考博英语作文的结构一般包含三部分:开头——主体——结尾。开头(Introductory paragraph)提出话题、观点、现象或者问题等;主体(Body paragraphs)围绕开头提出的内容展开论述;结尾(Concludingparagraph)
对文章进行总结。应试作文这三部分缺一不可,不然文章很可能会被认为结构不完整。而作文的开头,往往给出第一印象,开头段落的写得好与坏,很大程度上影响阅卷老师对于整篇文章的判断。建议各位考生重视开头段落的写作。尽量避免生硬的模板。
一般来讲,作文的开头包含两部分的内容:导入陈述,提供有关话题的背景,介绍文章话题,一般由泛泛到具体,自然引出话题。主题陈述,围绕话题,表明作者观点态度,明确文章的中心内容,也可以包含引出下文的作用。主题陈述通常在开头段最后一两句。
以下是一篇关于“出国旅游”的文章开头思路和提纲:
Foreign Travel
开头思路:People are thinking of ways to enjoy their lives after becoming rich. ↓ Some want to buy new houses. Others would like to have their private cars. ↓ I choose to travel. ↓ Foreign travel helps me to learn about cultures of different nations and make friends all over the world. (主题) 主体段落:
段落1中心:Traveling abroad benefits me a lot in enriching knowledge.
段落2中心:I can make friends all over the world in traveling.
结尾要点:
Foreign travel makes me happy because of the benefits in learning something new and making friends in different countries.
以上只是动手写文章之前,对于开头段落的构思,和总体文章思路(提纲),真正写作的时候还得考虑用词和上下文的衔接,例如,以上这篇Foreign Travel具体的开头可以写成:
Owing to the development of national economy, people have become richer. With more money in pockets, they want to enjoy their lives in a modernized way. Some will buy new houses. Others would like to have their private cars. I prefer to travel all over the world. Foreign travel benefits me a lot.
显然可以看出,该开头自然简练,代词的使用使表达连贯,给出话题的背景,逻辑合理,显而易见,读者很容易理解并产生共鸣。此外,最后一句的主题陈述比提纲简单,因为文章主体部分会有相应分论点的中心句:Traveling abroad benefits me a lot in enriching Knowledge. 和 I can make friends all over the world in traveling. 所以,从全文的结构和连贯性考虑,开头段最后一句主题陈述无需赘述。
再来看一个开头段落的例子,主题陈述得比较详细:
A person born in the 21st century has seen a lot of changes take place in almost all areas of human life. Some people are excited by the challenges that these changes offer; others want to return to the simpler, less automated life style of the past. Living in the twentieth centuryoffers certain advantages, such as a higher standard of living, but it also has some disadvantages, such as a polluted environment, the depersonalization of human relationships, and the weakening of spiritual values.(主题句)
这个开头和上一个不一样,主题陈述字数较多,但并不会感觉累赘,因为只有这样才能把主题交代清楚。此外,从主题句的句式和逻辑关系(but连接的两个转折意义的并列句)上可以看出,文章主体部分很有可能是围绕disadvantages展开阐述。因此,主题陈述详略一定要考虑上下文连贯,既要讲清楚也不显啰嗦。
遵循这个思路,可以写出有别于模板的作文开头,避免模板的生硬感。