年轻人不结婚怎么办？韩国地方政府举办相亲活动

近日，韩国城南市市政府扮演起“媒人”的角色——举办相亲活动，迫切希望促使年轻人走上婚姻和家庭的轨道。

🤔️小作业：

a. The events have significantly boosted local birthrates.

b. The majority of participants found lasting relationships.

c. There has been a modest number of couples formed as a result.

d. These events were primarily focused on individuals above 40 years of age.

a. Having more entertainment venues.

b. Gender equality within families and reduced work hours.

c. Offering financial incentives for families.

d. Increasing the number of matchmaking events.

无注释原文：

Seeking Love, With Help From the City Government

From: The New York Times

The hotel ballroom was filled with pink balloons, the sound of love songs and 100 singles gathering for a night of wine, getting acquainted and — fingers crossed — romance.

Before Mia Kim knew it, five hours had flown by at the mixer for 50 men and 50 women, held in a city just outside Seoul. A bar after-party then lasted until 1 a.m. But Ms. Kim, 37, who works at a software firm near Seoul, said the night still “felt too short.”

Playing matchmaker was none other than the city government.

A growing number of cities across South Korea are sponsoring blind-dating events like these for singles, desperate to prod young adults onto a track for marriage and family as the country has recorded the world’s lowest fertility rate for three years in a row.

The cities say the problem is that young people just do not want to get married — or have the babies that would follow in a country where only 2 percent of births are outside marriage.

“A negative attitude toward marriage is continuing to spread in South Korean society,” said Shin Sang-jin, the mayor of Seongnam, the city next to Seoul that recently hosted the matchmaking event. “I think it’s the local governments’ role to create the conditions for people who do want to get married to find their partners.”

Many young South Koreans, though, say that the real obstacles to raising the birthrate are the staggering costs of child care, unaffordable homes, slim job prospects and crushing work hours — and that blind-dating events do little to address these issues. Women, in particular, say they have been discouraged by the prevalence of discrimination against working mothers.

Others say that by trying to play matchmaker, the government is being too intrusive in personal reproductive choices.

But the blind-dating events have proved popular. Seongnam received more than 1,000 applications for only 100 spots for its events this month. And participants have given the mixers rave reviews.

While the proportion of people getting married has declined worldwide, it has plummeted especially far in South Korea. There were six marriages per 1,000 people in the United States in 2021, compared with 3.8 per 1,000 people in South Korea.

Fewer births have come along with that statistic in South Korea. In 2022, the country’s fertility rate — the average number of children born to a woman of reproductive age — declined for the seventh straight year, to 0.78, prompting officials to scramble for ways to avert a population crisis. Policy experts say they have been insufficient, and some officials’ plans have backfired.

Even as the pool of South Koreans interested in having children shrinks, officials are expecting interest in government-sponsored matchmaking to endure. Seongnam, a city of about one million people, has allocated about $192,000 of its budget for such events, and plans to host several more this year.

“What we liked to see was the young people smiling and blushing and feeling excited,” said Kang Mi-jeong, the head of the city team tasked with addressing the low birthrate, which organized the event.

Cities in other countries with low birthrates, like China and Japan, have hosted such programs, too. In South Korea, many small cities have been sponsoring similar events for years, targeting people ages 27 to 39 who live or work in their communities.

The results have been mixed. Jinju, a southeastern city, has produced 11 couples throughout 12 years of hosting the events. In Gumi, an industrial city in central South Korea, 13 couples who met through the events have gotten married since 2016. In both cities, officials said they did not know how many children the event-matched couples have had.

The southern coastal town of Sacheon has been holding matchmaking events for the past three years. Though none has yielded any married couples, officials said not enough time had passed to produce successful matches.

Municipal matchmaking reached the greater Seoul area for the first time in Seongnam. Officials in Seoul said they were also considering hosting a blind-dating event. They had initially supported the proposal but were reviewing it because of widespread criticism on social media.

“I don’t think it would help at all to solve the shrinking birthrate,” said Jeon Seolhee, 27, a graduate student near Seoul. “For young women,” Ms. Jeon continued, “the concern is that having children would interrupt their careers.” She herself has a boyfriend, she said, but has not decided whether she wants children.

