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men to boost its flagging recruits; and if supply now matches demands; I am sure we can all rest more easily in the shadow of the Axis of Evil。
5
[A]Social engineering that fixes men and women in the same post; at all costs; makes no sense。
[B]Given such progress; only rabid equalitarian would argue that they cannot rest until women have the right to be windbagged by some old geezer reading Horse and Hound by the fire; or risk death or a war wound through their rightful place on the front line。
[C]but that doesn’t mean I want to be mowed down with the ‘boys’ in the killing fields。
[D]They want to get on with dealing the most humiliating defeat upon the remaining enemy: foes such as those employers who pay women less than parable men; the corporations with an allmale hierarchy at the top; and of course the men who tiresomely persist in sexist words or behaviour。
[E]‘Boys’; it seems; is a good; encouraging; matey kind of word。
[F]But a woman does not need to be in the firing line to feel as good as a man。 That is an equality too far。
[G]The army is slammed for sexism; but do we want a ‘Mum’s Army?
答案及解析
1。D。从文章开头,我们可以看到本文主要讨论了现代性别歧视问题,空白处前一句话表明,这场平等之战的赢家并不想浪费宝贵的时间去欢呼。这就暗示了这场战争还未完结,顺着这个逻辑思路,不难看到选项D是符合上下文的。
2。E。从下文“Girls, by contrast; is derogatory and demeaning。” 得知上文是与这句“by contrast” 的。所以对应来说大致的意思就应该为“既然‘姑娘们’这个称呼是贬义的,有辱人格的,那么‘小伙子们’就是鼓舞人心的,表示友好的称呼”,所以应选E。
3。C。本段开头用一个否定表示作者并不认为所谓的平等就是与那些“小伙子们”并肩战斗,浴血战场。而且在字里行间也一直贯穿着这个意思,所以最后一句也不会偏离这个语境,选项C用在这里衔接很自然。
4。A。此处空白是段首句,而上一段作者列举了种种女性勇往直前的工作领域,其后又用讽刺的笔调描画了苏联所谓男女平等的社会工作的滑稽可笑的情境,由此而见,作者并不赞成女性盲目地追求形式上的平等。而选项A意为“千方百计让男女干同样工作的社会工程毫无意义”,即起到了承前的作用,又开启了下文。
5。F。此处为本文结束语,前一段作者认为女性作为兵源的补充是合情合理的。最后一段作为全篇总结,既要与上一段呼应又要回扣题目“我不会为平等而送死。”抓住“战争”、“平等”两个关键词,我们不难锁定选项F为正确答案。
中心思想
本文作者以轻松诙谐的笔调探讨了什么是男女间真正的平等。作者抓住军队这个大环境,用一系列的假设和举例阐述了自己的观点,即女性应该去追求两性平等,但没有必要处处要求平等,更没有必要单纯为了平等而平等。只有合情合理的平等才能造就和谐的社会和心灵。
译文
七十五年前,所有英国妇女最终获得了选举权,而英国男性比她们早了十年。令人称奇的是,力排众阻而首先追踪报道此事件的竟是《太阳报》(颇具讽刺意味的是,《太阳报》“庆贺”妇女们的解放;但不加掩饰地表达了他们对丰乳肥臀的莫大兴趣)。
似乎未曾有人注意到,这场平等权之争的赢家根本不愿浪费宝贵的时间来欢呼喝彩;因为,他们想与一些曾令他们蒙受败绩之辱的对手再战,诸如那些给女性雇员支付低于其男性同事工资的雇主,那些高层管理人员均为男性的企业公司,当然还有那些持男性至上论调或有此行为的男性“同胞”。
军队也一样,一篇上周发表的报告抨击军方的性别歧视。报告指出,女性军人被呼作“姑娘们”——报告撰写人言道,这大不同于人们对军队的称呼“男儿们”。“男儿们”是一个褒义的、鼓舞人心的且身份友好的字眼。相形之下,“姑娘们”却是一个含贬义并意带轻蔑的字眼。撰稿人指出,在一个有部分免税并有公平机会立法的制度里,唯一可期待的是将“姑娘们”一词从直接战斗岗位上删除。沙文主义也该到头了。
等一下:女性是否真的想把男性化军队变成一支娘子军呢?那些装备着现代化武器的巾帼英雄们是否愿到前线厮杀?她们是否愿和男兵耳鬓厮磨?我们不想和男兵们一道与伊拉克人战斗;也不想争取被集束炸弹炸成碎片的机会。就我个人来讲,我不会因别人叫我〃姑娘〃而恼怒;但是,这并非意味着我想与“男儿们”一起在战场上浴血奋战。
如果杰克能行,那么吉尔也行或许更好——这一公平原则长期以来备受社会规划者和女权主义者的推崇。数十年来,只准男性涉足的领域授予女性以最响亮的战斗口号——“我也要加入”。其中包括精英俱乐部、手工工艺、英国教会、军队。
现如今,只有为数不多的几个领域里没有女性的身影;如高尔夫爱好者的天堂——圣安德鲁斯皇家古老高尔夫球俱乐部,罗马天主教会的神职人员和战争最前线。
如今,证券交易所的主席由女性担任;女性水管工也与日俱增(包括最近上了新闻头条的牛津大学毕业生尼克拉?基利森,她放弃了咨询医师的工作而甘愿做一名水管工);军队成员的十二分之一为女性。因此,女性卡车司机也就不足为奇了;女性司机的表现极佳以致保险公司愿意降低保费,但是,前提是其家庭成员中的男性不得驾车。
千方百计地让男女干同样工作的社会工程毫无意义。在苏联的外国人坐在陈设简陋的餐馆里细嚼苹果布丁时,他们惊异的目光会落在那些衣着简陋的工人身上。是谁在粉刷那些已破败不堪的建筑物?是女人。是谁在装卸那些垃圾车?是女人。又是谁在清扫雪后的肮脏街道呢?还是女人。
以色列军方认为,女性应同男性一起面对敌人的炮火。这一想法极其错误,男兵常常为了保护女兵而做出几近自杀的举动;结果是伤亡人数急剧增加。现在,以色列政府正着手立法禁止女性参加火线战斗。此种情况在美国军队里也司空见惯,体能测试成绩最好的女兵也难将手榴弹掷出安全距离之外。
很多女性被《简氏高级陆军武器装备手册》所吸引,这无可厚非;还有很多女性将整个周末都花在了玩战争类电子游戏上,这也无不妥之处。军队招募女性入伍是因为应征的男性供不应求。倘若军队以女性替代男性的话,那么可以肯定的是,我们大家会更容易被邪恶轴心的阴影笼罩。
