Chapter 2&3: simplicity and clutter——the writers' crafts
Chapter 4&5: style and the audience——the writers' attitudes
Zinsser 在文中也说了,看似这两者矛盾(paradox),但其实说的是两个不同角度的事情。一部好的作品是要表现作者本人的特色,同时吸引读者的兴趣(不要冗长和缺乏逻辑),即要让作者这个人吸引到读者。
Chapter 6: words ——也是crafts的一方面。
词汇&表达
common currency
UNCOUNT-流行的观点;广为接受的看法
root around/about
= look for 翻找;搜寻
"The English language is rich in strong and supple words. Take the time to root around and find the ones you want."
花点时间找找,找到你想要的那个词。
doze off
= doze = fall into a light sleep, especially during the daytime 小睡,打盹
tip-off
[informal]密报;密告
= a piece of information or warning that you give to someone, often privately or secretly.
reckon with
= [ had not reckoned with ] had not expected it and so were not prepared for it 估计到;预料;预期
= [something to be reckoned with ] 需要处理;需要解决
eg: He will have to demonstrate that his Movement for Democracy is really a force to be reckoned with in Algerian(阿尔及利亚) politics.
几组意思相近的表达:
(ecstasy欣喜若狂) / with the zest / with gusto 津津有味
mechanical act / workmanship / craft / technical detail
cheap words / made-up words / clichés
nudge the memory
nudge:
- touch or push gently (in order to get someone's attention)
eg: We nudged our way (through the crowd) to the exit.
- encourage someone to do something
eg: The salesman nudged her into testing out the car.
nudge the memory : 可以理解为提醒某人
"There's no better friend to have around to nudge the memory than Roget."
"It saves you the time of rummaging in your brain - that network of overloaded grooves - to find the word that's right on the tip of your tongue, where it doesn't do you any good."
on the tip of tongue
话就要到嘴边了
rummage in your brain 急忙回想某事
rummage N&V
搜寻;翻找;乱翻 (rummage through/about)
make the case cogently
让这件事更加使人信服。
He was after a certain emotional weigh.
可以理解为:他经过了很长时间的思考。"How he chose one word over another because he was after a certain emotional weigh."
"The race in writing is not to the swift but to the original."
写作的成功一定不是因为你写的快,写的多;而是原汁原味。“original”可以理解为两层意思:
1. 用词等表达形式要地道。一个词最初的意思是什么,有什么隐含的意思,都是要通过追根溯源才能真正理解,然后运用在写作中,会使得文章更有趣味,吸引读者。
2. 独创、本心。这个是说作者的,写作的人要坚持自己的风格,to be who you are, 而不是让读者限制住自己;另外,要写出自己的东西来,不要人云亦云。
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