最近總有家長找我推薦語法書，因為擔心孩子的語法學不好，英文學習會遇到瓶頸。我不反對孩子去看原版英文語法書，比如劍橋大學出版的Grammar in Use (外研社有增加了中文翻譯的版本《語法在用》，比如國家地理的Great Writing 除了講寫作的方法就在講語法，簡直可以當語法書用。但是在孩子的英語閱讀理解進階到經(jīng)典文學之前，擔心語法學習其實是多余的，因為如果只關注語法，英文學習很難達到母語同齡人的水平；而過多關注語法則會占用太多聽讀文學書籍的時間，不利于拔高聽力天花板，相當于本末倒置。當孩子的閱讀能力達到了藍思值1000左右，才有討論語法的必要，或者說，這時候才有必要通過分析文學作品的長句，集中火力總結各種語法現(xiàn)象。一句話，所有的前期原版閱讀都是為了幫助孩子達到誦讀經(jīng)典作品的水平，而能順暢閱讀和討論經(jīng)典應該是英文學習的最終目的。下面我將引用《亂世佳人》（Gone with the Wind ）中的優(yōu)美長句帶你領略英語長句之美，并點撥其中的語法現(xiàn)象。之所以選擇這本書，是因為我最近兩個月再次細讀了全書，既感動有震撼，對美國的南北戰(zhàn)爭有了更深刻的理解，對戰(zhàn)爭的殘酷有了深切的體會，至少對林肯的悲慘結局不再那么義憤填膺。南方種植園階層，為了保衛(wèi)他們的農(nóng)場莊園，為了捍衛(wèi)貴族的生活方式，付出了太大的代價。南方淑女斯嘉麗在戰(zhàn)前和戰(zhàn)后判若兩人，使戰(zhàn)火中交織的愛情故事波瀾起伏，格外感人。1、先看一句漂亮的賓語從句。一組由how to 引導的定語從句，讓斯嘉麗的風情萬種躍然紙上。
She knew how to smile so that her dimples leaped, how to walk pigeon-toed so that her wide hoop skirts swayed entrancingly, how to look up into a man's face and then drop her eyes and bat the lids rapidly so that she seemed a- tremble with gentle emotion. Most of all she learned how to conceal from men a sharp intelligence beneath a face as sweet and bland as a baby's.參考譯文：她知道如何微笑，讓酒窩顯得更深；如何腳尖朝里走路，讓裙裾迷人地隨步搖擺；如何仰臉看一眼男人，再低頭撲閃睫毛，快快地，使自己顯得內(nèi)心柔情震顫。最重要的是，她知道用一張像嬰兒一樣恬靜、柔和的臉掩飾了骨子里絕頂?shù)穆斆髋c才智。2、再看下面這個長句，一共出現(xiàn)了五個sobbing, 會不會看起來有些迷糊。仔細分析一下語法結構，第一處was sobbing是這個長句的并列謂語，第二個和第三個sobbing相當于現(xiàn)在分詞做非謂語動詞，是描述哭泣狀態(tài)的方式狀語，所以兩個非謂語結構之間不需要連詞and連接。 第四和第五個sobbing就是動名詞的用法了，分別做介詞by的賓語和和help的主語，這個小句中的child后面跟了一個who引導的定語從句。這些V-ing結構的用法顯得音韻悠長，把一時沖動嫁給查爾斯但又很快成為寡婦的斯嘉麗刻畫得細致入微。讀完這樣的長句，一定能感受到她的絕望和悔恨。Scarlett had thrown herself on the bed and was sobbing at the top of her voice, sobbing for her lost youth and the pleasures of youth that were denied her, sobbing with the indignation and despair of a child who once could get anything she wanted by sobbing and now knows that sobbing can no longer help her.
