K

E S L L E S S O N P L A N

ARE THEY SERIOUS?

Language Function: expressing prohibition, talking about laws

Vocabulary/Topic: law, strange rules, Italy, forbidding and banning things

S T U D E N T W O R K S H E E T

focus on talking
activity 1. Ask and answer the following questions.

What is the purpose of the rule of law?

Is there any specific law in your country you do

not agree with? Do you have any laws that
foreigners find strange?

If you could create one law, what would it be?

focus on comprehension
SPELLING IN ENGLISH
activity 2. Read the statements below and decide whether they are true or
false, then read the text on page 2 to find out if you were right or wrong.
decorum
behaviour that is controlled,
1. Some laws seem silly because they are very old. calm and polite; etiquette
2. The French secret police are arresting all pigs named Napoleon. example: to act behave with
3. No one is allowed to feed pigeons in Lucca, Italy. proper decorum

4. In England, it is illegal to bring a drunk frog in a cab.

5. Italian mayors are responsible for many of the new and bizarre laws.
bizarre
6. On the island of Capri, women can’t wear bikini swimsuits.
very strange and unusual
7. The summer of bans is a music festival in Italy.
example: a bizarre situation
8. Rodrigo Piccoli was fined 50 euro for offending public decorum.

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Are They Serious?

Law is a serious
matter. Or is it?
The law is a tricky thing. Laws aim to protect people and
preserve order. But that doesn’t prevent governments
across the world from creating some silly laws. Some are
simply strange and others are outdated. In London, for
instance, it is illegal to hire a taxi if you have the plague -
though the black death has not appeared on the European
continent in hundreds of years. France appears prepared
to defend the legacy and honor of Napoleon: it is
forbidden to name a pig Napoleon. And in the American
state of Ohio, it is against the law to get a fish drunk.
Most of these laws are no longer enforced or even
known. The police do not stop travelers from boarding a cab and question them if they might have
the plague. There is no gestapo force in France patrolling the countryside searching for pigs named
Napoleon. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is not monitoring lakes and rivers for drunk
fish.
Now Italy, in an effort to cut down on crime in the country, has given Italian mayors extra law-
and-order powers. The result is a new wave of bizarre “public decorum” laws. On the island of
Capri, it is now illegal to wear a bikini swimsuit anywhere but on the beach. In the seaside city of
Eraclea, near Venice, leave the buckets and shovels at home because building sandcastles is not
permitted. In Eboli, a public display of affection in a vehicle can merit a 500 euro fine. Pigeons are
hit hard by a new law in Lucca, as it is now against the law to feed them. And in Novara the only
people in the parks at night will be loving couples - groups of more than two people are banned
from parks after dark.
Has the government gone too far in the name of public decorum? Many people think so and
the Italian press has labeled the rapid increase of new and strange laws as “the summer of bans”. In
the city of Vicenza, Rodrigo Piccoli was fined 50 euro for laying down in a park to read a book. The
law became national news when he telephoned a radio station and complained. The mayor of this
Italian city has since apologized and promised to remove the ban. Let’s hope that the government
relaxes before instituting a national dress code.

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Are They Serious

focus on discussion
activity 3. List all examples of strange Italian laws presented in the article. Why were they
introduced? Can you find any justification for their introduction? Which of these laws would you
support and which ones would you object to?
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focus on vocabulary
activity 4. Explain the following words and expressions from the text.
1. tricky ..............................................................................................................................................
2. to preserve ...................................................................................................................................
3. outdated .......................................................................................................................................
4. illegal ............................................................................................................................................
5. plague ..........................................................................................................................................
6. forbidden ......................................................................................................................................
7. to enforce a law ............................................................................................................................
8. to cut down on crime ....................................................................................................................
9. law-and-order powers ..................................................................................................................
10. to merit .........................................................................................................................................
11. a fine ............................................................................................................................................
12. to be hit hard by a new law ...........................................................................................................
13. public display of affection ............................................................................................................
14. to ban ..........................................................................................................................................
15. dress code ....................................................................................................................................

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Are They Serious? INTERMEDIATE

SIMILAR BUT NOT THE

If you want to prevent something from happening, you can do it in a
number of ways. You can prohibit it, which suggests that you have
legal or other authority and are willing to back up your prohibition with
force; or you can simply forbid it and hope that others will listen to you.
Ban is more serious because it involves both legal and moral issues.
A government or some other authority may disallow something that
might otherwise be permitted. If a government outlaws something, it
makes it illegal. When you want to abolish a law, you want it to end.

forbidding TO PROHIBIT
to officially forbid something
TO ABOLISH - to endSenator activity or John
customMcCain
officially is the presidential
banning Motor vehicles are prohibited from driving in
the town centre.
National Service was abolished in Britain innominee
republican 1962.
from the state of
The government introduced a law
TO BAN - to forbid, especially
Arizona. officially.
He is a
prohibiting tobacco advertisements on TV.
Parking is strictly prohibited between the veteran of(the
The film was banned in several counties. the Vietnam
government prevented it from being shown)
gates. War and was a
She was banned from driving for two years.
prisoner of war. His
TO FORBID - to refuse to allow something, especially officially, or to prevent
TO OUTLAW - to make something
policies illegal
on national
a particular action by making it impossible.
or unacceptable security and foreign
The law forbids the sale of cigarettes to people under the age of 16.
The new law will outlaw smoking
policyinare
public places to the
similar
He’s obviously quite embarrassed about it because he forbade me to tell anyone.
He is forbidden from leaving the country. policies of George
Bush.

focus on discussion
activity 5. Discuss the following laws and bans. Do you support them? Why were they introduced?
Which of them would you abolish? Why?

smoking bans in public places

mobile phone bans in cars / schools

helmet laws when riding a bicycle

seat belt laws when driving a car

gun control laws

alcohol laws: alcohol banned for people under 21 (USA) /

ban on drinking alcohol in public places

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