Unit 6

Task 1:

【答案】

A.

1) H

2) H

3) S

4) S

5) H

6) S

7) S

8) H

B.

1) California has 43 Representatives and Nevada has only one; but each has two Senators

2) They are small groups which take care of special matters such as education or foreign affairs. The most important work of the Congress is often done in these groups.

3) They were all Representatives and then Senators before becoming President of the United States.

 

【原文】

In the United States Government, the Congress makes the laws. The Congress has two parts, which are more or less equal in power. They are known as the House of Representatives and the Senate. The House of Representatives is larger than the Senate. The Senate has only 100 members (known as Senators), two from each state, and they serve for six years. The House, on the other hand, has435 members (known as House Representatives); they are elected every two years, and the number from each state is determined by the population of the state. For example, California, which has a large population, has forty-three representatives, while the state of Nevada has only one.

The House and Senate are divided into small groups which take care of special matters such as education or foreign affairs. The most important work of the Congress is often done in these groups, which are balled committees.

 

According to the Constitution of the United States, a Senator must be at least thirty years old and he must have been a citizen of the United States for nine years at the time of his election. To be elected to the House, a person must be 25 years old and must have been a United States citizen for seven years. At the present time, members of Congress include businessmen, farmers, teachers, and especially lawyers.

In general, Senators are better known than Representatives because they are fewer in number and serve for a longer time. Many American Presidents served in Congress before they became President. Presidents John Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon were all Representatives and then Senators before becoming President of the United States.

 

Task 2:

【答案】

A.

1) It means that the people rule through representatives they elect.

2) One reason is that the Constitution can be amended, or changed. Another reason is that the Constitution is flexible: its basic principles can be applied and interpreted differently at different times.

3) It is meant to prevent any branch from having too much power. Each branch has certain controls over the other branches.

4) No, he doesn't, because a voter can choose candidates from different parties. For example, they can vote for a Republican President and a Democrat senator.

5) The Republicans tend to be more conservative and to have more support among the upper classes, while the Democrats tend to be more liberal and to have more support among the working classes and the poor.

6) Because candidates today often campaign mainly through brief TV appearances and commercials. Instead of explaining their views in detail, they try to make their opponents look bad. Understandably, in the end many voters do not feel enthusiastic about any candidate.

B.

the legislative，executive，judicial

I. the House of Representatives，the Senate，make laws

Il. The President，administer the laws，the President，the Vice-President，their staffs，departments and agencies

III. interpret the laws，new laws are in keeping with the Constitution，Supreme Court，nine，for life

 

【原文】

The United States is an indirect democracy-that is, the people rule through representatives they elect. Over time, the vote has been given to more and more people. In the beginning, only white men with property could vote. Today citizen who is at least 18 years old can vote.

The Constitution

The United States Constitution, written in 1787, established the country's political system and is the basis for its laws. In the 200 years of its history, the United States has greatly grown and changed. Yet the Constitution works as well today as when it was written. One reason is that the Constitution can be amended (for example, the Fifteenth Amendment gave black Americans the right to vote and the Nineteenth Amendment gave women the right to vote). Another reason is that the Constitution is flexible: its basic principles can be applied and interpreted differently at different times.

Federalism

    The United States has a federalist system. It means that there are individual states, each with its own government, and there is a federal, or national, government. The US Constitution gives certain powers to the federal government, other powers to the state governments, and yet other powers to both. For example, only the national government can print money; the states establish their own school systems; and both the national and the state governments can collect taxes.

Three Branches of Government

Within the national government, power is divided among three branches: the legislative branch, the executive branch, and the judicial branch. The legislative branch consists of Congress, which has two parts: the House of Representatives and the Senate. Congress's main function is to make laws.
    The President is the head of the executive branch and the country. The executive branch administers the laws. In addition to the President, the Vice-President, and their staffs, the executive branch consists of departments and agencies.
    The judicial branch interprets the laws and makes sure that new laws are in keeping with the Constitution. The judicial branch is represented by several levels of federal courts. The Supreme Court is the most important body. It has nine members, who are appointed for life.
    The system of checks and balances, established by the Constitution, is meant to prevent any of the three branches from having too much power. Each branch has certain controls over the other branches. For example, Congress makes the laws, but the President can veto, or reject, a law and the Supreme Court can decide that the law is unconstitutional.

