如何解讀英語閱讀理解中的“駁論文”

薛曉星

議論文可分為兩大類，立論文和駁論文。立論文，就是作者提出一個觀點，然后用例子、數(shù)據(jù)等來論證這一觀點的正確性，這類文章主旨一般出現(xiàn)在文章的開始。所謂駁論文就是指作者先提出一個前人的或他人的觀點，或者大家目前普遍認(rèn)同的觀點，然后再用例子、數(shù)據(jù)、后來某人或某些人的觀點等對這個觀點進行反駁，在反駁的過程中闡述自己的觀點。這兩類議論文在高考閱讀理解中都經(jīng)常出現(xiàn)，其中，駁論文學(xué)生更難把握。筆者以具體的閱讀文段為例，分析駁論文中主旨大意題、詞義猜測題和寫作意圖題的解答技巧。

一、如何解答駁論文中的主旨大意題

主旨大意題是高考英語閱讀理解中?？嫉念}型之一，在一般的立論文中作者往往在文章開頭就直接提出自己的觀點。學(xué)生如果在閱讀駁論文時受這種思維定勢的影響把作者在文章開頭提出的觀點當(dāng)作是整篇文章的主旨，那么他將無法選出正確的選項。

應(yīng)對的方法是，我們在看到一篇文章開頭處提出一個觀點，或者舉出一個例子的時候，不要想當(dāng)然地認(rèn)為這就是作者的觀點，他們有可能是作者所要批判的觀點或者反例。在駁論文中，作者會在第一段的后半部分或第二段用but， however， although， though， in fact等表示轉(zhuǎn)折的詞或表示讓步的句型引出自己的觀點，即文章的主旨。

[例1]（2013廣東） Some people think that success is only for those with talent or those who grow up in the right family， and others believe that success mostly comes down to luck. Im not going to say luck， talent， and circumstances dont come into play because they do. Some people are born into the right family while others are born with great intelligence， and thats just the reality of how life is.

However， to succeed in life， one first needs to set a goal and then gradually make it more practical. And， in addition to that， in order to get really good at something， one needs to spend at least 10，000 hours studying and practicing. To become great at certain things， itll require even more time， time that most people wont put in.

...

35. What is the main theme of the passage？

A. Having a goal is vital to success.

B. Being good is different from being great.

C. One cannot succeed without time and practice.

D. Luck， talent and family help to achieve success.

解析：本題是問文章的主題思想。由第二段開頭的However可知，第一段的觀點不是本文的中心論點，而是作者要反駁的觀點。本文的中心論題在第二段，且重點落在And in addition to that， ...one needs to spend at least 10，000 hours studying and practicing，其后的內(nèi)容都是說明在確定目標(biāo)后，要成功，就必須投入大量時間去學(xué)習(xí)和實踐。換句話說，就是不花時間和實踐是不可能取得成功的。故選C。

[例2]（2010浙江） The term “multitasking” originally referred to peoples ability to carry out several tasks one time. For many people， multitasking has become a way of life and even a key to success. In fact， some excellent mental aerobic exercises （大量訓(xùn)練） involve engaging the brain in two or more challenging activities at a time. Although checking email while taking on a phone and reading the newspaper may be second nature for some people， many times multitasking can make us less productive， rather than more. But studies show that too much multitasking can lead to increased anxiety and memory loss.

…

52. What is the main idea of the passage？endprint

A. Multitasking has become a way of life.

B. Multitasking often leads to efficiency decline.

C. Multitasking describes need to be improved.

D. Multitasking enables people to remember things better.

解析：通讀全文可知這是一篇駁論，文章對之前的理論進行了駁斥。根據(jù)句子Although checking email while taking on a phone and reading the newspaper may be second nature for some people， many times multitasking can make us less productive， rather than more，可知作者想要表達(dá)的觀點是此句的主句部分，即many times multitasking can make us less productive， rather than more（許多時候多任務(wù)處理會使我們工作效率較低），故選B。

二、如何解答駁論文中的詞義猜測題或指代題

在解答駁論文中的詞義猜測題或代詞指代題時，我們同樣可以利用駁論文特有的文章結(jié)構(gòu)進行解答。應(yīng)對方法就是，充分理解駁論文中作者先提出一個前人的觀點，再接著利用例子、后人觀點等對這個觀點進行反駁，從而提出自己觀點的這一特點，從而認(rèn)真解讀作者在文中先后列出的兩個觀點的關(guān)系。

[例3]（2012廣二模） Many psychologists in the early twentieth century believed that humans use only 10 percent of their brains， and even the great Albert Einstein once wrote that most people use only a small portion of the grey matter between their ears. Its a theory that has often been put forward in television documentaries， magazines， advertisements and books over the past century.

