Reading

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 388.

Lead-in

1. Look at the title of the text. What do you think it is about? Where might you read it?

2. Say words you expect to find in it. Write the vocabulary list of possible words that you could find in that text.

3. Following the title of the text, try to ask at least three (3) questions that a text with this title should answer.

Task 1. Read the text and check which of your “predictions” are true.

Task 2. Explain the words in bold then suggest synonyms for the highlighted words.

What Is Law?

The question "What is law?" has troubled people for many years. Many definitions of law exist. For our purposes, however, law can be defined as the rules and regulations made and enforced by government that regulate the conduct of people within a society.

As a child, you learned about rules first at home and later at school. At home, your parents or guardians made and enforced rules concerning issues such as chores and bedtimes. Teachers and principals established rules about classroom behavior. Rules made and enforced by the government are called laws. The government makes laws that affect almost every aspect of daily life.

One thing is certain: Every society that has ever existed has recognized the need for laws. These laws may have been unwritten, but even preindustrial societies had rules to regulate people's conduct. Without laws, there would be confusion and disorder. This does not mean that all laws are fair or even good, but imagine how people might take advantage of one another without a set of rules.

A democratic system of government cannot function effectively unless its laws are respected by the people the laws are intended to govern. In other words, society must be based on the "rule of law." The rule of law requires that the rules by which we are governed be known in advance and created through democratic processes. Rules should not be made up after the fact by arbitrary actions or decrees. All members of society — average citizens and government officials such as senators, judges, and even the president—are required to support the legal system and obey its laws. No one is above the law.

Task 3. Find English equivalents for the words in the text:

o обеспеченный правовой санкцией

o поведение

o предназначенный

o правопорядок, принцип господства права

o произвол

o подчиняться закону, правилам