向前一步:第199期 让我们开始讨论吧(5)

 Within traditional institutions, success has often been contingent¹ upon a woman not speaking out but fitting in, or more colloquially², being "one of the guys." 在许多传统机构里，女性偶尔取得成功并不是因为她们敢于表达自己的意见，而是因为她们懂得如何融入环境，更通俗地讲，是因为她们已成为男性的“好哥们儿之一”。

One veteran banking³ executive told me that she wore her hair in a bun for ten years because she did not want anyone to notice she was a woman. 第一个进入商业世界的女性盘了10年发髻，因为她不想让任何人注意到她是女人。

While styles have relaxed, women still worry about sticking out too much. 后来女性在穿着风格上渐渐放松了，但仍然会担心自己的外表太引人注意。

I know an engineer at a tech start-up who removes her earrings⁴ before going to work so coworkers won't be reminded that she is — shhh! — not a man. 我认识一位女性，她在一家刚创立的科技公司做工程师，每天上班前她都会拿掉耳环，这样同事们就不会注意到她（嘘……）不是一个男人。

Early in my career, my gender⁵ was rarely noted⁶ (except for the occasional client who wanted to fix me up with his son). 在我事业的早期，很少有人会注意到我的性别（除了偶尔有客户想撮合我和他的儿子），

Manly⁷ suits were no longer in fashion, and I neither hid nor emphasized femininity. 男性化的职业套装不再流行，我既不会隐藏也不会强调自己的女性特征。

I have never reported directly to a woman — not once in my entire career. 我从来没遇到过一位女性顶头上司——工作这么多年来一直都没有。

There were higher-level women at the places I worked, but I wasn't close enough to see how they dealt with this issue on a daily basis. 我周围当然有许多能力很强的女人，但我没有机会近距离观察她们怎么在日常生活中处理这些问题。

I was never invited to attend a single meeting that discussed gender, and there were no special programs for women that I can recall. 我从来没有受邀参加一个讨论性别问题的会议，也想不起来有什么特别针对女性的项目。

That all seemed fine. We were fitting in, and there was no reason to call attention to ourselves. 一切都看起来都很好，我们努力地适应环境，没有理由让别人注意到自己。

 

1 contingent   

adj.视条件而定的；n.一组，代表团，分遣队

参考例句：

• The contingent marched in the direction of the Western Hills.队伍朝西山的方向前进。
• Whether or not we arrive on time is contingent on the weather.我们是否按时到达要视天气情况而定。

2 colloquially   

adv.用白话，用通俗语

参考例句：

• For some little time the Jurymen hang about the Sol's Ams colloquially. 那些陪审员在太阳徽酒店里呆着，东拉西扯地谈了一会儿。 来自辞典例句
• This building is colloquially referred to as the barn. 这个建筑，用通俗的话来说就是一个谷仓。 来自互联网

3 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

4 earrings   

n.耳环( earring的名词复数 )；耳坠子

参考例句：

• a pair of earrings 一对耳环
• These earrings snap on with special fastener. 这付耳环是用特制的按扣扣上去的。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

6 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

7 manly   

adj.有男子气概的；adv.男子般地，果断地

参考例句：

• The boy walked with a confident manly stride.这男孩以自信的男人步伐行走。
• He set himself manly tasks and expected others to follow his example.他给自己定下了男子汉的任务，并希望别人效之。