评论
打印
Recording Three
录音 3
We often hear people say that America is a land of opportunity, a country built on hope to aspire the greatness on the American dream.
我们经常听到人们说，美国是一片充满机遇的土地，一个希望实现伟大美国梦的国家。
But is the dream as we once knew it dying?
但是，我们曾经知道的这个梦想会消亡吗？
Today's demographics show that the middle-class is disappearing and now the richest 1% of the population has mastered more wealth than the bottom 90%.
今天的人口统计数据显示，中产阶级正在消失，现在最富有的1%人口掌握的财富超过了底层90%的人口。
Once upon a time, Americans thought that if they worked hard enough, even in the phase of adversity, they would be rewarded with success.
从前，美国人认为只要他们足够努力，即使在逆境中，他们也会获得成功。
These days, though, the divide between rich and poor is greater than it has ever been. The question is, what is it going to take to change things?
然而，如今，贫富之间的差距比以往任何时候都要大。问题是，怎样才能改变现状？
Maybe one day soon real change will actually be made in our nation and the gap will be eradicated. But what happens in the meantime?
也许有一天，我们的国家真的会发生真正的变化，差距将被消除。但在此期间会发生什么呢？
Is there something that we can do to help close the gap? Is there something that we can do to prove that a little compassion goes a long way?
我们能做些什么来缩小差距吗？我们能做些什么来证明一点同情心能帮助我们走得更远？
If we want to fix the problem of the income gap, first, we have to understand it.
如果我们想解决收入差距的问题，首先，我们必须了解它。
It is a grim reality that you can have one person who only makes around $13,000 a year, or across town, another is making millions.
这是一个残酷的现实，可能会有一个人年收入只有1.3万美元左右，或者在城市的另一头，另一个人年收入数百万美元。
For me, it is kind of astonishing. And if you ask low-income people what's the one thing that will change their life, they'll say "a full-time job."
对我来说，这有点令人惊讶。如果你问低收入人群，什么会改变他们的生活，他们会说“一份全职工作”。
That's all they aspire to. So why is it so difficult for so many people to find employment?
这就是他们所渴望的。那么为什么这么多人找工作这么难呢？
It partly comes down to profit-driven business models that are built around low-wage work and part-time jobs that don't provide benefits.
这在一定程度上要归因于利润驱动的商业模式，这种模式建立在低工资工作和不提供福利的兼职工作的基础上。
Businesses, in order to boost profits, hire employees as part-time workers only.
企业为了提高利润，只雇佣兼职工人。
This means they are paid the lowest legal wage and receive no health care or other benefits provided to full-time employees.
这意味着他们的工资是法定最低的，没有医疗保健或其他福利提供给全职员工。
Simultaneously, technological advancement and a global economy has reduced the demand for well-paying blue-collar jobs here in the United States.
与此同时，技术进步和全球经济的发展降低了美国对高薪蓝领工作的需求。
The cumulative effect of these two factors is that many Americans are forced to take two or more part-time jobs, just to make ends meet.
这两个因素的累积效应是，许多美国人被迫做两份或两份以上的兼职工作，只是为了收支相抵。
What has become obvious to me when it comes to the income gap is that there needs to be an opportunity for the people at the bottom to push them back up and push them into the middle-class to give them hope in their lives.
在谈到收入差距时，我已经清楚地认识到，底层的人们需要一个机会，把他们推回到中产阶级，让他们的生活充满希望。
Questions 22 to 25 are based on the recording you have just heard.
根据你刚刚听到的录音，回答问题第22至25题。
22. What do the surveys show about America according to the speaker?
22. 根据讲者所说，这些调查显示了关于美国的什么情况？
23. What did Americans use to believe?
23. 美国人过去相信什么？
24. What do low-income people aspire to?
24. 低收入人群渴望什么？
25. What do businesses do to increase their revenues?
25. 企业如何增加收入？
