First Listening
Please listen to a short passage carefully and prepare to answer some questions.
Signing agreements before marriage has become popular in the United States since the 1980s. Premarital agreements are designed to solve problems like how to divide up financial assets if a couple divorces. Some people are strongly against premarital agreements but others argue that there are several reasons for them: for example, to protect the considerable accumulation of wealth of one of the spouses, to protect children from a previous marriage, to lay bare the responsibilities and save a couple from a terrible marriage, etc. With 50% of all marriages in America ending up in divorces, premarital agreements seem to be gaining in acceptance in the United States. (Words: 107)
Second Listening
Listen to the tape again. Then answer the following questions with your own experiences.
1. Have you ever heard of premarital agreements? What do you think they are for?
2. Do you think prenups (premarital agreements) will take the romance out of marriage for the man as well as the woman?
3. Would you ask for a prenuptial agreement before your marriage? Why or why not?
