Passage 3 Is the Car Culture Dying L1040

I. Warm Up

1.1 Vocabulary

Vocabulary　Definition

spawn [spɔːn]

v. 大量生产

to make a series of things happen or start to exist

sprawl [sprɔːl]

v. 杂乱无序地扩展

to spread or develop in an uneven or uncontrolled way

epicenter [ˈepɪsentər]

n. 中心

center

quintessential [ˌkwɪntɪˈsenʃl]

adj. 典型的

of the most typical example or representative

offshoot [ˈɔːfʃuːt]

n. 分枝；衍生物

something （such as a business） that develops from something larger

psyche [ˈsaɪki]

n. 灵魂；心智

the soul, mind, or personality of a person or group

pocketbook [ˈpɑːkɪtbʊk]

n. 皮夹；皮包

a bag usually with handles and pockets that is used by women to carry money and personal belongings

eclipse [ɪˈklɪps]

n. 日食；黯然失色

a loss of power, success, popularity, etc.

millennial [mɪˈleniəl]

n. 千禧一代

a person born in the 1980s or 1990s

zest [zest]

n. 兴趣，热情

a feeling of enjoyment and enthusiasm

rite [raɪt]

n. 仪式，典礼

an act that is part of a usually religious ceremony

chauffeur [ʃoʊˈfɜːr]

n. 受雇的汽车司机

a person whose job is to drive people around in a car

meager [ˈmiːɡər]

adj. 微薄的，不足的

very small or too small in amount

incur [ɪnˈkɜːr]

v. 招致

to cause yourself to have or experience （something unpleasant or unwanted）

demographic [ˌdeməˈɡræfɪk]

adj. 人口统计学的

of or relating to the study of changes that occur in large groups of people over a period of time

stranglehold [ˈstræŋɡlhoʊld]

n. 压制

a force or influence that stops something from growing or developing

predicament [prɪˈdɪkəmənt]

n. 困境，窘况

a difficult or unpleasant situation

clustered [ˈklʌstərd]

adj. 群集的

of or relating to a group of things or people that are close together

gentrification [ˌdʒentrɪfɪˈkeɪʃn]

n. 中产阶级化

the process of renewal and rebuilding accompanying the influx of middle-class or affluent people into deteriorating areas that often displaces poorer residents

repeal [rɪˈpiːl]

v. 废除，作废

to officially make （a law） no longer valid

1.2 Background Information

美国国土广阔，人们向往居住自由和移动自由，因此很长时间以来，汽车文化都一直处于巅峰状态。年轻人恨不得一成年就能马上拿驾照，因为这象征着获得自由。但如今，美国人对汽车的狂热似乎降温了。最近有研究表明，美国人买车数量和领驾照数量逐年减少，开车更少，拿驾照的年轻人的数量占整个驾驶人群的比率也更小。同时，底特律这座靠汽车崛起的工业大城，财政却面临破产的境地。这让我们开始考虑一个根本问题：美国的汽车文化巅峰状态已经过去了么？

1.3 Reading Skills

1.3.1 Skimming

An opinion essay is a basic form of persuasion and argument in that it focuses on a specific issue or topic, offers a thesis/central claim, and provides supporting arguments and evidence to convince its readers. When skimming, the reader should identify these four basic elements quickly.

Usually, the title clearly identifies the topic; the introductory part includes the writer’s view on the issue, that is, the thesis/central claim.

The body provides arguments, or reasons, to indicate why the author is thinking what he/she is thinking. Reasons alone, which are also claims actually, are not enough. The author needs to show the reader specific evidence supporting the reasons. Generally, evidence includes facts, statistics, stories, examples, and testimony from experts. The conclusion restates the writer’s view and provides a final appeal for the reader to agree to that view.

Beside these four elements, the reader should know the other two, counterclaim and rebuttal, which may not appear in an editorial necessarily. A counterclaim is the claim that negates or disagrees with the thesis/central claim, while a rebuttal is evidence that negates or disagrees with the counterclaim. The author may anticipate a counterclaim or counterclaims which the reader may raise, and refutes them with the rebuttal to increase his/her credibility and authenticity.

1.3.2 Find the Keywords

Few technological breakthroughs have had the social and economic impact of the automobile. It changed America’s geography, spawning suburbs, shopping malls and sprawl as far as the eye could see. It redefined how we work and play, from the daily commute to the weekend trek to the beach. It expanded the heavy industry—steel-making, car production—that made the Midwest the economy’s epicenter for decades. And, finally but not least, the car became the quintessential symbol of American mobility, status and independence.

