1、實用英語寫作技巧（共35單元）第一單元 段落簡介11段落段落是構成文章的一組句子。段落必須表達完整的意思：或描寫事物（describe something），或爭論某事（argue about something），或對某事提出疑問（question something），或要求什么（demand something），或給事物下定義（define something），或駁斥某觀點（reject something）。12典型段落的構成一個典型的段落通常由三部分組成：（1）主題句（the topic sentence）；（2）說明或支持主題的推展句（ supporting sentences

2、）；（3）結論句（the concluding sentence）（有些段落沒有該部分）。示范段落1-1We all know that cigarette smoking is a dangerous habit because it causes health problems Doctors say it can be a direct cause of cancer of the lungs and throat and can also contribute to cancer of other organs In addition， it can bring about other

3、 health problems such as heart and lung diseases It is clearly identified as one of the chief causes of death in our society13示范段落分析這是一個典型的段落，可概括提綱如下：主題句： We all know that cigarette smoking is a dangerous habit，because it causes health problems推展句： 1 Doctors say it can be a direc cause of cancer of

4、the lungs and throat and can also contribute to cancer of other organs2 It can bring about other health problems such as heart and lung diseases結論句： It is clearly identified as one of the chief causes of death in our society從以上提綱可見，主題句提出了一個問題： What kind of health problems does cigarette smoking caus

5、e？隨后的兩個推展句回答了這個問題，結論句總結了推展句并再一次強調主題句。Exercise 1-1Directions： Read the following paragraphs and find out the topic sentence， the supporting details and the concluding sentence， if there is one（1）The need for wildlife protection is greater now than ever beforeAbout a thousand species of animals are in

6、 danger of extinction,，and the rate at which they are being destroyed has increased With mammals， for instance， the rate of extinction is now about one species every year； from A D 1 to 1800， the ratewas about one species every fifty years Everywhere， men are trying o solve the problem of preserving

7、 wildlife while caring at the same time for the worlds growing populationTopic Sentence：_Details： 1_2_Concluding Sentence：_（2）The Americans and the British not only speak the same language but also share a large number of social customsFor example， in both America and England， people shake hands whe

8、n they meet each other for the first time Also， most English men will open a door for a woman or offer their seat to a woman， and so will most Americans Promptness is important both in England and in America That is， if a dinner invitation is for 7 oclock， the dinner guest either arrives close to th

9、at time or calls up to explain his delayTopic Sentence：_Details： 1_2_3_Concluding Sentence：_（3）Birds use many different materials to build nestsSome birds use bits of grass The tailor-bird of Africa and India uses grass to sew leaves together Other birds find twigs and pebbles usefulTopic Sentence：_

10、Details： 1_2_3_Concluding Sentence：_第二單元 主題句簡介21主題句 作者的首要任務是讓讀者知道所寫段落要談的是什么，這就是每段的主題句的作用。因此主題句應該闡明段落的主要思想，所有支持主題句的細節(jié)和描述都與這一主要思想有關。22主題句的形式主題句通常有以下三種形式：1）肯定句（Affirmative Sentence）Example： The need for wildlife protection is greater now than ever before2）反詰句（Rhetorical Sentence）Example： How do you thi

11、nk people will solve the problem of wildlife protection？3）不完整句（Fragments）Example： And the workingman？初學者最好使用肯定句作為主題句。23主題句的位置主題句出現(xiàn)的位置有以下四種情況：1）段首（At the beginning）主題句經(jīng)常居于段首，以便讀者瀏覽主題句就可掌握文章的概要。這個位置適用于寫提供信息或解釋觀點的段落。2）段末（At the end）用推理方法展開段落時，主題句往往位于句末。3）段中（In the middle）有時為了使段落多樣化，主題句也可以居于段中。4）隱含（Impl

12、ied）有時候，尤其在寫敘述性或描寫性段落時，當所有的細節(jié)都圍繞著一個顯而易見的主題時可以不用主題句。Exercise 2-1Directions： Read the following paragraphs and identify the topic sentence If it is implied， summarize it yourself（1）But no matter what it is called， all polyester has certain good points It does not wrinkle easily It dries quickly after

13、it is washed It holds its shape It is strong and keeps its colors wellTopic Sentence：_Position：_（2）Black is the colour of mourning Red symbolizes danger，violence，or bloodshed If you are afraid， you are yellow None of these sayings is true outside the English speaking world In China and Korea， white

14、is the color of mourning In Russia red stands for beauty and life In Italy and Germany you are yellow with anger，not with fearTopic Sentence：_Position：_（3）Our chief source of fresh water is rainfall that collects in lakes，rivers， and reservoirs Recently， however， we have discovered anew source， aqui

15、fers， which are rock formations containing waterEven under deserts， vast aquifers may be waiting to be tappedCompanies drilling for oil in the Middle East have sometimes struck aquifers， which provide unexpected water supplies for arid regionsTopic Sentence：_Position：_（4）Suppose youre playing a game

