四級考試閱讀匹配習題原文：

　　[B] Why are standards of beauty being imposed on women, the majority of whom are naturally larger and more mature than any of the models? The roots, some analysts say, are economic. By presenting an ideal difficult to achieve and maintain, the cosmetic and diet product industries are assured of growth and profits. And it’s no accident that youth is increasingly promoted, along with thinness, as an essential criterion of beauty. If not all women need to lose weight, for sure they’re all aging, says the Quebec Action Network for Women’s Health in its 2001 report. And, according to the industry, age is a disaster that needs to be dealt with.

　　[C] The stakes are huge. On the one hand, women who are insecure about their bodies are more likely to buy beauty products, new clothes, and diet aids. It is estimated that the diet industry alone is worth anywhere between 40 to 100 billion (U.S.) a year selling temporary weight loss (90% to 95% of dieters regain the lost weight). On the other hand, research indicates that exposure to images of thin, young, air-brushed female bodies is linked to depression, loss of self-esteem and the development of unhealthy eating habits in women and girls.

　　[D ] The American research group Anorexia Nervosa & Related Eating Disorders, Inc. says that one out of every four college-aged women uses unhealthy methods of weight control—including fasting, skipping meals, excessive exercise, laxative (瀉藥)abuse, and self-induced vomiting. The pressure to be thin is also affecting young girls: the Canadian Women’s Health Network warns that weight control measures are now being taken by girls as young as 5 and 6. American statistics are similar. Several studies, such as one conducted by Marika Tiggemann and Levina Clark in 2006 titled “Appearance Culture in 9- to 12-Year-Old Girls: Media and Peer Influences on Body Dissatisfaction,” indicate that nearly half of all preadolescent girls wish to be thinner, and as a result have engaged in a diet or are aware of the concept of dieting. In 2003, Teen magazine reported that 35 percent of girls 6 to 12 years old have been on at least one diet, and that 50 to 70 percent of normal weight girls believe they are overweight. Overall research indicates that 90% of women are dissatisfied with their appearance in some way. Media activist Jean Kilbourne concludes that, “Women are sold to the diet industry by the magazines we read and the television programs we watch, almost all of which make us feel anxious about our weight.”

　　[ E] Perhaps the most disturbing is the fact that media images of female beauty are unattainable for all but a very small number of women. Researchers generating a computer model of a woman with Barbie-doll proportions, for example, found that her back would be too weak to support the weight of her upper body, and her body would be too narrow to contain more than half a liver and a few centimeters of bowel. A real woman built that way would suffer from chronic diarrhea (慢性腹瀉)and eventually die from

　　malnutrition. Jill Barad, President of Mattel (which manufactures Barbie), estimated that 99% of girls aged 3 to 10 years old own at least one Barbie doll. Still, the number of real life women and girls who seek a similarly underweight body is epidemic, and they can suffer equally devastating health consequences. In 2006 it was estimated that up to 450, 000 Canadian women were affected by an eating disorder.

　　[F ] Researchers report that women’s magazines have ten and one-half times more ads and articles promoting weight loss than men’s magazines do, and over three-quarters of the covers of women’s magazines include at least one message about how to change a woman’s bodily appearance—by diet, exercise or cosmetic surgery. Television and movies reinforce the importance of a thin body as a measure of a woman’s worth. Canadian researcher Gregory Fouts reports that over three-quarters of the female characters in TV situation comedies are underweight, and only one in twenty are above average in size. Heavier actresses tend to receive negative comments from male characters about their bodies (“How about wearing a sack?，，)，and 80 percent of these negative comments are followed by canned audience laughter.

　　[G] There have been efforts in the magazine industry to buck (才氐制，反抗)the trend. For several years the Quebec magazine Coup de Pouce has consistently included full-sized women in their fashion pages and Chatelaine has pledged not to touch up photos and not to include models less than 25 years of age. In Madrid, one of the world’s biggest fashion capitals, ultra-thin models were banned from the runway in 2006. Furthermore Spain has recently undergone a project with the aim to standardize clothing sizes through using a unique process in which a laser beam is used to measure real life women’s bodies in order to find the most true to life measurement.

