在GRE閱讀中通常會出現(xiàn)一些較長的句子,如果不能妥善處理它們,不僅會給我們帶來閱讀障礙,甚至還有可能影響考試心態(tài)。其實(shí),長難句之所以不易理解,主要是因?yàn)槠渲邪^多的修飾成分、句式變化或記憶組塊,而這些增加了對句子理解的難度。
在GRE考試中的閱讀部分,快速準(zhǔn)確理解長難句的能力對于拿到分?jǐn)?shù)至關(guān)重要。今天小編就帶大家一起學(xué)習(xí)一下GRE閱讀中長難句的成因,以及破解它們的技巧!

修飾成分
在一個句子中,修飾成分可以包括定語、狀語等表示修飾的短語和從句。漢英語言之間的一個明顯差異就是修飾成分的位置:漢語習(xí)慣于修飾語前置;英語習(xí)慣于修飾語前后放置,并且以后置為主。
舉個例子:“一個又紅又大產(chǎn)自山東的蘋果”,修飾成分“一個又紅又大產(chǎn)自山東” 都放在了“的”前面。
而英語的表達(dá)則為:
An apple red, big and produced in Shandong province
A red, big apple produced in Shandong province
其中red, big作為相對較短的定語,放在前后位置均可,但如果疊加produced in Shandong province就要放在被修飾詞apple后面了。

接下來我們看出現(xiàn)在GRE閱讀中的一個句子:
His favorite rhetorical strategy was to expose the hypocrisy of those who, while professing adherence to the ideals of democracy and equality of opportunity, condoned slavery and racial discrimination.
下劃線部分都是修飾語,即定語從句,而這個從句就是放在被修飾詞后面。在翻譯時,把定語從句前置理解即可,“他最喜歡的辯論策略是暴露那些表面尊崇民主理想和平等機(jī)會但卻包容蓄奴和種族歧視的偽君子。”
所以,在遇到較多修飾語的長難句時,要找到修飾成分,然后翻譯時,把修飾成分前置到被修飾詞之前即可。
句式變化
英文句式形態(tài),可以整體分為一般句式和特殊句式。特殊句式中大體包括三類:省略句、倒裝句和強(qiáng)調(diào)句。在特殊句式中,如果出現(xiàn)類別疊加,就會增大句式難度。
例如:Could Achilles help us were he here now? 這句話當(dāng)中既有疑問句的倒裝,還有虛擬語氣的倒裝和省略。如果變成陳述句的完整句則為:Achilles could help us if he were here now.

一起來看在GRE閱讀中的長難句:
These points may seem obvious, but had Martin given them more attention, his analysis might have constituted a more convincing rebuttal to those critics who dismiss Douglass’s ideology as a relic of the past.
劃線部分一個就是倒裝加省略的一個虛擬語氣從句,正常語序是Martin had given them more attention.
所以,常見的虛擬語氣的倒裝和省略,要掌握到清晰準(zhǔn)確的程度上,就可以對于較多句 式變化的句子解析清楚。如下三個例句供參考:
Achilles could help us were he here now. = Achilles could help us if he were here now.
Athena would have met Hermes had she come earlier. = If you had come earlier, you would have met him.
Should Thetis ask, Hephaestus would no doubt lend a hand. = If Thetis should ask, Hephaestus would no doubt lend a hand.
記憶組塊
為了讓大家能夠更容易理解“記憶組塊”,先舉一個通俗易懂的例子:學(xué)開自動擋的車時,新學(xué)員需要關(guān)注路況、油門、剎車、方向盤、后視鏡和擋桿,通常會出現(xiàn)“手忙腳亂”的場景。然而,如果只讓新學(xué)員控制方向盤,則會更加“風(fēng)平浪靜”一些。引申到長難句中則可以理解為:在一句話中,如果包含的角色比較多,讀者就會感覺這個長難句是很難被厘清的。

例如:
While Martin stresses Douglass’s antiracist egalitarianism, he does not adequately explain how this aspect of Douglass’s thought fits in with his espousal of the liberal Victorian attitudes that many present-day intellectuals consider to be naive and outdated.
在這句話中,實(shí)際上包含了五個人的觀點(diǎn),還隱藏了未露名的文章作者的態(tài)度,共六個角色。我們先來羅列這六個角色及其觀點(diǎn):
Martin stresses Douglass’s idea.
The author deems that Martin does not adequately explain an aspect.
Racists were against egalitarianism.
Douglass espoused the liberal Victorian attitudes.
Victorian people had certain attitudes.
Many present-day intellectuals consider Victorian attitudes to be naive and outdated.
當(dāng)這樣看時非常清晰易懂的,但把它們都塞到一個句子里,就感覺“手忙腳亂”了。其實(shí),解決辦法也非常清晰,就是像上面例子一樣,把長難句內(nèi)部包含的各個角色和觀點(diǎn)提煉出來,單獨(dú)對話并厘清各自的觀點(diǎn),就可以搞定這類GRE長難句了。
從以上的原因來看,要想學(xué)會分析GRE長難句,最關(guān)鍵的還是要找出長難句形成的原因,再進(jìn)行針對性的訓(xùn)練。
以上就是《GRE長難句,我再也不怕你了!》介紹。外語加油站,專業(yè)外語培訓(xùn)服務(wù)平臺。快速了解雅思、托福、SAT等外語考試報名信息、報考要求、真題詳解等,歡迎在線預(yù)約咨詢。