Some young South Koreans have also dismissed the project as contrived and intrusive. “It feels a bit artificial,” said Park Soomin, 30, who works at a media company in Incheon, another city outside Seoul. “It’s weird that the government is trying to intervene in personal relationships.”

Researchers who have studied South Korea’s population decline say that reduced work hours, family-friendly work culture and gender equality within the family would be more effective than matchmaking in addressing the causes of the low fertility rate, according to Jung Jae Hoon, a professor of social welfare at Seoul Women’s University.

- ◆ -

注：完整题目见本文开头；中文文本为纽约时报官方译文，仅供参考

含注释全文：

年轻人不结婚怎么办？韩国地方政府举办相亲活动

Seeking Love, With Help From the City Government

From: The New York Times

The hotel ballroom was filled with pink balloons, the sound of love songs and 100 singles gathering for a night of wine, getting acquainted and — fingers crossed — romance.

酒店宴会厅布满了粉色气球，播放着爱情歌曲，100名单身人士在一个晚上聚在这里共饮美酒，结识朋友——最好还能陷入爱河。

acquainted /əˈkweɪn.tɪd/ 表示“相识的;认识的;熟悉的”，英文解释为“knowing or being familiar with a person”举个🌰："Do you know LR?" "No, I'm afraid we're not acquainted." “你认识LR吗？”“很遗憾，我跟他不认识。”

🤞“fingers crossed”是一个常用的英语短语，表示希望、期望或祝愿某事能够顺利发生或达到预期的结果。字面意思是“交叉手指”，通常人们会交叉中指和食指来表示希望或祝愿。

🤞cross your fingers表示“祈求好运;希望，但愿”，英文解释为“to hope very much that something will happen”举个🌰：I'm just going to cross my fingers and hope it works. 我只能祈求好运，希望会管用。

Before Mia Kim knew it, five hours had flown by at the mixer for 50 men and 50 women, held in a city just outside Seoul. A bar after-party then lasted until 1 a.m. But Ms. Kim, 37, who works at a software firm near Seoul, said the night still “felt too short.”

这场聚会有50位男宾和50位女宾，在首尔郊外的一座城市举行。对米娅·金（音）来说，五个小时的时间很快就过去了。之后，在酒吧进行的余兴派对一直持续到凌晨1点。但在首尔附近的软件公司工作、37岁的金女士表示，这个夜晚仍然“感觉太短了”。

mixer /ˈmɪk.sər/ 表示“（旨在让人们相互认识的）舞会，晚会”，英文解释为“a party or dance that has been organized so that people in a group can get to know each other”举个🌰：The school always holds a mixer on the second week of the term. 学校通常在学期开始的第二周举行舞会。

a good/bad mixer表示“善于/不善于交际的人”，英文解释为“someone who is good/bad at meeting new people and talking to them”举个🌰：You get to know lots of people at college if you're a good mixer. 如果你善于交际，在大学里会认识许多人。

Playing matchmaker was none other than the city government.

媒人不是别人，正是市政府。

matchmaker /ˈmætʃˌmeɪ.kər/ 表示“媒人，红娘”，英文解释为“a person who tries to arrange marriages or romantic relationships between people”

A growing number of cities across South Korea are sponsoring blind-dating events like these for singles, desperate to prod young adults onto a track for marriage and family as the country has recorded the world’s lowest fertility rate for three years in a row.

韩国的生育率已连续三年处于世界最低水平，该国越来越多的城市正在举办此类针对单身人士的相亲活动，迫切希望促使年轻人走上婚姻和家庭的轨道。

字面意思“盲约”，即“相亲”（Blind dating is a type of dating where two individuals go on a date without having previously met or seen each other, typically set up by mutual friends or through dating services.）

文中还提到：

📍qmatchmaking /ˈmætʃˌmeɪ.kɪŋ/ 表示“做媒，婚介”，英文解释为“the activity of arranging marriages or romantic relationships between people”如：He did not welcome his parents' attempts at matchmaking.

prod /prɒd/ 1）表示“激励，促使，敦促”，英文解释为“to encourage someone to take action, especially when they are being slow or unwilling”举个🌰：He gets things done, but only after I've prodded him into doing them. 他把事情做完了，不过是在我的督促下他才这么做的。

