“the past VS the present”

(今昔对比) 是托福独立写作的一把“钝刀”。

为什么?

因为只要我们摸索出一套好用的行文逻辑和结构，这种题型的“三拳两脚”不过是“三脚猫”。

独立写作题目

“Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?

People in the past ate healthier food than people today.”

写作范文

If I am told that we today eat less healthy food than people in the past, I do not think that I am convinced. Although my opponents may have many reasons on which they build their argument, none of the reasons are defensible.

The excessive amounts of additives put in our foodstuff may be my opponents’ first concern. Many people worry that food producers put in additional chemicals, in excess of the reasonable levels, to preserve the food or to increase the flavor. However, knowing that consumers have this worry, few modern food producers take this dumb action. They no longer add artificial flavorings, at least not much, to the food. Nor 【注意这里的“倒装”现象】 do they put unreasonable amounts ofpreservatives to prolong the shelf life of the food. Another consideration of the worried consumers may be that contaminated soil cannot nurture safe produce. They are right about the scientific fact yet wrong about the farming practice. Farmers grow crops on selected land, land which is not polluted but nutritious.

At this point, it may be easier to convince a person about that today’s people actually eat healthier food. To begin with, people’s dietary diversity has increased. 先说现在的情况： On a modern dining table, there is a wide selection of food, and the diverse food cover a variety of nutrients that are essential to people’s health. 然后用“套话”因为过去的情况：This contrasts with the past, when there was limited choice of food on a family’s menu. 这句话的设计，就是故意在主句部分的末尾留下一个表示时间概念的名词，而后用定语从句补充说明一个冲突于“现在的情况”的过往的情况。然后可以用“家里的两代人或者三代人”举例子了，因为这几代人(“爷爷比爸爸，爸爸比儿子”)正好形成今昔对比： Take my family, an average household, as an example. My grandparents are always delighted when they see a variety of dishes—meats, grains, and many kinds of vegetables—served for a meal and often recall the old times when they had only a few options. They are glad that the variety provides better nutrition—higher levels of protein, vitamins, and minerals—and health benefits and wish 【注意这里的“虚拟”现象】 they had eaten these foods when they were young.

Another reason is today’s food shoppers’ greater consciousness of their diet and food choice. 如法炮制上一段的行文“路数”：先说现在的情况(而且直接上例子啦)： It may not be surprising that today in a supermarket a female shopper reads the label meticulously, making sure she fully understands the nutritional facts stated, before she puts a can into the shopping cart. 如法炮制上一段的行文“路数”：用“家里的两代人或者三代人”举例子了，正好形成今昔对比：When my parents see this, they often revisit their shopping experience ten years ago. They were more likely to have a glance at the price sticker and put the “economically right” thing in the basket, and the shopping was done.

There may be a number of other facts that indicate how healthier the food we eat today is and many facts that people in the past did not have the privilege of eating healthy food. Even without mentioning every each of those facts, we can still make a compelling case that people today eat healthier than they did in the past.