The greatest recent changes have been in the lives of women, during the twentieth century there was an unusual shortening of the time of a woman’s life spent in caring for children. A woman marrying at the end of the 19th century would probably have been in her middle twenties, and would be likely to have seven or eight children, of whom four or five lived till they were five years old. By the time the youngest was fifteen, the mother would have been in her early fifties and would expect to live a further twenty years, during which custom, chance and health made it unusual for her to get paid work. Today women marry younger and have fewer children. Usually a woman’s youngest child will be fifteen when she is forty five and is likely to take paid work until retirement at sixty. Even while she has the care of children, her work is lightened by household appliances （家用电器）and convenience foods.
This important change in women’s way of life has only recently begun to have its full effect on women’s economic position. Even a few years ago most girls left school at the first opportunity and most of them took a full time job. However, when they married, they usually left work at once and never returned to it. Today the school leaving age is sixteen, many girls stay at school after that age, and though women tend to marry younger, more married women stay at work at least until shortly before their first child is born. Very many more afterwards, return to full or part-time work. Such changes have led to a new relationship in marriage, with both husband and wife accepting a greater share of the duties and satisfaction of family life, and with both husband and wife sharing more equally in providing the money and running the home, according to the abilities and interest of each them.
小题1: According to the passage, around the year1990 most women married .
A. at about twenty five B
. in their early fifties
C. as soon as possible after they were fifteen D. at any age from fifteen to forty five
小题2:We are told that in an average family about1990 
.
A．many children died before they were five
B．the youngest child would be fifteen
C．seven of eight children lived to be more than five
D．four of five children died when they were five.小题3: When she was over fifty, the late 19th century mother .
A．would expect to work until she died
B．was usually expected to take up paid employment
C．would be healthy enough to take up paid employment.
D．was unlikely to find a job.小题4: Many girls, the passage says, are now likely to .
A．marry so that they can get a job
B．Leave school as soon as they can
C．give up their jobs for good after they are married
D．continue working until they are going to have a baby小题5: According to the passage, it is now quite usual for women to .
A．stay at hone after leaving school
B．marry men younger than themselves
C．start working again later in life
D．Marry while still at school
