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At first sight, the master-servant relationship seems based on economic differences: a mutually beneficial transaction between one party with more money than time （or willingness） to perform household tasks and another in the opposite situation. And indeed many of the world's 50m-100m domestic workers are migrants propelled across borders by gulfs in wealth as great as those between aristocratic Victorians and their maids.
But differences in financial status are not all that drives the maid trade. Bridget Anderson of Oxford University's Centre on Migration, Policy and Society has interviewed employers of domestic staff in a number of rich countries, and found that many prefer immigrants to locals because “it lets them talk about the wonderful things the maid is doing with her money back home”, thus portraying a dead-end job as a golden opportunity.
Inequality is part of what employers are buying. Simel Esim and Monica Smith of the International Labour Organisation studied domestic workers in the United Arab Emirates, and concluded that servants were there in part to raise their mistresses' status by slotting into the household below them. Some Brazilians employ only black maids, says dark-skinned Alzira—“because that's who is a maid, that's why. Some women don't want a maid they think could be as nice looking and well turned out as themselves, who could compete with them.”
Employing people you look down on may be a cheap way to feel better about yourself. But letting them look after your home and children requires uncomfortable mental contortions. These are criticized in The Help , a novel set in 1960s Mississippi which has recently been turned into a film. The villain tries to force white households to provide black maids with separate bathrooms because, conveniently for those they cook and clean for, “99% of all colored diseases are carried in the urine.”
In The Theory of the Leisure Class , Thorstein Veblen looked at many seemingly puzzling features of the master-servant relationship: the effort of managing them; the elaborate uniforms they were required to wear inside private homes; the sadly frequent abuse. He pointed out that, even in 1899, labour-saving devices would considerably reduce the need for household labour, which suggested to him that people hired servants not to relieve themselves of tedious tasks, but to be provided with “conspicuous obedience”. A servant both satisfied the master's “inclination for dominance” and presented a public “performance of leisure”.
Prosperous and busy people employ nannies and cleaners to make life easy for themselves. But sometimes the point of having a servant is simply to be a master.
11. We can learn from Paragraph 1 that ______.
[A] the master-servant relationship is ridiculous
[B] masters and servants fail to reach any agreement
