首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
The Decline of Asian Marriage Twenty years ago a debate broke out about whether there were specific "Asian values". Most att
The Decline of Asian Marriage Twenty years ago a debate broke out about whether there were specific "Asian values". Most att
admin
2013-10-17
35
问题
The Decline of Asian Marriage
Twenty years ago a debate broke out about whether there were specific "Asian values". Most attention focused on questionable claims by autocrats(独裁者)that democracy was not among them. But a more interesting, if less noticed, argument was that traditional family values were stronger in Asia than in America and Europe, and that this partly accounted for Asia’s economic success. In the words of Lee Kuan Yew, former prime minister of Singapore and a keen advocate of Asian values, the Asian family encouraged " scholarship and hard work and saving and delay of present enjoyment for future gain".
On the face of it his claim appears persuasive still. In most of Asia, marriage is widespread and illegitimacy(私生)almost unknown. In contrast, half of marriages in some Western countries end in divorce, and half of all children are born outside marriage. The recent riots across Britain, whose origins many believe lie in an absence of either parental guidance or filial(子女的)respect, seem to underline a profound difference between East and West.
Yet marriage is changing fast in East, South-East and South Asia, even though each region has different traditions. The changes are different from those that took place in the West in the second half of the 20th century. Divorce, though rising in some countries, remains comparatively rare. What’s happening in Asia is a flight from marriage.
Marriage rates are falling partly because people are postponing getting married. Marriage ages have risen all over the world, but the increase is particularly marked in Asia. People there now marry even later than they do in the West. The mean age of marriage in the richest places—Japan and South Korea—has risen sharply in the past few decades, to reach 29 -30 for women and 31 -33 for men.
A lot of Asians are not marrying later. They are not marrying at all. Almost a third of Japanese women in their early 30s are unmarried; probably half of those will always be. In some places, rates of non-marriage are especially striking: in Bangkok, 20% of 40 -44-year old women are not married; in Tokyo, 21% ; among university graduates of that age in Singapore, 27% . So far, the trend has not affected Asia’s two giants, China and India. But it is likely to, as the economic factors that have driven it elsewhere in Asia sweep through those two countries as well; and its consequences will be worsened by the sex-selective abortion practised for a generation there. By 2050, there will be 60m more men of marriageable age than women in China and India. The joy of staying single
Women are retreating from marriage as they go into the workplace. That’s partly because, for a woman, being both employed and married is tough in Asia. Women there are the primary caregivers for husbands, children and, often, for ageing parents; and even when in full-time employment, they are expected to continue to play this role. This is true elsewhere in the world, but the burden that Asian women carry is particularly heavy. Japanese women, who typically work 40 hours a week in the office, then do, on average, another 30 hours of housework. Their husbands, on average, do three hours. And Asian women who give up work to look after children find it hard to return when the children are grown. Not surprisingly, Asian women have an unusually pessimistic view of marriage. According to a survey carried out this year, many fewer Japanese women felt positive about their marriage than did Japanese men, or American women or men.
At the same time as employment makes marriage tougher for women, it offers them an alternative. More women are financially independent, so more of them can pursue a single life that may appeal more than the hard labor of a traditional marriage. More education has also contributed to the decline of marriage, because Asian women with the most education have always been the most reluctant to wed— and there are now many more highly educated women. No marriage, no babies
The flight from marriage in Asia is thus the result of the greater freedom that women enjoy these days, which is to be celebrated. But it is also creating social problems. Compared with the West, Asian countries have invested less in pensions and other forms of social protection, on the assumption that the family will look after ageing or ill relatives. That can no longer be taken for granted. The decline of marriage is also contributing to the collapse in the birth rate. Fertility in East Asia has fallen from 5.3 children per woman in the late 1960s to 1.6 now. In countries with the lowest marriage rates, the fertility rate is nearer 1.0. That is beginning to cause huge demographic(人口统计学的)problems, as populations age with surprising speed. And there are other, less obvious issues. Marriage socialises men: it is associated with lower levels of testosterone(睾丸素)and less criminal behaviour. Less marriage might mean more crime.
