Susan Sarandon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-2R3B5p9gA
Actress Susan Sarandon speaks out against death penalty
Alex Gibney and Robert Redford are the executive producers of "Death Row Stories," a CNN docuseries that
premiered March 9th and explores different cases of capital crimes, raising pressing questions about the death
penalty and process. Susan Sarandon, who won an Oscar for her role in "Dead Man Walking." narrates.
http://www.indiewire.com/article/television/alex-gibney-robert-redford-susan-sarandon-death-penalty
Dead Man Walking Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pg-GMqPHIPQ
Dead Man Walking is a 1995 film based on the book of the same name, which tells the story of Sister
Helen Prejean (played by Susan Sarandon), who establishes a special relationship with Matthew Poncelet,
a prisoner on death row (played by Sean Penn).
Sister Helen Prejean http://www.americancatholic.org/Messenger/Apr1996/feature1.asp
reviews
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/dead-man-walking-1996
http://www.ew.com/article/1996/01/19/dead-man-walking
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/angel/walking/bookexcerpt.html
A PLAY
http://www.bsc.edu/academics/theatre/pdfs/dead%20man%20walking%20study%20guide.pdf
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYLumzwwtxI
DEATH ROW
A NOVEL http://www.cbc.ca/books/2014/04/rene-denfeld-takes-readers-inside-death-row-indebut-novel.html
+ AUDIO INTERVIEW
http://www.oregonlive.com/books/index.ssf/2014/02/rene_denfeld_a_portland_invest.html
A new novel by acclaimed author John Grisham, entitled “The Confession,” tells the story of Donte
Drumm, an innocent man who was convicted of murder and sentenced to death in Texas. The book
begins as the execution of Drumm is only four days away and another man confesses to the crime to
a minister. Although a work of fiction, Grisham’s work offers a critique of our criminal justice system
and of the death penalty in particular. USA Today's review of the book notes, "Readers who share
[Grisham's] views as well as those sitting on the fence will find much to love and lament in the tragic
story of Donté Drumm."
(J. Grisham, "The Confession," Doubleday 2010; C. Memmott, "Grisham prosecutes the death penalty
in 'The Confession'," USA Today, October 26, 2010). See Books and Innocence.
http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/books-confession-john-grisham
extracts
http://deadspin.com/5947978/i-had-the-best-cell-on-death-row-a-member-of-thewest-memphis-three-on-life-in-deaths-shadow
http://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/may/26/damien-echols-i-survived-deathrow
La dernière marche (1995)
Soundtracks
Showing all 12 items
The Face of Love
Performed by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan with Eddie Vedder
Written by David Robbins, Tim Robbins & Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan courtesy of Real World Records Ltd.
Eddie Vedder courtesy of Epic Records
In Your Mind
Performed & Written by Johnny Cash
Produced by Ry Cooder
Johnny Cash courtesy of American Recordings
I Will Not Be Sad in This World
Armenian Traditional
Arranged by David Robbins
This Is The Day The Lord Has Made
Performed by Rev. Donald R. Smith and The Golden Voices Gospel Choir Of St. Francis De
Sales Catholic Church
Text written by Isaac Watts
Arranged by Donald R. Smith and David Campbell (as David Campbell)
Dle Yaman
Armenian Traditional
Arranged by David Robbins
A Cool Wind Is Blowing
Armenian Traditional
Arranged by David Robbins
Sacred Love
Performed by The Dusing Singers
Soloist Gale Limansky
Written by Georgi Sviridov
Arranged by Gil Robbins
Isa Lei
Performed by Ry Cooder & Vishwamohan Bhatt (as Vishwa M. Bhatt)
Written by A.W. Caten
Courtesy of Water Lily Acoustic, Inc. & Jhankar Corp.
The Long Road
Performed by Eddie Vedder with Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
Written by Eddie Vedder
Eddie Vedder courtesy of Epic Records
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan courtesy of Real World Records Ltd.
Shadow
(1993)
Performed & Written by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
Courtesy of Real World Records Ltd.
Be Not Afraid
Performed by Susan Sarandon
Written by Bob Dufford
Dead Man Walkin'
Performed & Written by Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen courtesy of Columbia Records
THE DEATH PENALTY in the UNITED STATES
wk#4
DEAD MAN WALKING
A) The phrase :
1- (US) a condemned man walking from his prison cell to a place of execution
2- (informal) any person in a doomed or untenable situation, esp one about to lose his or her job
B) the song by Bruce Springsteen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5RnDJ1pyCM 1-
Watch the video and make suppositions about the story
2- Listen to the song and complete the lyrics
3- Make supposition about this “dead man walking”
There's a pale horse ………………………..