　　[ H] Another issue is the representation of ethnically diverse women in the media.

　　A 2008 study conducted by Juanita Covert and Travis Dixon titled “A Changing View: Representation and Effects of the Portrayal of Women of Color in Mainstream Women’s Magazines” found that although there was an increase in the representation of women of colour, overall white women were overrepresented in mainstream women’s magazines from 1999 to 2004.

　　[I] The barrage of messages about thinness, dieting and beauty tells “ordinary” women that they are always in need of adjustment—and that the female body is an object to be perfected. Jean Kilbourne argues that the overwhelming presence of media images of painfully thin women means that real women’s bodies have become invisible in the mass media. The real tragedy, Kilbourne concludes, is that many women internalize these stereotypes, and judge themselves by the beauty industry’s standards. Women learn to compare themselves to

　　other women, and to compete with them for male attention. This focus on beauty and desirability “effectively destroys any awareness and action that might help to change that climate.”

　　四級考試閱讀匹配習題選項：

　　1. A report in Teen magazine showed that 50% to 70% girls with normal weight think that they need to lose weight.

　　2. On the whole, for 6 years white women had been occupying much more space in mainstream women’s magazines since 1999.

　　3. Some negative effects such as depression and unhealthy eating habits in females are related to their being exposed to images of thin and young female bodies.

　　4. The mass media has helped boost the cosmetic and the diet industries.

　　5. It is reported that there is at least one message about the methods for women to change their bodily appearance on more than three-quarters of the covers of women’s magazines.

　　6. Some film and television actresses even faint on the scene due to eating too little.

　　7. Too much concern with appearance makes it impossible to change such abnormal trend.

　　8. Researchers found that a real woman with Barbie-doll proportions would eventually die from malnutrition.

　　9. The Quebec magazine Coup (e Pouce resists the trend by consistently including full-sized women in their fashion pages for several years.

　　10. According to some analysts, the fundamental reason of imposing standards of beauty on women is economic profits.

　　四級考試閱讀匹配習題答案詳解：

　　1. [D]題干意為，《青少年》雜志上的一項報道稱，有50%到70%體重正常的女孩認為自己需要減肥。注意抓 住題干中的關鍵詞magazine、50% to 70%和normal weight。文章段落中，《青少年》雜志以及百分比 50%到70%的內容在[D]段出現，該段倒數第二句提到，《青少年》雜志報道稱，在6~12歲的女孩當中，有 35%的人至少進行過一次減肥，有50%~70%體重正常的女孩認為自己超重。由此可知，題干是對該句部分 內容的同義轉述，故答案為[D]。題干中的need to lose weight與原文中的is overweight對應。

　　2. [H]。題干意為，總體而言，1999年以來白人女性連續六年占據了主流女性雜志的多數篇幅。注意抓住題 干中的關鍵詞for 6 years、white women和occupying much more space。文章段落中，提及白人女性在主流女 性雜志所占比例的內容在[H]段出現，該段最后一句提到，該研究發現，雖然1999~2004年間雜志中出現 的有色人種的女性形象在數量上有所增加，但是從整體來看，白人女性還是占據了主流女性雜志的多數 篇幅。由此可知，題干是對原文的同義轉述，故答案為[H]。題干中的occupying much more space對應原文 中的 overrepresented。

　　3. [C]。題干意為，女性身上存在的一些諸如抑郁和不健康的飲食習慣的負面影響與接觸年輕苗條的女性形 象有關。注意抓住題干中的關鍵詞depression and unhealthy eating habits、being exposed to和thin and young bodies。文章段落中，[C]段提到了抑郁、不健康的飲食習慣以及接觸年輕苗條的女性形象的內容，該段最 后一句提到，另一方面，研究表明，接觸這種年輕苗條、妝容美麗的女性形象與女性的抑郁、缺乏自信和 不健康的飲食習慣有關。由此可知，題干是對原文的同義轉述，故答案為[C]。題干中的are related to對應 原文中的 is linked to，being exposed to對應原文中的 exposure to。

