大学英语四级写作技巧：平行结构
精典范例:
Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe1 alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans, born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage, and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world.
So let us begin anew, remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and that sincerity is always subject to proof. Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate.
Now the trumpet summons us again - not as a call to bear arms, though arms we need2; not as a call to battle, though embattled we are3; but a call to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle, a year in and year out "rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation," a struggle4 against the common enemies of man: 5 tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself.
And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you6; ask what you can do for your country.
--美国前总统John F. Kennedy
注意：
(1)划线部分为平行结构
(2)例 1.头韵;例2&3. "We need arms"和 "We are embattled"为倒装结构;例4.同位语;例5.见冒号的用法。
在句中使用 "and" 或"on"时, 须连接结构相同的部分。总的原则是：词与词相配, 短语和短语相配,从句和从句相配 ,句子则和句子放在一起。所有这些搭配必须是平行结构，它们应采用相同的形式。
No: My parents went to Tibet, to Mongolia, and they even saw Hong Kong and Macau.
Yes: My parents went to Tibet, to Mongolia, and even to Hong Kong and Macau.
No: Jonathan noticed the way Stephanie talked and how she kept fidgeting with her fingers.
Yes: Jonathan noticed how Stephanie talked and how she kept fidgeting with her fingers.
一些连词，如 both/and, either/or, neither/nor,和not only/but also.常用于连接平行结构。
No: That conference was both helpful and contained a lot of information.
Yes: That conference was both helpful and informative.
No: Here we either turn left or right, but I forget which.
Yes: Here we turn either left or right, but I forget which.
No: Fu Chong, the pianist, was heavily influenced both by his mentor and his parents.
Yes: Fu Chong, the pianist, was heavily influenced by both his mentor and his parents.
No: Elizabeth’s overcoat is at either the theater or her dormitory.
Yes: Elizabeth’s overcoat is either at the theater or in her dormitory.
(主谓一致结构)
What makes me different from other job applicants?
· Ability to converse in English, Japanese in addition to my native Mandarin
· Completion of two-month customer satisfaction training
· Impeccable medical report card
· Outgoing personality and eager desire to help
(名词平行结构)
Awkward: At Yi Xin Associates, we have 15 years of combined legal experience in all types of injury cases one can think of. Other areas we handle are wrongful death, automobile accidents and medical malpractice. If you slip and fall in a public building, we can represent you in filing a law suit against the owner. Also, our clients come to seek our help in handicap discrimination and denial of insurance claim cases.
Better: At Yi Xin Associates, we have 15 years of combined legal experience in:
· All injury cases
· Wrongful death
· Automobile accidents
· Medical malpractice
· Slip and fall
· Handicap discrimination
· Denial of insurance claims www.examw.com
Incorrect: The duties of the Executive Secretary of the Administrative Committee are:
· To take minutes of all meetings (不定式短语)
· The Executive Secretary answers all the correspondence; and (句子)
· Writing of month reports. (话题)
Correct: The duties of the Executive Secretary of the Administrative Committee are:
· To take minutes of all meetings;
· To answer all the correspondence; and
· To write monthly reports.
(名词平行结构)
No: The prisoner was not only found guilty of bribery but also adultery.
Yes: The prisoner was found guilty not only of bribery but also of adultery.
(并列介词短语)
为使平行结构清楚明了，随时都可以重复介词、冠词、助动词、不定词标志，或者长的短语或句子的介绍词。