THE ABSURDITY¹ OF LAW--REFLECTIONS OF A JURYMAN.

On coming into the Law Courts Nekhludoff met the usher² of yesterday, who to-day seemed to him much to be pitied, in the corridor, and asked him where those prisoners who had been sentenced were kept, and to whom one had to apply for permission to visit them. The usher told him that the condemned³ prisoners were kept in different places, and that, until they received their sentence in its final form, the permission to visit them depended on the president. "I'll come and call you myself, and take you to the president after the session. The president is not even here at present. After the session! And now please come in; we are going to commence."

Nekhludoff thanked the usher for his kindness, and went into the jurymen's room. As he was approaching the room, the other jurymen were just leaving it to go into the court. The merchant had again partaken of a little refreshment⁴, and was as merry as the day before, and greeted Nekhludoff like an old friend. And to-day Peter Gerasimovitch did not arouse any unpleasant feelings in Nekhludoff by his familiarity and his loud laughter. Nekhludoff would have liked to tell all the jurymen about his relations to yesterday's prisoner. "By rights," he thought, "I ought to have got up yesterday during the trial and disclosed my guilt⁵."

He entered the court with the other jurymen, and witnessed the same procedure as the day before.

"The judges are coming," was again proclaimed, and again three men, with embroidered⁶ collars, ascended⁷ the platform, and there was the same settling of the jury on the high-backed chairs, the same gendarmes⁸, the same portraits, the same priest, and Nekhludoff felt that, though he knew what he ought to do, he could not interrupt all this solemnity. The preparations for the trials were just the same as the day before, excepting that the swearing in of the jury and the president's address to them were omitted.

点击收听单词发音  

1 absurdity
n.荒谬，愚蠢；谬论
参考例句：
The proposal borders upon the absurdity.这提议近乎荒谬。 The absurdity of the situation made everyone laugh.情况的荒谬可笑使每个人都笑了。

2 usher
n.带位员，招待员；vt.引导，护送；vi.做招待，担任引座员
参考例句：
The usher seated us in the front row.引座员让我们在前排就座。 They were quickly ushered away.他们被迅速领开。

3 condemned
adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词
参考例句：
He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。 The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

4 refreshment
n.恢复，精神爽快，提神之事物；（复数）refreshments:点心，茶点
参考例句：
He needs to stop fairly often for refreshment.他须时不时地停下来喘口气。 A hot bath is a great refreshment after a day's work.在一天工作之后洗个热水澡真是舒畅。

5 guilt
n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责
参考例句：
She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。 Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。

6 embroidered
adj．绣花的
参考例句：
She embroidered flowers on the cushion covers. 她在这些靠垫套上绣了花。 She embroidered flowers on the front of the dress. 她在连衣裙的正面绣花。

7 ascended
v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He has ascended into heaven. 他已经升入了天堂。 来自《简明英汉词典》 The climbers slowly ascended the mountain. 爬山运动员慢慢地登上了这座山。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 gendarmes
n.宪兵，警官( gendarme的名词复数 )
参考例句：
Of course, the line of prisoners was guarded at all times by armed gendarmes. 当然，这一切都是在荷枪实弹的卫兵监视下进行的。 来自百科语句 The three men were gendarmes;the other was Jean Valjean. 那三个人是警察，另一个就是冉阿让。 来自互联网

9 indictment
n.起诉；诉状
参考例句：
He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。 They issued an indictment against them.他们起诉了他们。

10 imprisoned
下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁，合并执行。 They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。

11 prosecutor
n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人
参考例句：
The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。 The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

12 mere
adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过
参考例句：
That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。 It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

13 reluctance
n.厌恶，讨厌，勉强，不情愿
参考例句：
The police released Andrew with reluctance.警方勉强把安德鲁放走了。 He showed the greatest reluctance to make a reply.他表示很不愿意答复。

14 proprietor
n.所有人；业主；经营者
参考例句：
The proprietor was an old acquaintance of his.业主是他的一位旧相识。 The proprietor of the corner grocery was a strange thing in my life.拐角杂货店店主是我生活中的一个怪物。

15 pestered
使烦恼，纠缠( pester的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
Journalists pestered neighbours for information. 记者缠着邻居打听消息。 The little girl pestered the travellers for money. 那个小女孩缠着游客要钱。

16 rheumatism
n.风湿病
参考例句：
The damp weather plays the very devil with my rheumatism.潮湿的天气加重了我的风湿病。 The hot weather gave the old man a truce from rheumatism.热天使这位老人暂时免受风湿病之苦。

17 spoke
n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说
参考例句：
They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。 The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

18 interval
n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息
参考例句：
The interval between the two trees measures 40 feet.这两棵树的间隔是40英尺。 There was a long interval before he anwsered the telephone.隔了好久他才回了电话。

19 proceedings
n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报
参考例句：
He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。 to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

20 apprenticed
学徒，徒弟( apprentice的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
I was apprenticed to a builder when I was fourteen. 14岁时，我拜一个建筑工人为师当学徒。 Lucius got apprenticed to a stonemason. 卢修斯成了石匠的学徒。

21 apprentice
n.学徒，徒弟
参考例句：
My son is an apprentice in a furniture maker's workshop.我的儿子在一家家具厂做学徒。 The apprentice is not yet out of his time.这徒工还没有出徒。

22 possessed
adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的
参考例句：
He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。 He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。

23 intonations
n.语调，说话的抑扬顿挫( intonation的名词复数 )；（演奏或唱歌中的）音准
参考例句：
Being able to say simple sentences in correct stresses and intonations. 能以正确的重音及语调说出简单的句子。 来自互联网 Peculiar intonations and interesting stories behind every character are what motivated Asmaa to start learning Chinese. 奇特的声调，有故事的汉字，让吴小莉在阴阳上去中、点横竖撇拉中开始了咿呀学语阶段。 来自互联网

24 pretence
n.假装，作假；借口，口实；虚伪；虚饰
参考例句：
The government abandoned any pretence of reform. 政府不再装模作样地进行改革。 He made a pretence of being happy at the party.晚会上他假装很高兴。

25 ponderous
adj.沉重的，笨重的，(文章)冗长的
参考例句：
His steps were heavy and ponderous.他的步伐沉重缓慢。 It was easy to underestimate him because of his occasionally ponderous manner.由于他偶尔现出的沉闷的姿态，很容易使人小看了他。

26 organisation
n.组织，安排，团体，有机休
参考例句：
The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。 His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

27 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。

28 climax
n.顶点；高潮；v.(使)达到顶点
参考例句：
The fifth scene was the climax of the play.第五场是全剧的高潮。 His quarrel with his father brought matters to a climax.他与他父亲的争吵使得事态发展到了顶点。