上一章向大家介紹了豐富自己的口語或?qū)懽鲀?nèi)容的一個(gè)方面,即論點(diǎn)的拓展。這一章我們繼續(xù)看另一個(gè)方面——論據(jù)的拓展。

論據(jù)是作者用來證明論點(diǎn)的理由和事實(shí),與論點(diǎn)之間構(gòu)成證明與被證明的關(guān)系。與中文不同,英文更注重邏輯證明,而非情感呼喚。能否使自己的觀點(diǎn)得以充分的論證(well-developed)才是雅思口語和寫作制勝的法寶。論據(jù)的拓展方法有很多,常被冠以不同的名稱,本文中,專家將著重講三種最常見的,即對(duì)比法,例證法,因果法。

一、對(duì)比法

【實(shí)例回放】:

寫作: People today can perform the everyday tasks such as shopping, banking or even business transactions, without meeting others face-to-face. What effects will this phenomenon have on individuals and society as a whole?

口語: How has technology changed people’s life? (Part 3 question)

【指點(diǎn)迷津】:? 對(duì)比法可分兩種情況,一是同事物不同時(shí)間的對(duì)比,二是不同事物之間的比較與對(duì)比。以該組話題為例,結(jié)合上篇所講的論點(diǎn)搜集方法,我們已經(jīng)通過頭腦風(fēng)暴法得出分論點(diǎn)之一:電子商務(wù)提高了工作效率。那么其后的論據(jù)就可以采用時(shí)間對(duì)比法,具體分為In the past, a great deal of time was wasted commuting when people had to cover distances to shop or do business. 和Now, working efficiency has been greatly enhanced, thanks to the increasingly popular e-business, and telecommuting. 通過In the past 和Now的一組對(duì)比,顯然將新事物帶來的影響展露無遺。

【旁征博引】:? ①過去與現(xiàn)在對(duì)比法在雅思寫作中更適用于科技類話題,無論是電視、電腦、手機(jī)還是英特網(wǎng),帶給社會(huì)的變化都可從時(shí)間上的對(duì)比中得出。而在口語中則更適用于考試第三部分問題中的變化發(fā)展類。如:How has your hometown changed in the past few years? How has people’s diet changed in the past years in your country? How has people’s way of entertainment changed in your country? Do people today celebrate their traditional holidays the same way they did twenty years ago?

②不同對(duì)象對(duì)比法相對(duì)而言在口語中的實(shí)用性更廣些,就是在回答問題時(shí)找個(gè)參照。如在回答How do Chinese old people celebrate their birthday?這個(gè)問題時(shí),就可以以年輕人為參照,得出這樣的答案:unlike young people, who prefer to spend the day with their friends, hanging out, eating and drinking, old people in China would rather celebrate their big day with their family members. For them, having a family dinner is enough. 之所以說此種方法在口語中更為實(shí)用,原因在于雅思寫作十分講究內(nèi)容的relevant,如果參照部分的內(nèi)容沒有掌控好恐怕會(huì)有偏題的嫌疑,在此需謹(jǐn)慎。

二、例證法

舉例子是議論文用得最多最廣也是最具說服力的推理方法。它之所以卓有成效,是因?yàn)槭聦?shí)勝于雄辯,這一點(diǎn)沒有人可以否認(rèn)??梢哉f,例證法適用于任何寫作口語話題,前提是所選例子要具代表性和典型性。舉例子大家都會(huì),在此就不贅述,不過在此說明兩點(diǎn)注意,給大家提個(gè)醒。

①寫作和口語中例子的選擇標(biāo)準(zhǔn)有所不同??谡Z的例子可以是個(gè)人經(jīng)歷,朋友事跡,甚至是道聽途說(只要自己能說得像模像樣,讓聽者信服)。因?yàn)槭荢peaking,屬于Informal English。與之相反,寫作則是Formal English范疇,所舉實(shí)例必須是共性而非個(gè)性的,普遍而非特殊的。有考生認(rèn)識(shí)到了這一點(diǎn)所以寫作中沒有出現(xiàn)個(gè)人的例子而是以In China,…為例,心想這下共性了吧,咱中國十幾億人口都這樣。結(jié)果還是不對(duì),雅思考試是面向全球的,舉中國的例子只能代表中國特色,不具全球性。考生又想,這下完了,全世界范圍舉例那可難了,對(duì)別的國家狀況根本不了解啊。其實(shí)稍微換下措辭就可以,把In China 改成In many countries across the globe,后面例子照抄就OK了。

②舉例分為兩種,除了通過For example,/For instance,/To illustrate,等詞引出完整的事例以外,“such as/like+名詞”也是在舉例。且這種舉例更簡單更易于掌握。如論點(diǎn)句為:Fast food is unhealthy.則其后的論據(jù)可以有:Food such as hamburgers, fried chicken, and chips, containing a great deal of fat and salt, leads to health problems like obesity, high blood pressure and heart attack. 此論據(jù)用了兩處舉例對(duì)原論點(diǎn)句加以擴(kuò)充,并沒有多費(fèi)腦筋。

三、因果論證法

因果法掌握起來并不難,很多考生都會(huì)用。技巧就在于會(huì)使用表示因果關(guān)系的標(biāo)志詞。無論是寫作還是口語,都需要通過前因后果的聯(lián)系來解釋論證自己的觀點(diǎn),所以用到因果法的頻率不在少數(shù)。特別是寫作的原因分析類題目和口語Part 3中的Why類問題。

注:打*的只適用于雅思寫作。