專四真題:2010年真題 Passage Two

A new study from the University of New South Wales has discovered that during the working week, Australian fathers only spend an average of just over a minute each day alone with their children. Australian mothers, on the other hand, spend three hours a week purely looking after their children, a much greater disparity than in other countries, like America, Denmark, Italy and France, where couples divide the child-care more evenly. According to the author of the study, traditionally Australian fathers appear to like the fun aspects of parenthood but stay away from daily child-care activities. So while, they tend to be happy taking the kids to the park or to sports events, they are unlikely to participate regularly in feeding, bathing or taking the kids to school. In short, Australian parenting is seen as a woman’s job and a man’s hobby. However, the last 20 years have seen the arrival of the so-called “new man” — the man who is willing to share the housework and child-care. The “new man” has a picture of his children on his computer desk top at work. He never misses the kids’ school plays, and he passes on a drink after work so that he can get home in time to read their bedtime story. This new study suggests that the “new man” feels a little more at home in Europe than in Australia. Indeed, a poll conducted in the UK indicated that almost 70% of British women thought that men were as good at raising children as women.