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As regards social conventions, we must say a word about the well-known English class system. 『This is an embarrassing subject for English people, and one they tend to be ashamed of, though during the present century class-consciousness has grown less and less, and the class system less rigid.』① But it still exists below the surface. Broadly speaking, it means there are two classes, the “middle class” and the “working class”. (We shall ignore for a moment the old “upper class”, including the hereditary aristocracy, since it is extremely small in numbers; but some of its members have the right to sit in the House of Lords, and some newspapers take a surprising interest in their private life.) The middle class consists chiefly of well-to-do businessmen and professional people of all kinds. The working class consists chiefly of manual and unskilled workers.
The most obvious difference between them is in their accent. Middle-class people use slightly varying kinds of “received pronunciation” which is the kind of English spoken by BBC announcers and taught to overseas pupils. Typical working-class people speak in many different local accents which are generally felt to be rather ugly and uneducated. One of the biggest barriers of social equality in England is the two-class education system. To have been to a so-called “public school” immediately marks you out as one of the middle class. The middle classes tend to live a more formal life than working-class people, and are usually more cultured. Their midday meal is “lunch” and they have a rather formal evening meal called “dinner”, whereas the working man’s dinner, if his working hours permit, is at midday, and his smaller, late-evening meal is called supper.
As we have said, however, the class system is much less rigid than it was, and for a long time it has been government policy to reduce class distinctions. 『Working-class students very commonly receive a university education and enter the professions, and working-class incomes have grown so much recently that the distinctions between the two classes are becoming less and less clear. 』②However, regardless of one’s social status, certain standards of politeness are expected of everybody, and a well-bred person is polite to everyone he meets, and treats a labourer with the same respect he gives an important businessman. Servility inspires both embarrassment and dislike. Even the word “sir”, except in school and in certain occupations (e.g. commerce, the army etc.) sounds too servile to be commonly used.
1. The middle class mainly refers to people .
A. who were born as aristocrat
B. who have the right to sit in the House of Lords
C. who speak in many different local accents
D. who are prosperous businessmen or who work in some professions
2. The most obvious difference between the working class and the middle class in English is their .
A. dress
B. work
C. accent
D. meal
3. Why isn’t the word “sir” commonly used in Britain?
A. Because it sounds too servile and is likely to cause embarrassment.
B. Because it can only be used in some certain occupations.
C. Because it is an impolite word.
D. Because it shows that the speaker is not a well-bred person.
4. The “upper class” in England today .
A. are extremely small in number so that media pays no attention to them
B. still uses old words like “Sir” in their everyday life
C. includes the hereditary aristocracy
D. refers only to the royal family
5. Which of the following is not true about the English class system?
A. It is an embarrassing subject for English people.
B. Working-class students cannot receive a university education.
C. The class system is much less rigid than it was.
D. The class system still exists below the surface.
Vocabulary
1. convention n. 習俗
2. embarrass v. 使困窘
3. rigid adj. 嚴格
4. hereditary adj. 世襲的
5. manual adj. 體力的
6. accent n. 口音
7. received pronunciation adj. (英語的)標準發音
8. well-bred adj. 有教養的
9. servility n. 卑屈
10. occupation n. 職業
難句解析①
【解析】這是一個複合句，主句由“and”引導的兩個並列句組成，“though”引導的讓步狀語從句，也是由兩個並列的句子組成。
【譯文】儘管本世紀等級意識越來越淡，等級制度也越來越不嚴格，但對於英國人來說它仍是一個尷尬的話題，仍舊引以為恥。
②
【解析】這是一個複合句，由“and”引導的兩個並列句組成，“so…that”作“grown”的狀語。
【譯文】勞工家庭中的孩子上大學成為非常平常的事情，此後他們也加入各種專業行當。勞工階層的`工資近來也快速增長，使得兩個階層間的界線越來越模糊。
答案與詳解【短文大意】本文主要講述英國等級意識雖然越來越淡，但在表層下，等級仍然存在。而“階層”的最大區別是他們的口音。
1. D
細節題。意為“那些比較富裕的生意人或有一定的職業的人”。見第一段的倒數第二句：中產階級主要包括富裕的生意人和有一定的職業的人。所以正確答案應該是 D。
2. C
細節題。意為“口音”。見第二段的第一句：他們之間最明顯的區別是他們的口音。所以正確答案應該是 C。
3. A
推斷題。意為“因為它聽起來太過謙卑，很可能會引起尷尬”。見文章的最後兩句：謙卑會引起尷尬和不悅。甚至像“先生”這樣的詞，除了在特定的職業中(如商業、軍隊)外，也不太常用，因為它聽起來太過謙卑。所以正確答案應該是 A。
4. C
細節題。A選項前半是對的。上流社會人數很少，後半是錯的，媒體還在關注他們，注意一定要看清楚再選。B選項相關內容在文末。D沒有提到。B在第一段中間出現，是正確答案。
5. B
細節題。意為“來自工人階級家庭的學生不能接受大學教育”。見第三段第二句的前半句：來自工人階級家庭的學生接受大學教育並且某種職業的情況已十分普遍。所以選項 B的答案與文章不相符，是正確答案。
