作文题目

An increasing number of people do not know their neighbors, and there is no longer a sense of community.
What do you think are the causes of this situation? Can you suggest some solutions? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your knowledge or experience.

题目讲解

邻里之间的疏远是现代社会人际关系冷漠的典型写照。其原因有很多方面。
第一，邻里之间的交流和互动活动相比较以前要减少很多，社会竞争和工作压力使得人们无暇参与更多的社区活动，因此与邻居的互动交流大幅度减少，邻里关系自然不如从前；
第二，邻里关系的疏远，以及邻里互相不愿意交流与互动，源自邻里关系不再是人们生活的不可缺少的一个环节。没有互助和友善的邻居，人们的生活质量不会受到太多的负面影响。
第三，邻里关系的疏远，还来自于一些现代社会人们对于陌生人的猜忌，担心与邻居交流可能会受骗或被误导。

范文

Nowadays, there is a growing perception that a neighbor is more like a stranger next door, and this is obviously true of a newly-established urban community where crime rates are on the rise. Apparently, that kind of friendliness which existed in grandparents'' neighborhood is replaced by that of ignorance, or even indifference. What might have contributed to this negative tendency could be that today`s young neighbors prefer not to get acquainted with each other, and that modern housing designs also prevent such communication from happening.
An increasing number of people, particularly the young adults who have jobs, do not sense the need to know their neighbors. To begin with, most young people tend to be self-centered and do not trust people living near them. It is also possible that working people could not afford to spend time on gossiping about weather, dogs and new babies, in a similar way that traditional neighbors used to do. This absence of communication might turn out to be a dangerous thing, considering that having a friendly neighbor is important to report suspicious activities to the police who handle the crooks. One good solution for this problem is to encourage neighbors to participate in a Citizens Neighborhood Watch Program meant to make it more difficult for bandits to perpetuate a crime nearby. By so doing, people in the same community can know each other and keep intruders away.
On the other hand, interactive face-to-face contact among neighbors has become rare because of modern housing plans. In big cities, for instance, it seems that families are either "caged" like animals in department units of tall buildings, or are separated by walls usually two meters high. In both cases, neighbors appear to be at once so near, and yet so far away. As a result, the level of personal communication among neighbors is declining. This situation may also have something to do with the current crime wave reportedly up and rising. To cope with this situation, the least neighbors need to do is to know people next door and watch each other''s back.
It would not be necessary for people to move away from where they live so as to avoid crimes from happening in the neighborhood. However, it is imperative that they should have a sense of community by caring for their neighbors. Now that geography makes people neighbors for a reason, people should love their neighbors, but the question remains: do they know their neighbors next door? (Essay created by Jeenn Lee Hsieh)