研究 - 放下與接受 - 淺論英文寫作

[grc45]

感謝 Barrie 大的介入探討，好眼力﹗

我相信還有值得探討的地方，有請大大們齊來參與 ~

[grc45]

這是剛搜索到，從 500 Words on Words 有關於 絕對化之字辭的討論，Barrie 兄的指教可說是相當的正確，在下文中即可證明他是對的，但是請看那些 highlight 的說明，也可見到語文演化的無奈與現實，該結論的藍色部份，力倡在正式寫作時要盡量避免，這是我當年的困惑之處。

http://500wordsonwords.wordpress.com...-unique-words/

Absolutes: Some Very Unique Words
Jump to Comments

Can something be more than perfect? A little bit perfect? Or, if something’s one of a kind, can it be more one of a kind?

If you’re taking these ideas literally, the answer is no. Perfect, by definition, means there’s nothing better to be had. It’s as good as it can possibly be.

Perfect is what’s known as an absolute. Perfect is perfect; it doesn’t come in degrees of perfectness.

But what gets tricky, is that in everyday speech, absolutes like perfect get modified all the time. So, you may ask, is it ok to say “more perfect?”


First, what’s an absolute?
Absolutes are words that have a very specific black-and-white meaning.

Think of it this way: when you describe something as disgusting, it can vary by degrees. That milk that’s beginning to turn sour is a little disgusting. The fish your colleague is reheating in the microwave is more disgusting. The dish of sour cream that rolled out of the grocery bag in your trunk last week is extremely disgusting.

But with absolutes, it either is or it isn’t. Think of it like the word dead. No one’s more dead, less dead or marginally dead. They’re dead, or they’re alive. Two choices. It’s the same with other absolutes, which include:

unique
perfect
entirely
fatal
infinite
finite
irrevocable
As another example, think about irrevocable. It means that something’s final, unable to be changed. So by definition, something can’t be just a little irrevocable, or more irrevocable, or it wouldn’t be irrevocable at all.

(Wow. I had a little semantic satiation incident with irrevocable.)

So what’s the issue?
The question arises when in popular speech, we say things like “He’s got a very unique personality.” Or “Each dessert is more perfect than the one before!”

The argument is that these words are absolutes, so you’re not making any sense by modifying them with very or with comparatives like more. Unique means one of a kind, without peer. So technically, nothing can be more unique or the most unique – it’s simply unique or it’s not.

Saying your dog’s habits are more unique than your cat’s is like saying great-aunt Margie is deader than great-uncle Horace.

So … can I say “more unique” or not?
Here’s my take on it. Don’t modify absolutes in academic or formal writing. It’ll help polish your writing and speech by showing you know the literal meanings of these words. No one can fault you for not modifying an absolute.

Plus, there are some easy workarounds. Just take a moment to think about what you really want to say. Instead of a vague “more unique,” choose a more specific word. Maybe it’s more peculiar. Or more awe-inspiring.

Even in everyday speech, I’d recommend avoiding saying that that movie was “soooo perfect!”

Why? Well, because words are only useful to us if we all agree on their meanings. And using words like perfect or unique – the two worst offenders – in this way waters down their meaning. The words don’t have the impact they should if we’re battering them with unnecessary modifiers.

However …
While I recommend avoiding modifying absolutes, I must admit that this is a natural part of the evolution of language. If everyone does it often enough, the meanings of the words change or broaden to show how we use them. I am a fan of descriptive linguistics, after all.
The bottom line is just to be aware of absolutes, however you decide to use them, and know that especially in academic and formal writing, modifying them is generally frowned upon.

[grc45]

以下為相對關鍵的英語語法學習要點，同時這也是個學習英語不錯的網站，推薦參考~

http://www.yourdictionary.com/gramma...f-Grammar.html

11 Rules of Grammar Here are 11 rules of grammar to help you reach more bravely into the scary world of sentence construction and accurate communication.


