2017 年 12 月英语四级阅读真题(第二套) 美国梦 .pdfVIP

2017 年 12 ⽉真题（第⼆套）美国梦 The American Dream For the past several decades, it seems theres been a general consensus on how to get ahead in America: 在过去的⼏⼗年⾥，对于如何在美国取得成功，⼈们似乎达成了⼀个普遍的共识： Get a college education , find a reliable job, and buy your own home. 接受⼤学教育，找⼀份可靠的⼯作，买⾃⼰的房⼦。 But do Americans still believe in that path, and if they do, is it attainable? 但是，美国⼈仍然相信这条路吗？如果他们相信，这条路能实现吗？ The most recent National Journal poll asked respondents about the American dream , what it takes to achieve their goals, and whether or not they felt a significant amount of control over their ability to be successful. 《国家杂志》最近的⼀项⺠意调查询问了受访者有关美国梦的问题，包括实现⽬标需要什么，以及他们 是否觉得对⾃⼰能成功的能⼒有很强的把握。 Overwhelmingly, the results show that today, the idea of the American dream — and what it takes to achieve it — looks quite different than it did in the late 20th century. 结果显示，绝⼤多数⼈认为，如今美国梦的理念——以及实现它所需要的东⻄——看起来与 20 世纪末⼤ 不相同。 By and large, people felt that their actions and hard work — not outside forces — were the deciding factor in how their lives turned out. 总的来说，⼈们觉得他们的⾏动和努⼒⼯作——⽽不是外部⼒量——是决定他们⼈⽣⾛向的决定性因素。 But respondents had decidedly mixed feelings about what actions make for a better life in the current economy. 但是，受访者很明显对于在当前经济形势下哪些⾏动能改善⽣活有着复杂的感受。 In the last seven years, Americans have grown more pessimistic about the power of education to lead to success. 在过去的七年⾥，美国⼈对教育能带来成功的⼒量越来越悲观。 Even though they see going to college as a fairly achievable goal, a majority — 52 percent — think that young people do not need a four-year college education in order to be successful. 尽管他们认为上⼤学是⼀个相当容易实现的⽬标，但⼤多数⼈ (52%) 认为年轻⼈不需要四年⼤学教育就 能成功。 Miguel Maeda, 42, who has a masters degree and works in public health, was the first in his family to go to college, which has allowed him to achieve a sense of financial stability his parents and grandparents never did. 42 岁的⽶格尔·玛尔达拥有硕⼠学位，从事公共卫⽣⼯作，他是家⾥第⼀个上⼤学的⼈，正因为如此， 他获得了⽗⺟和祖⽗⺟从未有过的经济稳定感。 While some, like Maeda, emphasized the value of the degree