中国的蚁族与房奴_BEC初级作文_BEC初级-查字典英语网

中国的蚁族与房奴

WHO knew China was tribal? The diversification of Chinese society has seen a flowering of a new vocabulary. Perhaps most fascinating has been the division of people into tribes (zu in Mandarin). The travails of the yi zu, or ant tribe, have been well-chronicled—recent graduates from outside the main cities who move to urban areas, live cheaply and work hard, often in low-paid jobs. Perhaps less well-known are the ken lao zu, the bite-the-old tribe, those between 25 and 35 who are underemployed or out of work, still at home and sponging off mum and dad.

你知道中国也有很多群落吗？中国社会的多元化创造了很多丰富多彩的新词。也许最有趣的当属公民所被划分的群落了（普通话称为“族”）。大量的文章在描绘“蚁族”的辛劳。毕业不久的大学生从外地来到大城市，他们辛勤地工作，却挣着微薄的钱、住着廉价的房。也许另一个没这么有名的是“啃老族”。这些介于25到35岁间的年轻人要么半失业，要么完全失业。他们还赖在家里靠着父母过活。

Many of the tribes, inevitably, are made up of people looking for love. There is the jia wan zu, the marry-the-bowl tribe. These are young women searching for that most stable of husbands, the one who holds a government job (still known as the iron rice bowl). The shan hun zu, or lightning-marriage tribe, marry fast and sometimes divorce faster. They should not be confused with the yin hun zu, the hidden-marriage tribe. These are women in their 20s who hide the fact that they are married, knowing they will not be hired or promoted if there is even the whiff of the possible need for maternity leave—socialist gender-equality does not offer much protection in the Wild East of modern China. And if you can only afford a postage stamp of an apartment, you’re probably a member of the wo ju zu, the snail-house tribe.