16、 You make a silly mistake and lose Do you become angry？ Or can you laugh at yourself and hope to do better next time？ Suppose you are at a special dinnerYou accidentally spill some foodWhy keep worrying about how clumsy you look？Why not laugh it off and enjoy yourself anyway？If you can， its good sig

17、n youve really grown up Topic Sentence：_Position：_（5）Young men sometimes bring edelweiss back for their girlfriends The girls think of the flowers as a proof of true loveMountain climbers， guides， and hunters pick edelweiss tooThey wear it on their hats To them it is a sign of courage and daringTopi

18、c Sentence：_Position：_第三單元 如何寫好主題句31關于寫主題句的建議 1）要寫合乎語法的句子Example 1： Two causes of the American Civil War這個句子是個不完整的句子，不合乎語法，因此不能用作主題句。Example 2： There were two causes that led to the American Civil War重寫后的句子合乎語法，是個較好的主題句。2）要使用限寫詞限定主題為了正確表達觀點，好的主題句經(jīng)常使用關鍵詞或詞組，即限制詞（controllers）限制這一觀點。Example 3： Air trav

19、el is more convenient than train for at least three reasons從上例主題句我們得知作者將要寫“air travel”（ topic），他將要把 “train”（ aspect）和“ air travel”作比較，并且陳述“reasons”。由此可見，作者在“aspect”（方面）和“reason”（原因）兩方面限制他的主題。3）要注意主題的可寫性所定的主題不能太籠統(tǒng)，也不能太具體。Example 4： In Hemingways story “Soldiers Home”，Krebs tells his mother that he wa

20、nts no part of Gods Kingdom這個句子太具體以至于無東西可寫，無法展開段落。Example 5： In Hemingways story “Soldiers Home”， Kreb is a lonely， cynical veteran這個句子可作為主題句，因為可以圍繞“l(fā)onely，cynical”展開段落。Example 6： Let me tell you something about overpopulation這個句子太籠統(tǒng)，作為一個段落的主題太大，難于駕馭。Example 7： Why has the world population been incr

21、easing sorapidly in the last decades？這個句子是個較好的主題句，作者用“the reasons for overpopulation in the last decades”，從“原因”（cause）和“時間”（time）兩方面限制了主題，能在一個段落內論述。Exercise 3-1Directions： Identify the areas which limit the topic sentences311 Soccer has become increasingly popular in the U S in the last ten yearsTop

22、ic：_Limitations：_312 Pollution has caused three major problems in the last decadesTopic：_Limitations：_313There are two kinds of memory： short-term and long-termTopic：_Limitations：_314 Women are playing an increasingly important part in society todayTopic：_Limitations：_315 Women are paid less for equ

23、al work than men in some companiesTopic：_Limitations：_Exercise 3-2Directions： Write two topic sentences for each of the topics，limiting the topic in different ways3 2 1 Topic： the study of EnglishTopic Sentence 1：_Topic Sentence 2：_322 Topic： college students todayTopic Sentence 1：_Topic Sentence 2：

24、_323 Topic： women in ChinaTopic Sentence 1：_Topic Sentence 2：_324 Topic：crimeTopic Sentence 1：_Topic Sentence 2：_Exercise 3-3Directions： Read the following paragraphs and supply the missing topic sentence（1）_Icelands flag， for instance， stands for features of the landRed for the fire of Icelands vol

25、canoes White is for ice Blue is for the mountains On Indias flag， the blue wheel stands for peace and progress The white stripe behind it is for truth The black stripe on the flag of Malawi stands for the Negro people of that African land The red stripe represents the blood they shed to free themsel

26、ves from foreign rule（2）_The one most people are familiar with is the“desk dictionary”，sometimes refered to as general-purpose dictionary Another kind is the pronouncing dictionary， which is concerned with a words pronunciation more than with its meaning A third type is the bilingual dictionary， whi

27、ch lists the words in one language and attempts to give equivalent meaning in another language Other types include technical dictionaries， special purpose dictionaries，and scholarly dictionaries第四單元 如何寫推展句41段落的推展在前幾單元中，我們談到寫段落的第一個步驟是寫主題句。作者要對主題句在某些方面加以限制。第二個步驟將是寫推展句。例如你要陳述你選擇某院校的理由，第一步，寫出主題句：There a

28、re two main reasons why I have decided to attend Bingston University next year第二步，以數(shù)個理由推展你的主題：示范段落4-1 There are two main reasons why I have decided to attend Bingston University next year First of all， there is the question of money：Bingstonvs tuition is reasonable and I dont even have to pay it all

29、 at once This is very important， since my father is not a rich man With Bingstons “deferred payment plan，” my father will be able to pay my tuition without too much difficultyThe second resaon is the fine education which I feed will receive there in agriculture， my chosen field It is a well-known fa

30、ct that Bingston hires only the finest professors in its Agriculture Department Moreover， the university reqires all agricultural students to get practical experience by working on farms in the areawhile they are still going to school42示范段落分析細節(jié)： two main reasons：理由 1financial considerationa reasonab