Two-Party System

The United States has two main political parties: the Democratic and the Republican parties. Many other smaller parties play little if any role.

Voters elect the President, as Senators Representatives Governor, etc. A voter can choose candidates from different parties, For example, a voter may vote for Republicans for President and Vice-President and a Democrat for Senator, so the President does not have to be from the patty has a majority in Congress. In recent years, in fact, voters have tended to choose Republican Pres dents and Democratic people.

There are no clear differences between the Republican and Democratic parties. In general, the Republicans tend to be more conservative and to have more support among the upper classes, while the Democrats tend to be more liberal and to have more support among the working class and the poor.

Recent Trends

In the 20th century, as society has become more complex, government has taken a muck more active role. However, many Americans worry about too much government interference in their lives. Still, compared to many other countries, the role of the US government remains limited.

In recent years, fewer people are voting. In the 1988 presidential election, for example, only 50 percent of people of voting age actually voted. Some experts think television may have contributed to the problem. Candidates today often campaign mainly through brief TV appearances and commercial Instead of explaining their views in detail, they try to make their opponents look bad. Understandably in the end many voters do not feel enthusiastic about any candidate.

 

Task 3:

【答案】

A.

1) 659 elected members

2) 669 non-elected members，2，24

3) 750 hereditary peers，they inherited their seats

4) voluntary，75

B.

1) F

2) F

3) T

4) T

C.

1) The main purpose of the House of Commons is to make laws by passing Acts of Parliament as well as to discuss current political issues.

2) Parliament can be dissolved either by a royal proclamation or because the maximum term between elections, five years, has expired.

3) All British citizens together with citizens of other Commonwealth countries and citizens of the Irish Republic resident in Britain may vote, provided they are aged 18 years or over and not legally barred from voting.

4) People disqualified include those who are bankrupt, those sentenced to more than one year's imprisonment, members of the clergy, members of the House of Lords, and a range of public servants and officials.

5) The leader of the political party which wins most seats at a general election, or who has the support of a majority of members in the House of Commons, is by convention invited by the Sovereign to form the new government.

 

【原文】

Parliament, the law-making body of the British people, consists of three elements: the Monarchy, the House of Commons and the House of Lords. They meet together only on occasions of ceremonial significance, such as the state opening of Parliament, although the agreement of all three is normally required for legislation.

The House of Commons consists of 659 elected members called Members of Parliament or MPs. Elections to the House of Commons are an important part of Britain’s democratic system. The main purpose of the House of Commons is to make laws by passing Acts of Parliament, as well as to discuss current political issues. Some of the liveliest sessions in the Commons debating chamber take place at Prime Minister's Question Time when MPs have the opportunity to quiz the Prime Minister on issues of the day.

The House of Lords consists of around 669 non-elected members, including hereditary peers and peeresses, life peers and peeresses and two archbishops and 24 senior bishops of the Church of England. Its main legislative function is to examine and revise bills from the Commons. It also acts in a legal capacity as the final court of appeal. The Lords cannot normally prevent proposed legislation from becoming law if the Commons insists on it. The present Government is committed to reforming the House of Lords to make it more democratic and representative. As a first step, it has removed the right of some 750 hereditary peers to sit and vote in Parliament solely on the basis that they inherited their seats. The remaining 92 hereditary peers are allowed to sit temporarily in the transitional chain-her until the full reform programme is in place.

General elections are held after Parliament has been "dissolved", either by a royal proclamation or because the maximum term between elections, five years, has expired. The decision on when to hold a general election is made by the Prime Minister.

