Question

A wise man once said that the only thing necessary for the victory of evil is for good men to do nothing. So, as a police officer, I have some urgent things to say to good people. Day after day my men and I struggle to hold back a tidal wave of crime. Something has gone terribly wrong with our once-proud American way of life. It has happened in the area of values. A key ingredient is disappearing, and I think I know what it is: accountability.

Accountability isn’t hard to define. It means that every person is responsible for his or her actions and liable for their consequences.

Of the many values that hold civilization together --- honesty, kindness, and so on --- accountability may be the most important of all. Without it, there can be no respect, no trust, no law --- and, ultimately, no society.

My job as a police officer is to impose accountability on people who refuse, or have never learned, to impose it on themselves. But as every policeman knows, external controls on people’s behavior are far less effective than internal restraints such as guilt, shame and embarrassment.

Fortunately there are still communities --- smaller towns, usually --- where schools maintain discipline and where parents hold up standards that declare: “In this family certain things are not tolerated --- they simply are not done!”

Yet more and more, especially in our larger cities and suburbs, these inner restraints are loosening. Your typical robber has none. He considers your property his property; he takes what he wants, including your life if you annoy him.

The main cause of this breakdown is a radical shift in attitudes. Thirty years ago, if a crime was committed, society was considered the victim. Now, in a shocking reversal, it’s the criminal who is considered victimized: by his underprivileged (被剥夺基本社会权利的) upbringing, by the school that didn’t teach him to read, by the church that failed to reach him with moral guidance, by the parents who didn’t provide a stable home.

I don’t believe it. Many others in equally disadvantaged circumstances choose not to engage in criminal activities. If we free the criminal, even partly, from accountability, we become a society of endless excuses where no one accepts responsibility for anything. We in America desperately need more people who believe that the person who commits a crime is the one responsible for it..

1.What the wise man said suggests that it’s __________.

A. unnecessary for good people to do anything in face of evil

B. certain that evil will be widespread if good men do nothing about it

C. only natural for good men to defeat evil

D. desirable for good men to keep away from evil

2. According to the author, if a person is found guilty of a crime, ________.

A. society is to be held responsible

B. modern civilization is responsible for it

C. the criminal himself should bear the blame

D. the standards of living should be improved

3. Compared with those in small towns, people in large cities have ________.

A. less self-discipline B. better sense of discipline

C. more respect to each other D. less effective government

4. The writer is sorry to have noticed that ________.

A. people in large cities tend to excuse criminals

B. people in small towns still stick to old discipline and standards.

C. today’s society lacks sympathy for people in difficulty

D. people in disadvantaged circumstances are engaged in criminal activities

5. The key point of the passage is that ________.

A. stricter discipline should be maintained in schools and families

B. more good examples should be set for people to follow

C. more attention should be paid to people’s behavior

D. more people should accept the value of accountability

 

Answer 1

1.B

2.C

3.A

4.A

5.D

【解析】

试题分析: 本文从一名警察的角度分析了美国社会中犯罪活动猖獗的原因。作者认为将犯罪行为归咎于外部环境因素是犯罪活动猖獗的主要原因，从而提出“更多的人应该认识到真正该为犯罪行为负责的是罪犯自己”。

1.B 细节理解题。作者以一句智者的话“邪恶的胜利就是善良之人无所作为”引入主题，然后在下文提出：人们对罪犯不应该再采取纵容的态度，为他们的犯罪行为寻找借口，而应该认识到真正对犯罪行为负责的应该是罪犯本人。由此判断这位智者说的话意思是指如果好人纵容邪恶，那么邪恶就会泛滥。选B。

2.C推理判断题。根据文章倒数第二段内容Thirty years ago, if a crime was committed, society was considered the victim. Now, in a shocking reversal, it’s the criminal who is considered victimized:可知在现在的社会人们往往认为是父母，社会或者恶劣的生活环境等这些外因造成了某些犯罪行为的发生，所以他们认为社会该对某些犯罪行为负责，答案选C。

3.A根据文章第六段内容Yet more and more, especially in our larger cities and suburbs, these inner restraints are loosening.可知在大城市里人们的自律性更差些，答案选A。

4.A推理判断题。根据文章倒数第三段内容可知大城市里的人们自律性变差，约束力非常松散，所以他们往往会对某些罪犯存在同情心，更轻易地原谅罪犯，从而间接地纵容犯罪行为，故答案选A。

5.D文章开头提出责任感的缺失和人们自我约束力的松散助长了犯罪的发生，认为对纪律和标准的坚持才是遏制犯罪的主要手段，然后在下文就此进行分析，而且在文章末尾作者提出We in America desperately need more people who believe that the person who commits a crime is the one responsible for it..由此判断文章的主要目的就是呼吁人们要更加自律，重视责任感的价值，答案选D。

考点：考查社会生活类短文阅读。