现代大学英语精读2 Unit03
时间:2018-12-04 作者:英语课 分类:现代大学英语精读
Lesson Three
Pre-class Work
Read the text a third time. Learn the new words and expressions listed below.
Glossary 1
approval
n. official permission
bond
n. a written document in which a government or company promises to pay back money that it has borrowed, often with interest 债券
certainty
n. the state of being certain
commit
v. to do sth. wrong or illegal
contribution
n. sth. you say or do in order to help make sth. successful 贡献
convict
v. to find sb. guilty of a crime, esp. in a court of law
n. a person who has been found guilty of a crime and sent to prison
costly 2
adj. having a high price; expensive
court
n. a place where legal matters are decided 3 by a judge and jury
current
adj. belonging to the present time
decade
n. a period of 10 years
deter 4
v. to discourage; to persuade sb. not to do sth., by making him realize it will be difficult or will have unpleasant results
dismiss
v. to ~ a court case: to stop a court case before a result is reached
elite 5
adj. considered to be the best of their kind 属于精英的,最好的
estimate
n. a calculation of a quantity or number 估计
evidence
n. the information used in a court of law to try to prove sth.
execute
v. to kill sb. as a lawful 6 punishment for a serious crime
feasible
adj. able to be carried out or done
feature
n. a typical part or quality
illustrate 7
v. to show sth. by giving related examples
imprison 8
v. to put in prison
inmate 9
n. one who is kept in a prison
maximum
adj. the largest number or amount
nonetheless
adv. in spite of that; yet; nevertheless
nontraffic
adj. not related to traffic
observation
n. what one has noticed
offender 10
n. sb. who is guilty of a crime; a criminal
offense 11
n. an illegal action or a crime
per
prep. for each
personnel
n. all the people employed in a particular organization
precisely 12
adv. exactly
prior
adj. happening before
property
n. belongings 13; possessions
prosecute 14
v. to bring a criminal charge against sb. in a court of law
rate
n. the speed at which sth. happens over a period of time
reality
n. the real situation; the real state of affairs
reject
v. to refuse to accept
Saudi Arabia
沙特阿拉伯
severity
n. the state of being severe
social
adj. relating to society
solution
n. a way of solving a problem or dealing 15 with a difficult situation
statistics
n. facts shown in numbers
teenage
adj. aged 16 between 13 and 19
theft
n. the crime of stealing
tough
adj. determined 17 and strict
victim
n. a person who suffers as a result of other people's criminal actions, etc.
violence
n. the use of force to hurt other people physically 18
voter
n. a person who has the legal right to vote, esp. in a political election
witness
n. a person who tells in a court of law what he saw or what he knows about a crime
Proper Name
Alcatraz
阿尔卡特拉兹(美国圣弗兰西斯科湾——即旧金山湾——的小岛,1933—1963年为一座联邦监狱所在地。)
Text A
More Crime and Less Punishment
Richard Moran
Read the text once for the main idea. Do not refer to the notes, dictionaries or the glossary yet.
If you are looking for an explanation of why we don't get tough with criminals, you need only look at the numbers. Each year almost a third of the households in America are victims of violence or theft. This amounts to more than 41 million crimes, many more than we are able to punish. There are also too many criminals. The best estimates suggest that 36 million to 40 million people (16 to 18 percent of the U. S. population) have arrest records for nontraffic offenses 19. We already have 2. 4 million people under some form of correctional supervision 20, 412, 000 of them locked away in a prison cell. We don't have room for any more!
The painful fact is that the more crime there is the less we are able to punish it. This is why the certainty and severity of punishment must go down when the crime rate goes up. Countries like Saudi Arabia can afford to give out harsh punishments precisely because they have so little crime. But can we afford to cut off the hands of those who committed more than 35 million property crimes each year? Can we send them to prison? Can we execute more than 22,000 murderers?
We need to think about the relationship between punishment and crime in a new way. A decade of careful research has failed to provide clear and convincing evidence that the threat of punishment reduces crime. We think that punishment deters 21 crime, but it just might be the other way around. It just might be that crime deters punishment: that there is so much crime that it simply cannot be punished.
This is the situation we find ourselves in today. Just as the decline in the number of high-school graduates has made it easier to gain admission to the college of one's choice, the gradual increase in the criminal population has made it more difficult to get into prison. While elite colleges and universities still have high standards of admissions, some of the most "exclusive" prisons now require about five prior serious crimes before an inmate is accepted into their correctional program. Our current crop of prisoners is an elite group, on the whole much more serious offenders 22 than those who were once imprisoned 23 in Alcatraz.
These features show that it makes little sense to blame the police, judges or correctional personnel for being soft on criminals. There is not much else they can do. The police can't find most criminals and those they do find are difficult and costly to convict. Those convicted can't all be sent to prison. The society demands that we do everything we can against crime. The practical reality is that there is very little the police, courts or prisons can do about the crime problem. The criminal justice system must then become as powerless as a parent who has charge of hundreds of teenage children and who is nonetheless expected to answer the TV message: "It's 10 o'clock! Do you know where your children are?"
