If women are mercilessly exploited year after year, they have only themselves to blame. Because they tremble at the thought of being seen in public in clothes that are out of fashion, they are always taken advantage of by the designers and the big stores. Clothes which have been worn only a few times have to be put aside because of the change of fashion. When you come to think of it, only a woman is capable of standing in front of a wardrobe packed full of clothes and announcing sadly that she has nothing to wear.
Changing fashions are nothing more than the intentional creation of waste. Many women spend vast sums of money each year to replace clothes that have hardly been worn. Women who cannot afford to throw away clothing in this way, waste hours of their time altering the dresses they have. Skirts are lengthened or shortened; neck-lines are lowered or raised, and so on.
No one can claim that the fashion industry contributes anything really important to society. Fashion designers are rarely concerned with vital things like warmth, comfort and durability. They are only interested in outward appearance and they take advantage of the fact that women will put up with any amount of discomfort, as long as they look right. There can hardly be a man who hasn’t at some time in his life smiled at the sight of a woman shaking in a thin dress on a winter day, or delicately picking her way through deep snow in high-heeled shoes.
When comparing men and women in the matter of fashion, the conclusions to be drawn are obvious. Do the constantly changing fashions of women’s clothes, one wonders, reflect basic qualities of inconstancy and instability? Men are too clever to let themselves be cheated by fashion designers. Do their unchanging styles of dress reflect basic qualities of stability and reliability? That is for you to decide.
1. Designers and big stores always make money .
A) by mercilessly exploiting women workers in the clothing industry
B) because they are capable of predicting new fashions
C) by constantly changing the fashions in women’s clothing
D) because they attach great importance to quality in women’s clothing
2. To the writer, the fact that women alter their old-fashioned dresses is seen as .
A) a waste of money C) an expression of taste
B) a waste of time D) an expression of creativity
3. The writer would be less critical if fashion designers placed more stress on the of clothing.
A) cost B) appearance C) comfort D) suitability
4. According to the passage, which of the following statements if TRUE?
A) New fashions in clothing are created for the commercial exploitation of women.
B) The constant changes in women’s clothing reflect their strength of character.
C) The fashion industry makes an important contribution to society.
D) Fashion designs should not be encouraged since they are only welcomed by women.
5. We can learn from the last paragraph that .
A) women’s inconstancy in their choice of clothing is often laughed at
B) women are better able to put up with discomfort
C) men are also exploited greatly by fashion designers
D) men are more reasonable in the matter of fashion
参考答案：Passage 15. C B C A D
如果女人年复一年的被利用，她们只能怪自己了。她们害怕在公众场合让人看见穿着过时服装，因而他们总是被时装设计师及大型商场利用。仅仅穿过几次的衣服由于过时而不得不搁置一边。想想这一点，这有女人才会站在装满衣服的衣柜前伤心的宣告说自己没衣服穿。
不断变换的时装只是在有意制造浪费。很多女人每年总会花掉大笔金钱去替换那些几乎没穿过的衣服，那些扔不起过时衣服的女人则会浪费很多时间把现有的衣服改样。（例如）把裙子加长或裁短，把领子落低或加高等等。
没有人会说时装业对社会做出了任何真正重要的贡献。时装设计师很少关注保暖性、舒适性和耐久性这些重要的事项，他们只关注外观，他们利用了女人只求好看而乐意忍受任何程度不适这一事实。几乎没有一个男人一生不曾因看到这样的场景而发笑：一位衣着单薄的女士在寒冷的冬日颤抖或者一位穿着高跟鞋的女士在厚厚的雪地里小心翼翼的行走。
