English Language · English

Read the following passage carefully and answer the question that follows: Are the 1980s and 1990s the era of colour? According to some people, they are. Now you can buy radios and electric fans in lavender and pink. Restaurants have an emphasis on flowers and colourful plates. Cars are coming out in pink and aqua. Even bathroom fixtures are being made in 'honeydew' and 'blond'. Part of the importance of the colour of an object is that the colour affects the way one feels about it. You want a vacuum cleaner to look light and easy, which is why it may be coloured in pastels and light colours. But gardening equipment and athletic equipment you want to look powerful. You would never find a lawn mower in pink, but red would be fine. Not very long ago, sheets were always white and refrigerators commonly came in colours like 'old gold', 'avocado green' and 'coppertone'. Now those are thought of as old-fashioned; popular colours change because fashion influences everything. In fact, new colours often spring from the fashion industry. It's a lot cheaper to make a blouse or skirt than a sofa. After people get used to seeing new colours on clothing or towels, they are ready to accept those colours in carpeting, refrigerators, or cars. Colour-analysis consultants have been very successful in recent years. People want to choose the most flattering colours for make up and clothing. Some car designers are even saying that people may begin buying cars of the colour that goes with their skin colouring. This sounds too extreme. It's hard to believe that people are that impressionable. What underlying assumption does the passage make about consumer behaviour?