Read the passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the best answer to each of the following questions from 3...

Read the passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the best answer to each of the following questions from 31 to 40.

A growing number of Vietnamese adults in their prime working years are discovering they belong to the “sandwich generation.” The term aptly describes their precarious position, caught between the immense financial and emotional demands of raising their own children while concurrently caring for their aging parents. [I] They have become a human conduit for a two-way flow of support, navigating a complex reality of dual obligations that was largely unknown to previous generations. While filial piety is a timeless value, the simultaneous pressure to invest unprecedented amounts in a child's competitive education creates a uniquely modern dilemma.

The immense financial pressure of this dual role is compounded by an equally demanding toll on time and personal energy. A household budget must stretch to cover pediatric care and university tuition, while simultaneously accommodating elder care and medical expenses. The workday is often fragmented by logistical challenges that span generations. [II] A professional might spend their lunch break arranging a hospital visit for their mother, only to later rush from the office to a parent-teacher meeting for their son. It is a state of perpetual multitasking that slowly erodes both professional focus and the simple capacity for relaxation, leaving little room for personal pursuits.

The psychological consequences of this sustained pressure are significant, though often unspoken. In a culture that prizes resilience, admitting to such a strain can feel like a personal failing rather than a response to an objective burden. [III] Ambitions are downscaled and career opportunities are abandoned in the face of overwhelming family responsibilities. There is a slow attrition of personal well-being, a form of quiet burnout born from the constant emotional labor of managing the anxieties of both the young and the old. The feeling is one of being stretched thin, of fulfilling essential duties at the cost of one’s own aspirations.

This untenable situation arises from a confluence of cherished traditions and stark modern realities. The cultural imperative to care for one's parents remains deeply ingrained in Vietnamese society. However, this value was cultivated in an era of larger families, where such duties were shared. [IV] Today, with smaller family units and longer life expectancies, the weight of this responsibility rests heavily on just a few individuals. They are quietly upholding a timeless tradition in a world that has completely changed around them, bearing the unacknowledged burden of a society in transition.

(Adapted from The Guardian)

Question 31: According to paragraph 1, the situation of being responsible for two other age groups ________.

A. is a precarious position created by a two-way flow of family support
B. was not a set of challenges commonly encountered by earlier generations
C. makes one a human conduit for receiving various emotional demands
D. stems from the financial demands specific to one's prime working years