Writing with Purposes

上几期我们欣赏和分析了一些好的作品，不知道大家在读了这些作品之后有些什么感受。究竟什么是好的文章呢？Mitchell Ivers在Guide to Good Writing里写道:
[good writing is]"the novel we can't put down, the poem we never forget, the speech that changes the way we look at the world. It's the article that tells us when, and how, the essay that clarifies what was hazy before. … Good writing is the memo that gets action, the letter that says what a phone call can't. It's the movie that makes us cry, the TV show that makes us laugh, the lyrics to the song we can't stop singing, the advertisement that makes us buy."。
从Mitchell Ivers对good writing的描述里，我们看到英语里的写作"writing"包括的范围很广：从文学到广告，从新闻到歌词……都可以成为"good writing"。因此，在我们写作的时候，首先明确的就是写作目的（the purpose(s) of writing），按照Dr. Rudolf Flesch的说法就是："the main thing to consider is your purpose in writing: why are you sitting down to write?" 我们在写作前要问问自己我们究竟是要叙述一个故事（如Homecoming）,写一个人（如The Grandfather），还是引起人们对一个问题的关注（如The Edge of the Sea）？我们是想要抒发内心的感受，还是说服别人接受我们的观点，或是告诉别人如何使用一件家电？明确写作目的是写好作文的第一步："Purpose is only one of the many tools, but it is the one that will help you get started and keep going"( Mitchell Ivers)。

首先，明确目的帮助我们找到主题或中心（the focus or point），避免走题和重复。比如，同样写一本书，如果你的目的是做介绍，那么你就以概括它的主要内容为中心；如果你要写的是读书报告（book report），那么应该以这本书给你的感受和你对它的评价为主，而书的内容则宜一带而过；而如果你的目的是向别人推荐这本书，那么你的任务就是给对方一个理由─为什么要看这本书，或者引起对方的兴趣─把书中最吸引人的地方呈现出来……总之，明确的目的告诉你该写什么，不该写什么。

其次，明确目的会帮助我们选择一个适当的文体（style）。如果你要为一份报纸的读者分析一个政治事件，一般来说就会用解释性文体（expository），多运用分析，说理等手法；如果你写的是就事论事的报道，那么就会用新闻报道文体（journalism），罗列事实，而不夹杂评论。

正如Mitchell Ivers所说：
"A strong purpose will enable you not merely to speak out but to say something in particular, something honest and true, something you wish to express as best you can.
"Your purpose should be written on a piece of paper and taped to your mirror or writing table; whenever you go astray, let the reminder steer you back to your course. State your purpose as succinctly as possible, in two or three sentences at most. If you have trouble formulating your purpose, your writing will probably show it. You will wander, and the reader will have trouble figuring out what it is you're getting at─because you yourself won't know what it is you're getting at. A well-articulated purpose will guide your way."


Questions:

1.What is your definition of "good writing"?
2.What do "writing with purposes" mean?
3.What are the purposes of The Edge of the Sea, The Grandfather, and Homecoming respectively?
4.Given the subject matter of e-pals, what possible purposes could you think of? List as many as possible, try to develop two or three of them into complete writings and compare them!