一、前言
閱讀分為四個層次：詞、句、段、章。同學們一般習慣於以詞為單位閱讀，所以遇到存在“生詞”的句子就無從下手了。其實閱讀的真正障礙並不在於“生詞”，而在於“難句”，因為難句即使每個單詞都認識，只要“結構”複雜，可能也讀不懂。反之，一旦能夠把握“結構”，就可以忽略生詞，掌握大意，從而實現“無詞閱讀”的境界。為此，本人特意為廣大同學製作了這一套“難句隨身卡”（包括基礎篇和提高篇）。
二、難句的構成
英語的難句=主句+從句+短語，不同於漢語的句子全是簡單句，沒有複雜句。如果把英語的難句比喻成大樹，那么主句相當於樹幹，從句相當於樹枝，而短語相當於葉子。只要把握主句，就可理解大意。相比之下，漢語的句子就好比是竹子，一節一節的。
因此，我們在理解英語難句的時候要學會“拆”——把複雜句拆成簡單句來理解。也就是說，要學會抓住“樹幹”，拆掉“枝葉”。
三、如何“拆”
任何句子都必須有謂語動詞，所以找到一個謂語動詞就可以拆下來一個句子。因此，理解難句的基本步驟是：1）識別出有哪幾個謂語動詞；2）找出主句的謂語動詞，先理解主句；3）再去理解從句和短語。
四、符號說明
1．謂語動詞用黑體的斜體字表示，例如：everyone should know …。
2．從句的引導詞用方框表示，例如：where the nearest fire alarm box is located。
3．從句用橫線表示，例如：where the nearest fire alarm box is located，表示where引導的從句。
4．插入語成分用括弧表示，例如：keeping your head, (instead of crowding and pushing to get to an exit), may make the difference between…
第一章 平行並列結構
本章難句列表（分析見下篇）：
1．everyone should know where the nearest fire alarm box is located and where exits, fire escapes, and fire doors are.
2．the way space is used to enable the individual to achieve privacy, to build homes or to design cities is culturally influenced.
3． i wanted her to know that my heart was with her, and that i thought england owed her a great debt and was going to miss her.
4．keeping your head, instead of crowding and pushing to get to an exit, may make the difference between life and death when fire breaks out.
5．neither friends nor family can convince phobic people that most animals are harmless, that thousands of travelers fly safely everyday, and millions of people ride safely in elevators several times each day.
6．millions of people travel about the country by rail, by bus, or by automobile, or drive to and from their places of work and their homes.
7．here we have a little child, without knowledge or experience; there a grown-up person with fully developed mental powers.
8． there are relay races in running and swimming in summer, and relay in skiing in winter.
9．but we remember with far greater pain that we did not see that beauty when it flowered, that we failed to respond with love when it was tendered.
10．this is not an easy lesson to learn, especially when we are young and think that the world is ours to command, that whatever we desire with the full force of our passionate being can be ours.
11．more than three million people live in inner london, and nearly five million people live in the surrounding suburban area, which is made up of formerly separate villages that have merged to form what is now called outer london.
12．the journey and the stay are by definition outside the normal places of residence and work, and are of short-term and temporary nature, and there is a clear intention to return home within a relatively short period of time.
13．the limited investments that are made in training workers are also much more narrowly focused on the specific skills necessary to do the next job rather than on the basic background skills that make it possible to absorb new technologies.
14．we have tried to isolate some of the key factors that govern service quality, and offer examples of organizations that manage service well and of some that manage it poorly.
15．human beings have distinguished themselves from other animals, and in doing so ensured their survival, by the ability to observe and understand their environment and then either to adapt to that environment or to control and adapt it to their own needs.