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 生詞短語
impulse n. 推動力,沖動 短語:out of impulse =act on impulse 出于沖動 同義詞:impetus
/momentum/ drive ; drive for something
compassion n. 同情 短語:compassion for sth. /sympathy for sth .同義詞：sympathy (不及
compassion)
tentatively adv. 嘗 試 性 地 常 用 于 文 學 短語: tentatively study on clone 芻 以 克 隆
experiental study 嘗試性研究 tentatively smile 勉強的笑
abolition n. 廢除 abolish []v. abolishnist []n.短語:to abolish the slavery
capital n. 可處死刑的 原意:首的,主要的;短語:capital punishment =death penalty死刑
decapitate v.斬首
upholder n.支持者 hold up 同義詞:advocator /proponent
sentimentality n. 多愁善感(本質(zhì))、感情脆弱、感傷 辨義:emotional （一時的）情緒
化
muddle-headed adj. 糊涂的
homicide n.. 兇 殺 、 殺 人 者 構(gòu) :homi= homo: the same 人 、 同 類 cide :kill 組
詞:homosexual同性戀 homonym 同音（形）異義詞、同名人 synonym 同義詞antonym
反義詞 pesticide 殺蟲劑 suicide 自殺 autocide 撞車自殺 uxorious 害怕老婆的、氣管炎
filicide 殺子女 filial 孝順的
gallows n. 絞刑架（木制的）短語:gallows bird 應(yīng)受罰 同類詞：guillotine 絞刑架（鐵
制的）
qualification n.規(guī)定、條件 詞源：qualify合格 unqualified不合格（常自已本身） disqualify
取消資格 （被別人）例句：what qualifications do you have ? 你有什么特長？force start 搶
跑（體育用語）
flimsy adj. 站不住腳的、不足信的（理論） 脆弱的 聯(lián)想詞:groundless 理論太薄/fragile、
脆弱的玻璃易碎/ rickets 軟骨病 convincing 令人信服的 unconvincing 不讓人信服的
deterrent n. 威懾 deter v . :prevent 短語:deter him from smoking
caculated adj. 精 心 制 作 的 , 有 計 劃 的 短 語 :caculated plan/scheme 精 心 策 劃 同 類
詞:deliberate 精心策劃 /well planned /well designed 精心設(shè)計/well schemed
at the mercy of 受 … 支 配 ( 抽 象 意 義 ):under the control of 例 句 :at the mercy of
emotion(reason\impulse) 受感情(理智/沖動)支配
plea n. 辯 解 例 句 :make a plea for sth 為 … 而 辯 解 make a plea for
wrongdoing(misconduct)為錯誤行為(過失)而辯解;I took leave under the plea of headache.
以頭疼為借口離開.
retribution n. 懲罰，報應(yīng)（宗教）
18. sustain v. 確認 原意:支撐 例句:sustain an applicant in his claim 認定此人申訴有效 his
words hold water his words hold water 言之有理 his words can not hold water 站不住腳
19. animate v. 促使,、激烈、激活 例句:animate the discussion /animated discussion (heat and
lively)激烈爭論
20. penalty n. 刑罰 短語:death penalty 死刑 penalty kick 罰點球 free kick 任意球 corner
角球隊 例句: no penalty for guessing 不倒扣分
21. agony n. 極度痛苦難 agonise v.短語:agony column(英語報紙常用) :claim 尋人啟事
/divorce 離婚聲明 同類詞： torture 折磨/anguish 痛苦 / pang 痛苦(一陣一陣的)也可引
申用/ throes 分娩時陣痛臨死前苦痛 痛苦程度: throes>anguish 例句: it’s agonizing to …
22. inflict v. 使遭受 短語: inflict sth on sb. 例句:I inflict the trouble(misery) on him 我給他
帶來麻煩(不幸) 特殊用法:inflict myself on you 對不起,打攪您了.
23. prevalence n. 盛行 prevail v. 例句:Nowdays Korean pop music prevails.同義詞:popular
24.sacredness n. 神圣不可侵犯性 sacred adj.sacred cow 圣牛(宗教) 同類詞: holy /goldly/
heavenly /saint 圣人/saintly 例句: he is saintly 他真是圣人一樣的人 holiday 比較正式高雅帶宗
教色彩 vocation (暑假)
25. ordeal n.折磨 詞源:ancient Greece roman
26. assurance n.信心
27. preoccupy vt. 使全神貫注 短語:be occupied with 對..全神貫注 同類:absorbed(引人入
勝) in /immersed (沉浸其間)in
28. retention n.保留 retain v.
