《英语国家》(下)单元辅导1

1、英语国家概况（下）单元辅导（2）Chapter 1: American BeginningsFocal Points meaning of being an American according to Crevecoeur two immigration movements to the Americas American Indians discovery of America the settlement of Virginia Puritanism the Pilgrim Fathers Quakerism W川iam Penn and his Holy Experiment the c

2、auses and major leaders of the American Revolution the Declaration of Independence the meaning of being an American according to Crevecoeur士 Crevecoeur believed that the American was a new man with the mixed blood of Europeans (P19) or their descendants. This new man left behind him all the ancient

3、European traditions and received new ones in the New World. In North America, all individuals were melted into a new race of the American. This new man acted upon newprinciples, entertained new ideas and formed new opinions.PuritanismPuritans were those who followed the doctrine of John Calvin and w

4、anted to purify the Church of England. They believed that human beings were predestined by God before they were born. Some were Gods chosen people while others were damned to hell. No church nor good works could save people. The sign of being Gods elect was the success in his work or the prosperity

5、in his calling. They also argued that everyone must read the Bible in order to find Gods will and establish a direct contact with God. These beliefs had great impact on American culture.The influence of puritansToday, puritans are no longer in existence. But their legacies are still felt in American

6、 society and culture. The puritans have left rich cultural heritage to future Americans. The American values such a individualism, hard work, respect of education owe very much to the Puritan beliefs. QuakerismQuakers were a group of Protestants. They believed that people could communicate with God

7、because Gods divine light was in everyones heart. They believed in God through faith without the help of church or priests. Those religious beliefs taught them that people were born equal, and not sinful. They worked hard and lived a simple life in order to pleaseGod. William Penn, the founder of Pe

8、nnsylvania, was such a Quaker.Chapter 2: The Political System in the United Statesthe Articles of Confederationthe making of the US Constitutionthe three branches of the federal governmentchecks and balancesthe Bill of Rightspolitical partiesthe legislative branchThe legislative branch of the federa

9、l government is made up of elected representatives from all of the states and is the only branch that can make federal laws, levy federal taxes and declare war or put foreign treaties into effect. It consists of a Congress that is divided into the House of Representative and the Senate. The House of

10、 Representativeshas 435 members who serve two-year terms. The Senate comprises 100 lawmakers who serve six-year terms. Each state, regardless of population, has two senators.美国立法部门立法部门即国会，由50个州选举的议员组成。这是美国政体中惟一可以制订联邦法律，征收联邦税，宣战和批准与外国签订的条约的部 门。众议员任期两年，每个众议员代表本州一个选区，选区的数量根据 每10年一次的人口普查结果来确定。人口多的州可以比小州

11、选举更 多的众议员，有的州只有一名众议员，众议院的议员总数为435人。参议员任期6年，每州不论人口多少均选出两名参议员，而且将任 期错开，每两年改选1/3的参议员。参议院共有参议员100名。法案必须在众参两院都通过，才能成为法律。众议院或参议院提出 法案后，首先必须由一个或几个委员会审议、修订和投票表决，在委 员会获得通过的法案才提交众议院或参议院讨论。在两院之一获得通过的法案，就提交另一院审议。当众议院和参议院通过的法案文本措 辞不同时，两院议员组成的 议会委员会”将设法消除分歧。设法说服 议会议员投票支持或反对某一法案的团体叫做院外活动集团。他们可能在立法程序的任何一个阶段施加影响。一旦两

12、院通过相同文本的法案，该法案就提交总统审批。the executiveThe chief executive is the president, who is elected to a four-year term.A president can be elected to only two terms according to an amendment passedin 1951. The president can propose legislation to Congress. He can veto any bill passed by Congress. The veto can b

13、e overridden by a two-thirds vote in both houses. The president can appoint federal judges as vacancies occur. He is the commander in chief of the armed forces.The president has other broad authorities in running the government departments and handling foreign relations.美国行政部门美国的首席行政官是总统，他与副总统经选举产生，

14、任期四年。根 据1951年生效的一条宪法修正案，总统只能连任一次。副总统只有 在总统死亡或残废时才能接替总统，惟一的正式职责是主持参议院工 作。副总统只有在参议院赞成票及反对票相等时才可以投票。总统的权力很大，但不是无限的。总统是国家政策的主要制订者，经常向国会提出法案。如上文所述，总统也可以否决国会通过的任何 法案。总统还是军队的最高统帅。总统有权在出现空缺时任命联邦法 官，包括最高法院的法官。总统是所属政党的领袖，经常接触新闻媒 体，因此很容易影响舆论。在行政部门内，总统拥有广泛权力，可以发布规章和指令，指导联 邦政府各部、署开展工作。总统任命各部、署的首脑和高级官员。主 要政府部门的首脑

15、称为部长，是总统内阁的成员。联邦政府的大多数 工作人员，却是依据能力而非政治选用的。the judicial branchThe judicial branch is headed by the Supreme Court with a chief justice and 8 associatejustices. The federal courts have jurisdiction over cases arising out of the Constitution and other cases which do not arise out of individual states. T

16、he Supreme Court has the judicial review （司法审查, 复审）power, the power of determining whether congressional legislation; or executive action violates the Constitution.美国司法部门宪法惟一明确规定要设立的是美国最高法院，它是美国司法部门的最高机构。此外，国会建立了11个联邦上诉法院，以及下属大约91个联邦地方法院。美国最高法院在华盛顿特区开庭，其他联邦 法院则分布在美国各城市。联邦法官除非自愿退休，否则终生任职。国会通过复杂的起诉和审讯

17、的程序，才能免去联邦法官的职务。联邦法院审理依据宪法、联邦法律和条约起诉的案件，海事案件， 涉及外国人或外国政府的案件，以及联邦政府成为原告或被告的案 件。最高法院由1名首席法官和8名法官组成。最高法院一般审理低一级联邦法院或州法院审理后提出上诉的案件，例外者为少数。最高法院审理的案件，多数涉及行政部门的行为和国会或州议会通过的法 律如何解释和是否违宪等问题的争论（州法律与联邦法律一样，也必 须与美国宪法一致）the Bill of RightsThe Bill of Rights consists of the first 10 amendments which were added to

18、the Constitution in 1791. The Bill of Rights was passed to guarantee freedom and individual rights such as freedom of speech, theright to assemble in public places, the right to own weapons and so on.1787年在费城起草的宪法， 必须得到美国 13个州中至少9 个州多数 公民的批准才能生效。在各州审议批准的过程中，人们产生了疑虑。许多公民感到不安，因为文件没有明确保障个人的权利。 宪法补充了 10 条修正案， 统一称为权利法案 ，其中写进了民众期盼的文字。 权利法案保障美国人拥有言论自由、宗教信仰自由和出版自由。美国人有权在公共场所集会，抗议政府的行为和要求做出变革。美国人还有携带武器的权利。由