Marriage, and its many ups and downs, still exercises a powerful hold over newspapers, magazines and the airwaves. Nearly 23m Americans watched Prince William being joined in holy marriage to Kate Middleton. Millions more have indulged in the break-up of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s marriage after revelations that he fathered a son with a maid.
Less delightful are revelations about the sorry state of marriage across the United States. Data from the Census Bureau show that married couples, for the first time, now make up less than half of all households.
The iconic American family, with mom, dad and kids under one roof, is fading. In every state the numbers of unmarried couples, childless households and single-person households are growing faster than those comprised of married people with children, finds the 2010 census. And the trend has a potent class dimension. Traditional marriage has evolved from a near-universal ritual to a luxury for the educated and affluent.
There barely was a marriage gap in 1960: only four percentage points separated the wedded ways of college and high-school graduates(76％ versus 72％). The gap has since widened to 16 percentage points, according to the Pew Research Centre.
"Marriage has become much more selective, and that’s why the divorce rate has come down," said Bradford Wilcox, director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. The project found that divorce rates for couples with college degrees are only a third as high as for those with a high-school degree.
Americans with a high-school degree or less tell researchers they would like to marry, but do not believe they can afford it. Instead, they raise children out of wedlock. Only 6％ of children born to college-educated mothers were born outside marriage, according to the National Marriage Project. That compares with 44％ of babies born to mothers whose education ended with high school.
"Less marriage means less income and more poverty," reckons Isabel Sawhill, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. She and other researchers have linked as much as half of the income inequality in America to changes in family composition: single-parent families (mostly those with a high-school degree or less) are getting poorer while married couples (with educations and dual incomes) are increasingly well-off. "This is a striking gap that is not well understood by the public," she says.
Do not expect the Democratic Party, however, to make an issue of the marriage gap in next year’s elections. Unmarried women voted overwhelmingly for Barack Obama. "You don’t want to suggest to someone who isn’t married and has children that they should be married," says Ms Sawhill. "That is a scorn on their lifestyle./
Which of the following would the author most probably agree on

A:Brides are more likely to have a college degree than they were. B:Educated men don’t mind marrying women with a high-school degree. C:Couples don’t end in divorce because both are well-educated. D:The soaring cost of divorce prevents Americans from divorce.

Marriage, and its many ups and downs, still exercises a powerful hold over newspapers, magazines and the airwaves. Nearly 23m Americans watched Prince William being joined in holy marriage to Kate Middleton. Millions more have indulged in the break-up of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s marriage after revelations that he fathered a son with a maid.
Less delightful are revelations about the sorry state of marriage across the United States. Data from the Census Bureau show that married couples, for the first time, now make up less than half of all households.
The iconic American family, with mom, dad and kids under one roof, is fading. In every state the numbers of unmarried couples, childless households and single-person households are growing faster than those comprised of married people with children, finds the 2010 census. And the trend has a potent class dimension. Traditional marriage has evolved from a near-universal ritual to a luxury for the educated and affluent.
There barely was a marriage gap in 1960: only four percentage points separated the wedded ways of college and high-school graduates(76％ versus 72％). The gap has since widened to 16 percentage points, according to the Pew Research Centre.
"Marriage has become much more selective, and that’s why the divorce rate has come down," said Bradford Wilcox, director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. The project found that divorce rates for couples with college degrees are only a third as high as for those with a high-school degree.
Americans with a high-school degree or less tell researchers they would like to marry, but do not believe they can afford it. Instead, they raise children out of wedlock. Only 6％ of children born to college-educated mothers were born outside marriage, according to the National Marriage Project. That compares with 44％ of babies born to mothers whose education ended with high school.
"Less marriage means less income and more poverty," reckons Isabel Sawhill, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. She and other researchers have linked as much as half of the income inequality in America to changes in family composition: single-parent families (mostly those with a high-school degree or less) are getting poorer while married couples (with educations and dual incomes) are increasingly well-off. "This is a striking gap that is not well understood by the public," she says.
Do not expect the Democratic Party, however, to make an issue of the marriage gap in next year’s elections. Unmarried women voted overwhelmingly for Barack Obama. "You don’t want to suggest to someone who isn’t married and has children that they should be married," says Ms Sawhill. "That is a scorn on their lifestyle.

Which of the following would the author most probably agree on（）

A:Brides are more likely to have a college degree than they were B:Educated men don’t mind marrying women with a high-school degree C:Couples don’t end in divorce because both are well-educated D:The soaring cost of divorce prevents Americans from divorce

Passage One
Sharon Keating was worried about her kids when she got a divorce. Her daughter, says, "I was feeling.., like down and sad and even though I didn’t really show it."
Judith Wallerstein says problems from divorce can stay for many years. They can show up when the kids are adults. As adults the kids have trouble.
Wallerstein studied 93 children over a generation. The results can only be found in her book.
She says children of divorce are more likely to have problems with drugs. They are far more likely to seek therapy. About 40-percent of them do not marry. Their marriages fail at nearly twice the usual rate. It is hard for them to trust. They are afraid of failing.
Critics say Wallerstein had too few children in her study. Other things may be the cause of the kid’s problems. The study does not compare kids from divorced families with kids from "healthy" families.
Wallerstein’s families divorced a generation ago. Times have changed. People feel different about divorce. Today programs like Kid’s Turn try to lessen some of the effects of divorce with family counseling. Talking about their feelings helps the kids get through it.
Since they know more about the problems, maybe the kids will be able to handle it.

