七选五 In March 2019, Gucci began selling a $4,500 purse in the shape of Mickey Mouse’s head. Between the creature’s round black ears is a small handle embossed ( 凸印 ) with the word “Gucci.” On the brand’s website, a male model stares seriously into the camera without the slightest trace of irony ( 讽刺 ) that he is, in fact, carrying around the head of a children’s cartoon character. It’s perhaps the most luxurious Mickey Mouse products designed for adults. ____1____ Maybelline created makeup sets with packaging covered in Mickey’s face. Uniqlo made dozens of graphic T-shirts with Mickey in various poses. So as not to miss out on the action, Apple launched $300 Beats headphones that paid homage to ( 向 ...... 致敬 ) the Mouse. According to The Wall Street Journal, Mickey Mouse and his friends sold $3 billion in merchandise ( 周边商品 ) in 2018, a figure that includes both adult and children’s products. This brings up the question: Why would adults wear items decorated with the face of a smiling rodent in the first place? What accounts for the enduring appeal of this anthropomorphized ( 拟人化的 ) mouse, while other Disney characters, such as Anna from Frozen, hardly ever appear in adult products? Mickey Mouse was big business almost as soon as he made his debut ( 首次亮相 ) in Walt Disney’s animated short Steamboat Willie ( 《汽船威利号》 ) in 1928. Within five years, Mickey was earning $1 million a year in merchandise sales. These products were largely targeted at children, including stuffed toys, trains, and nursery ( 托儿所 ) wallpaper. Everything changed in the years after World War II. ____2____ For one thing, Mickey was nearly twenty years old, which meant that the first audience, who enjoyed the cartoons as children, were now in their thirties. Disney was willing to transform Mickey into a symbol of innocence in the postwar years, when people were desperate for something hopeful to cling to. All the marketing worked. In 1947, products featuring Disney characters brought in $100 million in revenue ( 收益 ) in merchandise. In addition to kids’ products, many of the items sold were for adults, such as radios and phonographs ( 留声机 ). ____3____ He made Mickey’s face and body rounder, and eyes larger, like those of a baby. Scientists have shown that adults are more drawn to childlike faces. That look is more likely to subconsciously ( 潜意识地 ) produce a greater level of attachment in the viewer. ____4____ . For instance, the company has done everything in its power to ensure that they do not use images of Mickey drinking and smoking. By and large, though, the symbolism Mickey represents is the one Disney has put forth: that of innocence and positivity. ____5____ . In World War II, people used Mickey to help cope with the horrors before them. This might also help explain why Mickey Mouse has been popular over the past few years when many people are experiencing political instability. A. Over the decades, Disney is always sensitive about how brands portray Mickey when it licenses his face. B. Why was this effective at getting adults’ attention? C. This is perhaps why adults seem drawn to him during times of trouble. D. At that point, demand for products bearing Mickey’s face among adults decreased. E. But it’s just one of many that has flooded the market. F. Disney kept developing the character to make him more and more universally appealing. G . Disney’s goal was clearly to make the character universally known and loved.