Art and Humor

　　Millions of people struggle out of bed each morning, fumble into some clothes, and make their way to a cup of coffee and the morning newspaper①. They need something cheerful to remind them that the rest of the day will be less difficult than getting up. This need may be the reason that many of them turn their half-opened eyes to the comics section of the newspaper as they sip their first cups of coffee of the day.

　　Cartoons reflect the times and the troubles and worries of people. They give people an opportunity to laugh at themselves and at familiar situations. For example, a cartoon might say that the government of a country is responsible for the bad economy and also show the government leaders as a group of ridiculous people. Being able to use the leaders as scapegoats and to laugh at the leaders somehow makes people feel better about their situation.

　　Cartoons also make people laugh at their own personal worries. Young people who are not always sure of how to act can smile at their awkwardness. Old people whose grown children pay little attention to them can chuckle at their neglect and loneliness. Students who have studied too little before an examination can laugh at their anxiety. Everyone’s problems are made bigger–than–life in the comics. Perhaps the problems seem funny because there is humor in something that is real being made unreal.

　　A cartoon combines art and humor. When it is skillfully done, a simple line drawing and a few words can make people laugh. Their troubles seem less important, and they enjoy life more fully.

　　[276 words]

　　行文點評

　　這篇文章結構比較清晰。第一段提出觀點：

　　漫畫可以令人快樂，作者用了struggle out of bed, fumble into some clothes, 形象地展示了一個大多數讀者都非常熟悉的生活場景。第二、三段從公眾和個人的角度說明，漫畫反映人們的時代和生活特點;每段的第一句話都是主題句(topic sentence)，即每一段都在第一句提出這一段的分論點，再對其加以論證。第四段總結全文，點明文章的主題。

　　文中排比句的運用，比如第三段中對不同類型人的笑的描述Young people … Old people … Students …，也值得讀者在寫作中借鑒。

　　好文妙譯

　　藝術與幽默

　　每天清晨，成千上萬的人不情愿地起床，摸索著穿上衣服，然后喝咖啡，看早報。他們需要一些令人高興的事情來提醒自己一天中剩余的時間將不會像起床那樣難受。這就是為什么他們會在喝一天中的第一杯咖啡時將惺忪的睡眼投向報紙上的連環漫畫專欄的原因。

　　漫畫反映一個時代，也反映人們的問題和煩惱。它給了人們一個自我解嘲的機會，讓人們對他們熟悉的事情發笑。例如，某幅漫畫會把經濟不景氣歸咎于一個國家的政府，但也會把政府領導人畫成一群可笑的人。把領導人當成替罪羊來加以嘲諷，在某種程度上這會讓人們對自己的處境感覺好一點。

　　漫畫也使人們對個人煩惱付之一笑。年輕人不知所措時可以對困境微微一笑。被成年子女冷落的老人可以對自己被人遺忘、孤獨的境地輕輕苦笑。而“平時不燒香，臨時抱佛腳”的學生也可以對考試前的焦慮笑一笑。連環畫把人們的問題夸張地表現出來。也許那些問題看上去很可笑，這是因為當真實的事物被夸大到不真實的程度時，本身就產生了幽默。

　　漫畫結合了藝術和幽默。巧妙地畫幾筆簡單的線條，寫幾句簡潔的話就能讓人開懷大笑。人們的煩心事看上去不再那么重要了，而人們也能夠更充分地享受生活。

　　詞匯斟酌

　　fumble v. 笨拙地做，摸索

　　comic n. 連環畫頁，連環漫畫

　　��sip v. 呷，啜

　　��ridiculous a.荒謬的, 可笑的

　　��scapegoat n.替罪羊

　　��awkwardness n.笨拙, 不雅觀

　　��chuckle vi.吃吃的笑, 咯咯叫

　　佳句臨摹

　　①【解析】make one’s way (to/toward sth)向…前進

　　【臨摹】I’ll make my way home now.我現在要回家了。

　　思如泉涌

　　It is a great art to laugh at your own misfortune. 對己之不幸付之一笑，這是一門偉大的藝術。

　　Art lies in concealing art. 隱而不露即藝術。

　　出國留學也許是很多學生夢寐以求的事情。很多家長也愿意讓孩子出國去“鍍金”，或豐富人生經歷。但或許他們沒有想到過留學在外也會面臨著一些潛在的危險。