Shopping for clothes is not the same experience for a man as it is for a woman. A man goes shopping because he needs something. His purpose is settled and decided in advance. He knows what he wants, and his objective is to find it and buy it; the price is a secondary consideration. All men simply walk into a shop and ask the assistant for what they want. If the shop has it in stock, the salesman promptly produces it, and the business of trying it on follows at once. All being well, the deal can be and often is completed in less than five minutes, with hardly any chat and to everyone's satisfaction.
For a man, slight problems may begin when the shop does not have what he wants, or does not have exactly what he wants. In that case the salesman, as the name implies, tries to sell the customer something else, he offers the nearest he can to the article required. No good salesman brings out such a substitute impolitely; he does so with skill: “I know this jacket is not the style you want, sir, but would you like to try it for size? It happens to be the color you mentioned.” Few men have patience with this treatment, and the usual response is: “This is the right color and may be the right size, but I should be wasting my time and yours by trying it on.”
Now how does a woman go about buying clothes? In almost every respect she does so in the opposite way. Her shopping is not often based on need. She has never fully made up her mind what she wants, and she is only “having a look round”. She is always open to persuasion; indeed she sets great store bywhat the saleswoman tells her, even by what companions tell her. She will try on any number of things. Uppermost in her mind is the thought of finding something that everyone thinks suits her. Contrary to a lot of jokes, most women have an excellent sense of value when they buy clothes. They are always on the lockout for the unexpected bargain. Faced with a roomful of dresses, a woman may easily spendan hour going from one rail to another, to and fro, often retracing her steps, before selecting the dresses she wants to try on. It is a laborious process, but apparently an enjoyable one. Most dress shops provide chairs for the waiting husbands.
17. The passage mainly talks about ________.
A. differences between men and women shoppers
B. A man goes shopping because he needs something
C. How women go about buying clothes.
D. Women are better at shopping than men
18. The underlined sentence “the price is a secondary consideration” in the first paragraph means when a man is shopping ________.
A. he buys good quality things, so long as they are not too dear
B. he buys whatever he likes without considering its value
C. he does not mind how much he has to pay for the right things
D. he often buy things without giving the matter proper thought.
19. What does a man do when he can not get exactly what he wants?
A. He buys a similar thing because of the color he wants.
B. He usually does not buy anything.
C. At least two of his requirements must be met before he buys.
D. So long as the style is right, he buys the thing.
20. What is the most obvious difference between men and women shoppers?
A. Men do not try clothes on in a shop while women do.
B. Women bargain for their clothes, but men do not.
C. The time they take over buying clothes.
D. Men go shopping based on need, but women never.
答案与解析：
17. A 主旨大意题。文章首句 Shopping for clothes is not the same experience for a man as it is for a woman 点题男人买衣服和女人买衣服是不同的经历。然后下文分别阐述男人和女人买东西的不同。故答案为 A。
18. C 语义理解题。根据第1段第 2、3、4 句 A man goes shopping because he needs something. His purpose is settled and decided in advance. He knows what he wants, and his objective is to find it and buy it 可知男人因为需要而买东西，他买东西的目的预先订下来，他知道他需要什么，而且他的目标是找到他需要的东西并买下来。由此可推断只要东西合适，是他需要的，价格则是次要的事情。故答案为 C。
19. B 推理判断题。根据第3段首句 For a man, slight problems may begin when the shop does not have what he wants, or does not have exactly what he wants. 和末句This is the right color and may be the right size, but I should be wasting my time and yours by trying it on 可知虽然价格和颜色都合适，但如果不是他想要的东西，他认为“试穿是浪费时间”，因此可推知他不会买。故答案为 B。
20. C 推理判断题。根据第1段 the deal can be and often is completed in less than five minutes 和第3段中 a woman may easily spend an hour going from one rail to another 可推知男人和女人买东西的明显不同是他们所用的时间不同。本文阐述如何在参加面试的前几分钟时间里给人留下深刻的印象。