距離今年六月份英語四級考試越來越近了，在剩下不多的寶貴的備考時間里，各位考生在復習英語四級作文時，更應該掌握復習技巧，多加練習。


　　說明文是用言簡意賅的語言來介紹客觀事物，講清事理，并給人增加知識的一種文體。說明文解說事物的特點、發展變化規律，分析前因后果，目的在于使讀者“明白事理”，獲得必要的信息，對事物有個較完整明晰的了解和認識。說明文不同于記敘文和議論文，它重在給人介紹，讓人明白，因而，輕“情義”重事實。說明文與議論文關系密切，有人將其統稱為議論文。但在寫作的目的和方法上兩者仍有區別。說明文主要是通過事實客觀地解釋或說明事物本身；而議論文則以事實、數據等為證據，表明主觀見解，使讀者信服或贊同某一觀點。

　　歷年四級考試中的“How I Overcome Difficulties in Learning English”、“My Ideal Job”以及圖表作文的第一段都屬于說明文的范疇，如，2002年6月的根據坐標圖寫題為“Students Use of Computers”的作文。

　　說明文必須按一定的順序進行說明：時間順序、空間順序、邏輯順序或認識順序，選擇具體的特點和細節來說明。

　　所以，說明文的思路要圍繞說明順序、事物的特點和細節展開。例如：

　　范文點評

　　A Famous Clock

　　When you visit London, one of the first things you will see is Big Ben, the famous clock which can be heard all over the world on the B.B.C. If the Houses of Parliament had not been burned down in 1834, the great clock would never have been erected. Big Ben takes its name from Sir Benjamin Hall who was responsible for the making of the clock when the new Houses of Parliament were being built. It is not only of immense size, but is extremely accurate as well. Officials from Greenwich Observatory have the clock checked twice a day. On the B.B.C. you can hear the clock when it is actually striking because microphones are connected to the clock tower. Big Ben has rarely gone wrong. Once, however, it failed to give the correct time. A painter who had been working on the tower hung a pot of paint on one of the hands and slowed it down!

　　【點評】這是《新概念英語》中的一篇經典說明文，介紹了世界著名的“大本鐘”。文章開篇指明該鐘位于英國倫敦，且全世界的人們通過BBC就能夠聽到鐘聲。接下來講述了“大本鐘”的由來，特點——不僅外型巨大，而且走時準確，在結尾處講了“大本鐘”的一個幽默的小插曲——油漆工把油漆桶掛在指針上，把鐘弄慢了。細讀這篇文章，我們不難發現，區區159個單詞就把“大本鐘”的光輝形象牢牢地刻在讀者的腦海里，為什么？本文基于事實，分析了主題的來龍去脈，語言簡潔又不失生動貼切，作者態度客觀又充滿幽默，使讀者既“明白了事理”，又對事物有較完整明晰的了解認識，此乃說明文之真諦也。
 

　　以“Goals”為題打開一篇說明文的思路。

　　參考思路

　　1）目標的分類：（可根據時間順序，空間順序、邏輯順序或認識順序，任選一個進行分類和排列）

　　2）各個類別的特點和細節：

　　3）組織成文：

　　范文點評

　　Goals

　　Everyone has goals. Many people do not reach their goals for lack of planning. These three sets of goals should be developed: lifetime, intermediate and short term.

　　Lifetime goals should be written out. These goals should be clear and reasonable. For instance, the goal to win a research prize is clear and measurable. Other lifetime goals might include publishing a certain number of influential books or articles, earning a departmental chairmanship at a major university, successfully competing for a grant from the National Science Foundation or securing a consultantship with a big corporation.

　　Intermediate goals relate to outcomes during the next few years. For the beginning doctoral student, intermediate goals may include completion of course work and preparation of a doctoral research proposal. Like lifetime goals, these are measurable and clearly stated.

　　Short-term goals involve outcomes expected during the next 12 months. These goals are more performance oriented, and they help with achievement of intermediate goals. Examples of short-term goals are earning an A in a course, learning how to program a computer or performing an experiment.
 

    說明文的說明方法

　　對這些方法我們要了解并且掌握：

　　1. 定義法（definition）

　　定義法是用下定義的方式去揭示事物本質特征或概念內涵。它能使讀者迅速抓住本質屬性和基本特點。此法的句型：

　　① … is a/the … of … which/that …② … relate to/involve/refer to …

　　【例】

　　（1）Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols which is used for human communication. 語言是人類用來交際的任意性的語音符號體系。

　　（2）Intermediate goals relate to outcomes during the next few years.

　　（3）Short-term goals involve outcomes expected during the next 12 months.

