新概念英语第四册在线练：On Moral Courage 论道德勇气

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　　Although truth and justice1 may be the most powerful impulses to show moral

　　courage, there are others. Compassion is one of these. 2Tentatively it can be

　　suggested that this is the main influence upon those who urge the abolition of

　　capital punishment. 3It is recognition of compassion's part that leads the

　　upholders of capital punishment to accuse the abolitionists of sentimentality in

　　being more sorry for the murderer than for his victim. 4This is nonsense but

　　with it some organs of the popular Press played upon the emotions of their

　　readers so successfully that many candidates for Parliament

　　were afraid to support abolition for fear of losing votes and the result

　　was the muddle-headed Homicide Act of 1957 which made murder with robbery a

　　capital crime and allowed the poisoner to escape the gallows. 5That illogical

　　qualification shows how flimsy is the argument that capital punishment is a

　　deterrent to murder. 6The poisoner always works on a calculated plan of action

　　and therefore is able to consider whether or not his taking another's life is

　　worth the risk of his own; the violent thief is usually at the mercy of an

　　instant emotion. 7The only arguable plea for capital punishment is the right of

　　society to retribution in this world with the prospect of life in another, but

　　since what used to seem to the great majority of civilized humanity the

　　assurance of another life beyond the grave has come to seem to more and more

　　people less certain, a feeling for the value of human life has become deeper and

　　more widespread. This may seem a paradoxical claim to make at

　　a time when mankind is so much preoccupied with weapons of

　　destruction.8Nevertheless, it is a claim that can be sustained and if compassion

　　animates those who urge the abolition of the death penalty it is not a

　　sentimental compassion for the mental agony inflicted upon a condemned man but a

　　dread of destroying the miracle of life.

　　When in the eighteenth century offences against the law that today would no

　　earn a month in prison were punished with the death penalty, the severity of the

　　penal code had no serious effect on the prevalence of crime. 10When it made no

　　difference to the fate of a highwayman whether he had killed his victim or

　　merely robbed him of a few pieces of silver, there were no more murders then

　　than there were when men like Sir Fraricis Burdett succeeded in lightening the

　　excessive severity of

　　the penal laws. 11In those days the sacredness of life on earth was not

　　greatly regarded because a life in the world to come was taken for granted

　　except by a comparatively small minotity of philosophers.

　　Nor was the long-drawn ordeal of the condemned cell inflicted either upon

　　the condemned man or his gaolers once upon a time. Those who believe in capital

　　punishment may have arguments for its retention, 13but surely no reasonable

　　argument can be found for retention of the sickening mumbo-jumbo that

　　accompanies it from the moment that the judge dons the black cap with what looks

　　like a pen-wiper balanced on the top of his wig, to the reading of the burial

　　service over the condemned man before he is dead. Moreover, it was more merciful

　　to launch the condemned man into eternity twenty-four hours after he was

　　sentenced than to keep him shivering on the brink of that dread gulf for nearly

　　three weeks. 14Hanging is an atrociously archaic way of killing a human being

　　and the self-satisfied modernity of the electric chair is just as atrocious. The

　　administration of a strong sleeping draught to the condemned man every night

　　from which one night he does hot awake, seems a more civilized alternative to

　　our present barbarous procedure, if capital punishment through the influence of

　　backward minds be retained.

　　New words and expressions 生词短语

　　impulse n. 推动力,冲动 短语:out of impulse=act on impulse 出于冲动 同义词:impetus

　　/momentum/ drive ; drive for something

　　compassion n. 同情 短语:compassion for sth. /sympathy for sth .同义词：sympathy

　　(不及

　　compassion)

　　tentatively adv. 尝 试 性 地 常 用 于 文 学 短语: tentatively study on clone 刍 以 克

　　隆

　　experiental study 尝试性研究 tentatively smile 勉强的笑

　　abolition n. 废除 abolish []v. abolishnist []n.短语:to abolish the slavery

　　capital n. 可处死刑的 原意:首的,主要的;短语:capital punishment=death penalty死刑

　　decapitate v.斩首

　　upholder n.支持者 hold up 同义词:advocator /proponent

　　sentimentality n. 多愁善感(本质)、感情脆弱、感伤 辨义:emotional (一时的)情绪

　　化

　　muddle-headed adj. 糊涂的

　　homicide n.. 凶 杀 、 杀 人 者 构 :homi=homo: the same 人 、 同 类 cide :kill 组

　　词:homosexual同性恋 homonym 同音(形)异义词、同名人 synonym 同义词antonym

　　反义词 pesticide 杀虫剂 suicide 自杀 autocide 撞车自杀 uxorious 害怕老婆的、气管炎

　　filicide 杀子女 filial 孝顺的

　　gallows n. 绞刑架(木制的)短语:gallows bird 应受罚 同类词：guillotine 绞刑架(铁

　　制的)

