托福阅读：抓句子重心的三个段位

今天我们来聊一聊托福阅读中如何抓句子重心，对应的就是语意重心类题中的句子简化题和一部分的修辞目的题吧。

首先，我们把抓句子重心也分成三个段位。

段位一：抓语法主干

比如：

There appear to be many unexplored matters about the motivation to reflect ---- for example, the value of externally motivated reflection as opposed to that of teachers who might reflect by habit.

这句话的语法主干为There appear to be many unexplored matters(看起来有很多未被探究的事情)。很明显，这也确实是这句话的句子重心。

所以，通过抓语法主干来抓句子重心确实是可以的。

不过，这是段位。（也就是说，这个段位是必备的，但是只有这个段位是远远不够的！）

段位二：理解分析句内逻辑

比如：

Glaciers move slowly across the land with tremendous energy, carving into even the hardest rock formations and thereby reshaping the landscape as they engulf, push, drag, and finally deposit rock debris in places far from its original location.

这句话的语法主干为Glaciers move slowly（冰川慢慢地移动），它是这句话想表达的重心吗？很明显不是！

通过读句子，我们发现Glaciers move slowly（冰川慢慢地移动）只是一个起始点，接下来是carving into even the hardest rock formations（刻入甚至最坚硬的岩石）, 这也还没完，接下来是thereby reshaping the landscape（因此重塑地貌），而后面是一个as从句as they engulf, push, drag, and finally deposit rock debris in places far from its original location（因为它们吞没，推动，拖动并最终在离原来位置很远的地方把岩石渣沉淀下来）。通过逻辑上的理解，我们发现，“重塑地貌”才是这句话所强调的最终结果，才是这句话的重心。也就是说，所有的其他信息都是围绕着“重塑地貌”来说的。

所以，这个句子证明，语法主干Glaciers move slowly（冰川慢慢地移动）并不是句子重心，而通过分析句内逻辑的方式，我们才更准确地确定了句子重心“重塑地貌”。

这里，我们基本可以确定，语法主干是无法真正帮助我们确定句子重心的，我们必须要对句内各信息进行逻辑上的分析，才能更准确地确定句子重心。事实上（in fact）, 通过句内逻辑的分析，你已经可以非常准确地把握住句子的重心，所以你已经完全有能力应对几乎所有的句子简化题了。

但是，抓句子重心还有段位三。

段位三：理解分析句间连贯

在上一篇关于理解句间连贯的文章中，我其实提到过，一个句子是有“旧信息+新信息”构成的，其中旧信息是起到连接上文的作用，也就是连贯的作用，而新信息就是句子想表达的点。

明白没？新信息就是句子的重心啊！

所以，道理很简单，只要你能知道一个句子的新信息是什么，你就知道了句子重心是什么了。

那你怎么才能知道句子的新信息是什么呢？道理同样很简单，你需要通过读它的前文，读它前面的句子，来确定什么是旧信息，然后你才能确定它的新信息是什么。

来，看一道句子简化题：

Ever since people had begun to catalog the strata in particular outcrops, there had been the hope that these could somehow be used to calculate geological time. But as more and more accumulations of strata were cataloged in more and more places, it became clear that the sequences of rocks sometimes differed from region to region and that no rock type was ever going to become a reliable time marker throughout the world.

A. The discovery of regional differences in the sequences of rocks led geologists to believe that rock types could someday become reliable time markers.

B. Careful analysis of strata revealed that rocks cannot establish geological time because the pattern of rock layers varies from place to place.

C. Smith's catalogs of rock strata indicated that the sequences of rocks are different from place to place and from region to region.

D. Because people did not catalog regional differences in sequences of rocks, it was believed that rocks could never be reliable time markers.

这个句子简化题我故意把考的那句话的前一句话也摘了出来。如果我说，这道题，我不用读阴影部分那句话，也照样可以做出来，你信不信？

对，你没看错，我就是不读考的那句话，我也照样可以把这道句子简化题做出来。

思路如下：

我按顺序读文章，先读到了Ever since people had begun to catalog the strata in particular outcrops, there had been the hope that these could somehow be used to calculate geological time.（自从人们开始记录特定某些裸露出的岩石里的岩层，人们就一直希望可以用这些记录的数据去计算地质时间。）然后我读了一下阴影部分的个词But。我瞬间明白了，阴影部分这句话要说，人们的希望应该大概率破灭了。所以，我不读阴影句我也知道这个阴影句的重心应该是说“希望破灭了”，也就是不能计算地质时间。所以我开始读选项：

A. The discovery of regional differences in the sequences of rocks led geologists to believe that rock types could someday become reliable time markers.

B. Careful analysis of strata revealed that rocks cannot establish geological time because the pattern of rock layers varies from place to place.

C. Smith's catalogs of rock strata indicated that the sequences of rocks are different from place to place and from region to region.

D. Because people did not catalog regional differences in sequences of rocks, it was believed that rocks could never be reliable time markers

我们可以排除A和C。那么B和D里哪个是对的呢？很明显D里说到people did not catalog regional differences in sequences of rocks（人们没有记录岩层顺序上的区域差异），这是与我读到的原文是矛盾的：阴影句的前一句明明说了Ever since people had begun to catalog the strata in particular outcrops, there had been the hope that these could somehow be used to calculate geological time（自从人们开始记录特定某些裸露出的岩石里的岩层，人们就一直希望可以用这些记录的数据去计算地质时间。）所以，正确答案是B。

我根本不用读阴影句的内容，我也能确定B是正确答案！我怎么做到的？我是通过前文的信息再加上一个But的连接，确定了阴影句的新信息。既然我已经知道了阴影句的新信息，我也不用真正去读阴影句了。就是这么简单的道理。

这就是确定句子重心的第三个段位。

我们总结一下，抓句子重心的三个段位分别是：

段位一：抓语法主干

段位二：理解分析句内逻辑

段位三：理解分析句间连贯

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