本文是河北学位英语2010年下半年教材的第十三单元课文 

本课来自08年教材。

【博主注】本文可能意译比较好，有些部分直译出来不像个人话

Pockets are what women need more of. The women 's movement in the past decade has made giant strides in achieving greater social justice for females, but there's a great deal of work yet to be done. And it can't be done without pockets.“
口袋是当下妇女们最需要的，虽然过于几十年的妇女运动为妇女们在很大程度上争取到了社会地位，但是还有很多的工作要做，而这些工作没有口袋做后盾是不能完成的。

It has been commonly thought that men get the best jobs and make the most money and don't have to wash the dinner dishes simply because they 're men, that cultural traditions and social conditioning have worked together to give them a special place in the world order.
在大众的意识里，男人可以得到最好的工作，可以挣更多的钱，而且还不用刷盘子仅仅因为他们是男人，在文化传统和社会制约的共同作用在世界秩序中给予男性特殊的地位。

While there is undoubtedly some truth to this, the fact remains that no one has investigated the role that pockets have played in preventing women from attaining the social status and rights that could and should be theirs.
这观点无疑也有一定的道理，没有人去研究口袋对于妇女们得到本应该属于她的社会地位和权利的阻碍作用。

Consider your average successful executive. How many pockets does he wear to work? Two in the sides of his trousers, two in the back, one on the front of his shirt, three on his suit coat, and one on the inside of the suit coat. Total: nine.
想想那些成功人士，他们去工作时穿的衣服上有几个口袋呢？裤子两侧两个，裤子后面两个，衬衣前面一个，西装外套外面三个，西装外套内侧一个，一共九个。

Consider your average woman dressed for office work. If she is wearing a dress or skirt and blouse, she is probably wearing zero pockets, or one or two at the most. The pantsuit, that supposedly liberating outfit, is usually equally pocketless.
再想想平时妇女们穿去上班的衣服，如果她只是穿套装或是裙子和衬衫，她很有可能一个口袋也没有，或者至多有一个到两个，被认为是最得体的裤装，也通常是一个口袋也没有。

Now, while it is always dangerous to talk in general terms, it seems quite safe to say that, on the whole, the men of the world, at any given time, are carrying about a much greater number of pockets than are the women of the world. And it is also quite clear that, on the whole, the men enjoy more power, respect, and wealth than women do.
就目前的情况来看虽不能笼统地概括，可是我们完全可以这么说，无论任何时候，男性都比女性拥有更多的口袋，这也就很清楚地表明，就整体而言，男性比女性更享受权力，尊重和财富。

Everything seems to point to a positive connection between pockets, power, respect, and wealth. Can this be?
所有的事情似乎都在把口袋与权力，尊重和财富积极地连接起来，这样可以吗？

An examination of the function of the pocket seems necessary. Pockets are for carrying money, credit cards, identification (including entry to those expensive clubs where people sit around scaring powerful secrets about how to run the world), important messages, pens, keys, combs, and impressive-looking handkerchiefs.
似乎有必要检查一下口袋的功能，口袋可以用来装钱，信用卡，身份证（包括进出一些成功人士常去的高级的夜总会的通行证），重要的信息，笔，钥匙，梳子，以及让人印象深刻的手帕之类。

All the equipment essential to running the world. And held close to the body. Easily available. Neatly classified. Pen in the inside coat pocket. Keys in the back left trouser pocket. Efficiency. Order. Confidence.
所有的这些都是支配这个世界的关键物品，并且紧贴着身体，方便取用，整齐地分类，笔在内层的衣服口袋里，钥匙是左后的裤子口袋里，都是那么有效，有序，并透露着自信。

What does a woman have to match this organization? A purse.
妇人靠什么来匹配这个组织形式？钱包。

The most hurried examination will show that a purse, however large or important-looking, is no match for a suitful of pockets. If the woman carrying a purse is so lucky as to get an important phone number or market tip from the executive with whom she is lunching, can she write it down? Can she find her pen? Perhaps she can, but it will probably be buried under three old grocery lists, two combs, a checkbook, and a handkerchief, all of which she will have to pile on top of the lunch table before she can find the pen.
有一个快速的实验可以让大家看到无论多大多好的钱包都不能与口袋相提并论。如果一个带着钱包的女性在与某位高管共进午餐时有幸得到了一个很重要的电话或是某一个市场的信息，她能把它记下来吗？她能找到笔吗？也许她可以，但那支笔也许就埋在三张杂货清单，二把梳子，一个记事本和一个手绢下面，她要把所有的这些都倒在午餐的桌子上以后才能找到她的笔。

Will she ever get another tip from this person of power? Not likely. Now she has lost any psychological advantage she may have had. He may have been impressed with her intelligent discussion of the current economic scene before she opened her handbag, but four minutes later, when she is still digging, like a busy little squirrel, for that pen, he is no longer impressed.
她还会从这个有权力的人那里得到别的信息吗？很可能不会了，现在她已经损失了她应该拥有的全部心理优势。也许这位高管在她打开她的手包前还就她对目前经济形势有见地的讨论大加赞叹，可是四分钟以后，当她还像一只小松鼠一样在她的包里翻着一支钢笔时，他对她已经没有什么好感了。

He knows he could have taken his pen in and out of his pocket and written fourteen important messages on the table napkin in the time she is still searching.
他知道就在她不停地翻找的这段时间里他可以很从容地从他的口袋里拿出笔来，在餐桌上的餐巾上写下十四条之多的重要信息了。

What can a pocketless woman do?
一个没有口袋的女性可以做什么？

Two solutions seem apparent. The women can form a political group for pockets (Pocket Power?) and march on the New York fashion center.
有两个显而易见的解决方案，女性同胞可以组织一个争取口袋的政治集团（口袋权利?）然后去纽约的时尚中心去流行。

Or, in case that effort fails (and well it might, since it would, by necessity, have to be run by a bunch of pocketless women) another approach remains.
或者，万一那种尝试失败了（很有可能失败，因为这场运动是由一票没有口袋的女性发起的）还有一种方法。

Every man in the country for his next birthday finds himself the lucky recipient of one of those very fashionable men 's handbags, and to go with it, one of those no-pocket body shirts.
每个城里的男人在他下一个生日的时候都可以收到一份幸运的生日礼物：一个非常时髦的男用手提包，同时还有一件没有任何口袋的衬衫。

点击我返回本博客首页 http://blog.sina.com.cn/xuewei3 点击我返回本博客首页