本文選自2007年2月Harvard Business Review上一篇名為The Accidental Influentials的文章,主要討論了影響社會流行潮的主要因素:人們普遍認為社會流行潮的出現主要是由少數有影響力的名人推動的,但新研究表明其關鍵因素卻是大部分的直接受影響者能夠積極有效地參與傳播過程。全文中在長難句方面,難度居中。作為2010年考研英語試卷的第三篇閱讀,句子難度必然會較前面題型有所提升,尤其是后半部分難度增加,再加上文中的一些難詞,這必然會給考生造成理解上的障礙,以致最終影響做題得分。下面就其中的典型例句進行分析:
【典型例句1】:In their recent work, however, some researchers have come up with the finding that influentials have far less impact on social epidemics than is generally supposed.
【例句解析】:本句中主干成分為some researchers have come up with the finding。that influentials have far less impact on social epidemics than is generally supposed是同位語從句,解釋說明finding;而從句中又含有一個than引導的比較狀語從句,采用省略主語的結構。
【典型例句2】:Yet it is precisely these noncelebrity influentials who, according to the two-step-flow theory, are supposed to drive social epidemics, by influencing their friends and colleagues directly.
【例句解析】:本句包含一個強調句型,即it is precisely…..who…..,用來強調主語,句子主干成分為these noncelebrity influentials are supposed to drive social epidemics。by influencing their friends and colleagues directly是介詞短語作方式狀語,修飾主干。
【典型例句3】:If people in the network just two degrees removed from the initial influential prove resistant, for example, the cascade of change won’t propagate very far or affect many people.
【例句解析】:本句主句為the cascade of change won’t propagate very far or affect many people。If people in the network just two degrees removed from the initial influential prove resistant是由if引導的條件狀語從句,其中in the network是介詞短語作后置定語修飾people;just two degrees removed from the initial influential是過去分詞短語作后置定語修飾people。
【典型例句4】:Building on the basic truth about interpersonal influence, the researchers studied the dynamics of social influence by conducting thousands of computer simulations of populations, manipulating a number of variables relating to people’s ability to influence others and their tendency to be influenced.
【例句解析】:本句主干為the researchers studied the dynamics of social influence。Building on the basic truth about interpersonal influence是現在分詞短語作方式狀語,修飾主干。by conducting thousands of computer simulations of populations, manipulating a number of variables relating to people’s ability to influence others and their tendency to be influenced是介詞短語作方式狀語修飾主干;此外,其中 manipulating a number of variables relating to people’s ability to influence others and their tendency to be influenced又是現在分詞短語作伴隨狀語修飾前面的conducting thousands of computer simulations of populations;此部分中,relating to people’s ability to influence others and their tendency to be influenced又是作后置定語修飾variables,and連接并列的ability和tendency。
【典型例句5】:They found that the principal requirement for what is called “global cascades”—the widespread propagation of influence through networks—is the presence not of a few influentials but, rather, of a critical mass of easily influenced people.
【例句解析】:本句主干為They found that the principal requirement is the presence,包含一個that引導的賓語從句。for what is called “global cascades”—the widespread propagation of influence through networks—是介詞短語作后置定語修飾the principal requirement,其中what is called “global cascades”是賓語從句,位于介詞for之后;the widespread propagation of influence through networks是同位語,解釋說明“global cascades” 。not of a few influentials but, rather, of a critical mass of easily influenced people是由but連接的兩個并列的介詞短語,都作后置定語修飾presence。