For electoral purposes Britain is divided into constituencies, each of which returns one MP to the House of Commons. The British electoral system is based on the relative majority method, sometimes called the "first past the post" principle, which means the candidate with more votes than any other is elected.

All British citizens together with citizens of other Commonwealth countries and citizens of the Irish Republic resident in Britain may vote, provided they are aged 18 years or over and not legally barred from voting. People not entitled to vote include those serving prison sentences, peers and peeresses who are members of the House of Lords, and those kept in hospital under mental health legislation.

Voting is by secret ballot. The elector selects just one candidate on the ballot paper and marks an "X" by the candidate’s name. Voting in elections is voluntary. On average about 75 per cent of the electorate votes.

Any person aged 21 or over who is a British citizen or citizen of another Commonwealth country or the Irish Republic may stand for election to Parliament, provided they are not disqualified. People disqualified include those who are bankrupt, those sentenced to more than one year’s imprisonment, members of the clergy, members of the House of Lords, and a range of public servants and officials. Approved candidates are usually selected by their political party organizations in the constituency which they represent, although candidates do not have to have party backing.

The leader of the political party which wins most seats (although not necessarily most votes) at a general election, or who has the support of a majority of members in the House of Commons, is by convention invited by the Sovereign to form the new government.

Task 4:

【答案】

A.

1) Marriage is completely controlled by the state and it's very selective and only the best marry the best.

2) On the plus side, all religions are tolerated. No money changes hands, in fact there is no monetary system at all, so there's no love of property and acquisition, therefore there's no greed, therefore no theft.

3) After you have your children, the State takes them away from you and they take them to this place where they teach them good habits and make them want to learn.

4) Because it is high in Tibet, surrounded by mountains and inaccessible to the whole of the world.

B.

Children in Plato's Republic go to school until they're 20 years old and then they do tests. The ones who fail these tests become businessmen, workers, farmers, and they're capitalists who are permitted to own property and to use money.

The ones who pass the tests do another 10 years of education and then they do more tests, and the ones who fail these tests become soldiers and they live in a communist society and they own no property and they don't have any money, they share everything.

    The ones who pass these further tests go on to study philosophy for another 5 years, and then they live practical lives in the real world for another 15 years and then when they're 50, they become "guardians", the political leaders. And their only possession is in fact power.

C.

Four Visions of the Perfect Society

 

	Plato’s Republic	Thomas More’s Utopia	H. G. Wells’ Utopia	James Hilton’s Shangri-La
Position		7
Political Institutions	8	10, 13	6, 17 19
Education		1
People and Society	3	4, 16	2, 12, 15	5, 11, 18
Children	14, 20		9

 

【原文】

Presenter: I suppose everyone wishes the world could be a perfect place, where everyone lives in happy harmony. Well, we're going to hear about four visions of the perfect society. Going back to Ancient Greece first, Plato was born in 427 BC and he called his imaginary perfect society "the Republic". Philippa?

lippa: Now, Plato's Republic has only got 5,040 citizens and that's the number that can be addressed by one orator. The political leaders of the Republic are called "guardians". Now, children in Plato's Republic go to school until they're 20 years old and they do tests. The ones who fail these tests become businessmen, workers, farmers, and they're capitalists who are permitted to own property and to use money. The ones who pass the tests do another 10 years of education and then they do more tests, and the ones who fail these tests become soldiers and they live in a communist society and they own no property and they don't have any money—they share everything. The ones who pass these further tests go on to study philosophy for another 5 years, and then they live practical lives in the world—in the real world for another 15 years and then when they're 50, they become "guardians", the political leaders. And their only possession is in fact power. And in the Republic there are 360 guardians and each month 30 of these rules over the Republic.

Um... marriage is interesting: In Plato's Republic, marriage is completely controlled by the state and it's very selective and only the best marry the best. And children: The... the very.., the superior children are allowed to survive but in fact all the rest are killed at birth. And they're brought up not by their parents, but collectively as a group.