[C] most of the world's migrants are domestic workers
[D] some people immigrate because of their bad economic conditions
12. Why do employers of domestic staff prefer immigrants to locals?
[A] Immigrants are more obedient than locals.
[B] Employers could talk about their employees.
[C] Employers take great pride in this trade.
[D] Immigrants are less attractive than locals.
13. The novel The Help was cited in Paragraph 4 to ______.
[A] introduce the topic of mistreating servants
[B] illustrate the masters' psychological conflict
[C] explain why some masters despise servants
[D] reveal the racial discrimination in America
14. According to Thorstein Veblen, why do people hire servants?
[A] To raise the mistresses' status.
[B] To abuse their servants frequently.
[C] To be set free from housework.
[D] To enjoy the superiority over others.
15. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
[A] The Psychology of Service: Why Have Servants?
[B] The Employing of Servants: Immigrants or Locals?
[C] The Market of Servants: Black Maids Preferred
[D] The Rise of Domestic Service: Inequality Phenomenon
[文章大意] 本文主要讨论了主仆关系得以存在的原因。作者认为，经济的差异是一方面原因，但很多时候雇主花钱是为了享受主仆之间的不平等关系，满足自己支配他人的欲望。简言之，有人雇佣仆人是为了让生活变轻松，而有人则是为了当主人。
[篇章结构]
11. 从第一段可以得知 ______。
[A] 主仆关系荒谬可笑
[B] 主仆之间很难达成任何共识
[C] 世界上大部分移民都是家政人员
[D] 有些人因为经济窘迫而移民
[试题类型] 具体信息题。
[解题思路] 根据题干关键词Paragraph 1定位到文章第一段。该段介绍了主仆关系得以存在的原因之一，即经济地位的悬殊。该段第二句指出，在全世界5000万到1亿个家政工作者中，许多人是外来移民，巨大的财富差距迫使他们移民（propelled across borders by gulfs in wealth），既然移民后选择从事家政工作，则可推知，他们是由于窘迫的经济状况而移民的，选项 [D] 与此意相符，故为正确选项。
[干扰排除] 该段第一句指出，主仆关系似乎是基于双方经济状况的悬殊，并且在第二句用具体的数据支持了这种说法，但本段并没有提及“主仆关系荒谬可笑”，故排除选项 [A] 。该段第一句指出，由于经济状况的不同，主仆双方达成了一种互惠的交易（a mutually beneficial transaction），即主仆双方为了各取所需是可以达成一致的，故选项 [B] 错误。该段第二句指出，多数家政工作者都是外来移民（many of the world's... domestic workers are migrants），而不是多数外来移民都是家政人员，选项 [C] 应排除。
12. 为什么雇主更喜欢雇佣外来移民而不是本地人？
[A] 外来移民比本地人更顺从。
[B] 雇主能够谈论他们的仆人。
[C] 雇主对这种交易感到非常自豪。
[D] 外来移民不如本地人有吸引力。
[试题类型] 具体信息题。
[解题思路] 根据题干关键词employers of domestic staff和 prefer immigrants to locals定位到文章第二段第二句。该句指出，牛津大学的安德森调查了许多富裕国家中雇佣家政人员的雇主，发现许多雇主喜欢雇佣外来移民，而不喜欢本国人，其原因是这让雇主们有了谈资：女佣回到家乡后用挣得的钱做了哪些美好的事情，这样他们把家政服务这份没有出路的工作描述成了一个千载难逢的机会（portraying a dead-end job as a golden opportunity），可见雇主认为他们为仆人们的美好生活创造了机会，对与外来移民的这种交易感到非常自豪，故选项 [C] 正确。
[干扰排除] 文中没有提到，与本地人相比，外来移民是否更顺从或没有吸引力，故可排除选项 [A] 和 [D] 。由上述解题思路分析可知，雇佣外来移民让雇主们认为自己为仆人的美好生活创造了条件，因而有了谈资（it lets them talk about...），这些谈资带来的自豪感才是他们雇佣移民的原因，而不是雇主可以谈论他们的仆人，故排除选项 [B] 。
13. 第四段引用小说《相助》是为了 ______。
[A] 引出虐待仆人这一话题
[B] 说明主人的矛盾心理
[C] 解释一些主人看不起仆人的原因
[D] 揭示美国的种族歧视
[试题类型] 篇章结构题。
[解题思路] 根据题干关键词The Help定位到文章第四段。该段第一及第二句讲述了雇主的矛盾心理：一方面，雇佣自己看不起的人可以使自己感觉良好（a cheap way to feel better about yourself）；另一方面，让这些仆人照看自己的家庭和孩子又会产生一种不舒服的心理扭曲（requires uncomfortable mental contortions）。第三句指出这种矛盾的心理在《相助》这篇小说中受到批判（These are criticized in “The Help”...）接着第四句作者列举了小说《相助》中的具体情节：文中的反面角色发动雇主为仆人安排单独的卫生间，因为雇主嫌弃仆人身上的病菌；而另一方面，雇主们又享用黑人仆人提供的烹饪和清洁等服务，这一情节与第一及第二句说明的雇主看不起仆人但又需要其照顾的矛盾心理相呼应，由此可知，作者引用小说《相助》就是为了阐释雇主的心理冲突，故选项 [B] 正确。
