考研英语阅读冲刺：选项特征知多少

刘琦

考研英语阅读部分在考研题型中所占分值最高，其重要性不言而喻。它测试的是考生较高层次的英语能力，其选材广泛，文章无论从长度、词汇、句型结构，还是逻辑、选项设置等，难度都远远大于四、六级。同时，考研英语阅读的命题也更具有多变性和迷惑性。影响考生在阅读方面失分的主要有三个方面：词句、题目和选项。词句方面是复习早期需要攻克的重点。题目方面需要考生对考研英语阅读的题型有充分认识，充分了解每个题型的考查点、命题方式、解题思路。冲刺阶段，考生在实现了前两个方面的突破后，更多的失分原因落在选项上。本文笔者将就这一失分点，给考生介绍考研英语阅读中正确选项和干扰选项的特征，帮助大家熟悉命题规律，规避不必要的失分。

正确选项特征

正确选项往往具有以下特征：在语气表述上较为委婉，形式上多为原文词句的同义改写。值得一提的是，考研英语阅读也存在一题有多个正确选项的可能性，遇到这种情况，考生需要从表达形式、内容涉及范围等方面多加考虑，从而选出最佳答案。在下文中，笔者将详述各种正确选项特征的表现形式。

1 相对语气原则

该原则指的是考研英语真题的选项设置中，语气委婉、表达留有余地的选项往往是正确答案。“相对语气词”常见的有：may、might、could、not all、not every。

例 22. L.A. Unified has made the rule about homework mainly because poor students _________.

（2012-英语（二）-text1）

[A] tend to have moderate expectations for their education

[B] have asked for a different educational standard

[C] may have problems finishing their homework

[D] have voiced their complaints about homework

原文：①This rule is meant to address the difficulty that students from impoverished or chaotic homes might have in completing their homework. ②But the policy is unclear and contradictory. ③Certainly ...

分析：本题问的是洛杉矶联合学区制定关于家庭作业的规则与贫穷学生之间的关系。在本题中，选项A中的tend to do和选项C中的may均显示出委婉语气，故考生在选择时应首先甄别A和C两个选项。根据题干信息，考生可将答案信息定位到文章第二段第一句，由原文可知该规则的制定就是为了解决来自于贫困或混乱家庭的孩子在完成作业时可能会遇到的困难，而这正是选项C的内容，故本题正确选项最终锁定C。

2 同义替换原则

该原则指出题人在设置正确选项时一般不会直接摘抄原文，往往通过近义词替换、简化替换、词性替换等方式对原文进行改写，意思与原文接近。

1）近义词替换。该替换形式是同义替换原则中最常见也最易识别的，即将原文解题关键句中的某个词或某几个词用其对应的近义词在选项中进行替换，使得选项表达意思与原文对应句几乎相同。

例 29. We may learn from Paragraph 4 that department stores were advised to _________. （2012-英语（二）-text2）

[A] classify consumers into smaller groups

[B] attach equal importance to different genders

[C] focus on infant wear and older kids clothes

[D] create some common shoppers terms

原文：①Trade publications counselled department stores that， in order to increase sales， they should create a “third stepping stone” between infant wear and older kids clothes. ②It was only after “toddler” became a common shoppers term that it evolved into a broadly accepted developmental stage. ③Splitting kids， or adults， into ever-tinier categories has proved a sure-fire way to boost profits. ④And one of the easiest ways to segment a market is to magnify gender differences ...

分析：根据题干中的关键词Paragraph 4，考生把答案信息定位到文中第四段。第四段第三句提到将孩子和成人细分成更小类别是提升利润的很好方式。原文中的“splitting … into …”与选项A中的“classify … into …”意思相近，属于同义替换，故本题正确答案为选项A。

2）简化替换。该替换形式是指原文在描述一项事物时，从多个方面逐一详解，而选项以几个甚至一个总结词对文中详述的内容加以简短概括。

例 39. According to paragraph 4， the message conveyed by celebrity magazine is ________. （2011-英语（一）-text4）

[A] soothing [B] ambiguous

[C] compensatory [D] misleading

原文：Of course， the image of parenthood that celebrity magazines like Us Weekly and People present is hugely unrealistic， especially when the parents are single mothers like Bullock. According to several studies concluding that parents are less happy than childless couples， single parents are the least happy of all. No shock there， considering how much work it is to raise a kid without a partner to lean on； yet to hear Sandra and Britney tell it， raising a kid on their “own” ... is a piece of cake.

分析：本段首句提到名人杂志所传递的信息hugely unrealistic （非常不真实）。并进一步提出，“parents are less happy than childless couples， single parents are the least happy of all”（父母比无子女的夫妇要更不开心，而单亲父母就是最不开心者），这与杂志所传递的“raising a kid on their ‘own is a piece of cake”（独自养育孩子只是小菜一碟）截然相反，从而可以看出选项D是对这一段内容的简化替换，故为正确答案。

3）词性替换。该选项特征是指原文中用某一词性的词进行表意，而选项用意思相同但词性不同的词进行替换。

例 21. It is implied in paragraph 1 that nowadays homework _________. （2012-英语（二）-text1）

[A] is receiving more criticism

[B] is gaining more preferences

[C] is no longer an educational ritual

[D] is not required for advanced courses

原文：Homework has never been terribly popular with students and even many parents， but in recent years it has been particularly scorned.

