Les lois insolites (Unusual laws)

Join host Alexa and guests, Kafí and Agnès, as they uncover strange and unusual French laws. While this isn't as dark as some other episodes, it is pretty scary to consider how long some laws stayed legal! Strengthen your B1 French with them in episode 4 of "Faits historiques macabres" !

Join us on this journey where we practise our French listening skills, enhance our vocabulary and enrich our French cultural knowledge in fun, casual discussions!

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Objectifs

1. to improve your listening skills & general comprehension
2. to build vocabulary and develop sentence construction
3. to learn unusual facts about France

Niveau

B1 - niveau seuil (intermediate)

Texte

Au fil des siècles, la France a connu des lois vraiment étonnantes ! Par exemple, à Paris, une loi de 1800 interdisait aux femmes de porter un pantalon, sauf si elles avaient une autorisation spéciale de la police. Cette loi a évolué en 1892 et 1909, avec des exceptions autorisant le pantalon pour faire du vélo ou du cheval. Plus incroyable encore : même si elle n’était plus vraiment appliquée depuis longtemps, cette loi est restée officiellement en vigueur jusqu’en 2013 !

Question 1. Quelle loi a été instaurée en 1800 ?

Question 2. Quand est-ce que cette loi a été modifiée et pourquoi ?

Notes

Verbs highlighted here are in the imperfect tense. This tense is used to express habits in the past, to describe a situation or memories, or events which occurred over a period of time. This topic is covered in Lessons 23 of my Complete French Course, on https://learnfrenchwithalexa.com.

Réponses

Question 1. Une loi qui interdisait aux femmes de porter un pantalon.

Question 2. En 1892 et 1909, cette loi a été modifiée pour permettre aux femmes de porter un pantalon pour faire du vélo ou du cheval.

Traduction

Over the centuries, France has had some truly astonishing laws! For example, in Paris, a law from 1800 prohibited women from wearing trousers, unless they had special permission from the police. This law was amended in 1892 and 1909, with exceptions allowing trousers to be worn for cycling or horse riding. Even more incredible: although it hadn’t really been enforced for a long time, this law officially remained in force until 2013!

Question 1. Which law was introduced in 1800? A law that prohibited women from wearing trousers.

Question 2. When was the law amended, and why? This law was amended in 1892 and 1909, in order to allow women to wear trousers for cycling or horse riding.