职场女性遭遇“玻璃悬崖”

 　　Glass ceiling（玻璃屋顶）一词讲的是女性在职场遇到的发展瓶颈，到了一定职位就很难再上升了。而这里谈到的glass cliff与glass ceiling有着千丝万缕的联系。

　　A glass cliff is a term coined by Prof Michelle Ryan and Prof Alex Haslam of Exeter University, United Kingdom, in 2004.

　　Glass cliff(玻璃悬崖)这个词是由英国埃克斯特大学的两位教授米歇尔？莱恩和亚历克斯·哈斯兰姆在2004年创造的。

　　Their research demonstrates that once women break through the glass ceiling and take on positions of leadership they often have experiences that are different from their male counterparts. More specifically, women are more likely to occupy positions that can be described as precarious¹ and thus have a higher risk of failure - either because they are in organizational units that are in crisis or because they are not given the resources and support needed for success. Extending the metaphor² of the glass ceiling, they evoke³ the metaphor of the 'glass cliff' to capture the subtlety⁴ to the phenomenon and feeling of teetering on the edge.

　　这两位教授研究发现，女性在穿过玻璃屋顶担任领导职务之后所经历的事情跟同等职位的男性多有不同。具体来说，这些女性所处的职位“危险性”较高，也就是说她们工作过程中遭遇失败的风险较高，出现这种情况的原因可能是她们所在的公司机构本身就陷于危机之中，也可能是她们没有得到必要的资源和支持。Glass cliff将glass ceiling(玻璃屋顶)的比喻意义进一步延伸，以此来表现女性领导者的处境以及她们在职场边缘岌岌可危的生存体会。

1 precarious   

adj.不安定的，靠不住的；根据不足的

参考例句：

• Our financial situation had become precarious.我们的财务状况已变得不稳定了。
• He earned a precarious living as an artist.作为一个艺术家，他过得是朝不保夕的生活。

2 metaphor   

n.隐喻，暗喻

参考例句：

• Using metaphor,we say that computers have senses and a memory.打个比方，我们可以说计算机有感觉和记忆力。
• In poetry the rose is often a metaphor for love.玫瑰在诗中通常作为爱的象征。

3 evoke   

vt.唤起，引起，使人想起

参考例句：

• These images are likely to evoke a strong response in the viewer.这些图像可能会在观众中产生强烈反响。
• Her only resource was the sympathy she could evoke.她以凭借的唯一力量就是她能从人们心底里激起的同情。

4 subtlety   

n.微妙，敏锐，精巧；微妙之处，细微的区别

参考例句：

• He has shown enormous strength,great intelligence and great subtlety.他表现出充沛的精力、极大的智慧和高度的灵活性。
• The subtlety of his remarks was unnoticed by most of his audience.大多数听众都没有觉察到他讲话的微妙之处。