VOA慢速英语2011--What It Means to Be a Good Samaritan

THIS IS AMERICA - What It Means to Be a Good Samaritan

 

STEVE EMBER: Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

FAITH LAPIDUS: And I'm Faith Lapidus. Someone who stops to help a stranger is known as a good Samaritan. This week on our program, we talk about good Samaritans and what laws and science say about them.

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STEVE EMBER: The term "good Samaritan" comes from a story in the Christian¹ bible. We asked a local minister here in Washington to tell us the story.

AARON GRAHAM: "I'm Aaron Graham, lead pastor² of the District Church in Washington, DC."

He says in the Gospel of Luke, a legal expert asks Jesus what it means to love your neighbor.

More than 1,000 students at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, including freshmen3 Brian Oliver, left, and Andre Lumpkin, learned basic CPR at a mass training event in 2009

AARON GRAHAM: "Rather than Jesus giving him a lecture in who his neighbor is, he actually tells a story about a Jewish guy who's on his way up to Jericho from Jerusalem who gets beat up and robbed."

The injured man is lying by the side of the road. Two people walk by. They do not stop to help him. In fact, they walk on the other side of the road to avoid him. Finally, someone from Samaria -- a Samaritan -- comes along.

AARON GRAHAM: "The Samaritan cares for this Jewish guy, he bandages his wounds, he takes him to the inn, and then he even foots the bill for him."

Reverend Graham points out that the Samaritans and the Jews were enemies at that time. But that did not stop the "Good Samaritan" from helping⁴ the injured man.

This idea of helping anyone who needs help is common among cultures and religions.

AARON GRAHAM: "This is a familiar story even beyond the Christian community. One of the things that unites many faiths is this call to love our neighbor. "

FAITH LAPIDUS: Helping others may be a religious duty. But some current research suggests that humans may also have a biological urge, an impulse, to help each other.

Robert Sussman and Robert Cloninger are professors at the University of Washington in St. Louis, Missouri. They worked together on a new book about working together. The book is called "Origins of Altruism⁵ and Cooperation." It brings together work by researchers who study crime, brains, genes⁶, history and other subjects.

Bob Sussman is an anthropologist⁷. Robert Cloninger is a professor of psychiatry⁸ in the School of Medicine. Dr. Cloninger says social animals, including humans, need to cooperate to survive.

ROBERT CLONINGER: "The need to be a social animal was probably a response to people not being safe just living -- functioning in a solitary⁹ way. If they're out in the open field in the bright sunlight they're easily spotted¹⁰, but in groups they're safer."

ROBERT SUSSMAN: "We think cooperation is the core of social living animals, whereas most people who talk about cooperation think it’s a by-product¹¹ of competition."

In other words, in their view, humans first had to learn to cooperate in order to live in groups. Dr. Cloninger suggests that, as a result, people became more intelligent.

This intelligence, he says, helped early people act in a way that was good not just for themselves but also for other people.

STEVE EMBER: The desire to help others can take many forms, including charitable giving.

Aaron Graham told us what his church did on September eleventh to mark the tenth anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the United States. Most of the members are young people seeking experience by working for free in Washington. That Sunday they collected money to help people suffering from the famine in parts of Somalia.

AARON GRAHAM: "I was hoping we could raise a couple thousand dollars. But people gave so generously. They gave fifteen thousand dollars on that Sunday morning."

Charitable giving in the United States last year totaled about two hundred ninety billion dollars. That was up from two hundred eighty billion the year before. Contributions dropped in two thousand nine and two thousand eight as a result of the Great Recession.

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FAITH LAPIDUS: Giving money to a charity could be seen as one way of choosing to be a good Samaritan. But some American states have laws that require people to help in certain situations.

John Mikhail is a law professor at Georgetown University in Washington. He says there are two kinds of so-called good Samaritan laws. These are different from rules requiring teachers, for example, to report child abuse.

One type of good Samaritan law establishes a duty to rescue. This kind of law says people must rescue a stranger who needs help, if it is easy to do so. For instance, a person might have a duty to call out to someone who is about to step into the street and get hit by a car.

Professor Mikhail says the punishment for failing to rescue might be a fine or perhaps jail time. But few states have such laws, he says, pointing out that this kind of law raises questions.