[干扰排除] 小说《相助》中并没有反映虐待仆人或种族歧视的相关情节，其中雇主嫌弃仆人身上的细菌体现了他们矛盾心理的一个方面，并不是雇主看不起仆人的原因，由此可见，选项 [A] 、 [C] 和 [D] 都无法准确概括作者引用《相助》的目的，故排除这三个选项。
14. 根据索尔斯坦·凡勃伦的观点，人们为什么要雇仆人？
[A] 为了提升女主人的地位。
[B] 为了经常辱骂仆人。
[C] 为了从家务劳动中解脱出来。
[D] 为了享受高于他人的优越感。
[试题类型] 具体信息题。
[解题思路] 根据题干关键词Thorstein Veblen定位到文章第五段。该段首句指出凡勃伦发现的主仆关系中几个令人费解的现象。第二句中凡勃伦指出，1899年，节省劳力的工具已经大大减少了家务劳力的需求，这一现象表明人们雇佣仆人并不是为了把自己从令人厌倦的家务劳动中解放出来（not to relieve themselves of tedious tasks），而是为了享受仆人 “绝对的顺从”（but to be provided with “conspicuous obedience”），该段最后一句总结了仆人的作用：既能满足主人“支配他人的欲望”，又能当众呈现出“有闲的表现”，可见在凡勃伦看来，仆人的作用在于显示主人的优越地位。选项 [D] 与上述含义相符，故为答案。
[干扰排除] 选项 [A] 是第三段中国际劳工组织的希梅尔·埃西姆和莫妮卡·史密斯的研究结论，不是索尔斯坦·凡勃伦的观点，故排除。经常辱骂仆人是索尔斯坦·凡勃伦在《有闲阶级论》中探讨的主仆关系中的几个问题之一，并不是人们雇佣仆人的原因，故排除选项 [B] 。选项 [C] 是索尔斯坦·凡勃伦否认的人们雇佣佣人的原因，故排除。
15. 下列哪一项最适合做本文的标题？
[A] 雇佣心理：为什么要雇佣仆人？
[B] 雇佣仆人：移民还是本地人？
[C] 佣人市场：黑人女佣受青睐
[D] 家政服务的兴起：不平等现象
[试题类型] 主旨要义题。
[解题思路] 本题要求选出文章的最佳标题，实际上是考查考生对文章主旨大意的把握。纵观全文，文章第一段阐明了主仆关系存在的一个原因，即经济状况的差异，很多人因为贫富差距被迫移民到异国从事家政工作。从第二段开始，作者开始分析主仆关系存在的其他原因。第二段用牛津大学安德森的观点说明了许多雇主喜欢雇佣外来移民是因为这让他们拥有引以为豪的谈资。第三段中国际劳工组织的两位学者指出，雇主花钱买来的不仅有服务，还有不平等。第四段作者批评了雇主们雇佣仆人时的矛盾心态。第五段，作者引用索尔斯坦·凡勃伦的观点，认为人们雇佣仆人不是为了摆脱家务劳动，而是为了享受仆人提供的“绝对的顺从”。最后一段作者总结全文，指出许多人雇佣仆人是为了使生活更轻松，但也有些人只是想当主人。由此可知，本文旨在分析人们雇佣仆人的各种原因，即人们为什么雇佣仆人，故选项 [A] 是本文最恰当的标题。
[干扰排除] 文章第二段提到了雇佣外来移民还是本国人的问题，但这只是文章的细节，全文并没有着重比较移民仆人与本地仆人，不足以概括全文，故排除选项 [B] 。文章第三段提到了一些巴西人只雇佣黑人女仆，第四段的小说《相助》中也提到了白人家庭雇佣的是黑人女仆，但并不能说明黑人女仆受青睐，且这两处内容分别是文中的一个事例和《相助》小说中的一个细节，不能概括全文，故排除选项 [C] 。本文提及了主仆关系中的不平等现象，但这是人们雇佣仆人的原因之一，作者的主要目的并非为了阐述这种不平等，而是为了探究人们为什么要雇佣仆人，故选项 [D] 也可排除。
P1 ①At first sight, the master-servant relationship seems based on economic differences: a mutually beneficial transaction between one party with more money than time (or willingness) to perform household tasks and another in the opposite situation. ②And indeed many of the world's 50m-100m domestic workers are migrants propelled across borders by gulfs in wealth as great as those between aristocratic Victorians and their maids.
[语篇分析]
本段为文章的首段，引出全文的主题，即主仆关系存在的原因，同时还指出了原因之一——经济地位的差异。句①指出，主仆双方由于在经济和时间上互补，于是达成了一种互惠的交易。句②则用具体数据证明上述原因，从事家政工作的人多是被巨大的财富差距驱使而来的外来移民。
[词汇突破]
transaction /trænˈzækʃn/ n. 交易；业务： In an ordinary commercial transaction a delivery date is essential. 在普通商业交易中，交货期至关重要。
gulf /ɡʌlf/ n. 〈喻〉鸿沟；（观点等的）巨大分歧： a wide gulf between theory and practice 理论与实践之间的巨大差异
*aristocratic /ˌærɪstəˈkrætɪ k/ adj. 贵族的；贵族统治的；有贵族气派的
*Victorian /vɪkˈtɔːrɪən/ n. 维多利亚时代的人
P2 ①But differences in financial status are not all that drives the maid trade. ②Bridget Anderson of Oxford University's Centre on Migration, Policy and Society has interviewed employers of domestic staff in a number of rich countries, and found that many prefer immigrants to locals because “it lets them talk about the wonderful things the maid is doing with her money back home”, thus portraying a dead-end job as a golden opportunity.
