Добавил:
ivanov666
Опубликованный материал нарушает ваши авторские права? Сообщите нам.
Вуз:
Предмет:
Файл:Английский язык для студентов-юристов и историков = English for Students of Law and History. Учебное пособие
.pdf
21
5. Fill in the correct prepositions, then make sentences using the completed
phrases.
1 to be made …. ….; 2 to be based …. smth.; 3 to be formed …. the party; 4 to
be responsible ….; 5 to be held …. secret ballot; 6 to be carried …. ….; 7 to
govern …. one’s own way.
Speaking
6. Make up 8 sentences and try to say each of them by heart.
1. The powers of the Queen
1. direct national policy.
2. The bodies of the legislature
consist of
2. is the House of Lords.
3. The bodies of the executive
consist of
3. usually takes policy decisions with the
agreement of his Cabinet.
4. The entire constitutional and
state apparatus
4. is in the hands of the tiny section of rich
property owners.
5. The Cabinet and other
ministers of the Crown
5. the Cabinet and other ministers of the
Crown, government departments, local
authorities and *statutory boards.
6. The Prime Minister
6. control many services at the local level.
7. The highest judicial body
7. are hereditary, not elective.
8. Local authorities
8. the House of Lords and the House of
Commons, together with the Queen.
* statutory boards are responsible for the operation of particular nationalized
industries or public services.
7. Look through the text above, then close your books and try to complete
the following sentences.
• Parliament comprises ………………………………………………………
• The Lords is made up of ……………………………………………………
• The House of Commons consists of ………………………………………..
• In modern practice the centre of parliamentary power is …………………..
• The main function of the House of Lords is …………………………………
22
• The main function of the House of Commons is …………………………….
• General elections to choose MPs and the next Government must …………..
• Voting, which is not compulsory, is …………………………………………
• Two-party system governments are formed by ……………………………...
• The leader of the government chooses ………………………………………
• The second largest party traditionally forms …………………………………
• Ministers are collectively responsible for ……………………………………
• Local government is carried out by …………………………………………..
Reading
8. Read the text about the English Constitution, translate it, using a
dictionary and explain the difference between the “unwritten” Constitution and
“flexible” Constitution. Which Constitution corresponds to Great Britain, the
USA, Russia?
The English Constitution and Theory and Practice Diversity
To understand English constitutional law it is necessary to study numerous
documents, including constitutional treaties like the Bill of Rights, various statutes
and judicial decisions and others. But the whole of the Constitution of Britain will not
be found in any of these documents. The English constitution, though partly written,
is yet to be regarded as “unwritten” from the standpoint of constitutional lawyers, as
it is not codified as a whole in any particular document or documents. The English
Constitution is considered to be flexible because Parliament *can “make or unmake”
any law by the same procedure and with the same ease.
The Constitution is not the source of the law, but the law gives birth to the
Constitution.
Though the King (Queen) is the nominal Sovereign, any particular Parliament
during the period of its existence is legally supreme.
In England *the rights of the subject are mostly deduced from actual decisions
in which remedies have been afforded for their invasion. Thus it is sometimes said
that under the English Constitution *the remedy precedes the right.
In administering justice the Judges enjoy little arbitrary power. The law, which
they administer, is defined by statutes and other documents *having statutory validity
and by judicial precedents.
Certain important Conventions control the entire working of the Constitution.
These Conventions relate to the duties of the King as a person, the duties of the
Ministers of the Crown and so on.
Theory and practice concerning English constitutional law are divergent, as it
is seen from the following illustrations:
1. In theory the Sovereign is to be an active party to the making of laws, but in
practice he has a shadowy veto.
23
2. In theory every Lord of Parliament is a Judge of the House of Lords, entitled
to take part in appeals from the lower Courts; in practice *he always absents himself
unless qualified by statute to sit there as one of the quorum.
3. In theory certain persons (e.g. Lord Mayor) are invested with judicial powers
at trials in the Central Criminal Court, but in practice they don't take part in judicial
work there.
4. In theory certain public departments are supposed to be controlled by boards
consisting of various high officials (e.g. the Board of Trade), but the real head is a
single Minister of the Crown (e.g. the President of the Board of Trade).
5. Finally, Legislature and Executive are joined together by a connecting
chain — the Cabinet.
*can «make or unmake» any law — может составить или аннулировать
любой закон
*the rights of the subject are deduced from actual decisions — права
подданных складываются на основании фактических судебных решений
*the remedy precedes the right — средство судебной защиты предшествует
закону
*having statutory validity — имеющие силу закона
*he always absents himself unless qualified by statute to sit there as one of the
quorum — он всегда уклоняется, кроме тех случаев, когда закон
уполномочивает его заседать для обеспечения кворума
Speaking
9. Answer the questions and speak about the diversity of theory and
practice concerning English constitutional law.