　　4. [B]。題干意為，大眾媒體幫助促進了化妝品和減肥產品行業的發展。注意抓住題干中的關鍵詞boosted和 the cosmetic and the diet industries。文章段落中，只有[B]段提到了化妝品和減肥產品行業的發展，該段最 后一句提到，通過呈現一個難以達到和保持的理想身材，化妝品和減肥產品行業必然能夠得到發展并獲 得利潤，而其呈現方式就是通過大眾媒體。由此可知，題干是對原文的同義轉述，故答案為[B]。

　　5. [F]。題干意為，報道稱超過四分之三的女性雜志封面至少包含了一條關于如何改變女性身材的方法。注 意抓住題干中的關鍵詞at least one message和more than three-quarters。文章段落中，提到女性雜志封面提供 如何改變女性身材的的內容在[F]段出現，該段首句提到，研究人員公布說，女性雜志上宣傳減肥的廣告 和文章所占的比重比男性雜志高10.5倍，超過四分之三的女性雜志封面至少包含了一條關于如何改變女 性身材的信息——諸如節食、運動或是整容手術。由此可知，題干對該句后半句內容做了概括，故答案為 [F ]。題干中的 methods for women to change their bodily appearance 是對原文中 how to change a woman’s bodily appearance—by diet, exercise or cosmetic surgery洽勺相無才括。

　　6. [A]。題干意為，甚至有些影視女演員因為吃得太少而在拍攝現場昏倒。注意抓住題干中的關鍵詞film and television actresses和faint。文章段落中，[A]段提到了女演員以及暈倒的內容，該段第三句提到，有些 女演員甚至因為吃得太少而在拍攝現場昏倒。由此可見，題干對原文做了同義改寫，故答案為[A]。題干中 的 due to eating too little和原文中的 from lack of food對應。

　　7. [I]。題干意為，對外表的過度關注使得改變這種不正常的風氣變得不可能。注意抓住題干中的關鍵詞too much concern和change such abnormal trend。文章段落中，提及對外表的過度關注的內容在[I]段出現，該段 最后一句提到，這種對于美麗和性感的關注“事實上摧毀了任何可能有助于改變這種風氣的意識和行動”。 由此可知，題干是對原文的同義轉述，故答案為[I]。題干中的too much concern on appearance對應原文中 的 focus on beauty and desirability。

　　8. [E]。題干意為，研究人員發現如果一個女人的身材比例和芭比娃娃一樣，那么她最終會死于營養不良。 注意抓住題干中的關鍵詞Barbie-doll proportions和die from

　　malnutrition。文章段落中，只有[E]段提到了芭 比娃娃，該段第三句提到，如果一個女人的身材真是那樣(有著芭比娃娃的身材比例)的話，她將會患上慢 性腹瀉并最終死于營養不良。由此可知，題干對原文做了同義改寫，故答案為[E]。

　　9. [G]。題干意為，幾年來魁北克雜志堅持在其時尚頁面上刊登正常身材的女性形象，以抵制 這種潮流。注意抓住題干中的關鍵詞The Quebec magazine Coup de 和consistently including fUll-sized women。文章段落中，提及魁北克雜志Coup de )ou(e堅持刊登正常身材

　　的女性形象的內容在[G]段出現， 該段前兩句提到，雜志業有人正在努力抵制這種潮流。幾年來魁北克雜志Coup de )ou(e堅持在其時尚頁面 上刊登正常身材的女性形象。由此可知，題干是對原文的同義轉述，故答案為[G]。題干中的resists對應原 文中的buck(抵制，反抗)。

　　10. [B]。題干意為，根據一些分析家的觀點，將美麗的標準強加到女性身上的根本原因是經濟利益。注意抓 住題干中的關鍵詞fundamental reason、standards of beauty和economic profits。文章段落中，論及將美麗的標 準強加到女性身上的根本原因的內容在[B]段出現，該段前兩句提到，為什么會把美麗的標準強加到女性 身上，而大多數女性生來就比模特要胖要成熟?一些分析家認為，根源在于經濟利益。由此可知，題干是對 原文的同義轉述，故答案為[B]。題干中的fundamental reason和原文中的roots對應。

四級考試閱讀匹配習題詳解相關