テーマ: 「危険性(dangerousness)」という概念が刑事政策をどう歪めるかという論点を参考にしたオリジナル読解問題です。

■ 本文(オリジナル)

Public debate about crime is often dominated by an obsessive fear of “dangerous” offenders, even though violent crime has declined sharply over the past two decades. Politicians and the media tend to focus on a small number of extreme cases, creating the impression that society is full of predators waiting to strike. This distorted picture makes it difficult to have a rational conversation about sentencing policy. Moreover, the very definition of a dangerous offender has shifted repeatedly over time, expanding from career criminals to include vaguely defined groups such as unruly teenagers. Risk-assessment tools used by prisons claim to predict who will reoffend, but studies suggest that these tools are unreliable and inconsistently applied. As a result, the criminal justice system risks punishing people based on an exaggerated and poorly defined notion of danger rather than on the actual severity of their crimes.

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■ 設問1: 和訳問題

次の下線部を日本語に訳しなさい。

“This distorted picture makes it difficult to have a rational conversation about sentencing policy.”

【解答】
この歪んだ(=偏った)イメージのせいで、量刑政策について理性的な議論をすることが難しくなっている。

【解説】
文構造: [S: This distorted picture(名詞句)] [V: makes(動詞)] [O: it(形式目的語)] [C: difficult(形容詞)] [真目的語: to have a rational conversation about sentencing policy(不定詞句)]
品詞: distorted(過去分詞・形容詞的用法/pictureを修飾)、makes(第5文型の動詞、make it 形容詞 to do の形)、it(形式目的語=真目的語であるto have以下を指す)、difficult(形容詞・目的格補語)、to have(不定詞・名詞用法、真目的語)
ポイント: make it + 形容詞 + to do は「it(形式目的語)=真の目的語(to do以下)」という第5文型の重要構文。itをthis distorted pictureと訳さないよう注意(itは形式的な受け皿にすぎない)。

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■ 設問2: 並べ替え問題

かっこ内の語句を正しく並べ替え、意味の通る英文を完成させなさい。

The very definition of a dangerous offender ( has / shifted / repeatedly / over time / expanding / from career criminals / to include / vaguely defined groups ).

【解答】
The very definition of a dangerous offender has shifted repeatedly over time, expanding from career criminals to include vaguely defined groups.
「危険な犯罪者」という定義そのものは、時とともに繰り返し変化しており、常習犯罪者から曖昧に定義された集団までを含むように広がってきた。

【解説】
文構造: [S: The very definition of a dangerous offender(名詞句)] [V: has shifted(現在完了・動詞句)] [副詞: repeatedly, over time], [分詞構文: expanding(現在分詞) from career criminals to include vaguely defined groups]
品詞: has shifted(現在完了形/継続的な変化を表す)、expanding(分詞構文を導く現在分詞、意味上の主語はThe very definitionと一致)、to include(不定詞・副詞用法、expandingの範囲を説明)
ポイント: 分詞構文expandingは主節の主語(definition)と能動関係にあるため現在分詞。分詞構文が付帯状況的に「そしてその結果〜に広がっている」という補足説明を加えている点に注目。

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■ 設問3: 語句変形問題(3問)

次の各文の( )内の語を、文脈に合う適切な形に変えなさい。

1. Politicians tend to focus on a small number of extreme cases, (create) a distorted impression of crime.
2. Risk-assessment tools claim (predict) who will reoffend, but their accuracy is questionable.
3. The criminal justice system risks (punish) people based on an exaggerated notion of danger.

【解答と解説】

1. 正解: creating
   文構造: [S: Politicians(名詞)] [V: tend to focus(動詞句)] [O: on a small number of extreme cases(前置詞句)], [分詞構文: creating(現在分詞) a distorted impression of crime(名詞句)]
   品詞: creating(現在分詞・分詞構文)
   解説: 文末の分詞構文で、意味上の主語Politiciansとcreateは能動関係(政治家たちが印象を作り出す)なので現在分詞creatingが正解。結果を表す分詞構文。
2. 正解: to predict
   文構造: [S: Risk-assessment tools(名詞句)] [V: claim(動詞)] [O: to predict(不定詞・名詞用法) who will reoffend(名詞節)]
   品詞: to predict(不定詞・名詞用法、claimの目的語)
   解説: claim「〜であると主張する」は不定詞を目的語にとる動詞。「〜すると主張する」という未来志向の内容なので不定詞が適切(動名詞ではない)。
3. 正解: punishing
   文構造: [S: The criminal justice system(名詞句)] [V: risks(動詞)] [O: punishing(動名詞) people(名詞) based on an exaggerated notion of danger(前置詞句)]
   品詞: punishing(動名詞、riskの目的語)
   解説: risk doing「〜する危険を冒す」は動名詞を目的語にとる代表的な動詞。risk to doとは言わない点に注意。

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■ 設問4: 内容一致・言い換え・解釈問題(3問)

本文の内容に関する次の各問いに対して、最も適切なものを1つずつ選びなさい。

1. According to the passage, why is it difficult to have a rational conversation about sentencing policy?
   (A) Because violent crime has actually increased in recent years.
   (B) Because the public and media focus on rare extreme cases, distorting public perception.
   (C) Because politicians refuse to discuss crime at all.
   (D) Because sentencing laws are too complicated to explain.
2. Which of the following best paraphrases “the very definition of a dangerous offender has shifted repeatedly over time”?
   (A) Courts have always agreed on a single fixed definition of a dangerous offender.
   (B) What counts as a “dangerous offender” has changed multiple times throughout history.
   (C) The definition of a dangerous offender was fixed in the early 20th century and never changed again.
   (D) Dangerous offenders are now defined only by international law.
3. What does the passage suggest about risk-assessment tools used in prisons?
   (A) They are completely accurate and always correctly predict reoffending.
   (B) They are unreliable and applied inconsistently, according to research.
   (C) They have never been studied by researchers.
   (D) They focus only on the severity of a person’s crime.

【解答と解説】

1. 正解: (B)
   本文該当箇所: “Politicians and the media tend to focus on a small number of extreme cases, creating the impression that society is full of predators waiting to strike.”
   解説: 政治家やメディアが極端な事例に焦点を当てることで歪んだ印象が作られ、それが理性的な議論を妨げていると本文は述べている。(A)は「実際には減少している」という本文の記述と矛盾。(C)(D)は本文に記述なし。
2. 正解: (B)
   本文該当箇所: “the very definition of a dangerous offender has shifted repeatedly over time, expanding from career criminals to include vaguely defined groups”
   解説: shift repeatedly「繰り返し変化する」をparaphraseすると「複数回変化してきた」となる。(A)(C)は「一度も変わっていない」という逆の内容なので誤り。
3. 正解: (B)
   本文該当箇所: “studies suggest that these tools are unreliable and inconsistently applied”
   解説: 本文がunreliable(信頼できない)、inconsistently applied(一貫性なく適用されている)と明記しているので(B)が正解。(A)は真逆の内容。