BBC LEARNING ENGLISH
Take Away English 随身英语
Saving Mr Chimp
拯救大猩猩先生
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Vocabulary: judicial case 庭审案例
Should animals be entitled to the same rights
as people? The question is not so outlandish.
A judge in the US once suggested that
chimpanzees had the right to habeas corpus.
Judge Barbara Jaffe was ruling on the case of
Leo and Hercules. These two primates have
their own lawyers arguing that they should
be moved from a university lab to an animal
sanctuary. She did change her mind after a
while. Does friendship mean anything to him (or it)?
Animals have always intrigued us. Some people find them very intelligent and capable of
friendship, jealousy and longing. That's enough to give them rights, isn't it? Not for people like
Professor Carl Cohen of the University of Michigan. He says that rights are a concept special to
the human moral code. And animals don't know anything about right and wrong. The
academic points out: "Animals do not commit crimes; animals are not attacked for their
moral views."
In any case, humans have become more sensitive to animal suffering throughout the years. In
1999, New Zealand granted basic rights to five great ape species. Their use in research,
testing or teaching was banned in a move seen as the greatest legal success in animal rights
history.
In 2002, in an unprecedented move in the European Union, Germany granted some rights to
animals in its constitution.
The ambiguous relationship between people and animals can be perceived in language. In
English the pronoun used for an animal is 'it'. But many people refer to their pets as 'he' or
'she'. It makes them more of an equal to us.
What do you think? Should animals have rights similar to humans?
词汇表请参看答案与词汇部分
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Quiz 测验
阅读短文并回答问题。
1. Who might be moving from a lab to a sanctuary?
2. What do animals lack, according to Professor Carl Cohen?
3. What can't apes be used for in New Zealand?
4. Which pronouns can you use for animals in English?
5. Which noun means feeling pain or distress?
Exercise 练习
请你在不参考课文的情况下完成下列练习。从每个表格中选择一个意思合适的单词填入
句子的空格处。
1. When Joanne got divorced the judge said she was __________ to half of her husband assets.
granted entitled given taken
2. Men and women are __________ before the law.
sensitive relative equal similar
3. I must point __________ that not everything you say is true.
at to on out
4. The judge told Mr. Ross: "If you __________ the crime, you have to accept the punishment."
make commit act take
5. Lady Gaga wears __________ clothes. She has even worn an outfit made of meat!
outside out of bounds outlandish out of order
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Answers and Glossary 答案与词汇
Quiz 小测验
1. Who might be moving from a lab to a sanctuary?
Primates Leo and Hercules.
2. What do animals lack, according to Professor Carl Cohen?
A moral code, which includes the concept of right and wrong.
3. What can't apes be used for in New Zealand?
Research, testing or teaching.
4. Which pronouns can you use for animals in English?
It, she, he, them.
5. Which noun means feeling pain or distress?
Suffering.
Exercise 练习
1. When Joanne got divorced the judge said she was entitled to half of her husband assets.
2. Men and women are equal before the law.
3. I must point out that not everything you say is true.
4. The judge told Mr. Ross: "If you commit the crime, you have to accept the punishment."
5. Lady Gaga wears outlandish clothes. She has even worn an outfit made of meat!
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Glossary 词汇表
to be entitled 有资格的，有资格享受的
outlandish 奇异古怪的
a judge 一位法官
habeas corpus 人身保护权
to rule （动词）裁决
to argue 争辩
an animal sanctuary 一个动物庇护所、动物保护区
a moral code 一项道德规范
to commit crimes 犯罪
to grant basic rights 授予基本权力
legal 法律（上）的
unprecedented 前所未有的，没有先例的
constitution 宪法，大法
ambiguous 模糊的，不明确的
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