2014年6月大学英语六级考试阅读真题及答案

　　Section B

　　Directions::In this section,you are going to read a passage with ten statments attached to it.each statement contains information given in one of the paragraphs.identify the paragraph from weich the information is derived.you may choose a parpgraph more than once.each paragraph is marked with a letter.answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on answer sheet 2.

　　lessons from a Feminist Paradise

　　[A]On the surface,Sweden appears to be a feminist paradise.Look at any global survey of gender equality and Sweden will be near the top.Family-friendly policies are its norm-with 16 months of paid parental leave,special protections for part-time workers,and state-subsidized preschools where,according to a government website,"gender-awareness education is increasingly common."due to an unfficial quota system,women hold 45 percent of positions in the swedish parliament.they have enjoyed the protection of government agencies with titles like the Ministry of Integration and Gender Equality and the Secretariat of Gender Research.So why are American women so far ahead of their Swedish counterparts in breaking through the glass ceiling?

　　[B]in a 2012 report,the World Economic Forum found that when it comes to closing the gender gap in"econmic participation and opportunity,"the United States is ahead of not only Sweden but also Finland,Denmark,the Netherlands,Iceland,Germany,and the United Kingdom.Sweden's rank in the report can largely be explained by its political quota system.Though the United States has fewer women in the workorce(68 percent compared to Sweden's 77 percent).American women who choose to be employed are far more likely to work full-time and to hold high-level jobs as manangers or professionals.They also own more businesses,lauch more start-ups(新创办的企业),and more often work in traditionally male fields.As for breaking through the glass ceiling in business,American women are well in the lead.

　　[C]what explains the American advantage?How can it be that societies like Sweden,where gender equality is vigorously pusued and engorced,have fewer female managers,executives,professionals,and business owners than eh laissez-faire(自由放任的)united states?A new study by clrnell economists Francine Blau and Lawrence Kahn gives an explanation.

　　[D]Generous parental leave policies and readily available part-time options have unintended consequences:instead of strengthening women's attachment to the workplace,they appear to weaken it.In addition to a 16-month leave,a swedish parent has the right to work six hours a day (for a reduced salary)until his or her child is eight years old.Mothers are far more likely than fathers to take advantage of this law,But extended leaves and part-time employment are known to be harmful to careers—for both genders. And with women a second factor comes into play:most seem to enjoy the flexible-time arrangement(once known as the “mommytrack”)and never find their way back to full-time or high-level employment.In sum:generous family-friendly policies do keep more women in the labor market,but they also tend to diminisb their careers.

　　[E] According to Blau and Kahn,Swedish-style paternal(父亲的)leave policies and flexibletime arrangements pose a second threat to woman’s progress:they make employers cautious about hiring woman for full-time positions at all.Offering ajob to a man is the safer bet.He is far less likely to take a year of parental leave and then return on a reduced work schedule for the next eight years.

　　[F]I became aware of the triale of career-focused European woman a few years ago when I met a post-doctoral student from Germany who was then a visiting fellow at Johns Hopkins. She was astonished by the professional possibilities afforded to young American woman. Her best hope in Germany was a govermment job—prospects for woman in the private sector were dim.”In Germany “ she told me,”we have all the benefits,”but employers don’t’ wan to hire us.”

　　[G] Swedish economists Magnus Henrekson and Mikael Stenkula addressed the following question in their 2009 study:why are there so few female top executives in the European egalitarian(平等主义的)welfare states?Their answer:”Broad-based welfare-state policies hinder women’s representation in elite competitive positions.”

　　[H] It is tempting to declare the Swedish policies regressive(退步的)and hail the American system as superior.But that would be shortsighted.The Swedes can certainly take a lesson from the United States and look for ways to clear a path for their ambitious female careerists. But most woman are not committsd careerists.When the Pew Research Center recently asked American parents to identify their”ideal”life arrangement,47 percent of mothers said they would prefer to work park-time and 20percent said they would prefer not to work at all.Fathers answered differrntly:75 percent preferred full-time work.Some version of the Swedish system might work well for a majority of American parents,but the United States is unlikely to fully embrace the Swedish model. Still,we can learn from their experience.

　　[I] Despite its failure to shatter the glass ceiling,Sweden has one of the most powerful and innovative economies in the world.In its 2011-2012survey,the World Economic Forum ranked Sweden as the “rockstar of the recovery”in the Washington Post,also leads the world in life satisfaction and happiness. It is a society well worth studying,and its efforts to conquer the gender gap impart a vital lesson—though not the lesson the Swedes had in mind。

　　[J] Sweden has gone farther than any other nation on earth to integrate the sexes and to offer women the same opportunities and freedoms as men.For decades,these descendants of the Vikings have been trying to show the world that the right mix of enlinghtened policy.consciousness raising, and non-sexist child rearingwould close the gender divide once and for all.Yet the divide persists.

　　[K] A 2012 press release from Statistics Sweden bears the title “Gender Equality in Sweden Treading(踩)Water” and notes:

　　1、The total income from employment for all ages is lower for women than for men.

　　2、One in three employed women and one in ten employed men work part-time.

　　3、Women's working time is influenced by the number and age of theirchildren, but men′s working time is not affected by these factors.

