EigoPro 準1級読解 — The Widening Gap

For most of the post-war era, prosperity in the industrialised world seemed to lift everyone together. Wages rose roughly in step with productivity, and the children of factory workers could plausibly expect to out-earn their parents. Since the late 1970s, however, that broad-based ascent has stalled. The gains from economic growth have flowed disproportionately to those at the very top, while incomes in the middle have stagnated. The result is a widening gap that many economists now regard as the defining feature of modern capitalism. Explanations abound, and they are not mutually exclusive. Technology has rewarded a narrow class of highly skilled workers while rendering routine jobs obsolete. Globalisation has exposed manufacturing employees in rich countries to competition from far cheaper labour abroad. Perhaps most consequentially, the returns on capital—on stocks, property, and inherited wealth—have consistently outpaced the returns on labour, so that those who already own assets pull steadily ahead of those who merely earn a salary. Tax systems, once sharply progressive, have in many countries grown more lenient toward the wealthy, accelerating the divergence. Why should this trouble anyone beyond the envious? The complacent view holds that inequality is the natural by-product of a dynamic economy and that a rising tide eventually lifts all boats. But the evidence increasingly undercuts that reassurance. Extreme concentration of wealth corrodes social mobility, entrenches political influence among a tiny elite, and erodes the shared sense that effort will be rewarded. When citizens conclude that the game is rigged, the legitimacy of the entire system frays. The widening gap, in short, is not merely a matter of fairness; it is a question of whether market democracies can sustain the broad consent on which they depend.

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この単元の問題を3問、解説つきで公開しています

準1級 · 読解 · 全5問

問 1

What is the main argument of the passage?

Technological change is the sole cause of rising income inequality in rich countries.
Inequality is a harmless and inevitable feature of any dynamic, growing economy.
Post-war economic growth failed to improve living standards for ordinary workers.
Widening inequality, driven by several economic forces, threatens the stability and legitimacy of market democracies.

Phrase

it is a question of whether market democracies can sustain the broad consent on which they depend

準1級読解経済論説主旨把握

⚡ひとことで

本文の主旨は「拡大する格差は複数の経済要因が生み、市場民主主義の正統性を脅かす」。

選択肢の解説Choice Analysis

「Widening inequality, driven by several economic forces, threatens the stability and legitimacy of market democracies.」

正解

本文は (1) 戦後の広範な繁栄が1970年代末以降に止まり格差が拡大した→ (2) 技術・グローバル化・資本収益・税制など複数の原因→ (3) 格差は社会的流動性を損ね正統性 (legitimacy) を脅かす、という構成で結論する。よって「複数の経済要因が駆動する格差拡大が市場民主主義の安定と正統性を脅かす」が主旨。

「Technological change is the one single cause of the rising income inequality in the rich countries.」
= 技術変化が唯一の原因 ━ 第2段は技術・グローバル化・資本収益・税制を並列し『相互排他的でない』と明言。唯一の原因ではない。
「The post-war economic growth entirely failed to improve the living standards of any ordinary workers.」
= 戦後成長は生活水準を改善しなかった ━ 本文は戦後は『繁栄が皆を押し上げた』と肯定。改善『しなかった』は正反対。
「Inequality is a wholly harmless and entirely inevitable feature of any dynamic and growing economy.」
= 無害で不可避な特徴 ━ これは著者が反論する『complacent view (楽観論)』であって著者の主張ではない。

▦Collocation

パターン	意味	例
lift everyone together	皆を一緒に押し上げる	Prosperity seemed to lift everyone together.
in step with ~	~と歩調を合わせて	Wages rose in step with productivity.
the defining feature of ~	~の決定的特徴	the defining feature of modern capitalism
flow disproportionately to ~	~に偏って流れる	Gains flowed disproportionately to the top.
a widening gap	拡大する格差	a widening gap between rich and poor

❝例文

The gains flowed disproportionately to those at the top.
利得は上位層に偏って流れた。
Wages no longer rose in step with productivity.
賃金はもはや生産性と歩調を合わせなかった。
Inequality is the defining feature of the era.
格差はその時代の決定的特徴だ。

💡Tip · 覚えるコツ

論説文の主旨は最終段の結論文 (in short / the result is) に集約される。著者が『反論する楽観論』を主旨と取り違えないこと。

問 2

According to the passage, how did the relationship between wages and productivity change after the late 1970s?

Productivity collapsed, dragging wages down across all income levels.
Wages began to rise far faster than productivity for most workers.
Wages, which had previously risen in line with productivity, stopped keeping pace with it.
Wages and productivity became permanently fixed by government policy.

