命题作文的特点是:出题者仅给出题目,如: The Advantages of Travel, An Outstanding Worker(一位优秀工人)等,可供参考的信息非常少,大部分信息靠考生自己分析综合。对待这样的命题方式,考生得弄清以下几点:

　　一、命题作文形式的三块模式

　　1命题作文形式的三块模式,一般是第一块少于1/5,第二块多于3/5,或约为4/5,第三块少于1/5。这种三块模式有时具体为三个段落,有时体现为一个段落内的三个层次。

　　标题

　　论点  第1主题  第2主题   结论

　　[参考范文]

　　The Advantages of Travel(标题)

　　(论点) Travel is beneficial to us in at least three ways.

　　(第1主题句) First, by traveling we can enjoy the beautiful scenery in different places.We

　　will see with our own eyes many places read of in books, and visit some famous cities and scenic spots.(第2主题句) Second, we will meet people with different interests and see strange and different things when we travel. We can get some ideas about the lifestyle and customs of people in other areas, taste different foods and local flavors if we like. In this way, we can understand how differently other people live.(第3主题句)Third, travel will not only help us to gain knowledge of geography and history and other knowledge, which arouses the fervent love for our motherland, but also help us keep healthy and make us less narrow-minded. Travel does benefit us both mentally and physically.

　　With all these advantages of travel, it is no wonder that travel has now become more popular than ever in China.(结尾)

　　[范文点评]短文第一段“ Travel is beneficial to us in at least three ways.”点明了文章的中心思想,下面三个主题句分别从三个角度展开来谈旅游对人们的好处,最后一段得出结论“It is no wonder that travel has now become more popular than ever in China”毋庸置疑,在中国,旅

　　游已比以前任何时候都火热了。

　　2.一段式

　　标题

　　论点 第1主题句 第2主题句

　　[参考范文]

　　Jim's Bedroom(标题)

　　(论点)Jim's bedroom is green now.(第1主题句) He painted it last week. He went to paint store in the morning. He asked the salesman,"Do you have any dark green paint? "The salesman said,"No,I don't.I have some light green paint."So Jim chose the light green paint. It was a pretty color. He bought some paint and two paint brushes.(第2主题句)How did he paint his bedroom? When he went home. he moved the bedroom furniture. He put the bed in the living room. The bedroom was empty.He painted the walls and the doors. Then he put the furniture into the bedroom again、(结论) Now the room is clean and comfortable.

　　论文点评]本文论点是“Jim's bedroom is green now.”说明本段的中心思想—“吉姆的卧室现在已漆成绿色。”第1主题句补充说明是在何时漆的,第2主题句起依次交代了油漆卧室这一情节进行的过程,最后一句为结束语(结论),说明动作最后产生的结果。全段各句都围绕论点句所表示的中心思想展开。

　　二、限题和写提纲

　　在了解了命题作文形式的三块模式后,下面的问题就是限题和写提纲了。

　　1.所谓限题就是限定一个题目的范围,把它限定到某一点或某一方面来写。限题工作做好了,论点句子也就出来了。

　　[参考范文]

　　An Outstanding Worker

　　Mr Fang is an outstanding worker. He has been working in the factory for 25 years. He is a Party member and he was elected a model worker for his excellent work last year.

　　He has many good qualities. He does everything seriously and carefully, therefore the quality of his products is always good In production, he often tries to save as much raw material and electricity as he can. Besides, he is always ready to help others.

　　He is also a creative and innovative worker. Though he is busy, he attends classes in spare-time school three evenings a week. As a result of his hard work, he has put forward many innovative proposals in production. With the help of some engineers, he recently succeeded in manufacturing a new kind of cutting instrument.

　　He has set a good example for us to follow. We all respect him.

　　[范文点评]开首句“Mr. Fang is an outstanding worker”,将题目一下子就限定到Mr.Fang这个点上,下面在对他进行一些简单介绍完后,就进入了“He has many good qualities.”和“He is also a creative and innovative worker.”两个主题句支持论点句。当然限题工作不是每个题都需要做的,有的题目本来就是针对某一点,如: The Advantages of Travel就没什么限题工作要做了。

　　2.在确定文章的论点句之后,就可以对文章本身进行构思并集中材料,这时应尽量把能够想到的与主题有关的材料写下来,通过反复琢磨,选择主要的和突出的素材加以归纳,初步形成一份提纲。这份提纲在写稿初时,还可作增删修改,直到满意为止。

　　如: The Advantages of Travel(旅行的益处)。根据这一题目,在构思时可能会想到以下内容：

　　(1) seeing strange and different things（看到各种新奇的东西）

　　(2) meeting people with different interests(遇到各种有不同兴趣的人)

　　(3) keeping us fit and healthy(有助于身体健康)

