托福閱讀|別被絕對詞忽悠了

01-29

在眾多口口相傳的做題技巧中，我想「絕對化表達不選」一定是出現頻率很高的一條。我不知道最早的想出這條規律的前輩他說的原話是什麼，我只知道經過這麼多年的傳承，很多人都被忽悠了。

我先舉個栗子。

TPO當中有這麼一道題，其中B選項里有個大大的best，很多人就在心裡把這個選項槍斃了。是的，不湊巧，偏偏這就是正確答案。

Paragraph 1 indicates which of the following about ::Roman pottery::?

A Roman amphorae were of much higher quality overall than other Roman pottery.

B Roman pottery can **best** be appreciated when actual pieces are handled.

C Roman pottery declined slightly in quality when the use of fast wheels and kilns was introduced.

D Roman practical tableware spread more rapidly across the Mediterranean than amphorae did.

The pottery of ancient Romans is remarkable in several ways. **The high quality of Roman pottery is very easy to appreciate when handling actual pieces of tableware or indeed kitchenware and amphorae (the large jars used throughout the Mediterranean for the transport and storage of liquids, such as wine and oil). However, it is impossible to do justice to Roman wares on the page, even when words can be backed up by photographs and drawing. **Most Roman pottery is light and smooth to touch and very tough, although, like all pottery, it shatters if dropped on a hard surface. It is generally made with carefully selected and purified clay, worked to thin-walled and standardized shapes on a fast wheel and fired in a kiln (pottery oven) capable of ensuring a consistent finish. With handmade pottery, inevitably there are slight differences between individual vessels of the same design and occasional minor blemishes (flaws). But what strikes the eye and the touch most immediately and most powerfully with Roman pottery is its consistent high quality.

這個題目相關的句子我已經加粗標記了，這句話比較明顯的有一個邏輯連接詞however，所以對比的意思非常的明確。而四個選項里也有三個都表現了對比，而這三個選項在內容上還都集中在標紅那一段。所以這個題目來勢洶洶其實一點都不難，錯誤選項迷惑度低，但讓人遺憾的是，這道題錯誤率很高。而且大多數學生是在這樣的一種情況下錯的：我知道我選的不太對，但我不知道選什麼。但是大家又都堅定地認為B選項裡面的BEST太過於絕對，堅決不選。

其實標記的句子寫得很清楚，……is very easy to appreciate……However, it is impossible to do……我先大致翻譯一下這句話：羅馬的瓷器的高品質在你親手碰觸到實物的時候是很容易感受的，但是通過圖片就不可能做出公正的評價。這句話中兩者對比語氣很強烈，語意也很清楚，就是想表達羅馬瓷器你要把玩實物才能感受它的高品質，就是handling actual pieces好，page不好。

B選項是很合適的。

對於這種大段落考查細節題的情況，同學們往往會緊張，越緊張越慌亂，什麼都找不到。其實我們仔細分析一下這段話，第一句總起，說羅馬瓷器在很多方面都很出眾。然後就是一個大對比，表明它的好的好是圖片表現不了的，你得親手去感觸。再往下就是關於它如何好更細緻的內容了。在更細節的內容里，還有一個對比，**like all pottery, it shatters if dropped on a hard surface. **這也就是第二題的答案出處。

其實ETS還是比較套路滴，第一段的後半部分中有大量關於羅馬瓷器的細節描述，這種情況下最容易出EXCEPT的題目，而第二題的答案句也不是意外的落在一個對比表達上。給大家附上第二題哈：

All of the following are mentioned in paragraph 1 as characteristics of Roman pottery EXCEPT:

A It was usually made with high-quality clay.

B It generally did not weigh much.

C It did not break as easily as other ancient pottery.

D It sometimes had imperfections.

我平時沒事兒的時候喜歡把TPO的文章拿出來細細地讀，然後跟題目進行對比，有些文章類型，題目簡直就是固定搭配。後來我再做真題或者新的TPO，我都先猜一猜這個段落會怎麼出題，我也會直接通過看題目，直接猜答案，結果竟然八九不離十。不是在炫技，也不是教大家投機取巧，是覺得多多分析文章的結構對做題目幫助很大，所謂的題感大概就是這樣吧。

從今天開始，我每天都會跟大家分享一兩道閱讀的題目，有托福的，也會有GRE的，希望能對大家的備考有幫助。