借景抒情、寓情于景
作者: 李奕群
【问题导读】
人生有情感,遇物牵所思。恰当的环境描写有利于推动故事情节的发展,烘托人物的心理活动,给读者身临其境的感受。读后续写中加入适当的环境描写,可以让文章更有画面感,正如阅读中文的古诗时,读到“大漠孤烟直,长河落日圆”,抑或是“明月松间照,清泉石上流”等诗句,我们的脑海里不自觉就会浮现一幅幅美丽的画面。在大自然中,有很多元素,风、花、天空、云朵等。人物的心情也是变化多样的。然而,用英文去描述这么多优美的环境是极具挑战性的。有些学生还会走一个极端,写大量背过的句子,导致续写文章浮于表面。
【名师导学】
借景抒情、寓情于景是写作中常用的手法。环境描写可以描写事件发生的环境,也可以描写人看到的景象或感受到的某种情绪。环境描写只起画龙点睛的作用,环境描写不要写太长,且环境描写一定是为内容服务而不是为了让文章看起来高大上。所以写作的时候千万不要本末倒置,不要一味地堆砌华丽的辞藻,不要写一些无关紧要的套句或者环境描写。
环境描写在读后续写中的作用:
1. 衬托或突出人物的性格、心理等。
2. 暗示或推动故事情节发展。
3. 增添或烘托某种气氛和意境,奠定全文基调。
4. 揭示主题,深化主旨。
【案例导引】
阅读下面短文,根据所给情节进行续写,使之构成一个完整的故事。
The icy wind howled across the empty street and it was an unusually quiet day in theemergency room on the New Year. It was quiet, except for the nurses who were standingaround the nurses’ station complaining about having to work over the New Year, for peoplewere supposed to be spending time with their families and exchanging gifts and wishes.
I was the guiding nurse that day and had just done the cleanup in the waiting room.Since there were no patients waiting to be seen at the time, I returned to the nurses’ stationfor a cup of hot coffee that someone had brought in for the New Year. Just then, a colleaguecame back and told me I had five patients waiting to be evaluated.
I was surprised,“Five, how did I get five? I was just out there and no one was in thewaiting room.”
“Well, there are five signed in.”
So I went straight out and called the first name. Five bodies showed up at my guidingdesk, a pale short woman and four small children in untidy clothing.
“Are you all sick?”I asked suspiciously.
“Yes,”she said weakly and lowered her head.
“Okay,”I replied, unconvinced,“Who’s first?”One by one they sat down, and Iasked the usual beginning questions. When it came to the descriptions of their symptoms,things got a little vague. Two of the children had headaches, but the headaches weren’t accompaniedby the normal body language of holding the head or trying to keep it still. Twochildren had earaches, but only one could tell me which ear was affected. The mother complainedof a cough, but seemed to work to produce it.
Something was wrong with the picture. Our hospital policy, however, was not to turnaway any patient, so we would see them. When I explained to the mother that it might be alittle while before a doctor saw her, because there were several more critical patients, sheresponded,“Take your time. It’s warm here and there is an atmosphere of the New Year forthat tree with the New Year gifts.”
注意:续写词数应为150左右。
Paragraph 1:
Then she turned and, with a smile, settled her kids in the waiting room.__________
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Paragraph 2:
My colleagues, complaining about working over the New Year, showed sympathy for the homeless family.___________________________________________________________________
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一、故事梳理
这篇文章是以第一人称的视角讲述新年期间当护士们正在抱怨新年节日期间仍要上班时,医院来了5位病人的故事。一位母亲带着四个孩子在新年之际无家可归,护士们都对此深表同情并且想要给他们带来更多温暖。
二、语言分析
通过观察我们发现文章的开头和结尾处都有环境描写。例如:
1. The icy wind howled across the empty street and it was an unusually quiet day inthe emergency room on the New Year.(Para. 1)
冰冷的风呼啸着穿过空荡荡的街道,新年这天,急诊室异常安静。
先观察这一部分环境描写里的形容词icy、empty、quiet和动词howl,虽然没有一个是描写心理的,但是我们很容易感受到人物此处伤感的情绪,这为后文奠定了感情基调:正值新年假期却不能休息,还要继续上班,护士们对此有诸多抱怨。
2. Take your time. It’s warm here and there is an atmosphere of the New Year for thattree with the New Year gifts. (Para. 9)
慢慢来。这里很暖和,并且还有新年的气氛,因为那儿有一棵挂满新年礼物的树。
这一段环境描写出现在那位母亲说的话里。句中的形容词warm 和an atmosphereof the New Year的意象很容易让我们感受到人物此时的心理状态是幸福、温暖的。这也和开头处的环境描写形成对比:同样在医院里,要上班的护士们感受到的是冷风呼啸,而这位无家可归的母亲感受到的却是幸福、温暖。
三、常用招式
环境描写分为客观和主观两种角度:客观角度从环境本身入手,主观角度则从观察者的角度描写环境。通常在描写时主、客观角度交替进行。人物的心情也是变化多样的,但是总体可以分为正面和负面,不同元素的环境描写有不同的作用。
(一)风
1. The wind/breeze, soft and sweet, clicked through tree branches.
微风轻拂,柔和又清新,拨动着树枝。
2. A gust of wind blew and parted the drooping branches of the willow.
一阵狂风吹来,拨开了柳树低垂的枝条。