31、le tuitionb deferred payment plan理由 2quality of educationa fine teachersb practical experience在兩個主要理由之下，作者用更小的細節(jié)支持它們。由此可見，段落的推展依賴于支持主題句的細節(jié)（details）。推展段落的方法很多。通常每個段落以一種方法為“支配方法”（ the dominant method），必要時，可運用其它一種或數(shù)種方法作為“輔助方法”（ the supporting method）。上面的示范段落使用因果法（cause-and-effect）作為支配方法，分類法（division an

32、d classification）作為輔助方法。作者還運用了“重要性排列順序”（the order of importance）作為安排細節(jié)、組織段落的手段。我們將在以下各單元逐個討論這些方法。Exercise4-1Directions： Read the following paragraphs and find out what details the authors use to support their topic sentences（1）Warm water freezes more quickly than cold Sir Francis Bacon stated that a

33、lmost four hundred years ago But few people believedhimtill 1970 In that year， Canadian scientist George Kell proved the English scholar right Dr Kell filled an open pail with cold water He filled another with warm water He exposed both to the same low temperature The warm water froze firstTopic Sen

34、tence：_Details：1_2_（2）There is a relationship between your blood type and your nationality Among Europeans and people of European ancestry，about 42 percent have type A while 45 percent have type OThe rarest is type B Other races have different percentagesFor example， some American Indian groups have

35、 nearly 100 percent type OTopic Sentence：_Details：1_2_（3）Although thousands of people have been killed by sudden eruptions， volcanoes also benefit man， Tin， tungsten， gold and other metals have been brought closer to the earths surfaceChemicals in the ash have enriched farmland When solid， lava is a

36、good building material And in Italy， steam from active volcanoes supplies heat and power to surrounding areasTopic Sentence：_Details：1_2_3_4_（4）The Womens Movement has had several effects on the English language It has created Ms， a title for women comparable to the title Mr for men The creator of t

37、he new title objected to the title Miss and Mrs once given to women because these titles violated a womans privacy by indicating her marital status The use of Msnow permits women to enjoy the same privacy that men have enjoyed with the use of Mr Second， the Movement has changed the ending of many co

38、mpound words from-man to-personFor instance， the word “chairman” has been replaced in many organization with the word “chairperson”， and the word“salesman”has become salesperson Feminists insist that the substitution of-person for-man makes the position more suitable for members of either sex Third，

39、 the Movement is responsible for new termsOne example is male chauvinist pig， a term applied to a man who refuses to recognize the equality of women Another example is female chauvinist sow， a phrase used to describe a female who believes that she is superior to males The most profound effect the Mo

40、vementhas had on the language is on the third person singular pronounThirty years ago most English instructors forced their students to se he， him， and his for the third person singular when the sex of the person was not known Thus， students were taught to say，“Everyone has his books”Today many Engl

41、ish teachers permit students to follow the feminist lead and use the masculine and feminine pronouns together Therefore， constructions such as his or her books are common Although the Womens Movement may not have yet achieved all of its goals， it has made a mark on the English languageTopic Sentence

42、：_Details：1_2_3_4_第五單元如何寫結論句51結論句第一單元曾提到，段落由三個部分組成，最后一部分就是結論句（ the concluding sentence）。結論句通常與主題句一樣包含有段落的中心思想，然而所用措辭與主題句不同。在示范段落 1-1，主題句是： We all know that cigarette smoking is a dangerous habit because it causes health problems結論句是： It is clearly identified as one of the chief causes of death in ou

43、r society52關于寫結論句的建議1）把握主題句的關鍵詞例如在關于“cigarette smoking”的示范段落 1-1中，中心思想是“the health problems caused by cigarette smoking，關鍵詞是“health problems”。2）總結細節(jié)，回答主題句中隱含的問題。在上述示范段落中，隱含的問題是“What are the health problems caused by cigarette smoking？”結論句作出的回答是 It is identified as one of the chief cause of death in

44、our society3）用不同的措辭表達同一中心思想。在上述段落中，主題句的關鍵詞是“health problems”，而在結論句中，關鍵詞是“causes of death”。示范段落5-1Our neighborhood has been greatly changed When I last visited there， about half the homes had been torn down to make way for a superhighway The remaining buildings were plastered with billboards and surr

45、ounded by traffic signs and litter Now the whole neighborhood has become dirty， noisy and full of cars53示范段落分析主題句： Our neighborhood has been changed主題句關鍵詞： changed主題句隱含的問題：“How has the neighborhood changed？細節(jié)： 1 a superhighway builtnoisy and full of cars2 full of billboards， traffic signs and litter

46、dirty結論句： Now the whole neighborhood has become dirty， noisy andfull of cars結論句關鍵詞： dirty，noisy and full of cars結論句總結了細節(jié)并回答了主題句提出的問題。Exercise 5-1Directions：Read the following paragraphFind out the topic sentence and the concluding sentence， and rearrange the details so that the paragraph will make sense In less than three years the farm had gone to piecesAll the windows had been broken out of the big two-story farm houseIn the front of the house the grass was about three feet tall andthe barn yard was full of weeds instead of pigs squealing to be fedThere were