Do it yourself

原文

So great is our passion for doing things for ourselves, that we are becoming increasingly less dependent on specialized labour. No one can plead ignorance of a subject any longer, for these are countless do-it-yourself publications. Armed with the right tools and materials, newlyweds gaily embark on the task of decorating their own homes. Men, particularly, spend hours of their leisure time installing their own fireplaces, laying out their own gardens; building garages and making furniture. Some really keen enthusiasts go so far as to build their own computers. Shops cater for the do-it-yourself craze not only by running special advisory services for novices, but by offering consumers bits and pieces which they can assemble at home. Such things provide an excellent outlet for pent up creative energy, but unfortunately not all of us are born handymen.

Some wives tend to believe that their husbands are infinitely resourceful and can fix anything. Even men who can hardly drive a nail in straight are supposed to be born electricians, carpenters, plumbers and mechanics. When lights fuse, furniture gets rickety, pipes get clogged, or vacuum cleaners fail to operate, some woman assume that their husbands will somehow put things right. The worst thing about the do-it-yourself game is that sometimes even men live under the delusion that they can do anything, even when they have repeatedly been proved wrong. It is a question of pride as much as anything else.

Last spring my wife suggested that I call in a man to look at our lawn mower. It had broken down the previous summer, and though I promised to repair it, I had never got round to it. I would not hear of the suggestion and said that I would fix it myself. One Saturday afternoon, I hauled the machine into the garden and had a close look at it. As far as I could see, it needed only a minor adjustment: a turn of a screw here, a little tightening up there, a drop of oil and it would be as good as new. Inevitably the repair job was not quite so simple. The mower firmly refused to mow, so I decided to dismantle it. The garden was soon littered with chunks of metal which had once made up a lawn mower. But I was extremely pleased with myself. I had traced the cause of the trouble. One of links in the chain that drives the wheels had snapped. After buying a new chain I was faced with the insurmountable task of putting the confusing jigsaw puzzle together again. I was not surprised to find that the machine still refused to work after I had reassembled it, for the simple reason that I was left with several curiously shaped bits of metal which did not seem to fit anywhere. I gave up in despair. The weeks passed and the grass grew. When my wife nagged me to do something about it, I told her that either I would have to buy a new mower or let the grass grow. Needless to say our house is now surrounded by a jungle. Buried somewhere in deep grass there is a rusting lawn mower which I have promised to repair one day.

译文

我们自己动手做的热情是如此之大，以致我们越来越少依赖专门的劳动力。没有人能再以对某事一无所知为借口，因为有无数的“自己动手”出版物。新婚夫妇手持合适的工具和材料，兴高采烈地着手装饰自己的家园。男人尤其乐此不疲，在闲暇时间花上数小时安装壁炉，布置花园；建造车库和制作家具。有些真正的热心者甚至自己动手建造计算机。商店迎合这种“自己动手”热潮，不仅为新手提供特别的咨询服务，而且向消费者提供各种零件，让他们可以在家组装。这些东西为被压抑的创造性提供了极好的发泄渠道，但不幸的是，我们并非人人都是天生的能工巧匠。

有些妻子倾向于相信她们的丈夫资源无穷，什么都能修好。即使是那些连钉子都钉不直的男人，也被认为是天生的电工、木匠、水管工和机械师。当灯泡烧坏、家具摇晃、管道堵塞或吸尘器失灵时，有些妇女便假设她们的丈夫会设法修好。最糟糕的是，“自己动手”游戏有时甚至让男人自欺欺人，认为他们什么都能做，即使一再被证明是错的。这与其说是个问题，不如说是个骄傲的问题。

去年春天，我妻子建议我请人来检查我们的割草机。它在前一个夏天坏了，虽然我答应修好它，却一直没有动手。我不听她的建议，坚持说要自己修。一天星期六下午，我把机器拖到花园里仔细检查一番。在我看来，它只需要小小的调整：拧拧螺丝，这里紧一紧，那里滴点油，它就会像新的一样。不可避免地，修理工作没那么简单。割草机坚决不肯割草，于是我决定把它拆开。花园很快布满了曾是割草机部件的金属碎片。但我却洋洋自得，因为我已经找到了故障的原因。驱动车轮的链条中有一节断了。买了新的链条后，我面临着把这个乱七八糟的拼图重新拼起来的不可逾越的任务。我毫不奇怪地发现，重新组装后机器仍然不肯工作，原因很简单，我还剩下几块奇形怪状的金属片，似乎哪儿也放不进去。我绝望地放弃了。几个星期过去了，草越长越高。当我妻子唠叨我做点什么时，我告诉她要么买个新割草机，要么就让草长着。不用说，我们的房子现在被丛林包围了。埋在深草丛中的某处，有一台生锈的割草机，我答应总有一天要修好它。

词汇表

passion

名词

英:/ˈpæʃ(ə)n/

美:/ˈpæʃən/

定义

1. 热情 - A strong and barely controllable emotion, often enthusiasm or desire.

例子: His passion for cooking drives him to experiment with new recipes.

例子: She pursued her passion for art despite the challenges.

2. 激情 - An intense feeling of love or sexual desire.

例子: Their passion for each other was evident in every glance.

例子: The novel is filled with scenes of romantic passion.

