黄浦区雁山区大学英语四级培训

　Section B
　　Directions: there are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements For each of them there are four choices marked A),B),C) and D).You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on
　　Answer Sheer 2 with a single line through the centre.
　　Passage One
　　Questions 57 to 61 are based on the following passage.
　　In times of economic crisis. Americans turn to their families for support. If the Great Depression is any guide, we may see a drop in our skyhigh divorce rate. But this won’t necessarily represent. an increase in happy marriages. In the long run, the Depression weakened American families, and the current crisis will probably do the same.
　　We tend to think of the Depression as a time when families pulled together to survive huge job losses, By 1932. when nearly one-quarter of the workforce was unemployed, the divorce rate had declined by around 25% from 1929 But this doesn’t mean people were suddenly happier with their marriages. Rather, with incomes decreasing and insecure jobs, unhappy couples often couldn’t afford to divorce. They feared neither spouse could manage alone.
　　Today, given the job losses of the past year, fewer unhappy couples will risk starting separate households, Furthermore, the housing market meltdown will make it more difficult for them to finance their separations by selling their homes.