　　qualification n.规定、条件 词源：qualify合格 unqualified不合格(常自已本身) disqualify

　　取消资格 (被别人)例句：what qualifications do you have ? 你有什么特长?force start 抢

　　跑(体育用语)

　　flimsy adj. 站不住脚的、不足信的(理论) 脆弱的 联想词:groundless 理论太薄/fragile、

　　脆弱的玻璃易碎/ rickets 软骨病 convincing 令人信服的 unconvincing 不让人信服的

　　deterrent n. 威慑 deter v . :prevent 短语:deter him from smoking

　　caculated adj. 精 心 制 作 的 , 有 计 划 的 短 语 :caculated plan/scheme 精 心 策 划 同

　　类

　　词:deliberate 精心策划 /well planned /well designed 精心设计/well schemed

　　at the mercy of 受 … 支 配 ( 抽 象 意 义 ):under the control of 例 句 :at the mercy

　　of

　　emotion(reasonimpulse) 受感情(理智/冲动)支配

　　plea n. 辩 解 例 句 :make a plea for sth 为 … 而 辩 解 make a plea for

　　wrongdoing(misconduct)为错误行为(过失)而辩解;I took leave under the plea of

　　headache.

　　以头疼为借口离开.

　　retribution n. 惩罚，报应(宗教)

　　18. sustain v. 确认 原意:支撑 例句:sustain an applicant in his claim 认定此人申诉有效

　　his

　　words hold water his words hold water 言之有理 his words can not hold water

　　站不住脚

　　19. animate v. 促使,、激烈、激活 例句:animate the discussion /animated discussion

　　(heat and

　　lively)激烈争论

　　20. penalty n. 刑罚 短语:death penalty 死刑 penalty kick 罚点球 free kick 任意球

　　corner

　　角球队 例句: no penalty for guessing 不倒扣分

　　21. agony n. 极度痛苦难 agonise v.短语:agony column(英语报纸常用) :claim 寻人启事

　　/divorce 离婚声明 同类词： torture 折磨/anguish 痛苦 / pang 痛苦(一阵一阵的)也可引

　　申用/ throes 分娩时阵痛临死前苦痛 痛苦程度: throes>anguish 例句: it’s agonizing to …

　　22. inflict v. 使遭受 短语: inflict sth on sb. 例句:I inflict the trouble(misery)

　　on him 我给他

　　带来麻烦(不幸) 特殊用法:inflict myself on you 对不起,打搅您了.

　　23. prevalence n. 盛行 prevail v. 例句:Nowdays Korean pop music

　　prevails.同义词:popular

　　24.sacredness n. 神圣不可侵犯性 sacred adj.sacred cow 圣牛(宗教) 同类词: holy

　　/goldly/

　　heavenly /saint 圣人/saintly 例句: he is saintly 他真是圣人一样的人 holiday 比较正式高雅带宗

　　教色彩 vocation (暑假)

　　25. ordeal n.折磨 词源:ancient Greece roman

　　26. assurance n.信心

　　27. preoccupy vt. 使全神贯注 短语:be occupied with 对..全神贯注 同类:absorbed(引人入

　　胜) in /immersed (沉浸其间)in

　　28. retention n.保留 retain v.

　　29. sickening adj. 令人呕心的.. 同类词:disgusting vomit distasteful(较轻 不太喜欢)

　　30. don vt. 戴 可戴任何,但一般用于上身 同类: wear 穿(什么都可以穿 /表动词或状态)put

　　on 表动作 dress 穿 //dress oneself/be dreesed 穿衣服 be dressed in blue/he is

　　wearing blue

　　穿着什么 wear socks /wear beard (moustache /long beard)蓄着胡子/wear lipstick

　　抹口红

　　31. wig n. 假发 短语:big wig 引申为:大人物(big potato/big fish /big man)

　　32. burial service 葬礼 同义词:funeral none of your funeral=none of you’re your

　　bussiness

　　不是你的事

　　33. merciful adj. 仁 慈 的 mercy n. 反 :merciless 同 类 词 :forgiving 宽 容 tolerant

　　容 忍

　　lenient(with)对人…宽松

　　34. gulf n.深渊 短语:go to the gulf below

　　35. hanging n.绞刑 hang (hung hung ) 挂/hang(hanged hanged)绞刑 例句: if we don’t

　　hang

　　together ,we’ll be hanged separately.林肯:如果我们不团结起来,只能被一个个处死.

