单选题
Shaming Punishments

Last month, James Connolly, a junior at the University of Massachusetts, stood in front of a local police station wearing a toga(长袍)as punishment.
His crime? He was charged with underage drinking, illegal possession of alcohol and excessive noise while holding a party.
This shaming punishment has increased in the US in recent years, mostly imposed by local judges for less-serious crimes, such as drunk driving and theft.
They believe shame is the best petty crime deterrent (威慑). For example, in Tennessee, Judge James McKenzie has made shoplifters (商店货物扒手) stand outside Wal-Mart with signs that read, "I am a thief put here by order of Judge McKenzie."
"Alternative punishments like community service and fines don"t convey moral condemnation (谴责) of the criminal," said Dan Kahan, a University of Chicago Law School professor, in an article published on the university"s website. "They aren"t shameful enough."
Shaming punishments are sometimes called Scarlet (红色的) Letter punishments. The name comes from US author Nathaniel Hawthorne"s 1850 novel The Scarlet Letter . In this novel, a woman is forced to wear a scarlet "A" on her clothes as punishment for her adultery (通奸).
However, University of Iowa law professor Andrew Hosmanek said there is an important difference between the shaming punishments of colonial America and those assigned in states like Tennessee.
"Early societies often had are acceptance" ceremony to welcome the offender back into main society," says Hosmanek. "Contemporary punishments in America lack this."
Supporters of shaming punishment argue that public shaming is a good way of expressing community values. Some judges say shamed offenders seldom repeat their crimes.
Others aren"t so sure. "There is little evidence to suggest that shaming punishments are successful in preventing people from committing specific crimes. And a shamed criminal may face a hard battle to regain credibility in society," said Hosmanek. "So, a shaming punishment may force the offender into more crimes to support himself."
Experts also debate shaming punishment"s damage to human dignity. "Since the point is to shame, it"s of course degrading (侮辱人格的)," said Linda Malone, director of the Human Rights and National Security Law Programme at William and Mary Law School.
"US law only prohibits punishment that is "cruel and unusual"—not "inhuman and degrading." It"s very difficult for a thief to prove that holding a sign in front of Wal-Mart is "cruel and unusual"."
单选题 James Connolly was accused of all the following crimes EXCEPT ______.
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】[解析] 三正一误细节题。根据题干返回原文第二段He was charged with underage drinking, illegal possession of alcohol and excessive noise while holding a party，说明James Connolly被控三项罪名——未成年饮酒、非法持酒和聚会噪音过大。对比选项，只有B选项走私毒品是不正确的，故答案为B。
单选题 Which of the following punishments does NOT morally condemn a criminal?
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】[解析] 三正一误细节题。根据第五段芝加哥大学Dan Kahan教授的观点：Alternative punishments like community service and fines don"t convey moral condemnation of the criminal，可以看出community service和fines应为正确选项。对比选项，只有D项无酬劳地帮助别人是符合原意的，故答案为D。
单选题 In the novel The Scarlet Letter , a woman is accused of ______.
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】[解析] 此题如果考生具有一定的文学背景知识，即使不看原文也可以选出正确答案，小说《红字》中的字母A代表adultery：通奸。这样可以节省返回原文查找题干的时间。如果考生对此书并不了解，也可参见原文第六段中的内容选出答案。
单选题 The word "suggest" in Paragraph 10 could be best replaced by ______.
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】[解析] 猜词题。首先返回原文定位suggest：“几乎没有证据显示羞辱性处罚能够成功阻止人们犯罪。”suggest：显示、暗示、间接表明。B项：显示，故为正确答案。选项A、C和D分别表示计划，建议；假定，设想；解释，说明。
单选题 What does US law forbid?
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】[解析] 细节考查题。此题较为简单，根据原文末段首句即可直接找出答案US law only prohibits punishment that is "cruel and unusual"—not“inhuman and degrading”。故答案为A。