And I'm going to ……………….. it
I'll ………………… in the morning
My fate ……………………
I'm a dead man walking
I'm a dead man walking
In St James' parish I was…………………. and christened
I've got my story mister
Ain't no need for you to ………………….
It's just a dead man ……………………..
Once I had a ……………..I had a a …………….
Between our ……………….. and ……………….. lies this world
In the deep …………….. their ………….. and …………… rushed over me
All I could ……………….. was the …………… and the ………………..
And my……………….. up inside of me
Like a dead man talkin'
Beneath the…………………… sky my …………….. went black
Sister I won't …………………… for forgiveness
My …………………. are all I have
Now the ……………above my ………… move slowly across the …………
There's a new …………………
Coming and my …………………… are full to-night
C) The movie trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pg-GMqPHIPQ
Fill in the blanks (until 1 mn)
This man……………… Walter Delacroix and …………………. Hope Percy and ……………………………….her ……………. times. In the
courtroom during the sentencing, he was ……………………………. and ………………………… his gum. He’s an
………………………………, perverse misfit and it’s his time.
You’ve put in a request to be the spiritual ……………………………… of Matthew Poncelet. This boy is to be executed in
……………………….. You know what you’re getting into. They’re all con men, you must be very ……………………….
What’s the aim of sister Helen Prejean?
D) After watching the movie
Give your opinion. What scene was the most striking to you? Describe it.
Describe the 2 main characters : what are they like(personality)? How did M.Poncelet evolve / change ?
Find arguments and use MODALS :
the PROS : he deserves to die because… // the CONS : he shouldn’t be executed because…
E) The novel : DEAD MAN WALKING
CHAPTER SIX
Millard fills me in on Robert Willie's crime. On May 28, 1980, he and Joseph Vaccaro killed eighteen-year-old Faith
Hathaway. The young victim's mother and stepfather live nearby in Covington. The stepfather is named Vernon Harvey.
My heart sinks. I have heard of Vernon Harvey. Many people in the New Orleans area know of him. In recent months he has
given interviews to the press, saying that he can't wait to see Robert Willie "fry," that he can't wait to see the "smoke fly off
his body." He has said that he and his family and friends will go to the gates of the prison on the night of the execution to
show support for capital punishment. Not visiting the Bourques and the LeBlancs had been a grave mistake, one I am
determined not to make again, and I know I must reach out to victims' families even if they reject my offer, and that included
Vernon Harvey. I shudder. It's frightening to picture how Harvey might respond to someone who opposes Willie's execution.
Who knows if such an encounter might push him over an emotional edge? What if he gets violent?
Millard explains that Willie's case is far along in the courts. There may not be much time. I decide I'd better write Robert
right away. But I think, maybe he won't want a spiritual adviser, maybe he'll turn down my offer. Now, there's a
thought...which, I readily admit, brings a feeling of relief. I had reached out to Pat Sonnier not knowing what to expect. Now
I know.
Millard tells me about the crime. It sounds straight out of Truman Capote's In Cold Blood.
Willie and Vaccaro had gone on an eight-day rampage that left Faith Hathaway dead, another teenage girl raped, and her
boyfriend paralyzed. Shortly after the killing of Faith Hathaway, Willie and Vaccaro had kidnapped a teenage couple and
taken turns raping the young woman in the back seat of the car as they drove across several states. The eighteen-year-old
Hathaway girl had been brutally raped and stabbed and left to die in the woods.
Prior to these crimes, Willie had been involved in two other murders; the drowning death in 1978 of Dennis Buford Hemby
of Missouri in a scuffle over drugs, and the shooting death in 1979 of Louisiana Parish Deputy Sergeant Louis Wagner II. In
the Wagner murder, Willie had been a participant with several others in a robbery which occasioned the confrontation with
the young deputy, although even the law enforcement officials agree that Willie had not fired the fatal shot.
"Robert's had a long, long history of run-ins with the law from an early age," Millard says. "Plenty of drug and alcohol abuse,
you know what I mean? He takes pride in being tough. He even smart-mouthed the judge at his trial."
