如何通過閱讀外刊積累英文寫作句型？（16）

來自專欄魏劍峰：當我們在談英語學習時我們在談什麼32 人贊了文章

這是「讀外刊，學英文句型」欄目的第十六期，關於該欄目第一期的說明可以見如何通過閱讀外刊積累英文寫作句型？

1.一個舉例句式

寫作中一提到舉例子，不少人的第一反應就是，take XX for example，這一說法雖然沒什麼問題，但已經有被用濫的趨勢，可以考慮下面的說法：

In recent weeks big cities with much healthier economies than Baotou』s have scaled back their subway plans, too. One example is Chengdu, the booming capital of Sichuan province, which has produced a revised blueprint for its transport system.

選段的背景是目前中國很多大城市都縮減了修建地鐵的計劃，成都就是一個例子。這兩句話也提供了一個很經典的舉例模板：...One example is…which… 即第一句先陳述觀點，然後通過One example is…which…說明具體例子。

其中which引導的定語從句也可以改為同位語部分，比如：

The concentration of reams of personal data in one place makes serious leaks more likely. One example is the recent scandal at Cambridge Analytica, a political consultancy that acquired data on 87m Facebook users in underhand ways (and as a result went out of business).

在該句式中，作者用a political consultancy that…對前面提到的Cambridge Analytica進行補充說明。

在議論文舉例時可以靈活套用上面的句式，比如：

(1) Some people argue that nuclear energy may become a safety hazard. One example is the Fukushima nuclear meltdown, which released enormous amounts of radiation into the surrounding communities, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate.

(2) The Internet can help to spread knowledge and improve equity in education. One example is Coursera, an online learning platform that provides an affordable and flexible way for people to learn new skills and advance their careers.

2. 要證明……，只需要看看……

下面的句子來自The Economist對巴西的報道Jair Bolsonaro, Latin America』s latest menace：

Latin America has known all sorts of strongmen, most of them awful. For recent proof, look only to the disasters in Venezuela and Nicaragua.

上面這句話的意思是「拉丁美洲經歷過各種強人政治，這些人中大部分都很糟糕。想要找到最新的證明，只需要看看委內瑞拉和尼加拉瓜的災難就行」。其中know在這裡是一個特殊用法，意思相當於「經歷」，比如：The country has never known an earthquake. 這個國家從未發生過地震。

從這裡也可以提取出一個句式：…For recent/clear/concrete proof, look only to… 通過該句型來證明上文的觀點。舉個例子：

Global warming can have a huge influence on people』s lives. For concrete proof, look only to rising sea levels, which threaten to submerge low-lying areas around the world.

3.問題的根源

下面的句子來自The Economist關於歐洲人均壽命的報道：Why life expectancy is lower in eastern Europe:

Money might be thought to be at the root of the problem, but the facts do not bear out this view.

文章的背景是東歐和西歐國家在人均壽命值上存在差異，作者在文章中解釋了造成這些差異的原因。上面句子的意思是「金錢可能被認為是造成這一問題的根源，但事實並不支持這一觀點」。其中bear out是一個常見片語，含義是「支持，證明」（to show that something is true or that someone is telling the truth）。

從這裡可以提取出一個句型…might be thought to be at the root of the problem, but the facts do not bear out this view…以此來說明造成某問題的真正原因。

舉個例子，青少年近視目前在中國是一個比較嚴重的問題，很多家長認為造成這一問題的原因是小孩看電視或電腦過度，但醫學研究表明，造成青少年近視的真正原因是戶外運動時間太少。因此，我們可以說：

Many teenagers in China suffer from short-sightedness, and too much screen time is thought to be at the root of the problem. However, the facts do not bear out this view. Medical research has shown that teenage myopia is linked to lack of outdoor activities. To protect their eyesight, teenagers should try to spend more time outdoors.

4.用好一個詞

在閱讀外刊和原著時我們會經常發現一些寫得很地道，但中國學生卻很少使用的單詞和短語，比如下面這個例子：

Estimates in the report imply that EU migration since 2004 has left the wages of the poorest tenth about 3% lower than otherwise would have been the case, and those of the richest tenth 3% higher.

這段話的背景是，有研究表明，進入歐洲的移民拉低了當地的最低工資，但同時也抬高了最高工資。選取的句子含義是「報告中的估計表明自2004年以來的歐盟移民使得最貧困的10%人口的工資比原本下降了3%，同時也使得最富有的10%的工資比原本上升了3%」。這裡otherwise意思很微妙，它可以用來表示「如果不是採取當前採取的新做法（或者不發生當前的新情況）就會如何」，類似於中文的「本來會如何」。

舉兩個例子：

(1) The new medicine saved me from an illness which might otherwise have been hopeless. 新的藥物治好了我的一場本來會毫無希望治好的病。

(2) They exercise a disproportionate influence on our policy, forcing our national leaders to give uncompromising attention to something that would otherwise affect us little. 他們對我們的政策起著大得離奇的影響，迫使我們的全國性領導人對一些本來同我們沒多大關係的事情糾纏不休。

Otherwise在這一含義也可以靈活應用到寫作中，比如：

Having a part-time job can adversely affect students studies by becoming a drain on their time. Although spending 10 hours a week working at a restaurant may not seem like a major time commitment, it still takes time away from students that could otherwise be used to prepare homework.

總結：

本期一共介紹了以下幾個表達：

(1) One example is…which…

(2) …For recent/clear/concrete proof, look only to…

(3) …might be thought to be at the root of the problem, but the facts do not bear out this view…

(4) otherwise

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