On Writing Well Day 4 Chapter 7&8 Usage & Unity

I. Words&Expressions

1. …that I'm mucking about in the argot（行话=jargon）of the youth culture and really know better.

muck n. 污秽（物）粪便 make a muck of 把... 弄糟  eg.I really made a muck of the exam.

          v.  常用搭配  muck about/around 胡混、闲荡 eg. Some boys were mucking around on bikes.

2. …a “Usage Panel” to help them appraise the new words and dubious constructions that had come …

dubious adj. probably not honest 可疑/靠不住的 eg. The firm was accused of dubious accounting practice.

            the dubious distinction/honor/pleasure of （doing）sth.（ 做某事的）污名、耻辱、不信

          eg.The US enjoys the dubious distinction of being the lawsuit capital of the world.

3. Unity not only keeps the reader from straggling off in all directions.

straggle v.  零星的走（in/into/through）The children were beginning to straggle in from the playground.

                蔓延、凌乱的散布（along/across/down）Unpainted wooden bulidings straggled along the main road.

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II. Summary&Reflection

Chapter 7 Usage

本章节看得有点凌乱，举栗子很多，这增加了我的理解负担。也只能理出个大概，而且还有所片面

作者主要还是围绕这个问题usage：What is good usage？

Approach：

1. to try to separate usage from jargon

2. to separate good English from technical English

3. to express myself clearly and simply to someone else

Chapter 8 Unity

这章节是讲解method里的第一个：unity。

##Unity is the anchor of good writing.

1.get your unity straight：unity of pronoun/tense/mood（人称、时态、基调的一致性）

2.think small：围绕主旨，从小处着笔来进行写作。

##好句摘录：

1. The only way to learn to write is to force yourself to produce a certain number of words on a regular basis.

2. All writing is ultimately a question of solving a problem.