英语学科核心素养主要是指语言能力、文化品格、思维品质、学习能力。
英语作文要求考生运用所学知识,清楚、连贯地表达情景要求,结合英语学科核心素养中的文化品格要求,作文讲授时,要让学生关注中英的思维不同和文化差异,在行文时才能正确、流畅地思维并传情达意。
一、开篇直白和含蓄的差异
英语民族重直线思维,而汉民族重曲线思维。在表达思想时,英语民族的思维更直截了当,他们习惯先交代要点,而汉民族习惯从侧面说明、阐述外围的环境,最后点出话语的信息中心。英语在谋篇和遣词造句上遵循着从一般到具体、从概括到举例、从整体到个体的原则。
作文时,中国人重螺旋思维,英美人重直线思维的思维差异表现的比较明显。如,开篇时,中国学生多半含蓄隐晦,甚至有的学生写了3、4句还没有入题,而英语表达则更开门见山,直达目的,告诉对方自己的身份。英语行文开宗明义,告知对方自己的目的,如“请求对方帮忙修改自己的申请书和个人简历或者对自己不能赴约陪逛街表示歉意”,让读者能一目了然,更加符合应用文交际的目的。因此,教师教授学生行文时要遵循 “西方民族 ‘由一到多’的思维方式,将句子的语义重心放在开头”,而避免“东方民族“从众归一”的思维方式,将句子的次要语义部分放在句首,而将重心放在句子的末尾,以示强调”的做法。
除了在开篇和段首的处理上存在思维差异,句子和段落的架构和逻辑上也存在差异。
二、形合与意合的文化差异
英语重形合而汉语重意合。从广泛意义上讲,形合是指词语或语句之间的连接主要依仗连接词或语言形态变化来实现,其实质是关联词的撑持;意合则指词语或语句之间的连接主要凭借助词、语句意义或语句间逻辑关系来实现,其实质是关联词的排除。
语言学家王力曾形象地指出:西洋语的结构好像连环,虽则环与环都联络起来,毕竟有联络的痕迹;中国语结构好像无缝天衣,只是一块一块的拼凑,凑起来还不让它有痕迹......西洋语法有很多呆板的要求,如每一个clause里必须有一个主语......中国语法只以达意为主。
如:你去,我就不去。 英语句子就要加上相应的关联词如“if” ,使句子从形式上是严密的,即“if you go,I will not go”而不能直接按照汉语逻辑写成“you go,I will not go”;再如:我在看电视,觉得节目很精彩,就录了下来。英语句子也应该补充相应的关联词,“when”、“so”,使句子构成形式上的完整和逻辑,即I was watching TV when I found it wonderful,so I recorded it.因此,只有让学生明了“英语重形合而汉语重意合”这种文化表达或者语言结构表达上的差异,才能引导他们正确行文。
除了句子内部的衔接词体现“形合逻辑”外,也有相应的过渡词或衔接词来达成形式上的完整。所以,有必要引导学生积累一些衔接词或者过渡词,以便作文时,灵活运用。
1. 根据意思和作用的不同,过渡词可以分为以下十五类:
(1)表并列关系的过渡词:and, also, or, too, not only…but also, both … and, either … or, neither…nor
(2)表递进关系的过渡词:besides, in addition, moreover(此外,而且), what’s more, what’s worse
(3)表转折对比的过渡词:but, however, yet, instead, on the other hand, on the contrary, although, different from, despite, in spite of, whereas, unlike, nevertheless, not only…but also, here…there, years ago…today, this…that
(4)表原因的过渡词:because, because of, since, as, for, now that, thanks to, due to
(5)表结果的过渡词:so, thus, therefore, as a result, so that, then, thereby, hence, so…that, such…that???
