议论文写作是各大英文考试当中最常见的一种, 包括中高考, 四六级, 雅思托福, SAT, GRE等通通要涉及到议论文的写作.
议论文是以议论为主要表达方式的一种文体, 它通过对细节和理由等的叙述, 从而表达出作者的观点和主旨. 多由论点, 论据和论证三部分构成.
最近, 你们班就 “是否应该帮助陌生人” 展开了讨论, 同学们就这一话题意见不一, 你的看法如何?根据所提供的信息, 以"Should We Help Strangers?" 为题, 写一篇短文.
赞成: 帮助他人是美德;帮助他人就是帮助自己;
反对: 怕陷入麻烦;怕被误解;
你的观点?(至少两点)
要求:
Should We Help Strangers?
Recently our class had a discussion about whether we should help strangers. Different students have different opinions.
Some think we should try to help strangers.Helping others is a virtue, and helping others is helping ourselves. We may come across some trouble and need others’ help some day. lf everyone isn’t willing to help us just because we are strangers to them, it 's hard to
imagine what our world will be like.
However, some are afraid that helping others can sometimes bring us trouble.Sometimes we are just misunderstood and even have to pay the cost of kindness.
In my opinion, we should try our best to help others when they are in need of help, but we should also protect ourselves from getting into trouble. lf everyone tries a little kindness,our world will be full of love.
当前不少文学作品被改编成电影. 有人选择看电影, 有人则喜欢读原著. 请你以 “Film or book,which do you prefer?” 为题, 按照下列要点写一篇英语短文:
注意:
Film or book, which do you prefer?
Some of us think that it is better to see the film than to read the book in the original.
Film or book, which do you prefer?
Some of us think that it is better to see the film than to read the book in the original. The reason is that it takes less time to understand the whole story. Besides, the film is usually more interesting, and it is easier to follow.
Some others have just the opposite opinion.They think that they can get more detailed information from the original. Meanwhile, the language in the book is possibly more lively and beautiful.
Personally, l agree with the second view, and l have more reasons for it. l think l can stay athome, reading quietly in a situation of my own, and what’s more, l am able to better
understand the author’ s ideas. Owing to the reasons above, to read the original work is a better choice than to see the film.
Some people prefer to eat at food stands or restaurants. Other people prefer to prepare and eat food at home. Which do you prefer? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
Some people like to eat out at food stands and restaurants, while others like to prepare food at home. This preference depends on the kind of lifestyle people have.Those with very busy jobs outside the house don’t always have time to cook. They like the convenience of eating out.Overall, though, it is cheaper and healthier to eat at home.
While eating in restaurants is fast, the money you spend can add up.When l have dinner at
restaurants with a friend, the bill is usually over twenty dollars. I can buy, a lot of groceries with that much money.Even lunch at a fast-food stand usually costs five or six dollars for one person. That’s enough to feed the whole family at home.
Eating at home is better for you, too.Meals at restaurants are often high in fat and calories. andthey serve big plates of food–much more food than you need to eat at one meal.If you cook food at home, you have more control over the ingredients. You can use margarine instead of butter onyour potatoes, or not put so much cheese on top of your pizza. At home, you can control your portion size. You can serve yourself as little as you want. In a restaurant, you may eat a ful plate of food “because you paid forit”.
lt’s true that eating out is convenient. You don’t have to shop, or cook, or clean up. But real home cooking doesn’t have to take a lot of time. There are lots of simple meals that don’t take long to make. In fact, they’re faster than eating out, especially if you think of the time you spend driving to a restaurant, parking, waiting for a table, waiting for service, and driving home.
Both eating at restaurants and cooking at home can be satisfying. Both can taste good and be enjoyed with family and friends. l prefer cooking at home because of the money and
health aspects. Ultimately, people will make the choice that fits their lifestyle best.
与其它文体相比, 议论文的结构是较为固定的.
