杜娟

主旨大意題是英語閱讀理解最容易失分的題型之一。理解文章的主旨要義成了同學(xué)們在閱讀中遇到的最大難題。因為有時作者對文章主旨沒有明示，需要讀者從字里行間歸納和概括。下面以高考真題為例，探索如何破解閱讀中的主旨大意題。

高考主旨大意的命題形式通常有三種。

1. 中心意思

The main idea /key point of this passage is ...？

The passage is mainly about ...？

From the passage， we can learn/conclude ...？

2. 標(biāo)題

The best title/headline for this passage is？

Which of the following is the best title？

What would be the best title for the text？

3. 作者的寫作目的和態(tài)度

Whats the authors main purpose in this passage？

The writers attitude towards ... is ...？

同學(xué)們清楚了高考的命題形式，在閱讀中就可以依據(jù)文章體裁，透視文章主旨。

[記敘文]

同學(xué)們應(yīng)該弄清楚文章中誰（Who）在什么時候（When）什么地點（where）做了什么事（what）講了什么道理（why）以及主旨位置。同時知道敘事過程并不是文章的主旨，所蘊(yùn)道理才是。文章的主旨在文章首尾或隱藏在敘事之中。

例1 （2015·山東卷） Jimmy ... lost his job a few months ago. He has a good heart， but always feared applying for a new job.

One day， he gathered up all his strength and decided to attend a job interview. His appointment ... at 10 am and it ... already 8：30. While waiting for a bus ...， he saw an elderly man wildly kicking the tire of his car. Obviously ... something wrong with the car. Jimmy immediately went up to lend him a hand ... Jimmy said ... no need to pay him； he just helped someone in need， and he had to rush for an interview ...

Then the interviewer turned the chair and to Jimmys surprise， it was the old man he helped earlier in the morning. It turned out he was the General Manager of the company.

“Sorry ... to keep you waiting， but I was pretty sure I made the right decision to have you as part of our workforce before you even stepped into the office. I just know youd be a trustworthy worker. Congratulations！” Jimmy sat down and they shared a cup of well-deserved coffee as he landed himself a new job.

60. What can we learn from Jimmys experience？

A. Where there is a will， theres a way

B. A friend in need is a friend indeed

C. Good is rewarded with good.

D. Two heads are better than one Summary

解析 C。文章的主旨就蘊(yùn)含在Jimmy失業(yè)，找工作時因為幫助一個老人，結(jié)果面試遲到，到最后面試的老板竟然是他所幫的那個老人的過程中。作者的敘述都是為表達(dá)Good is rewarded with good（好心有好報）服務(wù)的。要避免以偏概全，把具體事實或細(xì)節(jié)當(dāng)主題。

[說明文]

說明文的作用是介紹事物的現(xiàn)象、特征、過程、功能和趨勢。同學(xué)們要知道作者在說明什么話題（what），如何說明話題（how），話題的意義何在（why）以及主旨的位置。說明文的主旨常在文章的開頭。

例2 （2016·全國卷Ⅰ） The meaning of silence varies among cultural groups. Silences may be thoughtful， or they may be empty when a person has nothing to say. A silence in a conversation may also show stubbornness， uneasiness， or worry. Silence may be viewed by some cultural groups as extremely uncomfortable； therefore attempts may be made to fill every gap（間隙） with conversation. Persons in other cultural groups value silence and view it as necessary for understanding a persons needs.endprint

Many Native Americans value silence and feel it is a basic part of communicating ...

Other cultures may use silence in other ways， particularly when dealing with conflicts among people or in relationships of people with different amounts of power ...

Nurses and other care-givers need to be aware of the possible meanings of silence when they come across the personal anxiety their patients may be experiencing ...

35. What may be the best title for the text？

A. Sound and Silence （wrong）

B. What It Means to Be Silent （proper）

C. Silence to Native Americans （too abstract）

D. Speech Is Silver； Silence Is Gold （too narrow）

解析 B。文章的主旨就在文章的開頭（The meaning of silence varies among cultural groups）。同學(xué)們在解這種題時應(yīng)避免選擇過于籠統(tǒng)或狹隘的選項。

[議論文]

議論文提出一個主題或觀點，有支撐句、結(jié)論，通常是“提出問題——分析問題——解決問題”的形式。同學(xué)們在閱讀中應(yīng)該知道作者在議論什么話題（what），說服什么（what），以及主旨的位置。在議論文中，表揚、支持的說法常常是主旨；批評、反對之后的建議常常是主旨。主旨常在首尾段、首尾句。

例3 （2013·天津卷） When asked about happiness， we usually think of something extraordinary， an absolute delight， which seems to get rarer the older we get.

For kids， happiness has a magical quality. Their delight at winning a race or getting a new bike is unreserved.

In the teenage years the concept of happiness changes ...

In adulthood the things that bring deep joy—love， marriage， birth—also bring responsibility and the risk of loss ...

My definition of happiness is “the capacity for enjoyment” ...

Psychologists tell us that to be happy we need a mix of enjoyable leisure time and satisfying work ... We， however， with so many choices and such pressure to succeed in every area ...

Happiness isnt about what happens to us—its about how we see what happens to us. Its the skillful way of finding a positive for every negative. Its not wishing for what we dont have， but enjoying what we do possess.

55. What can be concluded from the passage？

A. Happiness lies between the positive and the negative.

B. Each man is the master of his own fate.

C. Success leads to happiness.

D. Happy is he who is content.

解析 D。文中多次提到happiness，但真正點明文章主旨的是結(jié)尾句Its not wishing for what we dont have， but enjoying what we do possess。endprint