Tài liệu Master the Gre 2010 - Part 17 pptx

Quoting the Statement or Argument Occasionally, it may be appropriate to quote key words or phrases from the Issue statement or Argument statement. For example, you may wish to point out a key phrase that is ambiguous or vague (“certain respondents”), or a term that is overly inclusive or exclusive (“only” or “all”). This is fine, as long as you keep the number of quoted words and phrases to a minimum; there’s never any justification for quoting entire sentences. MAINTAIN PROPER TONE AND VOICE In any type of essay writing, you should maintain a somewhat formal tone throughout. An essay that comes across as conversational is probably too informal for the GRE. The overall tone should be critical but not inflammatory or emotional. Don’t overstate your position by using extreme or harsh language. Don’t attempt to elicit a visceral or emotional response from the reader. Appeal instead to the reader’s intellect. A direct, even forceful voice is perfectly acceptable for making your main points. But don’t overdo it; when it comes to the details, use a more dispassionate approach. Don’t try to make your point with “cutesy” or humorous remarks. Avoid puns, double meanings, plays on words, and other forms of humor. Likewise, sarcasm is entirely inappropriate for your GRE essays. The reader may not realize you’re being sarcastic, in which case your remark will only serve to confuse him or her. VARY SENTENCE LENGTH AND STRUCTURE To ensure high GRE essay scores, strive to write sentences that vary in length and structure in a way that helps convey their intended meaning rather than obscuring or distorting it. Here are some examples: • For rhetorical emphasis, try using an abrupt, short sentence to make a crucial point, either before or after longer sentences that elucidate that point. • Use a semicolon to transform two sentences involving the same train of thought into one; and use the word “and” to connect two independent clauses (just as in this sentence). • Sentences with the same essential structure can help convey your line of rea- soning to the reader. Try using the similar structures for a list of reasons or examples. • Sentences that essentially repeat (verbatim) throughout your essay suggest an immature, unsophisticated writing style. Try to avoid using so-called template sentences over and over, especially for the first and last sentence of each body paragraph. Chapter 6: Writing Style and Mechanics 143 www.petersons.com WRITE CLEARLY AND CONCISELY You’re most likely to score high on your GRE essays if you develop a clear and concise writing style. Frequent occurrences of awkward, wordy, or redundant phrases can lower your Analytical Writing score—especially if these problems interfere with the reader’s understanding of your essay. Beware of Wordiness With enough words, anyone can make a point, but it requires skill and effort to make your point succinctly. As you proofread your essay, if a sentence seems clumsy or overly long, check for a wordy or awkward phrase that you can replace with a more concise, clearer one. In your Argument essay, for example, you can often replace wordy phrases that signal a premise with a single word. For example: “the reason for,” “for the reason that,” “due to the fact that,” “in light of the fact that,” and “on the grounds that” can be replaced with “because,” “since,” and “considering that.” Here are some additional examples: Original: Discipline is crucial to the attainment of one’s objectives. Better: Discipline is crucial to attain one’s objectives. Original: To indicate the fact that they are in opposition to a bill, legislators some- times engage in filibusters. Better: To show that they oppose a bill, legislators sometimes engage in filibusters. Original: The employee with ambition Better: The ambitious employee Original: The system which is most efficient and accurate Better: The most efficient and accurate system . . . Original: Both unemployment levels as well as interest rates can affect stock prices. Better: Unemployment levels and interest rates can affect stock prices. Original: The reason science is being blamed for threats to the natural environment is because scientists fail to see that technology is only as useful or as harmful as those who decide how to use it. Better: Science is being blamed for threats to the natural environment because scientists fail to see that technology is only as useful or as harmful as those who decide how to use it. Watch Comma Placement Although punctuation is the least important aspect of your GRE essays, habitually overusing, underusing, or misusing commas may not only interfere with the reader’s understanding of your essay and interrupt the flow of your sentences, but it may also contribute to a lower score. Use the least number of commas needed to ensure that the reader will understand your point. PART III: Analytical Writing144 NOTE To speed up the writing process, some GRE test takers copy and paste phrases and sentences, then “tweak” them to avoid the template look. There’s nothing wrong per se with this strategy, but you’ll probably find that it takes more time than it’s worth. www.petersons.com USE LANGUAGE CORRECTLY AND PERSUASIVELY To ensure top scores for your essays, strive to convince the readers that you possess a strong command of the English language—in other words, that you can use the written language correctly, clearly, and persuasively. You need to demonstrate a solid grasp of vocabulary, use proper idioms (especially prepositional phrases), and use proper diction (word usage and choice). Let’s take a look at how you can accomplish this. Demonstrate a Solid Grasp of Vocabulary By all means, show the reader that you possess the vocabulary of a broadly educated individual and you know how to use it. But keep the following caveats in mind: • Don’t overuse “SAT-style” words just to make an impression. Doing so will only suggest that you’re trying to mask poor content with window dressing. • Avoid obscure or archaic words that few readers are likely to know. Readers do not have time while reading essays to consult dictionaries. • Avoid technical terminology that only specialists and scholars in a specific field would understand. GRE readers are typically English-language generalists in the fields of English and Communications. • Use Latin and other non-English terms very sparingly. After all, one of the primary skills you’re being tested on is your facility with the English language. The occasional use of Latin terms and acronyms—for example, per se, de facto, ad hoc, i.e., and e.g.