议论文一般由以下几个部分构成:
An argument consists of:
Organized example:
Everyone knows that studying helps you learn. But exercising your body is as important as exercising your mind. In fact, kids who exercise more do better on tests—even when they don’t study any more than otherkids. People who do some gentle exercise as they’re listening to new information tend to remember it better. So if you want to learn more, and learm better, don’t just hit the books—get moving.
可以根据字体的颜色再来读以下不同的部分的内容
如果, 我们把刚刚度过的内容稍稍打乱:
People who do some gentle exercise as they’re listening to new information tend to remember it better. But exercising your body is asimportant as exercising your mind. Everyone knows that studying helps you learn. So if you want to learn more, and learn better, don’t just hitthe books——get moving. In fact, kids who exercise more do better ontests—even when they don’ t study any more than other kids.
不难发现, 整个阅读体验就会变差不少, 因为内容条理不清晰.
相比英文, 汉语的表达要稍显含蓄一些. 但是, 在论证类的文章当中, 一定要在开头的部分清晰的讲出你的main point. 不然后面的观点会令读者觉得无从下手.
看下面一个观点句:
we still need regular books, even with computers.
分析: 这个观点给的就不是很清晰, 作者没有解释清楚"regular"的含义, 并且computers涵盖的范围也太广, 意义不明确.
对比以下这个句子:
Digital books may be catching on, but readers still want printed books.
分析: 这个观点是清晰而明确的. 作者在digital books和printed books间做了明显的分界, 并且解释了他对于这两者的具体观点.
有力的观点需要事实的支撑. 我们在论述当中需要合理地论证你的观点. 看个例子:
Claim:
My team will win the state championship this year.
Evidence (What makes you think that?):
We have a great running game, a fabulous defense, and strong players.
Reasons (Why is that important?)
The last team to win the state championship had the exact same characteristics.
这个论据和支撑的理由就是相对合理的, 同学们也可以借此再仔细看一下evidence和reason之间的区别.
再看两个例子:
l don’t think it’s a good idea to picnic today.(claim)
lt’s raining.(evidence)
l don’t think it’ s a good idea to picnic today. (claim)
lt’ s raining, (evidence)
so we will get wet if we are outside. (reason)
分析: 下雨是一个事实, 不过它本身构不成一个reason, 只是evidence, 只有论述了下雨之后的情况对于观点的影响才可以构成比较完整的论述.
有时候我们在写作的时候, 特别是在讨论一些比较有争论的话题时是无法忽略对立观点的, 这个时候就需要去论证相对的观点为什么是不成立的.
如:
Some people say that as the world becomes increasingly dependent on digital devices, the printed book will eventually become a thing of the past. But digital technology is still new,while the technology of the printed book has persisted for almost a thousand years. As theworld becomes increasingly digital, people have also begun to long for things that they cansee, touch, and enjoy in the real world—like printed books.
counterclaim (相反观点)
rebuttal (反驳, 反证)
文章的结尾部分非常重要, 它体现了作者对主体内容的提炼和升华的能力, 一定要注意结尾部分的书写.
比如, 我们为刚刚的话题加一个结尾:
Given the fact that the printed book has survived enormous cultural changes over hundreds of years and the fact that readers today are buying more of them thanbefore, it’s clear that the printed book is here to stay.
在写作类似的文章时, 有一些词可以起到连接, 转折, 承上启下等信号词的作用. 在英文当中我们把它们叫做 transitional words/phrases. 在很多作文考试的训练当中, 我们都要掌握—些transitional words/phrases, 他们在一定程度上确实可以我们将文章的结构梳理地相对清晰.
这些transitional words/phrases就像是论证当中的小地图一样. 他们可以帮助作者理清思路, 也可以帮助读者更清晰的认识作者的的观点.
