阅读理解中的主旨大意题

陈姗

阅读理解中的主旨大意题通常围绕一个中心思想展开。一些文章第一段常常是内容的梗概，同时又表达了中心思想，也有一些文章的中心思想贯穿全文，并没有用一句话明确表达出来，这就要求同学们学会归纳概括。很多段落往往也由一个主题句加几个陈述句构成，主题句在句中的位置不固定，有时在开头， 首先点明本段大意； 有时在结尾， 总结本段大意。

这类题主要是测试同学们对一篇文章或一段文字的深层理解程度及在速读中准确把握文章主旨大意的能力。一般针对某一语段或某一语篇的主题、标题或目的设题。常见的设题方式有：

What is the writer trying to tell us？

The purpose of the passage is.

The main （general） idea of the passage is.

The passage is mainly about.

What is mainly discussed in the passage？

Which of the following is the best title for the passage？

Which of the following best describes the main point of the passage？

做这类题，首先要找出文章的主题句。找出文章的主题句，也就明确了文章要讲什么，再通过速读全文，就可以把握文章的中心思想了。

主题句在整个语段中起着统领全段的作用，其它句子都是用来阐述、解释、支持或发展主题句所表达的主题思想的，其位置一般位于段首，也见于段尾或段中。

另外在许多文段中，也有可以概括全段意义的主题句，必须根据文章中所提供的事实细节，进行全面分析，然后归纳成一般概念。但必须注意，既不能以偏概全，也不能在概括时过于宽泛，要恰如其分。这就需要进一步加工概括了。

例1

Two friends have an argument that bleaks up their friendship forever， even though neither one can remember how the whole thing got started. Such sad events happen over and over in high schools across the country. In fact， according to an official report on youth violence， “In our country today， the greatest threat to the lives of children and adolescents is not disease or starvation or abandonment， but the terrible reality of violence”. Given that this is the case， why arent students taught to manage conflict the way they are taught to solve math problems， drive cars， or stay physically fit？

First of all， students need to realize that conflict is unavoidable. A report on violence among middle school and high school students indicates that most violent incidents between students begin with a relatively minor insult （侮辱）. For example， a fight could start over the fact that one student eats a peanut butter sandwich each lunchtime. Laughter over the sandwich can lead to insults， which in turn can lead to violence. The problem isnt in the sandwich， but in the way students deal with the conflict.

Once students recognize that conflict is unavoidable， they can practice the golden rule of conflict resolution （解决） stay calm. Once the student feels calmer， he or she should choose words that will calm the other person down as well. Rude words， name-calling， and accusation only add fuel to the emotional fire. On the other hand， soft words spoken at a normal sound level can put out the fire before it explodes out of control.

After both sides have calmed down， they can use another key strategy for conflict resolution； listening. Listening allows the two sides to understand each other. One person should describe his or her side， and the other person should listen without interrupting. Afterward， the listener can ask non-threatening questions to clarify the speakers position. Then the two people should change roles.

Finally， students need to consider what they are hearing. This doesnt mean trying to figure out whats wrong with the other person. It means understanding what the real issue is and what both sides are trying to accomplish. For example， a shouting match over a peanut butter sandwich might happen because one person thinks the other person is unwilling to try new things. Students need to ask themselves questions such as these： How did this start？ What do I really want？ What am I afraid off As the issue becomes clearer， the conflict often simply becomes smaller. Even if it doesnt， careful thought helps both sides figure out a mutual solution.

There will always be conflict in schools， but that doesnt mean there needs to be violence. After students in Atlanta started a conflict resolution program， according to Educators for Social Responsibility， "64 percent of the teachers reported less physical violence in the classroom； 75 percent of the teachers reported an increase in student cooperation； and 92 percent of the students felt better about themselves". Learning to resolve conflicts can help students deal with friends，. teachers. parents， bosses， and coworkers. In that way， conflict resolution is a basic life skill that should be taught in schools across the country.

