2006年VOA标准英语-Internet Now Fulfilling Ancient Indian Tra

By Anjana Pasricha
New Delhi
15 February 2006

India, a country famous for arranged marriages, is turning more and more to matrimonial Internet sites to help fulfill¹ this ancient tradition. The web is helping² millions of Indians search for the ideal bride or groom³.

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Several months ago, fashion consultant⁴ Neema Kapur's 23-year-old daughter asked her mother to find her a marriage partner. It was not an unusual request - in India, parents have found matches for their children since time immemorial.

 

Young Indian bride  
  

Traditionally, relatives, friends and marriage brokers⁵ have assisted in the hunt for a partner. Later, as communities scattered⁶ all over the globe, Indians began placing advertisements in newspapers.

But Neema Kapur ignored all these. Instead, she posted her daughter's profile on two matrimonial web sites in hopes of finding a suitable match.

"I can't shut my eyes to this way of finding someone, because this is the best way, I feel," she explained. "Newspapers nowadays seems to be quite outdated⁷, because most of the people are now on the computer."

As many as 1,500 web sites have sprung up in recent years that hold out the promise of locating brides and grooms⁸ for young Indians. The larger ones offer services across the country and to overseas Indians, while others restrict themselves to smaller communities.

Those surfing the net are not just parents. Many of the users are in the tech-savvy 22 to 35-year age group, who say the web sites are a convenient way to get in touch with people with the specific goal of marriage in mind. They say they are prepared to accept a traditional "arranged marriage," but they would rather locate the right person for themselves.

The technology helps to simplify the search in this complex, multicultural¹⁰ country, where the criteria¹¹ for choosing partners include not just the usual profession, education and looks, but also such parameters¹² as language group and caste. The websites have sorted their databases to include all of these.

Vivek Khare, the vice⁹ president of Jeevansathi.com, which means "Life Partner," says on-line marriage brokering¹³ is witnessing phenomenal growth because of its simplicity¹⁴, which newspapers cannot match.

"Space is not a constraint¹⁵, in a classified [advertisement] you have hardly three or four lines, here you can write much more," he explained. "Secondly¹⁶ the search is very easy, there you have to browse¹⁷ though all the classifieds, here you can simply do a search based on your criterion. Third, contacting is very simple. You can send an e-mail."

  
  
Individual web sites say their membership is growing by leaps and bounds. The largest matrimonial site, Shaadi, or Marriage.com, claims it has seven million members - nearly double what it had two years ago. At least one-quarter of the customers are overseas Indians. Many of the web sites boast that they receive nearly a million hits every month.

It is no surprise, in a country where matchmaking is such an established of the culture, that online marriage brokering is becoming one of the most successful Internet businesses.

The matchmaking business is estimated to be worth more than $100 million a year - and matrimonial websites are beginning to capture a chunk¹⁸ of that. A one-month subscription¹⁹ to a matchmaking web site costs between $10 and $20.

As in other countries, subscribing²⁰ to a web site does not guarantee a partner - although as Neema Kapur relates, India throws some particular obstacles in the way of success.

"I have been able to get two people who have been quite eligible²¹, but for some reason did not work out," she said. "The first one, because the horoscopes did not match, and the second one, the family was too large, and we thought my daughter would not fit into that."

Many of the web sites offer online horoscope services for those who believe in astrology. Some sites are also breaking with conservative matchmaking tradition by setting up sites for divorcees, widowers²² and the 40 plus age group.

Companies say the main hurdle²³ to explosive growth is that only about 40 million people in India are estimated to have access to the Internet. Online matrimonial services tend to be restricted for the moment to larger towns and cities.

Vibhas Mehta, vice president of Shaadi.com, says his company is trying to expand its reach to people who cannot log on, by establishing matchmaking centers called "Shaadi points" in various town and cities.

"These Shaadi points are physical centers where a parent or a non-computer-savvy or a non-Internet-savvy person can walk in, talk to the counselors²⁴ there, put in the profile of their son or daughter, and search for life partners for them from that central data base," he explained. "It is becoming very popular: we already have close to about 90 Shaadi points up and running. "

There is irony²⁵ here. As India rushes towards modernization²⁶ and entrenched²⁷ customs begin to change, the information technology for which the country is becoming famous may help carry forward the age-old tradition of arranged marriage.

1 fulfill   

vt.履行，实现，完成；满足，使满意

参考例句：

• If you make a promise you should fulfill it.如果你许诺了，你就要履行你的诺言。
• This company should be able to fulfill our requirements.这家公司应该能够满足我们的要求。

2 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

3 groom   

vt.给（马、狗等）梳毛，照料，使...整洁

参考例句：

• His father was a groom.他父亲曾是个马夫。
• George was already being groomed for the top job.为承担这份高级工作，乔治已在接受专门的培训。

4 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

5 brokers   

n.（股票、外币等）经纪人( broker的名词复数 )；中间人；代理商；（订合同的）中人v.做掮客（或中人等）( broker的第三人称单数 )；作为权力经纪人进行谈判；以中间人等身份安排…

参考例句：

• The firm in question was Alsbery & Co., whiskey brokers. 那家公司叫阿尔斯伯里公司，经销威士忌。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• From time to time a telephone would ring in the brokers' offices. 那两排经纪人房间里不时响着叮令的电话。 来自子夜部分

6 scattered   

adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的

参考例句：

• Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来，塞进文件夹里。

7 outdated   

adj.旧式的，落伍的，过时的；v.使过时

参考例句：

• That list of addresses is outdated,many have changed.那个通讯录已经没用了，许多地址已经改了。
• Many of us conform to the outdated customs laid down by our forebears.我们许多人都遵循祖先立下的过时习俗。