JOHN MIKHAIL: "How much aid are you supposed to render someone who's in need? Why doesn't that apply to the easy case of sending fifty dollars to Oxfam to save a life around the world, or at least someone here at home who's starving and who could easily have harm prevented by your small effort?"

The second type of good Samaritan law protects people who choose to help others.

JOHN MIKHAIL: "Imagine the situation of a doctor on an airplane, or someone calls for a doctor. One type of law that's been pretty sensibly passed is a law that would protect the doctor who offers help in that kind of situation from lawsuits¹², unless they are grossly negligent¹³."

All fifty states have some kind of law that protects good Samaritans in a medical emergency. In July, New York became the latest state to pass a law protecting people who call for help when someone has a drug overdose.

In these cases, the witnesses may not want to call emergency services because they are afraid of getting arrested for having drugs. But New York and a few other states have decided¹⁴ that people who act as good Samaritans in these situations should not have to worry about getting arrested.

STEVE EMBER: Professor Mikhail says good Samaritan laws protect the intuition, the natural sense, that people have to help others in need.

JOHN MIKHAIL: "Couple interesting points about this. One is that the intuition is shared even by young children. And the second is that the intuition is shared across the world."

And he should know. John Mikhail is the author of a new book called "Elements of Moral Cognition." It describes experiments in which he and his colleagues asked people about situations where someone needed help. Professor Mikhail says everyone, no matter what country they were from, expressed a willingness to intervene.

Yet last month there was the story of a two-year-old girl in southern China who was hit by a truck at a street market. Security cameras showed that for seven minutes, no one stopped to help. Then another truck hit her. Finally, a stranger pulled the child to the side of the road. Wang Yue died in a hospital more than a week later.

Her tragic¹⁵ story led to debate and discussion in China and elsewhere about what it means to be a good Samaritan.

FAITH LAPIDUS: So why don't people always help? Social scientists have spent years studying what they call the bystander effect. This involves the social influences that make groups of people less likely to help as they witness a troubling situation.

But Robert Cloninger, the psychiatrist¹⁶, says that among individuals, there are many reasons why people may decide not to act. They might feel afraid they are going to get hurt themselves. They might have had bad experiences in the past. Or they might not get pleasure out of being kind to others.

ROBERT CLONINGER: "If someone is repeatedly abused and neglected, they may form abnormal connections with what's rewarding. Some anti-social people actually become sadistic¹⁷ because of these traumatic past experiences. But that's an abnormal state of the brain."

Robert Sussman, the anthropologist, studies apes and other non-human primates¹⁸ as well as humans. He says there is another reason people might not help.

ROBERT SUSSMAN: "Humans have this thing when they think they're going to be sued. Many of the primates who live in social groups will automatically help in those situations, because they don't have all of these things that they've learned that they could be punished for doing that."

So what is the solution if fear of getting sued might stop someone from helping? Some activists¹⁹ call for more good Samaritan laws to protect people from lawsuits. But Sheldon Richman has another suggestion. Mr. Richman edits a journal, The Freeman: Ideas on Liberty, that teaches the principles of the free market. He says the solution is to change the system of civil law to not make it so easy to sue other people.

STEVE EMBER: Kristin Schroeder says she did not think about laws or lawsuits the day a woman collapsed²⁰ at work.

KRISTIN SCHROEDER: "The ideas of laws just don't even go through my head in a situation like that. What's going through my head is, I want to help this person."

The woman was in her mid-twenties. She had suffered cardiac arrest -- her heart had suddenly stopped beating.

Ms. Schroeder did CPR, cardiopulmonary resuscitation²¹, to keep blood moving through the woman's body until emergency help came. The woman survived, thanks to the CPR.

Kristin Schroeder says she thinks laws that protect good Samaritans make sense. But more important, she says, is education.

KRISTIN SCHROEDER: "You can't fault someone for trying to help. It would be great to educate people with CPR in masses, so that people feel more confident to act."

Those who might like to be good Samaritans should know that new guidelines say bystanders should use the "hands-only" method of CPR. Hands-only CPR means chest compressions without mouth-to-mouth breathing. To watch a demonstration²², go to voaspecialenglish.com for a link to an American Heart Association video.

