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新课程标准在语言知识八级要求中提出,高中生要“学习并掌握常见语篇形式的基本篇章结构和逻辑关系。”在九级要求中提出“逐步接触和了解较为复杂的语言现象,对较复杂的语言现象具有一定的归纳、分析和解释能力。”由此可见,掌握英语句子中长难句分析的方法,能分析较为复杂的语言现象,对提高学生的英语阅读能力和英语水平是很有益处的。
一、英语中长难句的判断及其特点
在英语句子中,一般认为有25~30个以上单词的句子为长句。难句,或者叫复杂句,则是指包含各种语法关系、两个以上主谓结构和特殊句型的句子。一般来讲,英语中的长句多为复杂句。由于中文的修辞顺序都是前置,而英语中可以有后置定语,扩展的后置定语常常是带从句或长修饰语的复杂句,中国学生对此很不习惯,这就造成了理解上的困难。所以,英语中的长句对于中国学生来讲就是难句。一般说来,英语长难句有如下几个特点:
(1)结构复杂,逻辑层次多;
(2)常需根据上下文作词义的引申;
(3)常需根据上下文对指代词的指代关系做出判断;
(4)并列成分多;
(5)修饰语多,特别是后置定语很长;
(6)习惯搭配和成语经常出现。
二、英语中长难句分析的基本方法
在分析英语长句结构时,首先要找出全句的主语、谓语和宾语,即句子的主干结构;找出句中所有的谓语结构、非谓语结构、介词短语和从句(①名词性从句,包括主语从句、宾语从句、表语从句和同位语从句;②定语从句;③状语从句),分析各从句的作用以及它们之间的关系。例如,是否为主语从句、宾语从句、表语从句、状语从句或强调句、感叹句等;分析词、短语和从句之间的关系;分析句子中是否有固定词组或固定搭配、插入语等其他成分;分析中心内容及其各层意思,然后再分析各层意思之间的逻辑关系,最后综合以上分析得出全句的整体意思。分析的顺序应是:找出核心(主谓宾)——分析其他部分之间或与核心部分(主谓宾)的关系——整合全句的意思。下面以几篇英语阅读为例剖析一下分析的基本方法:
例1:Finally,although some social science majors may still find it more difficult than their technically trained classmates to land the first job,recent graduates report that they don’t regret their choice of study.
分析:although some social science majors may still find it more difficult than their technically trained classmates to land the first job是第一个主谓结构,由于有although引导,所以它是个让步状语从句。re-cent graduates report是第二个主谓结构,是全句的主句。they don’t regret their choice of study是第三个主谓结构,是一个宾语从句。
这句话意思是:最终尽管有些社科学学生在找第一份工作时比学工科的同学要困难些,但是一些刚刚大学毕业的社科学学生并不后悔他们的专业选择。
例2:The study also showed that the most sought-after quality in a person who was looking for a job was communication skills,noted as“very important”by 92 percent of the companies.
分析:The study also showed是第一个主谓结构,是全句的主句。the most sought-after quality in a person who was looking for a job was communication skills是第二个主谓结构,做show的宾语,是宾语从句。句中的most sought-after是个复合形容词,意为:最为人们所追求的。who was looking for a job是第三个主谓结构,做person的定语从句。noted as very important”by 92 percent of the companies由于没有主语,所以它是个分词结构,修饰communication skills,作定语。
这句话意思是:研究表明,用人单位最希望他们的雇员能够有与人交际的能力。这种能力被92%的公司认为是最重要的。
三、英语中长难句的分析拓展
除了运用以上分析的基本方法,在高中英语阅读中我们还要注意以下因素对阅读所造成的障碍:
1.倒装句与正常语序不同,往往会加深理解的难度
例如:Coupled with the growing quantity of information is the development of technologies which enable the storage and delivery of more information with greater speed to more locations than has ever been possible before.
这句话意总是:伴随信息量大大增加而来的是各种相关技术的发展,从而使人们可以更快地储存更多的信息并把更多的信息传播到四面八方,这在以前是不可能的。
2.虚拟语气会造成句子产生歧义,其表示的内容与真实相反,加上其形式变化多种多样,就加大了理解上的困难
例如:If the bees had stayed in Brazil,this would have been bad enough.But now they are on the move,heading northward in countless millions towards Central and North America.
3.比较级和最高级也是增加句子难度的因素之一
例如:No less important than students’academic work are their extra-curricular activities.
A.Extra-curricular activities are equally important compared with academic work.
B.Academic work is less important than extra-curricular activities.
C.Extra-curricular activities are much more important than academic work.
D.Academic work,no less than extra-curricular activities, is important.
(与例句意思相同的选项是A)
4.双重否定:有的句子含有形式上和语义上的双重否定设置圈套,会干扰阅读者的思维
例如:It was not unusual to see children doing the work of adults in great many rural areas.=It was usual that children often did adults’work in many rural areas.
