(a) Persistent (b) Resolute (c) Steadfast (d) Stubborn
6. Which word has a positive connotation?
(a) Arrogant (b) Proud (c) Egotistical (d) Overbearing
7. Which word has a denotation but no connotation?
(a) House (b) Apathetic (c) Peculiar (d) Shrewd
8. Which word has the same connotation as tim id?
(a) Fainthearted (b) Cowardly (c) Shy (d) Fearful
9. Which is the best revision of the following wordy sen
tence?
Basically, the English language is so very difficult to learn.
(a) English is very difficult to learn basically.
(b) English is very difficult to learn.
(c) English is basically very difficult to learn.
(d) The English language is very difficult to learn.
302
10. Which is the best revision of the following wordy sen
tence?
It seems that the library board will m eet tomorrow, as a m atter of fact.
(a) As a matter of fact, the library board will m eet to
morrow.
(b) In fact, the library board will m eet tomorrow.
(c) It is apparent that the library board will m eet tomor
row.
(d) The library board will m eet tomorrow.
11. Which is the best revision of the following wordy sen
tence?
Intelligent consumers don’t let fashion gurus dictate their purchases. These fashion gurus want women to spend money on trendy garments. Trendy garments are poor investments in the long run.
(a) Intelligent consumers don’t let fashion gurus dic
tate their purchases because these fashion gurus want women to spend money on trendy garments, but trendy garments are poor investments in the long run.
(b) Since fashion gurus want women to spend money on trendy garments, intelligent consumers don’t let fash
ion gurus dictate their purchases; trendy garments are poor investments in the long run.
(c) Intelligent women don’t let fashion gurus persuade them to spend money on trendy garments since, in the long run, trendy garments that are poor investments.
(d) Intelligent women don’t let fashion gurus persuade them to spend money on trendy garments that are poor investments.
12. Which is the best revision of the following wordy sen
tence?
Today’s women have a mind of their own when it comes to clothing. They don’t rely on advice from talk shows.
303
They don’t rely on advice from books, either. Finally, they don’t depend on the dictates of fashion magazines.
(a) W omen today have a mind of their own when it comes to clothing, so they don’t rely on advice from talk shows and they don’t rely on advice from books and they don’t depend on the dictates of fashion maga
zines.
(b) W omen today know a lot about clothing.
(c) Today’s women, who have a mind of their own when it comes to clothing, don’t rely on advice from talk shows or books. They don’t even take advice from fashion magazines.
(d) Today’s women, who have a mind of their own when it comes to clothing, don’t rely on advice from talk shows, books, or fashion magazines.
13. W hat’s the best simplification of the following redun
dant phrase: “at this point in tim e”?
(a) Now
(b) N ever never land (c) N ever ever (d) Later
14. W hat is the problem with the phrase "true facts”?
(a) Only some facts are true.
(b) All facts are true; otherwise, they w ouldn't be facts.
(c) It has a negative connotation.
(d) It does not have a denotation.
15. Follow all the rules below to create succinct, effective sentences except
(a) Eliminate unneeded words and phrases.
(b) Combine sentences that repeat information.
(c) Write as you speak.
(d) D on't say the same thing twice.
304
f)dp du
Cau h o i d u n g — sai
l.T 2. T 3. F 4. F 5. T
6. F 7. T 8. F 9. T 10. T
Cau h o i d a n g h o a n th a n h ca u
1. cdch chon tir 2. khong trang trong
3. cdch dilng tir trang trong 4. tin nh^n cho ban be 5. van viet tieng Anh tieu chuan 6. tieng 16ng
7. tieng me d£ 8. tieng dia phuWng
9. quen thupc 10. nghia den
11. sir thira thai 12. tir lap cho Cau h o i tr a c n g h ie m
l . b 2. a 3. c 4. c 5. d
6. b 7. a 8. c 9. b 10. d
11. d 12. d 13. a 14. b 15. c
3 0 5
QuC tu/ft on thdnh ngA can tranh
Toi co c a n d9C ch u o n g n a y k h o n g ?
