在全球化的浪潮中,语言多样性正面临前所未有的挑战,联合国教科文组织统计显示,全球约40%的语言濒临灭绝,平均每两周就有一种语言彻底消失,这种现象不仅威胁文化传承,也对人类认知多样性构成严峻考验,雅思考试作为国际英语测评体系,常以"语言消失"为话题考察考生思辨能力,本文将通过高分范文解析,帮助考生掌握此类议论文的写作逻辑与语言技巧。
现象描述段:数据化呈现语言消失现状
开篇需用具体数据建立论述权威性。
"Of the 7,000 languages currently spoken, researchers predict 50-90% will vanish by the end of this century. Particularly vulnerable are indigenous languages like Taushiro in Peru, now spoken by only one elderly person. This rapid linguistic erosion stems from globalization, urbanization, and dominant language education policies."
得分要点:
- 使用联合国/学术机构数据增强可信度
- 列举具体案例(如Taushiro语)使论述具象化
- 自然过渡到原因分析
原因分析段:多维视角解析根源
建议采用"政治-经济-文化"三维框架:
"Politically, nation-states often impose official languages to strengthen unity, inadvertently marginalizing minority tongues. Economically, Mandarin and English dominate global commerce, creating perception that local languages lack practical value. Culturally, digital platforms overwhelmingly use major languages, accelerating the decline of oral traditions."
高分策略:
- 每个论点搭配实例:如法国限制方言教学、硅谷科技用语影响等
- 使用"inadvertently""perception"等学术词汇展现语言控制力
- 通过"overwhelmingly""accelerating"强化论述力度
影响论证段:分层论述文化认知损失
采用"文化遗产→思维方式→全球知识"递进结构:
"When a language dies, entire cultural archives vanish—the Yaghan people's 10,000-year-old knowledge of Tierra del Fuego's ecosystem disappeared with its last native speaker. Linguists note that grammatical structures shape cognition; losing Guugu Yimithirr's cardinal-direction-based syntax means losing a unique spatial thinking mode. Furthermore, medicinal knowledge encoded in indigenous languages becomes inaccessible to modern science."
提分技巧:
- 引用具体民族案例(Yaghan/Guugu Yimithirr)
- 引入语言学理论(萨丕尔-沃尔夫假说)
- 关联现实问题(传统医药开发)
解决方案段:提出可行性措施
从"技术-教育-立法"三个层面构建方案:
"Technology can help preserve endangered languages through apps like Duolingo's Navajo course. Bilingual education models, such as Wales' Welsh-medium schools, prove minority languages can thrive alongside dominant ones. Legally, Norway's Sami Language Act demonstrates how granting official status revitalizes linguistic heritage."
论证优化:
- 列举成功案例(威尔士语/萨米语)
- 使用"demonstrates""prove"等动词增强说服力
- 提出可量化的措施(语言课程覆盖率)
辩证讨论段:回应可能的反驳观点
"Some argue language extinction reflects natural selection in communication. However, this Darwinian view ignores power imbalances—colonial histories often determine which languages dominate. While efficiency matters, UNESCO emphasizes linguistic rights as fundamental human rights."
思辨体现:
- 承认对立观点(语言自然淘汰论)
- 用历史事实反驳(殖民影响)
- 引用国际组织立场提升权威性
范文示例(Band 8+级别) ** Some believe language extinction is an inevitable consequence of globalization. To what extent do you agree?
The disappearance of languages at current rates—one every two weeks according to National Geographic—constitutes a crisis far beyond natural linguistic evolution. While globalization accelerates this process, proactive measures can and should alter the trajectory.
Historically, language dominance correlated with political power. The spread of Spanish and English during colonial eras displaced hundreds of indigenous tongues. Today, economic globalization replicates this pattern; corporations standardize communication in major languages to reduce costs. A 2020 MIT study found 85% of Fortune 500 companies use English as working language, creating perceived inferiority of other languages.
The losses are multidimensional. Cultural identity erodes when Maori children cannot comprehend ancestral proverbs. Scientific understanding suffers too—the Cherokee language contains classifications of Appalachian flora unknown to Western botany. Cognitive scientists warn that losing languages like Tuvan, which uses verb tenses reflecting geographical proximity, diminishes humanity's collective thinking tools.
Contrary to claims of inevitability, successful reversals exist. Israel revived Hebrew from liturgical to national language through education policies. Canada's Inuit language protection laws increased Inuktitut speakers by 22% in a decade. Digital tools now enable small communities to document languages efficiently; the Living Tongues Institute has created talking dictionaries for 12 endangered languages.
Language extinction is not Darwinian selection but systemic neglect. With political will and technological innovation, we can preserve linguistic diversity while engaging global connectivity. As linguist K. David Harrison asserts, "Losing languages means losing centuries of human ingenuity." This is a loss our interconnected world cannot afford.
掌握这类议题的写作,关键在于平衡数据权威性、案例代表性和论证逻辑性,考生应建立自己的语料库,收集联合国报告、语言学研究成果等权威素材,避免泛泛而谈,在雅思写作中展现对复杂问题的深入思考,往往比华丽的词藻更能打动考官。