More young people are flying the nest

陕西 李红娟

以前，大多数新加坡年轻人在婚前或者35岁前都会和父母同住，而现在，越来越多的年轻人正在“离家出走”，这到底是为什么呢？

Young adults in Singapore can often live with their parents into their 30s. They are encouraged by the government, which is fond of praising family values.Housing policy makes it difficult for young people to live independently. Almost 80% of Singaporeans live in subsidised （补助的） public housing. They cannot have a flat of their own until they marry or turn 35.

Yet a small but growing number of Singaporeans are defying the nanny （保姆） state. Between 1990 and 2020, the number of those under 35 who lived alone or with non-family members grew from 33,400 to 51,300.Since they do not qualify for public housing, they must rent in the private sector. One factor is that Singaporeans are getting married later. In 1980, the average ages at which men and women married were 27 and 24; today, they are 30 and 29. A growing number choose not to marry at all. For others, it was COVID-19 that pushed them out of the nest. Serene Chee, a 25-year-old lawyer, did not greatly mind living with her parents until travel restrictions and work-from-home policies kept her stuck at home all the time.In June, Ms Chee and a friend moved into an apartment together.

Living on your own is not easy. First, you must inform your parents. It took Lydia Yang, an illustrator who was then 28, three months to gather the courage. Then you must learn to pay bills and do basic chores. When Lenne Chai, a photographer, moved out seven years ago at the tender age of 23,she did not know how to cook.

Life on your own can be lonely. Ms Yang found it “a bit depressing”, particularly during the lockdown. But living apart may improve relationships. Both Ms Yang and Ms Chai said that they got on better with their parents after moving out. When living together, they paid each other little attention. Now their weekly visits are “quality time”, said Ms Chai. When Ms Chee's parents came to her flat for dinner recently, they were impressed by how tidy it was.

Reading Check

1. What's the attitude of the government to family values?

A. Ambiguous. B. Favorable.

C. Unclear. D. Objective.

2. The underlined word “defying” in paragraph 2 can be replaced by ________.

A. enjoying B. praising

C. challenging D. explaining

3. How is the second paragraph developed?

A. By telling different stories.

B. By using famous proverbs.

C. By raising and answering questions.

D. By showing a phenomenon and explaining reasons.

4. What does the last paragraph try to express?

A. The ways to live on one's own.

B. The effects of living on one's own.

C. The reaction of parents to their children's independence.

D. The importance of living with parents to young adults.

Language Study

Sentences for writing

Housing policy makes it difficult for young people to live independently. 住房政策使年轻人难以独立生活。

【信息提取】make it difficult for sb to do sth意为“使某人做某事很困难”。

【句式仿写】那个男孩的坏脾气使人们很难喜欢他。