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  3. In the USA, 85% of the population over the age of 21 approve of the death penalty. In the many states which still have the death

In the USA, 85% of the population over the age of 21 approve of the death penalty. In the many states which still have the death

admin2005-06-26  83
问题     In the USA, 85% of the population over the age of 21 approve of the death penalty. In the many states which still have the death penalty, some use the electric chair, which can take up to 20 minutes to kill, while others use gas or lethal injection.
    The first of these was the case of Ruth Ellis who was hanged for shooting her lover in what was generally regarded as a crime of passion. The second was hanged for murders which, it was later proved, had been committed by someone else.
    The pro-hanging lobby(赞成极刑的活动集团)uses four main arguments to support its call for the reintroduction of capital punishment. First there is the deterrence theory, which argues that potential murderers would think twice before committing the act if they knew that they might die if they were caught. The armed bank robber might, likewise, go back to being unarmed.
    The other two arguments are more suspect. The idea of retribution demands that criminals should get what they deserve: if a murderer intentionally set out to commit a crime, he should accept the consequences. Retribution, which is just another word for revenge, is supported by the religious doctrine of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
    The arguments against the death penalty are largely humanitarian(人道主义的). But there are also statistical reasons for opposing it: the deterrence figures do not add up. In Britain, 1903 was the record year for executions and yet in 1904 the number of murders actually rose. There was a similar occurrence in 1946 and 1947. If the deterrence theory were correct, the rate should have fallen.
    The other reasons to oppose the death penalty are largely a matter of individual conscience and belief. One is that murder is murder and the state has no more right to take a life than the individual. The other is that Christianity advises forgiveness, not revenge.
The passage is mainly about______.
选项 A、the argument in favor of the death penalty
B、the argument against the death penalty
C、the argument about the abolition of the death penalty
D、the argument about the reintroduction of the death penalty
答案D
解析 本题考查的是对文章主旨的把握。综观全文，文章开始讲到了执行死刑的方法；然后接着举例说明执行死刑的情况；在文章的后半部分分别提到了赞成和反对再次采用死刑的观点。可见文章主要是围绕着赞成再次采用死刑和反对再次采用死刑来展开的。A、B项都只是文章的部分内容，C项不是本文讨论的问题。只有D项能概括全文。所以应该选D。
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