Notes || On Writing Well (Chap.1&2)By Elvira

2017年10月30日,正式开始我的英语原版书籍阅读。

所读书籍:On Writing Well  by William Zinsser 

章节:

Part 1 | Principles

1. The Transaction

2. Simplicity

……


读书笔记 - 结构: 

第一部分:字词学习。

第二部分:中文感悟。


Words and Expressions

1. avocation

He was going to talk about writing as an avocation.

【义】 Your avocation is a job or activity that you do because you are interested in it, rather than earn your living. 业余爱好,嗜好。(罕)职业。

【源】前缀 a- 同ab-,意为从,从……离开。vocation,职业。avocation 即偏离主业。(Ev:如果是一般的四六级教师,则会说,这种前缀都指否定。)

2. arduous 

Coming home from an arduous day at the hospital, he would go straight to his yellow pad and write his tensions away.

【义】involving a lot of strength and effort  费力的,努力的,险峻的。

【造句】It will be arduous, but I am sure that we will overcome.

3.fiddle

Some people write their first draft in one long burst and then revise; others can't write the second paragraph until they have fiddled endlessly with the first.

【义】n. a violin

- 这个词很有意思,意为小提琴。作动词意为“瞎搞,摆弄;虚度时光,拉小提琴”。请问那些说英文的Native Speakers当初是怎么想的,莫非当初有人以拉民间小提琴的人去代指那些虚度光阴的人吗?(只是玩笑话,并没有贬意,不过这词的词源似乎并不好查。fiddler :小提琴手/游荡者)

- fit as a fiddle 身体健康;精神饱满的。

- fiddle with 摆弄;弄虚作假。

【引申词汇】doodle

-涂鸦。可能来自dawdle,原指浪费时间,游荡,闲逛。因此,在英语国家,涂鸦不可避免的与浪费时间(a waste of time)挂上了等号。(但自从“涂鸦思考力”盛行,才让一部分人对doodle的想法产生了改变。)fiddle和doodle,似乎有点异曲同工之妙。

4. emotional baggage 感情包袱

What emotional baggage did he bring along?

- 或许English Speaker 和华语地区的人,在“包袱”这方面还是有共性的。


感悟 - Thoughts || 写作是一门技术。

- I said that writing is a craft, not an art, and that the man who runs away from his craft because he lacks inspiration is fooling himself.

有一本写作类书籍曾提出一个“写作障碍”:有些人“被宣判根本不适合写作。”

因为这一障碍,有些人就退缩到了现实生活中。但是既然写作是一门技术,远不似人们想象的那般艰难,那也便没有天生不适合写作这一说。通过刻意练习,完全是可以进步的。(第一章就引出这论点,这教诲,还好意思不把这书读完吗?不能的。)

- We are a society strangling in unnecessary words, circular constructions, pompous frills and meaningless jargon.

- A clear sentence is no accident. Very few sentences come out right the first time, or even the third time.  

浮夸而重复的辞藻并非真正的文笔。只为增加字数而硬生生憋出来的尤其不是。

浮夸的辞藻,无用的行话不仅仅令读者感到窒息、厌倦,更会无穷无尽地搜刮掠夺着作者的言语,到最后作者把腹中那一点墨水全部倒进书中,作品的进度停滞不前,作者早已山穷水尽,而读者昏昏欲睡。

如Mr.Zinsser 所言,"a clear sentence is no accident."

If you find that writing is hard, it's because it is hard.


第一次试着写这种读书笔记,从下午一直写到了晚上六点半才完成,虽然仍有许多不足,但“完成胜过完美。”,“迈出了第一步等于成功了一半。”,便也到此收笔了。还请大家多多批评,我会虚心学习。

做人嘛,最重要的是要有进步啊。不要一辈子得过且过,身体虚了补补胃,脑袋空了读读书。——许紫弈如是说。

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