Ban ucu doc cluiont; nay ucu ban cau on lai boac boc vc• •
Tranh dung ngon ngu gly thinh ki2n Sua cau sao
Thay tu sao rong bing thinh ngu ro rang
Moi khi viet, ban lu6n mu6n truyen tai thong tin m6t cach ro rang. Tiif ngff ban chpn se cho phep ban dat dtftfc muc dich cua minh. Trong chtfdng nay, ban se dtfdc hpc ve viec tranh dung ngon ngff gay thanh kien, thay thanh ngff rtfdm ra hoa la bang cach d iln dat mcfi me hcfn, va doi loi viet buon te sang loi ro rang dS hieu hdn. Dieu nay se giup ban tao ra m6t vSn phong chan thtfc, rach roi va hi6u qua nhat.
fe iU c t& u ,
Dung ngdn ngU khong gdy thdnh kiin
Ngon ngff la mot cong cu dac ltfc: Chung ta chu tam dung ngon ngff de djnh hinh suy nghi va trai nghiem cua chung ta, nhtfng ngon ngff cung co the cho biet ban la ngtfdi nhtf the" nao. Ban khong phan biet doi xff vdi ngtfdi khac dffa tren chung toe, khuyet tat hay tuoi tac cua ho - nen tff ngff cua ban cung phai tffdng xtfng. Vi vay, hay luon dung ngon ngff khong gay thanh kien (bias-free language). Loai ngon ngff nay dung nhffng tff va cum tff khong gay phan biet doi xff ve gidi tinh, tinh trang the chat, tuoi tac, chung toe hay bat ky pham chat nao khac. Nhtf vay, ngtfdi doc se cd the tap trung vao dieu ban noi hdn la cach ban ndi.
1. Goi ten mot nhdm ngtfdi vdi thuat ngff phu hdp hdn
Ngon ngff luon thay doi, vi vay ban phai luon cap nhat de sff dung ngon ngff cho chinh xac. Vi du nhtf, mot tram nam trtfdc, ngtfdi da den bj goi la colored. Nam mtfdi nam sau, ngtfdi ta dimg ttf Negro.
Ngay nay, ngtfdi ta thich goi la African American va black hdn.
Dtfdi day la mot so" thay doi ban can biet:
• Goi la Asian thay vi goi la Oriental.
• Goi la Inuit thay vi Eskimo.
• Latino dtfdc tfa dung de chi ngtfdi dan ong co xuat than tff Trung My va My Latin.
307
• Latina dtfdc tfa dung de chi ngtfcJi phu ntf co xuat than ttf Trung My va My Latin.
• Chi goi chung toe cua mot ngtfdi n io d6 neu can thiet phdi dtfa ra trong chuyen ke cua ban. Hdn nffa, neu ban de cap den chung t$c cua ai do thi phai dam bao l i c6 nh£c tdi chung tpc cua nhffng ngtfdi khac.
yy\e^o -
Nhffng ngtfdi trong cung mot nhom tliieu sd hay tfin giao thinh thoang gpi nhau bdng nhffng tff chi chung t6c mang tinh chSt boi nhp. Dffng di sau tdi mtfc do.
2. Tap trung vao con ngtfdi chtf khong phai dieu kien cua ho
Dien vien Lou Ferrigno (trong phim “The Incredible H ulk") bi khiem thinh 60%. Tong thong Franklin Delano Roosevelt bi liet nffa than dtfdi do viem tuy xam. Ca sy Neil Young va dien vien Danny Glover m ic chtfng dong kinh. Ca sy Ray Charles bi mil. Dien vien Tom Cruise va dien vien - ca sy Cher m&c chtfng kho doc, mot bpnh roi loan trong xff ly thong tin gay trd ngai khi dpc.
Nhffng ngtfdi bi khuyet tat, theo nghia rong, la nhffng ngtfdi g4p han che trong hoat dong hoac hanh dong nhtf ngtfdi binh thtfdng do suy yeu ve mat the chat, tinh cam ho ic tinh than. Theo Cue dieu tra dan so" My, khoang 49 trieu ngtfdi My bi khuyet tat; sd ngtfdi bi khuyet tat tram trong chiem 24.1 trieu. Ngtfdi ta cho ring nhffng con sd nay se con tang khi dan sd gia di. Vi vay, ta can phai biet cach goi ngtfdi mac benh mot cach dung d in .
GSy th a n h k ien : The deaf
K hong gay th a n h k ien : people with hearing impairments G ay th a n h k ie n : AIDS patients
K hong gay th a n h kien : people being treated for AIDS.
