Name:

Date:

As a Warm-up (Pair Work), the students will answer the following questions and
they will be discussed cooperatively.

a. What was the worst punishment you received as a child? Was it fair?

b. What is the purpose of punishment?

c. Would you rather be dead than spend life in jail?

d. Can you think of any people who were punished for a crime they didnt
commit?

e. Is capital punishment (the death penalty) practiced in your country?

f. Who are some famous people who were executed?

Appendix H

Death

People say that death is the only thing in life that is certain. Thats true. Im not afraid of

dying, but I do think its a sad thing. Id like to live forever. I like life. I want to see my

childrens childrens children grow up. People have different views on death in different

cultures. In some countries, you die and go to heaven. In other countries you die and

come back to Earth as something else. Some people celebrate peoples death because

they had a good life. In other countries, death is a sad and dark affair. I know of many

countries where death is a taboo subject. People just dont talk about it. I have no

problems talking about death. Especially to my family. I think its useful to tell everyone

what I want to happen when I die.

Listening Gap Fill

People say that death ______________________ thing in life that is certain. Thats

true. Im not ______________________, but I do think its a sad thing. Id

______________________ forever. I like life. I want to see my childrens childrens

children grow up. People have different ______________________ in different cultures.

In some countries, you ______________________ to heaven. In other countries you

die ______________________ to Earth as something else. Some people celebrate

peoples death because they had ______________________ . In other countries, death

is a sad and dark affair. I ______________________ countries where death is a taboo

subject. People just dont ______________________ . I have no problems talking about

death. Especially to my family. I think its ______________________ everyone what I

want to happen when I die.

 Troy Davis Given Capital Punishment (September 24th, 2011)

Mark MacPhail, an off-duty police officer, was working as a security guard in Savannah,
Georgia, on August 19th, 1989. He saw a man being assaulted in a nearby parking lot,
so he ran to intervene. MacPhail was then shot to death.
Seven witnesses testified they had seen an African-American man; later identified as
Troy Davis, shoot MacPhail. Two others testified that Davis had confessed the murder
directly to them. Bullets discovered near the scene were linked to another shooting,
earlier on that same day, for which Davis was also charged.
Although Davis maintained that it was not him who shot MacPhail, he was tried and
found guilty of murder and other related offenses. He was sentenced to death. Over the
next 20 years, Davis gathered supporters, including religious figures and former U.S.
president Jimmy Carter, who believed that Davis should not be executed because he
was innocent. Another hearing was held in June 2010. Seven out of nine of the original
witnesses changed their stories. Many claimed that had been pressured to testify
against Davis by police. Others blamed the murder on another man, Sylvester Coles.
This new information, however, did not convince the court to change the verdict.
Despite a last-minute appeal and petition signed by nearly one million people, Troy
Davis was executed on September 21st by lethal injection.
Davis supporters believe the justice systems refusal to reconsider the death sentence
in light of new information shows there is a fundamental problem with the American
justice system. They hope Davis death will lead to legal reforms.
Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is currently practiced in 58

nations, including the US, China, India, and Japan. (279)

New Vocabulary:

1. assaulted

2. intervene

3. testified

4. confessed

5. maintained

6. tried

7. sentenced

8. executed

9. hearing

10. verdict.

11. appeal

12. petition

13. in light of
Comprehension Questions

1) Why was Mark MacPhail at the scene of the crime?

2) Why did investigators believe Davis was the shooter? (3 reasons)

3) What did many of the people who testified against Davis later claim?

4) What do supporters of Davis hope will happen in the future?