29. sickening adj. 令人嘔心的.. 同類詞:disgusting vomit distasteful(較輕 不太喜歡)
30. don vt. 戴 可戴任何,但一般用于上身 同類: wear 穿(什么都可以穿 /表動詞或狀態(tài))put
on 表動作 dress 穿 //dress oneself/be dreesed 穿衣服 be dressed in blue/he is wearing blue
穿著什么 wear socks /wear beard (moustache /long beard)蓄著胡子/wear lipstick 抹口紅
31. wig n. 假發(fā) 短語:big wig 引申為:大人物(big potato/big fish /big man)
32. burial service 葬禮 同義詞: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 類 詞 :forgiving 寬 容 tolerant 容 忍
lenient(with)對人…寬松
34. gulf n.深淵 短語:go to the gulf below
35. hanging n.絞刑 hang (hung hung ) 掛/hang(hanged hanged)絞刑 例句: if we don’t hang
together ,we’ll be hanged separately.林肯:如果我們不團結(jié)起來,只能被一個個處死.
36. atrociously adv. 殘暴地 同義詞:barbarously 野蠻的 ruthless 無情地 appalling 駭人聽
聞
37. archaic adj.古老的 a archaic word 同義詞:antique obsolete outdated 不再時髦 passé(法)
常指女子的老.
38. draught n.每噸服量
39. barbarous adj. 野蠻的
Notes on the text 課文注釋
1.
2.
truth and justice: truth 真理,這里譯為永于直言； justice 富有正義感,
Tentatively it can be suggested that this is : tentatively :roughly ,generally 大致說來 ；it 指
后面的從句；this 指compassion
It is recognition …that:強調(diào)句 ,正是意識到 ；part :role 作用；accuse of 指責/指控 ；
in being 在這方面；
4. This is nonsense but with it some organs of the popular Press played upon.. : but with it :運用
前面的論點；organs: institution 機構(gòu)組織；popular press :很受歡迎的\大眾的媒體；play
upon: 玩弄,利用(make use of /take advantage of )；so..that ..；candidates for Parliament 國
會候選人；MP-member of parliament 國會議員；PHD(博士生)；act:法案(英),=bill(美)；
5. That illogical qualification shows how flimsy is the argument that..:illogical 不合邏輯的；
how flimsy is the argument 倒裝句；that 引導同位語
6. work on 構(gòu)思, 構(gòu)想；taking one’s life 殺別人；whether or not；violent thief 暴徒=murderer
with robbery; instant emotion；
7. The only arguable plea for capital punishment…: arguable 可 爭 論 的 , 可 辯 論 的 ；
prospect :hope；but since ；used to :過去常常；claim 理由；mass destruction: 極大殺傷
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.因為擁有
給你來生的幸福,所以社會能給你報應(yīng), with 這里做原因狀語；
8. nevertheless=however；claim 理由,觀點；none the less ；該句:這個觀點是可以得到支持
的如果這種同情能夠激勵那些要廢除死刑的人,那么這種同情就不是對那些死刑犯感情
的同情,而是對毀掉生命奇跡的一種同情； 如改為: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. 即句子結(jié)構(gòu)為: it is …sustained if death penalty and it is 這
是一個能夠支持的論點,如果這種同情能夠激發(fā)那些不支持死刑犯擁護的人士,面這種同
情不是對人們精神折磨的同情,而是對對毀掉生命奇跡的一種同情.
9. offences against the law 犯罪；today 時間狀語；severity :serious ; penal code 刑法；civil
民法；
10. 當一個人殺死他的受害者或者只搶了少部分的錢財這對他的命運而言沒有大的區(qū)別,當
我們這位爵士成功的減輕了過度嚴厲的刑法時,也不見得那種謀殺案有任何的增多.Sir
爵士(做先生的時,不可加姓或名)；意為: if u just take away this penalty ,there is no great
harm to society ；lightening 減輕；excessive 過度的,過分的； more ..than : the same as ..no
與…都不多(兩個沒多大區(qū)別)
11. on earth 人世間； in the world to come 來世；
12. nor 表示和前面一定有聯(lián)系,并用倒裝；gaoler 監(jiān)獄看守 gaoler-gaol 監(jiān)獄；galo bird；
long-drawn:long time；condemned(該死的,受人譴責的) cell；cell(single room)-prison；inflict
upon 給誰帶來；inflict sth.(ordeal) on sb. ;
13. mumbo-jumbo 繁文縟節(jié)；it:death penalty；兩個繁文縟節(jié):pen-wiper/ the reading
14. self-satisfied 自我滿足的；modernity 時髦,現(xiàn)代性；
15. administration 監(jiān)護；administer ；sleeping draught(pill)安眠藥；administration sth to
someone 讓某人吃什么藥；from which 由于；which 指 draught; alternative=replacement;替換；
if capital punishment ..be retained.虛擬語氣；