Free Grammar Checks - Find And Fix Grammar Mistakes And Improve Your Writing Now! www.EssayRater.com/Grammar_Check

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Spanish Language - Start Speaking Spanish From The Moment You Begin. Register Now! www.SpanishCentre.com

Active Voice: The Most Important of the 11 Rules of GrammarEvery human language starts an active sentence with the subject, or the "doer." In English, the verb (what's being done) follows the subject. If there is an object (the receiver of the action), it comes after the verb. The formula looks like this: S+V+O. This rule is the foundation of the English language.

Here are some examples:

Mary walked the dog.

The dog liked Mary.

I did not like the dog.

SubjectivitySometimes you want to link two ideas with a second S+V+O combination. When you do, you need a coordinating conjunction. The new formula looks like this: S+V+O, COORDINATING CONJUNCTION+S+V+O.

Coordinating conjunctions are easy to remember with an acronymic mnemonic device:

FANBOYS

For
And
Nor
But
Or
Yet
So
Coordinating CommaFANBOYS are used when connecting two ideas as one in a single sentence, but don't forget the comma.

For example:

I do not walk Mary's dog, nor do I wash him.

Mary fed her dog, and I drank tea.

Mary feeds and walks her dog every day, but the dog is still hyperactive.

The Serial CommaThe serial or Oxford comma is the most controversial of these 11 rules of grammar. Some want to eliminate it altogether while others just don't know how to use it. The serial comma is the last comma in a list, usually appearing before "and." The serial comma comes after "dog" in this sentence:

Pets R Us has lizards, dogs, and birds.

Commas separate units in a list. In the above case, each unit only has one part, so it's easy. Where people get confused is when the units are bigger, but the rule still applies:

Pets R Us has lizards and frogs, dogs and cats, and parakeets and macaws.

Notice that the serial comma comes before "and" but not the last "and" in the sentence. The "and" that follows the comma is only there because it sounds better. Grammatically, "and" is irrelevant. Only units matter.

The SemicolonA list of grammar rules has to include the scariest of punctuation marks. It might look funny, but don't be afraid of the semicolon; it's the easiest thing in the world to use! Say you want to connect two ideas but can't figure out or can't be bothered to use a coordinating conjunction. The two ideas can be separate sentences, but you think that they are so closely connected; they really should be one. Use a semicolon.

Mary's dog is hyperactive; it won't stop barking or sit still.

My heart is like a cup of Lapsang Souchong tea; it's bitter and smoky.

Mary has to walk her dog every day; it is the most hyperactive dog anyone has ever seen.

Simple and EasyThe simple present is the tense you use for any habitual action. The things you always do or do every Tuesday are described with the simple present, which just means you pick the first form of any verb.

Mary likes dogs.

I don't walk Mary's dog.

Mary and I drink tea every Tuesday together.

Progressive for NowThe present progressive tense is for anything that is happening right now. All of the progressive tenses are easy to spot because their verbs always end with "-ing" and get a helping verb. A helping verb is just so we know who and when we're talking about. In the present progressive, the helping verbs are the present tense conjugations of "to be."

I am drinking Lapsang Souchong tea.

The barking dogs outside are driving me crazy.

Mary is playing with her hyperactive dog.

The Simple PastWhen we talk about the past, we have to add an "-ed" to regular verbs to make the second form. Irregular verbs are tricky and have their own sets of rules. Drink, for example, turns to "drank." Most of the time, though, "-ed" will do.

I drank a lot of Lapsang Souchong tea yesterday, but Mary didn't.

The dogs stopped barking two seconds ago, and I am feeling better.

Mary played fetch with her hyperactive dog.

Perfect TimingPractice makes perfect with the perfect tenses. Here are three rules to finish the 11 rules of grammar. If you remember these, you'll be well on your way to perfection.

Present Perfect

The present perfect can be confusing for some, but it is one of the most important rules of grammar. When people talk about things that have already happened but consider the time in which they occurred to be unfinished, they use the third form of the verb with a helping verb. The helping verb for the present perfect is the present tense conjugation of "to have."

I have drunk three cups of Lapsang Souchong tea today.

Mary's hyperactive cur dog has bitten me three times so far.

Mary has walked her hyperactive poodle 100 times this week.

Unfortunately, the only way to know the third forms of verbs is to remember them.

