如何通过阅读外刊积累英文写作句型？（21）

这是“读外刊，学英文句型”栏目的第二十一期，关于该栏目第一期的说明可以见如何通过阅读外刊积累英文写作句型？

1.对……很重视

要表达“对某话题/事件很重视”，常见的一个说法是：someone attaches importance/significance to something，这里介绍一个新的表达：

The environment has always been a subject close to my heart and it has become an increasing focus of my work over two decades with the Guardian. That is no doubt because the problems of climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution and over-consumption have become bigger and more apparent.

选段第一句The environment has always been a subject close to my heart意思即“我一直很重视环境问题”，在这里close to one’s heart是一个固定搭配，含义是“为……所重视/关注”

这里可以提取出一个句型：XX is a subject close to one’s heart，以此来表达某人对于某话题（比如环境、教育、健康、平权等）很重视。举个例子：

Dolce & Gabbana, an Italian fashion chain, caused uproar online after it posted videos trivializing China's centuries-old culture and its designer Stefano Gabbana made derogatory remarks about China. Given that national pride is a subject close to every citizen's heart, it is not surprising to see so many Chinese people boycotting this brand, and it is clear that D&G's days are numbered.

2.对某事不能完全相信

如何表达“对某观点或结论不能完全相信”？可以参考下面这一说法：

There are 1.8 billion young people in the world, roughly a quarter of the total population. (This report defines “young” as between about 15 and 30.) All generalisations about such a vast group should be taken with a bucket of salt. What is true of young Chinese may not apply to young Americans or Burundians.

这段话的意思是目前全球有18亿年龄处于15到30岁之间的年轻人，但每个国家年轻人的特点都有所不同，任何将这一群体概而论之得到的结果都不能完全相信。

第二句话中有一个说法值得注意：be taken with a bucket of salt 这是一个很好用的短语，也可以写成be taken with a pinch/grain of salt，它的含义是“对某事半信半疑，有保留地相信某事”。

该短语据传来自于一个历史故事：罗马将军庞贝相信“以毒攻毒”这种方法，即每次通过服用小剂量毒药的方式来使身体逐渐对它们免疫。他每次在服用毒药时都会吃一小勺盐（a grain of salt）以帮助吞咽。后来就有了take something with a grain of salt这一说法，只不过引申义脱离了原来的含义。关于这一故事的详细解释可以参见英文维基百科词条：

https://en./wiki/Grain_of_salt

我们可以用something should be taken with a bucket/ pinch/grain of salt 来说明对于某观点或结论应该谨慎看待。比如：

(1) Claims made by so-called online experts should be taken with a pinch of salt, because the internet is full of misinformation.

(2) The author claims that laws cannot change what is in people’s hearts or minds, and as a result, many problems of modern society cannot be solved by laws and the legal system. While the first statement is true, the second must be taken with a pinch of salt. Many modern society problems can be solved, or prevented by proper regulation.

3.通过……的方式脱离困境

下面的句子选自The Economist对于全球经济的报道Spotting the black swans

A drop in the yuan would also add to the financial stress on Chinese firms with large dollar-denominated debts. And China exporting its way out of trouble might place an undue burden on the rest of the global economy.

第二句中exporting its way out of trouble是一个很经典的说法，它包含了一个固定结构：verb+your way out of trouble，即“通过……的方式脱离麻烦”，常见的搭配有：talk/fight your way out of trouble，例如：She is good at talking her way out of trouble. 她擅长凭着三寸不烂之舌为自己开脱。

这一结构更广泛的形式是：verb+your way+preposition+something，例如The Economist在报道乔布斯青少年经历时用了这样的说法：

Mr Jobs caught the computing bug while growing up in Silicon Valley. As a teenager in the late 1960s he cold-called his idol, Bill Hewlett, and talked his way into a summer job at Hewlett-Packard.

talked his way into a summer job 即“凭口才得到了一份暑期工作”。我们在写作中可以灵活应用该结构，比如：

(1) In a society where money talks, young people from rich families are able to buy their way into a good university.

(2) In Hollywood, it is an open secret that some actresses have slept their way to the top.

4.一个常用句式

下面的句子出自The Economist对于Michael Wolff的新书Fire and Fury的书评：

Several hundred thousand e-books had also been sold, and readers as far away as Kenya claimed to be illegally circulating an electronic PDF version of Mr Wolff’s tale of eye-watering haplessness and bloodletting. Not since Harry Potter has a new book caught fire in this way.

这一段话的背景是Michael Wolff的新书出版后大受欢迎，一时洛阳纸贵。第二句话Not since Harry Potter has a new book caught fire in this way. 是一个否定倒装结构，还原后相当于：Not a new book has caught fire in this way since Harry Potter. 在这里not否定的是主句，而不是since，句子的意思是“自从《哈利波特》系列之后还没有哪一本书能够这样受欢迎”。其中catch fire是一个固定搭配，意思是“（某事物）大受欢迎”。

Not since...has…也是一个我们在写作中可以用上的实用句型，它表示“自从……之后，还没有……”，例如：

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged more than 500 points on November 21st, 2018. Not since 2008 has the US stock market seen such a huge decline in a single day.

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总结：

本期一共介绍了以下几个表达：

(1) XX is a subject close to one’s heart

(2) be taken with a pinch/grain of salt

(3) verb+your way+preposition+something

(4) Not since...has…