Since Wallerstein's study,（）

A:there are fewer divorces B:children of divorce no longer get therapy C:times and attitudes toward divorce have changed D:people don't talk about divorce any more

Ⅳ Reading Comprehension Directions: There are five reading passages in this part. Each passage is followed by five questions. For each question there are four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose one best answer and blacken the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet. Passage One Sharon Keating was worried about her kids when she got a divorce. Her daughter, says, "I was feeling.., like down and sad and even though I didn’t really show it." Judith Wallerstein says problems from divorce can stay for many years. They can show up when the kids are adults. As adults the kids have trouble. Wallerstein studied 93 children over a generation. The results can only be found in her book. She says children of divorce are more likely to have problems with drugs. They are far more likely to seek therapy. About 40-percent of them do not marry. Their marriages fail at nearly twice the usual rate. It is hard for them to trust. They are afraid of failing. Critics say Wallerstein had too few children in her study. Other things may be the cause of the kid’s problems. The study does not compare kids from divorced families with kids from "healthy" families. Wallerstein’s families divorced a generation ago. Times have changed. People feel different about divorce. Today programs like Kid’s Turn try to lessen some of the effects of divorce with family counseling. Talking about their feelings helps the kids get through it. Since they know more about the problems, maybe the kids will be able to handle it.

Since Wallerstein's study,（）

A:there are fewer divorces B:children of divorce no longer get therapy C:times and attitudes toward divorce have changed D:people don't talk about divorce any more

Is there something seriously wrong with marriage today During the past 50 years, the rate of divorce in the United States has exploded. almost 50% of marriages end in divorce now, and the evidence suggests it is going to get worse. If this trend continues, it will lead to the breakup of the family, according to a spokesperson for the National Family Association. Some futurists predict that in 100 years, the average American will marry at least four times, and extramarital(婚外的) affairs will be even more common than they are now.
But what are the reasons for this, and is the picture really so gloomy(阴暗的) The answer to the first question is really quite simple. marriage is no longer the necessity it once was. The institution of marriage has been based for years partly on economic need. Women used to be economically dependent on their husbands as they usually didn’t have jobs outside the home. But with the rising number of women in well-paying jobs, this is no longer the case, so they don’t feel that they need to stay in a failing marriage.
In answer to the second question, the outlook may not be as pessimistic(悲观的) as it seems. While the rate of divorce has risen, the rate o~ couples marrying has never actually fallen very much, so marriage is still quite popular. In addition to this, many couples now simply live together and don’t bother to marry. These couples are effectively married, but they do not appear in either the marriage or divorce statistics. In fact, more than 50% of first marriages survive.
So is marriage really an outdated institution The fact that most people still get married indicates that it isn’t. And it ’is also true that married couples have a healthier life than single people: they suffer less from stress and its consequences, such as heart problems, and married men generally consider themselves more contented than their single counterparts. Perhaps the key is to find out what makes a successful marriage and apply it to all of our relationships!
Which of the following is true about the marriage in the United States today

A:Divorce leads to the breakup of the family. B:More than half of the married couples get divorced. C:American people marry more than four times. D:More and more people are getting divorced.

Is there something seriously wrong with marriage today During the past 50 years, the rate of divorce in the United States has exploded: almost 50% of marriages end in divorce now, and the evidence suggests it is going to get worse. If this trend continues, it will lead to the breakup of the family, according to a spokesperson for the National Family Association. Some futurists predict that in 100 years, the average American will marry at least four times and extramarital affairs will be even more common than they are now.
But what are the reasons for this, and is the picture really so gloomy The answer to the first question is really quite simple: marriage is no longer the necessity it once was. The institution of marriage has been based for years partly on economic need. Women used to be economically dependent on their husbands as they usually didn’t have jobs outside the home. But with the rising number of women in well-paying jobs, this is no longer the case, so they don’t feel that they need to stay in a failing marriage.
In answer to the second question, the outlook may not be as pessimistic as it seems. While the rate of divorce has risen, the rate of couples marrying has never actually fallen very much, so marriage is still quite popular. In addition to this, many couples now cohabit and don’t bother to marry. These couples are effectively married, but they do not appear in either the marriage or divorce statistics. In fact, more than 50% of first marriages survive. The statistics are deceptive because there is a higher number of divorces in second and third marriages than in first marriages.
So is marriage really an outdated institution The fact that most people still get married indicates that it isn’t. And it is also true that married couples have a healthier life than single people: they suffer less from stress and its consequences, such as heart problems, and married men generally consider themselves more contented than their single counterparts. Perhaps the key is to find out what makes a successful marriage and apply it to all of our relationships!
Which is true about the problem of marriage in the United States today

A:Divorce leads to the breakup of the family. B:Half of the married couples get divorced. C:American people marry more than four times. D:More and more people are getting divorce