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FAITH LAPIDUS: Our program was written by Kelly Nuxoll and produced by Brianna Blake. I'm Faith Lapidus.

STEVE EMBER: And I'm Steve Ember. You can find transcripts²³, MP3s and podcasts of our programs at voanews.cn. Join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.

1 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

2 pastor   

n.牧师，牧人

参考例句：

• He was the son of a poor pastor.他是一个穷牧师的儿子。
• We have no pastor at present:the church is run by five deacons.我们目前没有牧师：教会的事是由五位执事管理的。

3 freshmen   

n.（中学或大学的）一年级学生( freshman的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We are freshmen and they are sophomores. 我们是一年级学生，他们是二年级学生。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• University freshmen get lots of razzing, but they like the initiation. 大一新生受各种嘲弄，但是他们对这种入门经验甘之如饴。 来自辞典例句

4 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

5 altruism   

n.利他主义，不自私

参考例句：

• An important feature of moral behaviour is altruism.道德行为一个重要特点就是利他主义。
• Altruism is crucial for social cohesion.利他主义对社会的凝聚是至关重要的。

6 genes   

n.基因( gene的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪

7 anthropologist   

n.人类学家，人类学者

参考例句：

• The lecturer is an anthropologist.这位讲师是人类学家。
• The anthropologist unearthed the skull of an ancient human at the site.人类学家在这个遗址挖掘出那块古人类的颅骨。

8 psychiatry   

n.精神病学，精神病疗法

参考例句：

• The study appeared in the Amercian science Journal of Psychiatry.这个研究发表在美国精神病学的杂志上。
• A physician is someone who specializes in psychiatry.精神病专家是专门从事精神病治疗的人。

9 solitary   

adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士

参考例句：

• I am rather fond of a solitary stroll in the country.我颇喜欢在乡间独自徜徉。
• The castle rises in solitary splendour on the fringe of the desert.这座城堡巍然耸立在沙漠的边际，显得十分壮美。

10 spotted   

adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的

参考例句：

• The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
• Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。

11 by-product   

n.副产品，附带产生的结果

参考例句：

• Freedom is the by-product of economic surplus.自由是经济盈余的副产品。
• The raw material for the tyre is a by-product of petrol refining.制造轮胎的原材料是提炼汽油时产生的一种副产品。

12 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句

13 negligent   

adj.疏忽的；玩忽的；粗心大意的

参考例句：

• The committee heard that he had been negligent in his duty.委员会听说他玩忽职守。
• If the government is proved negligent,compensation will be payable.如果证明是政府的疏忽，就应支付赔偿。

14 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

15 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

16 psychiatrist   

n.精神病专家；精神病医师

参考例句：

• He went to a psychiatrist about his compulsive gambling.他去看精神科医生治疗不能自拔的赌瘾。
• The psychiatrist corrected him gently.精神病医师彬彬有礼地纠正他。

17 sadistic   

adj.虐待狂的

参考例句：

• There was a sadistic streak in him.他有虐待狂的倾向。
• The prisoners rioted against mistreatment by sadistic guards.囚犯因不堪忍受狱警施虐而发动了暴乱。

18 primates   

primate的复数

参考例句：

• Primates are alert, inquisitive animals. 灵长目动物是机灵、好奇的动物。
• Consciousness or cerebration has been said to have emerged in the evolution of higher primates. 据说意识或思考在较高级灵长类的进化中已出现。

19 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

21 resuscitation   

n.复活

参考例句：

• Despite attempts at resuscitation,Mr Lynch died a week later in hospital.虽经全力抢救，但林奇先生一周以后还是在医院去世了。
• We gave him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and heart massage.我们对他进行了口对口复苏救治和心脏按摩。

22 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

23 transcripts   

n.抄本（ transcript的名词复数 ）；转写本；文字本；副本

参考例句：

• Like mRNA, both tRNA and rRNA are transcripts of chromosomal DNA. tRNA及rRNA同mRNA一样，都是染色体DNA的转录产物。 来自辞典例句
• You can't take the transfer students'exam without your transcripts. 没有成绩证明书，你就不能参加转学考试。 来自辞典例句