G ay th a n h k ien : The mentally retarded
K hong gay th a n h kien : people with m ental retardation 308
Gfiy thanh kidn: abnormal, afflicted, struck down Khong gfiy thanh kien: atypical
3. Trdnh dilng ngon ngff phan biet doi xff doi vdi ngudi gia Gfiy thanh kien: old people, geezers, aged Khong gfiy thanh ki£n: senior citizen, mature person 4. Trdnh dilng ngon ngff thanh kien gidi tinh
“Hey, babe, you are one foxy chick. ”
“He has such a male ego! ”
Chung ta deu biet thff ngon ngff va thai do thanh kien gidi tinh tr^ng trdn nhir the khong the chap nhan dude trong the" gidi ngay nay. NhiTng ngon ngff thanh kien gidi tinh co the it ro rang hcfn - ma cung gay xuc pham khong kem.
Ngon ngff thanh kien gidi tinh (sexist language) quy chup mot so pham chat len ngirdi khac dffa tren gidi tinh cua ho. Nd phan anh thdi do thanh kien va loi nghi rap khuon ve vai tro va dac diem gidi tinh cua ca dan ong lan phu nff, tff do dan tdi phan biet doi xff vdi ngudi khac khi nghi rang nang lffc cua ho bi han che".
Hdn nffa, luat phap My ngay nay khong con bo qua cho nhffng van ban gay thanh kien va mdi triTdng lam viec khong than thien.
Vi luat lien bang cam phan biet doi xff ve gidi tinh, ngirdi ta khi viet bat cff thff gi - nhiTng dac biet la tuyen bd" chinh sach, de nghi cap von, hodc bat ky tai lieu chinh thffc nao - deu phai dac biet can than, khong dufdc dung bat cff cach dien dat nao co the gay phan biet do"i xff. Neu khong, ho se kien ra toa day.
Ngon ngff khong thanh kien gidi tinh doi xff mot cach trung lap vdi ca hai gidi, khong thanh kien ve thff gidi tinh phu hdp de lam mot nghe nao dd, cung khong cho rang dan ong co vi the cao hdn phu nff. Dirdi day la mot sd" nguyen tdc giup ban dung ngon ngff khong thanh kien khi viet cung nhir khi ndi.
• Trdnh dung tff man, he hay him de chi ca dan ong va phu nff.
Thanh kien gidi tinh: A person could lose his way in this huge store.
Mot ngUc'fi co the lac dudng cua anh ta trong cua hang rong l&n nay.
309
Khong thanh kien: A person could get lost in this huge store.
MQt ngudi cd the lac dtfdng trong ciia hang rong Idn nay.
Hoac
You could lose your way in this huge store.
Ban co the di lac dtfdng trong ciia hang rong Idn nay.
• Tranh nhffng thanh ngff chi nhffng vi du gay xuc pham r hdp:
Thanh kien gitfi tmh chairman
common man congressman fem ale intuition fem ale lawyer fireman foreman male ego m ale nurse mankind old w ives’ tale policeman postman stewardess waitress workman
gom mot gidi tinh. Difdi day \h at va phan bien doi cua n6 cho phii
Khong thanh kien chair, m oderator average person
senator, representative intuition
lawyer firefighter supervisor ego nurse
humanity, people superstition police officer
postal carrier, letter carrier flight attendant
server
worker, employee, or the specific job title
310
y y \ c ^ *%/%&
H ay coi chffng nhffng cum tff trong do cho rltng phu nff va d an 6ng cff xff theo nhffng khuon m lu n h at d in h , vi du nhff “cries like a woman,” “ thinks like a m an ,” “m an’s w ork,” “rowdy boys.” Hay loai ngay nhffng cum tff do ra khoi b ai viet cua b an .
• Dilng cach xtfng ho lich sir cho dung
Dilng Mr. cho dan ong va Ms. cho phu nff, trff hai triTdng hop sau:
trong mot boi canh thffdng mai, ngffdi ta thffdng dung chffc vu hdn la dilng Mr. va Ms. Vi du, trong cong viec, tien si Rozakis dffdc ngffdi ta goi la Dr. Rozakis thay vi Ms. Rozakis.