(6)表条件的过渡词:if, unless, on condition that, as/so long as
(7)表时间的过渡词:when, while, after, before, until, as soon as, later, afterwards, soon, lately, recently, since, from then on,? eventually, in the meantime, then, suddenly, at the same time, next
(8)表特定的顺序关系的过渡词:first, firstly, second, secondly, third, thirdly, above all
(9)表换一种方式表达的过渡词:in other words, that is to say, to put it another way
(10)表进行举例说明的过渡词:for instance, for example, like, such as
(11)表陈述事实的过渡词:in fact, actually, as a matter of fact, to tell you the truth
(12)表强调的过渡词:certainly, indeed, above all, surely, most important, in fact, no doubt, without any doubt, truly, obviously
(13)表比较的过渡词:like, unlike, in the same way, similarly, similar to
(14)表目的的过渡词:for this reason, for this purpose, so that, in order to, so as to
(15)表总结的过渡词:in a word, in general, in short, above all, after all, generally speaking, to sum up, finally, in conclusion, at last, in summary
2. 文章段落之间的逻辑关系主要由过渡词来完成,在修辞中称为启、承、转、合。“启”就是开头, “承”是承接,“转”是转折,“合”是综合或总结。
(1)用于“启”的过渡词语? 用于表示“启”的过渡词或过渡性的语句通常用在段落或文章的开头:
first, first of all, at first, in the first place, firstly, to being with, to start with, recently, now
(2)用于“承”的过渡词语? 表示“承”的过渡词或过渡性的语句通常用在段落中的第一个扩展句中:
second, similarly, in addition, besides, then, furthermore, moreover, what is more, what is worse
(3)用于“转”的过渡词语用于“转”的过渡词或过渡性的语句通常用在段落中的第二个扩展句中:
but, however, on the other hand, on the contrary, in contrast, in any case
(4)用于“合”的过渡词语用于“合”的过渡词或过渡性的语句通常用在段落的结论句或文章的结论段中:
in a word, in general, in short, above all, after all, generally speaking,to sum up, finally, in conclusion, at last, in summary, therefore, as a result, above all
此外,某些副词也有很巧妙的衔接作用,如:obviously、increasingly、interestingly等。
除了过渡词起到重要的“形合”作用外,某些从句连词也有同样作用,但学生容易误用或漏用,如:一班有35名学生,其中一些来自新洲区。学生误为There are 35students in Class 1, some of them come from XinZhou District。实际上,英语表达应为There are 35students in Class 1, some of whom come from XinZhou District中whom就是重要的“形合”连词,不仅使句子语法改正确了,更完善了形式上的逻辑关系。再如:John取得了进步,老师很高兴。学生误为John made great progress,the teacher was very pleased 应为what made the teacher very pleased was that John made great progress.教师应引导学生正确并地道地使用这些连词。
三、时间、地点由小到大的文化表达差异
考试时很多应用文都会牵涉到时间、地点的表达,而这方面,中英表达也是有差异的,往往是学生们的易错点,所以,从学习策略上来说,要关注和积累这些。整体而言,中文是由大到小去表达,而英语是由小到大表达:如,周五早上八点半,at8:30am Friday ;2017年4月,in April 2017;河南省南阳市中州路42号Room 42, Zhengzhou Road,Nan yang City, Henan Prov.
另外一些介词的搭配,如on next ChristmasEve; in the morning; on the night of March 8th;等。
四、积累地道句型和结构
作文常用且地道,能得高分的句型不少,如:It is important/necessary for people todo..;Action should be taken to do…;祈使句,and/or…;make/find itadj for sb to do sth;It is obvious/clear that…;there is no doubt that..等。
如果不积累地道的英语句型,很容易按照汉语思维和逻辑写出一些貌似很符合语法结构的句子。如:我很有必要向你道歉I am necessary to apologize to you for…,很明显是“中国式的英语”,应为“It is necessary for me to apologize to you for…”。
综上所述,在作文教学中,教师要注重渗透中英文化差异和思维差异,强调好文好句的欣赏、背记和积累,只有充分了解英汉表达的各种差异,才会底气十足,表达正确地道、行文流畅。