A few statistics from the Justice Department's recent "Report to the Nation on Crime and Justice" illustrate my point. Of every 100 serious crimes committed in America, only 33 are actually reported to the police. Of the 33 reported, about six lead to arrest. Of the six arrested, only three are prosecuted 24 and convicted. The others are rejected or dismissed due to evidence or witness problems or are sent elsewhere for medical treatment instead of punishment. Of the three convicted, only one is sent to prison. The other two are allowed to live in their community under supervision. Of the select few sent to prison, more than half receive a maximum sentence of five years. The average inmate, however, leaves prison in about two years. Most prisoners gain early release not because parole boards are too easy on crime, but because it is much cheaper to supervise a criminal in the community. And, of course, prison officials must make room for the new prisoners sent almost daily from the courts.
We could, of course, get tough with the people we already have in prison and keep them locked up for longer periods of time. Yet when measured against the lower crime rates this would probably produce, longer prison sentences are not worth the cost to state and local governments. Besides, those states that have tried to gain voters' approval for bonds to build new prisons often discover that the public is unwilling 25 to pay for prison construction.
And if it were willing to pay, long prison sentences may not be effective in reducing crime. In 1981, 124,000 convicts were released from prison. If we had kept them in jail for an additional year, how many crimes would have been prevented? While it is not possible to know the true amount of crime committed by people released from prison in any given year, we do know the extent to which those under parole are jailed again for major crime convictions. This number is a surprisingly low 6 percent (after three years it rises to only 11 percent). Even if released prisoners commit an average of two crimes each, this would amount to only 15,000 crimes prevented: a drop in the bucket when measured against the 41 million crimes committed each year.
More time spent in prison is also more expensive. The best estimates are that it costs an average of $13,000 to keep a person in prison for one year. If we had a place to keep the 124,000 released prisoners, it would have cost us $1.6 billion to prevent 15,000 crimes. This works out to more than $100,000 per crime prevented. But there is more. With the average cost of prison construction running around $50,000 per bed, it would cost more than $6 billion to build the necessary cells. The first-year operating cost would be $150,000 per crime prevented, worth it if the victim were you or me, but much too expensive to be feasible as a national policy.
Faced with the reality of the numbers, I will not be so foolish as to suggest a solution to the crime problem. My contribution to the public debate begins and ends with this simple observation: getting tough with criminals is not the answer.
- The text is supplemented by an adequate glossary.正文附有一个详细的词汇表。
- For convenience,we have also provided a glossary in an appendix.为了方便,我们在附录中也提供了术语表。
- It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
- This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用,左不过贵了些。
- This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
- There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
- Failure did not deter us from trying it again.失败并没有能阻挡我们再次进行试验。
- Dogs can deter unwelcome intruders.狗能够阻拦不受欢迎的闯入者。
- The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
- We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。
- It is not lawful to park in front of a hydrant.在消火栓前停车是不合法的。
- We don't recognised him to be the lawful heir.我们不承认他为合法继承人。
- The company's bank statements illustrate its success.这家公司的银行报表说明了它的成功。
- This diagram will illustrate what I mean.这个图表可说明我的意思。
- The effect of this one is going to imprison you for life.而这件事的影响力则会让你被终身监禁。
- Dutch colonial authorities imprisoned him for his part in the independence movement.荷兰殖民当局因他参加独立运动而把他关押了起来。
- I am an inmate of that hospital.我住在那家医院。
- The prisoner is his inmate.那个囚犯和他同住一起。
- They all sued out a pardon for an offender.他们请求法院赦免一名罪犯。
- The authorities often know that sex offenders will attack again when they are released.当局一般都知道性犯罪者在获释后往往会再次犯案。
- I hope you will not take any offense at my words. 对我讲的话请别见怪。
- His words gave great offense to everybody present.他的发言冲犯了在场的所有人。
- It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
- The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。
- I put a few personal belongings in a bag.我把几件私人物品装进包中。
- Your personal belongings are not dutiable.个人物品不用纳税。
- I am trying my best to prosecute my duties.我正在尽力履行我的职责。
- Is there enough evidence to prosecute?有没有起诉的足够证据?
- This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
- His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。
- He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了,也老点了。
- He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老,然而记忆力还好。
- I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
- He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。
- He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服,心绪也很乱。
- Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。
- It's wrong of you to take the child to task for such trifling offenses. 因这类小毛病责备那孩子是你的不对。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Thus, Congress cannot remove an executive official except for impeachable offenses. 因此,除非有可弹劾的行为,否则国会不能罢免行政官员。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
- The work was done under my supervision.这项工作是在我的监督之下完成的。
- The old man's will was executed under the personal supervision of the lawyer.老人的遗嘱是在律师的亲自监督下执行的。
- The filth here deters all but the invited guest. 这里污秽不堪,除非有事,外人是裹足不前的。 来自辞典例句
- Many people believe that capital punishment deters crime. 很多人相信极刑能阻止犯罪。 来自互联网
- Long prison sentences can be a very effective deterrent for offenders. 判处长期徒刑可对违法者起到强有力的威慑作用。
- Purposeful work is an important part of the regime for young offenders. 使从事有意义的劳动是管理少年犯的重要方法。
- He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁,合并执行。
- They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。
- The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity. 编辑因刊载污秽文字而被起诉。
- The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。