【考试题目】
　　We are surrounded by all kinds of advertising, which is significantly influencing our lives. Do the positive effects of advertising outweigh its negative effects?
　　【题目翻译】考试大在线考试中心
　　我们被各种各样的广告所包围，这些广告对我们的生活有重大的影响。广告的积极影响超过它的负面影响吗？
　　【关键词分析】
　　advertising, advertisement
　　这两个词都是广告的意思，但是前者是抽象名词，不可数，在使用的时候不带任何冠词。而后者是一个具体名词，在表示泛指的时候要不用冠词，用复数形式。因此，“一则广告”可以说成an advertisement，如果要用advertising，必须要说a piece of advertising。其它类似的词有：nutrition – nutrient(s); pollution – pollutant(s); contamination – contaminant(s)，testing – test(s); experimentation – experiment(s)。前面一组均为抽象名词、不可数名词，后者为可数名词、具体名词。
　　【话题分类与题型】
　　本题是老题，与2004年10月16日的考题完全相同。属于媒体与广告类话题，题型为议论文中的“利弊分析”题型。广告类话题已经很久未出现，上一次广告类话题出现在2009年4月18日。
　　【话题评价】
　　广告类话题一直一个比较简单的题目，而这个考题则是广告中最简单的了，因为只问广告的利与弊，而没有任何限制成分，因此留给考生发挥的余地极大，几乎不可能出现偏题。在下面的“类似话题”中，大家可以看到各种限制，比如：广告是否能提高商品质量（第3题）、广告扼杀个性（第4题）、广告对消费者的影响（第5题）、广告对儿童的影响（第6题），广告是否仅仅是娱乐（第7题）。而第1、2题则是应重点写广告的好处。
　　【类似话题】
　　1.The high sales of popular consumer goods reflect the power of advertising and not the real needs of the society in which the goods are sold. To what extent do you agree or disagree? (040424)
　　2.The society would benefit from a ban on all forms of advertising because it serves no useful purpose, and can even be damaging. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion? (070414)
　　3.Advertising encourages consumers to buy in quantity rather than promoting quality. To what extent do you agree or disagree? (051119)
　　4.Advertising discourages people from being different individuals by making us all want to do the same and look the same. Do you agree or disagree? (040814)
　　5.Consumers are faced with increasing numbers of advertisements from competing companies. To what extent do you think are consumers influenced by advertisements? What measures can be taken to protect them? (070421)
　　6.There is an increasing amount of advertising directed at children which encourages them to buy goods such as toys and snacks. Many parents are worried that these advertisements put too much pressure on children, while some advertisers claim that they provide useful information to children. Discuss both vies and give your opinion. (060902, 071117)
　　7.If a product is of good quality and meets people's needs, people will buy it. Therefore, advertising is unnecessary and is no more than a type of entertainment. To what extent do you agree or disagree? (090418)
　　【结构与思路】
　　本文非常适合写成双边支持型，即分别交代广告的好处与坏处。结论段提出建议，比如政府应当加强对广告的监管。下面以四段式文章为例。
　　I.Introduction
　　1.文章背景：广告已经渗透到了我们日常生活中的各个方面。Advertising has penetrated every aspect of our daily life.