经济学人182:纹身与工作 污点般的纹身

 　　Tattoos² in the workplace

　　纹身与工作

　　Ink blots³

　　污点般的纹身

　　Body art is growing more popular, though few employers are keen

　　人体艺术越来越流行，尽管很少有招聘方喜欢

　　IN THE North Star tattoo¹ parlour in downtown Manhattan, Brittany shows off her ink: a Banksy-inspired tableau⁴ covering both feet. Now a student at New York University, she hopes to be a lawyer one day. “That's why I got the tattoo on my feet,” she says. “It's easy to hide.”

　　在位于曼哈顿市区的北极星纹身店，Brittany炫耀她双脚上以Banksy为灵感创作的纹身。她现为纽约大学的一名学生，她希望有朝一日成为一名律师。她说：“这就是为什么我把纹身纹在脚上，因为这样比较容易隐藏。”

　　Once the preserve of prisoners, sailors and circus freaks, tattoos have become a benign⁵ rite⁶ of passage for many Americans. One in five adults has one, and two in five thirty-somethings. These days women with tattoos outnumber men. But what happens when these people look for work? Alas⁷, not everyone is as savvy⁸ as Brittany.

　　曾经是囚犯、水手和马戏团小丑专属的纹身，现如今已经变成许多美国人通过的良性仪式。每五个成年人就有一个人有纹身，三十多岁的年轻中则是每五人中有两个。女性纹身的人数已超过了男性。但这些人找工作的时候会怎么样？恩…不是每个人都像Brittany一样精明的。

　　纹身与工作.jpg

　　Though increasingly mainstream⁹, tattoos still signal a certain rebelliousness¹⁰ that works against jobseekers, says Andrew Timming of the University of St Andrews in Scotland. In a forthcoming study, Mr Timming and colleagues asked participants to assess job candidates based on their pictures, some of which were altered to add a neck tattoo. Inked candidates consistently ranked lower, despite being equally qualified¹¹. In a separate study Mr Timming found that many service-sector managers were squeamish about conspicuous¹² ink, particularly when filling jobs that involve dealing¹³ with customers.

　　圣安德鲁大学（位于苏格兰）的Timming说，尽管纹身越来越主流，但仍旧是叛逆的标志，是求职者的敌人。在一项即将发表的研究中，Timming和他的同事要求参与者根据照片评估应聘者，其中一些照片上在脖子的位置添加了纹身。尽管自身条件相同，但有纹身的应聘者一直排名较低。在另一项研究中，Timming发现，许多服务部门管理者对明显的纹身接受不能，特别是在招聘需要与客户打交道的职位时尤甚。

　　Designs of flowers or butterflies were deemed comparatively acceptable. And some workplaces are more open-minded: a prison-services manager explained that having tattoos made it easier to bond with inmates¹⁴. Firms with a younger clientele are also more tattoo-friendly. But by and large the more visible the tattoo, the more “unsavoury” a candidate seemed—even if the boss had one.

　　相对来说，花或者蝴蝶的纹身设计是可以接受的。一些工作场所更加开放，监狱管理者解释说，他的纹身使他更容易与囚犯建立联系。面向年轻顾客的公司对纹身接受度也更高。即使老板自己有纹身，但总体而言，纹身越明显，应聘者越是“不讨喜”。

　　Such prejudice may seem anachronistic¹⁵, but it is not unfounded. Empirical studies have long linked tattoos with deviant behaviour. People with inked skin are more likely to carry weapons, use illegal drugs and get arrested. The association is stronger for bigger tattoos, or when there are several, says Jerome Koch, a sociologist¹⁶ at Texas Tech University.

　　这种偏见似乎有些落伍，但并非没有根据。实证研究长期将纹身与异常行为联系在一起。有纹身的人更有可能携带枪支，使用非法药物，或者被逮捕。德州理工大学一名为Jerome Koch的社会学家表示，纹身越大或者有好几个时，这种联系越强。

　　This may help explain the army's recent decision to reinstate old grooming¹⁷ standards. These restrict the size and number of tattoos, ban ink from the neck, head and hands, and bar body art that might be seen as racist¹⁸, sexist or otherwise inappropriate. The change is intended to promote discipline and professionalism. But it is making it harder to recruit to the army, says Major Tyler Stewart, who handles recruitment in Arizona. His battalion¹⁹ is turning away 50 tattooed²⁰ people a week.

　　这有助于解释近来军队恢复旧仪容标准的决定。标准限制了纹身的大小和数量，禁止脖子、头和手上的纹身，以及可能被视为种族歧视、性别歧视或其他不好方面的人体艺术。标准的改变旨在加强纪律和职业精神。负责亚利桑那州招兵工作的Major Tyler Stewart表示，新标准这使得招兵更难了。他所在的营一周里清退了50名有纹身的士兵。

　　Some aspiring²¹ soldiers and other jobseekers are solving the problem by getting their ink removed. Tattoo-removal has surged 440% in the past decade, according to IBISWorld, a market-research firm. At the North Star, where Brittany's friend is getting a question-mark inked on her wrist, the prospect²² of such buyer's remorse²³ seems remote. “I don't think it will help her job prospects,” observes Brittany, “but hopefully it won't hurt, either.”