分析：根据题干关键词，考生把本题答案信息定位在第一段。把原文与选项对比，考生可发现，本题选项A中的criticism与原文scorned意思相近，属于同义替换原则，但两者词性不同，criticism是名词，scorn为动词。本题正确答案为选项A。

3矛盾对立原则

该原则指的是当选项中出现一对意思相反的选项时，正确选项往往是两者之一。不过提醒考生注意的是，该原则不适用于态度题。

例 39. The research of Till Von Wachter suggests that in recession graduates from elite universities tend to __________.

（2012-英语（二）-text4）

[A] lag behind the others due to decreased opportunities

[B] catch up quickly with experienced employees

[C] see their life chances as dimmed as the others

[D] recover more quickly than the others

原文：The research of Till Von Wachter， the economist at Columbia University， suggests that not all people graduating into a recession see their life chances dimmed： those with degrees from elite universities catch up fairly quickly to where they otherwise would have been if they had graduated in better times； it is the masses beneath them that are left behind.

分析：通读四个选项，考生可以发现选项A和选项D意思相反，所以答案可锁定在选项A和选项D。接下来根据题干关键词，可以将答案区域定位到上面原文的句子。将原文与两个选项对比后，考生可以发现正确答案为选项D。

干扰选项特征

考研英语阅读的干扰选项的设置情况非常多元化，必须放在具体的语境中一一进行分析。以下笔者仅就考研英语阅读选项设置中最常见的三种干扰选项的特征展开介绍。

1偷换概念

具备该特征的选项通常干扰性较强。因为这类选项涉及内容往往在文中都有出处。选项的错误在于其将文中用以描述甲的内容嫁接到乙上，而文中并没有说甲乙两者具有这方面的共性特征；或是将文中甲乙两者的关系说成是甲丙的关系。最常见的表现形式是甲乙丙三者文中皆有介绍，甲乙之间存在关系，乙丙之间也有关系，然而甲丙之间并不存在任何联系，出题人在设计选项时，混淆甲乙两者的关系，故意将乙方替换成丙方，这就属于偷换概念。

2无中生有

选项中的表述在文中找不到出处，相当于该选项毫无依据。然而该选项在设计后仍然对考生造成干扰的原因在于，其表述内容往往在生活中很常见并符合常识，考生在选择时，基于常识或自身主观判断，未考虑文中内容表述即进行选择，实际文中并无相关表达，这种选项特征即称为无中生有。

3正反混淆

选项中的表述与原文正好相反。比如文中对甲的评价是正面的，选项对甲持有负面评价；文中对某事件持有肯定态度，选项却持有否定态度。这类型选项即具备正反混淆特征。

接下来，笔者就以两道真题来为考生具体讲解。

例1 37. According to Paragraph 2， the recession has made people __________. （2012-英语（二）-text4）

[A] struggle against each other [B] realize the national dream

[C] challenge their prudence [D] reconsider their lifestyle

原文：①No one tries harder ... ②Many said that unemployment， while extremely painful， had improved them in some ways： they had become less materialistic and more financially prudent； they were more aware of the struggles of others. ③In limited respects， perhaps the recession will leave society better off. ④At the very least， it has awoken us from our national fever dream of easy riches and bigger houses， and put a necessary end to an era of reckless personal spending.

分析：该道题问的是根据第二段内容，经济萧条使得人们怎么了。我们来具体分析四个选项。选项A属于偷换概念。句②提到，大萧条使失业者们更能体会到别人的艰苦奋斗（more aware of the struggles of others），而不是使人们相互斗争（struggle against each other）。选项B也属于偷换概念。句④中有对national dream的相关表述，该句指出，经济萧条使国人从一夜暴富的狂热之梦中醒来（awoken us from our national fever dream …），而不说它帮助人们实现了梦想（realize the national dream）。选项C属于正反混淆。经济萧条使人们在经济上比以往更加谨慎（more financially prudent），而不是说对人们的谨慎构成了挑战（challenge their prudence）。所以，正确答案是选项D。

例2 38. Benjamin Friedman believes that economic recessions may __________. （2012-英语（二）-text4）

[A] impose a heavier burden on immigrants

[B] bring out more evils of human nature

[C] promote the advance of rights and freedoms

[D] ease conflicts between races and classes 原文：①But for the most part ... ②In The Moral Consequences of Economic Growth， the economic historian Benjamin Friedman argues that both inside and outside the U.S.， lengthy periods of economic stagnation or decline have almost always left society more mean-spirited and less inclusive， and have usually stopped or reversed the advance of rights and freedoms. ③Anti-immigrant sentiment typically increases， as does conflict between races and classes.

分析：该题问的是Benjamin Friedman对经济萧条的看法。我们看四个选项可以发现选项A属于无中生有。句③仅提到了经济萧条会导致反移民情绪高涨，但这未必就会给移民带来更沉重的负担（impose a heavier burden on immigrants），选项A应排除掉。选项C和D都属于正反混淆，原文内容正好与选项内容相反：原文为stopped or reversed，选项为promote；原文为increases，选项为ease，所以也应排除掉。正确答案为选项B。