　　36. atrociously adv. 残暴地 同义词:barbarously 野蛮的 ruthless 无情地 appalling 骇人听

　　闻

　　37. archaic adj.古老的 a archaic word 同义词:antique obsolete outdated 不再时髦

　　passé(法)

　　常指女子的老.

　　38. draught n.每吨服量

　　39. barbarous adj. 野蛮的

　　Notes on the text 课文注释

　　1.

　　2.

　　truth and justice: truth 真理,这里译为永于直言; justice 富有正义感,

　　Tentatively it can be suggested that this is : tentatively :roughly

　　,generally 大致说来 ;it 指

　　后面的从句;this 指compassion

　　It is recognition …that:强调句 ,正是意识到 ;part :role 作用;accuse of 指责/指控 ;

　　in being 在这方面;

　　4. This is nonsense but with it some organs of the popular Press played

　　upon.. : but with it :运用

　　前面的论点;organs: institution 机构组织;popular press :很受欢迎的大众的媒体;play

　　upon: 玩弄,利用(make use of /take advantage of );so..that ..;candidates for

　　Parliament 国

　　会候选人;MP-member of parliament 国会议员;PHD(博士生);act:法案(英),=bill(美);

　　5. That illogical qualification shows how flimsy is the argument

　　that..:illogical 不合逻辑的;

　　how flimsy is the argument 倒装句;that 引导同位语

　　6. work on 构思, 构想;taking one’s life 杀别人;whether or not;violent thief

　　暴徒=murderer

　　with robbery; instant emotion;

　　7. The only arguable plea for capital punishment…: arguable 可 争 论 的 , 可 辩 论

　　的 ;

　　prospect :hope;but since ;used to :过去常常;claim 理由;mass destruction: 极大杀伤

　　力; the right of society to retribution in this world with the prospect of

　　life in another 等于:

　　with the prospect of life in another, a society has a right to give one the

　　retribution.因为拥有

　　给你来生的幸福,所以社会能给你报应, with 这里做原因状语;

　　8. nevertheless=however;claim 理由,观点;none the less ;该句:这个观点是可以得到支持

　　的如果这种同情能够激励那些要废除死刑的人,那么这种同情就不是对那些死刑犯感情

　　的同情,而是对毁掉生命奇迹的一种同情; 如改为:it is a claim that can be sustained if

　　compassion animates those who urge the abolition of the death penalty and

　　it is not a

　　sentimental compassion for the mental agony inflicted upon a condemned man

　　but a dread of

　　destroying the miracle of life. 即句子结构为: it is …sustained if death penalty

　　and it is 这

　　是一个能够支持的论点,如果这种同情能够激发那些不支持死刑犯拥护的人士,面这种同

　　情不是对人们精神折磨的同情,而是对对毁掉生命奇迹的一种同情.

　　9. offences against the law 犯罪;today 时间状语;severity :serious ; penal code

　　刑法;civil

　　民法;

　　10. 当一个人杀死他的受害者或者只抢了少部分的钱财这对他的命运而言没有大的区别,当

　　我们这位爵士成功的减轻了过度严厉的刑法时,也不见得那种谋杀案有任何的增多.Sir

　　爵士(做先生的时,不可加姓或名);意为: if u just take away this penalty ,there is no

　　great

　　harm to society ;lightening 减轻;excessive 过度的,过分的; more ..than : the same as

　　..no

　　与…都不多(两个没多大区别)

　　11. on earth 人世间; in the world to come 来世;

　　12. nor 表示和前面一定有联系,并用倒装;gaoler 监狱看守 gaoler-gaol 监狱;galo bird;

　　long-drawn:long time;condemned(该死的,受人谴责的) cell;cell(single

　　room)-prison;inflict

　　upon 给谁带来;inflict sth.(ordeal) on sb. ;

　　13. mumbo-jumbo 繁文缛节;it:death penalty;两个繁文缛节:pen-wiper/ the reading

　　14. self-satisfied 自我满足的;modernity 时髦,现代性;

　　15. administration 监护;administer ;sleeping draught(pill)安眠药;administration

　　sth to

　　someone 让某人吃什么药;from which 由于;which 指 draught;

　　alternative=replacement;替换;

　　if capital punishment ..be retained.虚拟语气;

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