50. This article is mainly about .

A. the lives of school children

B. the cause of arguments in schools

C. how to analyze youth violence

D. how to deal with school conflicts

解析 D。主旨大意题。根据文章第一段最后一句Given that this is the case， why arent students taught to manage conflict the way they are taught to solve math problems， drive cars， or stay physically fit？和整体理解，可知答案D符合文意。

例2

Grown-ups are often surprised by how well they remember something they learned as children but have never practiced ever since. A man who has not had a chance to go swimming for years can still swim as well as ever when he gets back in the water. He can get on a bicycle after many years and still ride away. He can play catch and hit a ball as well as his son. A mother who has not thought about the words for years can teach her daughter the poem that begins “Twinkle， twinkle， little star” or remember the story of Cinderella or Goldilocks and the Three Bears.

One explanation is the law of overlearning， which can be stated as follows： Once we have learned something， additional learning trials （尝试） increase the length of time we will remember it.

In childhood we usually continue to practice such skills as swimming， bicycle riding， and playing baseball long after we have learned them. We continue to listen to and remind ourselves of words such as "Twinkle， twinkle， little star" and childhood tales such as Cinderella and Goldilocks. We not only learn but overlearn.

The multiplication tables （乘法口诀表） are an exception to the general rule that we forget rather quickly the things that we learn in school， because they are another of the things we overlearn in childhood.

The law of overlearning explains why cramming （突击学习） for an examination， though it may result in a passing grade， is not a satisfactory way to learn a college course. By cramming， a student may learn the subject well enough to get by on the examination， but he is likely soon to forget almost everything he learned. A little overlearning， on the other hand， is really necessary for ones future development.

67. What is the main idea of paragraph 1？

A. People remember well what they learned in childhood.

B. Children have a better memory than grown-ups.

C. Poem reading is a good way to learn words.

D. Stories for children are easy to remember.

解析 A。本文是一篇议论文。成年人常常惊叹他们能很好地记着儿时学过的东西。作者认为这是儿时过度学习的结果。因为当我们儿时学会一样东西的时候，我们不是就此停止，而是继续练习，才使我们记忆深刻。文章用例证法说明了“过度学习”的概念。最后作者谈到了“过度学习”的好处和突击学习的弊端。根据文章的第一段的“Grown-ups are often surprised by how well they remember something they learned as children but have never practiced ever since.”可知C、D项断章取义，讲得太具体，B项错误，因为那是过度学习的结果，不是儿时记忆力好。所以A项正确。

例3

One of the greatest contributions to the first Oxford English Dictionary was also one of its most unusual. In 1879， Oxford University in England asked Prof. James Murray to serve as editor for what was to be the most ambitious dictionary in the history of the English language. It would include every English word possible and would give not only the definition but also the history of the word and quotations （引文） showing how it was used.

This was a huge task. So Murrary had to find volunteers from Britain， the United States， and the British colonies to search every newspaper， magazine， and book ever written in English. Hundreds of volunteers responded， including William Chester Minor. Dr. Minor was an American Surgeon who had served in the Civil War and was now living in England. He gave his address as “Broadmoor， Crowthorne， Berkshire，” 50 miles from Oxford.

Minor joined the army of volunteers sending words and quotations to Murray. Over the next years， he became one of the staffs most valued contributors.

But he was also a mystery. In spite of many invitations， he would always decline to visit Oxford. So in 1897， Murray finally decided to travel to Crowthorne himself. When he arrived， he found Minor locked in a book-lined cell at the Broadmoor Asylum for the Criminally insane.

Murray and Minor became friends， sharing their love of words. Minor continued contributing to the dictionary， sending in more than 10，000 submissions in 20 years. Murray continued to visit Minor regularly， sometimes taking walks with him around the asylum grounds.

In 1910， Minor left Broadmoor for an asylum in his native America. Murray was at the port to wave goodbye to his remarkable friend.

Minor died in 1920， seven years before the first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary was completed. The 12 volumes defined 414，825 words， and thousands of them were contributions from a very scholarly and devoted asylum patient.

66. What does the text mainly talk about？

A. The history of the English language.

B. The friendship between Murray and Minor

C. Minor and the first Oxford English Dictionary

D. Broadmoor Asylum and the patients

解析 C。本文的关键词有两个：Minor和Oxford Dictionary，主要讲述Mr. Minor的特别之处和他对Oxford Dictionary的贡献，因此文章的大意应该把这两个词都包括进去。选C项。