U2   Law and the Society(I)

法律与社会（一）

Minor Problems?

Reading Comprehension

（包括“答案与题解”）

Notes

课文参考译文

练习

   ●Cloze

      ●Reading Passages（包括“疑难长句翻译与注解”）

●Translation

●Writing(包括“审题指导”)

Minor Problems?

Every time Americans tune into local news broadcasts or read daily papers, they are likely to be shocked at the increasing number of serious crimes committed by youths who are only sixteen years old or even younger. It is sometimes difficult to imagine these youngsters behaving like hardened criminals, but statistics continually prove that their crimes are often just as brutal as those committed by their adult counterparts. Inevitably, people begin questioning how successful the juvenile justice system is in reforming these youths and debating whether violent juveniles should be tried as adults in our legal system. I feel there is no question that juveniles convicted of serious crimes should face the same consequences as adults.

While the teenage population in the United States has declined over the past decade, violent crimes committed by juveniles have sharply increased. It is common knowledge that the youth murder-arrest rate has climbed dramatically. Examples of teen crime are vivid and terrifying. Newspapers and television frequently report that youths with no apparent motives have shot and killed other people. The effect on both families and society is large.

Despite the increase in serious crimes committed by young offenders, the punishment which juve-niles receive has traditionally almost never fit the severity of the crimes. Since the system has historically viewed children as not being fully developed, physically or mentally, it has prevented them from being held accountable for their wrongdoing. Although many of these “children” commit horrible crimes, they have been routinely treated as victims of society. Until very recently, lighter sentences and court proceedings have been the norm. The message they sent to serious juvenile criminals is that crime “pays” because there are no serious consequences for their actions. When the system lacks an element of fear, there is nothing to prevent youthful offenders from committing future crimes. The current trend of assigning adult sentences to youths who commit serious crimes is absolutely just if the punishment is to fit the crime.

Most pro-rehabilitation advocates argue that juvenile criminals are completely different from adult ones and should, therefore, be treated differently in the justice system. However, the cost to society is the same regardless of the age of the criminal. What comfort does it give to the family of a killed or injured victim that the person who killed or hurt their loved one was a minor? Families suffer no less because their relatives are shot by young offenders. Instead of treating the loser who murders innocent people like a victim of society, this person should be treated like any other person who victimizes society and causes pain to individuals and communities.

Tougher measures must be taken to combat this growing problem of juvenile crime. In today’s society, too many juveniles count on light sentences given by the juvenile justice system. Lawyers can help a vicious criminal receive a short sentence, and return to the streets to commit more crimes. When there are no harsh consequences of being caught, committing crimes can be perceived as having positive benefits. As a result, juveniles are continuing to become more violent and less concerned with the value of human life.

Rehabilitation, recommended by many as the solution to juvenile crime, should be directed only towards youths who have committed minor offenses. However, the juveniles who commit serious crimes should be tried as adults. A message has to be sent that we will no longer tolerate brutal crimes simply because of the age of the criminal. These youths must be held completely accountable for their crimes, suffering harsh consequences and ultimately realizing that they are no longer protected by the law.

1. It can be inferred that juvenile criminals are those            .

 ［A］ who are under the age of 16 years old

 ［B］ who are not accountable for the crimes they commit

 ［C］ who can not tell major crimes from minor crimes

 ［D］ who are more likely to become victims of the society

2. That violent juvenile crimes are on the rise is manifested by the fact that            .

［A］ penalty for juvenile criminals is becoming more and more serious

［B］ the society can no longer tolerate juvenile crimes

［C］ youth murder-arrest rate has dramatically increased

［D］ the young population has increased in the last ten years

3. The reason why young people are becoming increasingly violent is that            .

［A］ the older they become, the stronger they are

［B］ they receive lighter punishment than they should

  ［C］ they do not know the value of human life

  ［D］ there is now too much violence in newspaper and on television

4. According to the author, one reason why violent juvenile criminals should suffer the same fate as their adult counterparts is that            .

