Question

　　爸爸和我都用MSN，媽媽和我都喜歡超女。現(xiàn)代父母和子女真的打成一片了嗎？

　　Sometimes, when Tom Krattenmaker and his 16 year old daughter, Holland, listen to rock music together and talk about pop culture．They both enjoy these moments．

　　Mr．Krattenmaker, from Pennsylvania, USA, recalled his relationship with his parents when he was a teenager．“I would never have said to my mom, ’Hey, this new album(專輯)is really great－h(huán)ow do you like it?’”，He said, “There was just a complete gap in sensibility(情感)and taste．”

　　Music was not the only gap．From clothing and hairstyles to activities and expectations(期望)，earlier generations of parents and children often appeared to be in separate orbits(軌道)．

　　Today, the generation gap has not disappeared, but it is shrinking(縮小)in many families, according to reports．

　　The new equality in family

　　Parents today are more youthful in appearance and attitudes(態(tài)度)．They also wear blue jeans and they have casual hairstyles．Those who like sports also enjoy Rollerblading(輪滑)，snowboarding, and rock climbing with their children．

　　The old authoritarian(權(quán)威主義的)method is giving way to a more equal one．Parents will take the “Come, let us reason together” attitude instead of “Because I said so, that’s why．”

　　The result can be a rewarding closeness among family members．Conversations that would have been awkward(別扭的)on subjects such as sex and drugs now are comfortable and common between western parents and children．Parents realize that children may have important thoughts or feelings that adults need to know．

　　No wonder greeting cards today carry the message, “To my mother, my best friend．”

　　Downsides(弊端)of being equal

　　Familyexperts, however, worrythat the new equality can also have downsides－decreasing respect for parents as everyone has a say(發(fā)言權(quán))in the family and self indulgence(任性)of the children as the power shifts to them．

　　Many parents have started making decisions based on what their children want．Parents focus on making their children happy, as opposed to guiding most appropriately(恰當?shù)?．Busy parents have an increase of guilt and are less eager to spend time disciplining(使遵守紀律，責罰)．

　　In addition, parents tend to encourage children’s independence, making them more responsible for themselves．Some worry that if they tell their child no, or impose(設置)limits, it will hurt the child’s self esteem(自尊)．

　　問題導入：與從前相比，代的父母與孩子之間，多的是平等交流和民主相處，像是朋友，以分享彼此的好惡和喜樂。很多人認為這是一種進步，人欣喜；也有人認為過分民主會讓還缺乏判斷力的孩子變得任性、不懂得服從。你和父母之間是怎樣的關(guān)系？全平等的朋友嗎？是家里做決定的人？還是父母？

Answer 1

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