• Hay luon luon dung chffc danh ma ngffdi kia thicch hdn
Mot so phu nff thich goi la Miss thay vi Ms. Neu ban khong chac la nen goi nhff the" nao, hay tra trong danh ba cong ty hoac trong cac thff tff trffdc do de xem ngffdi nay thich goi theo kieu nao. Ban cung phai lffu y den cach ho ttf gidi thieu.
• Dung dai ttf so nhieu va danh ttf bat ctf luc nao co the.
Thanh kien gidi tinh: A good reporter needs to verify her sources.
Mot phdng vien tai gidi cdn phai xac minh nguon tin ciia cd.
Khong thanh kien: A good reporter needs to verify their sources.
Mot phong vien tdi gidi cdn phai xac minh nguon tin ciia minh.
Thay cdu sao rong being thdnh ngit mot mk hem
As you read this section, be sure to roll out the red carpet, keep your eyes peeled, your fingers crossed, and your head above water and you may be able to keep up with the Joneses.
311
But that’s only if you’re on the ball, beam , go, level, and up-and-up, rather than on the fly, fence, ropes, rocks or lam. Or you can just go fry an egg.
(Khi ban doc phan nay, hay chdc la ban trdi tam tham dd, md to mdt quan sat, ngoeo ngon tay cdu nguyen, va sdn sang cho tinh hud'ng khd khan va ban se co the theo kip nhd Joneses.)
(Nhung dd chi la neu ban ndm duoc tinh hinh, cutfi that tuoi, budc ra, nham vd t d i luon, thay vi nhe nhdng, danh trong ldng, chiu thua c u q c, dumg ben bd vuc tham hay chay tron. Hodc ban chi vi§c di ran triing thdi.) Doan van neu tren toan la nhffng cau s io rong v i cum tff mieu ti mat het an tffdng vdi ngtfdi doc do bi lam dung qua nhieu. N eu ban nghe di nghe lai ciing mot ttf va cum ttf thi ngtfdi dpc cung thay nhtf vay. Hay thay cau sao rong b in g cau mieu ta mdi me hdn. Neu ban khong nghi ra cich viet lai de cau mdi hdn thi hay bo h in cau dd di.
Sao rong Nghla
clean as a hound’s tooth very clean
cry uncle give up
get cold feet afraid to proceed
make your hair stand on end terrified
on the carpet reprimanded
on the fritz broken
on the lam fleeing
on the make eager for financial or sexual gain
rain or shine regardless
soft as silk soft
Hay nhd l i neu ban co mot luong dat khd c iy , hay m anh me hdn vi c iy cho that sau. Stf that se chien th in g v i ban co the thay doi theo chieu htfdng tich cffc hdn. Bi hieu lam ff? Khong tot nhtf mong muon tf?
Hay dung cai dau cua ban; dau ban nhtf dong ntfdc bi con dap n g in lai.
Dii gi di nffa thi ban cung cd vo so cd hoi md ra trtfdc m it; c h ic ch in li nhtf the"!
312
Tranh dung tit ngil vd nghla
C6 bao gid c6 ngirdi muon b in cho ban mQt “underground condo
minium” chtfa? Bd li thuat ngtf mdi nhat dinh cho mo phan (grave). Ba bao gid thay “personal manual data bases ” trtfng b iy d k h ip cac mang ltfdi mua sim tai n h i chtfa? D6 l i cdch ngtfdi ta goi lich n g iy thang (calendar.)
C ic cum ttf n iy rat gia tao v i md ho. C ic cum n iy muon truyen tai $ ttfdng nhtfng thtfc ra li khong the. Dd li thtf ngon ngff cho c ii xau cd ve dep, c ii tieu cffc cd v£ tich cffc, v i cai kh6 chiu trd nen de chiu hdn. Nd lap Id trich nhiem v i chu tam xuyen tac v i lffa bip.
Cum tiif Nghla
greenmail economic blackmail
involuntarily leisured fired
mechanically separated meat salvaged meat nonpositively terminated fired
outplaced fired
revenue enhancem ent tax increase
sea legs pressed seafood
takeover artists corporate raiders
unauthorized withdrawal robbery vertically challenged a short person Dtfdi day l i mot so' vi du ve ttf ngff gia tao:
Khi ngtfdi viet dung loai ngon ngff n iy nghia l i ho dang che giau sff that. Hay luon luon sff dung ngon ngff mot cich chan thffc.