1. What is it necessary to do in order to understand English Constitutional law?
2. Why is the English Constitution to be regarded as “unwritten” from the
standpoint of constitutional lawyers?
3. Is the English Constitution rigid or flexible?
4. The Constitution is the source of the law, isn't it?
5. What power do the judges enjoy in administering justice?
6. What law do the judges administer?
7. What can you say about theory and practice concerning English
constitutional law?
8. In what way are the Legislature and Executive joined together?
Writing
10. Find some facts concerning the Russian Constitution and write a short
commentary about the topic comparing the Russian Constitution to the English
24
one. Do they have much in common? Are they different to some extend? Discuss
your ideas with your group mates.
Just for fun
Great Britain Quiz
How much do you know about Great Britain? Decide whether these
statements about Great Britain are true or false. Put T (True) or F (False) on the
line next to the sentence.
1. If you drive a car in Scotland you will have to drive on the left. ……
2. If you go on a sightseeing tour of London you will be able to see the
National Gallery. ……
3. If you go to Madam Tussaud's you'll be able to buy new clothes for
yourself......
4. If you go shopping in Cardiff you will have to change English
pounds to Welsh pounds. ……
5. If you want to see how the bridges raise London, go to Tower
Bridge. ……
6. If you go to Piccadilly Сircus you'll see Nelson Column. ……
7. If you go to Regent's Park you'll be able to visit London Zoo. ……
8. If you fly from London to Scotland you'll have to show your passport at the
airport. ……
9. If you take the ferry to Northern Ireland you will cross over the English
Channel. ……
25
4. FROM THE HISTORY OF THE USA
Warm up Activities
1. There are lots of famous dates in the history of the USA. Match the date
to the important event.
1492
the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima in
Japan by America.
1945
the end of the revolutionary war.
1776
the biggest war for independence lasted.
1620
Columbus discovered America.
1782
Englishmen arrived in America on board the ship
“Mayflower” to live and to work there.
1775-1783
John F. Kennedy was assassinated.
1861-1865
Neil Armstrong became the first person to walk on the
moon.
1969
Islamic extremists hijacked 4 commercial passenger
jets and deliberately flew them into major American
landmarks.
1865
Abraham Lincoln was assassinated.
September 11,
2001
the Civil War lasted.
1963
the United States of America was founded.
26
Reading
1. Read a short article about the United States of America. Then match the
words in bold to the definitions.
The United States of America (I)
The United States of America, one of the biggest countries
in the world, is situated in the southern half of North America. It
occupies a favourable geographical position being washed by
two oceans and the Gulf of Mexico. Today the USA covers an
area of 9.4 million sq. km. Stretching from the Atlantic to the
Pacific Ocean the USA borders upon Canada in the north and
upon Mexico in the south.
The American Indians were the first people to live in that
vast land. They had a fascinating, ancient culture, and rich
traditions of language and customs.
When Christopher Columbus arrived, in 1492, there were probably about
1,500,000 Indians in North America. But then, immigrants came. By the early
nineteenth century, the population was more than 17 million. Most came from the
Middle East and the Far East, as well as millions of Africans, caught in the terrible
slave.
Immigration went on growing, so the population grew from 4 million (1790) to
235 million inhabitants now.
The USA is a federation of 50 states. The United States’ flag is called the
“Stars and Stripes”. It has thirteen red and white stripes and fifty white stars on a blue
square. One star is for each state of the United States now, and the stripes are for the
first thirteen states of the union.
The biggest river in the United States is the Mississippi. The largest lakes are
the Great Lakes, five in number. The highest mountain chains are the Appalachians
in the east and Cordilleras in the west.
On the whole USA has a continental climate but every part of the country is
different, from Alaska in the north, covered with snow and ice, to the tropical Florida
in the south. It is at the same time one of the hottest and of the coldest countries; one
of the wettest and one of the driest.
The USA is a highly developed industrial and agricultural country. Heavy
industry prevails in the USA, including mining, metallurgical, machine-building and
chemical industries. Being well developed light industry includes textile, leather,
footwear and food industries.
The capital of the USA is the city of Washington; New York is a centre of
finance, of shipping, of fun; New Orleans deals in cotton; Chicago is famous for
wheat and cattle; Detroit is a centre of the car industry.
27
………………..
a row of mountains or islands
………………..
to be the most important feature
………………..
the skin of an animal made smooth and flexible
………………..
a kind of grain used in making flour and pasta
………………..
domesticated cows and bulls
………………..
people that are permanent residents of a particular place
or region
………………..
advantageous, encouraging or promising
………………..