Millard explains that after they were arrested for the kidnapping of the young couple, Willie and Vaccaro pled guilty in
federal court and were each sentenced to three consecutive life sentences. However, Louisiana authorities, concerned that
federal jurisdiction would preempt state jurisdiction and allow Willie and Vaccaro to serve life sentences in a federal prison,
thereby escaping Louisiana's electric chair, had prevailed in getting Willie and Vaccaro to stand trial in state court.
"The two were tried in the same courthouse at the same time, on separate floors, " Millard says. "Robert got death and
Vaccaro got life. Both had indigent defender."
Mentally I'm doing a body count while Millard is talking. Three people dead, one paralyzed, a young girl traumatized by
abduction and rape...No wonder Vernon Harvey is outraged. How could he not be? My heart freezes at the prospect of a
relationship with someone who sounds as if he might be criminally insane.
by Sister Helen Prejean (Vintage Books, copyright1993) Reprinted by permission of the author and the
Watkins/Loomis Agency
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/angel/walking/bookexcerpt.html
-Well Matthew, I made it.
-Never done this before…never been this close to a …………………….before
- Not that I know of…
- What is a nun doing in a place like here?
What is sister Helen Prejean’s aim?
There's a pale horse coming
And I'm going to ride it
I'll rise in the morning
My fate decided
I'm a dead man walking
I'm a dead man walking
In st james' parish I was born and christened
I've got my story mister
Ain't no need for you to listen
It's just a dead man talking
Once I had a job I had a a girl
Between our dreams and actions lies this world
In the deep forest their blood and tears rushed over me
All I could feel was the drugs and the shotgun
And my fear up inside of me
Like a dead man talkin'
'neath the summer sky my eyes went black
Sister I won't ask for forgiveness
My sins are all I have
Now the clouds above my prison move slowly across the sky
There's a new day
Coming and my dreams are full to-night
This man shot Walter Delacroix and raped Hope Percy and stabbed her 17 times. In the courtroom in
the sentencing, he was smiling and chewing his gum. He’s an unfeeling, perverse misfit and it’s time
You’ve put in a request to be the spiritual advisor of Matthew Poncelet. This boy is to be executed in 6
days. You know what you’re getting into. They’re all con men, you must be very careful.
-Well Matthew, I made it.
-Never done this before…never been this close to a murderer before
- Not that I know of
- What is a nun doing in a place like here?
/30
1ère ESA
NAME : ...........................................................................
DATE : ....................................................
:
ENGLISH TEST #4
A) LISTENING COMPREHENSION
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-2R3B5p9gA
Susan Sarandon speaks out against death penalty
1- Listen to the whole interview first and say who the different characters are (what do you know about them) /2
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
2- Listen up to 0.36 and answer the following questions :
/2
a- How long has Susan Sarandon known Helen Prejean?......................................................................
b- According to her, what’s important to do before you make a decision about the death penalty?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3- Listen from 0.36 to 1.37 and complete the blanks
/5
We both have the same ……………………., really, when you ………………. … ……………, and remember you called me…We
went to a Cajun ……………………………. to eat and axe the……………………... And you’re the one who said : “We ……………….
………………….. ………….. ….. …………………. on the death penalty” because the way the films are done, you know the
whole thing is
“are they
………………… or i……………………., …………………….
……………………….”, all the
…………………………..goes there. Once you’ve found out they’re ………………….., so the movie ends with ………………………..,
end of the movie, …………………. is done. What is the …………………. underneath it? What does it…………………… to really
delve into giving our …………………………………. the power, the……………………….., to decide that some of us
…………………………….have done such a terrible ……………………….. they should …………………. and to get into that. And I
didn’t know what I was getting into.
It’s a question of not who ………………………..to die but who ………………………… to kill, it’s really what you’re examining.
4-Listen to the end of the interview and answer the following questions :
/2
a- What’s wrong with the American system of justice according to Susan Sarandon and Helen Prejean?
...................................................................................................................................................
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
b- What if something horrendous happens to somebody that they love?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
B) MODALS : translate
/4
1- La peine de mort devrait être interdite =…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
2- Le prisonnier dans le couloir de la mort doit apprendre la patience =………………………………………………………………..
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
3- Est-ce que tu penses que tu pourrais exécuter quelqu’un ? =………………………………………………………………………….
