绝望主妇：对家务活说不！
Why marriage can be a chore for women
[ 2007-03-07 08:44 ]
Research shows that getting married prompts a 50 per cent increase in housework. When a woman is single, ironing, cleaning, cooking and other duties take up about ten hours a week. But after they are married, or have simply moved in with a boyfriend, they typically do 15 hours of housework every week, according to a report in the latest edition of Economic Journal. For men, the effect is opposite. Before getting married or starting to cohabit, they do an average of seven hours' housework a week. Afterwards-that drops to five hours. The research says that men are willing to take a back seat because they think women enjoy taking control of the house and all the duties. But women say they are forced to spend much more time at the kitchen sink because they are frustrated by the piles of dirty dishes left by their partners. For many couples, the arrival of children means the housework duties multiply, and many women tend to pick up the lion's share. The research, by the economist Helene Couprie, is based on a sample of more than 12,000 men and women in the British Household Panel Survey. A spokesman for the Economic Journal said it shows women tend to have more of a 'taste' for housework because they do more than men, even when single. Women who hate housework, but cannot persuade their husbands or boyfriends to do it, could be helped by one compelling argument. Scientists discovered recently that men could live longer if they did more chores. Hiding away from household duties and shirking childcare can even lead to them 'dying of boredom'. 双语资讯
(Daily Mail)
有调查显示，对于女性来说，结婚意味着得多做50%的家务活。 据最新一期《经济学》期刊公布的一项调查报告显示，女性结婚前每周花在熨衣服、打扫卫生、做饭等家务活上的时间约为10小时。而她们结婚或和男友同居之后，每周花在家务活上的时间则增加为15个小时。 而对男性来说，结果却恰好相反。男性在结婚或同居之前，平均每周做7个小时的家务活；而在这之后，每周做家务活的时间却减少为5个小时。调查表明，在家务活的问题上，男人总是“甘拜下风”，因为他们觉得女人乐于管家并承担所有的家务活。 但女性则认为，面对一堆堆没人洗的脏餐具，她们不得不在厨房的水池前忙乎半天。 对于很多夫妻来说，有了孩子之后，家务活就更多了。而很多女性则承担起了其中的大部分。 这项由经济学家海琳·考普里所做的调查主要基于“英国家庭专门调查”的1万2千多名男性和女性。《经济学》期刊的一位发言人称，调查显示，女性对做家务活的体会更深，因为她们比男性做得多，即便在结婚之前也是这样。 不爱做家务活、又无法说服丈夫或男友去做的女性现在可以摆出一个非常有说服力的观点了。 科学家近日发现，爱做家务活的男性寿命更长。不愿做家务活、又不愿带孩子的男性可能会“死于无聊”。
Vocabulary:
the lion's share : the greatest or best part
compelling : drivingly forceful
shirk: to avoid or neglect (a duty or responsibility)
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