外国人最想和你聊的文化话题：独生子女

     In the early sixties, the vast majority of all children had at least one sibling (if not more) and lived with both parents, one of whom was typically a stay-at-home mom.
     上世纪60年代初期，绝大多数孩子都有至少一个兄弟姐妹（或者更多），与父母一起生活，其中一方通常都是全职妈妈。
     We now live in a world where only children with single parents are both common and accepted.
     在我们现在所处的世界，单亲家庭的独生子女早已是司空见惯的事，也为人们普遍接受。
     Deciding whether to have "one and be done" or to have multiple children is a tough decision for many families.
     决定"只生一个好"还是多生几个孩子总是艰难的抉择。
     The country's family planning policy of the late 1970s restricted urban families from having more than one child to control population growth.
     上世纪70年代末，为了控制人口增长，我国开始在城镇地区实行"一对夫妇只生一个孩子"的计划生育政策。
     However, a new survey by the Beijing Administrative Institute shows 52 percent of those now-grown-up single children, who are allowed two offspring; do not want a second child.
     然而，北京行政学院开展的一项最新调查显示，有52%的独生子女表示，即使政策允许，他们也不想生第二胎。
     Many cited economic pressures as a factor.
     很多人称经济压力是一个主要因素。
     Beijing has roughly 2 million only-child adults.
     目前，北京市的成年独生子女数量约为200万。
     Beijing has maintained a super low birth rate-less than 1.3 children in a family in average-for nearly 20 years, posing increasing pressure on the country's aging population.
     北京的超低生育率已持续近20年，每户平均生育子女数不到1.3个，这使我国的人口老龄化压力日趋增大。
     The top four factors that determined people's intentions to have children are "income, child care, housing and policy conditions".
     影响人们生育意愿的四大主要因素为"收入、孩子照料、住房及政策"。
     For the only child of post-1980s, the practical problem of "two supporting four" (a couple from a one-child families supporting four parents) is arising for the young.
     对于中国的80后来说，他们面临"两个人扶持四个人"的现实问题，即夫妻俩都是独生子女，他们需要赡养四位老人。
     Beijing already allows couples to have more than one child if both of them are only children. One proposal is to widen that to allow two children if just one of the parents is an only child.
     中国政府允许夫妻双方均为独生子女的家庭生二胎。一个提议是，将二胎政策扩大到夫妻双方只有一方为独生子女的家庭。
     If you are an only child, it is likely that you will have the advantage of getting more attention from your parents than you would otherwise do.
     如果你是个独生子，你从父母那儿得到的关注就会比不是独生子的孩子多。
     On the other hand, when you are older, particularly when you a teenager, you may find that having all your parents' attention concentrated on you is a distinct disadvantage.
     从另一方面来说，当你长大后，尤其是青少年的时候，你会觉得有太多的父母关注对你来说弊大于利。
     On advantage of being an only child is that you are likely to have a more affluent upbringing than you would if you had brothers and sisters.
     独生子女的一个好处就是你会有个相对富足的成长环境。
     One of the major disadvantages of being an only child is that you can be a bit lonely.
     而一个不利之处就是会有一点孤独。
     Most children of the "China one" generation lack independence as they have become so reliant on their families for support. Some parents even hired a maid for their children when they go to college.
     大多数独生子女的自理能力都很差，他们太过依赖家人，甚至上大学以后还有父母为他们雇保姆。
     Other unfavorable characteristics include: bad communication skills, rudeness, ungratefulness and self-centeredness.
     其他不太让人喜欢的特点还有：沟通能力差、不懂礼貌和感恩、以自我为中心等。
     The term "China one" refers to the child who was born after the 1980s, when China launched the one-child policy.
     China one指的是20世纪80年代中国实行计划生育政策以后出生的独生子女。
     Not only are they the family's only child, but they are also the family's center of attention.
     他们是家中唯一的孩子，也是家庭的中心。
     Their parents and grandparents would spare no efforts in taking care of them, and would give them anything and everything, as if they were the "emperor" of the family.
     他们的父母和祖父母都会不遗余力地照顾他们，满足他们的一切需要，就好像他们是家里的"皇帝"一样。
     In 1980, China feared an explosion of people it could not feed, so it took drastic steps to limit births with its controversial "one child" policy.
     1980年，中国担心人口出现超出其负担能力的爆炸性增长，因而实施了富有争议性的独生子女政策，通过这一颇为强硬的手段限制生育。
     Whether because of the one child policy, or in spite of it, China's birth rate has fallen sharply, and increasing numbers of families say they do not want more than one child.
     不管是不是因为独生子女政策，事实是，中国的生育率已大幅下降，而且越来越多的家庭表示不想生第二个孩子。

     Abby: Hi, Natasha, how's life?
     艾比：嗨，娜塔莎，最近怎么样？
     Natasha: Great. My family came to visit me.
     娜塔莎：挺好的，我家里人来了。
     Abby: Oh, you must be very happy. How many people are there in your family?
     艾比：那你一定很高兴了。顺便问一下，你们家有几口人？
     Natasha: My immediate family is very large. It's my mother, my father, my two older brothers, my younger sister and me.
     娜塔莎：我的直系亲属很多，有妈妈，爸爸，两个哥哥，妹妹和我。
     Abby: I have a small family. They are my parents, my younger brother and me.
     艾比：我家人不多。父母，弟弟和我。
     Natasha: I thought you were the only child in the family. Didn't China practice the only-child policy in the early 1980s?
     娜塔莎：我以为你是独生子女呢。中国不是从20世纪80年代早期就开始实行计划生育政策了吗？
     Abby: Yes, it did. But my parents are ethnic minority people. It's a preferential policy for an ethnic minority family to have two children.
     艾比：是的，的确是，不过我父母是少数民族的。少数民族家庭可以享受优惠政策生2个孩子。
     Natasha: Interesting. What do you think about families with only one child?
     娜塔莎：挺有意思的，那你怎么看待独生子女家庭呢？
     Abby: The child must feel very lonely. My younger brother is 10 years younger than me. Before he was born, I used to be the only child and always dreamed that I would have a younger sister or brother one day.
     艾比：我觉得孩子一定很孤独。我弟弟比我小十岁。他出生之前，我一直是家里的独生子，那时我一直希望自己能有个弟弟或妹妹。
     Natasha: Do you get along well with each other?
     娜塔莎：那你们相处得好吗？
     Abby: Yes, we are very close. He is 12 years old and very smart. He always makes us laugh a lot.
     艾比：是的，我们俩关系很好。他今年12岁了，很聪明。经常逗得大家笑个不停。
     Natasha: You are very lucky to have such a nice family.
     娜塔莎：你真幸运，有这么幸福的家庭。
     Abby: Thank you.
     艾比：谢谢。