Now there are signs that the car and its many offshoots （SUVs, pickup trucks） are losing their grip on the American psyche and pocketbook. The car culture may be dying or, at any rate, slumping into a prolonged era of eclipse. The only question is whether the signs of change can be believed. It’s not clear.

Young Americans, particularly millennials （ages 18 to 35）, have lost their zest for buying and driving cars, it’s said. Once upon a time, getting your driver’s license—typically at 16 or 17—was a rite of passage. You were liberated from dependence on the parental chauffeur. It was a big step toward adulthood. But this landmark no longer seems to matter so much.

Just recently, the Federal Highway Administration （FHWA） published figures—first reported on the Atlantic magazine’s CityLab website—indicating that the number of licensed drivers 16 or younger in 2014 had dropped 37 percent since 2009 and, at 1.08 million, was “the lowest number since the 1960s.”

More impressive, the trend seems long term. A report from the Highway Loss Data Institute cites studies showing that from 1983 to 2010 the share of 16-year-olds with a license fell from 46 percent to 28 percent; over the same period, the share of licensed 17-year-olds declined from 69 percent to 46 percent.

Theories abound to explain this shift. One emphasizes cost; it’s too expensive to own a car, especially after the high unemployment and meager wage gains of the Great Recession. Uber and other on-demand transportation services make this choice more practical.

Other theories focus on lifestyles and values. Young Americans “just don’t think driving is cool—or even necessary—anymore,” said Fortune magazine. Cars pollute, contributing to global warming. Millennials disapprove. They are said to prefer cities where they can walk, bike or use buses to get to stores, restaurants and jobs.

The most fascinating theory is that the Internet has displaced the automobile. Both are social instruments, it’s argued. Instead of going to the mall, teens and others stay in touch through social media and texting. It’s cheaper and more convenient.

Maybe. But a new study by Federal Reserve economists Christopher Kurz, Geng Li and Daniel Vine throws cold water on these and other generational explanations. It suggests that most potential young buyers couldn’t afford a new vehicle or didn’t want to incur the debt and operating expenses of doing so. Economic considerations dominated.

The study confirmed that new vehicle sales to younger consumers （16 to 34） weakened after the Great Recession. From 2000 to 2010, their share of sales fell from 28.6 percent to 19.8 percent. By 2015, it had recovered slightly to 22.6 percent. But declines for some other age groups were larger. Among 35-to-49-year-olds, the share of sales slid from 39.2 percent in 2000 to 29.9 percent in 2015. Indeed, the only age group with big increases were those 55 or higher.

When the economists adjusted the buying behavior of different age groups for income, employment status and some demographic factors （marriage, children, education, race）, they found few differences. “Economic factors,” as opposed to “permanent shifts in tastes and preferences,” shaped car sales.

Since 1960, ordinary drivers’ travel distances have nearly doubled, from 7,700 miles annually to 14,100 miles in 2014, reports the FHWA. Still, the car culture no longer exerts the stranglehold on the American consciousness that it once did. There is too much congestion for that. Perhaps today’s millennials will break new ground, even if it is the consequence of their predicament—debts elevated, incomes squeezed—rather than a cause. More of them may decide that city living or clustered suburban communities are more appealing than traditional suburbs. Gentrification may defeat commuting.

Or perhaps not. We simply don’t know. What we do know is that we are, to a large extent, prisoners of the past. The car created today’s residential geography, and it cannot be repealed simply or swiftly.

II. Text Structure

III. Argument Analysis

Identify Claims: Review the passage and fill in the blank.

The thesis: the car culture may be dying but it is unclear whether signs of change can be believed.

Claim 1: Young Americans, particularly millennials （ages 18 to 35）, have lost their zest for buying and driving cars.

Claim 2: High cost leads to a smaller number of young drivers.

Claim 3: Lifestyles and values leads to a smaller number of young drivers.

Claim 4: The Internet has displaced the automobile.

Claim 5: The car culture no longer exerts the stranglehold on the American consciousness that it once did.

Look for Reasons

Claim 1 and Claim 5 act as 　1　 for the thesis statement. Claim 1 is explained with Claim 2, 3 and 4, while Claim 2 is the most powerful explanation, for the rest two are attacked by a study which emphasizes 　2　 .

Evaluate Evidence

Evidence for Claim 1: a contrast between facts in the past and at present—driving a car used to mean independence while the number of young licensed drivers now drops sharply.

Evidence for Claim 2: 　3　 , 　4　 and 　5　.

