A. Because the proportion of income received by the rich and the poor remains almost the same as in 1917.

B. Because the economic growth has widened the gap of the family income between the rich and the poor.

C. Because income in the US is still concentrated in the hands of the richest 10% of American families.

D. Because some Americans made great fortunes during the Second World War.

3. Why is economic inequality still great in the US in spite of the economic growth?

2. What is the percentage of wealth that is in the hands of most Americans?

A. More than 25%.               B. Less than 25%.

C. More than 75%.         D. Less than 20%.

1. What does the majority of the Americans have in terms of wealth?

A. Their income and savings.

B. Everything they own in their homes.

C. Actually, they have no wealth at all.

D. Their house, cars and small amounts of savings.

Income in the United States is not as highly concentrated as wealth. In 1917 the richest 10 percent of American families received 26.1 percent of all income, while the poorest 10 percent received 17 percent, mainly from Social Security and other government payments. The most striking aspect of income distribution is that it has not changed significantly since the end of World War II. Although economic growth has roughly doubled real disposable (可自由使用的) family income (the money left after taxes and adjusted for inflation) over the last generation, the size of the shares given to the rich and the poor is about the same. By any measure economic inequality is great in the United States.

The reality behind these statistics is that a large number of Americans are poor. In 1918, 14 percent of the population was living below the federal government’s poverty line, which at that time was an annual income of $ 9 287 for a nonfarm family of two adults and two children. In other words, about one out of seven Americans over 31 million people was officially considered unable to buy the basic necessities of food, clothes, and shelter. The suggested poverty line in 1981 would have been an income of about $11 200 for a family of four. By this relative definition, about 20 percent of the population or more than 45 million Americans are poor.

5. D。推断题。根据文章最后一句 …most of them are simply “dumping grounds” for the dying in which “care” is given by poorly paid, overworked, and under skilled personnel 可推知此题答案为 D。

(24)

Most Americans get what money they have from their work; that is, they earn an income from wages or salaries. The richest Americans, however, get most of their money from what they own ― their stocks, bonds, real estate, and other forms of property, or wealth. Although there are few accurate statistics to go by, wealth in American society appears to be concentrated in very few hands. More than 20 percent of everything that can be privately owned is held by less than one percent of the adult population and more than 75 percent of all wealth is owned by 20 percent of American adults. The plain fact is that most Americans have no wealth at all aside from their homes, automobiles, and a small amount of savings.

4. D。推断题。根据其上文 …there is often no one at home who can care for a sick or weak person 可推知此题答案为 D。

3. A。细节题。根据文章第 2 段倒数第 2 句In the United States many retired people live on social security checks which are so little that they must live in near poverty 可推知此题答案为 A。

2. B。推断题。根据文章第 2 段第 4 句 …infants might be allowed to die because they could not survive if their parents starved, where as if the parents survived they could have another child可推知此题答案为 B。

1. C。细节题。根据文章第 1 段最后一句 …it is a decrease in death rates, not an increase in birthrates, that has led to the population explosion 可推知此题答案为 C。