Unit 14 Women

Part B

Exercise 1

Most women in France work. Their average salary is about 75% that of their male co-workers, even though laws passed in 1972 require "professional equality" between the sexes. The good news is that women are increasingly moving into middle management. A handful are top executives. The higher their position, the harder it is to balance family and career. A 38-year-old woman who graduated from the prestigious National School of Administration remembers that when she took a senior post in a ministry, her male colleagues assured her, "You are one of us, one of the guys." But when she became a mother, they stuck to age-old traditions that she couldn't follow ¡ª long lunches and late-night meetings. "It was too much pressure and I felt like I was being sabotaged," she says. For those who want to balance family with a job, as opposed to a high-pressure, high-visibility career, France is a haven. Women marry later, on average, than in America ¡ª at age 25. And they stay in the workforce. Part-time jobs are easy to find. Maternity benefits are generous, with over six months of paid leave. Women who've raised three or more children are entitled to a state-funded pension. The quality of publicly funded education for children is high. And abortion is not only legal, but it's paid for by the state. French businesswomen dress elegantly, argue intelligently and play hardball at the negotiating table. They show their wit, intellect, ability to make puns and understanding of politics, history and literature. Unlike most American female executives who dress conservatively in a dark, not particularly flattering suit, with no jewelry and little makeup, Frenchwomen see no need to abandon femininity and elegance in the business world. They prefer soft colors, stylish clothes, silk scarves, manicured nails, light makeup, and simple but elegant jewelry.

Questions

1. What do you know about French businesswomen

2. What does the speaker intend to say through the passage about French businesswomen

3. What is implied in the passage about French businesswomen

Exercise 1

Women and men are not created equal. Mother Nature favors her own sex when it comes to longevity, with women living about seven years ¡ª or 10% ¡ª longer than men. Still, men actually get a head start in the battle of the sexes, since male babies outnumber female babies by 115 to 100. But by about age 30, women have caught up with men numerically, and they then leave men in the dust, with three women alive for every man by age 85. But there's the paradox: While women live longer than men,they're generally sicker. Men tend to die from rapidly fatal health problems such as heart attacks, accidents,suicides and homicides. Women, on the other hand, tend to develop lingering illnesses that often cause years of discomfort. Women spend twice as much money on health care as men do. They also consult doctors more frequently, take more drugs, spend more days in hospitals and have more operations. They also take more sick time off from work. Why The chief causes seem to be genes, hormones and interactions of the two. Many women suffer from chronic conditions like muscle and joint pain, sleep disorder, anxiety, headaches, and fatigue. There is no known cause for them, but they probably result from the body's abnormal response to stress. Women may be more likely than men to have these diseases simply because they are under more stress. A woman is often under tremendous stress to fulfill what she sees as her obligations to her family, her community and her employer. Researchers still know little about women's health. There is clearly a need for more research into why women come down with chronic illnesses and what can be done about it.

Questions

1. What is the main idea of the passage

2. What is the speaker's attitude toward women's health problems

Statements

1. Women live ten years longer than men.

2. The number of women gradually exceeds that of men by age 30.

3. Women spend more money on medicine because they are often seriously ill.

4. A woman bears a greater responsibility to her family, community and employer than a man does.

5. Women can cope with stress better than men.

6. Men are likely to die from rapidly fatal health problems while women often complain about stress-related diseases.

7. There's still much to be discovered about women's health.

Part C

More and more women today can be found in top positions in business and industry. An example of this trend is Jennifer Bradbury. After a very successful career as a model, she became a clothes designer. Then,with money she had saved and borrowed, she bought part of a small company that manufactured sportswear and became one of its directors. As she says, it was then that "the real battle began". The other directors often asked her opinions about the design and the color of the company's products but they refused to believe she understood anything about the "hard side of business". Jennifer gives an example. She says, "The company sold its sportswear only through small specialist shops. I was sure we would never increase our sales unless we sold through big department stores and even supermarkets. The other two directors didn't like the idea at all at first. They were afraid we would lose some of our traditional customers if we did what I wanted. I think part of the trouble was they didn't take the idea very seriously simply because it came from a woman." But Jennifer and her ideas are certainly taken very seriously now. Under her leadership, the company has increased its sales and the number of customers. It also manufactures a much wider variety of sports clothes, many of them designed by Jennifer herself.

Questions

1. What does Jennifer do now

2. How were the company's products sold in the past

3. What does Jennifer mean by "the real battle"

[02:]4. What can you learn about Jennifer from the passage

大学英语听力听说教程3unit14women