阅读理解
Beauty has always been regarded as something praiseworthy.Almost everyone thinks attractive
people are happier and healthier, have better marriages and have more respectable occupations.
Personal consultants give them better advice for finding jobs.Even judges are softer on attractive
defendants(被告). But in the executive circle, beauty can become a liability.
While attractiveness is a positive factor for a man on his way up the executive ladder, it is harmful
to a woman.
Handsome male executives were thought as having more integrity than plainer men；effort and
ability were thought to account for their success.
Attractive female executives were considered to have less integrity than unattractive ones；their
success was attributed not to ability but to factors such as luck.
All unattractive women executives were thought to have more integrity and to be more capable
than the attractive female executives.Interestingly, though, the rise of the unattractive overnight successes
was attributed more to personal relationships and less to ability than that of attractive overnight successes.
Why are attractive women not thought to be able?An attractive woman is thought to be more
feminine and an attractive man more masculine(有男子气概的)than the less attractive ones.Thus, an
attractive woman has an advantage in traditionally female jobs, but an attractive woman in a traditionally
masculine position appears to lack the"masculine"qualities required.
This is true even in politics."When the only clue is how he or she looks, people treat men and women
differently, "says Anne Bowman, who recently published a study on the effects of attractiveness on
political candidates.She asked 125 undergraduate students to rank two groups of photographs, one of
men and one of women, in order of attractiveness.The students were told the photographs were of
candidates for political offices.They were asked to rank them again, in the order they would vote for
them.
The results showed that attractive males utterly defeated unattractive men, but the women who had
been ranked most attractive invariably received the fewest votes.
1. The underlined word "liability"(in Para.1)most probably means "________".
A. misfortune
B. instability
C. disadvantage
D. burden
2. In traditionally female jobs, attractiveness________.
A. reinforces(加强)the feminine qualities required
B. makes women look more honest and capable
C. is of primary importance to women
D. often enables women to succeed quickly
3. Bowman's experiment reveals that when it comes to politics, attractiveness________.
A. turns out to be an obstacle to men
B. affects men and women alike
C. has as little effect on men as on women
D. is more of an obstacle than a benefit to women
4. It can be inferred from the passage that people's views on beauty are often________.
A. practical
B. prejudiced
C.oldfashioned
D. pessimistic
5. The author writes this passage to________.
A. demand equal rights for women
B. emphasize the importance of appearance
C. discuss the negative aspects of being attractive
D. give advice to jobseekers who are attractive
