( 34 ). However, it remains one of the most meaningful and deeply felt life experiences and has become an important new way of finding one’s satisfaction in life. Happiness has come to be established as a new measurement with important implications for individuals and policymakers alike. Japan’s leaders should take note that the past emphasis on economic growth and material gains is out of date. New measures of happiness, such as Bhutan’s well-known Gross National Happiness concept, are growing in importance and need to be included into government initiatives.
△ (a) In contrast, Italy and Greece, with their debt-ridden economies, were in the top 20
(b) As the government ponders Japan’s future, it should be clear that higher income, without other types of nonmaterial gains, means very little
△ (c) Latin American countries with relatively low levels of economic development dominated the top 10 happiest countries
△ (d) According to a recent Gallup Poll of 148 countries, Japan ranks somewhere in the middle of world happiness levels
(e) Rich people may try in vain to buy happiness with money, and poor people may try desperately to be rich to do just the same
(f) Happiness may appear to be a subjective, intangible quality that is hard to define and harder to measure
(※指示文「(31)~(35)に当てはまるもっとも適切なものを、(a)~(f)よりそれぞれ1つ選びなさい」)
4.1 Happiness may appear to be a subjective, intangible quality that is hard to define and harder to measure
.
[意味把握チェック] 4.1 幸福は、主觀的でつかみどころがなく、定義がむつかしくて、測定することはなほむつかしい性質のものと見えるかもしれない。
【讀解のポイント-かたちからのアプロウチ】
・that は關係代名詞です。
4.2 However, it remains one of the most meaningful and deeply felt life experiences and has become an important new way of finding one’s satisfaction in life.
[意味把握チェック] 4.2 しかしながら、幸福は、最も意義深くてこころに深く感じられる人生經驗のひとつであり續け、人生の滿足感を見出す、重要で新しい方法となつてゐる。
4.3 Happiness has come to be established as a new measurement with important implications for individuals and policymakers alike.
[意味把握チェック] 4.3 幸福は、個人と政策擔當者に等しく重大な影響を及ぼす新しいはかりとして確立されるに到つてゐる。
[語句]
4.3 come to-不定詞(~) ~するやうになる
4.4 Japan’s leaders should take note that the past emphasis on economic growth and material gains is out of date.
[意味把握チェック] 4.4 日本の指導者たちは、經濟成長と物質的利得に對するかつての重視(/過去經濟成長と物質的利得を重視したこと)が時代遲れとなつてゐることに注目すべきである。
[語句]
4.4 take note 注目する/注意する
4.4 out of date 時代おくれの/古くさい/舊式の
4.5 New measures of happiness, such as Bhutan’s well-known Gross National Happiness concept, are growing in importance and need to be included into government initiatives.
[意味把握チェック] 4.5 幸福といふ新しい尺度が、例へばブータンの有名な「國民總幸福」の概念などであるが、重要性を増してをり、それが政治決定に含められることが必要である。
[語句]
4.5 such as ~ 例へば~など
4.5 gross national product GNP/國民總生産
【設問の考へ方】
「1パラグラフ1主題」を原則として、多くの論説文は記されてゐます。その主題を述べる中心的な文(topic sentence)は各パラグラフの先頭に置かれることが多いとされます。このパラグラフの主題は何か、また4.2の it が何を指すかを推察すると、「幸福」について論じてゐると見當がつきます。
【解答】
(34) - (f)