托福考试如何破解段落型的修辞目的题？

托福考试如何破解段落型的修辞目的题？众所周知修辞目的题作为新托福阅读考试中的重难点题型之一，是广大考生在考场上比较头疼的一种题型，按照提问对象来分，主要有两大类：一是问作者给出某种具体信息的目的; 二是问段落的目的。对于大多数学生来说，第 一种类型的修辞目的题都再熟悉不过了，对于第二种段落类型的修辞目的题就没那么了解。今天就让我们一起走进段落类型的修辞目的题吧。

托福考试如何破解段落型的修辞目的题？

段落类型的修辞目的题可以细分成四种情况：一是考查段落主旨；二是考查段落结构；三是考查段落与段落之间的关系；四是考查段落在篇章中的作用。接下来就让我们分别来看一看在考场上遇到这4种情况，该如何破解吧。

一、考查段落主旨

这种类型的修辞目的题比较常见的提问方式是：What is the purpose of paragraph X? 或 The purpose of paragraph X is to?

解题关键句是：段首句。

以TPO45的《 The Beringia Landscae》中的一道段落主旨类修辞目的题为例进行讲解，题目如下：

The purpose of paragraph 3 is to

A. contrast today’s Beringian landscape with other landscapes in the American continent

B. describe the Beringian landscape during the last ice age

C. explain why so many Beringian species became extinct during the last ice age

D. summarize the information about Beringia that historians agree on

P3：The Beringian landscape was very different from what it is today. Broad, windswept valleys; glaciated mountains; sparse vegetation; and less moisture created a rather forbidding land mass. This land mass supported herds of now-extinct species of mammoth, bison, and horse and somewhat modern versions of caribou, musk ox, elk, and saiga antelope. These grazers supported in turn a number of impressive carnivores, including the giant short-faced bear, the saber-tooth cat, and a large species of lion.

1、这是一道典型的问段落主旨的修辞目的题，在托福阅读的文章中，段落结构基本遵循Topic Sentence+Details的结构，也就是大部分段落的主旨句都是段落的开头句，这个段落也不例外。本段的第 一句话是The Beringian landscape was very different from what it is today, 这句话的意思是白令海峡过去的地貌与现在完全不同。再来看下4个选项，A选项对比的是现在美洲大陆上的其他地区的地貌特征，错误。C选项解释白令海峡的物种为何灭绝，是无关信息，错误。D选项概况历史学家们都同意的信息，是无关信息，错误。只有B选项对比的是过去地貌，由此我们可以得出本题的正确答案是B。

二、考查段落结构

这种类型的修辞目的题比较常见的提问方式是：What’s the organization of paragraph X? 或 How is paragraph X organized?

解题关键：托福阅读中比较常见的段落组织结构有三种情况：总分式、让步式、并列式。

以TPO45的《 The Beringia Landscae》中的一道段落结构类修辞目的题为例进行讲解，题目如下：

Which of the following best describes the organization of paragraph 6?

A. Two contrasting views are presented, and a study that could decide between them is proposed.

B. An argument is offered, and reasons both for and against the argument are presented.

C. A claim is made, and a study supporting the claim is described.

D. New information is presented, and the information is used to show that two competing explanations can each be seen as correct in some way.

P6: The argument seemed to be at a standstill until a number of recent studies resulted in a spectacular suite of new finds. The first was the discovery of a 1,000-square-kilometer preserved patch of Beringian vegetation dating to just over 17,000 years ago-the peak of the last ice age. The plants were preserved under a thick ash fall from a volcanic eruption. Investigations of the plants found grasses, sedges, mosses, and many other varieties in a nearly continuous cover, as was predicted by Guthrie. But this vegetation had a thin root mat with no soil formation, demonstrating that there was little long-term stability in plant cover, a finding supporting some of the arguments of Colinvaux. A mixture of continuous but thin vegetation supporting herds of large mammals is one that seems plausible and realistic with the available data.

2、这道题目问的是第六段的段落组织结构，托福阅读中比较常见的段落组织结构有三种情况：总分式、让步式、并列式。很明显，本段的组织结构属于总分式，即第 一句话是Topic Sentence，接下来就是用Details来支撑第 一句话的观点。第 一句话......a spectacular suite of new finds，表明最近有新的重大发现。第二句话The first was......as was predicted by Guthrie, 表明Guthrie的观点是正确的。第四句话又说But this vegetation......a finding supporting some of the arguments of Colinvaux, 表明Colinvaux的观点也没有问题。由此可以看出，这一段是用新的发现来解释之前的两个辩论的观点在某种程度上来说是正确的，因此这道题的正确答案是D。

三、考查段落与段落之间的关系

这种类型的修辞目的题比较常见的提问方式是：How is paragraph X related to paragraph XI?

