猫奴狗奴们与他们的宠物，谁在家的地位高【经济学人精讲】第316期
文章导读
本文选自《经济学人》2019年6月22日文章。人类驯化的动物都是可以服务人类的，但猫和狗有所不同，随着人类的发展，已经不在需要猫去捕捉老鼠、狗去看家护院，但人类对猫和狗的依赖程度愈加强烈。西方国家把猫和狗当作家庭成员，在一些亚洲国家，更是把人类自己称作为“猫奴”、“狗奴”，这不禁让人问一句，现在到底是谁是主人？
由于篇幅较长，本文节选原文标题和全文重点段落进行精讲，
选文精讲
Pets have gained the upper paw over their so-called owners
宠物比它们所谓的主人地位更高
Humanity oppresses many wild and farmed animals. But its pets have it on a short leash
keep (someone) on a short leash: 严格的控制某人（To maintain strict or tight control over someone; to not allow someone very much independence or autonomy.）
eg. Ever since George nearly lost his life savings in a drunken poker match, his parents started keeping him on a short leash. 自从乔治在一场喝醉酒的扑克牌比赛中差点输掉他一生的积蓄后，他的父母开始对他严加管束。
人类压迫着许多野生动物和养殖动物，但对它的宠物却唯命是从
Jun 22nd 2019
THERE IS A range of theories about how Homo sapiens came to rule the planet. Opposable thumbs, cranial size, altruism and cooking all played a part, but central to the naked ape’s success was its ability to dominate other species. Bovids, equids and, in particular, canids, were put to work by H. sapiens; felids always took a slightly different view of the matter, but were indulged for their rodent-catching talents.
cranial: 头颅、颅骨
altruism: 利他主义
naked ape: 人类
bovid: 牛科动物
equid: 马科动物
canid: 犬科动物
felid: 猫科动物
indulge: 满足、纵容、沉溺于...
rodent: 啮齿目动物
关于智人如何统治地球有一系列的理论，大拇指、头颅尺寸、利他主义和烹饪都起到了一定作用，但人类成功的关键是它主宰其他物种的能力。牛, 马，特别是犬类，都被人类驯化服务人类。猫科动物的情况略有不同，但它们因捕捉啮齿类动物的天赋被宠溺。
As humanity has got richer, animals’ roles have changed. People need their services less than before. Fewer wolves and bandits meant less demand for dogs for protection; the internal-combustion engine made horses redundant; modern sanitation kept rats in check and made cats less useful. No longer necessities, domestic animals became luxuries. Pet-keeping seems to kick in en masse when household incomes rise above roughly $5,000. It is booming.
bandit: 强盗、土匪
en masse: （法语）全体、一同
随着人类越来越富有，动物的角色也发生了变化。人们没有以前那么需要它们的服务了，狼和猎手的减少意味着人类对狗的需求减少；内燃机使马变得多余；现代的卫生设施控制了老鼠，这也降低了猫的作用。家畜不再是必需品，而是奢侈品。当家庭收入增长到5000美元以上时，养宠物似乎就开始流行。养宠物正在蓬勃发展。