Pride and Prejudice for the Modern Woman
Let us imagine how Pride and Prejudice£¬Jane Austen¡¯s most
famous work£¬might be updated£¬200 years on.
Austen¡¯s popularity is rooted in her intelligence.But today she would certainly have had a very different life£¬as would her characters.Here¡¯s my own suggestion...
It is a truth finally and universally acknowledged that a single woman with brains deserves to have equal opportunities to men£¬however disadvantaged she may feel by sexism.
¡°My dear husband£¬¡±said his hopeful wife one day£¬¡°have you heard that the local store£¬standing empty for so long£¬is taken over by a bright young businesswoman£¿¡±
Her dull and indifferent (Ä®²»¹ØÐĵÄ) husband replied that he had not.
¡°But it is£¬it is£¬¡±she replied excitedly.
Mr DullHusband made no reply.
¡°Don¡¯t you want to know her plans£¿¡±she cried with some impatience.
¡°Well£¬clearly you think it matters to your silly little head...so I¡¯d better listen.¡±
¡°Well£¬my dear£¬the rumour (´«ÑÔ) is that she has already set up a string of successful businesses in northern England£¬though
how_
a_
woman_
can_
know_
anything_
about_
that_
is_
beyond_
me.She will move in herself next month.¡±
¡°What is her name£¿¡±
¡°Bingley.¡±
¡°Is she married or single£¿¡±
¡°What a question! And none of your business.But her coming will be a fine thing for our five boys.¡±
¡°How so? How can it possibly affect them? ¡±
¡°My dear love£ºthose lazy boys need something to wake them up.There are bound to be jobs going.¡±
¡°Is that her point in settling here? Surely as a woman she has simply taken a fancy to the place.¡±
¡°Nonsense£¬my love£¬how little you¡¯ve noticed the world has changed.She¡¯s got a firstrate degree and some sort of business qualification£¬I¡¯m told.She surely needs one of our boys! Perhaps you might give her a call.¡±
¡°Me? No.Perhaps you can take an interest.You still have your looks£¬after all.She may even offer you a job.¡±
¡°Oh£¬that¡¯s not likely.These new chances belong to the younger generation.But now you mention it£¬I think I¡¯ll go along all the same.¡±
And Mrs Bennet went along.That was 10 years ago.She is now managing director of a FTSElisted company.
...It would remain the case£¬of course£¬that Mrs Bennet would be one of very few women on the company board£¬that her salary would be lower than her male colleagues£¬her bonus of a more¡°female¡±dimension and her lifespan (ÄêÏÞ) among the city¡¯s business leaders shorter than theirs.Still£¬she¡¯d no doubt have enjoyed Davos¡ªand might even have hobnobbed (ÅÊ̸) with influential figures.
СÌâ1:Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A£®Austen was born 200 years ago. |
| B£®Austen rewrote Pride and Prejudice. |
| C£®Austen¡¯s success lies in her wisdom. |
| D£®Austen¡¯s updated work gains popularity. |
СÌâ2:The underlined part in the passage suggests that Mrs Bennet ________.
| A£®had mixed feelings of admiration and surprise about Bingley |
| B£®felt kind of worried and doubtful about Bingley |
| C£®was extremely anxious to meet Bingley |
| D£®had a great curiosity about Bingley |
СÌâ3:In the eyes of Mrs Bennet£¬Bingley surely needed one of their boys to ________.
| A£®get married to |
| B£®work for her |
| C£®help her move in |
| D£®take over her store |
СÌâ4:What does the writer intend to tell us?
| A£®Women with brains can also be as successful as men. |
| B£®Women have to pay a high price for success. |
| C£®A judgment must be made free from prejudice. |
| D£®Sex discrimination still exists nowadays. |