第二篇 Spoilt for Choice

Choice, we are given to1 believe, is a right. In daily life, people have come to expect endless situations about which they are required to make decisions one way or another. In the main2, these are just irksome moments at work which demand some extra energy or brainpower, or during lunch breaks like choosing which type of coffee to order or indeed which coffee shop to go to. But sometimes selecting one option as opposed to another can have serious or lifelong repercussions. More complex decision-making is then either avoided, postponed, or put into the hands of the army of professionals, lifestyle coaches, lawyers, advisors, and the like, waiting to lighten the emotional burden for a fee. But for a good many people in the world, in rich and poor countries, choice is a luxury, not a right. And for those who think they are exercising their right to make choices, the whole system is merely an illusion, created by companies and advertisers wanting to sell their wares.

The main impact of endless choice in people's lives is anxiety. Buying something as basic as a coffee pot is not exactly simple. Easy access to a wide range of consumer goods induces a sense of powerlessness, even paralysis（癱瘓）, in many people, ending in the shopper giving up and walking away, or just buying an unsuitable item that is not really wanted in order to solve the problem and reduce the unease. Recent surveys in the United Kingdom have shown that a sizeable proportion of electrical goods bought per household are not really needed. The advertisers and the manufacturers are, nonetheless, satisfied.

It is not just their availability that is the problem, but the speed with which new versions of products come on the market. Advances in design and production mean that new items are almost ready by the time that goods hit the shelves. Products also need to have a short lifespan so that the public can be persuaded to replace them within a short time. The classic example is computers, which are almost outdated once they are bought. At first, there were only one or two available from a limited number of manufacturers, but now there are many companies all with not only their own products but different versions of the same machine. This makes selection a problem. Gone are the days when one could just walk with ease into a shop and buy one thing; no choice, no anxiety.

The plethora （過剩）of choice is not limited to consumer items. With the greater mobility of people around the world, people have more choice about where they want to live and work - a fairly recent phenomenon. In the past, nations migrated across huge swathes of the earth in search of food, adventure, and more hospitable environments. Whole nations crossed continents and changed the face of history. So the mobility of people is nothing new. The creation of nation states and borders effectively slowed this process down.

36. Sometimes people ask professionals to help them make decisions because__________.

A the decisions may have serious impact on their lives

B only professionals have the right to do that

C they have sufficient money to pay

D they have emotional problems

37. When people cannot easily decide what to buy, which of the following is the least possible choice?

A Giving up

B Walking away

C Buying an unsuitable item

D Seeking advice

38. Why do products have a short lifespan nowadays?

A They are of poor quality.

B They are quickly replaced with new ones.

C They have too many versions.

D They are not designed by computers.

39. How does migration today differ from that of the past?

A People now migrate to find better jobs.

B People now migrate for better life.

C People now migrate for better environments.

D People now have more choice about where to migrate.

40. Which of the following best expresses the writer's view on choice?

A Better more choice than no choice

B Better no choice than more choice

C All choice is easy

D More choice, more anxiety

本題分數（15）

36 、A 文章第一段的中間，作者講到當人們面臨某些復雜的選擇時，他們或是回避,或是拖延、或是求助于像生活方式指導師、律師、咨詢師這樣的專業人員，這些人正等著為減輕他們的感情負擔而收取費用. (waiting to lighten the emotiona1 burden for a fee) ，這樣的選擇一般不會是選擇喝什么咖啡這樣簡單的事情，往往是對選擇者的生活有比較大的影響的選擇。

37 、D 答題的依據是文章的第二段，面對種類繁多的消費品而難以做出選擇時，許多人最終 ending in the shopper giving up and walking away ，or just buying an unsuitable item that is not real1y wanted，沒有提到聽聽別人的意見。

38 、B 答案在第三段里可以找到，現在產品的生命周期短是因為它們很快就被新的產品取代了。

39 、D 最后一段的這句話回答了這個問題: With the greater mobility of people around the world ，people have more choice about where they want to live and work - a fairly recent phenomenon.

40 、D 縱觀全文不難看出作者的這個觀點，在第三段的最后一句話里： Gone are the days when one could just walk with ease into a shop and buy one thing; no choice, no anxiety. 作者非常明確地表達了自己的觀點:沒有選擇也就沒有煩惱。反之，選擇越多，煩惱也就越多。

（責任編輯：vstara）

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