Part B

Text 1

A MarriageAgreement (Part One)

(Tom andLinda have signed a marriage agreement. Both agree not to break the rulesoutlined in the agreement. John, a reporter, is talking to them about theagreement.)

John: Tom,Linda, first I'd like to ask you why you decided to write this unusualagreement.

Tom: Wefound that many problems are caused when a person has different expectationsfrom his or her spouse. We wanted to talk about everything openly and honestlybefore we started living together.

Linda:Also we both know how important it is to respect each other's pet peeves. Like,I can get very annoyed if others leave stuff -- clothing, papers, everything!-- lying around on the floor. It really bugged me, so we put that in theagreement.

John: Thisis mentioned in Article 1: Cleaning Up, isn't it? It says, "Nothing willbe left on the floor overnight. Everything must be cleaned up and put awaybefore going to bed."

Tom: ThenI'll know clearly what Linda's expectations are.

John: Isee. What about Article 2: Sleeping? It says, "We will go to bed at 11p.m. and get up at 6:30 a.m. except on weekends." I'm sure some peoplehearing this will think that this agreement isn't very romantic.

Tom: Well,we disagree. We think it's very romantic. This agreement shows that we sat downand talked, and really tried to understand the other person. A lot of problemsoccur in a marriage when people don't talk about what they want.

Linda:That's right. When we disagreed about something, we worked out a solution thatwas good for both of us. I would much rather have Tom really listen to me andunderstand my needs than give me a bunch of flowers or a box of candy.

Questions:

1. Whichstatement best summarizes the marriage agreement between Tom and Linda?

2.According to Tom, what will give rise to problems in a marriage?

3. Whatcan be inferred about Linda from the conversation?

Text 2

A MarriageAgreement (Part Two)

John:Linda, do you spend a lot of time checking to see if the other person isfollowing the rules? Arguing?

Linda: No,not at all.

Tom: A lotof couples argue because they don't understand each other's expectations. Ithink we spend less time arguing than most couples because we both know whatthe other person expects.

John: Whathappens if one of you breaks a rule?

Tom: Well,that's in Article 13 of our agreement.

John: Isit? Oh yes, Article 13: Breaking Rules. "If you break a rule, you mustapologize and do something nice for the other person to make it up."

Linda:Yeah, like last time Tom broke the rule of driving.

John:What's the rule?

Linda: Therule is we must ask for directions if we are driving and get lost for more thanfive minutes.

John: Whathappened?

Tom: Wewere driving to a friend's wedding, and we got lost. Linda wanted to stop at agas station to ask for directions, but I thought I could figure it out.

Linda:Then we drove forty miles in the wrong direction and ended up being late forthe wedding.

Tom: So Itook her out to dinner. I knew what I should do to apologize.

John:That's very important, I think, knowing how to apologize. By the way, do youplan to update your agreement at all? What if things change in your life and arule doesn't work anymore?

Linda:We've thought about that too. Article 14 states that we must review thisagreement once a year and make necessary changes.

John:Well, it was really nice talking to you both. Thank you very much for yourtime.

Tom &Linda: Thank you.

Statements:

1. Tom andLinda never argue because they both know what the other person expects.

2. OnceTom broke Article 14 and apologized to Linda by taking her out to dinner.

3. If someof the rules in the marriage agreement become outdated, changes will be made toupdate them.

4. Itseems that both Tom and Linda are satisfied with their marriage agreement.

Part C

A PerfectMatch

Are youlooking for a good relationship with someone special? What type of person isthe best person for you? Is it the person with the highest IQ? Is it the mostbeautiful or most handsome person? How about the richest person or the mostambitious? Is your ideal partner the most traditional or the most modernperson? Is he or she the person most like you, or most unlike you?

Theanswer, psychologists say, is none of the above. Why? Because they are allextremes. In a number of research studies, psychologists asked couples thesequestions. The answers were clear. Most people are happy with moderation --with partners who are not the most or the best (or the least or the worst).People are more comfortable with partners who are not so special.

Theresearch showed several other important things. In a love relationship, twothings can cause trouble. First, trouble happens when both people get angryquickly. This is not surprising. Second, trouble happens when people don'texpect to change themselves in a relationship. Do you stay calm when youdisagree with someone? Are you ready to change yourself? If you can toleratedisagreement and are willing to change, maybe you are ready for a seriousrelationship.

Statements:

1. Thepassage implies that the perfect match for you is a person who is most unlikeyou.

2. Theauthor argues that the most beautiful or most handsome person may not be yourperfect partner.

3.Moderate person, that is, the partners who are not the most or the best can beyour perfect match.

4. Theresearch showed that an extreme love relationship between the two can causetrouble.

5. Thepassage states that the anger is one of the causes that lead to the breakup ofa love relationship.

6. Theperfect match lies in the people's attitudes to tolerate disagreement and bewilling to change in a relationship.

Part D

Husbandsand Wives Don't See Things Alike

Let's faceit -- husbands and wives just don't see things alike. Take TV remote controls,for example. I'm a channel-grazer. When I watch the news, I flip back and forththrough four different networks.

"Itdrives me crazy when you do that," my wife complains. I don't understandwhy she has no interest in other channels. After all, she is a woman who wantsto know everything going on in the neighborhood and among all the relatives.Just one button away might be an interesting program on How to Lose FiftyPounds by Eating Chocolate Sundaes or How to Understand Weird Husbands. But,no, she won't change channels, not even if she dislikes the program she'swatching.

"Thistalk show host makes me so angry!" she cried one evening.

"Thenwhy don't you change the channel?" I asked.

"BecauseI can't stand people who are always changing channels."

Differences.No right or wrong, just differences.

"Thefirst law of civilization," said an old philosopher, "is to letpeople be different."

I don'tneed to convert my wife to my ways, and she doesn't try to make me be like her.We simply take turns monitoring the remote control.