BBC 6分钟英语 离婚为什么会发生

6 min English from BBC learning english dot com.

Hello. This is six minute English from BBC Learning English.

I'm and I'm Georgie. In the words of

a famous 1960s pop song, breaking up is hard to do.

Divorce when a married couple who no longer want to be together separate.

It can be one of life's toughest experiences.

During the 1990s, divorce rates in Europe and America were the highest in the world, with almost half of all marriages ending in divorce.

But since then, the trend has reversed, and divorce rates in the West have slowed.

Meanwhile, however, the number of couples divorcing in other parts of the world is on the rise.

In this program, we'll be hearing how divorces talked about in different countries, and as usual, we'll be learning some useful new vocabulary.

But 1st, I have a question for you, georgie.

In Britain, one day of the year, in particular, is known by divorce lawyers and relationship counsellors as Divorced day.

But which day is it? A Christmas Day?

B, the 1st Monday of the New year, or C, midsummer's Day?

By 24th of June, I think divorce day is the 1st Monday of the year.

Okay, georgie, we'll find out if that's the correct answer later in the program.

Getting married very young and differences between partners, backgrounds or interests are two common causes for couples to grow apart.

Today, marina Ashade is a professor at the University of British Columbia who studies the economics of sex and relationships.

But her life has a very different beginning.

As she told BBC World Service program The Global story.

I married really young. I had no education.

I married somebody who was older than me, who had a lot of education, and our relationship worked well for a while, um and then in my late twenties, I decided to go back to school.

I no longer wanted to be a stay at home mother, which was what I was doing in my twenties.

And that change in our situation for us just became completely unresolvable.

And I think this is true for a lot of marriages, because people's situation changes over their lives.

Maybe they want children, and maybe they change their minds.

Marina started her married life as a stay at home mum, a woman who stays home to take care of the children and manage the household.

Marina married an older man, and although their relationship started well, over time, they developed different ideas about what they wanted from life.

Marina and her husband changed their minds.

They changed an earlier decision they had made.

Growing apart is one of the most frequently given reasons for divorce, and eventually, marina and her husband's problems became unresolvable, not able to be fixed or satisfactorily ended.

Marina's experience is typical of someone who finds themselves trapped in a marriage that no longer works.

Yet unfortunately, due to economic or emotional reasons, many people stay trapped.

So what can be done? Now?

Some countries are looking to the authorities, rather than the couple themselves, for a solution.

Here, lucy Hawkings, presenter of BBC World Services, the Global Story, and divorce counselor Joanna Gosling, discuss a new strategy being used in China.

There was an interesting thing they did in China where they introduced this cooling off period.

So the government enforced this. Does that work?

When the government intervenes in a situation like this, and makes people behave or do things in a if nothing changes in the dynamic between two people being told that they've got to cool off and wait a bit longer, I don't think it's going to make them suddenly realize that they want to be together.

It might be an idea for states to invest in communication programs for these couples, because that's invariably why relationships fall apart.

In response to rising divorce rates, in 2021, the Chinese government introduced a 30 day cooling off period for couples wanting to separate.

A calling off period is a period of time in which two groups who are arguing can try to improve the situation before taking further action.

However, it's unusual for governments to intervene to become involved in people's private lives this way.

Joanna doubts a calling off period will work, especially as the main reason for relationships failing is non communication.

She says, A lack of communication is invariably, well, always the reason for divorce.

On the plus side, by communicating openly, maybe with the professional help of a relationship counsellor, saving a marriage is possible.

I think it's time you reveal the answer to your question.

Phil, you asked about divorce day in Britain, and I guessed it was the 1st Monday of the

New Year. Good guess, georgie, because that's the correct answer.

Divorce Day is the 1st Monday of the year.

OK, let's recap the vocabulary we've learned in this

program, starting with stay at home mum, a phrase for a woman who stays home to care for her children and manage the household.

If you change your mind, you change an earlier decision you made, or opinion you had.

If a problem is unresolvable, it cannot be satisfactorily solved or fixed.

A cooling off period is a period of time for two people to try to resolve their differences.

It can also mean an agreed length of time in which someone can change their mind about something they've agreed to buy.

To intervene means to become involved in a difficult situation in order to improve it.

And finally, the adverb, invariably, means always.

Once again, our 6 min are up, but remember to join us again next time for more trending topics and useful vocabulary.

Goodbye, for now, by 6 min English from BBC learning english dot com.

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