Intro
1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.
2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.
Do you know anyone with pierced ears? How about a pierced nose? Or a lip, or eyebrow, or maybe even a bellybutton? In the United States, ear piercing was popular for many years, and in the 1990s putting a hole in nearly any body part became much more popular. The trend has continued in some parts of the country, but in other parts, it’s already played out.
Some people find piercings fun or attractive, but some people think they look painful or even disgusting. If you have a piercing, it’s important to take care of it to make sure it doesn’t become infected, because an infected piercing is definitely painful and disgusting. Find out what Marni and Lily think about piercings in this fashion English lesson.
Dialog
1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.
2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.
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Lily: These days there are a lot of people with piercings. It’s like a new thing.
Marni: Well, it seems like piercings were really popular, I don’t know, 15 or so years ago, and then they’ve sort of ebbed and flowed. But it’s weird, cause it’s like, you do these things to stand out, but then there’s so many people that are doing it, is it really standing out or is it just… I don’t know.
Lily: I’m too much of a baby. It seems too excruciating to get holes punched into your ears, and then you might get an infection, you know. I’m too much of a weenie for that.
Marni: Body modification has been around for centuries, many cultures have done it and still do do it, but it’s an interesting trend to me that you see so many current young people committing to this pretty drastic piercing.
Lily: It’s not just nose piercing anymore or anything. Like the little things on your upper lip, that kind of stuff.
Marni: Yeah, I kind of always liked that. So some things don’t strike you as really, wow, that’s a huge commitment-
Lily: Dramatic.
Marni: Yeah, they’re not so dramatic. But there is definitely- I mean people get pierced everywhere these days.
Lily: Everywhere.
Marni: Seems painful.
Lily: Mmm hmm.
Grammar Point
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Discussion
Lily notices that piercings have been popular in recent years. Marni thinks that they may not be that popular right now, but that their popularity ebbs and flows. She thinks the power of piercings to make someone stand out lessens when many people are doing it.
Marni and Lily know that piercing and other forms of body modification have a long history, but they both think that getting pierced would be painful. They also think it’s a very dramatic commitment to make. It doesn’t sound as if either of them will be following this trend anytime soon.
What do you think of piercings? Do you have any? Do you think that piercing or other forms of body modification is a form of rebellion?
Comments
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