Divorces in Japan have more than doubled, from just over 95 000 in 1970 to 206 955 in 1996, according to health ministry statistics. One in three Japanese marriages now ends in divorce.
Atsuko Okano was in one of those failed marriages. Three years ago, she found herself alone in her 30s, with children to raise and a future full of question marks and social shame. But she al so saw an opening — and became a consultant helping people like herself.
"My husband was cheating on me," she recalls. "I did everything to bring him back to me but it didn’t work, so I dumped him." Such frankness is a major characteristic of Japan’s recently divorced — and a striking break with the past.
Divorced people — particularly women—have long been looked down upon in Japan, where self-sacrifice and family stability are regarded ms ideals. In the past, bored housewives remained bored. Philandering(逢场作戏) husbands philandere
A. are granted respectability after they get divorced
B. are becoming brave enough to challenge the taboo of divorce
C. still regard the security of the family unit as very important
D. are becoming more financially independent
Since the 1950s, we have destroyed more than a third of our natural world. Our way of life has caused many serious environmental problems. We use huge amounts of natural resources and produce too much rubbish. Pollution is changing the Earth’s climate and our planet is getting hotter. The big question is: Will things ever change for the better
There are some scientists who are full of hope that something good will happen. They believe that with the help of science and strict laws today’s environmental problems will disappear in the future. Other scientists are pessimistic (悲观的): They believe that environmental problems are getting worse and soon it will be too late to save the environment. Let’s see what predictions those pessimistic scientists have made about life on Earth in the year 2100 :
●The Earth’s population will probably be 22.2 billion.
●The Earth’s temperature will be 1.4 to 5.8 degrees higher than it is today. The
A. People’s way of life.
B. Consumption of natural resources.
C. Change in the Earth’s climate.
D. Production of huge amoants of rubbish.
Women have more problems than men in old age. First of all, they have less money—or no money at all—and because of this, they often feel they get less respect, even at home. Quite a large number have no pension (退休金) because they have never worked outside the home, and thirty-eight percent are supported mainly by their husbands or children. Second, a larger number of old women than old men become widows (single women). Men are normally older than the women they marry, and women generally live longer than men. The remarriage among older widows is lower than that among widowers (single men). Statistics (统计) from 1990 in Shanghai show only 52 percent of elderly women with husbands still living, compared to (与……相比) 82 percent of men.
Because of lower incomes and the difficulty of remarriage, many elderly women who live alone, are poor and have almost no social life. Even an old couple lives with children, it is the woman who ends up doing the work ar
A. 27,000
B. 78,000
C. 72,000
D. 123,000
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