?June 2019 College English Level 4 Reading Comprehension Training: Female Employment

June 2019 College English Level 4 Reading Comprehension Training: Female Employment

　①Tourists were surprised to see a woman driving a huge orange tractor down one of Rome's main avenues. ②Italy's political leaders and some of its male union chiefs are said to have been even more puzzled to see that the tractor was followed by about 200,000 women in a parading procession that took more than three hours to snake through central Rome.

　①Shouting slogans, waving flags and dancing to drumbeats, the women had come to the capital from all over Italy to demonstrate for “a job for each of us, a different type of job, and a society without violence.” ②So far, action to improve women's opportunities in employment has been the province of collective industrial bargaining. ③“But there is a growing awareness that this is not enough,” says a researcher on female labor at the government-funded Institute for the Development of Professional Training for Workers. < /p>

　①Women, who constitute 52 per cent of Italy's population, today represent only 35 per cent of Italy's total workforce and 33 per cent of the total number of Italians with jobs. ②However, their presence in the workplace is growing. ③The employment of women is expanding considerably in services, next to the public administration and commerce as their principal workplace. ④Official statistics also show that women have also made significant strides in self-employment. ⑤More and more women are going into b

usiness for themselves. ⑥Many young women are turning to business because of the growing overall in employment. ⑦It is also a fact that today many prejudices have disappeared, so that banks and other financial institutions make judgments on purely business considerations without caring if it is a man or a woman.

　①Such changes are occurring in the professions too. ②The number of women doctors, dentists, lawyers, engineers and university professors increased two to three fold. ③Some of the changes are immediately visible. ④For example, women have appeared on the scene for the first time as state police, railway workers and street cleaners.

　①However, the present situation is far from satisfactory though some progress has been made. ②A breakthrough in equal opportunities for women is now demanded.

1. Vocabulary

1.avenue n. boulevard, street 2.chief n. chief

3.parading a. Parade 4.procession n. team, queue

5.slogan n. slogan, slogan 6.demonstrate v. demonstration

7.province n. (singular, formal) knowledge (or Interest, responsibility) scope, field

8.bargaining n. bargaining, transaction 9.go into business, doing business

10.bre1akthrough n. breakthrough

2. Long and difficult sentences

1. Italy's political leaders and some of its male union chiefs are said to have been even more puzzled to see that the tractor was followed by about 200,000 women in a parading procession that took more than three hours to snake through central Rome.

The backbone of this sentence is the structure of "be said + perfect infinitive": Italy's political leaders and some of its male union chiefs are said t

o have been puzzled to see..., the core structure of the infinitive is be puzzled to see sth, the first object clause introduced by that is the object of see, and there is another attributive clause introduced by that embedded in this clause as the postposition attributive, Modify the noun procession.

Translation: It is said that Italy's political leaders and political leaders were shocked when they saw that it took more than three hours for the parade of 200,000 women to snake through the center of Rome behind the tractor. Some of the country's male league presidents are even more confused.

2. The employment of women is expanding considerably in services, next to the public administration and commerce as their principal workplace.

The main part of the sentence The employment of women is expanding, preposition The phrase in services is used as an adverbial, meaning "in the service industry". The adjective phrase next to... is used as a post-positioned attributive, modifying the noun services, which is equivalent to an attributive clause which is next to... as their principal workplace, meaning "as their (women's) main work field is second only to...".

Translation: The number of female employees in the service industry is rising sharply, only lower than the number of female employees in corporate management and business fields.

3. It is also a fact that today many prejudices have disappeared, so that banks and other financial institutions make judgments on purely business considerations without caring if it is a man or a woman.

< p> The backbone of this sentence is It is also a fact that..., where it is the formal subject, and the subject clause introduced by that is the real subject. The subject clause is a subject-subordinate compound sentence, in which so that introduces the result adverbial clause. The main structure of the adverbial clause is banks and other financial institutions make judgments, and the prepositional phrase without caring... serves as the adverbial clause. The clause introduced by If serves as the logical object of caring.

Translation: In fact, many discriminations against women have disappeared today. The judgments of banks and other financial institutions are entirely based on business purposes and do not care about the gender of their employees.

3. Analysis of article structure

This article mainly introduces the changes in the employment situation of Italian women. The article mainly uses argument methods such as listing numbers and giving examples.

The first and second paragraphs: The description of the demonstrations leads to the topic of the article: Italian women are fighting for more job opportunities and changes in the nature of work.

The third and fourth paragraphs: It is pointed out through data that although women are still at a disadvantage in terms of job opportunities, the situation is constantly improving.

The fifth paragraph: Summarize the full text and emphasize The employment situation of women is still unsatisfactory and requires reform and breakthrough.

IV. Specific analysis of test questions

14. The expression “snake through central Rome” probably means “to move ________.14. The expression “snake through central Rome” probably means_ _______.

　[A] quietly through central Rome.”[A] Quietly through central Rome

[B] Violently through central Rome.”[B] Violently through central Rome. city ??center

　[C] in a long winding line through central Rome.”[C] in a long and winding line through central Rome

[D] at a leisurely pace through central Rome.”[D] Walking through the center of Rome like a leisurely stroll

[Analysis] The knowledge point tested in this question is: infer the meaning of the word based on the context.

