記敘文是記人敘事的文章，它主要是用于說明事件的時間、背景、起因、過程及結果，即我們通常所說的五個“ W ”（ what, who, when, where, why ）和一個“ H ”（ how ）。記敘文的重點在于“述說”和“描寫”，因此一篇好的記敘文要敘述條理清楚，描寫生動形象。下面就談談英語記敘文的特點和寫好記敘文的基本要領。 

　　一、記敘文的特點

　　英語的記敘文一般是以第一或第三人稱的角度來敘述的。用第一稱表示的是由敘述者親眼所見、親耳所聞的經歷。它的優點在于能把故事的情節通過“我”來傳達給讀者，使人讀后感到真實可信，如身臨其境。如：

　　The other day, I was driving along the street. Suddenly, a car lost its control and ran directly towards me fast. I was so frightened that I quickly turned to the left side. But it was too late. The car hit my bike and I fell off it.

　　用第三人稱敘述，優點在于敘述者不受“我”活動范圍以內的人和事物的限制，而是通過與讀者之外的第三者，直接把故事中的情節展現在讀者面前，文章的客觀性很強。如：

　　Little Tom was going to school with an umbrella, for it was raining hard. On the way, he saw an old woman walking in the rain with nothing to cover. Tom went up to the old woman and wanted to share the umbrella with her, but he was too short. What could he do? Then he had a good idea.

　　2. 動詞的時態

　　在記敘文中，記和敘都離不開動詞。所以動詞出現率最高，且富于變化。記敘文中用得最多的是動詞的過去的，這是英語記敘文區別于漢語記敘文的關鍵之處。英語寫作的優美之處就在于這些動詞時態的變化，正是這一點才使得所記、所敘有鮮活的動態感、鮮明的層次感和立體感。

　　3. 敘述的順序

　　記敘一件事要有一定的順序。無論是順敘、倒敘、插敘還是補敘，都要讓讀者能弄清事情的來龍去脈。順敘最容易操作，較容易給讀者提供有關事情的空間和時間線索。但這種方法也容易使文章顯得平鋪直敘，讀起來平淡乏味。倒敘、插敘、補敘等敘述方法能有效地提高文章的結構效果，讓所敘之事跌宕起伏，使讀者在閱讀時思維產生較大的跳躍，從而為文章所吸引，深入其中。但這些方法如果使用不當，則容易弄巧成拙，使文章結構散亂，頭緒不清，讓讀者不知所云。

　　4. 敘述的過渡

　　過渡在上下文中起著承上啟下、融會貫通的作用。過渡往往用在地點轉移或時間、事件轉換以及由概括說明到具體敘述時。如：

　　In my summer holidays, I did a lot of things. Apart form doing my homework, reading an English novel, watching TV and doing some housework, I went on a trip to Qingdao. It is really a beautiful city. There are many places of interest to see. But what impressed me most was the sunrise.

　　The next morning I got up early. I was very happy because it was a fine day. By the time I got to the beach, the clouds on the horizon were turning red. In a little while, a small part of the sun was gradually appearing. The sun was very red, not shining. It rose slowly. At last it broke through the red clouds and jumped above the sea, just like a deep-red ball. At the same time the clouds and the sea water became red and bright.

　　What a moving and unforgettable scene!

　　5. 敘述與對話

　　引用故事情節中主要人物的對話是記敘文提高表現力的一種好方法。適當地用直接引語代替間接的主觀敘述，可以客觀生動地反映人物的性格、品質和心理狀態，使記敘生動、有趣，使文章內容更加充實、具體。試比較下面兩段的敘述效果：

　　I was in the kitchen, and I was cooking something. Suddenly I heard a loud noise from the front. I thought maybe someone was knocking the door. I asked who it was but I heard no reply. After a while I saw my cat running across the parlor. I realized it was the cat. I felt released.

　　這本來應是一段故事性很強的文字，但經這么一寫，就不那么吸引人了。原因是文中用的都是敘述模式，沒有人物語言，把“懸念”給沖淡了。可作如下調整：

　　I was in the kitchen cooking something. "Crash!" a loud noise came from the front. Thinking someone was knocking at the door, I asked, "Who?" No reply. After a while, I saw my cat running across the parlor. "It＇s you." I said, quite released.

　　二、寫好記敘文的基本要領

　　寫好記敘文，首先要頭緒分明，脈絡清楚，明確文章要求寫什么。要對所寫的事件或人物進行分析，弄清事件發生、發展一直到結束的整個過程，然后再收集選取素材。這些素材都應該跟上述五個“ W ”和一個“ H ”有關。盡管不是每篇記敘文里都必須包括這些“ W ”和“ H ”，但動筆之前，圍繞五個“ W ”和“ H ”進行構思是必不可少的。

　　2. 突出中心，詳略得當

　　在文章的框架確定后，對支持故事的素材的選取是很關鍵的。選材要注意取舍，應該從表現文章主題的需要出發，分清主次，定好詳略。要突出重點，詳寫細述那些能表現文章主題的重要情節，略寫粗述那么非關鍵的次要情節。面面俱到反而使情節羅列化，使人不得要領。這一點是寫好記敘文要解決的一個基本問題，也需要一定的技巧。如：

　　One night a man came to our house and told me, "There is a family with eight children. They have not eaten for days." I took some food with me and went.

　　When I finally came to that family, I saw the faces of those little children disfigured （破壞外貌） by hunger. There was no sorrow or sadness in their faces, just the deep pain of hunger.

　　I gave the rice to the mother. She divided the rice in two, and went out, carrying half the rice. When she came back, I asked her, "Where did you go?" she gave me this simple answer, "To my neighbors — they are hungry also!"

　　3. 用活語言，準確生動

　　記敘文要用具體的事件和生動的語言對人、事、物加以敘述。一篇好的記敘文的語言既要準確、生動，又要表現力強，這樣才能把人、事描寫得具體生動，其可讀性才強。試比較下面一篇例文修改的前后效果。

　　One day Xiaoqiang was wandering away. He was soon lost among people and traffic. He could not find the way back home and started crying. Just then, two young students who were passing by found him standing alone in front of a shop and crying. They went up to Xiaoqiang and asked him what had happened. Xiaoqiang told them how he got lost and where he lived. The two students decided to take him home. Mother was pleased to see Xiaoqiang come back safe and sound. She invited the two students into the house and gave them some money, but they didn＇t take it. She served them with tea but they left.

　　修改后：

　　The other day, five-year-old Xiaoqiang left home alone and wandered happily in the street. After some time, he felt hungry so he wanted to go back home. But he found he was lost among the crowded people and heavy traffic. When he could not find the way home, he started and crying. Just then, two young students who were passing by from school found him sanding crying in front of a shop. They immediately went up to him.

　　"Little boy, why are you standing here crying?" they asked.

　　"I want Mom, I go home." said the boy, still crying.

　　"Don＇t worry, we＇ll send you home."

　　And they spent the next two hours looking for the boy＇s house. With the help of a policeman, they finally found it.

　　When the worried mother saw her son come back safe and sound, she was so thankful and she invited the students into her house. Gratefully, she offered them some money, saying it was a way to express her thanks, but the young students firmly refused it and left without even a cup of tea.

　　多練習，勤思考，相信勝利一定屬于你！