Learn some essential reported speech English verbs (B2) and advanced level vocabulary (C1) as 12 of humanity’s greatest minds share their views on democracy.
Taken from the podcast ‘Study 4 English with Tom Hollett‘
Download the worksheet here:
1. Vocabulary | Match these 10 words to their correct definitions.
Listen to the first part of the podcast to check your answers.
| 1. oppressor (noun) | A. To break into small fragments or pieces. |
| 2. painkiller (noun) | B. fall below a normal or desirable state, especially functionally or morally; deteriorate. |
| 3. degenerate (verb) | C. Someone who treats people in an unfair and cruel way and prevents them from having opportunities and freedom. |
| 4. despotism (noun) | D. To strike with strong force. |
| 5. aggravate (verb) | E. medicine used to relieve pain. |
| 6. tyranny (noun) | F. Made more severe or intense, especially in law. |
| 7. con-game (noun) | G. To appease, or, to pacify. |
| 8. placate(verb) | H. A trick in which the victim is defrauded after his or her trust has been won. |
| 9. bludgeon (verb) | I. Unjust or oppressive governmental power. |
| 10. crumble (verb) | J. A government or political system in which the ruler exercises absolute power. |
2. Listen to the audio and fill each space with the missing word.
It’s common to hear politicians talk about ‘democracy’. But what exactly do they mean? Here are 13 thought-provoking interpretations from some of the world’s finest statesmen, philosophers and intellectuals.
Definitions
Abraham Lincoln (1)__________ that democracy is ‘government of, by and for the people’. Oscar Wilde (2)__________ that ‘Democracy means simply the bludgeoning of the people by the people for the people’. Hans Herman-Hoppe (3)__________ that ‘Democracy has nothing to do with freedom. Democracy is a soft variant of communism, and rarely in the history of ideas has it been taken for anything else.’ Winston Churchill (4)__________ us that ‘democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.’
Analogies
Gore Vidal (5)__________ that ‘Democracy is supposed to give you the feeling of choice, like Painkiller X and Painkiller Y. But they’re both just aspirin‘. Jacque Fresco (6)__________ us that ‘Democracy is a con game. It’s a word invented to placate people to make them accept a given institution. All institutions sing, “We are free”. The minute you hear “freedom” and “democracy”, watch out… because in a truly free nation, no one has to tell you you’re free“. Ambrose Bierce (7)__________ that “Democracy is four wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch“.
History
John Adams (8)__________ us ‘Remember democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide‘. Aristotle (9)__________ that ‘Republics decline into democracies and democracies degenerate into despotism‘. Plato (10)__________ that ‘Dictatorship naturally arises out of democracy, and the most aggravated form of tyranny and slavery out of the most extreme liberty‘.
Consequences
James Russell Lowell (11)__________ us that ‘Democracy gives every man the right to be his own oppressor‘. Abbie Hoffman (12)__________ that ‘Democracy is not something you believe in or a place to hang your hat, but it’s something you do. You participate. If you stop doing it, democracy crumbles‘. Winston Churchill (13)__________ that ‘The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter‘.
Love it or loathe it. Believe in it or doubt it. Strengthen it or weaken it. However we feel about democracy, we can’t deny how impactful the idea has been for civilisation.
3. Listen again to check your answers. Decide which quote you like the most. Why?
4. Which four reporting verbs are followed by the object pronoun ‘us’ ?
5. Reading Comprehension | Match the interpretation to the person.
| Person | Interpretation |
| [a] | … is something we do rather than believe in and if we stop participating in it then the system fails. |
| [b] | … allows us to be abused by ourselves because we allow the people we choose to oppress us through law. |
| [c] | … means that people make rules to attack each other and themselves, for their own benefit. |
| [d] | … has many problems that make it really bad, but it’s still better than any other system. |
| [e] | … is a system where all the citizens of a nation are its rule-enforcers, rule-makers, and beneficiaries. |
| [f] | …. has always failed because people vote for policies that destroy the system. |
| [g] | … enables the potential abuse of a minority by the majority. |
| [h] | … offers a binary choice between the same, ineffective solutions to a problem. |
| [I] | … is a scam and we should be careful of people who talk a lot about popular notions of liberty and the popular voting system. |
| [j] | … has no connection to ‘liberty’ and is a gentle form of a radical lef-wing ideology. |
| [k] | … is the wrong system for the typical citizen to participate in. |
| [l] | … is part of the transition from the sharing of power between an elected body of citizens to one ruler who exercises absolute power. |
| [m] | … evolves into a form of government where the ruler’s power is unrestriced by law or political opponents. |
Answers:
1. Vocabulary | 1C; 2E; 3B; 4J; 5F; 6I; 7H; 8G; 9D; 10A
2. Listening | (1) stated; (2) responded; (3) claimed; (4) advised us; (5) argued; (6) warned us; (7) quipped; (8) informed us; (9) asserted; (10) declared; (11) told us; (12) announced; (13) commented.
3. tell; inform; warn; advise.
4. [a] Abbie Hoffman; [b] James Russel Lowe; [c] Oscar Wilde; [d] Winston Churchill; [e] Abraham Lincoln; [f] John Adams; [g] Ambrose Bierce; [h] Gore Vidal; [I] Jaque Fresco; [j] Hans Herman-Hoppe; [k] Winston Churchill; [l] Aristotle; [m] Plato.
No responses yet