我們首先來看下面這段話：
　　Panda bear is a kind of docile lovely animal in the southwest of China. Its cherubic appearance and awkward movement appeals to not only children but also adults. It symbolizes the spirit of peace and harmony, which is cherished by Chinese people. Expansion of human activities to wild areas has caused a sharp decrease in the number of panda bears.
　　這段話由四句組成，彼此之間存在著明顯的聯(lián)系，論證的都是中國大熊貓的情況。排除語法，文字優(yōu)美等諸多考慮，這段話給人的感覺是四個孤立的句子，而不是一段文章。其原因之一，也被筆者認(rèn)為是最重要的一個原因，是它缺乏必要的過渡(Transitions)，文中主題之間缺乏有機聯(lián)系導(dǎo)致文章缺乏必要的連貫性。這一問題也是學(xué)生在寫作實踐中普遍存在的現(xiàn)象。本文的目的就是介紹英文寫作中transitions的使用。
　　作為考試項目教師，出于通過考試的目的，注意在文章中必要的連接也顯得尤其重要。在諸多北美考試的寫作評分標(biāo)準(zhǔn)中，都出現(xiàn)過與之相關(guān)的要求，比如
　　*"displays unity, progression, and coherence, though connection of ideas may be occasionally obscured" (iBT Independent Writing 3分評分標(biāo)準(zhǔn))
　　*"develops and organizes ideas satisfactorily but may notconnect them with transitions"
　　(GRE Argument 4分評分標(biāo)準(zhǔn))
　　*"is limited in its organization or focus, or may demonstrate some lapses in coherence or progression of ideas" (Sat Write an Essay 3分評分標(biāo)準(zhǔn))
　　各種考試中不約而同的出現(xiàn)對于coherence，connection，transitions等概念的要求，而且這部分做的不到位都會影響考試寫作部分的成績，其重要性可見一斑。上面三個詞的翻譯為"連貫性"，"連接"和"過渡"，而connection和transitions在這里可以被理解為同義詞，筆者認(rèn)為就是達(dá)到coherence這一目的的重要手段之一(還有一些其他方法，比如重述和首尾的呼應(yīng))。
　　那么到底甚么是Transitions呢?在GRE考試中又被稱作Transitional devices，連接元件。筆者嘗試對之做出定義：Transitions是出現(xiàn)在文章中的一種詞，短語甚至句子，其目的是用來表明它前后兩部分之間的邏輯關(guān)系的，它的用處是能夠幫助讀者自然地從作者的一個idea轉(zhuǎn)移到下一個idea，使用的結(jié)果可以使文章的邏輯性更強，更加連貫。打個比方來說，它很像道路上引導(dǎo)旅者的標(biāo)志牌(They are like the road signs that guide travelers-College Writing Skills)。之所以說"前后兩部分"，是因為Transitions的前后可能是兩個段落，兩句話，甚至兩個單詞，它們彼此之間都會存在各種各樣的邏輯關(guān)系，比如說：
　　*Addition: and, in addition, additionally, one, another, first of all, secondly, furthermore, moreover
　　*Time: then, after, before, since, once, until, meanwhile, now, during
　　*Space: next to, across, above, below, nearby
　　*Change-of-direction: but, yet, however, otherwise, nevertheless, although, in contrast, on the contrary
　　*Conclusion: because, so, therefore, as a result, consequently, thus, in summary, conclude
　　其實還有很多其他關(guān)系，其他的詞，這幾種是比較常見的。我們發(fā)現(xiàn)這種transitions的出現(xiàn)方式非常多樣，包含了很多詞性：連詞，介詞，副詞，動詞等等，還有很多短語，所以把它稱之為Transitional devices是非常恰當(dāng)?shù)摹?br> 　　針對Transitional devices前后可以是段落，句子以及單詞，我們分別舉幾個例子：
　　*Among paragraphs：
　　In the first place, human always like exploring the world around, especially mysterious fields……
　　Besides human's curiosity, to explore dangerous fields draws them away from daily routine and boredom.……
　　Finally, although these dangerous activities may not bring us any material reward, they bring forth a lot of psychological benefits.……
　　這是一篇托福作文的三個中間段的topic sentence，可以看出三段分別論證了人類參加危險運動的三條理由(好奇心，找刺激以及精神的愉悅)，彼此之間的并列關(guān)系，是通過In the first place, Besides，F(xiàn)inally這三個Transitional devices來體現(xiàn)的
　　另外，段落之間也有可能出現(xiàn)轉(zhuǎn)折邏輯關(guān)系，相應(yīng)的連接語也會發(fā)生變化，比如：
　　One reason for my fundamental agreement with the speaker is that withholding some personal information is necessary to gain and maintain political leadership.……
　　Another reason why I essentially agree with the speaker is that fully disclosing to the public certain types of information would threaten public safety and perhaps even national security.……
　　Having recognized that withholding information from the public is often necessary to serve the interests of that public, legitimate political leadership nevertheless requires forthrightness with the citizenry as to the leader's motives and agenda.……
　　上面是一篇GRE北美范文的三個中間段的topic sentences，可以發(fā)現(xiàn)，前兩段之間是并列關(guān)系(one reason/another reason)，而第三段和前兩段之間就是轉(zhuǎn)折關(guān)系(nevertheless)
　　*Among sentences:
　　Office workers' time is hardly enough for their own work. As a result, big companies lack necessary team spirit, rendering employees' emotional distance from each other.