2）表示“（用手指、尖物等）刺，捅;戳”，英文解释为“to push something or someone with your finger or with a pointed object”举个🌰：She prodded the cake with her fork to see if it was cooked. 她用叉子戳了戳蛋糕看是不是做好了。

fertility /fəˈtɪl.ə.ti/ 表示“富饶；丰产；生殖力；能生育性；可繁殖性”，英文解释为“the state of being fertile”，如：a fertility symbol 生殖力的象征，declining fertility rates 下降的生育率，the fertility of the soil/land 土壤的肥沃；土地的丰饶，a god of fertility 丰收之神，fertility treatment (= medical help given to a person to help them have a baby) 不孕症治疗。

in a row表示“接连地；连续地”，英文解释为“one after another without a break”举个🌰：She's been voted Best Actress three years in a row. 她已经连续3年当选为最佳女演员。

📍类似的：

straight可以作形容词也可以作副词，表示“连续的，不间断的”，英文解释为“following one after another without an interruption”举个🌰：They had been working for 16 hours straight. 他们已经一连工作了16个小时。

The cities say the problem is that young people just do not want to get married — or have the babies that would follow in a country where only 2 percent of births are outside marriage.

这些城市表示，问题在于，年轻人就是不想结婚，也不想在结婚后生孩子，在这个国家，只有2%的新生儿是非婚生。

“A negative attitude toward marriage is continuing to spread in South Korean society,” said Shin Sang-jin, the mayor of Seongnam, the city next to Seoul that recently hosted the matchmaking event. “I think it’s the local governments’ role to create the conditions for people who do want to get married to find their partners.”

“对婚姻的消极态度在韩国社会继续蔓延，”城南市市长申相镇（音）说。最近的这场相亲活动由这座毗邻首尔的城市举办。“我认为地方政府的职责是为那些想要结婚的人创造寻找伴侣的条件。”

Many young South Koreans, though, say that the real obstacles to raising the birthrate are the staggering costs of child care, unaffordable homes, slim job prospects and crushing work hours — and that blind-dating events do little to address these issues. Women, in particular, say they have been discouraged by the prevalence of discrimination against working mothers.

不过，许多韩国年轻人表示，提高出生率的真正障碍是高昂的育儿费用、负担不起的住房、黯淡的就业前景和把人压垮的工作时长——而相亲活动对解决这些问题作用甚微。尤其是女性，她们表示，职业母亲普遍受到的歧视让她们感到犹豫。

表示“令人震惊的”，英文解释为“Something that is staggering is very surprising.”如：a staggering $20 million in short- and long-term debt 令人震惊的两千万美元的短长期债务。

🎬电影《迷失东京》（Lost in Translation）中的台词提到：- Just staggering, unbearable pain. - Ooh, that's too bad. - 疼得难以忍受 - 真不走运。

🎬电影《电锯惊魂6》（Saw VI）中的台词提到：and the subsequent cost to you will be staggering. 代价将会非常大/惊人。

slim通常指人苗条的，纤细的；也可以表示“微薄的；不足的；少的；小的”，英文解释为“not as big as you would like or expect”如：a slim chance of success 成功的可能性不大，a slim lead 微弱的领先优势，举个🌰：They only have a slim chance of winning (= it's unlikely that they will win). 他们获胜的机会微乎其微。

🎬电影《汽车总动员》（Cars）中的台词提到：Fifty laps down, and The King is still holding a slim lead. 50圈了 冠军还保持领先地位。

prevalence /ˈprev.əl.əns/ 表示“流行，盛行；普遍，广泛”，英文解释为“the fact that something is very common or happens often”如：the prevalence of smoking among teenagers 青少年吸烟的普遍性。

Others say that by trying to play matchmaker, the government is being too intrusive in personal reproductive choices.

还有一些人表示，政府试图扮演媒人的角色，对个人生育选择的干预过度。

表示“打搅的；侵入的；闯入的；侵扰的；烦扰的”，英文解释为“too noticeable, direct, etc. in a way that is disturbing or annoying”举个🌰：The constant presence of the media was very intrusive. 媒体一直在场十分令人讨厌。

表示“生殖；生育；繁殖”，英文解释为“relating to the process of reproduction”。

But the blind-dating events have proved popular. Seongnam received more than 1,000 applications for only 100 spots for its events this month. And participants have given the mixers rave reviews.

