ESL Podcast 917 – Types of Families

 　　Patricia: Okay, we’re nearly done setting up for the neighborhood party. I got some nametags with “father,” “mother,” and “kids” printed on them, with a space for people to write their names. It’ll be easier for people to introduce themselves and make friends.

　　Ed: The nametags are a good idea, but we have to keep in mind that in this day and age, there are a lot of unconventional families. We won’t just have nuclear or traditional families coming.

　　Patricia: I don’t see how that makes a difference.

　　Ed: Don’t you? What if we have same-sex families? We need to be ready to hand out two “father” or two “mother” nametags. There are also a lot of stepfamilies with more than one set of parents.

　　Patricia: Well, the men are all “fathers” and the “women” are all mothers – that’s simple. I still don’t see the problem.

　　Ed: What if the children are being raised by grandparents? Some of the men could be grandfathers and some of the women grandmothers.

　　Patricia: Okay, we might have some of those families.

　　Ed: And don’t forget that some parents are divorced or are single parents. Their current partner may not be their spouse¹. It wouldn’t be appropriate to give them “father” or “mother” nametags. We might even get foster families, in which case, the nametags may not be applicable at all.

　　Patricia: I give up. Forget I ever brought up these nametags. I’ll get blank ones with nothing on them.

　　Ed: That’s a good idea. Given the complexity² we live in today, choosing simplicity³ might be the way to go!

1 spouse   

n.配偶(指夫或妻)

参考例句：

• Her spouse will come to see her on Sunday.她的丈夫星期天要来看她。
• What is the best way to keep your spouse happy in the marriage?在婚姻中保持配偶幸福的最好方法是什么？

2 complexity   

n.复杂(性)，复杂的事物

参考例句：

• Only now did he understand the full complexity of the problem.直到现在他才明白这一问题的全部复杂性。
• The complexity of the road map puzzled me.错综复杂的公路图把我搞糊涂了。

3 simplicity   

n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯

参考例句：

• She dressed with elegant simplicity.她穿着朴素高雅。
• The beauty of this plan is its simplicity.简明扼要是这个计划的一大特点。