—is perfectly acceptable. Non-English words commonly used in academic writing, such as vis-á-vis, caveat, and laissez faire are acceptable as well, but again, be careful not to overdo it. • Avoid colloquialisms (slang and vernacular). Use Proper Diction In evaluating your essays, GRE readers also take into account your diction, especially whenproblemsinterferewiththeunderstandingofyouressays.Diction referschieflyto yourchoiceofwordsandtothewayawordisused.Whenyoucommitanerror in diction, you might be confusing one word with another because the two words look or sound similar.Oryou may usea word thatisn’tthe best choiceforconveying the ideayou have in mind. Here’s an example of the first type of diction error: The best way to impede employees to improve their productivity is to allow them to determine for themselves the most efficient way of performing their individual job tasks. The word impede means “to hinder or hamper”; in the context of this sentence, impede should be replaced with a word such as impel, which means “propel or drive.” The test taker might have confused these two words. Now here’s an example of the second type of diction error: Unless the department can supply a comparative cost-benefit analysis for the two alternative courses of action, I would remain diffident about fol- lowing the department’s recommendation. Chapter 6: Writing Style and Mechanics 145 NOTE The rules for Standard Written English require that Latin and other non-English terms be italicized (or underlined). However, GRE wor d processors don’t allow you to do so. You can leave words like this as is, but be sure they’re terms that most educated people would know. www.petersons.com The word diffident means “reluctant, unwilling, or shy.” A more appropriate word here would be ambivalent, which means “undecided or indecisive.” Or perhaps the test taker meant to use the word indifferent, thereby committing the first type of diction error. What appear to be diction errors might in many instances be merely typing errors. Accordingly, problems with your word choice and usage will adversely affect your scores only if they are obvious and occur frequently. Use Idioms Correctly An idiom is a distinctive phrase that is either proper or improper based upon whether it has become acceptable over time and through repeated and common use. Here are two sentences, each of which contain an idiomatic prepositional phrase and another idiom: Example (From a Typical Issue Essay): The speaker’s contention flies in the face of the empirical evidence, and in any event runs contrary to common sense. Example (From a Typical Argument Essay): For all we know, last year was the only year in which the company earned a profit, in which case the vice president’s advice might turn out to be especially poor in retrospect. Idioms don’t rely on any particular rules of grammar; hence they are learned over time by experience. As you might suspect, the English language contains more idi- omatic expressions than you can shake a thesaurus at. Moreover, the number of possible diction errors isn’t even limited to the number of entries in a good unabridged English dictionary. Although it is impossible in these pages to provide a thorough review of diction and idiom, here are some guidelines to keep in mind when writing your GRE essays: • If you’re the least bit unsure about the meaning of a word you want to use in your essay, don’t use it. Why risk committing a diction blunder just to impress the reader? • If a phrase sounds wrong to your ear, change it until it sounds correct to you. • The fewer words you use, the less likely you’ll commit a diction or idiom error. When in doubt, stick with a relatively brief phrase that you think will still convey your point. • If English is your second language, take heart: In evaluating and scoring your essays, GRE readers take into account diction or idiom problems only to the extent that those problems interfere with a reader’s understanding of your sen- tence’s intended meaning. As long as your writing is understandable to your EFL (English-as-First-Language) friends, you need not worry. PART III: Analytical Writing146 TIP If you have time before your exam and you think your diction and use of idioms need improvement, consult a reputable guide to English usage, a trusted professor, or a colleague with a firm grasp of Standard Written English. www.petersons.com SUMMING IT UP • GRE essay readers place less weight on writing style and mechanics than on content and organization—but the way you write can affect your GRE Analytical Writing score. To ensure a high score, you need to make sure your essays are persuasive in style; appropriate in tone and voice; varied in sentence length and structure; clear and concise; and correct in diction, word usage, idiom, grammar, and writing mechanics. • Use rhetorical words and phrases and use irony as a rhetorical device. Avoid empty rhetoric; use punctuation properly and for emphasis. • Be sure to connect your ideas and use the language of critical reasoning properly. • You may need to refer to yourself, the statement, or the argument itself. If so, be consistent and follow the suggestions outlined in this chapter to help ensure that your references are appropriate. Chapter 6: Writing Style and Mechanics 147 www.petersons.com P ART IV QUANTITATIVE REASONING CHAPTER 7 Problem Solving CHAPTER 8 Quantitative Comparison CHAPTER 9 Math Review: Number Forms, Relationships, and Sets CHAPTER 10 Math Review: Number Theory and Algebra CHAPTER 11 Math Review: Geometry . to improve their productivity is to allow them to determine for themselves the most efficient way of performing their individual job tasks. The word impede. exclusively on the Problem Solving format. First, you’ll learn a step- by-step approach to problem solving and apply it to some GRE- style examples. Then you’ll