但事实证明，相亲活动很受欢迎。城南市本月仅有的100个活动名额收到了1000多份申请。参与者对这些相亲活动好评如潮。

rave /reɪv/ 表示“狂热褒评的，大加赞扬的，捧上天的”，英文解释为“admiring and giving a lot of praise”举个🌰：The show has received rave reviews/notices in all the papers. 这场演出受到所有报纸的高度评价/吸引了所有报纸的注意并得到热情洋溢的报道。

While the proportion of people getting married has declined worldwide, it has plummeted especially far in South Korea. There were six marriages per 1,000 people in the United States in 2021, compared with 3.8 per 1,000 people in South Korea.

全球范围内的结婚人数占比都有所下降，但韩国下降得尤其严重。2021年，美国每1000人中有六人结婚，而韩国每1000人中有3.8人结婚。

1）表示“比率，比例”，英文解释为“the number, amount, or level of one thing when compared to another”举个🌰：The proportion of women to men at my college was about one to eight. 我所在大学的男女比例大约为8：1。

2）表示“部分；份额”，英文解释为“the number or amount of a group or part of something when compared to the whole”举个🌰：Children make up a large proportion of the world's population. 孩子占世界人口的很大一部分。

3）表示“（某物各个组成部分或一物与另一物之间的）相称，协调，均衡，匀称”，英文解释为“the correct or most attractive relationship between the size of different parts of the same thing or between one thing and another”举个🌰：Your legs are very much in proportion to (= the right size for) the rest of your body. 你的腿和你身体的其他部位比例非常协调。

plummet /ˈplʌmɪt/ 此前在《纽约时报》这头版，“爆表”了...文中提到过，表示“（数量、比率、价格）暴跌”，英文解释为“If an amount, rate, or price plummets, it decreases quickly by a large amount.”举个🌰：In Tokyo share prices have plummeted for the sixth successive day. 在东京，股价已经是连续第6天暴跌了。

瑞幸咖啡怎么了？文中也出现过，CNBC的标题Shares of China’s Luckin Coffee plummet 80% after investigation finds COO fabricated sales就用到了plummet这个词。

📍类似的表达「暴跌」的词有：tank，sink，plunge和slump，欢迎补充。

Fewer births have come along with that statistic in South Korea. In 2022, the country’s fertility rate — the average number of children born to a woman of reproductive age — declined for the seventh straight year, to 0.78, prompting officials to scramble for ways to avert a population crisis. Policy experts say they have been insufficient, and some officials’ plans have backfired.

韩国的出生人数也随之减少。2022年，该国的生育率——育龄女性平均生育孩子的数量——连续第七年下降，降至0.78，促使官员们急于寻找避免人口危机的方法。政策专家表示，这些措施还不够，同时一些官员的计划适得其反。

作名词，1）表示“（计算机屏幕上的）提示符（显示计算机已经准备好接受指令）”，英文解释为“a sign on a computer screen that shows that the computer is ready to receive your instructions”

2）表示“（给演员的）提词，提白”，英文解释为“words that are spoken to an actor who has forgotten what he or she is going to say during the performance of a play”

3）作动词，表示“促使；导致；激起”，英文解释为“to make sb decide to do sth; to cause sth to happen”举个🌰：His speech prompted an angry outburst from a man in the crowd. 他的讲话激起了人群中一男子的愤怒。

📺美剧《斯巴达克斯：血与沙》（Spartacus: Blood and Sand）中的台词提到：One cannot but wonder what would prompt such an act 不知他们为何遭此不幸。

4）作动词，表示“（尤指）给（演员）提词”，英文解释为“to help someone, especially an actor, to remember what they were going to say or do”举个🌰：I forgot my line and had to be prompted. 我忘词了，只好让人提词。

作名词，表示“争抢；抢占；争夺”，英文解释为“a situation in which people push, fight or compete with each other in order to get or do sth”举个🌰 There was a mad scramble for the best seats. 人们不顾一切地抢占最好的座位。

作动词：1）表示“艰难地（或仓促地）完成”，英文解释为“to manage to achieve sth with difficulty, or in a hurry, without much control”；

