South Korea in Population Crisis
韩国陷入人口危机
Many adults in South Korea have chosen either not to have children or not to marry. Similar things are happening in other developed countries, but many consider South Korea's population crisis severe.
在韩国，许多成年人要么选择不要孩子，要么选择不结婚。类似的情况在其他发达国家也在发生，但许多人认为韩国的人口危机很严重。
A South Korean government agency announced in September that the total fertility rate reached 0.81 last year. The total fertility rate is the average number of babies born to each woman in their reproductive years.
韩国政府机构9月份公布的数据显示，去年韩国的总生育率为0.81。总生育率是指每位妇女在其生育年龄所生婴儿的平均数。
South Korea's fertility rate has been the world's lowest for three years now. The population decreased for the first time in 2021. It raised concerns for severe damage to the economy.
韩国的生育率已经连续三年处于世界最低水平。2021年，韩国人口首次数显下降。这引发了人们对韩国经济遭受严重损害的担忧。
Some observers expect labor shortages and high spending on retirement payments as the number of older people increases while the number of taxpayers decreases.
一些观察人士预计，随着老年人数量的增加和纳税人数量的减少，韩国将出现劳动力短缺和退休金支出剧增等问题。
President Yoon Suk Yeol has ordered policymakers to find better ways to deal with the problem. The fertility rate, he said, is still decreasing although South Korea spent $210 billion over the past 16 years to increase it.
总统尹锡悦命令政策制定者找到更好的方法来解决这个问题。他说，尽管韩国在过去16年里斥资2100亿美元来提高生育率，但生育率仍在下降。
Many young South Koreans say that, unlike their parents and grandparents, they do not feel an obligation to have a family. Reasons some say for not having children include: a difficult job market, costly housing, inequality between the sexes, and social inequality.
许多韩国年轻人表示，与他们的父母和祖父母不同，他们不觉得自己有组建家庭的义务。一些人认为不生孩子的原因包括：就业难、房价贵、性别不平等以及社会不平等。
Some also say the high cost of raising children in a competitive society is a reason. Some women say men expect them to do much of the childcare while they face discrimination at work.
一些人还说，另一个原因是在竞争激烈的社会抚养孩子成本高昂。一些女性表示，男性希望她们承担大部分育儿工作，而她们在工作中面临歧视。
(标红单词为考研重难点词汇)
重难点词汇：
obligation [ˌɑːblɪˈɡeɪʃn] n. 义务；承诺；恩惠；合同
discrimination [dɪˌskrɪmɪˈneɪʃn] n. 歧视；辨别；区别；选择
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