说明文的写作

说明文是阐述事物的特征、本质、性能、结构、用途或科学原理的一种文体。其说明的对象可以是具体的，如：自然环境，仪表设备等；也可以是抽象的，如概念定律等。

说明文的写作相对于论说文来说，有一定的套路可循，因此不是十分复杂。说明科技方面的内容常用定义法、比较对比法、分类法、因果法等；说明自然环境方面的内容常用时间次序法、分类法等。当然，随着对象的不同，具体应该采用的方法也会有所不同。

说明文的写作应该注意的事项有下面几点：

1.语言简明扼要，通俗易懂，避免夸张华丽的辞藻，要把真实的一面展现在读者面前。

2.说明时一定要把握一个中心主题。说明文中细枝末节较多，但不能喧宾夺主。

3.说明的次序非常重要。合理的次序会使文章条理清楚，脉络明晰。因此，练习时可以尝试不同的次序进行写作，找出最合理的一种。

4.由于说明文写实性较强，有时难免会让人感到没有生气。因此，可以适当使用一些比喻、拟人等修辞手段，来增加文章的色彩。

就“说明对象”而言，英语说明文可分为对“客观具体事物”的说明和对“主观抽象观念”的说明两大类，比如：对“LASER（激光）”、“Computer Problem of Year 2000（计算机2000年问题）”等等的说明都是对客观或者具体事物的说明，而“The Successful Interview（谈成功的面试）”、“How to Write Good English Composition（如何才能写好英语作文）” 等是对主观抽象观念的说明。

但是无论是对“客观具体事物”的说明还是对“主观抽象观念”的阐述，英语说明文从结构上看大致可分为三个部分：

第一部分：一般是文章的第一段，提出文章的主题，也就是说，文章想要阐述、说明的主要内容；

第二部分：文章的主体，可由若干个段落组成，对文章的主题进行展开说明； 第三部分：结尾段，对文章的主题作归纳总结。

从英语说明文的结构可以看出，要写好英语说明文的关键在于第二部分如何对文章主题进行展开说明。在英语中，常见的用来展开文章主题的方法有下列几种：

1.罗列法（listing）

在文章开始时提出需要说明的东西和观点，然后常用first，second，„and finally加以罗列说明。罗列法广泛地使用于各类指导性的说明文之中，下面这篇学生作文就是用罗列法写成的：

Early Rising

Early rising（早起）is helpful in more than one way. First，it helps to keep us fit（健康）.We all need fresh air. But air is never so fresh as early in the morning. Besides，we can do good to our health from doing morning exercise（做早操）。

Secondly，early rising helps us in our studies. We learn more quickly in the morning，and find it easier to remember what we learn in the morning.

Thirdly，early rising enables（使能够）us to plan the work of the day. We cannot work well without a good plan. Just as the plan for the year should be made in the spring，so the plan for the day should be made in the morning.

Fourthly，early rising gives us enough time to get ready for our work，such as to wash our faces and hands and eat our breakfast properly.

Late risers may find it very difficult to form the habit of early rising. They ought to make special efforts to do so. As the English proverb says，“Early to bed and early to rise，makes a man healthy，wealthy and wise.”

罗列法经常用下列句式展开段落，我们可以注意模仿学习：

There are several good reasons why we should learn a foreign language. First of all，„Secondly，„And finally，„

We should try our best to plant more trees for several good reasons First of all，„Secondly，„And finally，

必须指出的是，有时罗列法并不一定有明确的first，second„等词，但文章还是以罗列论据展开的。

2.举例法（examples）

举例法是用具体的例子来说明我们要表达的意思，常用for example，for instance，still another example is„等词语引出。作文就是用举例法写成的：

Recreation

It is impossible to keep in good health unless we take enough recreation. The mind，too，needs change to make it fresh and vigorous（有活力的）. There is much truth in the old saying， “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”

There are many games which boys and girls can play after their school work is done，for instance，football，tennis，and kite-flying. Other examples of recreation are boating，fishing，

gardening，cycling，walking，chess-playing，and reading. Persons who sit much at their business should take a kind of recreation that will supply their muscles with exercise. Those who spend most of their time in the open air and do manual work should adopt reading or some other quiet form of recreation.

Cycling is said to be an important means of recreation，but many persons foolishly tire out themselves by cycling too much. The same may be said in regard to football. Tennis is a pleasant form of recreation. Many persons take great delight in boating. Fishing requires much patience，and there is much danger of taking cold by sitting still on a cold day too long. A good brisk（轻松）walk is one of the finest forms of exercise. For persons engaged in outdoor labor，chess-playing is another excellent form of recreation.

可以看出，举例法和罗列法有时可以结合使用：即用罗列法来列出例子，用例子充实罗列的说明。

3.比较法（comparison and contrast）

比较法是对两个对象进行比较，从而进行说明的写作手法。比较法又可细分为比较相同点（comparison）和比较不同点（contrast）两种方法，比如：

From Paragraph to Essay

Although they are different in length，the paragraph and the essay are quite similar in structure. For example，the paragraph starts with either a topic sentence or a topic introducer followed by a topic sentence. In the essay，the first paragraph sets up the topic focus. Next，the sentences in the body of a paragraph develop the topic sentence. Similarly，the body of an essay consists of a number of paragraphs that discuss and support the ideas given in the introductory paragraph. Finally，a concluding sentence——whether a restatement，conclusion，or observation——ends the paragraph. Theessay，too，has a concluding paragraph which ends the essay logically and satisfactorily. Although there are some exceptions，most well written expository（说明文的）paragraphs and essays are similar in structure.

可以看出，在比较相同点的时候，常用到similarly，also，too，in the same case，in spite of the difference等这样的词语。

European Football and American Football

Although European football is the parent of American football，the two games show several major differences. European football，sometimes called association football or soccer，is played in 80 countries，making it the most widely played sport in the world. American football，on the other hand，is popular only in North America（the United States and Canada）.Soccer is played by eleven players with a round ball. Football，also played by eleven players in somewhat different positions on the field，is played with an elongated（拉长的）round ball. Soccer has little body contact between players and therefore needs no special protective equipment. Football，in which

players make the greatest use of body contact to stop a running ball-carrier and his teammates，needs special protective equipment. In soccer，the ball is advanced toward the goal by kicking it or by butting（顶）it with the head. In American football，on the other hand，the ball is passed from hand to hand or carried in the hands across the opponent's goal. These are just a few of the features which distinguish association and American football.

这是一篇用比较不同点的手法写的说明文。从文章中可以看出：however，on the other hand，in contrast，but，nevertheless等表示转折的词语常用来引导对不同点的比较。