近义词

enthusiasm: 强调积极的兴趣和活力，但不如 passion 强烈或情感化，常用于日常语境。

zeal: 更侧重于热心和奉献，常与事业或目标相关，而 passion 可能更个人化。

ardor: 类似 passion，但更正式，常用于文学或历史语境，强调持久的热情。

反义词:

apathy, indifference, disinterest

用法

常用于描述强烈的兴趣或情感，常搭配如 'have a passion for'（对...有热情），在非正式和正式语境中均适用，文化上强调个人动力。

形式:

复数: passions, 形容词形式: passionate

深入解析：关键句型 "So + adjective + is/are + subject"

定义

这个句型是一种用于强调的倒装结构，通常将形容词和助动词置于句首，以突出形容词所描述的程度或状态。基本结构为：So + adjective (形容词) + is/are (be 动词) + subject (主语)。例如，在文章中的句子 "So great is our passion..."，它强调了热情的强烈程度。权威教材如《新概念英语》或《剑桥英语语法》指出，这种句型源于英语的修辞手法，用于加强表达的冲击力，核心含义是强调形容词的极端性，使句子更具戏剧性和说服力。

用法

此句型常用于正式写作、演讲或文学描述中，以突出某种品质或情感的强度。例如，在描述情感、品质或状况时，如 "So beautiful is the scenery that we were speechless." 它在语法体系中属于倒装句的一种，具体规则是当以 "so + 形容词" 开头时，主谓倒装发生，以避免句子显得平淡。它的位置通常在强调句型中，与其他强调结构如 "It is... that..." 相关联，帮助学生建立从简单陈述句到复杂强调句的过渡。同时，它链接到副词或形容词的比较级和最高级知识，例如与 "so... that..." 结果状语从句结合使用，形成如 "So great is our passion that we are becoming less dependent." 的完整表达。这种句型在口语中较少见，主要用于书面语，以增加文体的优雅性。

注意事项

学生易犯的错误包括忘记进行倒装，导致句子变成正常语序如 "Our passion is so great..."，从而失去强调效果；或者误用为 "So great our passion is..."，这会显得不自然。另一个常见偏误是错误选择 be 动词的形式，例如用 "is" 而非 "are" 在复数主语前。纠正建议：学生应先识别句子的强调意图，然后练习将 "so + 形容词" 置于句首并倒装主谓。同时，避免在非正式场合过度使用，以免显得生硬。练习时，注意语境是否适合强调，如果是日常对话，建议用简单句代替。

练习

一个额外的例子：在文章灵感下，你可以说："So strong is his determination that he overcame all obstacles." 这个句子强调了决心的强大程度。学生可以尝试替换形容词，如用 "intense" 代替 "strong"，并构建自己的句子，例如 "So busy is my schedule that I can't attend the meeting." 通过这个练习，学生能更好地应用句型于个人叙述中。

额外内容

背景知识：这种句型起源于古英语的诗歌和修辞传统，常在莎士比亚的作品中出现，对比分析，它类似于法语中的倒装表达，但英语版本更简洁。补充信息：在现代英语中，这种结构能帮助学习者提升写作水平，例如在考试作文中用于开头句，丰富表达多样性。同时，它与强调句型相联系，能让学生逐步理解英语的灵活性，避免一成不变的句式。

深入解析：关键句型 "Not only... but also..."

定义

这个句型是一种并列结构，用于强调两种或多种事物的对比或并列，结构为：Not only + [第一部分] + but also + [第二部分]。它表示不仅仅是前者，还包括后者，强调全面性或附加性。在文章中的句子如 "not only by running special advisory services... but by offering consumers bits and pieces..."，它突出了多种方式。权威教材如《新概念英语》定义此句型为一种修饰语的并列连接词，核心含义是突出事物的多方面或加强对比，以使表达更具说服力。

用法

此句型常用于描述原因、方式或特征时，强调事物的完整性，例如在解释现象或列举优点时，如 "Not only is he talented, but also hardworking." 规则包括："Not only" 和 "but also" 必须平行结构，即连接的成分要一致（如名词与名词、动词与动词）；在语法体系中，它属于并列连词的范畴，与 "and" 或 "or" 相关，但更强调对比。在句子中，如果 "Not only" 置于句首，可能导致部分倒装，如 "Not only did he finish the work, but also he did it well." 这帮助学生链接到倒装句知识，形成更复杂的句子结构。同时，它在口语和书面语中都很常见，用于增强说服力或平衡表达，例如在文章中用于描述 DIY 热潮的多种表现形式。

注意事项

学生易犯的错误包括不保持平行结构，例如说 "Not only he is talented but also hardworking"，缺少倒装或结构不一致；另一个偏误是省略 "also"，说成 "Not only... but..."，这会削弱强调效果。纠正建议：通过练习确保连接的部分语法一致，如动词形式或名词类型；另外，注意在正式写作中避免过度重复使用，以免句子冗长。学生还应警惕文化语境，因为在某些语言中，这种对比表达可能更直接，而英语强调礼貌和全面性。

练习

一个额外的例子：基于文章内容，你可以说："Not only do shops provide tools, but also they offer advice for beginners." 这个句子突出了商店的多重服务。学生可以尝试修改为自己的情境，如 "Not only am I learning English, but also I'm practicing grammar." 通过这个练习，学生能将句型应用到日常对话或写作中，增强表达的逻辑性。

额外内容

背景知识：这个句型源于拉丁语的修辞手法，在英语中演变为常见的连接结构。对比分析，与中文的 "不但...而且..." 类似，但英语版本更注重语法的精确性。补充信息：掌握此句型后，学生能更好地处理复杂句子，例如结合其他结构如 "Not only... but also... because..."，从而提升整体语言流畅度，并用于辩论或描述中。