恪言人-英语

Use of English (2017)

People have speculated for centuries about a future without work. Today is no different, with academics, writers, and activists once again [1] that technology is replacing human workers. Some imagine that the coming work-free world will be defined by [2]. A few wealthy people will own all the capital, and the masses will struggle in an impoverished wasteland.
A different and not mutually exclusive [3] holds that the future will be a wasteland of a different sort, one [4] by purposelessness: Without jobs to give their lives [5], people will simply become lazy and depressed. [6], today’s unemployed don’t seem to be having a great time. One Gallup poll found that 20 percent of Americans who have been unemployed for at least a year report having depression, double the rate for [7] Americans. Also, some research suggests that the [8] for rising rates of mortality, mental-health problems, and addicting [9] poorly-educated middle-aged people is shortage of well-paid jobs. Perhaps this is why many [10] the agonizing dullness of a jobless future.
But it doesn’t [11] follow from findings like these that a world without work would be filled with unease. Such visions are based on the [12] of being unemployed in a society built on the concept of employment. In the [13] of work, a society designed with other ends in mind could [14] strikingly different circumstances for the future of labor and leisure. Today, the [15] of work may be a bit overblown. “Many jobs are boring, degrading, unhealthy, and a waste of human potential,” says John Danaher, a lecturer at the National University of Ireland in Galway.
These days, because leisure time is relatively [16] for most workers, people use their free time to counterbalance the intellectual and emotional [17] of their jobs. “When I come home from a hard day’s work, I often feel [18],” Danaher says, adding, “In a world in which I don’t have to work, I might feel rather different”—perhaps different enough to throw himself [19] a hobby or a passion project with the intensity usually reserved for [20] matters.
1.
[A]
boasting
[B]
denying
[C]
warning
[D]
ensuring
2.
[A]
inequality
[B]
instability
[C]
unreliability
[D]
uncertainty
3.
[A]
policy
[B]
guideline
[C]
resolution
[D]
prediction
4.
[A]
characterized
[B]
divided
[C]
balanced
[D]
measured
5.
[A]
wisdom
[B]
meaning
[C]
glory
[D]
freedom
6.
[A]
Instead
[B]
Indeed
[C]
Thus
[D]
Nevertheless
7.
[A]
rich
[B]
urban
[C]
working
[D]
educated
8.
[A]
explanation
[B]
requirement
[C]
compensation
[D]
substitute
9.
[A]
under
[B]
beyond
[C]
alongside
[D]
among
10.
[A]
leave behind
[B]
make up
[C]
worry about
[D]
set aside
11.
[A]
statistically
[B]
occasionally
[C]
necessarily
[D]
economically
12.
[A]
chances
[B]
downsides
[C]
benefits
[D]
principles
13.
[A]
absence
[B]
height
[C]
face
[D]
course
14.
[A]
disturb
[B]
restore
[C]
exclude
[D]
yield
15.
[A]
model
[B]
practice
[C]
virtue
[D]
hardship
16.
[A]
tricky
[B]
lengthy
[C]
mysterious
[D]
scarce
17.
[A]
demands
[B]
standards
[C]
qualities
[D]
threats
18.
[A]
ignored
[B]
tired
[C]
confused
[D]
starved
19.
[A]
off
[B]
against
[C]
behind
[D]
into
20.
[A]
technological
[B]
professional
[C]
educational
[D]
interpersonal
全文翻译

几个世纪以来，人们一直在推测没有工作的未来。今天也不例外，学者、作家和活动家再次警告说技术正在取代人类劳动者。一些人想象即将到来的无工作世界将被不平等所定义。少数富人将拥有所有资本，而大众将在一片贫困的荒原上挣扎。

一个不同但并不相互排斥的预测认为，未来将是另一种荒原，一种以无目的为特征的荒原：没有工作来赋予生活意义，人们将变得懒惰和沮丧。实际上，今天的失业者似乎并不好过。一项盖洛普民意调查发现，失业至少一年的美国人中有20%报告患有抑郁症，是就业美国人的两倍。此外，一些研究表明，受教育程度较低的中年人中死亡率、心理健康问题和成瘾率上升的原因正是高薪工作的短缺。也许这就是为什么许多人担忧无工作未来的痛苦乏味。