 ［A］ there are as many juvenile crimes as adult crimes

 ［B］ they have done equivalent injuries to the victim or the society  

 ［C］ they are clearly aware of what they are doing at the time of offence

 ［D］ no other penalty can prevent them from committing future crimes

5. Pro-rehabilitation advocates insist that            .

 ［A］ rehabilitation be directed only towards youths who commit minor crimes

 ［B］ stricter sentences be given only to youths who commit brutal crimes

 ［C］ a different justice system be applied to minors since they are not fully developed 

 ［D］ minors be held completely responsible for any kind of crimes they commit

答案与题解

1.［A］  

  参阅第一段第一句。

2.［C］   

  参阅第二段第二句。

3.［B］  

参阅第三、四、五段，尤其是第五段。

4.［B］   

  参阅第四段第二、三、四句。

5.［C］  

参阅第四段第一句和第三段第一、二句。

Notes

1. 第一段第二句是一个并列主从复合句，两个分句由but连接。在后面的分句中that引导的名词从句作prove的宾语。

2. 第三段第二句中accountable作“负有责任”讲。

3. 第三段第五句是一个简单主从复合句。句架是The message...is that...。句中they sent to...是省略关系代词的定语从句，修饰message; because在后面的表语从句中引导原因状语从句；pay在句中作“值得、合算”讲。

4. 第四段第三句是一个简单主从复合句。 句架是What comfort does it give to the family...?句中的it是形式主语，真正的主语是后面由that引导的名词从句；在名词从句中who killed or hurt their loved one又是定语从句，修饰the person。

5. 第五段第二句中count on作“指望”讲。

课文参考译文

少年犯问题？

每当美国人在收听当地新闻广播或阅读日报的时候，他们很可能对仅16岁的青年或者甚至更年轻的人所犯严重罪行日益增多感到吃惊。有时候难以想像这些年轻人的行为怎么会像惯犯，但是统计数字继续不断地证明，他们的罪行经常像成年犯罪分子犯的罪行一样残忍。人们必然开始怀疑青少年司法制度在改造这些青少年方面是否成功，并且暴力青少年在我们的司法制度中是否应当像成年人那样受审判。我认为，毫无疑问，犯有严重罪行的青少年应当与成年人一样面对同样的后果。

虽然美国的青少年数量在过去10年中已减少，但是青少年实施的暴力犯罪已急剧上升。众所周知，青少年因谋杀而被捕的比率已大幅度上升。青少年犯罪的例子是活生生的和可怕的。报纸和电视台经常报道青少年在没有明显动机的情况下射击并打死其他人的案件。这些对家庭和社会的影响是巨大的。

尽管年轻的犯法者犯的严重罪行在增加，但是青少年受到的惩罚历来几乎都与罪行的严重程度不相符。由于司法制度一直认为儿童在身体和智力上都没有得到充分发育，因此司法制度认为儿童不应对他们干的坏事承担责任。虽然许多这样的“儿童”犯了令人恐怖的罪行，但是他们照例被当做社会的受害者对待。直到最近，从轻判罪和法庭诉讼程序已成为准则。这些给犯有严重罪行的青少年犯罪分子传达的信息是，犯罪是“划算的”，因为他们的行为不会产生严重的后果。当司法制度缺乏令人恐惧的因素的时候，就没有任何东西能防止年轻的犯法者将来犯罪。如果惩罚与罪行相符的话，目前对犯有严重罪行的年轻人处以成年人刑罚的趋势是完全公正的。

大部分赞成改造罪犯的人认为，青少年罪犯与成年罪犯完全不同，因此在司法制度中应当区别对待。然而，不管罪犯的年龄大小，他们给社会带来的损害是一样的。如果一个家庭的亲人被杀害或杀伤而这个杀人的人或致伤者是未成年人，这能给这个家庭带来什么安慰呢？（受害人的）家庭不会因为他们的亲人是被青少年犯法者所杀害而少遭受一些痛苦。对待杀害无辜的人的失败者，不要像对待社会受害者一样，应当像对危害社会并给个人和社区带来痛苦的任何其他人那样对待他们。

必须采取更严厉的措施与青少年犯罪这个日趋严重的问题作斗争。在今天的社会上，过多的青少年指望受到青少年司法制度的轻判。律师能帮助一个邪恶的罪犯受到期限较短的刑罚，然后他回到街头再犯罪。当被抓住不会产生严重后果的时候，犯罪就能被认为是有实际好处的。结果，青少年继续变得更凶暴，更不关心人的生命的价值。

许多人建议把改造罪犯作为青少年犯罪的解决办法，这应当只针对犯有轻罪的青少年。但是，犯有重罪的青少年应当像成年人那样受到审判。必须发出这样的信息：我们不会再仅仅因为罪犯的年龄小而容忍野蛮的罪行。这些年轻人必须对他们的罪行承担全部责任，承受严厉的后果，并最终认识到他们不再受法律的保护。