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The Changing Middle Class

　　The United States perceives itself to be a middle-class nation. However，middle class is not a real designation，nor does it carry privileges.1 It is more of a perception，which probably was as true as it ever could be right after World War II. The economy was growing，more and more people owned their own homes，workers had solid contracts with the companies that employed them，and nearly everyone who wanted a higher education could have one. Successful people enjoyed upward social mobility. They may have started out poor，but they could become rich. Successful people also found that they had greater geographic mobility. In other words，they found themselves moving to and living in a variety of places.

　　The middle class collectively holds several values and principles. One strong value is the need to earn enough money to feel that one can determine one's own economic fate. In addition，middle class morality embraces principles of individual responsibility，importance of family, obligations to others，and believing in something outside oneself. 2

　　But in the 1990s those in the middle class found that there was a price for success. A U. S.News World Report survey in 1994 indicated that 75 percent of Americans believed that middle class families could no longer make ends meet 3. Both spouses now worked，as did some of the children; long commutes became routine; the need for child care put strains on4 the family; and public schools were not as good as they once were. Members of the middle cIass were no longer financing their lifestyles through earnings but were using credit to stay afloat. The understanding of just what middle class meant was changing.

　　词汇：

　　designation  n. 称号

　　commute  n. 上下班路程

　　mobility  n. 流动性

　　注释：

　　1. However，middle c1ass is not a real designation，nor does it carry privileges. 然而，中产阶级既不是一个真实的称号，也不会带来特别待遇。

　　2. In addition，middle-c1ass morality embraces principles of individual responsibility，importance of family，obligations to others，and believing in something outside onesèlf. 另外，中产阶级的道德观包括个人的责任感、家庭的重要性、对他人的使命感以及相信自我以外的事物。

　　3. make ends meet：收支相抵，维持生活

　　4. put strains on：带来压力

　　练习：

　　1. The information in this passage deals with_______.

　　A) an individual

　　B) a social and economic group

　　C) a political organization

　　D) government

　　2. A common middle class value is that________.

　　A) people should always have fun

　　B) children should be seen and not heard

　　C) debt is nothing to worry about

　　D) the family is very important

　　3. ln the years after World War II，the middle class could be defined as_______.

　　A) overburdened and in debt

　　B) hard working and suspicious

　　C) prosperous and optimistic

　　D) young and foolish

　　4. The phrase "In other words" in the first paragraph means that the following statement is_____.

　　A) an exception to the previous idea

　　B) a denial of the previous idea

　　C) a restatement of the previous idea

　　D) a contrasting idea

　　5. The word collectively means______.

　　A) as a group

　　B) hesitatingly

　　C) unknowingly

　　D) weakly

　　答案与题解：

　　1. B 本题的问题是：本文的信息是关于？本文通篇讲述美国的中产阶级，指的是社会和经济群体，因此选择B。

　　2. D本题的问题是：一个普遍的中产阶级价值观是？本篇第二段最后一句话讲到，"中产阶级的道德观包括个人的责任感、家庭的重要性、对他人的使命感以及相信自我以外的事物"。A、B、C三个选项不包括在内，因此正确答案是D。

　　3. C 本题的问题是：在二战之后的几年，中产阶级可以被定义为，本篇第一段提到了当时美国经济不断增长并且人们生活水平有了提高，因此选择C选项，繁荣并且乐观。

　　4. C 本题的问题是：第一段中的"ln other words"这个短语与下列说法一致的是，"In other words"汉语意思是换句话来说，因此正确答案是C。

　　5. A 本题的问题是：单词"collectively"的汉语意思是"相同地"，选择A。

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