句子组合的技巧

句子需要组合

如果所有的句子都是简短的，长度相同，那么句子必然会变得单调，为了避免这种单调，句子必须组合起来。作家的部分任务就是运用他或她所能掌握的语言音乐，而语言的部分音乐就存在于不同句子长度和结构的节奏之中。本节将探讨一些我们普通作家用来组合句子的技巧。

复合句

复合句由两个或两个以上的独立从句组成。这意味着句子中至少有两个思想单元，其中任何一个都可以作为自己的句子。复合句中的子句要么用分号分隔(比较少见)，要么用并列连词连接(并列连词通常前面有逗号)。最常见的两个并列连词是And和but。(其他的是or, for, yet, 和 so等。)这是我们用来组合想法的最简单的技巧:

• Meriwether Lewis is justly famous for his expedition into the territory of the Louisiana Purchase and beyond, but few people know of his contributions to natural science.
• Lewis had been well trained by scientists in Philadelphia prior to his expedition, and he was a curious man by nature.

注意，and只是把一个想法和另一个想法联系起来;but也有联系，但它在建立思想之间有趣的关系方面做了更多的工作。and是孩子和梦的直接语言库的一部分:一件事接另一件事，想法之间的逻辑关系并不总是明显或重要的。but这个词(和其他协调词)

复合句的要素

在一个句子中，思想可以通过组合不同的句子元素来连接:主语、动词、宾语或整个谓语、修饰语等。请注意，当一个句子中的两个这样的元素用并列连词组合时(与并列句中的两个独立分句相反)，连接词通常就足够了，不需要逗号。

主语:当两个或多个主题在做平行的事情时，它们通常可以组合成一个复合主语。

• Working together, President Jefferson and Meriwether Lewis convinced Congress to raise money for the expedition.

宾语:当主语同时作用于两个或多个事物时，宾语可以被组合。

• President Jefferson believed that the headwaters of the Missouri reached all the way to the Canadian border.
• He also believed that meant he could claim all that land for the United States.
• President Jefferson believed that the headwaters of the Missouri might reach all the way to the Canadian border and that he could claim all that land for the United States.

请注意，宾语在构造上必须是平行的: Jefferson believed that this was true and that was true。如果目标不平行(Jefferson was convinced of two things: that the Missouri reached all the way to the Canadian border and wanted to begin the expedition during his term in office.)，这个句子就会出错。

动词和动词形式:当主语同时做两件事时，有时可以通过复合动词和动词形式来组合思想。

• He studied the biological and natural sciences.
• He learned how to categorize and draw animals accurately.
• He studied the biological and natural sciences and learned how to categorize and draw animals accurately.

注意，上面连接复合元素的“and learned”前面没有逗号。

• In Philadelphia, Lewis learned to chart the movement of the stars.
• He also learned to analyze their movements with mathematical precision.
• In Philadelphia, Lewis learned to chart and analyze the movement of the stars with mathematical precision.
• OR — In Philadelphia, Lewis learned to chart the stars and analyze their movements with mathematical precision.

(注意在第二个组合中，我们不需要重复不定式中的“to”来保持平行形式.)

修饰语:在适当的时候，像介词短语这样的修饰语可以组合在一起。

• Lewis and Clark recruited some of their adventurers from river-town bars.
• They also used recruits from various military outposts.
• Lewis and Clark recruited their adventurers from river-town bars and various military outposts.

注意，我们不需要重复介词from来使两个思想在形式上成功地平行。

从句的协调行为只是将思想联系起来;将一个子句置于另一个子句之后，建立了一个思想之间更复杂的关系，表明一个思想以某种方式依赖于另一个思想:时间发展、因果关系、条件关系等等。

• William Clark was not officially granted the rank of captain prior to the expedition's departure.
• Captain Lewis more or less ignored this technicality and treated Clark as his equal in authority and rank.
• Although William Clark was not officially granted the rank of captain prior to the expedition's departure, Captain Lewis more or less ignored this technicality and treated Clark as his equal in authority and rank.
• The explorers approached the headwaters of the Missouri.
• They discovered, to their horror, that the Rocky Mountain range stood between them and their goal, a passage to the Pacific.
• As the explorers approached the headwaters of the Missouri, they discovered, to their horror, that the Rocky Mountain range stood between them and their goal, a passage to the Pacific.

当我们使用从句从属关系来组合思想时，标点规则是非常重要的。现在回顾一下从句的定义，以及逗号在引导和插入元素之间的用法。

利用同位语连接思想

同位语可能是我们用来组合思想的最有效的技巧。同位语或同位语短语是对文章前面内容的重新命名，重新识别。你可以把同位语想象成一个小句机制(通常是一个关系代词和一个连接动词)被移除的修饰从句。同位语通常是，但不总是，一个插入元素，需要一对逗号将它与句子的其他部分分开。

• Sacagawea, who was one of the Indian wives of Charbonneau, who was a French fur-trader, accompanied the expedition as a translator.
• A pregnant, fifteen-year-old Indian woman, Sacagawea, one of the wives of the French fur-trader Charbonneau, accompanied the expedition as a translator.

请注意，在上面的第二句话中，Sacagawea的名字是一个插入元素(从结构上看，这句话充分地将她定义为“一个怀孕的15岁印度妇女”)，因此她的名字用逗号隔开;然而，Charbonneau的名字对于句子的意义是必不可少的(否则，我们谈论的是哪个皮货商人?)，而不是由一对逗号来衬托的。

用分词短语连接思想

作家可以把一个句子的意思转化成一个修饰词组，从而把这个句子的意思整合成一个更大的结构。

• Captain Lewis allowed his men to make important decisions in a democratic manner.
• This democratic attitude fostered a spirit of togetherness and commitment on the part of Lewis's fellow explorers.
• Allowing his men to make important decisions in a democratic manner, Lewis fostered a spirit of togetherness and commitment among his fellow explorers.

在上面的句子中，分词短语修饰了句子的主语Lewis。像这样的短语通常用逗号与句子的其余部分隔开。

• The expeditionary force was completely out of touch with their families for over two years.
• They put their faith entirely in Lewis and Clark's leadership.
• They never once rebelled against their authority.
• Completely out of touch with their families for over two years, the men of the expedition put their faith in Lewis and Clark's leadership and never once rebelled against their authority.

使用绝对短语组合思想

也许最优雅的——也是最容易被误解的——组合思想的方法是绝对短语。这个短语经常出现在句子的开头，通常由名词(短语的主语)后面跟着一个分词组成。其他修饰语也可能是短语的一部分。然而，绝对短语中没有真正的动词，它总是被当作一个插入语元素，一个介绍性修饰语，用逗号隔开。

绝对短语可能与分词短语混淆，它们之间的结构差异很小，但意义重大。分词短语不包含绝对短语的主分词关系;它修饰了后面独立子句的主语。另一方面，绝对短语被认为修饰接下来的整个子句。例如，在下面的第一个组合句子中，绝对短语修饰了主语Lewis，但它也修饰了动词，告诉我们“在什么条件下”或“以什么方式”或“他如何”让世界失望。因此，绝对短语修饰整个随后的从句，不应与悬垂分词混淆，悬垂分词必须修饰紧接其后的主语。

• Lewis's fame and fortune was virtually guaranteed by his exploits.
• Lewis disappointed the entire world by inexplicably failing to publish his journals.
• His fame and fortune virtually guaranteed by his exploits, Lewis disappointed the entire world by inexplicably failing to publish his journals.