解题关键句是：两个段落的首句及两个段落之间的衔接句。

以TPO26的《 Survival of Plants and Animals in Desert Conditions》中的一道考查段落间关系的类修辞目的题为例进行讲解，题目如下：

How is paragraph 2 related to paragraph 3?

A. Paragraph 2 provides a general description of desert plants, and paragraph 3 provides a scientific explanation for these observations.

B. Paragraph 2 divides desert plants into two categories, and paragraph 3 provides further information about one of these categories.

C. Paragraph 2 proposes one way of dividing desert plants into categories, and paragraph 3 explains one problem with this method of classification.

D. Paragraph 2 discusses two categories of desert plants, and paragraph 3 introduces a third category of plants.

P2: The nature of plant life in deserts is also highly dependent on the fact that they have to adapt to the prevailing aridity. There are two general classes of vegetation: long-lived perennials, which may be succulent (water-storing) and are often dwarfed and woody, and annuals or ephemerals, which have a short life cycle and may form a fairly dense stand immediately after rain.

P3：The ephemeral plants evade drought. Given a year of favorable precipitation, such plants will develop vigorously and produce large numbers of flowers and fruit. This replenishes the seed content of the desert soil. The seeds then lie dormant until the next wet year, when the desert blooms again.

3、这道题目问的是第二和第三段之间的关系，这类段间关系类型的修辞目的题的解题关键句是两个段落的首句及两个段落之间的衔接句。再回到本题，解题关键句是第二段的首句、第二段的末句和第三段的首句。我们来看下第二段的首句，意思是沙漠植被的本质也高度依赖于它们普遍适应干旱；第二段的末句表明沙漠植被主要分成两种类型：long-lived perennials and annuals or ephemerals；第三段的首句进一步解释了ephemerals这种类型的沙漠植被逃避干旱的特点。因此这道题目的正确答案选A。

四、考查段落在篇章中的作用

这种类型的修辞目的题比较常见的提问方式是：What function does paragraph X serve in the organization of the passage as a whole?

解题关键句：段落主旨句和文章主旨句。

以TPO7的《Agriculture, Iron, and the Bantu Peoples》中的一道考查段落在篇章中的作用为例进行讲解这个类型的修辞目的题，题目如下：

What function does paragraph 3 serve in the organization of the passage as a whole？

A. It contrasts the development of iron technology in West Asia and West Africa.

B. It discusses a non-agricultural contribution to Africa from Asia.

C. It introduces evidence that a knowledge of copper working reached Africa and Europe at the same time.

D. It compares the rates at which iron technology developed in different parts of Africa

P3: Iron came from West Asia, although its routes of diffusion were somewhat different than those of agriculture. Most of Africa presents a curious case in which societies moved directly from a technology of stone to iron without passing through the intermediate stage of copper or bronze metallurgy, although some early copper-working sites have been found in West Africa. Knowledge of iron making penetrated into the forest and savannahs of West Africa at roughly the same time that iron making was reaching Europe. Evidence of iron making has been found in Nigeria, Ghana, and Mali.

4、这道题目问的是第三段在整篇文章中的作用，在解题之前我们需要读懂第三段的主旨。根据上文中的情况，段落主旨句一般是段落的首句，我们先来看下本段的首句Iron came from West Asia, although its routes of diffusion were somewhat different than those of agriculture，这句话表明尽管传播途径有点不同于农业，但钢铁确实来自于西亚。再来看下整篇文章的主旨词Agriculture, Iron, and the Bantu Peoples，整篇文章讲的是农业、钢铁和非洲班图人三者之间的关系；而本段的重点是来自于西亚的钢铁这个关键因素给非洲班图人带来的影响。选项A对比的是西亚和西非钢铁技术的发展，文章中并未对比，错误。选项C中的copper不是本段的重心，错误。选项D比较了钢铁技术在非洲不同地区的发展比例，在文章没有体现，错误。只有选项B讨论了来自亚洲的非农产业（钢铁）给非洲带来的贡献，正确，所以本题的正确答案选B。

总结

在考试中遇到修辞目的题，首先确认修辞目的题的类型：是具体信息类的修辞目的题还是段落类的修辞目的题，再通过提问方式判断具体的考查类型，最后根据对应类型的不同情况进行解题！