托福写作地道美语:名词化
新托福写作高分需要亮点,英文从搜集精彩句型,直到运用自如。只有不断地练习,才可以熟能生巧,如果说单词是句子的灵魂,那句子就是文章的基石,而句型则是不同品质的基石,可以让整篇文章充满多样的色彩,读起来让人很有兴趣。那么到底怎样在托福写作中写出地道的美语呢?
新托福考试作为国外类考试,其写作部分的用词地道的重要性毋庸置疑。然而,由于历史、地理和社会的原因,英民族更注重抽象思维,他们擅长用抽象的概念来表达具体的事物。他们认为通过名词化可以产生大量抽象概念,满足英语表达抽象概念的需要。因此,擅用名词化不仅体现了写作水平,更是一种思维方式。
曾经一个针对中国几所顶尖大学的优秀作文的调查显示,20 篇优秀作文中名词化的使用频率为7%-8%,而普通习作的使用频率仅为5%-6%。与此同时,选用了20 篇英语国家学生的英语作文,同样的方法统计出其名词化的使用频率为10%-15%。
有人更是戏说道,老外眼中句子分为3个档次,最差的是主动句,较好的是被动句,倒装句等,最好的nominalization(名词化)的句子,这样的句子最学术最适合写论文。那么面对这样的差异,我们需要重新审视我们写作中的思维方式,做到如何恰到好处又不“画蛇添足”。
简单说,名词化即是动词或形容词被用作名词的现象。
比如动词转成名词:discovery->discovery, move->movement, refuse->refusal,又比如形容词转成名词:careless->carelessness, difficult->difficulty, intense->intensity。那么什么情况下,我们需要进行名词化呢?
A. 谓语动词的宾语部分
原句:I do not know either what she meant or what he intends.
名词化:I do not know either her meaning or his intentions.
B. 结合被动形式
原句:If people decide without enough persuasive information, ...
名词化:If a decision is made without enough persuasive information, ...
C. 取代诸如从句中“the fact that”的用法
原句:The fact that I denied what he accused me of impressed the jury.
名词化:My denial of his accusations impressed the jury.
更好的名词化:a. When I denied his accusations, I impressed the jury.
b. In denying his accusations, I impressed the jury.
D. 名词化部分用在there is/are的后面
原句:We demand that the government stop taxing entertainment.
名词化:There is a demand for an end to taxation on entertainment.
原句:The floods considerably eroded the land.
名词化:There was considerable erosion of the land from the floods.
然而,有些时候,在我们的思维方式中认为理所应当使用“名词化”时,老外认为是没有必要的。比如:
A. 名词化部分跟在动词后面
原句(名词化“冗余”):The police conducted an investigation into the matter.
改后:The police investigated the matter.
B. 名词化部分作为主语
原句:Our discussion is concerned with a tax cut.
改后:We discussed a tax cut.
C. 连续进行名词化
原句:a. First, she reviewed the evolution of the dorsal fin.
b. There was a first a review of the evolution of the dorsal fin.
改后:First, she reviewed how the dorsal fin evolved.
D. 连接部分名词化
原句:Their cessation of hostilities was because of their personnel losses.
改后:They ceased hostilities because they lost personnel.
原句:The instability of the motor housing did not preclude the completion of the field trials.
改后:Even though the motor housing was unstable, the research staff completed the field trials.
以上是中国考生托福写作中常见的名词化缺失或名词化滥用的例子。对于新托福写作来说,在保证基本的语言语法不出错的基础上,如果能更多地正确使用名词化,文章不但更地道,也更易取得高分。当然,熟练掌握名词化不是一蹴而就的事情,平时需要多积累,多运用。