Evidence for Claim 3: 　6　 and 　7　.

Evidence for Claim 4: 　8　.

Evidence for Claim 5: 　9　.

Look for Rebuttal

The evidence for cars not losing controls over Americans could be the FHWA’s report in line 62-64, which indicates that 　10　 . However, the author soon refutes the evidence with the rebuttal “the car culture no longer exerts the stranglehold on the American consciousness that it once did.”

IV. Rhetorical Analysis

Read the sample exercise, complete the rhetorical analysis and translate the sentences below.

Sample

It changed America’s geography, spawning suburbs, shopping malls and sprawl as far as the eye could see. It redefined how we work and play, from the daily commute to the weekend trek to the beach. It expanded the heavy industry—steel-making, car production—that made the Midwest the economy’s epicenter for decades.

修辞 parallelism

分析 The parallel structure “It changed... It defined... It expanded...” emphasizes and highlights the impacts of the car on America’s various life aspects, which echoes the topic sentence of the paragraph “Few technological breakthroughs have had the social and economic impact of the automobile.”

翻译 它改变了美国的地貌，在目所能及之处，促成无数的郊区、购物商场的建造和城市扩张。它重新定义了我们该如何生活和玩乐，从日常通勤，到周末远足，再到海边一游。它拓展了重工业——钢铁制造和汽车生产——使得中西部几十年以来一直是经济的中心。

1. The car and its many offshoots （SUVs, pickup trucks） are losing their grip on the American psyche and pocketbook.

2. Once upon a time, getting your driver’s license—typically at 16 or 17—was a rite of passage. You were liberated from dependence on the parental chauffeur. It was a big step toward adulthood. But this landmark no longer seems to matter so much.

3. The car culture no longer exerts the stranglehold on the American consciousness that it once did.

4. What we do know is that we are, to a large extent, prisoners of the past.

V. Language and Style

5.1 Language Analysis

Read the sample exercise, complete the language analysis and translate the following sentences.

Sample

Just recently, the Federal Highway Administration （FHWA） published figures—first reported on the Atlantic magazine’s CityLab website—indicating that the number of licensed drivers 16 or younger in 2014 had dropped 37 percent since 2009 and, at 1.08 million, was “the lowest number since the 1960s.”

语法标签 定语从句，并列句，分词，破折号

翻译 就在最近，美国联邦高速公路管理局（FHWA）公布了数据——数据首先发表在亚特兰大杂志《城市实验室》的网站上——数字显示2014年16岁或年龄更小的持证驾驶者的数量从2009年以来下跌了37%，为108万人，是 “20世纪60年代以来最低的数字。”

1. A report from the Highway Loss Data Institute cites studies showing that from 1983 to 2010 the share of 16-year-olds with a license fell from 46 percent to 28 percent; over the same period, the share of licensed 17-year-olds declined from 69 percent to 46 percent.

2. They are said to prefer cities where they can walk, bike or use buses to get to stores, restaurants and jobs.

3. When the economists adjusted the buying behavior of different age groups for income, employment status and some demographic factors （marriage, children, education, race）, they found few differences.

4. Perhaps today’s millennials will break new ground, even if it is the consequence of their predicament—debts elevated, incomes squeezed—rather than a cause.

5.2 Style and Tone

Style: formal, but not very serious

The author makes use of formal words and serious evidence, such as various 　1　, throughout the article. At the same time, pronouns “ 　2　” （e.g. in line 15-20） and

“ 　3　” （e.g. in line 72-74） are employed to show that the author is attempting to establish a close relationship with the reader.

Tone: neutral

The author holds a neutral tone towards the issue: 　4　, by analyzing reasons impartially and presenting 　5　 objectively.

VI. Exercises

6.1 Vocabulary

Matching

Match the words with their synonyms.

______1. sprawl　　A. miserable

______2. eclipse　　B. plight

______3. incur　　C. decline

______4. meager　　D. spread

______5. repeal　　E. spell

______6. predicament　　F. annul

6.2 Text Comprehension

Short Answers

Read each of the following questions, and then write short answers.

1. What cultural and economic impacts have cars produced on the American society? Support your answer with details from the passage.

2. What did cars mean to young Americans in the past? Support your answer with details from the passage.

3. How would the rise of the Internet influence the American car culture? Support your answer with details from the passage.

4. According to the passage, what would be the most prominent factor decreasing the influence of cars on youngsters?

5. What would the passage imply about the way the new generation of young Americans deal with the prospect of not driving a car?