Presenter: Well, thank you, Philippa. Now, Thomas More lived from 1478 to 1535 and he actually invented the term Utopia, didn't he, Terry?

Terry: Yes. Yes, he took it from the.., from the Greek, and it means "No place". Thomas More's Utopia is on an island 800 kilometers round, somewhere in the Pacific with therefore, I suppose, a reasonably fair climate.

On the political side it's not everything we'd consider right now, but he had it ruled by a king, where slaves did menial work, and where women were inferior to men. On the plus side, however, all religions were tolerated. No money changes hands; in fact there is no monetary system at all, so there's no... no love of... of property and acquisition; there fore there's no greed, therefore no theft.

Every adult male works six hours a day at a job that he likes to do and a job which sepses the needs of the community. He doesn't receive payment, as I said, in money: He receives what he needs from a… a common store—food, drink that sort of thing for his family. Each group of 30 families eject a leader, and every 10 leaders elect a chief; the chief becomes a member of the national council The national council elects one king, who rules for life, so it's a sort of democratically elected king.

 Education…well, that emphasizes vocational subjects, obviously subjects which will be useful to the people who work, for the benefit of the community? so it all ties in. And war is only acceptable when it's absolutely necessary; there are to be no common squabbles or little petty rows.

Presenter: Fine! H. G. Wells, who was born in 1866 and died in 1946, also had a vision of Utopia. Polly?

Polly: Well, Wells' Utopia is a world state, so that means one government for the whole world. And in this world government the state owns all the land and 31t the sources of power and food. But individuals can still own and inherit property, so you can have some personal things. He's really into high-tech: He has these visions of these amazing electric, trains that go at 300 kilometers per hour and they've got libraries and sofas and reading rooms—it's really just extraordinary. And he thinks that most work should be done by machines, which is a nice idea, so people have a lot of free time.

 Now, his world is governed by this special ruling class and you have to take a test to qualify, and if you qualify you're not allowed to smoke or drink or gamble, but you can tell the rest of the world what to do!

Personal details of every person on the planet are kept in what I guess is a huge computer in Paris, and this information is used to control population and labor and tell the underlings how to live their lives. Um... and if you want to have children, you have to produce this record that shows you're healthy, and you have enough money and you're the right age. And after you have your children, the state takes them away from you and they take them to this place where they teach the children good habits and make the children want to learn, except I don't know how they make the children do that.

Presenter: Hm, fine! And finally, Shangri-La. James Hilton wrote about this magic land in his novel Lost Horizon, which was made into a film in 1937, and I believe, was remade in 1973, wasn't it, Tony?

Tony: Yes, that's right. Shangri-La is high in Tibet, China, and it's surrounded by mountains and it's inaccessible to the whole of the world, so it's idyllic. Now, in Shangri-La people live to be at least 200 years old or more. They all eat magic berries that keep them young, and they practice yoga and they all follow the teachings of Buddha. The inhabit-ants of Shangri-La devote their entire lives to contemplation, research and the pursuit of wisdom. They're all good-mannered, honest and sober, and very happy.

 

Task 5:

【答案】

A.

1) T

2) F

3) T

4) F

5) F

B.

1) The Federal Government has a Senate and House of Commons, and each province, also has a House of Commons.

2) It has two red bands at either end with a red maple leaf in the middle.

3) Yes, they do. Anyone who does not bother to vote has to pay a fine.

4) The New Zealand Parliament has only one house, which it calls the House of Representatives. New Zealand MPs are elected by proportional representaton, while the UK uses the "first past the post" system.

5) The Queen is head of these three governments, but is represented by a Governor-General.

 

【原文】

The Canadian government is more British in style than American, except that it is a federal government. The head of government is the Prime Minister, often called the "PM" am.