Present Perfect Progressive

When the action as well as the time is considered unfinished, the verb loads up on third form helping verbs ("to be" and "to have") and changes to the progressive form.

Western countries have been waging wars in the Middle East for thousands of years.

I have been drinking tea all day.

Mary's dog has been barking like crazy since it was born.

Past Perfect

When two things happen in the past, we have to mark which one happened first. The one that happened first changes to third form and gets the helping verb, "had."

By the time I drank one cup of Lapsang Souchong, Mary's dog had barked a million times.

I had not yet eaten breakfast when Mary walked her dog.

Mary couldn't stop laughing; her dog had bitten me again.

[barrielee]

作者: grc45

感謝 Barrie 大的介入探討，好眼力﹗

我相信還有值得探討的地方，有請大大們齊來參與 ~

客氣!
g兄所提的論點,深感贊同

我們受中文影響,英文寫作難以脫離中文思維,往往一篇四平八穩的作文,文法幾近完美,但是老外一看就覺得怪怪的

我大一英文時遇到一位美國老師剛好來台灣作客席教授一年,他也是漢學家中文程度不輸中國人(他的研究是希望在有生之年把史記翻譯成英文)

他指出我們的毛病,寫作時太貪心以至文章太囉嗦,一個簡單意思就要用複雜的句子表達,很多時三,四行才見到句號,不過其實還有一個原因,台灣學生英文寫作本來就不強,把簡單東西複雜化是用來"湊字數",久而久之成習慣改不了

美國人認為這是極差的表達方式,寫作應該是簡潔,不要害怕用simple sentense

題外話~
媒體記者也常犯一個毛病,在記者會提問題時很貪心,要求只能問一個問題,大家都不會守規矩,一口氣問一堆,結果,反而被當事人/政客避掉最難堪哪個,選擇其中最易回答的

上星期看電視轉台時,看到某節目是台北縣長與國外某知名財經大師座談會,好像是周縣長在主持,他秀英文顯示不輸給總統,其中一段他提問花了半分鐘以上,來賓的大師聽完回了一個字"sorry?.."

意思可能是,整段問題拖太長組織不好,以至對方聽到後面搞不清縣長想表達啥?周縣長滿面尷尬再用力簡單重復之前的問題

[barrielee]

開個玩笑,如果在台灣作文題目是"第一夫人的角色",我想用一個形容詞就能完成

greedy

greedy for what?自己加上去

[grc45]

作者: barrielee

客氣!
g兄所提的論點,深感贊同

我們受中文影響,英文寫作離以脫離中文思維,往往一篇四平八穩的作文,文法幾近完美,但是老外一看就覺得怪怪的

我大一英文時遇到一位美國老師剛好來台灣作客席教授一年,他也是漢學家中文程度不輸中國人(他的研究是希望在有生之年把史記翻譯成英文)

他指出我們的毛病,寫作時太貪心以至文章太囉嗦,一個簡單意思就要用複雜的句子表達,很多時三,四行才見到句號,不過其實還有一個原因,台灣學生英文寫作本來就不強,把簡單東西複雜化是用來"湊字數",久而久之成習慣改不了

美國人認為這是極差的表達方式,寫作應該是簡潔,不要害怕用simple sentense

題外話~
媒體記者也常犯一個毛病,在記者會提問題時很貪心,要求只能問一個問題,大家都不會守規矩,一口氣問一堆,結果,反而被當事人/政客避掉最難堪哪個,選擇其中最易回答的

上星期看電視轉台時,看到某節目是台北縣長與國外某知名財經大師座談會,好像是周縣長在主持,他秀英文顯示不輸給總統,其中一段他提問花了半分鐘以上,來賓的大師聽完回了一個字"sorry?.."