[语篇分析]
从本段开始，作者开始分析主仆关系存在的其他原因。句①承上启下，句首But一词笔锋一转指出，经济地位上的差异并不是主仆关系存在的全部原因。句②引用牛津大学布里奇特·安德森的观点，说明了许多雇主喜欢雇佣外来仆人的原因：这种交易让他们有了引以为豪的谈资。
[词汇突破]
portray /pɔːˈtreɪ/ v. 用语言描绘或描述： Opponents portray the president as weak and unqualified. 对手们把总统描绘成软弱无能的人。
*dead-end job 没有前途的工作；没有出路的工作
[句式分析]
② 【主语】 Bridget Anderson 【后置定语】 of Oxford University's Centre on Migration, Policy and Society 【谓语1】 has interviewed 【宾语】 employers 【后置定语】 of domestic staff in a number of rich countries , and 【谓语2】 found 【宾语从句】 that many prefer immigrants to locals 【原因状语从句】 because “it lets them talk about the wonderful things the maid is doing with her money back home”, thus portraying a dead-end job as a golden opportunity.
该句的主干结构为Bridget Anderson... has interviewed employers... and found that...。Bridget Anderson和employers后分别跟of引导的介宾短语做后置定语。谓语found后是由that引导的宾语从句，该宾语从句中又包含一个由because引导的原因状语从句。该原因状语从句的主干为...it lets them talk about the wonderful things...，后面的 the maid is... home为省略了关系代词that的定语从句修饰the wonderful things，而thus portraying... 至句末则是现在分词结构在从句中做结果状语。
P3 ①Inequality is part of what employers are buying. ②Simel Esim and Monica Smith of the International Labour Organisation studied domestic workers in the United Arab Emirates, and concluded that servants were there in part to raise their mistresses' status by slotting into the household below them. ③Some Brazilians employ only black maids, says dark-skinned Alzira—“because that's who is a maid, that's why. Some women don't want a maid they think could be as nice looking and well turned out as themselves, who could compete with them.”
[语篇分析]
本段阐明了主仆关系存在的第二个原因。句①首先点明这一原因：雇主花钱是为了购买一种不平等关系。句②引用国际劳工组织两位学者的观点，指出仆人的作用之一是提升女主人的地位。接着句③举例证明句②的观点，很多巴西人只雇佣黑人女仆是因为女主人不希望仆人争夺她们的风采。
[词汇突破]
*United Arab Emirates 阿拉伯联合酋长国
slot sth/sb into 将某事物/某人置于某位置： Can we slot her into a job in the sales department? 我们能把她安排在销售部工作吗？
be turned out 被打扮；被装扮： Their children are always very well turned out. 他们的孩子总是被打扮得很漂亮。
P4 ①Employing people you look down on may be a cheap way to feel better about yourself. ②But letting them look after your home and children requires uncomfortable mental contortions. ③These are criticized in The Help, a novel set in 1960s Mississippi which has recently been turned into a film. ④The villain tries to force white households to provide black maids with separate bathrooms because, conveniently for those they cook and clean for, “99% of all colored diseases are carried in the urine.”
[语篇分析]
该段分析了雇主雇佣自己看不起的仆人时产生的一种矛盾心理。句①和句②具体说明这种心理：他们一方面雇佣自己看不起的仆人以寻求优越感；一方面让自己看不起的人照看自己的家庭又会感到心里不安。句③和 ④作者列举了小说《相助》中的情节，具体形象地展现了雇主这种矛盾的心理。
[词汇突破]
*contortion /kənˈtɔːʃn/ n. 扭曲；歪曲
be set in sth （电影、故事等）以……为背景： The novel is set in France. 这部小说以法国为背景。
*urine /ˈjʊər ɪn/ n. 尿；小便
P5 ①In The Theory of the Leisure Class, Thorstein Veblen looked at many seemingly puzzling features of the master-servant relationship: the effort of managing them; the elaborate uniforms they were required to wear inside private homes; the sadly frequent abuse. ②He pointed out that, even in 1899, labour-saving devices would considerably reduce the need for household labour, which suggested to him that people hired servants not to relieve themselves of tedious tasks, but to be provided with “conspicuous obedience”. ③A servant both satisfied the master's “inclination for dominance” and presented a public “performance of leisure”.
