不论男女,办公室该不该聊其年龄_BEC初级作文

不论男女,办公室该不该聊其年龄

我心想，真惨啊。对于“紧缩世代”（crunch generation，指一毕业就赶上经济紧缩的一代——译者注）而言，这是另一项耻辱——他们买不起房，背负着学生贷款，千辛万苦也难以找到一份体面的工作，而当他们终于找到了一份不错的工作，又因为年纪较轻而受到“敲打”。

Yet on closer inspection it is more complicated than that. My sample suggests there is a difference between how the sexes take the question.

然而，经过更仔细的审视会发现，情况比上面所说的更复杂。从我选取的样本中可以看出，男女对这个问题的感受不一样。

To the women, it feels like sexism and ageism in a single shot. But to some of the pushier young men, the question is an opportunity to show off. To be able to say: I’m 23 – and look how much I’ve achieved already – is deeply gratifying.

在女士们看来，这个问题同时具有性别歧视和年龄歧视的意味。而对于一些进取心较强的年轻男士而言，这个问题则提供了一次炫耀的机会。能够回答“我23岁”（潜台词：看看我已经取得了多么了不起的成就），是一件很能带来满足感的事。

Yet for both men and women, at some point in their late twenties and just before the appearance of the first wrinkle, the questions cease. By some unspoken agreement, everyone stops asking.