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‘Someone said the world’s a stage, and each much play a part.’
Progress, be it gradual or explosive, is as inevitable as the sunrise. It gratifies you when you chart its course and sail its waters. It satisfies you when you see how far you’ve come. This book will give you the pleasures of progress. You will find the ability to evaluate your stages in your progress. You will identify your strengths, and be given a blueprint for improvements.
This book is well suited for motivated students who aren’t afraid of self-reflection. You may use this text individually or in a group setting to critique yourself. In each of the situations presented in this book, you’ll immediately identify your own stage in your progress. You will know if you have completed every stage to get where you are now, and you will see printed before you the direction your development should take. The book will also be a great companion for long-term goals, as you can revisit it from time to time to trace your everlasting progress.
This book was written in Taiwan, with local student populations kept in mind. It contains simple, useful phrases, as well as advanced language patterns. The book becomes more useful as your level advances. I have written it in a natural style that I believe to be most beneficial.
Each situation in this book has a story behind it. The sources for the material within include life experiences and favorites storytellers from film and literature. I’d like to specially thank Carol, who inspired me and kept my ideas focused.
May this book lead you to level up.
Ceteris paribus
Michael Coughlin
我身邊有不少外國朋友，看著他們從不會中文，到會講幾個單字、能用中文溝通、甚至用中文寫文章，每次看到外國朋友的中文愈來愈進步，還會運用連我都很少用的成語，對我來說，是一件非常不可思議的事情。
剛開始的時候，他們的中文語言能力幾乎是20-30分而已，只會幾個簡單的單字，再加上「請」和「謝謝」，這樣就解決了基本的民生問題，去路邊攤點餐可以吃到想吃的，去夜市買東西也可以買到想買的。但還是有很多事情，單靠單字的話，是無法完整表達的。這時候他們就會問我「這個情況要怎麼說才好」，甚至把我們說的話整理出句型，舉一反三地運用，久而久之，中文就愈說愈好了。
我想外國人學中文是如此，台灣人學英文也是如此吧？都是先由一個個的單字組合出一句不大算句子的句子，這樣是可以溝通沒有錯，但沒有人想要永遠只用這種方式說話吧？我們總是希望自己的能力往上爬，能夠一次比一次進步。所以我在這本書的每個情境之中，設定五種不同英文口說能力的說法，讓你知道自己的階段在哪裡。
而書中又分了「對話情境」與「對話語境」，因為我覺得在一個情境下面，會有很多對話的語境，例如在跟人家聊天的情境中，我可能會談論到家庭、近況、工作、健康……等等，透過這樣的分類，希望能夠讓讀者更快找到想要說的那句話，這些句子都不難，也都很實用。
衷心希望能夠幫助讀者擺脫「單字 + 單字」的說話方式，每個人都能成為流暢說英語的高手。
陳勝
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