我们在平时说话的时候，当我们对一个东西说不通的时候，我们往往会说“打个比方”、“比如说”之类的，其实在写文章以及演讲的过程中这也是我们惯用的手法。比方打得好，能够瞬间让别人抓到你的点，这比你说上一大堆，写上一箩筐的话要管用省事得多。
我们今天就一起来看看 analogy(打比方)在议论文中是如何发挥它的说服作用的?
-1-
什么是打比方(analogy)?
the process of comparing one thing with another thing that has similar features in order to explain it
在写作中，打比方就是指将两个有类似特征的事物加以比较，以更好地去解释其中的某个事物。
比如说：
“Life is like a race. The one who keeps running wins the race and the one who stops to catch a breath loses.”
人生本来是个比较抽象的事物，通过将人生比喻成一场赛跑，读者更能从竞争的角度去理解人生，即“跑者赢，停者败”。
-2-
打比方常见的修辞效果是什么?
1) 便于读者理解作者的观点
It is easier for readers to comprehend a new idea
2) 有趣的比方还能够增强读者的阅读兴趣
Analogies help increase readers’ interest
3) 增强视觉化效果
…adds visual intensity to…
常用句型如下：
What the author does?
● He/she creates an analogy that likens the …to …
● He/she rounds off his/her argument with an emotive comparison of …to…
● The author compares …to …
Why he or she does it?
● …to/illustrate/emphasize
● …adds visual intensity to…
What effect this is likely to have on readers?
● The reader will undoubtedly realize the necessity to…
● …nourishing a yearning for …
● This helps the reader understand the complexities of…
-3-
如何用3W原则
对analogy展开深度分析?
如何使用3W原则来分析一篇议论文中的analogy呢，我们一起看个例子吧~
An iPod, when used during tests, is nothing more than a machine that stores and spits out data. By banning iPods and other gadgets, we’re teaching kids to actually become iPods — to become machines that store and spit out data. Instead, we should be teaching them to use iPods — to use that data and to be human beings who can think — and leave data storage to the machines.. (原文选自 Are iPod-banning schools cheating our kids?)
分 析
He interprets iPods are to the students cheating the test as computers are to professionals working in the office. Most readers would agree that we all use computers to store data and retrieve them later when we need them. Students are doing exactly the same thing. This analogy helps to dismiss the “cheating” charge against the iPod-using students. In this way, Elgan successfully puts the opponent in a very disadvantageous position(范文摘自《新SAT写作高分突破》中国出版集团中译出版社)
原文如何体现3W原则
首先范文准确的描述了原文作者写了什么?(He interprets iPods are to the students cheating the test as computers are to professionals)，即原文作者将iPod对学生的作用就好比是电脑对专业人士的作用。
紧接着，分析了作者为什么要使用这一写作手法(This analogy helps to…)，这一比方能够让人们对于将使用iPod和作弊等同起来的观点不攻自破。
最后分析了这一手法的修辞效果(Elgan successfully puts the opponent )即让反对使用iPod的人处于不利地位。
