(2) 通过句子的肯定或否定形式判断
考生还可以通过分析句子中的肯定或否定形式来判断作者的态度。我们来看几句话：
① I love her. (肯定形式)
② I don't love her. (否定形式)
③ I don't think that I love her. (否定形式)
④ There is little reason for me to love her. (否定形式)
通过以上的四句话，考生可以看出，肯定形式与否定形式的区别在于：否定形式中通常会使用not、little等具有否定概念的词，考生可通过这些词来推断作者的态度。上述列举的四句话都是简单句，而考研英语阅读文章是以长难句而著称的，所以考生要善于判断长难句中的肯定与否定形式，例如下面这句话：“I can hardly believe the fact that there is little reason why I am able to accept the truth that I can still be happy without her. ”作者就用“双重否定”的形式表达了自己肯定的态度。
真题演练
In 1950, the U.S. spent $7 billion on health care. In 2002, the cost will be $1,540 billion. Anyone can see this trend is unsustainable. Yet few seem willing to try to reverse it. Some scholars conclude that a government with finite resources should simply stop paying for medical care that sustains life beyond a certain age—say 83 or so. Former Colorado governor Richard Lamm has been quoted as saying that the old and infirm “have a duty to die and get out of the way”, so that younger, healthier people can realize their potential.
I would not go that far. Energetic people now routinely work through their 60s and beyond, and remain dazzlingly productive. At 78, Viacom chairman Sumner Redstone jokingly claims to be 53. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor is in her 70s ... These leaders are living proof that prevention works and that we can manage the health problems that come naturally with age....
Yet there are limits to what a society can spend in this pursuit. As a physician, I know the most costly and dramatic measures may be ineffective and painful. I also know that people in Japan and Sweden, countries that spend far less on medical care, have achieved longer, healthier lives than we have. As a nation, we may be overfunding the quest for unlikely cures while underfunding research on humbler therapies that could improve people's lives. (2003年考研英语阅读真题Text 4第三段至第五段)
58. The author's attitude toward Richard Lamm's remark is one of ________.
A. strong disapproval B. reserved consent
C. slight contempt D. enthusiastic support
解析：这篇文章主要议论的是随着医疗技术的发展，人们的寿命得以延长，人们越来越难接受死亡，经常将大量的费用投入到治疗那些毫无治愈希望的疾病中。第58题考查作者对Richard Lamm评论所持的态度。根据题干中的关键词Richard Lamm，考生迅速定位至原文第三段最后一句话：“Former Colorado governor Richard Lamm has been quoted as saying that the old and infirm ‘have a duty to die and get out of the way', so that younger, healthier people can realize their potential.” 这句话阐述了Richard的观点，但没有涉及作者的态度，接着读下文。原文第四段首句“I would not go that far.”中使用了带有否定形式的句式，表明作者“不会像Richard Lamm那么极端”，但此处作者的态度并不鲜明。接着作者又举了几个例子，说明老年人也可以活得有生气，为社会作贡献。有的考生看到这里后就选了A选项，认为作者极力反对Richard的观点。这就有些断章取义了。在原文第五段，作者用了yet一词笔锋一转，提出社会的花费是有限的，将过多的财力倾注在无法治愈的疾病上会削减其他更有意义的开支，所以作者希望人们接受新陈代谢的自然规律，这个观点在一定程度上与Richard的观点是一致的，此时可将正确答案圈定在选项B和D之间。再根据“I would not go that far.”可知作者并不是强烈支持Richard的观点，由此排除D选项，正确答案为B选项。
(3) 通过作者所举的例证判断
很多时候，作者的态度并没有体现在“遣词造句”上，而是通过举一个例子，从侧面来影射自己的态度。对于这种情况，考生就要判断作者所举的例子是正面的还是反面的。通常情况下，正面的例子表示支持，反面的表示反对，一正一反表示中立。
真题演练
Under the new Northern Territory law, an adult patient can request death—probably by a deadly injection or pill—to put an end to suffering. The patient must be diagnosed as terminally ill by two doctors. After a “cooling off” period of seven days, the patient can sign a certificate of request. After 48 hours the wish for death can be met. For Lloyd Nickson, a 54-year-old Darwin resident suffering from lung cancer, the NT Rights of Terminally III law means he can get on with living without the haunting fear of his suffering: a terrifying death from his breathing condition. “I'm not afraid of dying from a spiritual point of view, but what I was afraid of was how I'd go, because I've watched people die in the hospital fighting for oxygen and clawing at their masks,” he says. (1997年考研英语阅读真题Passage 1最后一段)