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  3. Global DevelopmentsSociologists tell us there is a li

Global DevelopmentsSociologists tell us there is a li

游客2024-01-03  27
问题                           Global Developments
Sociologists tell us there is a link between private lives and social forces. An outstanding example of such a link is the contrast in life chances between people in developed and in less developed countries. A child born in, say, the United States or Switzerland is not a better or more deserving person than one born in Ethiopia or Brazil. Yet because of social forces beyond individual control, each child faces the prospect of living out a lifetime under utterly different material conditions. Why should this be? What can account for the fact that some societies have become heavily industrialized and economically advanced, while others are changing so much more slowly? Social scientists have offered two different explanations. One emphasizes a universal but uneven process of modernization and economic growth; the other focuses on a worldwide system of political and economic inequality.
    Some social scientists view development in terms of modernization, a process of economic, social and cultural change that facilitates the transition from pre-industrial to industrial society. Modernization theorists claim that the various countries of the world are converging on a basically similar social type, the modern industrialized society. Some 250 years ago, the developed countries of today also had rudimentary, pre-industrial economies, but because they modernized relatively quickly, they now have productive economies that offer high living standards. During the same period, however, the poor countries have been slow to modernize. Differences in development, therefore, are largely the result of uneven modernization; but as "modern" features spread from the developed to the less developed countries, they too will follow the path to industrialization and affluence.
    What kinds of change does modernization entail? Some modernization theorists emphasize a change in individual psychology. They claim that people in the developed societies are more likely to have a work ethic, a desire for achievement, a willingness to defer gratification, a sense of control over their destiny, a strong sense of individualism. In contrast, a lack of ambition, an orientation toward the present, a fatalistic outlook, and a weak sense of individualism are said to be typical of people in more traditional societies.(A)Other modernization theorists emphasize sweeping structural changes in society.(B)Traditional societies are more likely to have an extended family system, in which kinship obligations encourage people to remain, physically and socially, where they started.(C)Similarly, modernization involves such features as heavy urbanization, extensive schooling, advanced technology, low population growth, a legal-rational political system, and a range of sophisticated services such as efficient transport, banking and communications.(D)On the whole, these features are lacking or inadequate in less developed countries, where government is usually authoritarian, the population is predominately rural and ill educated, and the necessary services are not in place.
    Other social scientists view development in the context of the world system, a network of unequal economical and political relationships among the developed and the less developed countries. This international system consists of a "core" of highly industrialized countries, and a "periphery" of less developed countries that are dependent on and exploited by those at the core. World-system theorists point out that the peoples of the third world were quite capable of providing for themselves before "modern" ideas and technologies began to "diffuse" from the colonial powers. In fact, they claim, development and underdevelopment proceeded simultaneously over a period of more than two centuries as the richer countries financed their own industrial expansion by draining the surplus resources of the poorer ones. The colonial system finally broke down when the last of the colonies won their formal independence around the middle of the twentieth century, But by then a new international relationship had been established: neocolonialism, the informal political and economic domination of some societies by others, such that the former are able to exploit the labor and resources of the latter for their own purposes. In essence, the world system is a form of international stratification, with a wealthy minority enjoying a disproportionate share of the planet’s resources and using various means—political, economic, and sometimes military—to maintain their position. [br] Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.
选项 A、The international system demonstrates an unequal economic and political relationship between developed and less developed countries with the less developed countries being the center of this system.
B、Highly industrialized countries are at the center of the world system, and take advantage of less developed countries positioned on the margin of the system.
C、The international system is made up of developed and less developed countries with the developed countries being the center of the system playing a very important role.
D、The international system is made up of both highly industrialized and less developed countries in which the less developed countries can benefit from the developed countries.
答案 B
解析 本题为句子简化题，考生应不受细枝末节的干扰，确定文章中某一特定复杂句子所表达的基本内容。这就要求考生具有用简化的句子归纳性地表达原句基本内容的能力，也就是我们常说的paraphrasing的能力。文中涂黑的句子意思为：这一国际体系包括了处于中心位置的高度工业化国家和位于边缘地带的不发达国家，而这些不发达国家强烈依赖于居于核心优势地位的工业化国家并为其所利用。实际上，其核心意思为B，即高度工业化国家位于世界体系的中心，这些国家对位于边缘地带的不发达国家加以利用，故选项B为正确答案。
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