Stylistic Analysis on “Yes, But” Arguing in Notes on the English Character 英语毕业论文.docVIP

Stylistic Analysis on “Yes, But” Arguing in Notes on the English Character 摘要： “以退为进”是许多作者在阐述个人观点时所运用的一种策略。它不仅有助于建立双方交流观点的和谐气氛，更能达到比直言反驳更为有效的论述效果。本文通过分析《》Introduction “Yes, but” strategy is very useful in arguing. The speaker first concedes something to his opponents, for example, that they are well-intentioned or that their arguments are at least worth considering. He may even admit that some of them are sound. Then comes the powerful refutation and further elaboration, later silencing the opponents. The process is like practicing boxing. Keep the fists first and then make an advance and give the adversary a dead blow. In Notes on the English Character, Forster analyzes the “undeveloped” emotional nature of Englishmen and shows that they are not as cold and indifferent as they appear to be. They are misunderstood because they measure out their emotional responses prudently. This smart strategy makes a great contribution to achieving the author’s purpose and appealing to readers. It is embodied in four aspects: tone, choice of words, figure of speech and text structure. Tone In “yes, but” arguing, before the presentation of the counterarguments, it is of importance to create a harmonious environment where people would like to hear your ideas without resistance. Tone is a useful tool for achieving the effect. In Notes on the English Character, Forster chooses to use the first person pronoun to talk in a relaxed and friendly manner. His ideas are expressed in a calm and gentle tone, which turns the argument into an easy conversation between friends. Having seen so many people who seriously and mechanically pump their ideas into our mind, we really feel comfortable to listen to Forster. The arguing is rendered interesting by some proverbs such as “let the cat out of the bag”, “get fire out of ice”, “bottle up his emotions” and striking similes such as “measuring emotions like potatoes”, “slopping them about like water from the pail”, “as various as the sand of the