1980-11-03 — Page 23

華僑日報 All

3. occasionally one comes across an oasis 4. rural Arabs are nomads living in the desert 5. they live in portable tents, cat and preserve

figs and dates.

郭日僑罩

一期星

of the comma.

10. Misspellings

教僑理頁三第張六第日六廿月九年申庚歷夏

WAH KIU YAT PO

POINTS

1981

1. Arabia is mostly a desert fre one cannot walk over it barefooted

中學會考試題預習專欄

英文

(五)

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ENGLISH [5]

Stephen Law (Foundation Press)

Dear students,

Last week we considered the technicalities.

of precis writing, and we studied intensively how a precis is written:

Today I've given you two sample precis so that you can have a further chance of knowing: how precis should be written. Again I've included the points and the final versions. Besides, I would like to draw your attention to the NOTES:

1 Describe in not more than 80 words the i

frustrations facing a boy at the age of fourteen.

In the world of human affairs there is no worse nuisance than a boy at the age of four- teen. He is neither. ornamental nor useful. It is impossible to shower affection upon him as on a little boy and he is always getting in the way. If he talks with a childish lisp, he is called a Baby, and if he answers in a grown-up way, he

called impertinent. In fact any talk at "alt- from him is resented. Then he is at the un- attractive, growing age. His voice grows hoarse and breaks and quivers, his face grows suddenly angular and unsightly. It is easy to excuse the hortcomings of carly childhood, but is hard to tolerate even unavoidable lapses in a boy of fourteen. Then the lad himself becomes painfully self-conscious. When he talks with elderly people he is either unduly forward or else so unduly hy that he appears ashamed of his very ex- Istence:

Yet it is at this very age when in his heart hearts a young lad most craves for recognit tion and love, and he becomes devoted slave of anyone who shows him consideration. But none dare openly love him for that would be regarded as undue indulgence and, therefore, bad for the boy. So what with scolding and chiding, he becomes very much like a lost his master. tray dog that has

For a boy of fourteen his own home is the only paradise. To live in a strange house with strange people is little short of torture, while the height of bliss is to receive the kind looks of women and never to be slighted by them.

POINTS!

1. a big nuisance

2. talks like a child - no good

3. talks like an adult- impertinent

4at unattractive, growing age:

unattractive physical appearance and voice

6. unavoidable shortcomings not excused

self-conscious

8. craves for affection but to no avail

because such love is condemned as undue indulgence

10, subjected to unnecessary chiding NOTE: The last paragraph does not have much

to do with frustrations".

PRECIS

A fourteen-year-old boy is considered a big nuisance. Whether he talks like a child or like an adult, he is frowned upon. Even his unavoid- able shortcomings are not excused. It being the growing age, his voice and physical appearance are unattractive. Then he is extremely self- conscious. He craves for affection but no one loves him openly, for such love is condemned as undue indulgence. And he is subjected to un necessary chiding that makes him feel being (77 words)

cikotsaken

Describe in not more than 80 words the life in Arabia.

A great part of Arabia is desert, and there is nothing but sand and rock. The sand is so hot that you cannot walk over it with your bare Feer in the day time. Hert and there in the desert are springs of water that come from deep down under the ground so deep that the sun can- rigt dry them up. These springs are few and far apart, but wherever there is one, green grass very soon covers the ground all around it. Soon figrees and palm trees grow tall and graceful, ting a cool, green, shady place around the spring. Such a place is called an oasis.

The Arabs who are not in the cities live in the desert all the year round. They live in tents that can be put up and taken down very easily- and quickly so that they can move from one sis to another, seeking grass and water for the sheep, goats, camels and horses. These de- ert. Arabs eat ripe, sweet figs, and also the dates that grow upon; the palm trees; they dry them too, and use them as food year in year

out

These Arabs have the finest horses in the world. The Arabs are very proud of their riding hoise, and love it almost as much as they love their wife and children. They never put heavy louds upon their horse and often let it stay in the tent with their family.