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
4- Helen a dû être courageuse et déterminée =………………………………………………………………………………………………………
C) YOUR OPINION
(about 100 words, write at the back of the page)
/10
After working on the topic of the death penalty in English and in French, give your opinion about it.
Say if you’re FOR or AGAINST the Death Penalty. Use the arguments you have found in the webquest and
in French. Use Modals.
We both have the same passion, really, when you read the book, and remember you called
me…We went to a Cajun restaurant to eat and axe the film. And you’re the one who said : “We
need another kind of film on the death penalty” because the way the films are done, you know
the whole thing is “are they guilty or innocent, guilty or innocent”, all the energy goes there.
Once you’ve found out they’re guilty, so the movie ends with execution, end of the movie, justice
is done. What is the story underneath it? What does it mean to really delve into giving our
government the power, the option, to decide that some of us citizens have done such a terrible
crime they should die and to get into that. And I didn’t know what I was getting into.
It’s a question of not who deserves to die but who deserves to kill, it’s really what you’re
examining.
LESSON CHECK
Dead Man Walking
1- Introduce the film : date, director, main actors, origin /2
2- What’s he most striking scene for you? Explain why. / 3
LESSON CHECK
FOR or AGAINST
3- Give the English for : a- je n’ai pas les moyens (financiers) =b- pardonner= , c=
un mec “dur”, e= la sensibilité /1
4- Give 2 arguments in favour of Mat’s executions and 2 against it /4
/30
1ère ESA
NAME : ...........................................................................
DATE : ....................................................
:
ENGLISH TEST #4
A) LISTENING COMPREHENSION
correction
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-2R3B5p9gA
Susan Sarandon speaks out against death penalty
1- Listen to the whole interview first and say who the different characters are (what do you know about them) /2
Susan Sarandon is an American actress who played the part of Sister Helen Prejean in the film entitled Dead Man
Walking released in 1995. She’s also an activist against the death penalty. Helen Prejean is a sister who wrote a
book after accompanying a man on death row till his execution. She’s an advocate for the abolition of the death
penalty.
2- Listen up to 0.36 and answer the following questions :
/2
a- How long has Susan Sarandon known Helen Prejean?.she’s known her for 20 years.
bAccording to her, what’s important to do before you make a decision about the death penalty?
it’s important to understand both sides before you make a decision : the victim’s side and the murderer’s side / the
system is broken, you don’t want it to be arbitrary or capricious
3- Listen from 0.36 to 1.37 and complete the blanks
/5
We both have the same ……………………., really, when you ………………. … ……………, and remember you called me…We
went to a Cajun ……………………………. to eat and axe the……………………... And you’re the one who said : “We ……………….
………………….. ………….. ….. …………………. on the death penalty” because the way the films are done, you know the
whole thing is
“are they
………………… or i……………………., …………………….
……………………….”, all the
…………………………..goes there. Once you’ve found out they’re ………………….., so the movie ends with ………………………..,
end of the movie, …………………. is done. What is the …………………. underneath it? What does it…………………… to really
delve into giving our …………………………………. the power, the……………………….., to decide that some of us
…………………………….have done such a terrible ……………………….. they should …………………. and to get into that. And I
didn’t know what I was getting into.
It’s a question of not who ………………………..to die but who ………………………… to kill, it’s really what you’re examining.
4-Listen to the end of the interview and answer the following questions :
/2
a- What’s wrong with the American system of justice according to Susan Sarandon and Helen Prejean?
The system of justice is faulty, injustice in terms of who can afford a lawyer, white people do not end up on
death row, only some poor white if they’ve killed a white person not if the victim is black : race bias
b- What if something horrendous happens to somebody that they love? Of course you react and want revenge
but there is a difference between an individual and a society. Moreover, people don’t want to live with hatred,
they sometimes forgive because of the love they had for the victim. It doesn’t provide healing.
B) MODALS : translate
/4
1- La peine de mort devrait être interdite =…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
2- Le prisonnier dans le couloir de la mort doit apprendre la patience =………………………………………………………………..
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
3- Est-ce que tu penses que tu pourrais exécuter quelqu’un ? =………………………………………………………………………….
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
4- Helen a dû être courageuse et déterminée =………………………………………………………………………………………………………
C) YOUR OPINION
(about 100 words, write at the back of the page)
/10