SAT写作真题分析 - 倾听鉴赏写作中的情感因素

 

虽然SAT写作中的阅读素材都是议论性较强的社评类文章(Editorial)，但是再客观冷静的文章(只要不是Report)，其作者也会为了增强其文章的说服力而刻意地通过各种方式来撩动一下读者的心弦。所以，今天王老师以几篇SAT写作真题为例简述一下SAT写作真题中基本每篇文章都能挖掘到的一种Rhetorical Device — Emotional Appeal。

 

1.亚里士多德早在千年前就为议论文(辩论及演讲)规定了三大要素：ethos, logos与pathos。学习SAT的同学对这三个概念并不陌生，其意思分别为：

 

• appeal to authority，诉诸于权威，简言之，权威都这么认为了，你(读者)还不相信我么?

 

• appeal to logic，诉诸于逻辑，简言之，用强大的逻辑推理让观众信服。就好像列宁同志一样，每当他发表演讲的时候，观众都会为其强大的逻辑而折服，一步一步将观众带入到自己的立场。

 

• appeal to emotion，诉诸于情感，简言之，用各种手段(比如某一个词，某一句话，数据，类比，范文，排比等)在读者的情绪上掀起波澜，让读者在精神上更愿意跟作者站在一起，甚至是愿意将这种情绪付诸于实际行动。

 

2 要想分析好pathos，我们必须要明白什么是emotion。在此，我们没有必要给emotion做一个非常学术的心理学定义。按照常识性了解，我们都知道emotion就是可以放在feel后面的那些形容词。那么，一般来说，SAT写作都会考察哪些emotion呢?

 

我们先看几段素材：

素材1 Notwithstanding the aforementioned reasons why plastic bags are not, in fact, evil incarnate, environmentalists have every right to try to convince people to adopt certain beliefs or lifestyles, but they do not have the right to use government force to compel people to live the way they think best. In a free society, we are able to live our lives as we please, so long as we do not infringe upon the rights of others. That includes the right to make such fundamental decisions as “Paper or plastic?”

 

《Bag Ban Bad for Freedom and Environment》这篇SAT写作真题原文文章主要是想说塑料购物袋并没有人们想象中的那么可怕，事实上，它对于环境的污染并不大，而且一旦限制了它，不仅会给人们的生活带来不便，而且会产生一些问题。

 

上面的文字节选于文章最后一段。内容并不难懂。但是，我们发现，作者把取消塑料袋的问题上升到了“权利”的程度：取消塑料购物袋=限制人们的自由选择权。

 

看到这里，我们可以看出来作者葫芦里装的是什么药了。众所周知，美国人(当然，也不只是美国人)对于人权是非常崇尚的。所以，当作者告诉美国人自己的权利被政府和环境学家践踏了之后，美国人会对这个政策抱有什么样的情绪呢?答案非常明显，不满甚至是愤怒。那么作者为什么要激发这种情绪呢?

 

这也非常明显，他就是想让读者能够跟自己站在一边敦促政府不要实施取消塑料购物袋的政策，让政府把自由的选择的权利还给自己。

 

素材2 Reading is not a timeless, universal capability. Advanced literacy is a specific intellectual skill and social habit that depends on a great many educational, cultural, and economic factors. As more Americans lose this capability, our nation becomes less informed, active, and independent-minded. These are not the qualities that a free, innovative, or productive society can afford to lose.

 

《Why Literature Matters》这篇SAT写作真题文章的主旨是：人们对于阅读兴趣的下降会对社会造成很大的危害。这段文字也选自于其结尾段。文章本来是说Literature的重要性，但是到了结尾却上升到了国家发展的水平。换言之，如果美国人继续轻视阅读的话，那么美国将不会再是他们引以为豪的国家了。当然，作为中国的考生，我们不太能够理解，这究竟激发了什么情绪。但是，我们换位思考一下，如果有一天习大大演讲说，“如果阅读在中国人的生活中继续消失，那么中国一定会再度进入到危难之中”，那么我们会怎么想呢?“忧国忧民”是肯定的了。所以，worry about the country’s future就完全没有悬念的分析出来了。

 

在此，我再给大家介绍一种SAT也比较常考的情绪：patriotic(爱国主义情怀)

 

根据韦氏字典的解释：patriotism的意思是love for or devotion to one’s country。简言之，就是对国家的爱与奉献。所以，素材2中的worry about the country’s future也自然激发了美国人对国家的热爱，让其意识到国家在危险之中，并且愿意维护为了国家的利益而奉献出自己的阅读精神。

 

3 今天给大家介绍这三种情绪。下面附上参考段落。

 

Model Answer 1

 

What cannot be overlooked is that Summers ends his article with appealing to readers’ emotion. It is universally acknowledged that what makes American people take pride in their ethnic identity is that they are living in a “free society” where they are able to live their lives as they please as long as they do not interfere with the rights of others. The essence of plastic bag ban policy, on the contrary, is evil: environmentalists “use government force to compel people to live the way they think best”, which wreaks havoc on people’s exclusive rights of freedom to choose. By raising the issue to the level of American people’s divine rights, Summers tugs readers’ heartstrings, strategically provoking their dissatisfaction and even irritation toward this policy which has trampled upon their free rights. Filled with indignation, readers would be more likely to side with the author to urge the government not to adopt this policy and to return back their personal rights.

 

Model Answer 2

 

Finally, the author utilizes emotional appeal to further corroborate his argument. In the final sentences of the article, by citing “As more Americans lose this capability, our nation becomes less informed, active, and independent-minded.”, he is warning readers that unless more emphasis is placed on reading, the US will no longer be a “free, innovative, or productive society”. The warning extends the significance of reading to the national level, leading readers to realize the substantial negative impact that the decline of reading can have. The author is also appealing to readers’ patriotism here: anyone who is proud of and loves his/her country will not tolerate its degradation. When realizing there is likelihood that America will no longer be a nation they take pride in, readers will see the reasonability of the author’s worry and concern. In using the emotional appeal, the author sways his readers into seeing what he sees and makes an emotional call to action.

 

SAT写作评价指标

 

首先，作文能够明确辨识文章的中心观点、证据和各种写作手法。第二，作文能够评估理解文章证据、展开方式，修辞手法的作用和使用价值。第三，作文能够准确选择和引用文中细节语句辅助自己文章的展开。最后，作文是一篇高效组织的学术文章。另外，语言的规范也尤其重要，这里语言规范指语言表达的正确性，这包括多变的句式(不一定全是倒装句、强调句等)、精确的词汇(不一定复杂)、适当的从句(定语从句、宾语从句、同位语从句等)，但需要避免口语化的表达。

 

总的来说，新SAT写作要求以下几个方面：1. Make a claim. 2. Organize your argument. 3. Switch up your sentences.4. Choose smart words. 5. Use an academic tone. 6. Use good grammar.

 

SAT写作基本框架

 

我们拟出的参考架构是把一篇文章分为四到五个段落：

 

第一段：文章开头，简介原文作者写原文的动机，阐明原文的Claim和引证的方式和技巧。句子要精简有力，不要含糊其词。如有可能的话，善用词汇尝试给人耳目一新的感觉：轶事、典故、统计、科研结论(anecdote, allusion, rhetorical, effective, depict…)。

 

第二，三，四段：每个段落具体描述和分析原文中的一个论据(原文中的一段);结尾段落，对上述的论据和写法加以总结，回应自己文章的开头。要忠实原文。

看完本篇文章如果对SAT的写作还有什么问题，欢迎随时联系我们！