SAT寫作技巧分析：Cause-Effect

在這一章我們一起來學習一下常見的論證技巧，除了使用有力的證據之外許多作者會藉助強大的邏輯(logic)來證明自己的觀點，說服讀者。恰當使用論證技巧也可以巧妙將作者觀點（Argument）與論據（Evidence）聯繫起來，強化論證效果。

常見論證類型有四種，因果論證Cause-and-Effect，類比與對比 Comparison-and-Contrast，分類討論Classification和讓步論證Concession。每篇文章都會使用至少一種論證技巧將文章局部串聯成堅不可摧的邏輯整體。

2.2.1 Cause-and-Effect 因果論證

我們首先來了解一下因果論證，雖然原因和結果經常組合出現，但是我們還是要分清楚哪些是「因」，哪些是「果」。陳述事情的Cause原因可以幫助讀者更加全面和深入地了解(comprehensive and deeper understanding)作者討論的對象；描述事情的result結果可以幫助讀者更好地做出自己的判斷（make better evaluation）。

因果最明顯的辨別標誌就是因果關係連詞，我們可以通過區別這兩類連詞達到分辨因果的效果。

Cause 原因標誌詞

due to

because (of)

owing to

since

as a result of

on account of

for the ground of

for on the ground that

if…then…

Effect 結果標誌詞

therefore

so

as a result

consequently

accordingly

result in

thus

hence

for this reason

because of this

lead to

so that

在搞清楚「因」與「果」的區別後，我們來看一下三種常見的因果論證展開方式(three common ways that develop cause-and-effect in paragraphs)，建議大家在分析時明確點明作者實用的展開方式。

2.2.1.1 Cause-Effect由因導果：段落由一個原因引出多個結果。請看以下例子：

Since the terrorists struck the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the Americans have been wondering how to respond to the frequent official warning that terrorists are planning new attacks in the near future. They feel anxious and panicky because they can』t calculate the odds including those of explosives or letters with anthrax. But it is critical that the president』s aides avoid any temptation to use security precautions as an excuse for political errors, which was already made somewhere. There is, of course, the danger that too many warnings could become mere background noise, and that somewhere down the road the public would wind up ignoring the one that really matters. The public cannot judge on a day-to-day basis whether those assessments are being made correctly. But the nation is better off frightened and informed than left happily in the dark.

（節選自美國高中課本）

這段文字是典型的Cause-Effect由因導果，論證的起因是恐怖分子襲擊世貿中心和五角大樓，段落中分別從以下三個方面陳述事件導致的結果：

• 民眾恐慌 public panic
• 政府頻繁犯錯 frequent political errors
• 民眾對警報習以為常，失去判斷意識 public lose judgment

作者通過對這三個深遠影響的描述傳達出對美國民眾和政局深深的擔憂和不滿（worry and discontent），呼籲大家採取行動解決當前問題(call for action)，對危險提高警惕(take precaution)。

2.2.1.2 Effect-Cause執果索因：段落由一個結果探尋多個原因。請看以下例子：

One of the main complaints of city residents in the US is the lack of parking. This problem is partly caused by all the abandoned cars on the streets. It has been estimated that over one million cars are abandoned on the streets of the cities. Each year, approximately a third of those cars are removed and destroyed. The rest of the cars which are not removed take up parking spaces and make neighbourhood look run-down. A survey shows that even though the city government of Los Angeles spends about 30 million dollars to tow away and dismantle abandoned vehicles, it is always fighting a losing battle as more and more cars are constantly coming off the producing line. In Boston, on the other hand, the problem has been dealt with by a non-profit governmental agency, which uses the money from the recycling of the metal in the cars to pay for the cost of towing them. The program in Boston sounds good although it has not completely reached financial independence from the federal government yet. Until a truly self-sufficient program for removing old cars is developed, it will remain a serious problem.

（節選自美國高中課本）

這一段文字集中討論了美國缺少停車位情況的三個原因:

• 街上停放過多廢棄車輛 too many abandoned cars
• 汽車廠商不斷製造大量汽車 constantly producing cars
• 當地政府缺乏治理資金 lack enough administration fund

讀者通過這段文字能夠更加清楚全面地了解(a comprehensive understanding)美國停車位不足的問題，從而幫助讀者思考如何尋求辦法來解決這個問題。

2.2.1.3 Causal chain 因果鏈： 段落由一個原因層層推導出一個結果，其中的每個邏輯環節都是前一個的結果和後一個的原因。請看以下例子：

The chief reason why I generally think there will be no hero in the modern society any more has to do with the forces that motivate the media in the first place. The media generally consist of profit-seeking entities, whose chief objective is to maximize profits for their shareholders or other owners. Moreover, our corporate culture has sanctioned this objective by codifying it as a fiduciary obligation of any corporate executive. For better or worse, in our society media viewers, readers, and listeners find information about the misfortunes and misdeeds of others, especially heroic public figures, far more compelling than their voters and accomplishments. In short, we love a good scandal. One needs look no further than the newsstand, local television news broadcast, or talk show to find ample evidence that this is the case. Thus in order to maximize profits, the media is simply giving the public what they demand--scrutiny of heroic figures that serves to diminish their reputation.

（節選自北美範文集）

作者在這一自然段層層推進闡明了為什麼他認為當今社會不會再有英雄：

• 當今媒體主要是利益驅動，目的就是為了賺錢 media are driven by profit
• 民眾普遍更喜歡看公眾人物的不幸和八卦 the public prefer misfortunes and misdeeds of the public figure
• 為了牟利，媒體報道公眾人物負面新聞 cater the public needs
• 負面新聞導致公眾人物名譽受損 no hero any more

因果鏈能夠幫助作者一步一步引導讀者順著的思路(help reader follow the logical progression of ideas) 推導出作者預期的結論，嚴密的邏輯推理(sound logic)有助於增強整篇文章的邏輯性，提高說服力。

以上文字摘自我SAT寫作課堂講義，需要完整電子版的同學可以私信我郵箱，我會郵件發送給大家。