The camel is much more useful to the Arabs than their beautiful horse, however, for the former is much larger and stronger. One camel can carry as much as, or more thap, two horses. The Arabs load the camel with goods and ride too, for miles and miles across the desert just as if it were really the "Ship of the Desert, which it is often called.

6. they love their horses and do not treat

them as beasts of burden

camels are used to carry loads

NOTE: First, the descriptions of an oasis should not be included if you consider the number of words permitted. Second, the term 'Ship of the Desert is irrelevant and hence should not be included.

PRECISE

Arabia is mostly a desert, so hot that it is impossible to walk over it barefooted during the day. Occasionally, however, one comes across an oasis.

Rural Arabs are nomads living in the desert. They live in portable tents, eat and preserve figs and dates. They have the finest horses on earth and deeply love them, never treating them as beasts of burden. In fact it is the camel which is used to carry goods.

(75 words)

Although your points carry about two- thirds of the marks allotted for the precis question, the remaining marks go to your pre- sentation. And coherence and accuracy will divide the marks for presentation roughly: in halves.

I've discussed with your how to extract points from the passage in last week's column, and I've emphasized the importance of coherence. Today we should turn to accuracy.

. I should point out that a systematic error analysis will be dealt with later when I discuss essay writing. Today I've nevertheless touched upon those mistakes which cost you marks so that you can have a bird's-eye-view first. (Those sentences marked with an asterisk are gram- matically incorrect.)

1. Incorrect parts of speech

Please distinguish carefully between adjec tives and nouns, adjectives and adverbs,

The following are examples of commonly misused words:

(a)*your present looks wonderfully.

your present looks wonderful. Here looks should be followed by an adjective instead of an adverb.

(b) bored/boring, excited/exciting, an- noyed/annoying, interested/interesting,

etc..

I'm bored to tears by this TV pro- gramme, this programme is boring.

Incorrect agreement

Please note the following examples:

(n) "One of the boy in our class is a

European

One of the boys in our class is a European

(Even if there is only one boy in your class, you still can't say that;; you should rather say The boy in our class. is a European.)

(b) "One of the diseases which is infectious

is tuberculosis,

One of the diseases which are infec- tious is tuberculosis.

(Note that which modifies, diseases. The number becomes quite obvious if you invert the sentence: Tuberculosis is one of the diseases which are infec -tious,)

Intrusions

eg. My classmates went to Guangdong during the summer holidays. I was of no exception.

Here of is not needed, Le. you should. say I was no exception.

Omissions

e.g. There is nothing for us to dispose.

Here of is needed at the end of the sentence. Be careful when you are using phrasal verbs.

Incorrect tense

Tenses usually pose quite a big pro- blem to Chinese students. Look out for the sequence of tenses. Since examples abound, I won't give any here.

6. Incorrect voice ·

e.g. "Tom was robbed yesterday, and he

beaten up too..

You should say he was beaten up.

7. Incorrect word order.

eg. It'll be enough good for you to take

this kind of tablets twice daily, The correct order is: I be good en- ough for you......

8. Disconnected clauses, and phrases

e.g. (a) Because of the rain. The football

match was delayed.

The first fullstop should be re- placed by a comma,

(b) Playing happily along the road, a

bus knocked down the little girl. You are ridiculously wrong unless you really mean that the bus is playing happily along the road. Instead you should write Playing happily along the road, the little girl was knocked down by a bus.

9. Wrong punctuation

6.8.

"What is your name," he asked me.

A question mark is required in place

Although American orthography is allowed, you'd better avoid using, for instance, traveled for travelled, disk for disc, and color for colour. The reason be hind this is pretty obvious.

The following words, however, are often misspelt:

accommodate accumulate

auxiliary

bureau

excel

kindergarten lightning

maintenance

manoeuvre ninth

Occurrence overrun

principal/principle

business

campaign chaos

deduce/deduct

phenomena

disguise

physique

embarrassment

privilege

fortnight forty

questionnaire

reiterate

ghastly

sabotage

giggle

scheme

harmonious

sergeant

hyglene

subsidiary

illuminate

trafficking

Injurious julcy

traverse/transverse

truly

juvenile

virtual/virtue

1981

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MODERN MATHEMATICS (5)

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