　　一些有抱负的士兵和求职者通过洗掉纹身来解决问题。根据一名为IBISWorld的市场调研公司的调查显示，在过去十年中，洗纹身服务增长了440%。在北极星，Brittany的朋友正在它手腕上纹“问题标记”，对纹身的后悔似乎离她还很遥远。Brittany观察着说，“我认为纹身不会对她的工作产生帮助，但希望纹身也不会毁掉她的工作。”

1 tattoo   

n.纹身，(皮肤上的)刺花纹；vt.刺花纹于

参考例句：

• I've decided to get my tattoo removed.我已经决定去掉我身上的纹身。
• He had a tattoo on the back of his hand.他手背上刺有花纹。

2 tattoos   

n.文身( tattoo的名词复数 )；归营鼓；军队夜间表演操；连续有节奏的敲击声v.刺青，文身( tattoo的第三人称单数 )；连续有节奏地敲击；作连续有节奏的敲击

参考例句：

• His arms were covered in tattoos. 他的胳膊上刺满了花纹。
• His arms were covered in tattoos. 他的双臂刺满了纹身。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 blots   

污渍( blot的名词复数 )； 墨水渍； 错事； 污点

参考例句：

• The letter had many blots and blurs. 信上有许多墨水渍和污迹。
• It's all, all covered with blots the same as if she were crying on the paper. 到处，到处都是泪痕，像是她趴在信纸上哭过。 来自名作英译部分

4 tableau   

n.画面，活人画（舞台上活人扮的静态画面）

参考例句：

• The movie was a tableau of a soldier's life.这部电影的画面生动地描绘了军人的生活。
• History is nothing more than a tableau of crimes and misfortunes.历史不过是由罪恶和灾难构成的静止舞台造型罢了。

5 benign   

adj.善良的，慈祥的；良性的，无危险的

参考例句：

• The benign weather brought North America a bumper crop.温和的气候给北美带来大丰收。
• Martha is a benign old lady.玛莎是个仁慈的老妇人。

6 rite   

n.典礼，惯例，习俗

参考例句：

• This festival descends from a religious rite.这个节日起源于宗教仪式。
• Most traditional societies have transition rites at puberty.大多数传统社会都为青春期的孩子举行成人礼。

7 alas   

int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等)

参考例句：

• Alas!The window is broken!哎呀！窗子破了！
• Alas,the truth is less romantic.然而，真理很少带有浪漫色彩。

8 savvy   

v.知道，了解；n.理解能力，机智，悟性；adj.有见识的，懂实际知识的，通情达理的

参考例句：

• She was a pretty savvy woman.她是个见过世面的漂亮女人。
• Where's your savvy?你的常识到哪里去了？

9 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。

10 rebelliousness   

n. 造反，难以控制

参考例句：

• Any requirement that may be construed as 'compulsory' will evoke some rebelliousness. 任何可以解释成“必须做的”要求都会激起一些反动情绪。
• Obstinate or contemptuous resistance to authority; stubborn rebelliousness. '叛逆'。''性顽固的或藐视性的反抗权威；顽固的''。'叛逆'。''性。

11 qualified   

adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的

参考例句：

• He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
• We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。

12 conspicuous   

adj.明眼的，惹人注目的；炫耀的，摆阔气的

参考例句：

• It is conspicuous that smoking is harmful to health.很明显，抽烟对健康有害。
• Its colouring makes it highly conspicuous.它的色彩使它非常惹人注目。

13 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

14 inmates   

n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• One of the inmates has escaped. 被收容的人中有一个逃跑了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The inmates were moved to an undisclosed location. 监狱里的囚犯被转移到一个秘密处所。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 anachronistic   

adj.时代错误的

参考例句：

• In remembering historic events,the mistake you tend to make is anachronistic.在记历史事件时，你容易犯的错误是时代错误。
• English public schools are anachronistic.英国的公立学校已经落伍过时了。

16 sociologist   

n.研究社会学的人，社会学家

参考例句：

• His mother was a sociologist,researching socialism.他的母亲是个社会学家，研究社会主义。
• Max Weber is a great and outstanding sociologist.马克斯·韦伯是一位伟大的、杰出的社会学家。

17 grooming   

n. 修饰, 美容，（动物）梳理毛发

参考例句：

• You should always pay attention to personal grooming. 你应随时注意个人仪容。
• We watched two apes grooming each other. 我们看两只猩猩在互相理毛。

18 racist   

n.种族主义者，种族主义分子

参考例句：

• a series of racist attacks 一连串的种族袭击行为
• His speech presented racist ideas under the guise of nationalism. 他的讲话以民族主义为幌子宣扬种族主义思想。

19 battalion   

n.营；部队；大队(的人)

参考例句：

• The town was garrisoned by a battalion.该镇由一营士兵驻守。
• At the end of the drill parade,the battalion fell out.操练之后，队伍解散了。

20 tattooed   

v.刺青，文身( tattoo的过去式和过去分词 )；连续有节奏地敲击；作连续有节奏的敲击

参考例句：

• He had tattooed his wife's name on his upper arm. 他把妻子的名字刺在上臂上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The sailor had a heart tattooed on his arm. 那水兵在手臂上刺上一颗心。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

21 aspiring   

adj.有志气的；有抱负的；高耸的v.渴望；追求

参考例句：

• Aspiring musicians need hours of practice every day. 想当音乐家就要每天练许多小时。
• He came from an aspiring working-class background. 他出身于有抱负的工人阶级家庭。 来自辞典例句

22 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

23 remorse   

n.痛恨，悔恨，自责

参考例句：

• She had no remorse about what she had said.她对所说的话不后悔。
• He has shown no remorse for his actions.他对自己的行为没有任何悔恨之意。