武漢大學 2015年博士學位研究生外語綜合水平考試試題

武漢大學

2015年博士學位研究生外語綜合水平考試試題

一、閱讀理解
Justice in society must include both a fairtrial to the accused and the selection of an appropriate punishment for thoseproven guilty. Because justice is regarded as one form. of equality, we find in its earlier expressionsthe idea of a punishment equal to the crime. Recorded in the Old Testament isthe expression "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth." That is,the individual who has done wrong has committed an offence against society. Tomake up for his offence, society must get even. This can be done only by doingan equal injury to him. This conception of retributive justice is reflected inmany parts of the legal documents and procedures of modern times. It isillustrated when we demand the death penalty for a person who has committedmurder. This philosophy of punishment was supported by the German idealistHegel. He believed that society owed it to the criminal to give a punishmentequal to the crime he had committed. The criminal had by his own actions deniedhis true self and it is necessary to do something that will counteract thisdenial and restore the self that has been denied. To the murderer nothing lessthan giving up his own will pay his debt. The demand of the death penalty is aright the state owes the criminal and it should not deny him his due.