2）表示“仓促行动”，英文解释为“If you scramble to a different place or position, you move there in a hurried, awkward way.”举个🌰：He threw back the covers and scrambled out of bed. 他掀开被子，急忙下了床。

3）表示“争夺”，英文解释为“If a number of people scramble for something, they compete energetically with each other for it.”举个🌰：More than three million fans are expected to scramble for tickets. 预计会有三百万以上的歌迷抢购门票。

avert /əˈvɜːt/  1）表示“防止，避免”，英文解释为“to prevent something bad from happening”如：to avert a crisis/conflict/famine 避免危机/冲突/饥荒。

2）表示“转移（目光、想法等）；把…转（向别处）”，英文解释为“to turn away your eyes or thoughts”举个🌰：I averted my gaze/eyes while he dressed. 他穿衣服的时候我把目光转向一边。

📍词源和词根：来自拉丁语的"avertare"，"a-"是"离开"的意思，"vertere"是"转向"的意思。派生词：avertable, aversion，常用短语：avert one's eyes 避开视线。

1）表示“（引擎）发生回火”，英文解释为“(of an engine) to make a loud noise as a result of fuel burning too early”举个🌰：I was woken by the sound of a truck backfiring. 卡车引擎的回火声把我惊醒了。

2）表示“事与愿违，（计划或行动）发生意外，产生事与愿违的结果”，英文解释为“if a plan or action backfires, it has the opposite effect to the one you intended”举个🌰：The company's new policy backfired when a number of employees threatened to quit. 公司的新政策事与愿违，有好几名员工威胁说要辞职。

🎬电影《被拒人生》（Freeheld）中的台词提到：Listen to me, listen to me, this is a circus, it's gonna backfire. 听我说，这有些儿戏了，会适得其反的。

Even as the pool of South Koreans interested in having children shrinks, officials are expecting interest in government-sponsored matchmaking to endure. Seongnam, a city of about one million people, has allocated about $192,000 of its budget for such events, and plans to host several more this year.

尽管对生孩子感兴趣的韩国人数量在减少，但官员们预计对政府资助的婚介活动的兴趣将持续下去。城南市是一座人口约100万的城市，已为此类活动拨出约19.2万美元的预算，并计划今年再举办几场。

作动词，表示“（使）缩小，（使）变小”，英文解释为“to become smaller, or to make something smaller”举个🌰：The market for their products is shrinking. 市场对他们产品的需求在减少。

“What we liked to see was the young people smiling and blushing and feeling excited,” said Kang Mi-jeong, the head of the city team tasked with addressing the low birthrate, which organized the event.

“我们想看到年轻人微笑、脸红、兴奋的样子，”活动组织者、负责解决低出生率问题的城市小组组长姜美贞（音）说。

blush /blʌʃ/ 表示“（通常因尴尬而）脸红”，英文解释为“to become pink in the face, usually from embarrassment”举个🌰：I always blush when I speak in public. 当众讲话时我总是脸红。

Cities in other countries with low birthrates, like China and Japan, have hosted such programs, too. In South Korea, many small cities have been sponsoring similar events for years, targeting people ages 27 to 39 who live or work in their communities.

中国和日本等其他低出生率国家的城市也举办过这样的活动。在韩国，许多小城市多年来一直在赞助类似的活动，目标对象是在社区生活或工作的27岁至39岁的人群。

The results have been mixed. Jinju, a southeastern city, has produced 11 couples throughout 12 years of hosting the events. In Gumi, an industrial city in central South Korea, 13 couples who met through the events have gotten married since 2016. In both cities, officials said they did not know how many children the event-matched couples have had.

结果好坏参半。韩国东南部城市晋州举办类似活动已有12年，共产生了11对新人。在韩国中部的工业城市龟尾，自2016年以来，有13对通过这些活动认识的情侣结婚。这两个城市的官员都表示，他们不知道这些通过活动配对结成的夫妇有多少孩子。

The southern coastal town of Sacheon has been holding matchmaking events for the past three years. Though none has yielded any married couples, officials said not enough time had passed to produce successful matches.

