The value of motherhood
In shopping malls, the assistants try to push you into buying “ a gift to thank her for her unselfish love”. When you log onto1 a website, a small popo-up2 invites you to book a bouquet for her. Commercial warmth and gratitude are the atmosphere being spread around for this special Sunday in May.
_____(1)_____. The popularity of Mother’s Day around the world suggests that Jarvis got all she wanted. In fact, she got more-enough to make her horrified.
_____(2)_____. They buy, among other things, 132 million cards. Mother’s Day is the No 1 holiday for flower purchases. Then there are the various commodities, ranging from jewelry and clothes to cosmetics and washing powder, that take advantage of the promotion opportunities, Because of this, Jarvis spent the last 40 years of her life trying to stop Mother’s Day. One protest against the commercialization of Mother’s Day even got her arrested-for disturbing the peace, interestingly.
_____(3)_____. As Ralph Fevre, a reporter at the UK newspaper The Guardian, observe, traditionally “motherhood is something that we do because we think it’s right.” But in the logic of commercialism, people need something in exchange for their time and energy. A career serves this purpose better.
_____(4)_____. So they work hard and play hard. Becoming a mother, however, inevitably handicaps career anticipation.
_____(5)_____. According to The Guardian, there are twice as many child-free young women as there were a generation ago. Or, they put off the responsibility of parenting until later in their lives.
So, Fevre writes that the meaning of celebrating Mother’s Day needs to be updated: “It is to persuade people that parenting is a good idea and to honor people for their attempt to be good people.”
注释：
1. log onto 登录到期。 log onto a website 登录到一个网站。
2. pop-up 弹出式菜单。 a small pop-up invites you to book a bouquet for her.一张小的弹出式菜单要你为她订一束花。
练习
A The American version of Mother’s Day was thought up as early as 1905, by Anna Jarvis, as a way of recognizing the real value of motherhood.
B But what’s more, commercialism changes young people’s attitude towards motherhood.
C Obviously, the best gift will be a phone call or a visit.
D According to a research by the US card company Hallmark, 96 percent of American consumers celebrate the holiday.
E As a result, motherhood has suffered a huge drop in status since the 1950s.
F In addition, women are being encouraged to pursue any career they desire.