1. Tranh ngon ngff khoa trudng (inflated language)
Ngon ngff khoa trffdng khien cai binh thffdng trd nen khac thtfdng.
“automotive internists ” thay cho thd sffa xe (car mechanics)
“Vertical transportation corps” thay cho ngffdi dieu khien thang m iy (elevator operators. ”)
Khen ngdi ngtfdi khac khong co gi sai (v i tham chi la mot cai ten thu vi) nhtfng ngon ngff khoa trtfdng ve can ban l i khong thanh
313
thtfc vi no xuyen tac stf that. VI vay, hay n6i va viet ro rslng vi minh bach.
2. Dung uyen ngff (euphemism) can than Nhffng thanh ngff sau co diem gi chung?
• She’s betw een jobs.
Co ay dang ludng lu chon viec.
• He has to see a man about a horse.
Anh ay phai gap mot ngudi ve viec con ngUa.
• He cashed in his chips.
Ong ta kiem tien vdi mon khoai tay chien.
• She’s pushing up daisies.
Ba ta dang ngu vdi giun.
• She’s a woman of a certain age.
Ba ay la mot ngudi phu nit cd tuoi.
Nhffng cau nay dtfdc goi la uyen ngff, la nhffng tff hoiic cum tif khong xuc pham hoac tich cffc, dtfdc dung de tranh de cap stf that khac nghiet. Uyen ngff la mot loai ngon ngff md ho vi n6 khong noi ro sff that. Ban co the bdt gap uyen ngff trong tat ca nhffng tinh huong gay lung tung nhtf mat viec, cac hoat dong trong phong t£m, cai chet, bo phan cd the, gidi tinh va tuoi tac.
• Tranh dung uyen ngtf neu no lam toi nghla. Trong hau het cdc trtfdng hdp, uyen ngff lam mat het y nghla cua bai viet chan chinh.
Ket qua la ngtfdi dpc hoac ngtfdi nghe gap kho khan khi muon hieu y cua ban.
• Dung uyen ngff de tranh dong cham tinh cam cua ai do, d&c biet la trong nhffng tinh huong te" nhi. Ban nen dung uyen ngff trong nhffng tinh huong dac trtfng thtfdng thay trong xa hoi, vi du nhtf khi ban noi “I am sorry your sister passed aw ay” (Toi rat tiec vi chi ban da qua ddi) thay vi “/ am sorry your sister died. ” (Toi rat tiec vi chi ban da chet).
314
3. Tranh dung ngon ngff hanh chinh
Ngon ngff hanh chinh (bureaucratic language) rat dai dong va phffc tap mot cach khong can thiet. Ket qua la cau trd nen vo nghla vi qua md ho va dai dong.
C Sugoc: The internal m emorandum previously circulated should be ignored and disregarded and instead re placed by the internal memorandum sent before the previous one was sent. The memorandum presently at the current time being held by the appropriate per
sonnel should be combined with the previous one to call attention to the fact that the previous one should be ignored by the reader.
Thu bdo noi bo lUu hanh trudc day phai duoc gat bd va khong dem xia tdi vd thay vi the nen duoc thay the bang thu bdo noi bo duoc gtfi di trudc khi thu bdo trudc no dUilc gild. Thubdo hien nay vdo hien tai dang duoc ngudi nhan vien thich hop nam gitfnen duoc ket hop vdi thu bdo trudc do de tap trung chu y vao thuc te Id thu trudc nen du<1c bd qua bdi ngudi doc.
Stfa lai: Replace the first memorandum you received with the one that followed it. Please attach this notice to the canceled version.
Thay btfc thu bdo dau tien md ban dd nhan bang btfc
thu bdo den sau. Xin vui long kem thong bdo nay vao btfc dd bd di.
Hay dung cac cau hoi sau de xac dinh ngon ngff sao rong trong tat ca cac dang neu tren. Khi ban doc lai bai viet cua chinh minh de loai bo nhffng tff sao rong, hay tff hoi minh nhffng cau sau day:
• Tff cua minh co nghla gi?
• Nhan x6t nay la noi ve ai?
• Nhan xet dtfdc dffa ra trong dieu kien nao?
• Y dinh cua minh la gi?
• Ket qua cua nhan xet do la gi?
• Tff nao se giup toi the hien y ttfdng ro rang va ranh re nhat?
315