南部沿海城市泗川在过去三年里一直在举办相亲活动。尽管目前还没有成功配对，但官员们表示，要得到成功的配对，时间还不够。

yield /jiːld/ 1）表示“出产（作物）；产生（收益、效益等）；提供”，英文解释为“to produce or provide sth, for example a profit, result or crop”举个🌰：Higher-rate deposit accounts yield good returns. 高利率的存款会产生丰厚的收益。

2）表示“（常指被迫）放弃，让出”，英文解释为“to give up the control of or responsibility for something, often because you have been forced to”举个🌰：Despite renewed pressure to give up the occupied territory, they will not yield. 尽管有新的压力要求放弃被占领的土地，他们就是不愿屈服。

Municipal matchmaking reached the greater Seoul area for the first time in Seongnam. Officials in Seoul said they were also considering hosting a blind-dating event. They had initially supported the proposal but were reviewing it because of widespread criticism on social media.

大首尔地区首次市级相亲活动出现在城南地区。首尔官员表示，他们也在考虑举办一场相亲活动。他们最初支持这一提议，但由于社交媒体上的广泛批评，他们还在考虑。

municipal /mjuːˈnɪs.ɪ.pəl/ 表示“市政的；市立的”，英文解释为“of or belonging to a town or city”如：municipal authorities 市政当局。

“I don’t think it would help at all to solve the shrinking birthrate,” said Jeon Seolhee, 27, a graduate student near Seoul. “For young women,” Ms. Jeon continued, “the concern is that having children would interrupt their careers.” She herself has a boyfriend, she said, but has not decided whether she wants children.

“我认为这根本无助于解决出生率下降的问题，”27岁的全雪熙（音）说，她是首尔附近的一名研究生。“对年轻女性来说，她们担心生孩子会导致事业中断。”她说，她有男朋友，但还没有决定是否要孩子。

Some young South Koreans have also dismissed the project as contrived and intrusive. “It feels a bit artificial,” said Park Soomin, 30, who works at a media company in Incheon, another city outside Seoul. “It’s weird that the government is trying to intervene in personal relationships.”

一些韩国年轻人也对这个项目不屑一顾，认为它太过刻意、具有侵入性。“感觉有点不自然，”30岁的朴秀敏（音）说，他在首尔附近城市仁川的一家媒体公司工作。“政府试图干预私人关系，这很奇怪。”

1）表示“对…不予理会，摒弃，（从头脑中）去除”，英文解释为“to decide that something or someone is not important and not worth considering”举个🌰：I think he'd dismissed me as an idiot within five minutes of meeting me. 我认为他和我见面5分钟后就把我归入了傻瓜之列。

2）表示“解雇；免职；开除”，英文解释为“to officially remove sb from their job”举个🌰：She claims she was unfairly dismissed from her post. 她声称自己被无理免职。

artificial /ˌɑː.tɪˈfɪʃ.əl/ 1）表示“人造的，人工的；仿造的”，英文解释为“made by people, often as a copy of something natural”如：clothes made of artificial fibres 人造纤维面料的服装。

2）表示“虚假的，不真诚的;矫揉造作的”，英文解释为“not sincere”举个🌰：Their cheerfulness seemed rather strained and artificial. 他们的高兴表情看上去非常做作虚伪。

intervene /ˌɪn.təˈviːn/ 1）表示“干预，介入”，英文解释为“If you intervene in a situation, you become involved in it and try to change it.”举个🌰：She might have been killed if the neighbours hadn't intervened. 要不是邻居介入，她可能会没命了。

2）表示“插话”，英文解释为“If you intervene, you interrupt a conversation in order to add something to it.”举个🌰：He intervened and told me to stop it. 他插话，不让我再说下去。

3）表示“干扰”，英文解释为“If an event intervenes, it happens suddenly in a way that stops, delays, or prevents something from happening.”举个🌰：The boat arrived on Friday mornings unless bad weather intervened. 除非受到恶劣天气的干扰，船于星期五上午到达。

Researchers who have studied South Korea’s population decline say that reduced work hours, family-friendly work culture and gender equality within the family would be more effective than matchmaking in addressing the causes of the low fertility rate, according to Jung Jae Hoon, a professor of social welfare at Seoul Women’s University.

首尔女子大学社会福利学教授郑在勋（音）表示，研究韩国人口下降的研究人员认为，在解决低生育率的原因方面，减少工作时间、关爱家庭的工作文化以及家庭内部的性别平等，会比相亲更有效。

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