The Federal Government has a Senate and House of Commons, and each province also rigs a House of Commons. Canada now belongs to the Commonwealth of Nations—nations which once belonged to the British Empire. Her ties with the mother country are not as strong as they were. She has a new flag which has two red bands at either end with a red maple leaf in the middle. The maple tree is the national tree of Canada. In the fall, maple leaves turn a brilliant red and orange.

Queen Elizabeth Ⅱis still Queen of Canada. She is head of the government, as in Britain, but has a Governor-General to represent her. She is still quite popular among Anglophone Canadians, but she is more popular still in the USA!

Like the USA, Australia is a federation of states, but both federal and state governments are run on British, not American lines. Australian members of Parliament arc elected by proportional representation. Everyone aged 18 and over has to vote in federal and state elections. Anyone who I does not bother to vote has to pay a fine. There are two main parties, Labour, a middle-of-the-road socialist party, and the Liberal Party, which stands for free enterprise.

The New Zealand Parliament has only one use, which it calls the House of Representatives. MPs re elected by proportional representation. There are two main parties, the Labour Party and the National Party, which is a conservative welfare party. The Queen is head of both the Australian and the New Zealand governments, but is represented in both cases by a Governor-General.

 

Task 6:

【答案】

A.

1) The Crown represents both the Sovereign--the person on whom the Crown is constitutionally conferred—and the Government, and is the symbol of supreme executive power.

2) Constitutional conventions mean the rules which are not part of the law', but which are regarded as indispensable to the machinery of government.

B.

1) In Parliament: The Queen has the power to summon and dissolve Parliament. Before a Bill becomes law the Queen must give it her Royal Assent.

2) In justice: The Queen has the power to pardon or show mercy to those convicted of crimes and she is immune from civil or criminal proceedings and cannot be sued in courts of law.

3) Honours and appointments: The Queen has the power to confer peerages, knighthoods and other honours, and to make appointments to many important state offices.

4) In foreign policy: The Queen has the power to conclude treaties, to declare war and to make peace, to recognize foreign states and governments and to annex and cede territory.

 

【原文】

The Crown, which represents both the Sovereign (the person on whom the Crown is constitutionally conferred) and the Government, is the symbol of supreme executive power. The Crown is vested in the Queen, but in general its functions are exercised by Ministers responsible to Parliament and thus Britain is governed by Her Majesty’s Government in the name of the Queen. However, the Queen’s involvement is still required in many important acts of government.
    The Queen summons, prorogues (discontinues until the next session without dissolving) and dissolves Parliament. She normally opens the new session of Parliament with a speech from the
throne which is written for her by the Government and outlines her Government’s programme. Before a Bill becomes law the Queen must give it her Royal Assent, which is announced to both Houses of Parliament.
    The Queen can, on ministerial advice, pardon or show mercy to those convicted of crimes. In law the Queen as a private person can do no wrong: she is immune from civil or criminal proceedings and cannot be sued in courts of law. This immunity is not shared by other members of the royal family.
    The Queen has the power to confer peerages, knighthoods and other honors. She normally does this on the recommendation of the Prime Minister, although a few honors are conferred by the Sovereign personally. The Queen makes appointments to many important state offices, on the advice of the Prime Minister or the relevant Cabinet Minister.
    Foreign diplomatic representatives in London are accredited to the Queen, and she has the power to conclude treaties, to declare war and to make peace, to recognize foreign states and governments and to annex and cede territory.

The Queen presides over meetings of the Privy Council. At these, among other things, Orders in Council made under the Royal Prerogative or under statute are approved. The Royal Prerogative mainly comprises executive government powers controlled by constitutional conventions, meaning the rules which are not part of the law, but which are regarded as indispensable to the machinery of government. In nearly all cases acts involving the Royal Prerogative are performed by Ministers who are responsible to Parliament and can be questioned about policies. Parliament has the power to abolish or restrict a prerogative right.

In addition to being informed and consulted about all aspects of national life, the Queen is free to put forward her own views, in private, for the consideration of her Ministers.