TOEFL 学习笔记（writing 3）

Should a city try to preserve its old, historical buildings or destroy them and replace them with modern buildings?

topic =>转述题目 thesis=>中心论点

TOPIC: Some people believe that a city should destroy its old, historical buildings and replace them with modern ones. Others, myself included, have an opposite opinion.

THESIS: I advocate that a city should try to preserve its old, historical buildings. There are three primary reasons as follows.

main body = point 1 + point 2 + point 3

First of all , historical buildings are symbols of cities. Without these historical buildings, a lot of cities would lose their cultural image or even their identity. In fact, a historic building not only is the symbol of a city, but also represents the culture of a country. For example, people associate the Statue of Liberty with democracy of the United States, understand the long history of China from the Great Wall, and know the innovate artistry of France from the Eiffel Tower. Without these historic buildings, cities, and even countries, would be overshadowed.

In addition, historical buildings serve as an important resource for historic education. For instance, the Forbidden City is one of the most visited historic buildings in China. Not

only are people impressed by its traditional architecture, but also gain rich knowledge about the lifestyle of ancient Chinese emperors in the Ming and Tsing Dynasties.

What is more, historical buildings benefit the tourism industry. Lushan, one of China's mountains, attracts millions of visitors every year. Not only its natural scenic beauty, but also its abundant historical relics, such as Jiang Jieshi's villa, makes this mountain a remarkable heritage. These historic buildings continually attract visitors.

transitional words + thesis

In summary, old, historic buildings indeed play a vital role in symbolic significance representation, historical education and as a tourism resource of a city. Preserving these buildings is necessary.

informative 信息性  debate, dispute, controversy争论 heated, focused 热门的 be brought into attention, be in the limelight 引起注意 confront, be faced with problems 面临问题

Nowadays, ... is a topic of public interest and concern.

At present, the problem of ... is now in the limelight.

Recent days, there is a heated debate about ...

Recently, this phenomenon of ... has loomed up wide public concern.

Do you agree or disagree:

Governments should focus more on preservation of environment rather than economic development.

At present, the problem of protecting the environment in the course of economic development is now in the limelight. No time in history has the issue become more prominent in than it is now, and we are faced with the problems of air pollution, forest disappearance and desert enlarging.

oppose, challenge, advocate, endorse, set forth

Some people advocate that..., while opponents suggest that ....As far as I am concerned,...

The question of ... is one that has concerned many people. It is held by some people that... Meanwhile, there is an equally good argument that... From my perspective,...

The question of whether knowledge is gained from experience or books is one that has concerned many people. It is held by some people that everything learned is derived from books. Meanwhile, there is an equally good argument that all knowledge is accumulated from experience. From my perspective, books can provide us more to learn.

gain from, derive from, accumulate from        proverb = old saying

There is an old saying which goes that...

There is a profound proverb which goes that...

hunt for a job, seek one's future career

There is a profound saying which goes that two heads are better than one. In the process of hunting for a job, we should always remember to talk with parents, teachers and headmasters or anyone we trust, all of whom possess rich and invaluable experience and knowledge from which we sure to benefit when we seek our future career.