But nearly all scientists now agree the 10 percent theory is completely unfounded. In fact， they question how this figure was ever arrived at in the first place and what areas of the brain are supposed to be unneeded. The theory supposes that if 90 percent of the brain were removed， a person would still be able to function normally， while in reality it is known that damage to even a small area of the brain can result in extremely serious physical injury different activities and that many areas of the brain are used at the same time for some complex activities or thought processes.

...

42. The underlined word “unfounded” is close in meaning to _________.

A. undiscovered B. unproven C. unknown D. unnecessary

解析：作者在文章第一段文章開頭提出了許多心理學(xué)家甚至愛因斯坦也認(rèn)同的觀點：我們?nèi)祟愒谌粘；顒又兄皇褂昧舜竽X中的10%或一小部分。但從第二段but將話鋒一轉(zhuǎn)，點明文章主題，“現(xiàn)在差不多所有科學(xué)家都認(rèn)為10%的理論是完全_______的”；第二句In fact， they question how this figure was ever arrived at in the first place and what areas of the brain are supposed to be unneeded（事實上，他們質(zhì)疑10%這個數(shù)字最早是如何得出來的，大腦的哪些部分被認(rèn)為是不需要的）以及隨后幾句，都表明對這個理論提出了質(zhì)疑，可見現(xiàn)在的科學(xué)家認(rèn)為它是“未經(jīng)證實的”，故選B。

[例4]（2014湖北）For most city people， the elevator is an unremarkable machine that inspires none of the enthusiasm or interest that Americans afford trains， jets， and even bicycles. Dr. Christopher Wilk is a member of a small group of elevator experts who consider this a misunderstanding. Without the elevator， they point out， there could be no downtown skyscrapers or tall buildings， and city life as we know it would be impossible. In that sense， they argue， the elevators role in American history has been no less significant than that of cars. In fact， according to Wilk， the car and the elevator have been locked in a “secret war” for over a century， with cars making it possible for people to spread horizontally （水平地）， and elevators pushing them toward life in close groups of towering vertical （垂直的） columns.endprint

...

67. What does the underlined word “this” in Paragraph 1 refer to？

A. The general view of elevators.

B. The particular interests of experts.

C. The desire for a remarkable machine.

D. The enthusiasm for transport vehicles.

解析：作者在文章第一句提出了大部分人認(rèn)為電梯是不起眼的機器的看法，緊接著第二句描寫了Dr. Christopher Wilk對之前觀點的反駁，認(rèn)為這是對電梯的誤解，所以此處this指代前面大家對電梯的普遍觀點，故選A。

三、如何解答駁論文中的寫作意圖題

在解答駁論文的寫作意圖題時，只要我們能肯定的判斷所閱讀文章是一篇駁論文，那么文章的寫作意圖是非常清晰明了的。應(yīng)對方法是，駁論文的寫作意圖往往就是反駁某種觀點或者提出一個新的觀點。

[例5]（文章節(jié)選略，請見[例3]）

45. What is the main purpose of the passage？

A. To present two sides of brain theory.

B. To criticize the 10 percent theory.

C. To explain how brain works.

D. To describe the history of brain research.

解析：通讀全文可知這是一篇駁論文，文章對之前的理論進行了駁斥。由第二段首句（but...） 及其后內(nèi)容，是質(zhì)疑批評10%理論的，對比四個選項，只有選項B正確。

[例6] Many of us mistakenly believe that its wrong to think we have any good qualities. We may spend a lot of time blaming ourselves for our negative qualities， thinking that self criticism is the key to improving our performance. However， a constant focus on our supposed shortcomings can stop our efforts to make friends with other people. How can we believe that others could like us if we believe our inner being is flawed？

If someone seems to dislike you， the reason for that dislike might have little or nothing to do with you. The person who doesnt like you might be fearful， or shallow or busy or shy. Perhaps you and that person are simply a mismatch for each other at this particular time.

...

△The main purpose of the passage is to tell us plays an important role in making friends.

A. admitting your shortcomings B. self criticism

C. modesty D. confidence

解析：通過閱讀全文可知，這是一篇駁論，文章通過反駁人們錯誤的理論而提出自己的觀點，根據(jù)第一段However， a constant focus on our supposed shortcomings can stop our efforts to make friends with other people可知，要有自信才能廣交朋友。故選D。

總之，當(dāng)我們在完成駁論文的閱讀理解過程時，我們必須充分了解駁論文的特點，并在此基礎(chǔ)上不斷體會作者的意圖，確定文章中心思想，不要主觀臆斷。

（作者單位：梅州市曾憲梓中學(xué)）

責(zé)任編校 蔣小青endprint