第三單元 如何寫好主題句

3．1關(guān)于寫主題句的建議

1）要寫合乎語法的句子

Example 1： Two causes of the American Civil War．

這個句子是個不完整的句子，不合乎語法，因此不能用作主題句。

Example 2： There were two causes that led to the American Civil War．

重寫后的句子合乎語法，是個較好的主題句。

2）要使用限寫詞限定主題

為了正確表達觀點，好的主題句經(jīng)常使用關(guān)鍵詞或詞組，即限制詞（controllers）限制這一觀點。

Example 3： Air travel is more convenient than train for at least three reasons．

從上例主題句我們得知作者將要寫“air travel”（ topic），他將要把 “train”（ aspect）和“ air travel”作比較，并且陳述“reasons”。由此可見，作者在“aspect”（方面）和“reason”（原因）兩方面限制他的主題。

3）要注意主題的可寫性

所定的主題不能太籠統(tǒng)，也不能太具體。

Example 4： In Hemingway's story “Soldier’s Home”，Krebs tells his mother that he wants no part of God's Kingdom．

這個句子太具體以至于無東西可寫，無法展開段落。

Example 5： In Hemingway's story “Soldier’s Home”， Kreb is a lonely， cynical veteran．

這個句子可作為主題句，因為可以圍繞“l(fā)onely，cynical”展開段落。

Example 6： Let me tell you something about overpopulation．

這個句子太籠統(tǒng)，作為一個段落的主題太大，難于駕馭。

Example 7： Why has the world population been increasing sorapidly in the last decades？

這個句子是個較好的主題句，作者用“the reasons for overpopulation in the last decades”，從“原因”（cause）和“時間”（time）兩方面限制了主題，能在一個段落內(nèi)論述。

Exercise 3-1

Directions： Identify the areas which limit the topic sentences．

3．1．1 Soccer has become increasingly popular in the U． S． in the last ten years．

Topic：_____________

Limitations：________________________________________________

3．1．2 Pollution has caused three major problems in the last decades．

Topic：______________

Limitations：________________________________________________

3．1．3There are two kinds of memory： short-term and long-term．

Topic：____________

Limitations：________________________________________________

3．1．4 Women are playing an increasingly important part in society today．

Topic：____________

Limitations：________________________________________________

3．1．5 Women are paid less for equal work than men in some companies．

Topic：____________

Limitations：________________________________________________

Exercise 3-2

Directions： Write two topic sentences for each of the topics，limiting the topic in different ways．

3． 2． 1 Topic： the study of English

Topic Sentence 1：__________________________________________

Topic Sentence 2：___________________________________________

3．2．2 Topic： college students today

Topic Sentence 1：__________________________________________

Topic Sentence 2：__________________________________________

3．2．3 Topic： women in China

Topic Sentence 1：__________________________________________

Topic Sentence 2：__________________________________________

3．2．4 Topic：crime

Topic Sentence 1：__________________________________________

Topic Sentence 2：__________________________________________

Exercise 3-3

Directions： Read the following paragraphs and supply the missing topic sentence．

（1）

__________________________________________________________

Iceland’s flag， for instance， stands for features of the land．Red for the fire of Iceland’s volcanoes． White is for ice． Blue is for the mountains． On India’s flag， the blue wheel stands for peace and progress． The white stripe behind it is for truth． The black stripe on the flag of Malawi stands for the Negro people of that African land． The red stripe represents the blood they shed to free themselves from foreign rule．

（2）

__________________________________________________

The one most people are familiar with is the“desk dictionary”，sometimes refered to as general-purpose dictionary． Another kind is the pronouncing dictionary， which is concerned with a word's pronunciation more than with its meaning． A third type is the bilingual dictionary， which lists the words in one language and attempts to give equivalent meaning in another language． Other types include technical dictionaries， special purpose dictionaries，and scholarly dictionaries．

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