1) France, which prides itself as the global innovator of fashion, has decided its fashion industry has lost an absolute right to define physical beauty for women. Its lawmakers gave preliminary approval last week to a law that would make it a crime to employ ultra-thin models on runways. The parliament also agreed to ban websites that “incite excessive thinness” by promoting extreme dieting.
2) Such measures have a couple of uplifting motives. They suggest beauty should not be defined by looks that end up impinging on health. That’s a start. And the ban on ultra-thin models seems to go beyond protecting models from starving themselves to death - as some have done. It tells the fashion industry that it must take responsibility for the signal it sends women, especially teenage girls, about the social tape-measure they must use to determine their individual worth.
3) The bans, if fully enforced, would suggest to women (and many men) that they should not let others be arbiters of their beauty. And perhaps faintly, they hint that people should look to intangible qualities like character and intellect rather than dieting their way to size zero or wasp-waist physiques.
4) The French measures, however, rely too much on severe punishment to change a culture that still regards beauty as skin-deep — and bone-showing. Under the law, using a fashion model that does not meet a government-defined index of body mass could result in a $85,000 fine and six months in prison.
5) The fashion industry knows it has an inherent problem in focusing on material adornment and idealized body types. In Denmark, the United States, and a few other countries, it is trying to set voluntary standards for models and fashion images that rely more on peer pressure for enforcement.
6) In contrast to France’s actions, Denmark’s fashion industry agreed last month on rules and sanctions regarding the age, health, and other characteristics of models. The newly revised Danish Fashion Ethical Charter clearly states: “We are aware of and take responsibility for the impact the fashion industry has on body ideals, especially on young people.’ The charter’s main tool of enforcement is to deny access for designers and modeling agencies to Copenhagen Fashion Week (CFW), which is run by the Danish Fashion Institute. But in general it relies on a name-and-shame method of compliance.
7) Relying on ethical persuasion rather than law to address the misuse of body ideals may be the best step. Even better would be to help elevate notions of beauty beyond the material standards of a particular industry.
21. According to the first paragraph, what would happen in France?
[A] New runways would be constructed.
[B] Physical beauty would be redefined.
[C] Websites about dieting would thrive.
[D] The fashion industry would decline.
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选项[B]正确。
由题干中的the first paragraph定位到第一段。第一段第一句指出，法国的时尚业已经失去了定义女性形体美的绝对权力,第二、三句接着指出禁止雇用过瘦模特走秀、取缔煽动过度纤瘦的网站的举措。由句意可推知，法国意在推翻超瘦为美的定义，即将会重新定义形体美。由此可确定本题答案为[B]。
22. The phrase “impinging on” (Para 2) is closest in meaning to______.
[A] heightening the value of.
[B] indicating the state of.
[C] losing faith in.
[D] doing harm to.
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选项[D]正确。
根据题干定位到第二段第二句。根据第一段可知法国立法禁止雇用过瘦的模特走秀。定位句又指出,法国的这些举措表明美不应由最终____健康而获得的外表来定义。由此可知,之前对于美的定义会对健康有不好的影响，故可以推知[D]"对....有伤害"是正确答案。
23. Which of the following is true of the fashion industry?
[A] New standards are being set in Denmark.
[B] The French measures have already failed.
[C] Model are no longer under peer pressure.
[D] Its inherent problems are getting worse.
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选项[A]正确。
根据Denmark定位到第五段第二句和第六段第一句。第五段第二句提到丹麦等国家的时尚业正试着设定自愿性标准，第六段第一句具体说明丹麦的时尚业上个月通过了有关模特年龄、健康和其他特征的多项规定和处罚措施。由此可知，丹麦正在设立新标准，答案为[A]。
24. A designer is most likely to be rejected by CFW for ______.
[A] pursuing perfect physical conditions.
[B] caring too much about models’ character.
[C] showing little concern for health factors.
[D] setting a high age threshold for models.
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选项[C]正确。 
由题干中的CFW定位到第六段第三句。该句指出,宪章的主要执行方式是取消一些设计师的参会资格，这是题干中的事件结果。紧邻的上句即第二句提到，新修订的宪章明确指出,时尚业理应知道自己对理想体形标准的影响，并且对此负责。两句的关联在于The charter即Danish Fashion Ethical Charter，首先推断设计师被拒绝可能是因为其对理想体形标准的影响，即注重超瘦体形而忽视健康。首句则具体说明丹麦的时尚业就模特的年龄健康及其他特征通过了多项规定和处罚措施。由此可推知，设计师很可能因为不考虑模特的身体健康因素而被哥本哈根时装周拒绝。由此可确定本题答案为[C]。
25. Which of the following may be the best title of the text?
[A] A Challenge to the Fashion Industry’s Body Ideals
[B] A Dilemma for the Starving Models in France
[C] Just Another Round of Struggle for Beauty
[D] The Great Threats to the Fashion Industry
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选项[A]正确。
由题干定位到全文。文章开篇指出法国下禁令遏制时尚业“超瘦为美"，并对其措施作出肯定评判，以及指出不足之处，接着介绍其他国家为改变“超瘦为美”问题而采取的措施,文章结尾A总结说明解决理想体形问题的最佳方式，可见文章通篇都在对时尚业“超瘦为美”的理想体形标准发起挑战。此外，全文出现频率较高的词组是fashion industry和body ideals,由此可确定本题答案为[A]。
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