　　這兩句話論證了為什么大公司缺乏必要的團隊精神，員工之間感情淡漠，各自忙于工作是原因，缺乏team spirit是結(jié)果，所以前后兩句話之間通過連接語As a result表明了因果邏輯關(guān)系。同樣的，句子之間也有并列與轉(zhuǎn)折關(guān)系：
　　For example, foods in western world, such as cheese, jam and butter, are now becoming familiar and popular in China. By the same token, more and more products with Chinese style can be found in American markets.(并列)
　　In the past, people may only obtain information from some traditional media, such as televisions, books, or newspapers. However, today people are able to receive the same material through computers.(轉(zhuǎn)折)
　　*Among words：
　　Instead ofobtaining splendid grade in exams, students' main assignment is to perceive the way to search knowledge they want.
　　這句話中的instead of 前后實際上是兩個具有名詞特性的短語，分詞短語obtaining splendid grade in exams，和介詞短語to perceive the way to search knowledge they want。這兩部分之間具有轉(zhuǎn)折關(guān)系，用Instead of來體現(xiàn)。 而用來表達(dá)單詞中的并列和因果關(guān)系的連接語就是我們很常見的and還有because of，這個很簡單就不舉例子。
　　在寫作文章中充分合理地加入這種Transitional devices，就可以在很大程度上增加文章的連貫性，比如還是本文開頭的那段話，稍加修改之后變成了：
　　Panda bear is a kind of docile lovely animal in the southwest of China. Because of its cherubic appearance and awkward movement, it also symbolizes the spirit of peace and harmony, which is cherished by Chinese people. However, expansion of human activities to wild areas has caused a sharp decrease in the number of panda bears.
　　通過判斷，我們發(fā)現(xiàn)修改前的一二兩句之間存在因果關(guān)系，因此加入because of 將它們連在了一起;而修改前的第三句和前兩句之間是一個并列關(guān)系，因此加入了also;最后一句話的意思和前面明顯出現(xiàn)了轉(zhuǎn)折，通過however來體現(xiàn)這種轉(zhuǎn)折關(guān)系。經(jīng)過修改之后，幾句話被有機地結(jié)合在了一起，形成了一段篇章而非四個獨立的句子。
　　不過，在充分使用各種連接語的同時，也應(yīng)該注意不同詞性連接語的用法，比如連詞很自由，and，but，so這些連詞的后面可以跟名詞或者句子。但是介詞(介詞短語)后面只能跟名詞，比如because of， instead of，in addition to等等;而副詞(副詞性短語)的后面只能加句子，比如however, in addition, as a result等等。
　　剛才看到的是一些詞或短語充當(dāng)transitions的情況，其實transitions還有另外一種體現(xiàn)方式就是transitional sentences，比如很常見的讓步狀語從句：
　　Even if traveling with a companion could bring us financial and some other benefits, this type conducts our traveling experience to a mechanical boring event.
　　從這個句子中可以看出由even if引導(dǎo)的讓步狀語從句，說明了這句話之前的內(nèi)容論證的是traveling with a companion的好處，而主句則是講這種方式讓我們的旅行成為意見機械無聊的行為，也是后面要論證的一個主題，前后兩部分之間顯然是轉(zhuǎn)折的邏輯關(guān)系。出現(xiàn)在文章之中可以有效地連接上下文，使之變得連貫：
　　I concede that traveling with a companion may have one or more benefits. One ofthe most obvious advantages is saving money. In other words, Traveling in a group would be much cheaper than traveling alone. In my observation, travel agency, the most common group-travel organization in China, reserves a prerogative of paying considerably less on tickets fees, traffic costs, and so forth than individuals. Moreover, individuals have to purchase some necessaries, like tent, when traveling by themselves, but if we go hiking with one or two friends, we could pay for these shared outfits together. Another advantage of traveling in a group is that we have accompaniers to communicate with. But I believe that this advantage is only desirable for those who often feel lonely and like clatter.
　　Even if traveling with a companion could bring us financial and some other benefits, this type conducts our traveling experience to a mechanical boring event.People might not arrange his or her own plan if he or she is traveling in a group, because all group members should be restricted by lots of rules, such as the place where we have to reside, the time when we can play or must gather, etc. For instance, when I followed a travel agency to Hangzhou which is one of the most beautiful cities of China last year, hardly did I finish my visit because of the time restriction ordered by the cicerone. In contrast, if I would have traveled alone, I could manage my journey flexibly. To some extent, losing freedom means losing interest in a team traveling.
　　另外一些其他的句子也有這種作用，例如：After recognizing the advantages of using land for farming, housing and so forth, however, we should also save some land inhabited by endangered species.中文寫作中的承上啟下的句子就是這個意思，而承上啟下這個成語非常精確地表明了transitional sentences的作用。
　　總之，一篇文章是一個完整的有機體，好像一部機器，每個段落，每個句子，每個單詞都是機器的一個部件，而Transitions就像是連接這些部件的螺絲，如果缺乏，這個機器就會散落，文章也不能構(gòu)成篇章，頂多就是一堆句子群而已。連接語雖然不難，但是要將它們合理充分多樣地加入文章之中，仍然需要大量練習(xí)。