2017年考研英语真题与翻译

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Text 3

全文翻译

罗伯特·肯尼迪曾说过，一个国家的GDP能衡量“除了使生活变得有意义的事之外的任何事物。”由于英国投票决定脱离欧盟，其GDP预计会出现下跌。现在是时候来思考肯尼迪所说的话了。

有关对GDP及其有用性的质疑已经困扰政策制定者超过半世纪了。许多人认为GDP是一个有瑕疵的概念。其衡量一些无关紧要的事物，而没有衡量一些重要的事物。最近的衡量结果表明，英国的GDP因其低失业率以及高增长而令西方世界羡慕。如果一切进展得如此顺利，那为什么1.7亿人在被警告说脱欧将会影响国家经济前景的情况下还要投票支持脱离欧盟呢？

最近一份调查了各国和它们将经济增长转换为幸福感能力的年度报告可能会对上述问题有一定的启示性作用。在163个被调查的国家中，英国在确保将增长转化为公民生活水平提升方面是表现得最差的国家之一。这次调查并没有将衡量重心放在GDP上，其还涉及到了包括健康、教育以及公民社会参与度等40多项不同的指标，以求对接受调查的国家的表现做一个更加全面的评估。

尽管这些国家都面临挑战，但仍然存在许多持续性的主题。确实，自2008年全球衰退以来，经济复苏缓慢，但主要经济体在医疗和教育领域的关键性指标呈现出继续下滑的态势。然而，这并不是所有国家面临的情况。一些相对贫困的欧洲国家在公民社会、收入平等以及环保等指标上都取得了显著的进步。

这是富裕国家需要学习的经验：当GDP不再被视为衡量国家成功的唯一标

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准时，这个世界会变得与众不同。

所以，肯尼迪的言外之意是，尽管GDP是最常用的衡量一个国家经济活动的方法之一，但作为衡量指标，GDP已经不够用了。其并不包括一些重要的因素，比如环境质量或教育成果这些能提升人类幸福感的事物。

意料中全世界及英国经济增长的受挫会导致我们幸福感和经济增长所依赖的日常服务有所下滑。但那些将重心重新放在如何提升幸福感上，而不是简单考虑GDP数据的政策制定者将会避开可以预见的风暴，并能看到进步。

Text 4

In a rare unanimous ruling, the US Supreme Court has overturned the corruption conviction of a former Virginia governor, Robert McDonnell. But it did so while holding its nose at the ethics of his conduct, which included accepting gifts such as a Rolex watch and a Ferrari automobile from a company seeking access to government.

The high court’s decision said the judge in Mr. McDonnell’s trial failed to tell a jury that it must look only at his “official acts,” or the former governor’s decisions on “specific” and “unsettled” issues related to his duties.

Merely helping a gift-giver gain access to other officials, unless done with clear intent to pressure those officials, is not corruption, the justices found.

The court did suggest that accepting favors in return for opening doors is “distasteful” and “nasty.” But under anti-bribery laws, proof must be made of concrete benefits, such as approval of a contract or regulation. Simply arranging a meeting, making a phone call, or hosting an event is not an “official act”.

The court’s ruling is legally sound in defining a kind of favoritism that is not criminal. Elected leaders must be allowed to help supporters deal with bureaucratic problems without fear of prosecution for bribery.“The basic compact underlying representative government,” wrote Chief Justice John Roberts for the court, “assumes that public officials will hear from their constituents and act on their concerns.”

But the ruling reinforces the need for citizens and their elected representatives, not the courts, to ensure equality of access to government. Officials must not be allowed to play favorites in providing information or in arranging meetings simply because an individual or group provides a campaign donation or a personal gift. This type of integrity requires well-enforced laws in government transparency, such as records of official meetings, rules on lobbying, and information about each elected leader’s source of wealth.

Favoritism in official access can fan public perceptions of corruption. But it is

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not always corruption. Rather officials must avoid double standards, or different types of access for average people and the wealthy. If connections can be bought, a basic premise of democratic society—that all are equal in treatment by government—is undermined. Good governance rests on an understanding of the inherent worth of each individual.

The court’s ruling is a step forward in the struggle against both corruption and official favoritism.