8 grooms   

n.新郎( groom的名词复数 )；马夫v.照料或梳洗（马等）( groom的第三人称单数 )；使做好准备；训练；（给动物）擦洗

参考例句：

• Plender end Wilcox became joint grooms of the chambers. 普伦德和威尔科克斯成为共同的贴身侍从。 来自辞典例句
• Egypt: Families, rather than grooms, propose to the bride. 埃及：在埃及，由新郎的家人，而不是新郎本人，向新娘求婚。 来自互联网

9 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

10 multicultural   

adj.融合多种文化的，多种文化的

参考例句：

• Children growing up in a multicultural society.在多元文化社会中长大的孩子们。
• The school has been attempting to bring a multicultural perspective to its curriculum.这所学校已经在尝试将一种多元文化视角引入其课程。

11 criteria   

n.标准

参考例句：

• The main criterion is value for money.主要的标准是钱要用得划算。
• There are strict criteria for inclusion in the competition.参赛的标准很严格。

12 parameters   

因素，特征； 界限； （限定性的）因素( parameter的名词复数 )； 参量； 参项； 决定因素

参考例句：

• We have to work within the parameters of time. 我们的工作受时间所限。
• See parameters.cpp for a compilable example. This is part of the Spirit distribution. 可编译例子见parameters.cpp.这是Spirit分发包的组成部分。

13 brokering   

v.做掮客（或中人等）( broker的现在分词 )；作为权力经纪人进行谈判；以中间人等身份安排…

参考例句：

• Intertwined with these were rivalry, power brokering, and patronage. 然而也不乏有抗争、强权操纵与任命特权交织其中。 来自互联网
• Kingston Quest Can Assist Your Company In Negotiations, Brokering, Agency Services, Sourcing Factories Or Property. 金士顿追求，可帮助您的公司在谈判中，经纪，代理服务，货源工厂或财产。 来自互联网

14 simplicity   

n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯

参考例句：

• She dressed with elegant simplicity.她穿着朴素高雅。
• The beauty of this plan is its simplicity.简明扼要是这个计划的一大特点。

15 constraint   

n.(on)约束，限制；限制(或约束)性的事物

参考例句：

• The boy felt constraint in her presence.那男孩在她面前感到局促不安。
• The lack of capital is major constraint on activities in the informal sector.资本短缺也是影响非正规部门生产经营的一个重要制约因素。

16 secondly   

adv.第二，其次

参考例句：

• Secondly,use your own head and present your point of view.第二，动脑筋提出自己的见解。
• Secondly it is necessary to define the applied load.其次，需要确定所作用的载荷。

17 browse   

vi.随意翻阅，浏览；(牛、羊等)吃草

参考例句：

• I had a browse through the books on her shelf.我浏览了一下她书架上的书。
• It is a good idea to browse through it first.最好先通篇浏览一遍。

18 chunk   

n.厚片，大块，相当大的部分（数量）

参考例句：

• They had to be careful of floating chunks of ice.他们必须当心大块浮冰。
• The company owns a chunk of farmland near Gatwick Airport.该公司拥有盖特威克机场周边的大片农田。

19 subscription   

n.预订，预订费，亲笔签名，调配法，下标（处方）

参考例句：

• We paid a subscription of 5 pounds yearly.我们按年度缴纳5英镑的订阅费。
• Subscription selling bloomed splendidly.订阅销售量激增。

20 subscribing   

v.捐助( subscribe的现在分词 )；签署，题词；订阅；同意

参考例句：

• I am subscribing for some of the books of a book club. 我预订了几本这家书刊俱乐部出版的书。 来自辞典例句
• I am glad to have such a pleasant opportunity of subscribing myself. 今后益望努力前途，为国效力。 来自互联网

21 eligible   

adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的

参考例句：

• He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
• Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。

22 widowers   

n.鳏夫( widower的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Even elderly widows and widowers choose to live on their own. 连年迈的寡妇和鳏夫都选择独自生活。 来自互联网
• His works contain Widowers' House, Mrs. Warren's Profession, a play about the economic oppression of women. 他的早期代表作品包括《鳏夫的房产》，《沃伦夫人的职业》的主题是对妇女们经济上的压迫。 来自互联网

23 hurdle   

n.跳栏，栏架；障碍，困难；vi.进行跨栏赛

参考例句：

• The weather will be the biggest hurdle so I have to be ready.天气将会是最大的障碍，所以我必须要作好准备。
• She clocked 11.6 seconds for the 80 metre hurdle.八十米跳栏赛跑她跑了十一秒六。

24 counselors   

n.顾问( counselor的名词复数 )；律师；（使馆等的）参赞；（协助学生解决问题的）指导老师

参考例句：

• Counselors began an inquiry into industrial needs. 顾问们开始调查工业方面的需要。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• We have experienced counselors available day and night. ) 这里有经验的法律顾问全天候值班。） 来自超越目标英语 第4册

25 irony   

n.反语，冷嘲；具有讽刺意味的事，嘲弄

参考例句：

• She said to him with slight irony.她略带嘲讽地对他说。
• In her voice we could sense a certain tinge of irony.从她的声音里我们可以感到某种讥讽的意味。

26 modernization   

n.现代化，现代化的事物

参考例句：

• This will help us achieve modernization.这有助于我们实现现代化。
• The Chinese people are sure to realize the modernization of their country.中国人民必将实现国家现代化。

27 entrenched   

adj.确立的，不容易改的(风俗习惯)

参考例句：

• Television seems to be firmly entrenched as the number one medium for national advertising.电视看来要在全国广告媒介中牢固地占据头等位置。
• If the enemy dares to attack us in these entrenched positions,we will make short work of them.如果敌人胆敢进攻我们固守的阵地，我们就消灭他们。