Crime and punishment

Mark Twain said: "It is a shameful thing to insult a little child. It has its feelings, it has its small dignity; and since it cannot defend them, it is surely an ignorable act to injure them."

It would be convenient if there were an effective and suitable punishment to fit every childish crime. In theory, the punishment should fit the individual child, his age and his misdemeanor. In practice, even if it were possible to recommend this neat solution, actual punishments would continue to be influenced by variable and unpredictable factors. For example a tired mother smacks her child at the end of a long day for all the irritating things he has done that day, not just for the trivial offense that finally provoked the slap. An outsider who saw only the isolated incident might think her harsh or unreasonable, but the child himself probably understands that the penalty covers a multitude of sins, and that his mother always gets bad-tempered around this time of a busy day.

According to the recent research nine out of ten parents smack their children. But only half of them feel guilty about using it. The statistics is terrifying. Smacking leads to the children's mental disorder and shock. That is why parents should make more effort to understand their children because smacking isn't always the best solution if children are naughty. If only parents tried harder to understand, how their children feel and why they react in certain ways! For example, they might be jealous ofa new baby brother or they might feel insecure – any number of things might make the child react badly. Talking to them, trying to explain why you're upset, what it is they have done wrong is better than hitting them, because if you hit them they learn to hit other things, other people, you, and is not a solution to anything.

Exercise 43. Give English equivalents:

опікун; роздільне проживання подружжя; забезпечувати дітей; задовольняти потреби; неповнолітній; талант до самопожертвування; умови існування; встановлювати графік; укладатися в зарплату; дитячий лікар; спонукати кого-небудь до; проявляти увагу або пошану до дорослих; ображати; відповідати злочину; шльопати; дрібна провина; ставати дратівливим; докладати зусилля; ревнувати до кого-небудь; відчувати невпевненість, не відчувати себе в безпеці.

Exercise 44. Give Ukrainian equivalents:

by statute; custody; to abuse physically or emotionally; paternity; to inherit from one's father's estate; to set up housekeeping; promiscuous; to set aside other functions of life; to fret over; diversion; to conceive; contemptuous of smb; obsequious treatment; dignity; misdemeanor; unpredictable factors; outsider; penalty; mental disorder; to react in certain ways.

Exercise 45. Explain in English:

best qualified; to authorize intervention; to be the subject of legal action; to provide adequate care; to take smb into account; to give up one's life for smb; corporate enterprise; beneficiaries; to have little regards for one's own needs; to teach by one's example; grotesquely inflated respect for smb; ignorable act.

Дата добавления: 2015-11-16