但从这些发现中并不必然得出没有工作的世界将充满不安的结论。这些设想是基于在一个以就业概念为基础构建的社会中失业的体验。在没有工作的情况下，一个以其他目标为导向的社会可以为劳动和休闲的未来创造截然不同的环境。今天，工作的价值可能被过度夸大了。"许多工作都是无聊、有辱人格、不健康、浪费人类潜力的，"爱尔兰国立大学戈尔韦分校讲师约翰·达纳赫说。

如今，由于大多数劳动者的闲暇时间相对稀缺，人们利用空闲时间来平衡工作的智力和情感需求。"当我辛苦工作一天回到家时，我经常感觉很累，"达纳赫说，并补充道，"在一个我不必工作的世界里，我可能感觉相当不同"——也许足以让他以通常用于职业事务的强度投入到业余爱好或热情项目中。

答案解析 (Answers & Explanations)

  • 1. [C] warning. 考查语义辨析。学者和作家再次“警告（warning）”技术正在取代工人。A项“自夸”、B项“否认”、D项“确保”均不符合警告被取代的语境。
  • 2. [A] inequality. 考查上下文。后文提到“少数富人拥有资本，大众在贫困中挣扎”，这是典型的“不平等（inequality）”。
  • 3. [D] prediction. 考查语义。这是一种互不排斥的关于未来的“预言（prediction）”。
  • 4. [A] characterized. 考查搭配。one characterized by... 表示“以……为特征的一个未来”。
  • 5. [B] meaning. 考查语义。如果没有工作给生活赋予“意义（meaning）”，人们会变得抑郁。
  • 6. [B] Indeed. 考查逻辑关系。前句说没工作会抑郁，后句引用盖洛普调查证明失业者确实郁闷，属于递进确认，用“的确/事实上”。
  • 7. [C] working. 考查对比逻辑。失业者的抑郁率是“在职的（working）”美国人的两倍。
  • 8. [A] explanation. 考查语义。研究表明，高薪工作的短缺是导致死亡率上升、心理问题的“解释/原因（explanation）”。
  • 9. [D] among. 考查介词。在受教育程度低的中年人“之中（among）”。
  • 10. [C] worry about. 考查语义。这也许就是为什么许多人“担心（worry about）”无工作的未来的原因。
  • 11. [C] necessarily. 考查逻辑。it doesn’t necessarily follow from... 意为“并不必然推断出……”，表示逻辑上的转折。
  • 12. [B] downsides. 考查语义。这些悲观景象是基于在以就业为中心的社会中失业的“弊端/负面影响（downsides）”。
  • 13. [A] absence. 考查搭配。In the absence of... 意为“在缺乏……的情况下”。
  • 14. [D] yield. 考查语义。一个以其他目标设计的社会可能会“产生/带来（yield）”截然不同的环境。
  • 15. [C] virtue. 考查语义。作者认为今天工作的“美德/优点（virtue）”可能被夸大了，随后引用讲师的话说很多工作其实很无聊。
  • 16. [D] scarce. 考查对比。因为对大多数工人来说，休闲时间是“稀缺的（scarce）”。
  • 17. [A] demands. 考查语义。人们用空闲时间来抵消工作的智力和情感“要求/负担（demands）”。
  • 18. [B] tired. 考查语义。辛苦工作一天回家，通常感到“疲惫（tired）”。
  • 19. [D] into. 考查搭配。throw oneself into sth. 意为“投身于某事”。
  • 20. [B] professional. 考查对比。以通常保留给“职业/专业（professional）”事务的强度去投入爱好。

核心长难句精解 (High-Light)

1. 伴随状语与宾语从句：
"Today is no different, with academics, writers, and activists once again warning that technology is replacing human workers."
【解析】这是一个 with + 名词 + 现在分词 构成的伴随状语结构。warning 后面引导了一个 that 宾语从句，具体说明警告的内容。
2. 后置定语与解释说明：
"A different and not mutually exclusive prediction holds that the future will be a wasteland of a different sort, one characterized by purposelessness..."
【解析】one 是 wasteland 的同位语。characterized by... 是过去分词短语作后置定语，修饰 one，描述了这种“荒地”的具体特质是“无目的感”。
3. 主语从句与条件状语的嵌套：
"But it doesn’t necessarily follow from findings like these that a world without work would be filled with unease."
【解析】it 是形式主语，真正的主语是 that 引导的从句。necessarily 起到关键的限定作用，表明作者准备对前面的悲观结论进行逻辑反驳：之前的统计数据并不必然推导出未来无工作社会就一定不安。

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