藝術史中潛藏的關于女性脫發的解讀

At least 40 percent of women experience hair loss or alopecia over their lifetime. This could be alopecia areata （patchy hair loss）， traction alopecia （strained hair loss） or another form.

The different ways that women’s hair loss has been depicted across art history demonstrates the many different ways it has been interpreted over the years. In 16th and 17th century Britain， for example， women’s alopecia was sometimes interpreted as punishment for sins， including love affairs.

Some historical art， however， depicts a more neutral， or even positive， attitude towards women’s alopecia. In religious or mythical art， it was sometimes idealised as divine（天意）. Madonna and Child， painted in the 15th century by Italian Rennaisance artist Carlo Crivelli， shows Jesus and Mary embracing in a gold， stylized setting. The pair sit behind a religious altar surrounded by ripe fruit and adorned with halos（光暈）. Madonna has a high forehead and her blonde hair disappears， particularly on her right temple.

Baldness in women has been connected to the divine for various reasons. It took the emphasis off of personal appearance in favour of deeper， more spiritual， priorities.

But intentional hair removal played a role too. For some religious people， such as Buddhist nuns and Haredi Jewish wives， a bald head is thought to be purer and shaving can represent a regular， sacrificial ritual.

Artwork on the walls of the tomb of the ancient Egyptian pharaoh， Akhenaten who ruled from 1351 to 1334BC， depicts two of his daughters， naked， with bald heads. Head shaving as well as natural baldness was common among the ancient Egyptians， including women.

And it isn’t just Egypt. Partial and full head shaving has historically been common among women across sub-Saharan Africa. As one traveller observed among the inhabitants of the 18th century Kingdom of Issini （modern-day Ghana）： “Some only shave one half of the head…Others leave broad patches here and there unshaved.”

（材料來自Readers’ Digest網站，有刪改）

1. How does the author develop the text？

A. By listing figures. B. By giving examples.

C. By making remarks. D. By presenting findings.

2. When was women’s hair loss regarded as punishment for sins？

A. In the 15th century. B. In 1334BC.

C. In the 16th and 17th century. D. In the 18th century.

3. In what religion may hair loss be an intentional behavior？

A. Buddhism. B. Catholicism.

C. Christianity. D. Islam.

4. What can be inferred from the passage？

A. In ancient Egypt， the less hair women had， the more stylish they were.

B. In ancient Ghana， full-headed hair must be a sign of betrayal.

C. In Italy of the 15th century， baldness was popular with women.

D. In ancient China， no hair was kept on the head of nuns.

1. B。解析：文章結構題。綜合材料中多個段落的舉例說明，如第二段的第二句提到“例如，在16世紀和17世紀的英國，女性脫發有時被解釋為對包括外遇在內的罪惡的懲罰”；第三段的第三句提到“意大利文藝復興藝術家Carlo Crivelli于15世紀繪制的Madonna and Child”；第五段的第二句提到“對于一些宗教人士來說，比如佛教尼姑和正統派猶太教婦女”，可見B選項“通過舉例”與材料內容相符，故選B。

2. C。解析：細節理解題。材料第二段的第二句提到“例如，在16世紀和17世紀的英國，女性脫發有時被解釋為對包括外遇在內的罪惡的懲罰”，故選C。

3. A。解析：細節理解題。材料第五段提到“但有意脫發也與此有關。對于一些宗教人士來說，比如佛教尼姑和正統派猶太教婦女，光頭的人被認為是更純潔的人，剃頭可以代表一種常規的祭祀儀式”，故選A。

4. A。解析：推理判斷題。材料第六段提到“古埃及法老Akhenaten于公元前1351年至1334年統治埃及，他的陵墓墻壁上的藝術品描繪了他的兩個女兒，她們的頭光禿禿的”“剃頭和自然禿頂在古埃及人中很常見，包括女性”。A選項“在古埃及，女性頭發越少，越時尚”與材料內容相符，故選A。