日本開設結婚預備學校 打造良夫賢妻

In search of Mr. or Mrs. Right, dozens of Japanese are attending a newly launched school in Tokyo that aims to turn them into marriage material.

The Infini school offers various classes for wannabe brides and grooms at a time when many people in Japan are either shunning the institution of marriage or are finding it very difficult to hook up with a partner.

The school, which is open to men and women, teaches students how to talk, walk and present themselves elegantly in a bid to capture the hearts and minds of prospective partners and their parents, who are often a major obstacle to successful unions.

Infini, which opened last month, now has about 30 female students. An almost equal number of males has signed up, but those who actually turn up to class are much fewer than their female counterparts.

"I had never even thought that my boyfriend's mother could play such a big role in my relationship, but now I've realized I need to start thinking seriously about how to impress my futurein-laws," said Kozue Sugawara, 29, who joined the school after her previous marriage plans failed.

With women wielding increased economic clout and changing social attitudes toward marriage, more Japanese in their 20s and 30s are single than ever before.

Government statistics show nearly two-thirds of women under the age of 34 are unmarried, despite some 3,800 firms in Japan offering match-making services.

The average age of the school's female students is 30 years.

"Before, people would find it easy to get married because families and society would connect them in some way, sometimes pushing them to get married. But nowadays, people have too many choices and cannot seem to make up their minds," said Etsuko Satake, principal of the Infini marriage prep school.

Instructors provide critiques about students' dress, posture and even details such as how they cross their legs or get out of a car. Men and women are taught different skills, which range from how to set a table well to how to be more emotionally expressive.

Students also simulate dates, during which their instructors grade their performance and point out what they did wrong.

The school charges an annual fee of 200,000 yen ($2,217) for unlimited access to its classes.

日本東京新開辦的一所結婚學校正受到很多單身男女們的追捧，這所學校的目的是把他們打造成“良夫賢妻”。

眼下很多日本人逃避婚姻，或覺得很難找到另一半。而這所Infini學校則專門爲想結婚的男女們提供各種課程。

該校招收男女學員，主要教授學員如何使自己言行、舉止、儀態得體，以贏得對方及其父母的好感。在日本，父母的意見在男女雙方的關係中起到很大的作用。

Infini學校於上月開課，目前約有30名女學員。報名的男學員也差不多有30人，但來上課的男學員數量比女學員少得多。

29歲的田梢菅原在幾次結婚計劃失敗後上了Infini學校。她說：“我之前從沒想過男朋友的媽媽會在我們兩人的關係中起那麼大作用，現在我才意識到我要開始認真考慮如何打動男方家人了。”

隨着女性經濟地位的提高和社會對婚姻觀念的轉變，日本20多歲和30多歲的單身男女比過去任何時候都要多。

政府統計數據顯示，日本34歲以下的女性中，有三分之二的人未婚，儘管日本有大約3800家婚介服務公司。

該校女學員的平均年齡爲30歲。

Infini結婚預備學校校長佐竹悅子說：“過去，人們覺得結婚並不難，因爲家庭和社會總是想方設法爲他們牽線搭橋，有時還會逼婚。但現在，人們的選擇太多，很多人似乎難以下決心。”

學校的指導老師會對學員的穿着、姿態，甚至如何交叉雙腿，如何下車等細節問題提出建議。男女學員學習的課程不同，從如何擺桌子到如何更好地表達情感等的一系列方面。

指導老師還讓學員們模擬約會場景，在此過程中對學生的表現進行打分，並指出不足。

學校的學費爲每年20萬日元（合2217美元），上課次數不限。

Vocabulary:

hook up with：take in marriage（結婚，與某人來往）

in-law：a relative by marriage（姻親，親家）

clout：pull; strong influence（影響力，勢力）