Part 2 Reading Skill Focus
Recognizing the Writer’s Attitude
The writer’s attitude—feelings or beliefs about the subject—is part of the total meaning of a passage. Writers are not necessarily neutral or objective when they write, particularly if they are trying to persuade readers to agree with their opinions. It is very important to watch for the attitude of the writer toward the subject discussed in writing.
The attitude can affect the ways of the ideas or information being presented in the passage, and it can affect your comprehension of the passage. If the attitude is not stated clearly in the passage, the reader must “read between the lines” to dig it out.
The writer may express his approval or disapproval of something by carefully selecting and arranging words to create desired effects, and he may use words with positive or negative connotations to reveal his tones.
As a reader, you are frequently called upon to recognize the writer’s attitude toward his topic. Generally speaking, an author’s attitude toward a subject can be categorized as follows:
Supportive | Disagreeing | Neutral | Suspicious | Subjective |
Positive | negative | objective | doubtful | indifferent |
Optimistic | pessimistic | impartial | questioning | sentimental |
in favor of | critical | unbiased | unsure | worried |
Approving | disapproving | unprejudiced |
| biased |
enthusiastic | ironic | impersonal |
| sympathetic |
Guided Example
Example 1
I had supposed that no one would ever produce a book on this subject with which I would find myself in complete agreement; but Professor Smith has now done the impossible.
What is the author’s attitude toward Professor Smith’s work?
A. Approving.B. Disapproving.C. Ironic.D. Doubtful.
我们可以从作者的用词看出他所持的态度。从本段的文字“in complete agreement”和“done the impossible”可见，作者所持的态度是赞同的。答案是A。
Example 2
There is little in Professor Smith’s latest book that is new, and there is much that recent scientific studies have shown to be untrue.
What is the author’s attitude toward Professor Smith’s work?
A. Approving.B. Disapproving.C. Enthusiastic.D. Doubtful.
句中“There is little... that is new”，表示作者认为史密斯教授的书中几乎没有新的内容；“there is much … to be untrue”表示太多内容是不真实的。由此可得知，作者所持的态度是不赞同的。答案是B。
Example 3
Christmas is supposed to be a time to express our love and good will. For others, it is supposed to be a time when we perform acts of kindness for people less unfortunate than ourselves. But, do we think of other people when we sit down to our Christmas dinner? Of course not. We’re too busy eating those delicious foods associated with Christmas. We are too busy wondering whether the presents we gave were better than the ones we received. We forget to think of the sick and the homeless. The whole idea of Christmas now is completely unchristian.
What is the author’s attitude toward the way people celebrate Christmas?
A. Supportive.B. Ironic.C. Enthusiastic.D. Critical.
这段文字中，带有主观意义的词语，如“is supposed to be”，“but”，“of course not”，“too busy eating”，“completely unchristian”等，透出了作者的反对态度，同时，作者指出了错误所在，即“forget to think of the sick and the homeless”，因此可以判断，作者对现在人们过圣诞节的方式持批评态度。答案是D。
Task 2：Let’s Try
Now, in accordance with the samples above, try to scan the following passages and find the proper answers to the relevant questions.
Practice 1
I was once shocked to read on the bottom of a sensitive piece of writing about a personal experience: “This work is terrible! There are far too many spelling errors and your writing is illegible.” It may have been a sharp criticism of the pupil’s technical abilities in writing, but it was also a sad reflection on the teacher who had neglected to read the essay, which contained some beautiful expressions of the child’s deep feelings. The teacher was not wrong to draw attention to the errors, but if his priorities had centered on the child’s ideas, an expression of his disappointment with the presentation would have given the pupil more motivation to seek improvement.
The author’s attitude toward what the teacher did is________.
A. approving B. positive C. critical D. indifferent
Practice 2
Figures can be deceiving. For example, Times Magazine recently reported that the average Yale graduate of the class of 1944 was making $35,111 a year. Well, good for them! But what exactly does that figure mean? Is it proof that if you send your child to Yale you won’t have to work in your old age and neither will he? What kind of sample is it based on? You could put one Texas oilman with two hundred hungry writers and report their average income as $35,111 a year. The figure is exact, but it has no meaning. In ways similar to this, the facts and figures pour out every day. They are used to point out the truth, when in fact they, confuse, and over-simplify the truth. The result is “number nonsense”.
1. The author’s comment, “Well, good for them!” as a response to the average yearly salary of a Yale graduate is meant to show________.
A. ironyB. agreementC. praiseD. indifference
2. In this Practice the author intends to ________.
A. be scientifically objectiveB. create sympathy for writers
C. criticize Yale graduatesD. reject the theory of averages
3. What’s the author’s attitude toward figures and facts given by the media nowadays?
A. Positive.B. Negative.C. Unsure.D. Impersonal.
Practice 3
Nursing at Beth Israel Hospital produces the best patient care possible. If we are to solve the nursing shortage, hospital administration and doctors everywhere would do well to follow Beth Israel’s example.
At Beth Israel hospital each patient is assigned to a primary nurse who visits at length with the patient and constructs a full-scale health account that covers everything from his medical history to his emotional state. Then she writes a care plan centered on the patient’s illness but which also includes everything else that is necessary.
The author’s attitude towards the nursing system at Beth Israel Hospital is_______.
A. disapprovingB. neutralC. criticalD. approving
Practice 4
A business can never be profitable if it is ignoring the dynamic internal and external environment. By examining the internal and external environment, an organization develops its long term objectives and then it chooses a particular strategic pathway to achieve those objectives. But this entire process can be completed only after a careful analysis of internal and external environment. Although it is an aspect of strategic management, but for the convenience lets discuss it under the subject of managerial environment.
The author’s attitude towards the dynamic and external business environment is_______.
A. disapprovingB. neutralC. criticalD. approving