Can marriage be revived in Asia? Maybe, if expectations of those roles of both sexes change; but shifting traditional attitudes is hard. Governments cannot legislate away popular prejudices. They can, though, encourage change. Relaxing divorce laws might boost marriage. Women who now steer clear of marriage might be more willing to tie the knot if they know it can be untied—not just because they can get out of the marriage if it doesn’t work, but also because their freedom to leave might keep their husbands on their toes. Family law should give divorced women a more generous share of the couple’s assets. Governments should also legislate to get employers to offer both maternal and paternal leave, and provide or subsidise(资助)child care. If taking on such expenses helped promote family life, it might reduce the burden on the state of looking after the old.
Asian governments have long taken the view that the priority of their family life was one of their big advantages over the West. That confidence is no longer warranted. They need to wake up to the huge social changes happening in their countries and think about how to cope with the consequences.
The relaxing divorce laws entitle women to steer clear of marriage so that it might______.
选项
答案
boost marriage
解析
由定位句可知,由于离婚法的放宽,远离婚姻的女性会更愿意选择婚姻,因为当婚姻不理想时能更容易选择放弃,同时她们选择离开的自由也会让丈夫在生活中更为谨慎。定位句为因果关系陈述,故答案为boost marriage。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/UNc7777K
0
大学英语四级
相关试题推荐
A、Shecan’tdecidewhichclasstotake.B、She’shavingtroublegettingtoschool.C、Shehastroublefindingasubjectforanass
A、Planningtheirsummerholiday.B、Readingmagazines.C、WatchingTV.D、Readingbooks.B此题考查从内容进行推测和听细节的能力。解题关键是要能够听懂footballre
Mostimportantly,ifallofusgetnewsandinformation______fromtelevision,therewillbeadeclineingeneralliteracy.
Leptiniseffectiveinreducingweightbutit’smanyyearsawaybeforehumanscanuseit.Leptin,afterbeingapprovedbyhealt
A、Lessfreedomandmoremoney.B、Morefreedomandmoremoney.C、Educationsystem.D、Livinginpoorareas.B细节辨认题。原文明确表述了青少年犯罪的四个
A、Shewasgoodatpretending.B、Shewasrudetothestockbroker.C、Shewasreadytohelphermother.D、Shewasunwillingtophon
A、Scientists.B、Artgraduates.C、Children.D、Women.C本篇所有题目选项中,重复比较多的词有“science”“arts”等,可初步判断本篇是有关科学和艺术两门学科的。本题询问谁被采访了。录音开头就提到“要
Theoriginofmanisanextremelycontroversialissue.Scientistshaveahostofdifferenttheoriespertainingtoman’sinhabita
______(直到最后一刻他才承认)thathehadmurderedhisgirlfriend.
A、Becausepeoplethinktheirownbehaviorsareproper.B、Becausepeopletreatthesamemannersdifferentlyindifferentcultures
随机试题
随着对外开放的进一步扩大,内外部因素对我国经济安全的影响越来越大。()
控制过程的第一步是()
关于SLE的关节病变,下列哪几项是正确的
下列关于会计档案的说法中,正确的是( )。
有人说,凡是知识都是科学的,凡是科学都是无颜色的,并且在追求知识时,应当保持没有颜色的态度。假使这种说法不随意扩大,我也认同。但我们要知道,只要是一个活生生的人,便必然有颜色。对无颜色的知识的追求,必定潜伏着一种有颜色的力量,在后面或底层加以推动。这一推动
音乐课程评价的基本原则是导向性原则、科学性原则、整体性原则、可操作性原则。()
(2017·广东)教育目的的调控功能是指调控教育工作者的教育观念和行为。()
试述建设中国特色社会主义法治体系的主要内容。
单从(1)来看,人体大部分是水造的。水占人体重量的60%至70%。(2)看来似乎很结实的骨头,也大约有20%是水,而血浆所含的水分则占95%。人体中这个盐水海的水流经所有血管和人体内的每个细胞。人体(3)部分如果缺了它,便不能(4)。(3)
Completethesentencesbelow.WriteONEWORDAND/ORANUMBERforeachanswer.MountRushmoreThegovernmentfinallypaid$____
最新回复
(
0
)