The meaning of the verb snake evolved from the physiological characteristics of its noun meaning "snake", which means to move like a snake, in a long twisting curves, that is, "to move forward in twists and turns, snake". In the [C] option, in a long winding line corresponds to in a long twisting curves, so it is correct.

Options [A] and [D] are incorrectly and at a leisurely pace respectively. From the first sentence of the second paragraph, we can know that the 200,000-strong parade marched through the center of Rome shouting slogans, waving flags, and beating drums, so it could not be "quiet" or "strolling around." . The article does not point out that the parade had a conflict with any institution or group, so it cannot be said to be violent, so option [B] is eliminated.

15. Which of the following statements is NOT true? 15. Which of the following statements is NOT true?

[A] There are more women than men in Italy.[ A] There are more women than men in Italy.

　[B] In Italy, women are chiefly employed in services.[B] In Italy, women are chiefly employed in services.

　[C] In Italy, women are still at a disadvantage in employment.[C] In Italy, women are still at a disadvantage in employment.

　[D] In Italy, about two-thirds of the jobs are held by men.[D] In Italy, about two-thirds of the jobs are held by men.

[Analysis] The knowledge points tested in this question are: factual details.

The third paragraph of the article points out that the number of female employees in the service industry is rising sharply, only lower than the number of female employees in corporate management and business fields. It can be seen that in Italy, the three fields with the largest number of female employees are corporate management, commerce, and the service industry, that is, the number of female employees in the service industry ranks third. Therefore option [B] is wrong.

The first sentence of the third paragraph of the article points out that in Italy, women account for 52% of the total population but only 35% of the total number of Italian workers. It can be seen that there are indeed more women than men in Italy, but two-thirds of the country’s jobs are held by men. The first sentence of the fifth paragraph points out that although the employment situation of women has improved, the situation is still far from satisfactory, that is, women are still at a disadvantage in terms of employment in Italy. Therefore, [A], [C], and [D] are all correct.

16. About 200,000 women in Rome demonstrated for ________.

　[A] more job opportunities[A] more job opportunities

　[B] a greater variety of jobs[B] more types of jobs

[C] “equal job, equal pay” [C] “equal pay for equal work”

[D] both A and B [D] Contents of [A] and [B] options

[Analysis] The knowledge points tested in this question are: specific details.

The second paragraph of the article points out that 200,000 women from all over the country gathered in the Italian capital. The slogan of their demonstration was "jobs for everyone, diverse jobs, and a society free of violence." That is, they fought for The goals are more jobs, more types of jobs, and a society free of violence. Option [D] is a summary of the first two sentences of the protest slogan, so it is correct.

Options [A] and [B] only summarize part of the protest slogan. Option [C] is made out of nothing. “Equal pay for equal work” is not the slogan of this demonstration.

17. The best title for this passage would be ________.17. The best title for this passage would be______.

　[A] The Role of Women in Society[A] The role of women in society

[B] Women Demonstrate for Equality in Employment[B] Women strive for equality in employment

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　[C] Women as Self-employed Professionals[C] Women as freelancers

　[D] Women and the Jobs Market[D] Women and the Jobs Market

[Analysis] The knowledge points tested in this question are: the main purpose of the article.

The first two paragraphs of the article pointed out the demonstrations of 200,000 women in Italy, aiming to fight for more job opportunities, changes in the nature of work, and a society without violence. The third and fourth paragraphs point out through data that although women are at a disadvantage in terms of job opportunities, the situation is constantly improving. The fifth paragraph summarizes the full text, pointing out that although women's employment status has improved, the results are not satisfactory and reforms and breakthroughs are still needed. It can be seen that the full text mainly focuses on Italian women’s struggle for employment equality, so option [B] is correct.

[A]The option is made out of nothing. The article only touches on the changes in women’s employment situation in Italy and does not touch on their role in society. [C] is a distractor made up based on the original words self-employment and professions. Option [D] comes out of nowhere. The article does not talk about the job market, so it can be excluded.

V. Full text translation

Tourists were surprised when they saw a woman driving a giant orange tractor down a main street in Rome. Italy's political leaders and some of the country's male federation presidents were said to be even more bewildered when they saw that it took more than three hours for the procession of 200,000 women to snake through the center of Rome behind the tractor. .

These women, shouting slogans, waving flags and marching to the beat of drums, gathered in the capital from all over Italy to demonstrate for "jobs for all, diversification of work and social freedom". Violence." So far, improving women's employment opportunities has become a topic in corporate labor negotiations. "Increased awareness alone is not enough," says a researcher who works in the women's labor department at the government-funded Institute for the Development of Professional Labor Training.

Today, women make up 10% of Italy's population 52% of the total, but only 35% of the total number of workers in the country, and 33% of the total number of employed people in Italy. However, the number of female employees continues to rise. The number of female employees in the service industry is rising sharply and is only lower than the number of female employees in corporate management and business fields. Official figures also show a significant increase in the number of women who are self-employed.

More and more women are starting their own businesses. Many young women are entering business as more and more people are employed in this field. In fact, many discriminations against women have disappeared today. Banks and other financial institutions make decisions based entirely on business purposes without caring about the gender of their employees.

This change is also happening in the professional field. The number of female doctors, dentists, lawyers, engineers and professors has increased two to three times. Some changes are immediate. For example, women appeared for the first time in the ranks of the state police, railway workers, and street cleaners.

However, although women’s employment situation has improved, it is still far from satisfactory. Breakthrough progress in equal employment opportunities for women is still needed.