什么是 Main Body Paragrap?
Essay Main body是围绕着文本主要论点而展开的。通过说服句子、引用经典以及推理过程,正文为作者的主要论点提供详细的信息,而其形式会多种多样:如使用数据和图表、具体的案例和事实、著作引用、图形等。
Essay写作中Main Body Paragrap的两种格式
第一种Essay Main Body Paragraph(正文段)写作结构如下: Topic Sentence 主题句(一句话阐明本段的论点) 在中文文章中也叫中心思想句子,Assertion statements:主张句(几句话阐述你的论点) Examples:举例(列举一些事实) Explaination:解释(说明以上事实为什么能支撑你的论点) Significance:意义(总结说明为什么本段论点能论证全文的主题) ,第二种,也可以简单地分为三个部分,在美国这被称为Hamburg Paragraph,俗称“汉堡包写作法”。Topic Sentence(主题句) Supporting Evidence(支持论据) Conclusion Sentence(总结句) 这两种结构能让让作者在写作Essay的过程中不至于偏题。论文正文每一个段落的中心思想是在主题句提出的,并且这是一个具体的、非常确定的观点而不是泛泛而谈的话题或一个事实。
Main body Paragrap 的作用
为了支撑某个看法或对于文章topic or research question提出异议,正文要论述学生的个人论点、他人的观点以及其他与主题相关信息。给读者提供谈论的概况,从不同角度来谈谈本主题的关键问题,探讨论文topic优势和劣势,尤其是如果同学们需要‘discuss’ 或‘evaluate’一些议题,指出并概述不同观点的异同点,论述已经存在的论点并提供相关案例研究或具体的例子抽出最合理的论点等。
下面我们挑一些重点来一一分析。
1、主题句的写作要点
首先,注意主题句应该是一个观点,而不是事实。比如: 事实:Plagiarizing is to steal and pass off the ideas or words of another as one's own. 观点:People can avoid plagiarizing by taking certain precautions. 其次,主题句应该是一个观点,而不能仅仅包含一个话题。比如: 只包含话题:Today I'm going to discuss the benefits of gardening. 包含观点:Gardening gives us pleasure and is very effective to our minds. 最后,你的观点不能是泛泛的,而应该是确切的。 模糊:The United States suffered a lot during the Civil War. 确切:Sherman's destruction in the South during the Civil War also caused incredible suffering.
2、如何引述证据
在列举证据时,首先我们应当保证所有的论据都是与主题相关的。证据可能包括以下类型: 事实(Facts) 公开发表的观点(Published opinions) 书刊网站等媒体上的调查研究(Research from books, journal articles, websites, etc.) 公开的案例(Published case studies) 研究数据(Research data) 引用证据有三种方法: 引用(Quoting):逐字逐句地复制原信息 复述(Paraphrasing):按自己的语言重新组织 概括(Summarising):更简洁的语言概括原信息 .... 但无论采用哪种方法,我们都需要注意:A、让证据自然地穿插在文中;B、注明来源。比如使用这样的表达: Further insight into income inequality is provided by Dr. Delaney, an economist at Stanford, who is of the opinion that…推荐阅读:论文body部分段落内的布局结构。
3、过渡的重要性
无论是句与句之间,还是段落与段落之间,都需要过渡。过渡能让文章连贯统一,没有过渡的文章就仅仅是一些句子随机地组合在一起。下面我们通过一个例子来感受下。 我们先看一个没有过渡的段落: Students who write academic essays need to provide effective transitions. Transitions allow writers to connect the main ideas that are present in an essay. Using conjunctive adverbs and other introductory elements allow a writer to connect one sentence to the next. The use of these words will make the writing more fluent and less choppy. Many students fail to use effective transitions, and the essay comes across as disconnected. Writers should always be aware of the need to connect both sentences and paragraphs together. 加上过渡之后的版本: Students who write academic essays need to provide effective transitions. It is the use of these transitions that allow writers to connect the main ideas that are present in an essay. For example, by using conjunctive adverbs and other introductory elements, a writer can easily connect one sentence to the next. Moreover, the use of these words will make the writing more fluent and less choppy. Unfortunately, students often fail to use effective transitions, and, as a result, the essay comes across as disconnected. To avoid this, writers should always be aware of the need to connect both sentences and paragraphs together, and they should strive to find creative ways to do so. 可以看出,加上了这些过渡词之后,整段文章变得连贯了许多。我们可以在写作完成之后,再通读一遍,在不够连贯的地方加上过渡。
4、最后,我们通过一个例子看下body paragraph的具体写法。
# 第1句:主题句——阐述与本文主题相关的论点: Students who learn how to write well will earn better grades in most classes. # 第2句:主张句——对主题句进行进一步阐述: This is true because most instructors assign a variety of written assignments, and depending on the class, these written assignments often encompass a large percentage of a student’s final grade. # 第3句:举例一 For instance, all college students seeking a degree will be required to take a composition class. In this class alone, students will write five different essays. # 第4句:举例二 Furthermore, other classes, such as history, psychology, nursing, etc., also require students to write multiple essays. # 第5句:给出更具体的信息(此处可以引述权威人士): According to John Doe, a Professor of English at Aims Community College, the average undergraduate student will write twenty-five different essays while seeking a bachelor’s degree. This number increases dramatically for students who go on to seek a graduate degree(s). # 第6句:总结 Because all students, regardless of major, will be required to compose a large number of essays, it is important that they learn how to write well.
下面给同学们举个例子,请查看一篇文章每隔段落第一句话:主题:Why Italy in 1860 was seen as an unlikely nation?
One of the obstacles to the unification of the Italian nation was the failure of the majority of the population to take up the cause of unification........... | Main point in the paragraph presented as the topic sentence 段落中的要点表示为主题句 |
The divisiveness between the states was another major obstacle to national unity..................... | Main point in the paragraph presented as the topic sentence |
The mistrust that existed between the states also created an obstacle for unification..................... | Main point in the paragraph presented as the topic sentence |
A further obstacle obstructing the formation of a united Italy was the lack of common goals and the poor planning associated with the unification uprisings that were occurring throughout Italy..................... | Main point in the paragraph presented as the topic sentence |
The final major obstacle to the unification of the Italian nation was the dislike and disagreement between the main agitators in the independence movement know as "Il Risorgimento".............. | Main point in the paragraph presented as the topic sentence |
(引用于R. Woodward-Kron, E. Thomson & J. Meek (2000) Academic Writing: a language based guide (CD-ROM), University of Wollongong)对于段落之间的承上启下的关系,需要注意连接词的使用。在上述的例子里头, “one of the obstacles”, “another major obstacle”, “also created an obstacle”, “a further obstacle”, “the final major obstacle”都是确保正文过渡性的连接词,都让段与段之间衔接更顺畅。这个跟在欧美Essay中常用的Firstly,Secondly,Thirdly等连词 一个道理。Supporting Evidence 可以来自其他学术资料的观点,但绝对不要直接抄袭其他人的作品!而且必须要注明引用,不用一条一条把支持我们观点的论据列出来,而是凝练出其含义和价值,通过推理和自己的判断把主题与引用的论据联系起来。如此,老师会注意到学生看过与主题相关的研究,并且学生在阅读文献的基础上构建了自己的想法。例如:
上述的例子表明,我们在Essay写作中可以采用反方观点来发展自己的想法。虽然您引用了反观的观点,并指出了潜在的问题,但第二个正方观点的证据立刻提供补充说明,在此同时主题句不但没有被反观动摇,反而显得更为有例证。
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