanced views on the international situation. Another marries a girl only and exclusively because she is seventeen and is much surprised fifteen years latter to find that she is not seventeen any more. Or again if you marry a female book-worm who knows all about gold standards, Praxiteles and Keplers laws of planetary motions, you must not blame her for being somewhat less beautiful and temperamental than Marylin Monroe. And if ladies marry a title or a bank account, they must not blame their husbands for not being romantic heroes of the Errol Flynn type.
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You should know what you are buying. And as long as you do not play records on your refrigerator and do not put bunches of chrysanthemums into your hat, you have a reasonable chance of so-called happiness.
VII. Discuss the problem of marriage and cohabitation. Can you give any arguments for the establishment of marriage now that the number of couples living together without a marriage license is increasing?
VIII. In Britain, people can get married at 16 if their parents agree. They can marry at 18 without their parents agreement. What age can people marry in your country? Is it right or wrong to get married young? In your opinion, what is the ideal age to get married?
IX. What is an arranged marriage? in which countries or cultures is this type of marriage common? Do you know anyone who has had an arranged marriage? Read about it.