　　4、Of all employees，only 13 percent of the women and 12 percent of the men have occupations with an even distribution of the sexes.

　　[L] Confronted with such facts, some Swedish activists and legislators are demanding more ex-treme and far-reaching measures, such as replacing male and female pronouns with a neutral alternative and monitoring children more closely to correct them when they gravitahta(被吸引) toward gendered play. When it came to light last year that mothers, far more than fathers, chose to stay home from work to care for their sick kids. Ulf Kristersson. minister of social security, quickly commissioned a study to determine the causcs of and possiiblce cures for this disturbing stale of affairs.

　　[M]Swcdish family policies, by accommodating women's preferences efleetively, are reduting the number of women in elite competitive positions. The Swedes will find this paradoxical and try to find solutions. Let us hope these do not include banning gender pronouns, policing children′s play, implementing more gender quotas, or treating women′s special attachment to home and family as a social injustice. Most mothers do not aspire to (向往) elite, competitive full-time positions: the Swedish policies have given them the freedom and opportunity to live the lives they prefer. Americans should look past the gender rhetoric and consider what these Scandina-vians have achieved. On their way to creating a feminist paradise, the Swedes have uninten-tionally created a haven (避风港) for normal mortals.

　　注意：此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。

　　46.Sweden has done more than other nations to close the gender gap. but it conimucs 10 exist.

　　47.Sweden is one of the most competitive economics life satisfaction.

　　48. More American women hold elite job positions in business than Swedish women.

　　49. Swedish family-friendly policies tend to exert a negative influence on women′s careers.

　　50.The quota system in Sweden ensures women′s better representation in government.

　　51.Though the Swedish model appears workable for most American parents, it may not be accepted by them in its entirety.

　　52.Swedish women are allowed the freedom and opportunity to choose their own way of life.

　　53.Swedish employers are hesitant about hiring women for full-time positions because of the family-friendly policies.

　　54.Gender-awareness education is becoming more and more popular in state-subsidized preschools in Sweden.

　　55.Some lawmakers in Sweden propose that genderless pronouns be used in the Swedish language.

　　参考答案

　　46. Sweden has done more than other nations to close the gender gap, but it continues to exist.

　　答案J。

　　解析：“has done more than other nations”对应第一句“has gone farther than any other nation”, “close the gender gap”对应倒数第二句“close the gender divide”，“it continues to exist”对应最后一句“the divide persists”

　　47. Sweden is one of the most competitive economies in the world and its people enjoy the greatest life satisfaction.

　　答案I。

　　解析： “one of the most competitive economies in the world”对应第二句 “the world’s third most competitive economy”， “…enjoy the greatest life satisfaction”对应第三句“… also leads the world in life satisfaction and happiness”

　　48. More American women hold elite job positions in business than Swedish women.

　　答案M。

　　解析： “elite job positions” 对应第一句“elite competitive positions”， “More American…than Swedish women”对应第一句瑞士的政策正在“reducing the number of women in elite positions”,结合后文提到美国的情况，得出更多美国女性拥有高级职位。

　　49. Swedish family-friendly policies tend to exert a negative influence on women’s career.

　　答案D。

　　解析： “Swedish family-friendly policies”对应第一句“Generous parental leave policies and readily available part-time options”，“a negative influence”指的就是第二句提到的“they appear to weaken it”，这里的it指的是前文提到的“women’s attachment to the workplace” 。

　　50. The quota system in Sweden ensures women’s better representation in government.

　　答案A。

　　解析： “The quota system in Sweden”对应第四句“an unofficial quota system”，“representation in government” 对应后来提到的“45 percent of positions in the Swedish parliament” 。

　　51. Though the Swedish model appears workable for most American parents, it may not be accepted by them in its entirely.

　　答案H。

　　解析：“the Swedish model appears workable for most American parents”对应倒数第二句“Swedish system might work well for a majority of American parents”，“may not be accepted by them in its entirely”对应最后一句“unlikely to fully embrace the Swedish model”。

　　52. Swedish women are allowed the freedom and opportunity to choose their own way of life.

　　答案M。

　　解析：瑞典的女性有更多自由和机会来选择想要的生活。该句直接对应M段倒数第3句话：” the Swedish policies have given them the freedom and opportunity to live the lives they prefer.”

　　53. Swedish employers are hesitant about hiring women for full-time positions because of the family-friendly policies.

　　答案E。

　　解析：因为家庭友好型政策，瑞典的雇主们在雇佣全职女性时会有顾虑。对应E段第一句话，” they make employers wary of hiring women for full-time positions at all.”句中 they 指的就是family-friendly policies，而be hesitant about是对be wary of的改写。

　　54. Gender-awareness education is becoming more and more popular in state-subsidized preschools in Sweden.

　　答案A。

　　解析：根据 “Gender-awareness education”对应到A段第3句话：“state-subsidized preschools where, gender-awareness education is increasingly common.” 而 “more and more popular”就是对 “increasingly common”的改写。

　　55. Some lawmakers in Sweden propose the genderless pronouns be used in the Swedish language.

　　答案L。

　　解析：根据”lawmakers”对应到L段第一句“legislators”，”the genderless pronouns” 对应 “replacing male and female pronouns with a neutral alternative”。