These words signal that the author is connecting a piece of evidenceto a piece of reasoning or a claim:
These words signal that the author is,connecting a previouslymentioned piece of evidence to a claim or conclusion:
These words signal that the author is connecting a counterclaim to previously explained concept, why heor she disagrees with a counterclaim, or how a counterclaim is connected to his or her own argument:
These words signal that the author is connecting all of the previous information to thefinal conclusion:
Think of an argument you want to make to your neighbors and writea clear claim for it. Outline your argument, making sure you includeall five necessary elements.Then, write a short paragraph to bepublished as an opinion article.
思路:
大型连锁商店很大程度占据了主要消费市场, 城乡当地的小生意越来越难做. 呼吁当地的邻里多支持在地的商家.
Big chain stores now cover the country, offering many of the same products in every city.But that just means it’s more important than ever to shop locally to streng then our community. When we shop locally, we build connections between people in our community. We get to know the store owners and their stories, and they get to know ours. We run into friends and neighbors who are also shopping at local stores. Studies show that people feel more connected with each other when they shop locally.
We also strenathen our community’s economic base by supporting local businesses. Someargue that if chain stores are blocked from entering a community, the community won’t aet those iobs. Although a chain can employ some people, the majority of people in the community will only shop at the chain. Therefore, more monev will ao to a distant corporation than come into the community When we shop locally. the money we spend stays in the community. in the hands of our friends and neighbors. who often put it right back into our own communit. So it’s no wonder that economic indicators show that a community’s financial position improves when its members shop locally.
Finally. we make the whole world a more interesting place when we shop at local businesses. lt 's a lot more interesting to stop to get steamed buns in Tianjin and local noodles in Yanbianthan it is to eat at the same fast-food place everywhere we co.Who wants aeneric products from chain stores when there are unique locally made craftsand products? the culture of theentire country is enriched when different local communities support their own special trades,crafts.
Shopping locally: It strengthens our economy, our bonds with one another, and the culture ofthe whole country.That just makes sense.
这里再给大家分析一篇雅思范文, 一起看看平时的逻辑结构分析应该如果去做.
题目:
Many young people nowadays leave schools with negative attitudetowards learning.
Why does this happen?(原因)
What do you think would encourage young people to have a positive attitude?(解决方案)
第一段:
A large number of young people have a negative attitude towards learning when they finish school in recent years.(claim开头部分改写题目) A wide range of causes are responsible for this phenomenon.The root cause is excessive stress of study. (reason题目所给事件的第一个原因) To be specific, students in school nowadays are to do a large amount of homework after school, which reduces their interest instudy and even makes them tired of learning. (evidence第一个原因的扩展, 因果论证) Another trigger is that they may face unemployment after graduation.(reason第二个原因) Since there are far less job opportunities available, the competition for jobs becomes increasingly fierce and students are less likely to find a decent job. lnevitably, some of them may have the feeling that learning is useless.(evidence第二个原因的扩展, 同样因果论证)
第二段:
According to the above mentioned, various approaches should be adopted to deal with this problem.(表明本段要阐述题目中事件的解决方案) First of all, reducing study load is the most effective method.(对应上一段的第一个原因, 找到第一个解决方案) For example, cutting the amount of homework will give students more leisure hours, making them find abalance between study and rest.(第一个解决方案的扩展, 用举例来论证) Inaddition, the government should play a more positive role in creating jobs.(对应上一段的第二个原因, 给出第二个解决方案) For instance, laws should be made to impel businesses to recruit students fresh out of
school.This will help them build confidence in school education.(第二个解决方案的扩展, 也用的是举例论证)
结尾段:
To sum up, this unpleasant phenomenon can be attributed toseveral factors, including study stress and unemployment.(总结主体第一段, 原因归总) Relevant methods should be workedout to resolve this problem before things get worse(总结主体第二段, 解决方案归总)
总结:
这个三段式的文章结构明确, 逻辑清楚, 同学们在阅读的时候除了要读清楚词句的意思, 也要把其中的结构和逻辑关系分析清楚. 同时, 文章中有非常好的关于归纳总结的好的句式, 也要及时做整理, 长此以往, 多读多仿写多分析, 你的写作能力才会稳步提高.