Is there something seriously wrong with marriage today During the past 50 years, the rate of divorce in the United States has exploded: almost 50% of marriages end in divorce now, and the evidence suggests it is going to get worse. If this trend continues, it will lead to the breakup of the family, according to a spokesperson for the National Family Association. Some futurists predict that in 100 years, the average American will marry at least four times and extramarital affairs will be even more common than they are now.
But what are the reasons for this, and is the picture really so gloomy The answer to the first question is really quite simple: marriage is no longer the necessity it once was. The institution of marriage has been based for years partly on economic need. Women used to be economically dependent on their husbands as they usually didn’t have jobs outside the home. But with the rising number of women in well-paying jobs, this is no longer the case, so they don’t feel that they need to stay in a failing marriage.
In answer to the second question, the outlook may not be as pessimistic as it seems. While the rate of divorce has risen, the rate of couples marrying has never actually fallen very much, so marriage is still quite popular. In addition to this, many couples now cohabit and don’t bother to marry. These couples are effectively married, but they do not appear in either the marriage or divorce statistics. In fact, more than 50% of first marriages survive. The statistics are deceptive because there is a higher number of divorces in second and third marriages than in first marriages.
So is marriage really an outdated institution The fact that most people still get married indicates that it isn’t. And it is also true that married couples have a healthier life than single people: they suffer less from stress and its consequences, such as heart problems, and married men generally consider themselves more contented than their single counterparts. Perhaps the key is to find out what makes a successful marriage and apply it to all of our relationships!
Why may the outlook of marriage not be as gloomy as it appears

A:Many people still like to get married. B:The rate of divorce has actually decreased. C:Over 50% of the marriages continue to exist. D:The statistics of divorce is not quite tru

Is there something seriously wrong with marriage today During the past 50 years the rate of divorce in the United States has exploded: almost 50% of marriages end in divorce now, and the evidence suggests it is going to get worse. If this trend continues, it will lead to the break up of the family, according to a spokesperson for the National Family Association. Some futurists predict that in 100 years, the average American will many at least four times, and extramarital affairs will be even more common than they are now.
But what are the reasons for this, and is the picture really so gloomy The answer to the first question is really quite simple: marriage is no longer the necessity it once was. the institution of marriage has been based for years partly on economic need. Women used to be economically dependent on their husbands as they usually didn’t have jobs outside the home. But with the rising number of women in well-paying jobs, this is no longer the case, so they don’t feel that they need to stay in a failing marriage.
In answer to the second question, the outlook may not be as pessimistic as it seems, While the rate of divorce has risen, the rate of couples marrying has never actually fallen very much, so marriage is still quite popular. In addition to this. many couples now cohabit and don’t bother to marry. These couples are effectively married, but they do not appear in either the marriage or divorce statistics. In fact, more than 50~ of first marriages survive. The statistics are deceptive because there is a higher number of divorces in second and third marriages than in first marriages.
So is marriage really an outdated institution The fact that most people still get married indicates that it isn’t. And it is also true that married couples have a healthier life than single people: they suffer less from stress and its consequences, such as heart problems, and married men generally consider themselves more contented than their single counterparts. Perhaps the key is to find out what makes a successful marriage and apply it to all of our relationships!
Which is true about the problem of marriage in the United States today ______

A:Divorce leads to the breakup of the family. B:Half of the married couples get divorced. C:American people marry more than four times. D:More and more people are getting divorce

Is there something seriously wrong with marriage today During the past 50 years the rate of divorce in the United States has exploded: almost 50% of marriages end in divorce now, and the evidence suggests it is going to get worse. If this trend continues, it will lead to the break up of the family, according to a spokesperson for the National Family Association. Some futurists predict that in 100 years, the average American will many at least four times, and extramarital affairs will be even more common than they are now.
But what are the reasons for this, and is the picture really so gloomy The answer to the first question is really quite simple: marriage is no longer the necessity it once was. the institution of marriage has been based for years partly on economic need. Women used to be economically dependent on their husbands as they usually didn’t have jobs outside the home. But with the rising number of women in well-paying jobs, this is no longer the case, so they don’t feel that they need to stay in a failing marriage.
In answer to the second question, the outlook may not be as pessimistic as it seems, While the rate of divorce has risen, the rate of couples marrying has never actually fallen very much, so marriage is still quite popular. In addition to this. many couples now cohabit and don’t bother to marry. These couples are effectively married, but they do not appear in either the marriage or divorce statistics. In fact, more than 50~ of first marriages survive. The statistics are deceptive because there is a higher number of divorces in second and third marriages than in first marriages.
So is marriage really an outdated institution The fact that most people still get married indicates that it isn’t. And it is also true that married couples have a healthier life than single people: they suffer less from stress and its consequences, such as heart problems, and married men generally consider themselves more contented than their single counterparts. Perhaps the key is to find out what makes a successful marriage and apply it to all of our relationships!
Why may the outlook of marriage not be as gloomy as it appears ______

A:Many people still like to get married. B:The rate of divorce has actually decreased. C:Over 50% of the marriages continue to exist. D:The statistics of divorce is not quite tru