語法和寫作的聯(lián)系是最緊密的,兩者不可分家??忌绻Z法基礎(chǔ)不好,就難以寫出好作文。如果一篇英語作文中反復(fù)出現(xiàn)低級(jí)語法錯(cuò)誤,那么無論作文的觀點(diǎn)多么吸引人,寫作立意多么新穎、深刻,都只會(huì)是一篇有缺陷的作文。所以,要想寫出高質(zhì)量的作文,考生必須掌握足夠的語法知識(shí)。在下文中,筆者就利用網(wǎng)絡(luò)上廣泛流傳的一篇雅思流程圖經(jīng)典范文,來向考生們展示一下如何把握語法知識(shí)點(diǎn),完成令人頭疼的流程圖寫作。
下面我們先來看一下這道流程圖寫作題目和滿分范文。
The diagram below shows the process by which bricks are manufactured for the building industry. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words.
Brick manufacturing
范文:
The process by which bricks are manufactured for the building industry can be outlined in seven consecutive steps. First the raw material, clay, which was just below the surface of soil in certain clay-rich areas has to be dug up by a digger.
Then the lumps of clay are placed on a metal grid in order to break up the big chunks of clay into much smaller areas, which fall through the metal grid onto a roller, whose motion further segregates the bits of clay. Sand and water are added to make a homogenous mixture, which is then either formed in moulds or cut into brick-shaped pieces by means of a wire cutter.
Those fresh bricks are then kept in a drying oven for at least 24 and a maximum of 48 hours, several dozens if not hundreds of bricks at a time. The dried bricks are then transferred to a so-called kiln, another type of high temperature oven. First they are kept at a moderate temperature of 200oc~1300oc. This process is followed by cooling down the finished bricks for 48 to 72 hours in a cooling chamber.
Once the bricks have cooled down and have become hard, they get packaged and delivered to their final destination, be it a building site or storage.
從上述范文中,考生可以得到很多關(guān)于寫作時(shí)常用到的語法知識(shí)點(diǎn)的啟示,下面筆者將從五個(gè)方面來闡述。
1時(shí)態(tài)的選擇
由于流程圖一般展示的都是時(shí)時(shí)刻刻在發(fā)生、有規(guī)律可循的事情,因此除非有特殊情況,考生一般都可選擇一般現(xiàn)在時(shí)作為整篇作文的主要時(shí)態(tài)。正如本次分析的范文一樣,由于磚塊的制作并不是哪一個(gè)特定時(shí)刻發(fā)生的事情,而是一個(gè)公認(rèn)的科學(xué)制作方法,是有規(guī)律可循的事情,因此作者選用了一般現(xiàn)在時(shí)作為作文的主要時(shí)態(tài)。
2篇章結(jié)構(gòu)
在寫流程圖作文時(shí),考生應(yīng)該考慮到作文結(jié)構(gòu)的完整性,好的作文一般都是“總—分—總”的結(jié)構(gòu)。這篇范文以總起句“The process by which bricks are manufactured for the building industry can be outlined in seven consecutive steps”開頭,起到了概括全文大意的作用,值得考生借鑒。該句所用句型“XXX can be outlined in XXX steps”(什么樣的事件可以被大體分為幾個(gè)步驟)很適合用在流程圖作文的開頭。此外,考生也可以用賓語從句來開篇,同樣能完整地表達(dá)整幅圖的框架內(nèi)容。例如,上述題目的文章開頭也可以這樣寫:“The diagram clearly shows us how bricks are produced for the building industry.”
3 被動(dòng)語態(tài)的使用
本篇范文中多處使用被動(dòng)語態(tài)進(jìn)行描述,如are manufactured for、can be outlined、has to be dug up、are placed、are then kept、are then transferred等。與漢語不太一樣,英語中的被動(dòng)語態(tài)是書面語和科學(xué)類文章中常用到的一種語態(tài),適合使用在說明文中,而流程圖寫作的作文題材正好是說明文,因此建議考生在寫作時(shí)多使用被動(dòng)語態(tài)。不過,筆者需要提醒的是,考生在使用被動(dòng)語態(tài)時(shí)要注意結(jié)構(gòu)的多樣性。本篇范文在使用被動(dòng)語態(tài)時(shí),就通過使用情態(tài)動(dòng)詞can和詞組have to等來表現(xiàn)結(jié)構(gòu)的多樣性。因此,考生以后在使用被動(dòng)語態(tài)時(shí),可以選擇情態(tài)動(dòng)詞來搭配,如must、need to、can、could、may、might等。
4句式多樣化
雅思考官對(duì)該滿分范文的其中一條評(píng)價(jià)如下:“A wide range of vocabulary and structures are used with full flexibility and accuracy.”可見,流程圖作文若想拿高分,大量使用不同的詞匯與句型是很有必要的。從語法角度來看,考生應(yīng)盡量寫出多樣的復(fù)雜句來為作文增添光彩。上文筆者介紹了賓語從句的使用,而另一種常用從句定語從句也在寫作中扮演著至關(guān)重要的角色。定語從句能夠使考生表述的對(duì)象更加具體、形象。在范文的第一段里就出現(xiàn)了兩個(gè)由which引導(dǎo)的定語從句,分別豐富了process和clay這兩個(gè)名詞的內(nèi)容;而第二段的句子都是由定語從句構(gòu)成的長難句,而且使用的不是普通的定語從句,而是非限制性定語從句。非限制性定語從句看似復(fù)雜難懂,其實(shí)原理簡單,非常適合在寫作中使用,建議考生在寫作實(shí)踐中多學(xué)習(xí)和利用。
5銜接與過渡
流程圖中難免會(huì)出現(xiàn)多個(gè)階段、過程,那么如果各階段之間的銜接和過渡都用一樣的表達(dá)結(jié)構(gòu),如first、then、next、finally是否妥當(dāng)呢?答案當(dāng)然是“否”。考生如果總是采用一種結(jié)構(gòu)來進(jìn)行過渡,那會(huì)使文中句型和詞匯顯得不夠多樣,而這必然讓考官覺得你掌握的語言不夠豐富,自然也就不會(huì)給你高分。其實(shí),考生在表達(dá)時(shí)間或階段時(shí),至少有以下三種結(jié)構(gòu)(句型或短語)可以采用:① It takes some time for sb. to do sth.;② This stage of doing sth. lasts for + 時(shí)間+ until …; ③ After a period of about + 時(shí)間。其中,第三個(gè)結(jié)構(gòu)是一個(gè)狀語短語,掌握起來最簡單,考生可以直接拿來用。
滿分范文給我們的語法啟示真的不少??忌趥淇剂鞒虉D寫作的過程中,與其在沒有得到指導(dǎo)的前提下寫出幾十篇文章,不如考慮一下剖析幾篇滿分范文或者是考官自己寫的范文,因?yàn)檫@樣的范文最具有權(quán)威性,是考生模仿和學(xué)習(xí)的最佳材料??忌梢栽囍业讲⒎治鲞@些范文中隱藏的語法知識(shí)點(diǎn),這是提高英語寫作水平的一種有效做法。