杀人的三种方法

英文中常用三个词表示“杀人”：homicide、murder、manslaughter。murder通常在词典中翻译为“谋杀”，homicide和manslaughter通常都笼统翻译为“杀人”。实际上，这三个词在英文中有明确区分。

Homicide (Latin homicidium, homo, human being and caedere, to cut, kill) refers to the act of killing another human being. Although homicide does not necessarily define a criminal act, some jurisdictions use the word to indicate the unlawful killing of a person. 

Generally, however, homicide includes murder (intentional killing) and manslaughter, as well as non-criminal killings, or “justifiable homicides”. There are a number of justifications, including self-defense, execution of capital punishment, and killing enemy combatants during war, that may make homicide legally justifiable. More complex defenses include euthanasia (“mercy killing” or “assisted suicide” at another's request) and abortion (legal termination of the life of an unborn fetus). 

可见，homicide是一个中性词，既包括合法杀人（处决罪犯、正当防卫、战场杀敌），也包括非法杀人（murder、manslaughter）。《元照英美法词典》对homicide的解释为：

n. 杀人　指一人导致或促使他人死亡的一般用语。该词是中性词，只描述客观行为，而对其道德或法律性质并没有作出判断。杀人并不必然构成犯罪，在依法执行死刑、自卫以及作为追捕逃犯的唯一可能手段时，杀人则是合法的。

但如果一人蓄意、明知、轻率或疏忽致使他人死亡的，该人则犯有杀人罪。英美普通法和制定法都把杀人罪分为谋杀（murder）和非预谋杀人（manslaughter）。

在苏格兰，杀人分为有罪杀人（culpable homicide）、正当杀人（justifiable homicide）以及意外、疏忽或可宽恕杀人（accidental, negligent, or excusable homicide）。

这一解释与上段的解释一致。同时也可知，杀人在不同国家的划分和称呼有所不同。词条中把murder翻译为“谋杀”，manslaughter翻译为“非预谋杀人”，两相对比，形成一组概念。那么，是否可以比照中国的说法，把murder和manslaughter分别翻译为“故意杀人”和“过失致人死亡”呢？故意杀人，是指故意非法剥夺他人生命的行为，包括“故意”“非法”“剥夺生命”三个关键词。过失致人死亡罪（俗称“过失杀人”），是指行为人因疏忽大意没有预见到或者已经预见到而轻信能够避免造成的他人死亡，剥夺他人生命权的行为。这个定义中不强调故意。而英文对murder的定义是：

Murder is the killing of another human being without justification or valid excuse, and it is especially the unlawful killing of another human being with malice aforethought. 

我们发现，malice aforethought的意思是：“A predetermination to commit an act without legal justification or excuse.“。 看来murder的定义强调“非法”“预谋”“剥夺生命”。murder与“故意杀人”似乎能够对应。但调查发现，manslaughter的定义中也包含“故意”（intentional）：

Manslaughter: The unjustifiable, inexcusable, and intentional killing of a human being without deliberation, premeditation, and malice. The unlawful killing of a human being without any deliberation, which may be involuntary, in the commission of a lawful act without due caution and circumspection.

Manslaughter is a distinct crime andis not considered a lesser degree of murder. The essential distinction between the two offenses is that malice aforethought must be present for murder, whereas it must be absent for manslaughter. Manslaughter is not as serious a crime as murder. On the other hand, it is not a justifiable or excusable killing for which little or no punishment is imposed. 

可见murder和manslaughter的最主要区别是“预谋”；在“故意”方面无区别。看来两者译为“故意杀人”和“过失杀人”并不妥当，译为“预谋杀人”（“谋杀”）和“非预谋杀人”是经过认真考虑的。另外，manslaughter分为voluntary和involuntary：

Voluntary manslaughter is commonly defined as an intentional killing in which the offender had no prior intent to kill, such as a killing that occurs in the “heat of passion”. The circumstances leading to the killing must be the kind that would cause a reasonable person to become emotionally or mentally disturbed; otherwise, the killing may be charged as a first-degree or second-degree murder.

For example, Dan comes home to find his wife in bed with Victor. In the heat of the moment, Dan picks up a golf club from next to the bed and strikes Victor in the head, killing him instantly.

《元照英美法词典》将voluntary manslaughter译为“非预谋故意杀人”，意思是正确的：

激情杀人是非预谋故意杀人的典型形式，即被告人因受到强烈的刺激，致使其在盛怒心理状态下实施的故意杀人行为。

——摘自《法律术语翻译二十讲》

《法律术语翻译二十讲》

• 翻译大家李长栓教授二十年法律翻译经验之总结；
• 介绍法律知识，辨析中西法律概念之异同，探讨法律术语译法；
• 为外语学习者普及法律知识，帮助法律工作者提高英语水平，为翻译工作者提供借鉴。

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