意思可能是,整段問題拖太長組織不好,以至對方聽到後面搞不清縣長想表達啥?周縣長滿面尷尬再用力簡單重復之前的問題

推您的好見解~


事實上，學習語言的方法很簡單，以最直接而不矯情的論述最有效，學習之王如小寶寶們，他們的意識很清楚，需求很簡單，餓了就想吃奶，他（她）會用最簡單的句子去表達，寫作也是一樣，只要單純的說出要旨就行了，英語的書寫首重簡單句，不過在學術上就要在文筆多用苦心了，因為它的水平有別於一般的論述。


我以前有收集全世界很有名的學術論文，真是大開眼界，水準質量之高的，真是嘆為觀止﹗不知道在哪顆舊硬碟中（三十多顆的舊硬碟，資料多到自己都很煩，要找的話，會很傷腦筋。


那種的寫作方法，真是文字的最高造詣；缺點是用多數的文字去表達，這一反一般的寫作法（多為英語為母語的人所著）；事實上，只要掌握一般的正常寫作也就可以了，表達敘述要清晰有力就是好文章。

[barrielee]

作者: grc45

推您的好見解~


事實上，學習語言的方法很簡單，以最直接而不矯情的論述最有效，學習之王如小寶寶們，他們的意識很清楚，需求很簡單，餓了就想吃奶，他（她）會用最簡單的句子去表達，寫作也是一樣，只要單純的說出要旨就行了，英語的書寫首重簡單句，不過在學術上就要在文筆多用苦心了，因為它的水平有別於一般的論述。


我以前有收集全世界很有名的學術論文，真是大開眼界，水準質量之高的，真是嘆為觀止﹗不知道在哪顆舊硬碟中（三十多顆的舊硬碟，資料多到自己都很煩，要找的話，會很傷腦筋。


那種的寫作方法，真是文字的最高造詣；缺點是用多數的文字去表達，這一反一般的寫作法（多為英語為母語的人所著）；事實上，只要掌握一般的正常寫作也就可以了，表達敘述要清晰有力就是好文章。

還一點小意見

作文語言技巧運用很重要,可是現代的學生不愛閱讀,腦袋空空,不要說英文寫作,中文作文都不能言之有物

小弟文筆不好,靠大量閱讀關注時事,社會各項資訊來充實自己,腦海泉源不致空泛,大學時代作文常靠與眾不同受老師關注

老師教導同一個題目寫了一千字,哪怕文法錯一半,總好過全沒錯誤卻寫不出二百字,因此技術上問題可以慢慢修正,沒有資料再換幾個題目還是寫不出有內涵的作文

個人的見解是g兄的第一夫人的角色,內容平鋪直述沒有犯任何毛病,因為要用來檢定就不需太大要求,如果是考試題目跟其他人比較,就欠缺力度

美國人喜歡舉例,如果是我的構想,會舉些例子如~老布希的太太Barbra像祖母型,Cilton的太太Hilary女強人型,現任第一夫人米雪兒..各有不同風格,因此,文章的結論是"The role of the first lady is to be her own master"做自己的主人無需被任何相夫教子的枷鎖框著(不止語法,這是美國老師的指導要學習美國人的思維寫出來的東西就比較不像中式英文)

[grc45]

作者: barrielee

還一點小意見

作文語言技巧運用很重要,可是現代的學生不愛閱讀,腦袋空空,不要說英文寫作,中文作文都不能言之有物

小弟文筆不好,靠大量閱讀關注時事,社會各項資訊來充實自己,腦海泉源不致空泛,大學時代作文常靠與眾不同受老師關注

老師教導同一個題目寫了一千字,哪怕文法錯一半,總好過全沒錯誤卻寫不出二百字,因此技術上問題可以慢慢修正,沒有資料再換幾個題目還是寫不出有內涵的作文

個人的見解是g兄的第一夫人的角色,內容平鋪直述沒有犯任何毛病,因為要用來檢定就不需太大要求,如果是考試題目跟其他人比較,就欠缺力度

美國人喜歡舉例,如果是我的構想,會舉些例子如~老布希的太太Barbra像祖母型,Cilton的太太Hilary女強人型,現任第一夫人米雪兒..各有不同風格,因此,文章的結論是"The role of the first lady is to be her own master"做自己的主人無需被任何相夫教子的枷鎖框著(不止語法,這是美國老師的指導要學習美國人的思維寫出來的東西就比較不像中式英文)

For an article, the better is using a neutual statement, unless it is a comparative resulting, and there was no room for this purpose at the moment.

