2026年教师职称《初中英语》考前点题卷二

The fashion industry blatantly pays attention to plus-size women.A good fit is everything,stylists often counsel, but in assessing its market America’s fashion business appears to have mislaid the measuring tape.A frequently-cited study done a few years ago by Plunkett Research, a market-research firm, found that 67% of American women were “plus-size” , meaning size 14 or larger.That figure will not have changed much, but in 2016, only 18% of clothing sold was plus-size, according to NPD Group, another research firm.
Designers and retailers have long thought of the plus-size segment as high-risk.Predicting what these customers will buy can be difficult, as they tend to be more cautious about styles.Making larger clothes is more expens-ive; higher costs for fabric cannot always be passed on to consumers.In turn, plus-size women shopped less because the industry was not serving them well.“We have money but nowhere to spend it,” says Kristine Thompson, who runs a blog called Trendy Curvy and has nearly 150000 followers on Instagram, a social-media site.
At last, that is changing.Fast-fashion brands, including Forever 21 and a fashion line sold in partnership with Target, a giant retailer, have expanded their plus-size collections.Lane Bryant, a plus-size retailer, and Prabal Garung, a designer, have done the same.In March, Nike extended its “X-sized” sportswear range, Revenue in the plus-size category increased by 14% between 2013 and 2016, compared with growth of 7% for all apparel.
Social media has played an important role in changing attitudes in the fashion business, says Madeline Jones, editor and co-founder of PLUS Model Magazine.Nonetheless, designer brands still hold back (Walmart sells the most plus-size apparel).Some brands, such as Michael Kors, do sell plus-size ranges but do not advertise them or display them on websites.Gwynnie Bee, Stitch Fix and Dia&Co, for example, share information with designers on preferred styles and fits.Tracy Reese,a designer known for creating Michelle Obama’s dress for the Democratic National Convention in 2012, is one brand that recently enlisted Gwynnie Bee’s help to create a new plus-size collection.Gwynnie Bee prompted the label to create bigger patterns and more appealing designs.
Not all plus-size shoppers are convinced.Laura Fuentes, a hairstylist from Abilene, Texas, says that many upmarket department stores still keep their plus-size clothing sections poorly organized,badly stocked and dimly lit, if they stock larger clothes at all.Yet such complaints should be taken with a pinch of salt, says Ms.Thompson.“We’re nowhere near where we should be but we’ve made progress,” she says.

The lights go out—another power failure.“Get the candles,” Mom says, and I do.My younger brother and I search every room to collect the tall candles and holders spaced around the house.I hurry from shelf to shelf gathering wax sticks in my arms and place them in the living room, a few candles in each corner except for a small red votive.That one I keep.It is the one I will take to the coffee table to use to read.I slide my book, Things FaIl Apart, beside the candle holder, determined to finish the last three chapters, but lacking determination.So the book remains closed.A sigh escapes my brother’s lips.
“This is boring,” he says.A drop of wax falls on my book.“I know,” I say, but really, I am enjoying the stillness.I like to watch the candle burn and feel that life is simple.I like to look out of the window into an immediate darkness unspoiled by unpleasant light.I love these silent moments when I feel as if I can live the way they lived, the people of the past-the Egyptians, the Pilgrims,the Greeks-anyone who ever lived to see the black color I’m seeing, anyone who lived to see a yellow fiame and depended on it.I feel at once with a secret, ancient age.I’m convinced that night,in this disturbed state, is the closest a person can get to experience the past.
So, what was night really like for them？ Night, as we know it now, is a pleasant, loving thing compared to the incomprehensible darkness that covered Earth’s first people.Even its beauty seemed unmatched.
What did a farmer’s family do at night？ Of course, the darkness must have brought them together, forced them into each other’s company as it has done to us tonight—developed a close relationship in a time of fear and uncertainty.A fire probably burnt brightly in a central room where the family gathered to talk and relax.Night was a time when men and women were liberated from work and socialized.They had no computers or TVs, and had to make do with books, religion, and conversation.At their bedside, they prayed to God, and felt a sense of security that they were out of the darkness and harm’s reach.
Nevertheless, to run a risk of going outside was sometimes necessary, and the threat of robbers,wolves, even the ethereal, was present.What emotions did these people feel？ Did they witness a deep bright blue cloud across heaven？ What would it have been like to feel the night, heavy and damp against my back？ Would it have taken me, choked me with its powerful hands, separated me from other people？ Or would those have been awful dreams, and dreams only？
I imagine a young girl, stepping outside her home and into a desert for some air.A cool,earthy smell would greet her.There’s a sky with millions of stars—far more than a person could see today-and there’s the moon.It’s the largest object in the sky, the midnight sun that shines in the world, the traveler’s torch.It inspires stories of uncertainty, stories of power.I imagine this girl amazed at the moon and stars.If she wanders too far, she needn’t worry, for the stars will lead her back home.
Bzzz! The lights return.Everyone cheers and abandons the room, happy that their period of being lonely is over, everyone except me.I pull my candle closer, and stare into the night.The glory is gone; it has been made less bright by street lamps, electric signs, TVs, and all other manners of artificial light.But in those moments, when every light in every house was off, people may have had a taste of the old world.They may finally have touched upon the slight fear, the admiration, and the respect that our ancestors felt for the night.