Rich irony
The first step in reversing the dramatic drop in female employment is understanding it. Some of the fall is a sign of progress. Girls are staying in school, and thus out of the labour force, for longer. But mostly it is the result of two unwelcome trends. As households家庭 become richer, they prefer women to stop working outside the home. It is not unusual in developing economies for a family’s social standing to be enhanced by having its women remain at home. But India stands out突出, as its female labour-force participation rate is well below those of countries at comparable income levels.
Household: 1.N-COUNTA household is all the people in a family or group who live together in a house.家庭; 同住一所房子的人
• ...growing up in a male-only household.
2.N-SING The household is your home and everything that is connected withtaking care of it. 家务
• ...household chores. …家务活。
3.ADJ Someone or something that is a household name or word is very wellknown. 家喻户晓的
• Today, fashion designers arehousehold names.
standsout: 1.PHRASALVERB If something stands out, it is very noticeable. 显眼
2.PHRASAL VERB Ifsomething stands out from a surface, it rises up from it. 突出
• His tendons stood out like rope beneath his skin.
Socialmores习惯，习俗 are startlingly惊人地 conservative保守. A girl’s first task is to persuade her own family that she should have a job. The in-laws姻亲/she will typically move in with/ after marriage/ are even more likely to yank拉 her out of the workforce and into social isolation. In asurvey in 2012, 84% of Indians agreed that men have more right to work than women when jobs are scarce缺乏的，稀有的. Men have taken 90% of the36m additional jobs in industry India has created since 2005. And those who say that women themselves prefer not to work must contend with与…斗争 plenty of counter-evidence反证. Census人口普查data suggest that a third of stay-at-home women would work if jobs were available; government make-work schemes attract more women than men.
mores: N-PLURAL The mores of aparticular place or group of people are the customs and behaviour that aretypically found in that place or group. 习俗; 惯例
• ...the accepted mores of society.
startling:ADJ Something that isstartling is so different, unexpected, or remarkable that people react to itwith surprise. 惊人的
• Sometimes the results may be ratherstartling.
conservative: 1.（观点、衣着、猜测）保守的；2.右倾人士
in-laws：N-PLURAL Your in-laws are the parents and close relatives of your husband or wife. 亲家
yank：1.V-T/V-I If you yank someone or something somewhere, you pull them there suddenly andwith a lot of force. 猛拉
2.N-COUNT Yank is also a noun.猛拉
scarce：1.ADJ Ifsomething is scarce, there is not enough of it. 短缺的
2.PHRASE If you make yourself scarce, you quickly leave the place youare in, usually in order to avoid a difficult or embarrassing situation.溜走
• It probably would be a good idea if you madeyourself scarce.
contend with：处理；应付
• I have enough to contendwith; don't bother me with your problems.
The in-laws（主）/she will typically move inwith（定1）/ after marriage（定2）/are even more likely to yank her out of theworkforce and into social isolation.
That points to the other problem: the lack of employment opportunities. The workforce has shifted from jobs more often done by women—especially farming, where most Indian women work but are being displaced by mechanisation机械化.At the same time, inflexible and unreformed labour markets have hampered束缚 the rise of manufacturing and low-level services, the gateway方法、途径 for women in other poorcountries. In neighbouring Bangladesh孟加拉国, whose customs are not sodifferent from India’s, a boom in garment服装 manufacturing has increasedthe number of working women by 50% since 2005. In Vietnam three-quarters ofwomen work. But/ the mega-factories that boosted提高 female employment there/ are largely absent in India.
hamper：1.V-T Ifsomeone or something hampers you, they make it difficult for you to do what youare trying to do. 妨碍
• The bad weather hampered rescue operations.
2.洗衣篮、礼物蓝、带盖的篮子
gateway：入口、途径、网关
garmentmanufacturing industry：服装制造业
boost：1.V-T Ifone thing boosts another, it causes it to increase, improve, or be moresuccessful. 促进
• Lower interest rates can boost the economy byreducing borrowing costs for consumers and businesses.
2.N-COUNT Boost is also anoun. 推动力
• It would get the economy going and give usthe boost that we need.
3.V-T If something boostsyour confidence or morale, it improves it. 增强 (信心、士气)
• We need a big win to boost our confidence.
But/ the mega-factories（主）/that boosted femaleemployment there（定）/ are largely absent in India.
