Question

    Housework is an endless argument between lazy husbands and their hard-working wives, but women are warned not to expect men to share housework any time soon.

A study from Oxford University has found it seems impossible for men to be doing an equal share of housework before 2050. Mothers will continue to shoulder the burden(负担) of childcare and housework for the next forty years, largely because housework such as cleaning and cooking is still thought of to be “women’s work”.

The gap(鸿沟) has narrowed slowly over the past 40 years. Women expect true equality(平等). But what makes them down is that it will take another forty years before it is achieved.

The research found that in the northern Europe, the burden of housework is shared more equally between men and women. In the UK, a woman spends around four hours and forty minutes each day on housework, compared with two hours and twenty-eight minutes for men. This is an improvement from the 1960s, when British women typically(典型地) spent six hours a day on housework, while men spent just 90 minutes every day.

But progress towards housework equality appears to be slowing in some countries. Dr Oriel Sullivan,a research reader, said, “we’ve looked at what is influencing the equality in the home, and we have found that certain tasks seem to be given according to whether they are viewed as ‘men’s work’ or ‘women’s work’.”

Dr Sullivan said cultural attitudes(态度) taught at school may decide the views of housework. “At school it is much easier for a girl to be a tomboy, but it is much more difficult for a boy to enjoy cooking and dancing,” she said.

1.Women will continue to do more housework before 2050 mainly because _________.

A.men are too busy to help B.they would like to do so

C.they can do better D.it is considered as women’s work

2.The underlined “it” in Paragraph 3 refers to (指代) ___________.

A.the research B.true housework C.true equality D.the gap

3.From Paragraph 4 we know that in the UK ___________.

A.men now spend just 90 minutes a day on housework on average

B.women now are too busy with their work to do housework

C.women now spend less time on housework than before

D.housework is shared equally between men and women

4._____________ is mentioned in the last two paragraphs(段) of the article.

A.What men think of housework

B.How much housework women spend on housework

C.What influences people’s view of housework

D.Why men should share housework

5.What is the main idea of this passage?

A.Argument about housework between husbands and wives will end.

B.Women will be doing more housework than men until 2050.

C.Men are unable to help their wives with housework.

D.Women spend less time on housework while men spend more than before.

Answer

1.D

2.C

3.C

4.C

5.B

【解析】

本文主要讲述了家务劳动的问题。牛津大学的一项研究发现，在2050年之前，诸如打扫卫生和烹饪等家务活仍然被认为是“妇女的工作”。目前关于家务的观点已经对女性有了一定的益处，但女性分担的家务仍旧远远多于男性。

1.句意：2050年之前，女性将继续做更多的家务，主要是因为________。

细节理解题。选项A.男人们太忙了，帮不上忙。B.她们愿意这样做。C.她们可以做得更好。D.它被认为是妇女的工作。结合原文信息，依据文中：Mothers will continue to shoulder the burden of childcare and housework for the next forty years, largely because housework such as cleaning and cooking is still thought of to be “women’s work”.在未来的40年里，母亲们将继续承担照顾孩子和做家务的责任，这主要是因为打扫卫生和做饭等家务仍然被认为是“女性的工作”。可知，正确答案为：D。

2.句意：第3段中划线的“it”指的是_________。

词义理解题。选项A. the research研究。B. true housework真正的家务。C. true equality真正的平等。D. the gap差距。结合原文信息，依据文中：The gap has narrowed slowly over the past 40 years.这一差距在过去40年里缓慢缩小。Women expect true equality.妇女期待真正的平等。But what makes them down is that it will take another forty years before it is achieved.但令他们失望的是，要实现这一目标还需要40年的时间。可知，it指代前面的true equality正确答案为：C。

3.句意：从第4段我们知道，在英国_________。

细节理解题。选项A.现在男性平均每天只花90分钟做家务。B.现在的妇女工作太忙而不能做家务。C.现在妇女花在家务上的时间比以前少了。D.家务是男女平等分担的。结合原文信息，依据文中：The research found that in the northern Europe, the burden of housework is shared more equally between men and women.研究发现，在北欧，男性和女性分担的家务活更多。In the UK, a woman spends around four hours and forty minutes each day on housework, compared with two hours and twenty-eight minutes for men.在英国，女性每天花在家务上的时间约为4小时40分钟，而男性为2小时28分钟。This is an improvement from the 1960s, when British women typically spent six hours a day on housework, while men spent just 90 minutes every day.这与上世纪60年代相比有所改善，当时英国女性通常每天花6个小时做家务，而男性每天只花90分钟。可知，现在妇女花在家务上的时间比以前少了。正确答案为：C。

4.句意：文章的最后两段提到了_________。

归纳概括题。选项A.男人怎么看待家务。B.女性在家务活上的付出。C.什么影响了人们对家务的看法。D.为什么男人要分担家务。结合原文信息，依据文中：But progress towards housework equality appears to be slowing in some countries.但在一些国家，家务平等的进程似乎正在放缓。Dr Sullivan said cultural attitudes taught at school may decide the views of housework.沙利文博士说，学校所教授的文化态度可能会决定人们对家务活的看法。可知，正确答案为：C。

5.句意：这篇文章的主旨是什么?

主旨大意题。选项A.夫妻间关于家务的争论将会结束。B.到2050年，女性将比男性承担更多的家务。C.男人不能帮助他们的妻子做家务。D.女人花在家务上的时间比以前少，而男人花在家务上的时间比以前多。结合原文信息，依据文中：A study from Oxford University has found it seems impossible for men to be doing an equal share of housework before 2050.牛津大学(Oxford University)的一项研究发现，在2050年之前，男性似乎不可能承担同等比例的家务劳动。Mothers will continue to shoulder the burden of childcare and housework for the next forty years, largely because housework such as cleaning and cooking is still thought of to be “women’s work”.在未来的40年里，母亲们将继续承担照顾孩子和做家务的责任，这主要是因为打扫卫生和做饭等家务仍然被认为是“女性的工作”。可知，正确答案为：B。