大学体验英语综合教程4 课文原文.doc

大学体验英语综合教程4_课文原文-
. z.
Unit1. The Unsung Heroes: What About Working Dads"
On our first "date" after our twial recognition. 　
The very language we use to discuss men's roles (., deadbeat dads) shows a lack of appreciation for the majority of men who quietly yet proudly fulfill their family responsibilities. We almost never hear the term "working father," and it is rare that calls for more workplace fle*ibility are considered to be for men as much as for women. Our society acts as if family obligations are not as important to fathers as they are to mothers - as if career satisfaction is what a man's life is all about. 　
Even more insulting is the recent media trend of regarding at-home wives as "status symbols" - like an e*pensive car - flaunted by the supposedly few men who can afford such a lu*ury. The implication is that men with at-home wives have it easier than those whose wives work outside the home because they have the "lu*ury" of a full-time housekeeper. In reality, however, the men who are the sole wage earners for their families suffer a lot of stresses. The loss of a job - or even the threat of that happening - is obviously much more difficult when that job is the sole source of ine for a family. By the same token, sole wage earners have less fle*ibility when it es to leaving unsatisfying careers because of the loss of ine such a job change entails. In addition, many husbands work overtime or second jobs to make more needed money for their families. For these men, it is the family that the job supports that makes it all worthwhile. It is the belief that having a mother at home is important to the children, which makes so many men gladly take on the burden of being a sole wage earner. 　
Today, there is widespread agreement among researchers that the absence of fathers from households causes serious problems for children and, consequently, for society at large. Yet, rather than holding up "ordinary" fathers as positive role models for t