长篇阅读
Beauty and Body Image in the Media
[A] Images of female bodies are everywhere. Women—and their body parts—sell everything from food to cars. Popular film and television actresses are becoming younger, taller and thinner. Some have even been known to faint on the set from lack of food. Women’s magazines are full of articles urging that if they can just lose those last twenty pounds, they’ll have it all—the perfect marriage, loving children, great sex, and a rewarding career.
[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 (泻药)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 (慢性腹泻)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.”
46. A report in Teen magazine showed that 50% to 70% girls with normal weight think that they need to lose weight.
47. On the whole, for 6 years white women had been occupying much more space in mainstream women’s magazines since 1999.
48. 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.
49. The mass media has helped boost the cosmetic and the diet industries.
50. 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.
51. Some film and television actresses even faint on the scene due to eating too little.
52. Too much concern with appearance makes it impossible to change such abnormal trend.
53. Researchers found that a real woman with Barbie-doll proportions would eventually die from malnutrition.
54. The Quebec magazine Coup (e Pouce resists the trend by consistently including full-sized women in their fashion pages for several years.
5 5. According to some analysts, the fundamental reason of imposing standards of beauty on women is economic profits.
答案与解析 PartⅢ Reading Comprehension
Section B
46. [D]题干意为，《青少年》杂志上的一项报道称，有50%到70%体重正常的女孩认为自己需要减肥。注意抓 住题干中的关键词magazine、50% to 70%和normal weight。文章段落中，《青少年》杂志以及百分比 50%到70%的内容在[D]段出现，该段倒数第二句提到，《青少年》杂志报道称，在6~12岁的女孩当中，有 35%的人至少进行过一次减肥，有50%~70%体重正常的女孩认为自己超重。由此可知，题干是对该句部分 内容的同
义转述，故答案为[D]。题干中的need to lose weight与原文中的is overweight对应。
47. [H]。题干意为，总体而言，1999年以来白人女性连续六年占据了主流女性杂志的多数篇幅。注意抓住题 干中的关键词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 性杂志所占比例的内容在[H]段出现，该段最后一句提到，该研究发现，虽然1999~2004年间杂志中出现 的有色人种的女性形象在数量上有所增加，但是从整体来看，白人女性还是占据了主流女性杂志的多数 篇幅。由此可知，题干是对原文的同义转述，故答案为[H]。题干中的occupying much more space对应原文 中的 overrepresented。
48. [C]。题干意为，女性身上存在的一些诸如抑郁和不健康的饮食习惯的负面影响与接触年轻苗条的女性形 象有关。注意抓住题干中的关键词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、不健康的饮食习惯以及接触年轻苗条的女性形象的内容，该段最 后一句提到，另一方面，研究表明，接触这种年轻苗条、妆容美丽的女性形象与女性的抑郁、缺乏自信和 不健康的饮食习惯有关。由此可知，题干是对原文的同义转述，故答案为[C]。题干中的are related to对应 原文中的 is linked to，being exposed to对应原文中的 exposure to。
49. [B]。题干意为，大众媒体帮助促进了化妆品和减肥产品行业的发展。注意抓住题干中的关键词boosted和 the cosmetic and the diet industries。文章段落中，只有[B]段提到了化妆品和减肥产品行业的发展，该段最 后一句提到，通过呈现一个难以达到和保持的理想身材，化妆品和减肥产品行业必然能够得到发展并获 得利润，而其呈现方式就是通过大众媒体。由此可知，题干是对原文的同义转述，故答案为[B]。
50. [F]。题干意为，报道称超过四分之三的女性杂志封面至少包含了一条关于如何改
变女性身材的方法。注 意抓住题干中的关键词at least one message和more than three-quarters。文章段落中，提到女性杂志封面提供 如何改变女性身材的的内容在[F]段出现，该段首句提到，研究人员公布说，女性杂志上宣传减肥的广告 和文章所占的比重比男性杂志高倍，超过四分之三的女性杂志封面至少包含了一条关于如何改变女 性身材的信息——诸如节食、运动或是整容手术。由此可知，题干对该句后半句内容做了概括，故答案为 [F ]。题干中的 methods for women to change their bodily appearance 是对原文中 how to change a woman’s bodily appearance—by diet, exercise or cosmetic surgery洽勺相无才括。
51. [A]。题干意为，甚至有些影视女演员因为吃得太少而在拍摄现场昏倒。注意抓住题干中的关键词film and television actresses和faint。文章段落中，[A]段提到了女演员以及晕倒的内容，该段第三句提到，有些 女演员甚至因为吃得太少而在拍摄现场昏倒。由此可见，题干对原文做了同义改写，故答案为[A]。题干中 的 due to eating too little和原文中的 from lack of food对应。
52. [I]。题干意为，对外表的过度关注使得改变这种不正常的风气变得不可能。注意抓住题干中的关键词too much concern和change such abnormal trend。文章段落中，提及对外表的过度关注的内容在[I]段出现，该段 最后一句提到，这种对于美丽和性感的关注“事实上摧毁了任何可能有助于改变这种风气的意识和行动”。 由此可知，题干是对原文的同义转述，故答案为[I]。题干中的too much concern on appearance对应原文中 的 focus on beauty and desirability。
53. [E]。题干意为，研究人员发现如果一个女人的身材比例和芭比娃娃一样，那么她最终会死于营养不良。 注意抓住题干中的关键词Barbie-doll proportions和die from malnutrition。文章段落中，只有[E]段提到了芭 比娃娃，该段第三句提到，如果一个女人
的身材真是那样(有着芭比娃娃的身材比例)的话，她将会患上慢 性腹泻并最终死于营养不良。由此可知，题干对原文做了同义改写，故答案为[E]。
54. [G]。题干意为，几年来魁北克杂志坚持在其时尚页面上刊登正常身材的女性形象，以抵制 这种潮流。注意抓住题干中的关键词The Quebec magazine Coup de 和consistently including fUll-sized women。文章段落中，提及魁北克杂志Coup de )ou(e坚持刊登正常身材的女性形象的内容在[G]段出现， 该段前两句提到，杂志业有人正在努力抵制这种潮流。几年来魁北克杂志Coup de )ou(e坚持在其时尚页面 上刊登正常身材的女性形象。由此可知，题干是对原文的同义转述，故答案为[G]。题干中的resists对应原 文中的buck(抵制，反抗)。
55. [B]。题干意为，根据一些分析家的观点，将美丽的标准强加到女性身上的根本原因是经济利益。注意抓 住题干中的关键词fundamental reason、standards of beauty和economic profits。文章段落中，论及将美丽的标 准强加到女性身上的根本原因的内容在[B]段出现，该段前两句提到，为什么会把美丽的标准强加到女性 身上，而大多数女性生来就比模特要胖要成熟?一些分析家认为，根源在于经济利益。由此可知，题干是对 原文的同义转述，故答案为[B]。题干中的fundamental reason和原文中的roots对应。
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