Part 2

凉拌折耳根

In Part Two, Joan Pinkham shifts focus from eliminating unnecessary words to refining sentence structure, addressing six key issues that hinder clarity and logical flow in Chinglish. These issues highlight the importance of grammatical precision and rhetorical balance in English, contrasting with the more flexible structure of Chinese.
1. The Noun Plague: Prioritizing Verbs Over Abstract Nouns
Pinkham identifies a tendency in Chinglish to overuse abstract nouns (e.g., "prolongation of existence" instead of "endure"), creating cumbersome, vague sentences. English thrives on dynamic verbs, which make writing concise and vigorous.
Problem: Phrases like "the realization of mechanization" (noun-heavy) should become "mechanizing" (verb-focused).
Solution: Convert abstract nouns to verbs or gerunds (e.g., "strengthening national defense" instead of "the building of national defense").
2. Pronouns and Antecedents: Ensuring Clarity
Ambiguity arises when pronouns lack clear, nearby antecedents or disagree in number/gender.
Problem: "The committee approved the plan, but they also suggested revisions" – "they" ambiguously refers to either the committee (singular) or its members.
Solution: Specify the antecedent clearly: "The committee approved the plan, but its members also suggested revisions."
3. Placement of Phrases and Clauses: Logical Order
Misplaced modifiers (e.g., "In 1949, he wrote a book while working in Shanghai") can confuse cause-effect relationships. English requires modifiers to be close to the words they describe.
Problem: "Running quickly, the bus missed me" – implies the bus was running, not the speaker.
Solution: "Running quickly, I missed the bus."
4. Dangling Modifiers: Fixing Unattached Phrases
Dangling participles or gerunds (e.g., "By studying hard, the exam was passed") lack a clear subject, leading to absurd interpretations.
Problem: "While walking to the office, a dog bit him" – suggests the dog was walking.
Solution: "While he was walking to the office, a dog bit him."
5. Parallel Structure: Balancing Ideas
In English, parallel ideas (e.g., lists, comparisons) must share the same grammatical form (nouns with nouns, verbs with verbs).
Problem: "She enjoys reading, hiking, and to write" – mixed gerunds and infinitive.
Solution: "She enjoys reading, hiking, and writing."
6. Logical Connectives: Clarifying Relationships
Weak or missing connectives (e.g., "and," "but," "because") obscure logical links between ideas, making arguments hard to follow.
Problem: "He worked hard, he failed the exam" – missing "but" to contrast.
Solution: "He worked hard, but he failed the exam."