[猜謎人]

unique如當形容詞
very是副詞可以修飾他
所以文法看應是沒有錯

[grc45]

作者: barrielee

還一點小意見

作文語言技巧運用很重要,可是現代的學生不愛閱讀,腦袋空空,不要說英文寫作,中文作文都不能言之有物

小弟文筆不好,靠大量閱讀關注時事,社會各項資訊來充實自己,腦海泉源不致空泛,大學時代作文常靠與眾不同受老師關注

老師教導同一個題目寫了一千字,哪怕文法錯一半,總好過全沒錯誤卻寫不出二百字,因此技術上問題可以慢慢修正,沒有資料再換幾個題目還是寫不出有內涵的作文

個人的見解是g兄的第一夫人的角色,內容平鋪直述沒有犯任何毛病,因為要用來檢定就不需太大要求,如果是考試題目跟其他人比較,就欠缺力度

美國人喜歡舉例,如果是我的構想,會舉些例子如~老布希的太太Barbra像祖母型,Cilton的太太Hilary女強人型,現任第一夫人米雪兒..各有不同風格,因此,文章的結論是"The role of the first lady is to be her own master"做自己的主人無需被任何相夫教子的枷鎖框著(不止語法,這是美國老師的指導要學習美國人的思維寫出來的東西就比較不像中式英文)

Barrie 大所言甚是，要寫得好就要多閱讀，現代人的寫作是在激烈的往後退，求職只要看 resume 寫的如何是沒有用的，那有可能是請人代筆的，只要來個當場臨機小寫作，隨便提個作文題目，肯定馬上見真章。

綠色部份的確是欠缺力度的，因為題目是第一夫人的角色，談的是她們連國會乃至於憲法都沒規範的額外無薪職責，她們家事、國事兩肩扛，所以就只能在談她們的辛苦、奉獻與謹言慎行的典範上予以敘述；假若用五分鐘以上的時間，來寫一篇 Comparison and Contrast Essay 的話，那還算公平，因為可分別以兩個反差很大的比較文章來寫，那麼題目應該如︰The different style of First Lady，較為適合。


我們的觀念來自出生後的背景，想法與邏輯自成一格，換句話說，老外到國內要寫出我們常用的中文，那也是很難的，除非他同時接受雙語教育，而且要真正的融入我國的生活環境，而不是身在國外。


我身處國外，對國內的很多新文化，因為在國內可能是藝人或某節目中某名人提出一個標新立異的非傳統名詞，那麼在海外無法接觸到此一資訊的我，就根本無法理解，像什麼小白；白目等等都是好例子，看的都很辛苦，所以有人會認為我的寫法有時像大陸或香港的口氣，這就是無奈的地方，一旦所有的資訊都是他們的，在海外台灣的聲音都被大陸大大的掩蓋掉了﹗


還有，就算網路有多發達與方便，投資所有時間，整天死守在電腦上網聊天，在接觸文化上，也未必能勝過真正的待在國內的方便。個人如此，那麼那些連背景都不同或根本都沒有的外國人，在台灣若寫出的中文不會半調子嗎？


相對的，我們如不極度的接觸外國文化，那麼寫出來的文章就會如同我在1988年所硬擠出來的文章一樣，對他們來說，這並不是篇當地文，而是中國思維文，死板而無生趣，哪怕是得個40/40=100%，那還是篇不成功的文章。


或許大家有興趣，可以把我那死板文給重寫一次，看能否寫得生動自然些。今天特別打電話找到 Erica，她說︰There is nothing incorrect! Says that everyone has unique for something, but there are still something unique above uniques. When we talking about the First Lady, she maybe unique for certain things, but there are somthing more or specially unique than others.

作者: 猜謎人

very是副詞

副詞修飾
動詞形容詞和副詞

抱歉﹗早上趕著出門來不及用中文輸入，所以只能用英文輸入，還望海涵﹗

猜大所提出的是正確的，下列的說明可以證明︰

Adverbs:

An adverb modifies a verb, adjective or another adverbs. Adverbs tell: how, when, where and how much.