解剖篇章 擒賊擒王：英語四級閱讀主題

三、觀點(diǎn)對照

        四級文章中還有這么一類，文章當(dāng)中有兩種觀點(diǎn)形成對照。而這兩種觀點(diǎn)會(huì)以以下兩種方式其中一種出現(xiàn)：

      （一）縱向(或叫新舊觀點(diǎn))對照，這種觀點(diǎn)對照比較簡單，開頭出現(xiàn)以前的某種觀點(diǎn)或者大眾的一種普遍觀點(diǎn)，典型的形式是：For some time past it was widely accepted that….There is a popular belief among…People tend to be impressed that…Most people would agree…In the old days…The way people hold…文章中心出現(xiàn)的方式是轉(zhuǎn)折或者對老觀點(diǎn)的負(fù)評價(jià)或者現(xiàn)在新觀點(diǎn)出現(xiàn)的地方，以but, however, in fact, nowadays, now, fail, neglect等詞的出現(xiàn)作為標(biāo)志。這種找主題的方式較類似于拋磚引玉型文章，就不過多贅述。

     （二）橫向比較，這種文章一般會(huì)有兩種對抗型的觀點(diǎn)，雙方各執(zhí)己見，分不出到底誰正確。對于這種文章，通常作者的評價(jià)即為文章主題。如97年1月關(guān)于心理學(xué)家對與獎(jiǎng)勵(lì)的不同觀點(diǎn)一文，behaviorists和cognitive researchers持不同觀點(diǎn)，而作者對兩者觀點(diǎn)進(jìn)行了綜合，取兩者觀點(diǎn)有力之處。作者的結(jié)論自然就是文章主題所在。所以不需要注意這兩派的觀點(diǎn)。再如2002年1月關(guān)于未來汽車一文。

Some pessimistic experts feel that the automobile is bound to fall into disuse. They see a day in the not-too-distant future when all autos will be abandoned and allowed to rust. Other authorities, however, think the auto is here to stay. They hold that the car will remain a leading means of urban travel in the foreseeable future.
The motorcar will undoubtedly change significantly over the next 30 years. It should become smaller, safer, and more economical, and should not be powered by the gasoline engine. The car of the future should be far more pollution-free than present types.
Regardless of its power source, the auto in the future will still be the main problem in urban traffic congestion (擁擠). One proposed solution to this problem is the automated highway system.
When the auto enters the highway system, a retractable (可伸縮的) arm will drop from the auto and make contact with a rail, which is similar to those powering subway trains electrically. Once attached to the rail, the car will become electrically powered from the system, and control of the vehicle will pass to a central computer. The computer will then monitor all of the car's movements.
The driver will use a telephone to dial instructions about his destination into the system. The computer will calculate the best route, and reserve space for the car all the way to the correct exit from the highway. The driver will then be free to relax and wait for the buzzer (蜂鳴器) that will warn him of his coming exit. It is estimated that an automated highway will be able to handle 10,000 vehicles per hour, compared with the 1,500 to 2,000 vehicles that can be carried by a present-day highway.

        有pessimistic experts認(rèn)為將來汽車會(huì)被廢止（悲觀觀點(diǎn)），而other authorities則認(rèn)為將會(huì)繼續(xù)保持交通主導(dǎo)工具地位不變（過于樂觀）。而二段開頭作者認(rèn)為未來３０年汽車將會(huì)有巨大改變這一觀點(diǎn)才是真正主題所在（客觀中含有樂觀，變化地看待事物）。所以在做這篇文章主題題的變體—態(tài)度題時(shí)，只要把第二段開頭作者的態(tài)度讀出來，答案也就很好選了。說白了，對于對抗型觀點(diǎn)，讀者只需了解作者的觀點(diǎn)就行。
         25. What is the author's attitude toward the future of autos?
        A) Enthusiastic. B) Pessimistic. C) Optimistic. D) Cautious.

        四、還有這么一些文章，主題并不是在文章開頭幾段出現(xiàn)而是在文章末尾，這種文章比較難。不過還是可以通過重點(diǎn)閱讀文章末尾加以解決，姑且稱其為曲徑通幽型文章。

        這類文章一般在前面幾段對中心話題的論述不清不楚，很難判斷作者的褒貶態(tài)度，直到文章末尾才出現(xiàn)作者明確的態(tài)度或評價(jià)（且一般為負(fù)）。這種類型文章典型有一下幾篇：９１年６月人工心臟一文，９７年６月冰箱一文，０３年６月對人們無意識出差錯(cuò)研究一文，以及０４年６月氫彈協(xié)會(huì)一文。以氫彈一文為例.

