Ingeneral,oursocietyisbecoming-考网

In general, our society is becoming one of giant enterprises directed by a bureaucratic management in which man becomes a small, well-oiled cog in the machinery. The oiling is done with higher wages, well-ventilated factories and piped music, and by psychologists and “human-relations” experts; yet all this oiling does not alter the fact that man has become powerless, that he does not whole heartedly participate in his work and that he is bored with it. In fact, the blue-and white-collar workers have become economic puppets who dance to the tune of automated machines and bureaucratic management.

　　The worker and employee are anxious, not only because they might find themselves out of a job; they are anxious also because they are unable to acquire any real satisfaction or interest in life. They live and die without ever having confronted the fundamental realities of human existence as emotionally and intellectually independent and productive human beings.

　　Those higher up on the social ladder are no less anxious. Their lives are no less empty than those of their subordinates. They are even more insecure in some respects. They are in a highly competitive race. To be promoted or to fall behind is not a matter of salary but even more a matter of self-respect. When they apply for their first job, they are tested for intelligence as well as for the right mixture of submissiveness and independence. From that moment on they are tested again and again—by the psychologists, for whom testing is a big business, and by their superiors who judge their behavior, sociability, capacity to get along, etc. This constant need to prove that one is as good as or better than one’s fellow-competitor creates constant anxiety and stress, the very causes of unhappiness and illness.

　　Am I suggesting that we should return to the preindustrial mode of production or to nineteenth-century “free enterprise” capitalism? Certainly not. Problems are never solved by returning to a

A.a necessary part of the society though each individual’s function is negligible
B.working in complete harmony with the rest of the society
C.an unimportant part in comparison with the rest of the society, though functioning smoothly
D.a humble component of the society, especially when working smoothly

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答案： C

本题解析：

small, a well-oiled cog微小的、运转很好的一个齿轮，小齿轮相对于社会这个大工厂的意义并不大，可以替换，但由于涂好了油，所以运行良好。由此可以推断，作者这里想表明个人即使在社会中工作状态良好，对于整个社会的意义也并不重要。