There are two major arguments that can be made for studying at home. First,as advances in the electronic media have brought the whole world of scholarship into the home via the Internet and educational courses on TV,the classroom is no longer the only place for acquiring knowledge. Second,it is widely held that a person studies better in the familiar surroundings of his own home and when he can arrange his own study time.

　　But we must not lose sight of the fact that there are advantages to studying in the classroom,too. Being surrounded by people of roughly the same abilities and interests can be a great stimulus to acquiring knowledge,whereas studying in solitude at home is boring for many people. More importantly,there can be no substitute for a good teacher,who must not only be able to impart facts and theories,but also to appraise and encourage his students.

　　Given the choice between these two methods of learning,I prefer the classroom. This is because I am the sort of person who finds it difficult to concentrate on study in the midst of household chores,and disturbances from visitors and telephone calls. The classroom environment,I feel,is the only one in which most people feel comfortable applying all their energies to the all-important task of acquiring knowledge.

　　关于在家学习，我们可以提出两个主要论点。第一，由于电子媒体方面取得的进步把整个世界的知识通过互联网和电视上的教育课程带入了家庭，教室不再是惟一获取知识的场所。第二，人们普遍认为，在自己家里这样熟悉的环境中，并且能自己安排学习时间，一个人能学得更好。

　　但是，我们不能忽视在教室里学习也有好处这一事实。周围都是能力相近和兴趣相投的人可能会对获取知识形成巨大的刺激，而对很多人来说孤独一人在家学习会有些枯燥乏味。更重要的是，没有什么可以替代一个好老师，他不仅能够传道授业，而且能够评估并鼓励学生。

　　如果在两种学习方法中选择，我更喜欢在教室里学习，因为我是那种很难在家务琐事、客人、电话的打扰下集中注意力学习的人。我认为大多数人只有在教室里才能把全部精力放在获取知识这件十分重要的工作上。

　　精彩句子

　　精彩句子指文章中句式优美、蕴含哲理的句子。精彩句子的背诵有助于写作时的引用和模仿。如在阅读美国前总统约翰·肯尼迪(John F. Kennedy)的就职演说(Inaugural Address)时，可以记住诸如“Ask not what your country can do for you,ask what you can do for your country. ”(不要问国家能为你做什么，而要问你能为国家做什么。)这样的传世佳句，当你写关于爱国(patriotism)主题的作文时，则可以适时引用。现仍以上面谈“爱心”的文章为例，其中值得背诵的句子为数不少。摘录如下：

　　①Love is emotional strength,which can support us no matter how dark the world around us becomes.

　　爱心是情感的力量，不论我们周围的世界多么黑暗，爱心都能支撑我们。

　　②People all over the country do not hesitate to donate whatever they can ― be it money or goods ― to help their needy fellow citizens.

　　全国人民毫不犹豫地倾囊相助――不管是钱还是物――帮助那些有需要的同胞。

　　③The best way to show love is to help people who are more unfortunate than we are.

　　表达爱心的最好方式是帮助比我们更加不幸的人。

　　④The darker the shadows of sorrow become,the more brightly the lamp of love shines.

　　悲伤的阴影越黑暗，爱心之灯的光芒就越闪亮。

　　优秀段落

　　阅读时，我们经常会碰到一些过目难忘的段落。这些段落或者表达流畅、文笔优美，或者逻辑缜密、结构严谨。根据表达需要，有不同的功能段落，如现象说明段、观点陈述段、原因列举段、利弊解释段、结论归纳段、趋势预测段、措施建议段等。有些优秀段落可以作为写作的功能段落加以背诵，对于我们拓展思路、规范行文大有裨益。在背诵过程中，熟练掌握各种功能段落的行文规则，自己在表达时就能驾轻就熟。下面仅举观点陈述段和措施建议段各一例。

　　观点陈述段(陈述“民族文化应该成为世界文化”的观点)

　　A culture of one nation may become international,which is beneficial for all mankind. Since China has opened its doors widely to the outside world,many people from different countries want to visit China. They will come to accept and love Chinese culture as a whole. In addition,Chinese culture should be shared generously with foreign people,who show great interest in it. Meanwhile,as more and more foreigners come to China,they bring aspects of their own culture to share with the Chinese people. In this way,people from various nations in the world will be able to acquire a better understanding of each other and live peacefully together.

　　一个国家的文化可能成为世界文化，这对全人类都有益。由于中国已经向外界敞开了国门，许多来自不同国家的人都希望来看一看中国。他们会开始接受并喜欢整个中国文化，中国文化应该大大方方地让感兴趣的外国人分享。与此同时，随着来中国的外国人越来越多，他们也把他们自己的文化带给了中国人。这样，世界各国的人们就能够更好地相互理解、和平相处。

　　措施建议段(建议“人口老龄化”的解决措施)

　　The rapidity of the population's aging has made it more urgent for the adoption of countermeasures. No doubt, the key is to build a solid economic foundation. Meanwhile,importance should be attached to overall social progress by changing the backward situation in social security,welfare and service. What's more,family care and community services should also be encouraged.

　　人口老龄化的加速使采取应对措施变得更为紧迫。毫无疑问，解决问题的关键是建立稳固的经济基础。与此同时，应该重视整体的社会进步，改变社会保障、福利和服务的落后局面。除此之外，应该鼓励家庭照料和社区服务。

　　经典篇章

　　古往今来，英语宝库中涌现出大批经典佳作，如林肯的《葛底斯堡演说》(The Gettysburg Address)，福克纳的诺贝尔奖演说(Banquet Speech)，海伦·凯勒的《给我三天光明》(Three Days to See)。这些文章在文字的运用上技法高超，在思想内涵上寓意深刻，读来字字珠玑，文字优美，启迪心智，含义隽永(full of exquisite words and truth, satisfying the mind,appealing to the heart)。这样的文章如不能熟读成诵，则无法融会贯通。背诵一定数量的经典名篇既有助于提高自己遣词造句的能力，也有助于加强自己表达思想的深度。下面的一篇短文是英国哲学家罗素(Bertrand Russell)自传的序言部分，题为What I Have Lived For(我的人生追求)，概述了作者一生追求的三种理想，文章在语言和思想两个方面都堪称经典，值得背诵。

　　What I Have Lived For

　　Three passions,simple but overwhelmingly strong,have governed my life:the longing for love,the search for knowledge,and unbearable pity for the suffering of mankind. These passions,like great winds,have blown me hither and thither,in a wayward course,over a deep ocean of anguish,reaching to the very verge of despair.

　　I have sought love,first,because it brings ecstasy ― ecstasy so great that I would often have sacrificed all the rest of life for a few hours of this joy. I have sought it,next,because it relieves loneliness ― that terrible loneliness in which one shivering consciousness looks over the rim of the world into the cold unfathomable lifeless abyss. I have sought it,finally,because in the union of love I have seen,in a mystic miniature,the prefiguring vision of the heaven that saints and poets have imagined. This is what I sought,and though it might seem too good for human life,this is what ― at last ― I have found.

　　With equal passion I have sought knowledge. I have wished to understand the hearts of men. I have wished to know why the stars shine. And I have tried to apprehend the Pythagorean power by which number holds sway above the flux. A little of this,but not much,I have achieved.

　　Love and knowledge,so far as they were possible,led upward toward the heavens. But always pity brought me back to earth. Echoes of cries of pain reverberate in my heart. Children in famine,victims tortured by oppressors, helpless old people ― a hated burden to their sons,and the whole world of loneliness,poverty,and pain make a mockery of what human life should be. I long to alleviate the evil,but I can't,and I too suffer.

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