5.分隔与省略会导致句子难度加大
例如:However,in the years that followed,my now 5-year-old daughter has learned a lot about wheel-chairs,thanks in large part to the staff at an assisted living facility,which gifted her with a Barbie doll in a book about a boy whose father was an amputee(被截肢者),and in larger part to the fact that the relation-ship my daughter had with my grandmother prior to her stroke was unbelievably close.
6.有时一个句子难以理解,是由于句子中的某一个习惯用语或固定词组引起的,如果阅读者不熟悉的话,整个句子的理解也就无从下手,因此平时尽可能地多掌握一些固定词组和习惯用语是非常必要的
例如:Harry was a capable lawyer,but it was difficult for him to live up to the reputation established by his more brilliant father.= Though Harry was a capable lawyer,it was difficult for him to equal the reputation set up by his father,who was more brilliant than him.
下面以一篇阅读作为实例来进行句法分析,采取“分割”的办法(即去掉主要句子成分主语、谓语和宾语之间的分割成分),来分析语法,找出主要意思,以达到“化繁为简,化难为易”的目的,因为表面看起来复杂的句子其实都由若干个简单句所构成的。
He found out that Kit Williams has spent his childhood near Ampthill,in Bedfordshire,and thought that he must have buried the hare in a place he knew well,but he still could not see the connection with Katherine of Aragon,until one day he came across two stone crosses in Ampthill Park and learnt that they had been built in her honor in 1773.
分析:这是由三个并列分句构成的句子:①He found out that Kit Williams has spent his childhood near Ampthill,in Bedfordshire.② He thought that he must have buried the hare in a place he knew well.③He still could not see the connection with Katherine of Aragon,until one day he came across two stone crosses in Ampthill Park and learnt that they had been built in her honor in 1773.在第一和第二个分句中,分别有两个宾语从句:Kit Williams has spent his childhood near Ampthill,in Bedfordshire.和He must have buried the hare in a place he knew well.第三个分句较为复杂些:其中有一个句型not…until;在由until引导的时间状语从句中又有一个宾语从句:they had been built in her honor in 1773作learnt的宾语。
四、如何能有效地提高英语阅读能力,提高分析长难句的能力
要想提高英语阅读能力,提高分析长难句的能力,要做到以下几点:
1.扎实的英语句子结构和语法基础知识
扎实的英语句子结构知识是分析长难句的基本功。在英语学习中,常常会出现这种现象,即:英语教师认为学生在初中就学过英语句子结构知识了,所以在教学中往往会忽视这块知识的教学。而学生们又会简单认为英语句子结构和中文差不多,对这块知识又不重视。因此,英语学习和复习中应该重点有针对性地、有所侧重地夯实这块知识的基本功。首先要弄清句子中各块结构之间、修饰词语之间的关系。如:从句与主句之间的关系;什么是补语,英语中补语和汉语中的补语有什么不同;英语中倒装是怎么回事;英语中的句子结构分析和中文的句子结构分析有什么不同,等等。当然,还要系统整理基本语法知识,归纳熟悉特殊语法现象。这和句子分析与理解有着密切的关系。如上述例句中的noted as“very important”by 92 percent of the companies,如果分词基础不好的话,也就会理解错了。
2.广博的词汇知识
新课程标准在英语八级的词汇要求中提出,达到八级的高中生英语词汇要求是3300个左右的单词和400~500个习惯用语或固定搭配。而九级要求则是4500个左右的单词和一定数量的习惯用语或固定搭配。很明显我国对高中生的英语词汇要求将越来越高。我们不仅必须全面掌握课标要求的词汇和词组,还要细致地了解词根、词缀、近义辨析、同义比较、一般用法、固定搭配等。
3.阅读训练后细致的处理工作
在学习和复习阶段很多同学在做阅读理解方面有个误区,他们只把注意力放在做题目上,只追求做题的数量和正确率,而忽视了做题后的处理。没有把题目再仔细地看看,检查一下自己在理解和句子分析上存在着什么问题,看看文章中有什么值得自己去记和复习的语言现象。对于在阅读上有困难的同学,一定要在阅读完后再把文章反复地看几遍。目的有以下几点:
(1)把在做题时由于时间限制而无法理解的句子进行分析、弄清句子结构,锻炼自己分析句子的能力。
(2)努力扩大自己的词汇知识,尤其是老词新意或是老词新词性。如上述例句中的majors,land和graduates,这些例子在我们的练习中几乎是俯拾皆是,千万不可视而不见。
(3)注意文章中对英语国家的文化或社会习俗的介绍。这也是我们很多同学比较薄弱的一面,而又恰恰是我们同学有时在分析了句子后还无法理解句子意思的主要原因。