总之,女性无需在导火线战场上像男性一样去厮杀;这与是否平等无关。
二
From the seventeenthcentury empire of Sweden; the story of a galleon that sank at the start of her maiden voyage in 1628 must be one of the strangest tales of the sea。 For nearly three and a half centuries she lay at the bottom of Stockholm harbour until her discovery in 1956。 1
2 Triple gundecks mounted sixtyfour bronze cannon。 She was intended to play a leading role in the growing might of Sweden。
As she was prepared for her maiden voyage on August 10;1628; Stockholm was in a ferment。 From the Skeppsbron and surrounding islands the people watched this thing of beauty begin to spread her sails and catch the wind。 They had laboured for three years to produce this floating work of art; she was more richly carved and ornamented than any previous ship。 The high stern castle was a riot of carved gods; demons; knights; kings; warriors; mermaids; cherubs; and zoomorphic animal shapes ablaze with red and gold and blue; symbols of courage; power; and cruelty; were portrayed to stir the imaginations of the superstitious sailors of the day。
3 4
As the wind freshened there came a sudden squall and the ship made a strange movement; listing to port。 The Ordnance Officer ordered all the port cannon to be heaved to starboard to counteract the list; but the steepening angle of the decks increased。 Then the sound of rumbling thunder reached the watchers on the shore; as cargo;ballast; ammunition and 400 people went sliding and crashing down to the port side of the steeply listing ship。 5 In that first glorious hour; the mighty Vasa; which was intended to rule the Baltic; sank with all flags flying—in the harbour of her birth。
[A]All gunports were open and the muzzles peeped wickedly from them。
[B] Vasa sailed majestically out of the bay。
[C]This was the Vasa; royal flagship of the great imperial fleet。
[D]King Gustavus Adolphus; ‘The Northern Hurricane’; then at the height of his military success in the Thirty Years’ War; had dictated her measurements and armament。
[E]The lower gunports were now below water and the inrush sealed the ship’s fate。
[F] As soon as her discovery; the world became shocked。
[G]Then the cannons of the anchored warships thundered a salute to which the Vasa fired in reply。 As she emerged from her drifting cloud of gun smoke with the water churned to foam beneath her bow; her flags flying; pennants waving; sails filling in the breeze; and the red and gold of her superstructure ablaze with colour; she presented a more majestic spectacle than Stockholmers had ever seen before。
答案及解析
1。C。文章开篇介绍一艘瑞典皇家大船1628年在处女航中沉船,直到1956年才被人们发现。选C才能把事件交待清楚。干扰项是F。因为下段也没有再提船的名字,所以第一段要交待出主要“人物”。
2。D。第二段交待事情的缘由,1498~1632年之间,瑞典新教势力与波兰天主教势力之间的战争及王室之间联姻带来的积怨使战争时断时续。古斯塔夫斯(Gustavus) 二世接替王位后(1594~1632),瑞典雄踞上风,准备再一次出海远征,Vasa (瓦萨)战舰就是为出征建造的。
3。G。前两段介绍背景,第三段由背景转入1628年8月10日战船启航前的雄姿。第四、五两段很紧凑地叙述了启航那一刻的热闹场面及它突然倾斜下沉的悲剧。
4。A。muzzles peeped wickedly 中,用 wickedly 这个词预示着这次航行的厄运。与上一句中 in a majestic spectacle 及 the red and gold of her superstructure 形成一种强烈的反差,干扰项为选项B。
5。E。最后一段写了沉船时的情形,描写船身向左倾斜,无论用什么方法也没能止住这种倾斜,船最终下沉没顶,从此躺在波罗的海海底300余年之久。
中心思想
本文描写了“瓦萨”号出航前的雄姿及刹那间船体倾斜,货物、装备及船上400人顷刻葬身海底的海难悲剧。Vasa (瓦萨)是瑞典17世纪,更确切地说,是16