………………..
to exist and increase in size
attractive or delightful
2. Match the opposites.
rich
wet
heavy
northern
light
low
hot
dry
southern
the same
high
cold
various
poor
Speaking
3. Copy the chart in Unit I, Ex.4, and complete it with information from
the text. Then speak about the USA.
Reading
4. Read the article about the United States of America and translate it,
using a dictionary. Then try to remember the words in bold.
The United States of America (II)
In 1776, the thirteen weak British colonies in America came together, stood
up, and told that from now on they would be free and independent states.
28
A bitter six-year war followed (1776-82) and a new republic was founded,
turning into reality the dreams and ideals of a few political philosophers. It’s hard to
appreciate today, over two centuries later, what a revolutionary act this was.
Americans broke with age-old tradition; they decided that it was their right to
choose their own form of government. At that time, the statement that governments
should receive their powers only “from the consent of the governed” was radical
indeed. Something new was under the sun: a system of government, in Lincoln’s
words, “of the people, by the people, for the people”.
The former colonies, now “the United States of America”, first operated under
an agreement called the Articles of Confederation (1781). It was soon clear that this
loose agreement among the states was not working well. The central, federal
government was too weak, with too few powers for defence, trade and taxation.
In 1787, therefore, delegates from the states met in Philadelphia. They wanted
to revise the Articles, but they did much more than that. They wrote a completely
new document - the Constitution, which after much argument, debate, and
compromise was finished in the same year and officially adopted by the thirteen
states by 1790.
The Constitution sets the basic form of government: three separate branches,
each one having powers (“checks and balances”) over the others. It specifies the
powers and duties of each federal branch of government, with all other powers and
duties belonging to the states.
5. Mark the sentences as T (true), F (false) or D (don’t know).
1. In the 18th century the thirteen British colonies declared themselves
independent. …………
2. The Revolutionary war continued until 1781. …………
3. The new system of government was chosen. ……….
4. The first agreement called the Articles of Confederation was loose and
didn’t work well.
5. The coat-of-arms of the US represents an eagle with wings outspread. ……..
6. Delegates from the states met to revise the Articles, but they did much
more. ……..
7. The Constitution was officially adopted by the thirteen states by 1890. ……..
8. The Constitution states the powers and duties of each separate branch. …….
Vocabulary Exercises
6. Fill in the correct prepositions, then make sentences using the completed
phrases.
1 to stand ….; 2 ….the consent …. the governed; 3 …. that time; 4 powers ….
defence; 5 …. the people, …. the people, …. the people; 6 to be finished …. the same
year; 7 to turn …. reality.
29
7. Find the words in the text above that mean:
…………………- a union of states or groups …………………..- ex-colonies
…………………- hard, difficult .………………….- feeble
…………………- to disrupt .………………….- to accept
…………………- to get …………………..- protection
…………………- actually, really …………………..- verification
Speaking
8. Speak about the first steps of the young republic using the following
prompts.
The thirteen British colonies → a bitter six-year war → a new republic → a
new system of government → the Articles of Confederation → a new document - the
Constitution → the system of ‘checks and balances’.
Writing
9. Were there any important turning points in the history of Russia? Write
an essay about the most famous dates in your country’s history.
Just for fun
Unscramble these cities, states or places. The first letter is capitalized.
With the letters in squares, fill in the spaces to get the word combination below.
enTeenses
T e n n e s s e e gashonnWit
_ _ _ 4 _ _ _ _ _ _ necCoitucnt
_ _ _ _ 5 _ _ _ _ _ _
riDteto
1 2 _ _ _ _ _ weN coxMei
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ 9 _ sanchAppalai
_ _ _ _ 5 6 _ _ _ _ _ _ sMsiiuro
_ _ _ _ _ _ 7 _ poCalit
_ 2 _ _ 5 _ _ sipiipsMssi
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 11 rokBonyl
_ _ 3 _ _ _ _ 8 reClodrila
_ 2 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ rinoCafali
_ _ _ _ 5 _ _ _ _ _
oIsillni
1 _ _ _ 5 _ _ _ davaNe
_ _ _ _ 5 _
30
hhiPpilalade
_ _ _ _ _ _ 7 _ 9
_ _ _
verDen
_ 2 _ _ _ _ lantatA
_ _ _ _ 5 _ _ lyoHlodow
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 9 weN korY
_ 2 _ _ _ _ _ antanMhat
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 9 gohicaC
_ _ _ 4 _ _ _ weN rOsalen
_ _ _ _ _ _ 7 _ _ _
T
Соседние файлы в предмете [НЕСОРТИРОВАННОЕ]