Практическая работа по дисциплине «Английский язык» для РОСИ, пример оформления

UNIT 2 CAPITAL PUNISHMENT Vocabulary Exercise 1. Translate the following word combinations into English. Смертный приговор/смертная казнь/высшая мера наказания — capital punishment, death penalty Вынести смертный приговор – to impose a death sentence Отменить смертную казнь — to abolish the death penalty Находится в камере смертников – to spend on death row Привести смертный приговор в исполнение — to carry out an execution Exercise 2. Answer the following questions.

1. What do you know about the practice of capital punishment in ancient times? Was it widespread?

The death penalty is called capital punishment. The history of the death penalty began when  the very first form of statehood appeared.  In the early feudal society the death penalty was rarely practiced, as time goes by,  such punishment gradually developed. In the ancient times almost all peoples practiced sacrificial executions. For example, there was a monstrous cult of the God Hadad in Phoenicia. It consisted in the fact that Hadad was required to make human sacrifices.  

2. What crimes, in your opinion, were punished with death penalty in Middle Ages?

In the Middle ages, the death penalty was applied not only in cases of serious crimes (murder or robbery), but also for religious views that were considered illegal, such as witchcraft. The death penalty was also applied in ordinary situations for minor offenses, such as petty theft. This form of punishment was carried out in public deliberately, often executed with preliminary torture. The following crimes were punishable by death: robbery, murder, theft (repeated), slander, murder of one’s master, treason, sacrilege (theft of Church property), religious crimes, for adultery. The death sentence could be imposed from the age of 12.

3. When did the idea of the abolition of capital punishment appear? Why?

Elizabeth, the daughter of Peter I, tried to refuse the death penalty. She issued laws according to which the death sentence was not executed, but submitted to the Senate (1743, 1744). In 1863, Venezuela became the first country to abolish the death penalty. Ecuador (1906) and Uruguay (1907) introduced the complete abolition of the death penalty. By the end of the 80’s, 30 countries had adopted the same decision. Those who are against capital punishment say that it is not more effective than life imprisonment. They also say that suspension of capital punishment does not affect the crime rate. One more argument of the opponents of capital punishment is that sometimes people are sentenced and killed wrongly. For example, innocent people are tried and sentenced to death for the crimes committed by serial murderers. People who are accused wrongly are often executed before the real murderers are found. Начало формыКонец формы

4. What are the ways of carrying out executions in modern societies?

There are 7 ways to carry out a sentence in modern legislation. They are  : — Hanging; — Decapitation; — Fusillade; — Throwing stones; — Execution in the electric chair; — Gas poisoning  (gas chamber); — The lethal injection (The injection of poison).

5. Is capital punishment used nowadays?

Today, capital punishment is used in those countries where it hasn’t been abolished. It is used for only a few crimes, most commonly treason, murder, armed robbery and kidnapping. The death penalty is used mainly in Asian and Eastern countries. The leaders are China, Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, but the USA is also among the first 5 countries of the world as to the annual number of executions. Two thirds of all American death sentences are executed in the state of Texas.   Exercise 3. Read and translate the text. Capital punishment is a legal killing of the criminal who is sentenced to death. It is a punishment for grave offences, such as murder, rape, treason and others. Criminals are put to death through shooting, hanging, poisoning and other means of execution. Some people support capital punishment, others are against it. Those who are against capital punishment say that it is not more effective than life imprisonment. They also say that suspension of capital punishment does not affect the crime rate. One more argument of the opponents of capital punishment is that sometimes people are sentenced and killed wrongly. For example, innocent people are tried and sentenced to death for the crimes committed by serial murderers. People who are accused wrongly are often executed before the real murderers are found. nevertheless, the number of the defendants of capital punishment is growing. They believe that capital punishment can prevent a murderer from committing a crime. Crime is on the rise in large cities, and people are in need of effective means of crime prevention. So, debates about capital punishment are still going on. In England, capital punishment was abolished in the XX century. In Russia, it was suspended in 1993. There is no capital punishment in Europe, but it is practiced in most states of America. The death penalty was suspended in the USA in 1972, but it was resumed in 1976. Less than a half of the countries in the world practice capital punishment. Yet, only 30% of the population lives in countries free of capital punishment. The death penalty is used mainly in Asian and Eastern countries. The leaders are China, Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, but the USA is also among the first 5 countries of the world as to the annual number of executions. Two thirds of all American death sentences are executed in the state of Texas.   Смертная казнь является законным убийством преступника, приговоренного к смерти. Это наказание за тяжкие преступления, такие как убийство, изнасилование, измена и другие. Преступников предают смерти через стрельбу, повешение, отравление и другое средства исполнения. Одни люди поддерживают смертную казнь, другие против нее. Те, кто против смертной казни, говорят, что она не эффективнее жизни в заключение. Также говорят, что приостановление высшей меры наказания не затрагивает уровень преступности. Еще один аргумент противников смертной казни заключается в том, что иногда людей приговаривают и убивают неправильно. Например, невинные люди предаются суду и приговариваются к смертной казни за преступления, совершенные серийными убийцами. Люди, которых обвиняют неправильно, часто казнят до того, как найдут настоящих убийц.  Тем не менее число обвиняемых в смертной казни растет. Считают, что смертная казнь может помешать убийце совершить преступление. В крупных городах растет преступность, и люди нуждаются в эффективных средствах предупреждение преступности. Итак, споры о смертной казни все еще продолжаются. В Англии высшая мера наказания была отменена в XX веке. В России, она была приостановлен в 1993 году. В Европе нет высшей меры наказания, но это практикуется в большинстве штатов Америки. В США приостановили смертную казнь в 1972 году, но она была возобновлена в 1976 году. Менее половины стран мира применяют смертную казнь. Тем не менее, только 30% населения живет в странах, где нет смертной казни. Смертная казнь применяется главным образом в странах Азии и Востока страны. Лидеры — Китай, Иран, Пакистан, Саудовская Аравия, но США – тоже среди первых 5 стран мира по ежегодному числу казней. Две трети всех американских смертных приговоров приводятся в исполнение в штате Техас.   Exercise 4. Write a composition on either supporting or opposing to the death penalty. The death penalty The issue of death penalty is a rather controversial topic. Some people think that murderers should be killed without hesitation by government whereas the others are convinced the opposite and think that by killing murderers, government appreciates or concedes the further murdering. Personally, I think that people should initially get a second chance. To start with, it gives them an ability to reform and become sane and normal members of society again. Finally, in that case they have some time to think over what they have done and repent their mistakes. Despite that, there is also an opposite opinion. Supporters of death penalty are sure that dangerous criminals should be killed immediately when caught or when the court sentenced appropriate verdict. The first reason for this is that the likelihood of person’s reforming is usually rather small, and, murdering once, the person may recur their villainies, but it would be far harder to catch them the second time. The second reason is concluded in that murderers are very dangerous persons and that government should give out an execution order and eliminate them as quick as possible for the sake of all country. However, I personally think that government should act in circumstances: if killer person genuinely repents their sins, they should be given a second chance. But if they slaughtered bunches of people mercilessly, the death penalty should be executed immediately. To sum up, I would like to say that death penalty for murderers is a difficult topic to discuss and that there are many opposite opinions about this and that every country should decide whether to add it or not for itself.