英语故事:谁是世界上最虚荣的女人

【英文原文】

Brazilian women care more about their appearance than any other women in the world, with half prepared to undergo plastic surgery to keep their looks, a recent study shows. In Brazil, where being called "vain" is often a compliment suggesting self-respect, 86 percent of women said they tried extremely hard to improve their looks compared with an average of 67 percent worldwide, according to the 2003 global women’s survey by cosmetics company Avon. 90 percent of Brazilian women classified beauty products as an essential rather than a luxury, compared with an average of 77 percent worldwide, Avon said, citing its survey of 21,000 women in 24 countries. Avon’s official explanation for Brazilian women’s beauty consciousness was their struggle to enter a job market where they are still well under-represented in many fields. "It’s important to look good, and feel good if you want to confront the male-dominated world," said Marcia Gonsales, planning and marketing director at Avon Brazil. Looking good in Brazil is a national pastime. Nowhere on Earth is plastic surgery more popular on a per-capita basis than in this nation of 175 million people. Some male Brazilian writers attribute this to a national aesthetic that women should be sexy and sensual. Others point to the nation’s predominantly tropical climate where men and women wear less clothes and are more concerned about making the best of what they have on show.

【中文译文】

最近的一项研究显示，巴西女子比世界上其他任何地方的妇女都更在意自己的外表，其中一半愿意通过整形手术来留住美丽。在巴西，“虚荣”常常是一句谀辞，意思是“自尊”。根据化妆品公司雅芳在2003年对全球妇女进行的一次调查，86%的巴西妇女声称自己为增添美貌而不遗余力，而在全球范围内这一比例是67%。雅芳引用这次对24国21,000位妇女的调查结果说，90%的巴西女人认为美容用品是必需品而不是奢侈品，而全球的平均比例是77%。雅芳的官员解释说，巴西妇女在许多行业中仍然只占极少数，爱美意识体现着她们努力进入就业市场的抗争。雅芳巴西公司的策划及营销总监玛西娅·冈萨雷斯说：“在对抗男性主宰的世界之时，美丽的外表及良好的自我感觉十分重要。”打扮是巴西的一种全国性消遣活动，按人均水平计算，这个拥有1.75亿人口的国家是世界上整形手术最流行的地方。巴西的一些男性作家将这种状况归因于一种全国性的审美共识：女人应该漂亮性感。另一些人则认为其原因在于巴西主导性的热带气候：男男女女都穿得比较少，因此更得让露在外面的部分显得美丽动人。