黄皮书《题源外刊》第九期

小老虎不吹笛

【题源外刊】第九期：媒体社交不可剥夺我们改变观点的权利

原文期刊：卫报

原文标题：

Social media must not rob us of the right to change our minds

考研英语阅读话题-互联网

1.算法主导下的互联网，非但不会带给人更多自主性，反而会提供更单一的价值（贾樟柯语）。

2.互联网的作用，原本是让井底之蛙开一开眼界，认识一下井口以外的世界。可是在这，实际情况是成千上万只井底之蛙通过互联网互相认识，互相认同和肯定，并经过长久的交流之后达成共识：世界确实只有井口这么大……（网络段子）

3.信息茧房：信息茧房是指人们关注的信息领域会习惯性地被自己的兴趣所引导，从而将自己的生活桎梏于像蚕茧一般的“茧房”中的现象。由于信息技术提供了更自我的思想空间和任何领域的巨量知识，一些人还可能进一步逃避社会中的种种矛盾，成为与世隔绝的孤立者。在社群内的交流更加高效的同时，社群之间的沟通并不见得一定会比信息匮乏的时代更加顺畅和有效。

4.“回音壁效应”：“回音壁效应”是指认知会在一个封闭的圈子里不断加强，令人疲于思考，愈发偏执，无法接受相反意见。信息茧房一旦形成，就会不断加剧群体极化。

本文选自《卫报》2019年8月16日刊出的一篇文章，主题是社交媒体未能助益观点的求同存异，反而在禁锢人们的思想，应积极维护个人观点自由权。4

脉络:

引出问题“社交媒体鼓励观点固化”(第一段)——分析问题产生原因（第二、三段）——给出问题解决办法（第四、五段）——收束全文“追求观点自由”（第六段）。

Part 1

原文

Ⅰ In some parallel dimension, social media is being used to shape our discourse for the better: as an arena where views and beliefs are expressed generously and listened to eagerly, where we allow our prejudices to be challenged, where we welcome opposing opinions, where we learn from those who see the world differently from us. Alas, we are in this dimension. And at a time when compromise is needed more than ever—not least to help ease a political deadlock that endangers the social fabric of Britain—social media gives every appearance of having been devised solely to guarantee tribalism and intransigence.

Ⅱ   If, for example, a certain individual has spent years tweeting about the dangers of Jeremy Corbyn becoming prime minister, any softening of that opinion would surely be met with countless reminders of previous tweets on the subject. It is far easier to be consistent than risk looking hypocritical. In this way, Twitter encourages us to become morally obliged to notions that belong in the past, obliged to previous versions of ourselves.

Ⅲ There is something deeper here, too. Those previous opinions may well have proven popular—perhaps especially if they were expressed in harsh terms. Likes, retweets and followers rack up; it's addictive. Certain individuals thus build themselves up into brands. This can be profitable. In the current example, if your brand has been built on your strong dislike of Corbyn, then any sign of equivocation risks not only a charge of hypocrisy, but essentially a threat to your personal business model. For the rest of us, it threatens self-esteem. And this is before we get on to the series of icons and flags that accompany Twitter handles: what begins as an attempt to describe us can end up defining us.

Ⅳ Yet to blame the tech can be to do away with our responsibility. We can lose sight of the fact that at the heart of all this are humans: weak, fragile, needy beings. If we can see what social media is doing to us and how it is doing it, we can start to do things differently.

Ⅴ Changing one's mind, or allowing new circumstances to introduce greater nuance into strongly held beliefs, is essential to avoid the polarisation that poisons so much of our politics. There is nothing hypocritical about changing your mind; there is, however, in claiming to be evidence-led, but remaining dogmatic in the face of a changing world. We need more of our public figures and leading opinion-formers to take risks, eschew cheap popularity and brave the inevitable charges of inconsistency. Maybe the rest of us can help by giving them the room to do so without losing face.

Ⅵ It seems like Twitter holds us in a strange captivity. But to admit that we have got things wrong, and to let others do the same, is a way of breaking free.

Part 2

词汇短语

1.dimension [daɪˈmenʃn] n.(空间的)维度

2.prejudice [ˈpredʒudɪs] n.偏见;成见

3.compromise [ˈkɒmprəmaɪz] n.折中,妥协

4.guarantee [ˌɡærənˈtiː] v.保证

5.tribalism [ˈtraɪbəlɪzəm] n.部落主义

6.intransigence [ɪnˈtrænzɪdʒəns] n.不妥协,不让步

7.consistent [kənˈsɪstənt] a.一贯的,一致的

8.hypocritical [ˌhɪpəˈkrɪtɪkl] a.伪善的,虚伪的

9.rack up累计,聚集

10.addictive [əˈdɪktɪv] a.使人成瘾的,使人入迷的

11.charge [tʃɑːdʒ] n.指控,控告

12.handle [ˈhændl] n.(社交媒体上的)账户

13.equivocation [ɪˌkwɪvəˈkeɪʃn] n.含糊其辞

14.captivity [kæpˈtɪvətɪ] n.拘禁,囚禁

15.needy [ˈniːdɪ] a.(人)需要精神支持的

16.polarisation [ˌpəuləraɪˈzeɪʃən] n.两极化

17.ence-leda. 证据导向的,基于证据的

18.dogmatic[dɒɡˈmætɪk] a.教 条 的,自 以 为 是 的

19.brave [breɪv] v.勇敢面对

20.inevitable [ɪnˈevɪtəbl] a.必然发生的,不可 避 免 的

21.nuance [ˈnjuːɑːns] n.细微差别

break free 冲破藩篱

Part 3

长难句语法点拨

本句主干为“...social media is being used to shape our discourse for the better...”，In some parallel dimension为状语，说明发生地点“在平行宇宙里”；as an arena为方式状语，其中where引导四个arena的后置定语，具体说明“社交媒体如何改善交谈”。

Part 4

写作句型借鉴

What begins as an attempt to describe us can end up defining us.它们原本只是试图对我们进行描述，最终却会界定我们。

What begins as an attempt to do XX end up doing YY.

它们原本只是试图XX,最终却YY。

原文例句：And this is before we get on to the series of icons and flags that accompany Twitter handles: what begins as an attempt to describe us can end up defining us.这些发生在我们认识伴随推特账户的一系列图标和标签（注：用以对人们进行描述）之前：它们原本只是试图对我们进行描述，最终却会界定我们。

Yet to blame the XX can be to do away with our responsibility.然而，（将问题）归咎于XX,是在推卸我们自身的责任。

原文例句：Yet to blame the tech can be to do away with our responsibility.然而，（将问题）归咎于科技公司是在推卸我们自身的责任。

（黄皮书《题源外刊》）