Of all the changes that have taken place in English-language newspapers during the past quarter-century, perhaps the most far-reaching has been the inexorable decline in the scope and seriousness of their arts coverage.

在過去的四分之一個世紀(jì)中在英語報紙上發(fā)生的所有變化中，最深遠的變化可能就是藝術(shù)部分的嚴(yán)肅性和范圍性不可避免的退步。

It is difficult to the point of impossibility for the average reader under the age of forty to imagine a time when high-quality arts criticism could be found in most big city newspapers. Yet a considerable number of the most significant collections of criticism published in the 20th century consisted in large part of newspaper reviews. To read such books today is to marvel at the fact that their learned contents were once deemed suitable for publication in general-circulation dailies.

對于平均年齡四十歲以下的讀者很難想象高質(zhì)量的藝術(shù)評論可以在大都市報紙上見到。然而二十世紀(jì)出版的相當(dāng)多數(shù)量的最重要的評論刊物是報紙評論。今天再看到這些書，讓人驚嘆他們學(xué)的內(nèi)容會被認(rèn)為適合再大眾讀物上發(fā)行。

We are even farther removed from the unfocused newspaper reviews published in England between the tum of the 20th century and the eve of World War II, at a time when newsprint was dirt-cheap and stylish arts criticism was considered an ornament to the publications in which it appeared. In those far-off days, it was taken for granted that the critics of major papers would write in detail and at length about the events they covered. Theirs was a serious business, and even those reviewers who wore their learning lightly, like George Bernard Shaw and Ernest Newman, could be trusted to know what they were about. These men believed in journalism as a calling, and were proud to be published in the daily press. "So few authors have brains enough or literary gift enough to keep their own end up in journalism, "Newman wrote, "that I am tempted to define 'journalism' as 'a term of contempt applied by writers who are not read to writers who are'."

至于從二十世紀(jì)之初到第二次世界大戰(zhàn)前夕出版的風(fēng)格自由的報紙評論，我們就更不感興趣了，當(dāng)時這些出版物還十分便宜，人們認(rèn)為時尚的藝術(shù)評論是一種裝飾品。在那些遙遠的日子里，人們理所當(dāng)然地認(rèn)為，主要報紙地評論員應(yīng)該詳而又詳?shù)貙懴掳l(fā)生的事件。他們的工作是一個嚴(yán)肅的事業(yè)，即使是像?George Bernard Shaw和??Ernest Newman這種以深入淺出的方式展示自身學(xué)問的評論家，也可相信他們知道自己在寫什么。這些人相信新聞業(yè)對他們來說是一種使命，他們以在每日新聞上發(fā)自己的文章感到自豪。“很少有作者有足夠的頭腦和文學(xué)天賦保持自己在新聞業(yè)的水準(zhǔn)直至結(jié)束”，Newman這樣寫道，“我很想把‘新聞業(yè)’定義‘為一個不向真正讀過書的作家使用的蔑視用語’。”

Unfortunately, these critics are virtually forgotten. Neville Cardus, who wrote for the Manchester Guardian from 1917 until shortly before his death in 1975, is now known solely as a writer of essays on the game of cricket. During his lifetime, though, he was also one of England's foremost classical-music critics, and a stylist so widely admired that his Autobiography (1947) became a best-seller. He was knighted in 1967, the first music critic to be so honored. Yet only one of his books is now in print, and his vast body of writings on music is unknown save to specialists.

很不幸，現(xiàn)在的這些評論家?guī)缀醵纪?Newman 說的話。?Neville Cardus從1917年直到1975年去世前不久一直為Manchester Guardian 寫作，但是現(xiàn)在他僅以寫板球比賽文章而聞名。盡然，在他的一生中，他曾是英國最重要的古典音樂評論家之一，他還是一位備受尊敬的造型師，他的自傳（1947）也成為了暢銷書。1967年他被授予騎士榮譽，他是第一位獲此殊榮的音樂評論家。然而，他現(xiàn)在只出版了一本書，他大量的音樂著作除專家外無人知曉。

Is there any chance that Cardus's criticism will enjoy a revival? The prospect seems remote. Joumalistic tastes had changed long before his death, and postmodern?readers have little use for the richly upholstered Vicwardian prose in which he specialized. Moreover, the amateur tradition in music criticism has been in headlong retreat.

有什么機會讓?Cardus的評論重新回來嗎？前景渺茫。在他去世之前很久新聞品味就變了，后現(xiàn)代的讀者對他所擅長的華麗的維多利亞式散文不怎么感興趣。而且，音樂評論的業(yè)余傳統(tǒng)也在迅速退步。

本文主要說明了20世紀(jì)嚴(yán)肅藝術(shù)評論了沒落的現(xiàn)象。

本文開篇點題，指出嚴(yán)肅藝術(shù)評論衰落的事實；

第二段借古說今，通過追溯報紙藝術(shù)評論過去的輝煌，反向說明如今的沒落，并暗示其沒落的原因；

第三段承上啟下，以時間為軸，繼續(xù)回顧過去報紙藝術(shù)評論的鼎盛時期，并暗示其沒落的原因；

第四段，以Neville Cardus為例，直敘如今報紙藝術(shù)評論的衰頹之勢；

第五段，繼續(xù)以Neville Cardus為例，指明報紙藝術(shù)評論衰落的根本原因：一是新聞行業(yè)的風(fēng)格已變，二是音樂評論的業(yè)余傳統(tǒng)的衰落。

縱觀全文，本文的論證結(jié)構(gòu)為"先總體闡述現(xiàn)象，再以個例具體展示"。

做題時注意偷換概念，斷章取義，避重就輕；如將藝術(shù)評論的衰落說成新聞業(yè)的衰落，將藝術(shù)評論的衰落說成徹底消失；文中說報紙評論的質(zhì)量，選項中說報紙的質(zhì)量；文中說Cardus如今以板球評論聞名，意在以人為例道出藝術(shù)評論衰落的現(xiàn)象，選項中卻說Cardus的成就有所爭議（就好像我說我殺人不眨眼，結(jié)果你問我眼睛干不干QAQ）。