36. The underlined sentence (Para.1) most probably shows that the court_________. [A] avoided defining the extent of McDonnell’s duties [B] made no compromise in convicting McDonnell [C] was contemptuous of McDonnell’s conduct [D] refused to comment on McDonnell’s ethics

37. According to Paragraph 4, an official act is deemed corruptive only if it involves___________.

[A] leaking secrets intentionally [B] sizable gains in the form of gifts [C] concrete returns for gift-givers [D] breaking contracts officially

38. The court’s ruling is based on the assumption that public officials are_________. [A] justified in addressing the needs of their constituents [B] qualified to deal independently with bureaucratic issues [C] allowed to focus on the concerns of their supporters [D] exempt from conviction on the charge of favoritism

39. Well-enforced laws in government transparency are needed to__________. [A] awaken the conscience of officials [B] guarantee fair play in official access [C] allow for certain kinds of lobbying [D] inspire hopes in average people

40. The author’s attitude toward the court’s ruling is__________. [A] sarcastic [B] tolerant [C] skeptical [D] supportive

Text 4

全文翻译

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美国最高法院推翻了对前弗吉尼亚州州长罗伯特·麦克唐纳的贪腐指控，法官罕见地一致通过了这一判决。但最高法院是强忍着对麦克唐纳行为道德的鄙视做出这一判决的，其涉嫌接受了一家想要接近政府的公司送给他礼物，包括劳力士手表和法拉利汽车。最高法院的这一判决认为，在麦克唐纳案中，法官并未告知陪审团只要关注其“公务行为”，或者说应该只对这位前州长在某些“特定”且“并未解决”的职责范围内的问题所做的决定进行判决。

法官认为，除非蓄意对相关政府官员施加压力，否则仅仅帮助送礼的公司接触政府官员不能算是腐败。

最高法院确实认为，帮忙牵线政府人员并以此收受好处的行为令人“反感”和“讨厌”。但根据反贿赂法，腐败指控的成立一定要有证据证明官员给送礼人带来了实质性的好处，比如帮其批准了一项合同或规定。仅仅安排见面、打一个电话或举办一次活动并不属于“公务行为”。

法院将这种牵线行为判定为偏袒而非犯罪看上去是合乎法理的。被选举的领袖应当被允许帮助自己的支持者解决政务问题，而不用担心自己背上贪污的指控。最高法院的首席大法官约翰·罗伯茨写道，“代议制政府下的基本条约”意味着公职人员应听取选民意见，并以选民的利益行事。

但是这个判决强化了确保接触政府公平的需要，这主要是针对公民和他们所选举的代表的，而不是法院的。官员不能因个人或组织为其选举活动提供募捐或私人资助而在提供信息或安排与官员见面方面表现出偏袒。这种正直要求具备有关政府透明度方面的切实执行的法律，比如政府会议的记录、游说的规定以及有关每位被选举领导财产来源信息的相关规定。

虽然在与政府官员接触的渠道上发生偏袒行为可能会煽动公众对腐败的反

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感。但这种偏袒行为不一定就意味着腐败。更确切地说，政府官员必须避免对普通人和富人采取双重标准，或者说对他们在接触政府官员这一问题上被区别对待。如果与官员的关系可以被买卖，民主社会的基本信条（即政府应对人人平等）就会受到损害。良好的治理依靠的是对每个个体内在价值的理解。

在打击腐败以及行政不公方面，法院的这一判断是一次进步。

Part B Directions：

The following paragraphs are given in a wrong order. For Questions 41-45, you are required to reorganize these paragraphs into a coherent article by choosing from the list A-G to filling them into the numbered box. Paragraphs B and D have been correctly placed. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET. (10 points)

[A]The first published sketch,“A Dinner at Poplar Walk” brought tears to Dickens’s eyes when he discovered it in the pages of The Monthly Magazine. From then on his sketches, which appeared under the pen name “Boz” in The Evening Chronicle, earned him a modest reputation.

[B]The runaway success of The Pickwick Papers, as it is generally known today, secured Dickens’s fame. There were Pickwick coats and Pickwick cigars, and the plump, spectacled hero, Samuel Pickwick, became a national figure.

[C]Soon after Sketches by Boz appeared, a publishing firm approached Dickens to write a story in monthly installments, as a backdrop for a series of woodcuts by the then-famous artist Robert Seymour, who had originated the idea for the story. With characteristic confidence, Dickens successfully insisted that Seymour’s pictures illustrate his own story instead. After the first installment, Dickens wrote to the artist and asked him to correct a drawing Dickens felt was not faithful enough to his prose. Seymour made the change, went into his backyard, and expressed his displeasure by committing suicide. Dickens and his publishers simply pressed on with a new artist. The comic novel, The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, appeared serially in 1836 and 1837, and was first published in book form in 1837.

[D]Charles Dickens is probably the best-known and, to many people, the greatest English novelist of the 19th century. A moralist, satirist, and social reformer. Dickens crafted complex plots and striking characters that capture the panorama of English society.

[E]Soon after his father’s release from prison, Dickens got a better job as errand boy in law offices. He taught himself shorthand to get an even better job later as a court stenographer and as a reporter in Parliament. At the same time, Dickens, who

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