參考譯文：思嘉已經(jīng)撲倒在床上放聲大哭，為她逝去的青春而哭，為青春所能帶來的快樂而她卻被拒之門外而哭。她帶著孩子般的憤憤不平和傷心絕望大聲哭著。孩提時她曾經(jīng)用哭泣就能得到自己想要的東西，而現(xiàn)在，她知道，哭泣再也幫不了她了。3. 再來欣賞描寫媚蘭迷人個性的一段話，注意段落中who引導的定語從句和So..... that ...... 并列結構。聽到讀到這樣優(yōu)美的好句子，沒有不會心微笑的，英文語言的美感，需要在經(jīng)典文學中感受。Like Aunt Pitty, Melanie had the face of a sheltered child who had never known anything but simplicity and kindness, truth and love, a child who had never looked upon harshness or evil and would not recognize them if she saw them. Because she had always been happy, she wanted everyone about her to be happy or, at least, pleased with themselves.To this end, she always saw the best in everyone and remarked kindly upon it. There was no servant so stupid that she did not find some redeeming trait of loyalty and kindheartedness, no girl so ugly and disagreeable that she could not discover grace of form or nobility of character in her, and no man so worthless or so boring that she did not view him in the light of his possibilities rather than his actualities.媚蘭也像姑媽那樣有一張受寵愛的孩子臉，這樣的從來只只知道單純善良，誠實和愛，她從沒注意過粗暴和邪惡，即使看見了也認不出來。因為她經(jīng)常是愉快的，她要周圍所有的人也都愉快，至少對自己感到舒適。懷著這一目的，她常常只看見每個人最好的一面，并給以善意的評論。一個仆人無論怎樣愚蠢，她都能在他身上找到彌補這一缺陷的忠誠與好心；一個女孩子無論怎樣丑陋和令人生厭，她總會在她身上發(fā)現(xiàn)姿態(tài)的優(yōu)美之處，或者性格方面的高尚之處；一個男人無論怎樣不中用或令人厭煩，她都要從他可能改變的角度而不是實際行為的角度來估量他。Because of these qualities that came sincerely and spontaneously from a generous heart, everyone flocked about her for who can resist the charm of one who discovers in others admirable qualities undreamed of even by himself? She had more girl friends than anyone in town and more men friends too, though she had few beaux for she lacked the willfulness and selfishness that go far towards trapping men's hearts. 由于她具備這些誠懇而自發(fā)地出自一個寬廣胸懷的美德，所有的人便都擁戴她，因為她既然能在別人的身上發(fā)現(xiàn)他們連自己也不曾夢想到的優(yōu)良品質(zhì)，誰還能抵擋住她誘人的魅力呢？她比城里任何人都有更多的女友，男友也是這樣；不過追求她的人卻很少，因為她缺乏那種最能迷惑男人的任性和自私的特點。
4. 媚蘭難產(chǎn)死后，斯嘉麗幡然醒悟，媚蘭才是她身后最堅強的后盾，而阿希禮也并非真的愛他，真正愛她的男人是白瑞德，但白瑞德已經(jīng)被她傷透了心。下面第一句過去完成時，是對過去的事實的陳述，后兩句過去完成時用在倒裝結構的條件句中，表示對過去的假設，刻畫了她的悔恨之情。
She had never understood either of the men she had loved and so she had lost them both. Now she had a fumble knowledge that, had she ever understood Ashley, she would never have loved him; had she ever understood Rhett, she would never have lost him. She wondered forlornly if she had ever really understood anyone in the world.
她愛的和她愛而復失的兩個人，她其實一個也不了解，現(xiàn)在她才笨拙的理解到：要是她真的了解阿希禮，她就壓根不會愛他；如果她真的了解白瑞德，她也不會就這樣失去他，她凄涼地想著，她在這個世界上到底有沒有真的了解過一個人。
這本小說太精彩了，遠比成為經(jīng)典的費雯麗電影版更加經(jīng)典。看完書再看電影的時候，會更加喜歡原文，更加佩服作者的文筆功力。電影不過是擷取了一些重要的片段，就創(chuàng)造了那么跌宕起伏的情節(jié)，想想原文會有多精彩。
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