Question

   As nanny(保姆), cook, cleaner, shopper, driver, and gardener, she has one of the most demanding jobs in Britain today. And paying someone else to do the chores(家務活) which take the average housewife 71 hours a week would cost 49.

   At over 8,000 a year that’s more than the earnings of 70 percent of the population, including train drivers, firemen, prison officers, and social worker. Looking after a baby less than a year old takes a housewife into a even higher pay league. According to a study, she earns 57 a week at nearly 4,000 a year, the same as teachers, engineers, and chemists.

   Researchers put a price on each chore, then tried to find out how long the average person takes doing them. They found housewives spend an average 70.7 hours a week on housework with looking after the children (17.9hours) and cooking and cleaning (12.9 hours each) the most time-consuming(費時).

   A wife with a part-time job still works and average of 59 hours a week at home. Those in full-time employment put in longer hours at home than in the workplace. The good news is that these hours sharply as children get older. While the average mother with child under one puts in 90 hours weekly, the figure drops to 80 hours from one to four and to 66 hours from five to ten.

   Mother-of-four Karen Williams from London said, “Paying the housewives may not be practical, but the government should recognize the value of housework, perhaps through the tax. Running a house takes a lot of time and most husbands don’t understand this. For example, my husband only puts a shelf up now and again. He never cleans the kitchen that’s the real test.”

40. Who earns most according to the text?

   A. A social worker.                    B. A fireman.

   C. A gardener.                        D. A teacher.

41. We learn from the text that looking after children ______.

   A. takes more time than doing any other housework

   B. means more duties than being a teacher

   C. requires the mother to be well-educated

   D. prevents the mother from working outside

42. According to the text, a housewife with a baby less than one year old may work _____.

   A. 66 hours a week               B. 71 hours a week

   C. 80 hours a week               D. 90 hours a week

43. By mentioning her husband, Karen Williams wants to show that ______.

   A. housework is no easy job

   B. her husband has no time to clean the kitchen

   C. a housewife needs to be paid for cleaning

   D. the kitchen is hard to clean

Answer 1

解析：

40 D。細節理解題

從第一、二段可知。social worker, fireman的薪水 每年低于8,000；gardener的薪水按照最高的標準49×52= 8,148.第二段后面提到教師的薪水將近4,000。

41.A。推理判斷題

從文章第三段They found housewives spend an average 70.7 hours a week on housework with looking after the children (17.9hours) and cooking and cleaning (12.9 hours each) the most time-consuming(費時).可推斷出答案。其余幾個選項文中沒有提及到。

42. D細節理解

從文章第四段While the average mother with child under one puts in 90 hours weekly可知答案。

43.A。推理判斷題。

從文章最后一段中的Running a house takes a lot of time and most husbands don’t understand this可知下文提到Karen Williams的丈夫所做的事反襯出家務活的辛苦和不易。