[语篇分析]
本段指出了人们雇佣仆人的第三个原因：满足个人控制欲。句①列举了凡勃伦在《有闲阶级论》中探讨的主仆关系中种种令人费解的现象。句②中凡勃伦对上述现象进行解释，也说明了主仆关系存在的另一个原因，即人们雇佣仆人是为了享受仆人对自己的顺从。句③通过说明仆人的作用，进一步说明这一原因：满足主人“支配别人的欲望”，而且向公众展现“有闲的表现”。
[词汇突破]
elaborate /ɪˈlæbərət/ adj. 精心制作的；复杂精美的： an elaborate lace pattern 复杂精美的花边图案
tedious /ˈtɪːdɪ əs/ adj. 令人厌倦的；烦人的： The work is tedious. 这工作令人厌倦。
conspicuous /kənˈspɪkjuəs/ adj. 显而易见的；明显的；惹人注目的： He was very thin, with a conspicuous Adam ' s apple. 他非常瘦，有着明显的喉结。
obedience /əˈbiːdɪəns/ n. 服从；顺从；听话： The school demands total obedience from its pupils. 这所学校要求学生绝对服从。
inclination /ˌɪnk lɪˈneɪʃn/ n. 意向；意愿： She is not free to follow her own inclination in the matter of marriage. 她的婚姻不能自主。
[句式分析]
② 【主语】 He 【谓语】 pointed out 【宾语从句】 that, even in 1899, labour-saving devices would considerably reduce the need for household labour, 【定语从句】 which suggested to him that people hired servants not to relieve themselves of tedious tasks, but to be provided with “conspicuous obedience”.
该句的主干结构为He pointed out that...。谓语pointed out后为由that引导的宾语从句，该宾语从句的主干为... labour-saving devices would... reduce the need...。逗号后which至句末为非限制性定语从句，对主句进行补充说明，该定语从句又包含一个由that引导的宾语从句，做suggested的宾语，该宾语从句的主干为people hired servants not to... but to...，其中两个不定式在从句中做目的状语。
P6 ①Prosperous and busy people employ nannies and cleaners to make life easy for themselves. ②But sometimes the point of having a servant is simply to be a master.
[语篇分析]
本段总结全文，点明了人们雇佣仆人的原因：一是句①中提到的“使有钱且忙碌的人的生活变得更轻松”；二是句②中提到的“只是为了当主人”，其中句②颇具讽刺意味，是对全文论述内容的总结。
[词汇突破]
prosperous /ˈprɒspərə s/ adj. 成功的；富足的： prosperous middle-class professionals 富足的中产阶层职业人士
*nanny /ˈnæni/ n. （照看小孩的）保姆
乍一看起来，主仆关系似乎建立在经济状况不同的基础上：一方有钱但没时间（或不愿意）做家务，而另一方的情况则恰好相反，于是双方达成了一种互惠的交易。的确，世界上5000万到1亿的家政工作者中有许多是外来移民，他们被巨大的财富差距驱使，漂洋过海来到异国，这种财富的差距不逊于维多利亚时期贵族与仆人之间的差距。
但经济地位的差异并不是促使仆人行业发展的全部原因。牛津大学移民、政策和社会研究中心的布里奇特·安德森曾经采访过许多富裕国家的雇主，他发现，许多雇主喜欢雇佣外来移民，而非本国人，因为“这让他们有了谈资：女佣回到家乡后用她们的薪水做了哪些美好的事情”，因此，一份没有出路的工作就被描绘成一个千载难逢的机遇。
地位的不平等是雇主们花钱所购得的一部分。国际劳工组织的希梅尔·埃希姆和莫妮卡·史密斯通过对阿拉伯联合酋长国仆人们的研究得出结论：仆人被安排到一个家庭，地位低于女主人，其作用之一就是提升女主人的地位。一些巴西人只雇佣黑人女仆，有着深色皮肤的阿尔齐拉说：“黑人就应该是仆人，这就是原因。一些女主人不会雇佣长相或打扮可以同她们媲美的仆人，不希望仆人同她们竞争。”
雇佣你看不起的人或许是一种使自己自我感觉良好的廉价的方法。但是让他们照看你的家庭和孩子会产生不舒服的心理扭曲。小说《相助》就尖锐地批评了这一现象，该书讲述的是20世纪60年代发生在密西西比的故事，最近被拍成了电影。小说中的反面人物一直要求白人家庭给黑人女仆提供单独卫生间，以给予每天享受佣人烹饪和清洁服务的主人更多方便，因为“99%的黑人病菌存在于他们的尿液中”。
索尔斯坦·凡勃伦在《有闲阶级论》中探讨了主仆关系中许多看似令人费解的现象：主人花心思调教仆人；要求仆人在家中穿着精心制作的工作服；经常谩骂虐待仆人等。他指出，即便在1899年，各种节省劳力的工具就可以大大减少家务劳力的需求，凡勃伦认为，这一点表明，雇仆人并不是为了把自己从令人厌倦的家务中解放出来，而是为了享受仆人“绝对的顺从”。仆人不但满足了主人的“支配欲”，并且当众展现了“有闲的表现”。
有钱但忙碌的人雇佣保姆或清洁工是为了让生活变得更轻松。但有时候，雇仆人的目的仅仅是因为想当主人。