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Brazil has become one. of the developing world's great successes at reducing population growth but
more by accident than design. While countries such as India have made joint efforts to reduce birth rates, Brazil had better results without really trying, says George Martine at Harvard.
Brazil's population growth rate dropped from 2. 99% a year between 1951 and 1960 to 1. 93% a
year between 198 land 1990, and Brazilian women now have only 2. 7 children on average. Martine says
this figure may have fallen still further since 1990, an achievement that makes it the envy of many other
Third World countries.
Martine puts it down to, among other things, soap operas (肥皂剧) and installment (分期付款) plans
introduced in the 1970s. Both played an important, although indirect, role in lowering the birth rate. Brazil
is one of the world's biggest producers of soap operas. Globo, Brazil's most popular television network,
shows three hours of soaps six nights a week, while three others show at least one hour a night. Most
soaps are based on wealthy characters living the high life in big cities.
Although they have never really tried to work in a message towards the problems of reproduction,
they describe middle and upper class values: not many children, women working, says Martine. They sent
this image to all parts of Brazil and made people conscious of other patterns of behaviour and other
values, which were put into a very attractive package.
Meanwhile, the installment plans tried to encourage the poor to become consumers. " This led to an
enormous change in consumption patterns and consumption was incompatible (不相容的) with unlimited
reproduction," says Martine.
1. According to the passage, Brazil has lowered its population growth ________.
A. by educating its citizens
B. by careful family planning
C. by limiting birth rate
D. by chance
2. According to the passage, many Third World countries____
A. are unwilling to control the birth rate.
B. are willing to join Brazil in controlling their birth rate soon
C. haven't yet found an effective measure to control their population
D. haven't realized the importance of TV plays in family planning
3. Soap operas have helped in lowering Brazil's birth rate because ________.
A. they educate people.
B. they have gradually changed people's way of life
C. people are drawn to their attractive package
D. they popularize birth control measures
4. What is Martine's conclusion about Brazil's population growth?
A. The desire for consumption helps to reduce birth rate.
B. The increase in birth rate will be controlled.
C. Consumption goes with reproduction.
D. A country 's production is limited by its population growth.
5. According to the passage, soap operas show that they have ____in the middle class.
A. one or two babies.
B. many babies
C. only a boy
D. only a girl