Phrase

Wages rose roughly in step with productivity ... that broad-based ascent has stalled

準1級読解経済論説詳細把握

⚡ひとことで

1970年代末以前は賃金が生産性と連動していたが、それ以降は連動が止まった。

選択肢の解説Choice Analysis

「Wages, which had previously risen in line with productivity, stopped keeping pace with it.」

正解

第1段で『賃金はほぼ生産性と歩調を合わせて上昇した (rose roughly in step with productivity)』と過去を描き、『1970年代末以降その広範な上昇は止まった (has stalled)』『中間層の所得は停滞 (stagnated)』と続く。これを言い換えた『以前は生産性と連動していた賃金が、その後ペースについていかなくなった』が正解。

「Wages began to rise a great deal faster than productivity did for most workers.」
= 生産性よりはるかに速く上昇 ━ 中間層の所得は『停滞』したのであり、速く上昇したのは正反対。
「Productivity collapsed」
= 生産性が崩壊した ━ 生産性の崩壊という記述はない。問題は賃金が生産性に追随しなくなった点。
「permanently fixed by government policy」
= 政府政策で恒久固定 ━ 政策による固定の記述はない。本文の論点は連動の断絶。

▦Collocation

パターン	意味	例
keep pace with ~	~に遅れずついていく	Wages failed to keep pace with prices.
rise in line with ~	~に沿って上昇する	Pay rose in line with output.
broad-based growth	広範な成長	broad-based economic ascent
incomes stagnate	所得が停滞する	Middle incomes have stagnated.
stall	失速する・止まる	The ascent has stalled.

❝例文

Wages stopped keeping pace with productivity.
賃金は生産性についていかなくなった。
Middle incomes have stagnated for decades.
中間層の所得は何十年も停滞している。
The broad
based ascent has stalled. — その広範な上昇は失速した。

💡Tip · 覚えるコツ

detail 設問は『以前 vs 以後』の対比 (for most of the post-war era / since the late 1970s) を捉える。本文 in step with を選択肢が in line with に置換する型。

問 3

Which factor does the passage describe as perhaps the most significant cause of the widening gap?

Returns on capital have consistently grown faster than returns on labour.
Manufacturing has disappeared entirely from wealthy nations.
Immigration has flooded rich countries with low-wage workers.
Workers have refused to acquire new technological skills.

Phrase

the returns on capital ... have consistently outpaced the returns on labour

準1級読解経済論説詳細把握

⚡ひとことで

最も重要な原因=資本の収益が労働の収益を一貫して上回ること。

選択肢の解説Choice Analysis

「Returns on capital have consistently grown faster than returns on labour.」

正解

第2段で『最も重大なことに (Perhaps most consequentially)』と前置きして、株・不動産・相続財産など資本の収益が労働の収益を一貫して上回り (outpaced)、資産保有者が給与所得者を引き離すと述べる。これを言い換えた『資本の収益が労働の収益より一貫して速く伸びてきた』が正解。

「Immigration has flooded rich countries with low-wage workers.」
= 移民が低賃金労働者を流入させた ━ 移民の記述はない。安価な労働との競争は『海外 (abroad)』のグローバル化要因。
「Workers have refused to acquire new technological skills.」
= 新技能の習得を拒んだ ━ 労働者が拒否したという記述はない。技術は技能を持つ層を優遇しただけ。
「Manufacturing has disappeared entirely」
= 製造業が完全に消滅 ━ 完全消滅とは言っていない。製造業従業者が海外競争に晒されたと述べるのみ。

▦Collocation

パターン	意味	例
returns on capital	資本収益	Returns on capital outpaced wages.
outpace ~	~を上回る・追い越す	Capital outpaced labour.
pull ahead of ~	~を引き離す	Asset owners pull ahead of earners.
most consequentially	最も重大なことに	Most consequentially, capital wins.
inherited wealth	相続財産	returns on inherited wealth

❝例文

Returns on capital outpaced returns on labour.
資本の収益は労働の収益を上回った。
Asset owners steadily pull ahead of wage earners.
資産保有者は給与所得者を着実に引き離す。
Inherited wealth compounds the divergence.
相続財産が格差をさらに広げる。

💡Tip · 覚えるコツ

『最重要原因』を問う設問は強調マーカー (Perhaps most consequentially / above all) の直後を読む。他の選択肢は別段落の周辺要因を誇張・歪曲した型。

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EigoPro 準1級 読解 — The Widening Gap

この単元の問題を3問、解説つきで公開しています

it is a question of whether market democracies can sustain the broad consent on which they depend

Wages rose roughly in step with productivity ... that broad-based ascent has stalled

the returns on capital ... have consistently outpaced the returns on labour

EigoPro 準1級読解 — The Widening Gap