F o r most of us , wor k is the central, dominating fact of life. We spend more than half our conscious hours a t work , pre parin g for work, traveling to and from work. What we do there l argely determines our standard of living and to a considerable extent the status we are accorded by our fellow citizens as well. It is sometimes said that because leisure has become more important the indignities an d i nj usti ces of w ork can be pushed into a corner ; that people can forget its boredom, frustrations and humiliations by concentrating their hopes on the other parts of their lives. I reject that as a counse l of despair. For the fo re seeable future the material and psychological rewards which work can provide, and the conditions in which work is done , w ill continue to pl ay a vital part in determining the satisfaction that life can offer . Yet o nly a small minority can control the pace at which they work or the conditions in which their work is done; onl y for a small minority does work offer scope for creativit y , imagination, or ini tiative. Inequality at work and in work is still one of the cruelest and most glaring forms of inequalit y in our society. We cannot hope to solve the more obvious problems of industrial life, many of which arise directly or indirectl y from the frustrations created by inequality at work, unless we tackle it head-on. Still less can we hope to create a decent and humane society. The most glaring inequality is that between managers and the rest. For most managers, work is an opportunity and a challenge. Their jobs engage their interest and allow them to develop their abilities. They are constantly learning; they are able to exercise responsibility; they have a considerable degree of control over their own --- and others’ --- working lives. Most important of all, they have the opportunity to initiate. By contrast, for most manual workers, and for a growing number of white-collar workers, work is a boring, monotonous, even painful experience. They spend all their working lives in conditions which would be regarded as intolerable ---f or themselves --- by those who take the decisions which l et such conditions continue. The maj ority have little control over their work; it provides them with no opportunity for personal development. Often production is so designed that workers justifiably feel themselves to be mere cogs ( 嵌齿 ) in the bureaucratic machine. As a direct consequence of their work experience, many workers feel alienated from their work and their firm, whether it is in public or in private ownership. 1. The author points out that , in the near future, A . work will still be the central dominating fact of life B . people will ignore the suffering caused by their work C . leisure activities will become a vital part of life D . our work w ill no longer decide our social status 2 . The root of the problem that only few people can control their work and working conditions i s A . the neglect of decision-making people B . the misleading public opinions C . social inequality D . inequality at work 3. A decent and humane society can be created when A . we tackle the problems of industrial life B . we solve the problem of inequality at work C . we overcome the frustrations brought by work D . we overcome the obstacles caused by social inequality 4. The majority of w orkers A . feel alienated from their work and their firm either in public or in private B . fee l they are just indifferently taken advantage of by the bureaucratic machine C . think that the managers deprive them of their chances of personal development D . believe that they should have a lot of control over their own working lives 5. The passage mainly discusses . A . what is the most important factor in life B . the disadvantages of social inequality C . how to create a harmonious society D . the problem of inequality at work