一. 感想
關(guān)于自傳的寫作，Zinsser在這一章的開頭、中間和結(jié)尾分別寫了這樣三句話：
Of all the subjects available to you as a writer, the one you know best is yourself.
If you're a writer, give yourself permission to tell us who you are.
The best gift you have to offer when you write personal history is the gift of yourself. Give yourself permission to write about yourself, and have a good time doing it.
Trevor Noah的傳記"Born A Crime"，就是一個極好的例子。Trevor用非常幽默、生動的語言，通過自己獨特的經(jīng)歷和感受，活靈活現(xiàn)地講述了一系列精彩的故事。看得我時而大笑、時而震驚、時而感動。
通過他的筆觸，我們驚嘆于南非由于種族隔離造成的種種社會問題，嘆服與他媽媽的教育方式和先進(jìn)理念，也動容于Trevor成長中的點點滴滴。我尤為喜歡這本書精彩絕倫的開頭和結(jié)尾，套用Zinsser的理論，它真正做到了一上來用俏皮有趣的故事將讀者快速帶入其中，而結(jié)尾又讓人在驚訝和感嘆中意猶未盡。
二. 字詞
1. existence
(1) 原文：So meager is their after-school existence, bounded largely by television and the mall, two artificial versions of reality.
(2) 字典解釋：the type of life that someone has, especially when it is bad or unhappy
(3) 造句：Your after-work existence reflects your taste.
2. two-edged
(1) 原文：However, is a two-edged instrument, and nobody should use it without posting a surgeon general's warning.
(2) 解釋：雙刃
(3) 新概念中的句子：In fact, it would by an assistance to all carnivores though it would be a two-edged weapon when they fought each other.
(4) 造句：Everything is a two-edged / double-edged?sword.
3. hazardous
(1) 原文：EXCESSIVE WRITING ABOUT YOURSELF CAN BE HAZARDOUS TO THE HEALTH OF THE WRITER AND THE READER.
(2) 字典解釋：dangerous, especially to people's health or safety
(3) 造句：Smoking can be hazardous to health.
4.?prattle
(1) 原文：Egotism, however, is a drag, and this chapter is not intended as a license to prattle just for therapy.
(2) 字典解釋：to talk continuously about silly and unimportant things
(3) 造句：What are you prattling on about?
5. anecdote
(1) 原文：But see that all the details—people, places, events, anecdotes, ideas, emotions—are moving your story steadily along.
(2) 字典解釋：a short story based on your personal experience
(3) 造句：This book is full of amazing anecdotes about his travel in Europe.
6. baffle
(1) 原文：I was unhappy, and ashamed of it; I was baffled by my life.
(2) 字典解釋：if something baffles you, you cannot understand or explain it at all
(3) 造句：This problem baffled me.
