我所提倡的自然学习法只有三条基本原则。
I advocate this natural learning method with three basic principles.
第一、学习英语应该遵循由简入繁、由易到难、由粗至细的原则
I. Learning English should follow the principle from simple to complex, from easy to difficult, and from rough to subtle.
千里之行,始于足下。学习英语切忌好高骛远,学习的开始就挑选难、繁、细的材料进行攻坚战,以为学习效果更好,实践证明这是一种错误的态度。如果学习材料远远超出学习者的语言水平,这样的挑战就失去了乐趣,而只是让人感到丧气和痛苦,材料不恰当,破坏了学习者的兴趣和信心,这是最糟糕的事情。
A journey of a thousand li starts beneath one’s feet. We should try to avoid pursuing what’s beyond our reach in English learning. If we choose and study some difficult, complex, subtle materials at the very beginning with the hope of having better effect, it’s proved to be a wrong attitude by practice. If learning materials go far beyond learners’ actual language level, such challenges aren’t desirable and just make learners frustrated and painful. It’s the worst thing that learners’ interest and confidence are destroyed by unsuitable materials.
人的思维要受到精神状态的影响,情绪饱满和信心十足的时候,思维敏捷而且记忆轻松,在这样良好的精神状态下学习英语,就会收到事半功倍的效果。所以,学习英语应该一步一步地提高自己的水平,千万不要抱着十天可以速成的错误心理。语言的学习是一个终生发展的过程,千万不要以为通过一段时间的刻苦努力就能完全掌握英语,要知道对语言是学无止境的。
Your thinking will be affected by your mental state. You’ll think quickly and memorize easily if you’re in high spirit and full of confidence, then you’ll get twice the result with half the effort in such a good mental state. Therefore, you should improve your English step by step in your English learning without the wrong thoughts of cracking English within ten days. Language learning is a lifelong developmental process, so don’t think you can master English thoroughly only through a period of great effort, and you should know there’s no end for language learning.
只要生命在不断变化,作为表现工具的语言,就会自然而然不断地经历表征重述,从而使语言表达水平越来越高,越来越炉火纯青,学习语言的乐趣就会越来越强烈。
So long as your life keeps changing, your language, as a rendering tool, will constantly undergo representational redescription, which makes your language expressive level higher and higher. It’s natural that you’ll attain high degree of professional proficiency and enjoy more and more fun in your language learning.
有一点必须指出,有些英文作品对我们如果显得太困难、繁杂或者微妙,除了语言本身(词汇和语法)的障碍之外,更重要的在于我们没有经历过类似的事情,我们的生命层次太低,思想太肤浅,自然无法领悟文章的奥妙。
If some English works seem too difficult, complex and subtle to us, I must point out, it lies in our lack of similar life experiences apart from the obstacles of language itself (vocabulary and grammar). Because we’re in too low life levels with too superficial thoughts, it’s natural we fail to understand the profound meaning of those articles.
有句话,我印象很深,你要学写诗,功夫在诗外。其实,学习英语的道理又何尝不是如此,要提高英语表达水平,功夫应该花在英语外,没有足够的学识修养,英语技巧掌握得再好,也不过是一个中看不中用的绣花枕头而已。
I’ve been impressed by a statement, "You must learn more things beyond poems if you want to learn writing them." Actually, English learning isn’t different at all. You must learn more things beyond English if you want to improve your English expressive level. You’re just an outwardly attractive but actually worthless person without enough knowledge no matter how well you’ve mastered those English language skills.
其实大家可以想象一下金字塔的形状,或许可以受到一点启发。金字塔稳稳当当地矗立着,那是因为下大上小,我们学习英语也应该借鉴金字塔,简单的作为繁杂的基础,容易的作为困难的基础,粗略的作为精细的基础。简单、容易和粗略就是金字塔庞大的基底,繁杂、困难和精细就是金字塔的顶部。我们按照这样的过程学习英语,就一定能达到金字塔光辉的顶端!
Actually you can get enlightened by imagining the pyramid shape. The pyramid stands firmly with a big bottom but a small top, and we should use it for reference in our English learning. Complex materials base on simple materials, difficult materials base on easy materials, and subtle materials base on rough materials. The simple, easy and rough materials serve as the big base of pyramid, while the complex, difficult and subtle materials serve as the top of pyramid. We can reach the glorious summit of pyramid if we learn English in this way.