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Passage One
短文一
At Christmas, a family gathered around the Christmas tree, showing how much they love each other, through the presents they give.
圣誕節期間，家人會相聚在圣誕樹下互贈禮物表達對彼此的愛意。
In Christmas-celebrating nations, millions of pounds a year are spent on corporate Christmas gifts.
在慶祝圣誕節的國家，企業每年在圣誕禮物的花費都會高達數百萬英磅。
Companies want to strengthen the relationship they have with other businesses or with customers,
企業想要加強和其他商業伙伴及顧客的關系，
and gifts create a feeling of obligation, which ties them together for the rest of the year.
禮物成為未來二者緊密合作的象征。
Corporate giving is also a form of "impression management",
公司贈送禮物也是一種印象管理，
where organizations try to control the image that clients and business partners think of them, through their choice of gift.
通過選擇的禮物來影響客戶以及商業伙伴對公司的印象。
Giving presents is also about showing you care, and that you know and understand someone.
贈送禮物也可以表達你的關心，意味著你知道并了解他人。
That's true in the home, which is one reason why choosing the perfect gift is so hard.
對家庭來說亦是如此，因此，選擇一份合適的禮物并非易事。
And it's true in business as well.
商界也不例外。
Companies use their corporate Christmas gifts to show they value their relationship with customers and partners.
通過圣誕禮物可以看出企業對顧客或商業伙伴的重視程度。
But it's not all good. Gift-giving can also make us feel insecure or cause bad feeling.
送禮也會帶來煩惱。禮物會讓我們產生不安全感甚至厭惡。
Will we give too little, and receive something better in return?
我們贈送的禮物普通，收回的禮物貴重怎么辦？
That could make us embarrassed or ashamed.
這會讓我們感到尷尬或難為情。
Or will we give too much, and make the receiver of our gifts feel bad?
或者送禮過于大方，收禮的人過意不去？
Sociologists and anthropologists have studied gift exchange for many years.
社會學家和人類學家歷時多年研究禮物互贈的問題。
Marcel Mauss was a famous sociologist, who, in the 1920s,
馬瑟·牟斯是著名的社會學家，20世紀20年代，
studied a type of gift-giving festival among people in North America.
他對圣誕節期間北美洲人互贈禮物的行為進行了研究。
He found that the people try to "outgive" each other, with more and more expensive presents,
他發現人們總是希望自己送出的禮物比收到的禮物更加體面，
until eventually some people can't compete and give up.
直到有一方不再繼續這一過程。
They lose face, and are left feeling subordinated to the gift-giver who "won" the exchange.
他們會覺得丟臉，會覺得比送禮貴重的人低人一等。
Questions 16 to 18 are based on the passage you have just heard.
問題16至問題18是基于你剛剛聽到的這篇文章
Question 16. What's the purpose of giving out corporate Christmas gifts?
問題16 圣誕節，公司贈送禮物的目的是什么？
Question 17. What should a company bear in mind when choosing the gifts?
問題17 公司選擇禮物要時刻牢記什么？
Question 18. What did Marcel Mauss study find?
問題18 馬瑟·牟斯的研究發現了什么？
譯文屬可可原創，僅供學習和交流使用，未經允許不得轉載