　　2. 舉例法（illustration）

　　舉例法就是舉出實際事例來說明事物的方法，是最常見，往往也是最有效的闡釋模式。

　　專家提醒

　　舉例時應挑選具體、典型且有能力表達清楚的例子，并注意按照一定的順序編排。

　　請看上述范文第二段：“For instance”引出“lifetime goals”的實例，如，贏得研究獎金、出版有影響書或文章、獲得大學的系主任職位、獲得國家自然科學基金及大公司穩定的顧問職位。

　　3. 分類法（classification）

　　分類法就是把說明的對象，按一定的標準劃分成不同類別分別加以說明的方法。如：上述范文介紹人生的三種目標，并按照時間的長短對終生目標、長期目標和短期目標做了分類說明。

　　4. 比較法（comparison）

　　比較法是用一個事物和與其有聯系的其他事物加以對比的說明方法。目的是為了幫助讀者準確地區分事物，通過對比達到對該事物的深刻認識。

　　如：上述范文對三種人生目標在時間上和實際操作上進行了比較，并闡明了彼此的聯系。

　　（1）Lifetime goals should be written out.

　　（2）Like lifetime goals, these are measurable and clearly stated.

　　（3）These goals are more performance oriented, and they help with achievement of intermediate goals.

　　5. 數字法（statistics）

　　數字法是運用數據來表明事物的本質和特點，準確合理的數據使文章精確可信。

　　【例】

　　（1）Nearly half of all Americans over age 20 wear a bridge or denture，and more than 20 percent have complete upper and lower denture. By age 50, one out of every two persons has gum disease.

　　（2）And it seems sensible to wait. One quarter of all marriages between people under twenty-one end in divorce. In Britain in 1972, there were 124,248 divorces.

　　說明文的說明方法除上面介紹的常見的幾種以外，還有諸如分項法、列舉法、比喻法及引用法等，只有綜合運用多種說明方法，才能多角度、多層次地全面、清晰、準確地展示客觀事物的本來面貌。

　　1. 用定義法解釋：

　　CET-4:

　　the Olympic Games:

　　a skeleton in the cupboard:

　　Hope Project:

　　qualifications:

　　2. 用舉例法說明：

　　教育的重要性:

　　當前網絡游戲的危害:

　　成功的方法:

　　健身的種種看法:

　　大學生學好英語的方法:

　　3. 用分類法說明：

　　社會實踐的方面:

　　課外活動:

　　大學生談戀愛的原因:

　　大學畢業生的分配情況:

　　食堂的伙食:

　　4. 用比較法說明：

　　留學的利弊:

　　兼職的好壞:

　　不同的減肥方法:

　　題海戰術與素質教育:

　　5. 用數字法說明:

　　大學生的身體狀況:

　　大學生的就業現狀:

　　汽油價格上漲帶來的影響:

　　手機的使用情況:

　　中國人住房狀況:
 

　　6. 借助說明文的構思方法，看看下列題目該如何寫：

　　（1）The Layout of a Hospital

　　Direction: You are asked to write a composition about “The Layout Of a Hospital”. Locate some important departments in the hospital based on the picture and information given below. Your compositions should be no less than 100 words.

　　1）the Emergency Department

　　2）the Out-patient Department

　　3）the Surgery Department

　　4）Dispensary/Pharmacy

　　5）Physician Department

　　6）the Eye, Ear, and Throat Department

　　7）the Dental Department

　　8）the Laboratory

　　9）the X-ray Department

　　10）the Administrative Building

　　11）the Ward

　　參考范文

　　Near the gate, on the west side of the road is the Emergency Department. Opposite the Emergency Department across the Main Road is the Out-patient Department. The building to the southwest of the lake is the Dispensary, which faces the Surgery Department lying on the other side of the road. Along the west wall, from south to north, stand three buildings: the Physician Department, the Eye, Ear, and Throat Department, and the Dental Department. The Laboratory is to the northwest of the round about, and beside the Laboratory, the X-ray Department is located on the same side of the road.

　　A winding road by the lake leads to the Ward. Near the end of the main road, the Administrative Building is situated on the east side. The hospital is nicely and conveniently laid out.

　　1. How to Lose Weight

　　思路提示：第一段先綜述現象：大家都想保持身材要求減肥。第二段介紹多余的體重在身體中形成的原因。第三段提出相應的減肥方法。在最后一段，提出總結性的看法，指出減肥的要訣就是：減少攝入的卡路里，通過運動增加卡路里的消耗量。

　　參考范文

　　How to Lose Weight

　　A beautiful and healthy figure is everyone’s dream. However, not everyone can easily fulfill this dream. Overweight people often have to find precise ways to lose weight.

　　For normal healthy people, weight is gained by taking in more calories than the body needs. Therefore, if you want to lose weight, you either have to eat fewer calories or find ways to use up more calories you take in. Dieting is probably the most popular way of losing weight, because when on a diet, you are taking fewer calories.

　　However, the body needs many elements in order to stay healthy, and “fad” or starvation diets are bad because they are not nutritiously balanced. A better way of dieting is to keep track of everything you eat, either by your own careful choices or by buying, for a week at a time, the packaged meals sold by some diet companies. If you do not normally exercise, you should also begin sensible exercises for your age and lifestyle to help your body use up surplus calories.

　　In short, a combined effort of reducing the calories you eat and using up more calories than usual through exercises should help you shed off part of your body.

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