　　(4) enjoying beautiful scenery(欣赏各地美景)

　　(5) understanding how people live(了解人们怎样生活)

　　(6) visiting famous cities and scenic spots(游览城市和名胜)

　　(7) tasting different foods and local flavors(品尝各地风味)

　　(8) getting some ideas about the lifestyle and customs of people in other areas(了解各地风土人情)

　　(9) arousing the fervent love for our motherland(激起对祖国的热爱)

　　(10) gaining knowledge of geography and history(获得地理历史知识)

　　(11) making one less narrow-minded(使人心胸开阔)

　　(12) gaining other knowledge(获得其他方面知识)

　　(13) seeing places read of in books(目睹曾在书上读到过的地方)

　　经过思考,可以将上述素材归纳成三个中心思想,即旅行的三大好处,然后将各点归入有关项下,拟成下列提纲:

　　(1)enjoy places of interest

　　A.enjoy beautiful scenery in different places (4)

　　B.see places read of in books(13)

　　C.visit famous cities and scenic spots(6)

　　(2)know people and their customs

　　A.meet people with different interest(2)

　　B.see strange and different things(1)

　　C.get some ideas about the lifestyle and customs of people in other areas(8)

　　D.taste different foods and local flavors(7)

　　E.understand how people live in different ways(5)

　　(3) benefit us both mentally and physically

　　A.gain knowledge of geography and history(10)

　　B.gain other knowledge(12)

　　C.arouse the fervent love for our motherland(9)

　　D.keep us healthy(3)

　　E.make one less narrow-minded(11)

　　在此基础上,将上述提纲中的各点改写成句子,并加上必要的转折词连贯成文,再设计一个开端和结柬语,便可写成一篇短文。

　　[参考范文]

　　Fast Food in China

　　Nowadays, fast food is becoming more and more popular in China.

　　Firstly, there are a variety of fast food available. If you are busy or tired of cooking, you may have American hamburgers, French fries and Italian pizza or numerous traditional food. Chinese food are cooked quickly by modern technique for a change. The food always looks so nice and smells so good that you cannot help trying it yourself. Fast food usually represents a different culture so you do not have to go abroad to enjoy special world famous foods. Secondly, fast food is convenient,nutritious and delicious; the price is also reasonable that everybody can afford it. Finally, with fast food, you can save time and a lot of trouble, such as shopping, cooking and washing dishes.

　　With the rapid development of science and technology, fast food will give us better service and possibly become indispensable to our modern life.

　　[范文点评]该文章是三段式结构,讲的是中国的快餐,关于这个题目的范围是比较宽泛,既可以讲中国快餐的历史,也可以讲中国快餐的烹饪制作,但作者将题目限定在“Nowadays, fast food is becoming more and more popular in China.”当今,快餐在中国越来越受欢迎了。为什么呢?作者就从“ Firstly, there are a variety of fast food available.”和“ Secondly,fast food is convenient, nutritious and delicious.”两方面进行展开论述,结论是快餐将成为现代生活中的人们不可缺少的服务。注意在短文写作中,为了使层次关系清晰,要学会用 Firstly,Secondly, Thirdly等序数词来引导出不同的层意。

　　[参考范文]

　　Should Men and Women Be Equal?

　　Men and women should be equal both at home and in society for both are essential to the existence and prosperity of family and society.

　　Some people hold that women are inferior to men. They argue that women are weaken than men both physically and mentally. Their argument is that most important positions in society are held by men, but not women. However, many people think differently. They argue that women seem to be less important than men because they are allowed much less chance to show their abilities. They have been living for too long a time in a world dominated by men.

　　In my opinion, either sex has its own strong and weak points. Men and women should regard each other as equals.They should help and leach from each other.If men and women can go ahead with friendliness and equality, our society will be more beautiful and harmonious

　　[范文点评]该文章是提问式的命题作文,所以开首就应该对标题的问题做出明确的回答,这也是确立论点。“男人和女人必须平等,无论对家庭和社会的兴旺和发展都是最基本的条件。”紧接着作者对社会上男女不平等现象的形成,从两种人的观点中做出了分析,最后引出自己的观点(in my opinion),男人和女人都有自己的优势和弱点,最终又落脚在“Man and Women should regard each other as equals.”通过该文章的学习考生应学会运用“In my opinion”这一总结性语言,在立论---破论之后引出自己的观点,既有一气呵成的连贯性,又有水到渠成的功效,比较具有说服力。

　　[注意]其实关于命题作文的写作,不一定非在第一段句首出现论点句,也可以在段末和段中,具体位置需要考生习作中灵活掌握。结论句也是一样。请仔细研读各篇参考范文,看看范文中的论点句和结论句的放置位置,将有助于迅速提高谋篇布局的能力。