High 3 · Reading series
Lesson 37 · The Price Tag and the Wage
Audio track 37
Listen first
Listen once before opening the English passage.
Open the English passage and hover for word help
A jacket in the shop cost surprisingly little. I wondered whether someone along its production route had been paid poorly. My friend replied that a low price did not prove that; a sale, materials, or a large order could also matter. We agreed that the price tag alone could not answer the question.
We read the label and searched for information the company had published about suppliers and working conditions. Some details were available, while others were vague. We listed what we could verify and what remained unknown instead of filling the gaps with a dramatic story.
I did not buy the jacket that day because I already owned one that worked. My friend bought it after deciding it met a real need. Our different choices did not make either of us an expert on every worker behind the product.
The price tag was a beginning, not a conclusion. It pushed us to ask where information came from and how much a shopper could responsibly infer before making a claim about someone else's work.
Sentence practice
Play any sentence in Dicvo’s Jenny English voice. Before playing all, choose how many times each sentence plays. A practice pause about as long as the sentence follows each play, including before the next sentence. The complete reading remains above.
Choose a sentence to begin.
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A jacket in the shop cost surprisingly little.
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I wondered whether someone along its production route had been paid poorly.
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My friend replied that a low price did not prove that; a sale, materials, or a large order could also matter.
-
We agreed that the price tag alone could not answer the question.
-
We read the label and searched for information the company had published about suppliers and working conditions.
-
Some details were available, while others were vague.
-
We listed what we could verify and what remained unknown instead of filling the gaps with a dramatic story.
-
I did not buy the jacket that day because I already owned one that worked.
-
My friend bought it after deciding it met a real need.
-
Our different choices did not make either of us an expert on every worker behind the product.
-
The price tag was a beginning, not a conclusion.
-
It pushed us to ask where information came from and how much a shopper could responsibly infer before making a claim about someone else's work.
Check your understanding
After reading, state the main idea in one sentence and find a line that supports it.
Chinese translation
店里一件夹克便宜得出乎意料。我猜它的生产链上也许有人拿了很低的工资。朋友说，价格低不能证明这一点：促销、材料或大订单也可能影响价格。我们同意，单看价签回答不了这个问题。
我们读衣服标签，查公司公开的供应商和工作条件资料。有些细节能找到，另一些含糊不清。我们列出能核实的事实和未知之处，没有编一个戏剧性的故事填补空白。
那天我没买夹克，因为手头已有能穿的一件。朋友觉得自己确实需要，便买了。不同的选择并不让我们任何一人成为了解产品背后每位工人的专家。
价签是提问的起点，不是结论。它促使我们追问信息来自哪里，以及消费者在谈论别人的劳动前，究竟能负责任地推断多少。
Key words and expressions
Key terms have Chinese explanations. Hover over dotted words in the English passage for word help and pronunciation when available.
- price tag
- 价格标签；引发对生产的疑问。
- paid poorly
- 报酬过低；不能由低价直接证明。
- production
- 生产；涉及多个环节。
- materials
- 材料；也会影响售价。
- suppliers
- 供应商；公司公开部分资料。
- conditions
- 工作条件；资料有的并不明确。
- vague
- 含糊的；无法填成确定事实。
- verify
- 核实；列出能查证的内容。
- infer
- 推断；要说明证据边界。
- claim
- 断言；谈他人工作须谨慎。
Background notes (Chinese)
低价并不能独自证明劳动条件；学生区分可核实信息、模糊资料与个人推测。