As soon as it was revealed that a reporter for Progressive magazine had discovered how to make a hydrogen bomb, a group offirearm ( 火器 ) fans formed the National Hydrogen bomb Association, and they are now lobbying against any legislation to stop Americans from owning one.
    "The Constitution," said the association's spokesman, "gives everyone the right to own arms. It doesn't spell out what kind of arms. But since anyone can now make a hydrogen bomb, the public should be able to buy it to protect themselves."
    "Don't you think it's dangerous to have one in the house, particularly where there are children around?"
    "The National Hydrogen bomb Association hopes to educate people in the safe handling of this type of weapon. We are instructing owners to keep the bomb in a locked cabinet and the fuse (導(dǎo)火索 ) separately in a drawer."
    "Some people consider the hydrogen bomb a very fatal weapon which could kill somebody."
The spokesman said, "Hydrogen bombs don't kill people - people kill people. The bomb is for self-protection and it also has a deterrent effect. If somebody knows you have a nuclear weapon in your house, they're going to think twice about breaking in."
    "But those who want to ban the bomb for American citizens claim that ifyou have one locked in the cabinet, with the fuse in a drawer, you would never be able to assemble it in time to stop an intruder ( 侵入者）"
    "Another argument against allowing people to own a bomb is that at the moment it is very expensive to build one. So what your association is backing is a program which would allow the middle and upper classes to acquire a bomb while poor people will be left defenseless with just handguns."

        這篇文章時(shí)而出現(xiàn)贊成氫彈的論調(diào)，時(shí)而出現(xiàn)反對 的論調(diào)。而文章又是以反對的論調(diào)結(jié)尾，因而可以判斷出作者是反對私人擁有氫彈的（雖然問中沒有明確出現(xiàn)作者態(tài)度，在此只能從文章末尾感知作者態(tài)度）。因而在做最后一道主題題（轉(zhuǎn)變?yōu)閼B(tài)度題的考察）時(shí)就比較容易選擇了。注意，不能選B或者D，這2項(xiàng)看似合理，但違背了四級文章對事不對人以及不能推理2 大原則。從出現(xiàn)頻率上看，這類文章慢慢多了起來，所以應(yīng)該多加留意。

       30. From the tone of the passage we know that the author is 
       A) not serious about the private ownership of H-bombs 
       B) concerned about the spread of nuclear weapons 
       C) doubtful about the necessity of keeping H-bombs at home for safety 
       D) unhappy with those who vote against the ownership of H-bombs

       本文此次集中探討讀四級文章時(shí)讀出文章中心對于做主題題的指導(dǎo)意義，其實(shí)，讀懂主題對于做細(xì)節(jié)題也極具指導(dǎo)作用，具體如何，請聽下回分解。（編輯：趙露）

  （陳智，重慶新東方學(xué)校國內(nèi)部教師，主講四級閱讀，詞匯，自考閱讀翻譯等課程。大學(xué)時(shí)代熱衷各種英語考試。雖取得滿意成績，然而回首卻發(fā)現(xiàn)無數(shù)學(xué)生仍前仆后繼掙扎于考試苦海，遂再次投身對考試之研究，希望通過對所教內(nèi)容的剖析幫助學(xué)生在通過考試的同時(shí)提高哪怕是那么一點(diǎn)點(diǎn)的英語能力。
  黃老邪，重慶新東方學(xué)校教研部主任兼基礎(chǔ)部主管，新東方教育科技集團(tuán)優(yōu)秀教師，主講考研閱讀、托福閱讀，新概念三、四冊等課程。世代向往鐵飯碗，初中畢業(yè)上中專。只因邪氣太盛，機(jī)關(guān)混得不行。何以改弦？唯有考研！與高中英語火并，與大學(xué)英語死拼，雖傷痕確實(shí)累累，僥幸過自考本科。大巧本若拙？稀里又糊涂，居然混上研究生，可惜兩部爛《牛津》！與語言學(xué)殊死奮戰(zhàn)，似有所悟；跟眾學(xué)子相扶前行，扼腕嗚呼——英語真的這么毒？！退隱桃花島，閉關(guān)詳推敲，桃花影落飛神劍，碧海潮生按玉簫，一朝悟得其中妙，“傻瓜”神劍亦逍遙！格言：笑面人生，即使是慘淡人生；笑面英語，因?yàn)槭恰吧倒稀庇⒄Z。）

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