每课一句:新概念第2册第93课
【往期回顾】
今天我们接着来看第93课的“每课一句”。
一、课文原文
Lesson 93 A noble gift
One of the most famous monuments in the world, the Statue of Liberty, was presented to the United States of America in the nineteenth century by the people of France. The great statue, which was designed by the sculptor Auguste Bartholdi, took ten years to complete. The actual figure was made of copper supported by a metal framework which had been especially constructed by Eiffel. Before it could be transported to the United States, a site had to be found for it and a pedestal had to be built. The site chosen was an island at the entrance of New York Harbour. By 1884, a statue which was 151 feet tall had been erected in Paris. The following year, it was taken to pieces and sent to America. By the end of October 1886, the statue had been put together again and it was officially presented to the American people by Bartholdi. Ever since then, the great monument has been a symbol of liberty for the millions of people who have passed through New York Harbour to make their homes in America.
——选自《新概念英语》第二册,外语教学与研究出版社,1997年10月第1版
二、每课一句
The actual figure was made of copper supported by a metal framework which had been especially constructed by Eiffel.
注意本句话中的“supported by a metal framework”,其形式上是过去分词短语,但实际上是起着定语的作用,用来修饰先行词copper。
但是,从逻辑含义上看,也有人认为,“supported by a metal framework”其实应该是用来修饰先行词“the actual figure”的。
所以,如果按照原句的结构安排,定语成分“supported by a metal framework”到底修饰哪个成分会引起误解。
为了不引起这种误解,其实可以把原句调整为:
Made of copper, the actual figure was supported by a metal framework which had been especially constructed by Eiffel。
当然,如果作者原本就是想要用“supported by a metal framework”来修饰先行词copper的话,那么这个定语本身的处理也值得我们注意。
其实,“supported by a metal framework”原本应该是个定语从句,其完整原形为:
which was supported by a metal framework
之所以要改为分词短语结构“supported by a metal framework”,是因为在framework后面又有一个由which引导的定语从句,用来修饰先行词framework。
所以,作者之所以把前面的定语从句改为分词短语结构,主要是为了避免前后两个定语从句在结构上的重复。
三、更多拓展
The great statue, which was designed by the sculptor Auguste Bartholdi, took ten years to complete.
本句话中由which引导的也是一个定语从句,用来修饰先行词the great statue。
只是,这个定语从句的前后都用逗号隔开了,因为它是个非限定性定语从句。
问题是作者为什么在这里采用非限定性定语从句呢?
这其实是因为其先行词the great statue就是指the Stature of Liberty(自由女神像),而自由女神像是具有唯一性。英语中,当先行词具有唯一性时,其后的定语从句就要采用非限定性的定语从句。