INGLESE 1

STATE AND GOVERMENT

b) Federated states have transferred a portion of their sovereign powers to a federal government.
C) To prevent abuse of power/ to safeguard freedom / to prevent an institution from prevailing
over the others
d) Legislature = propose, discuss, and approve laws
Executive = apply the law and carry out the administration of the state
Judiciary = administer justice and determine /decide how to solve legal disputes
What is the difference between governance and government?

 A government (countable) is a formal body invested with the authority to make decisions
in a given political system.
Our government has issued governance rules/actions to tackle the emergency.
 Governance (uncountable) is the activity of governing a country or controlling a company
or an organization.

Check and compare the pronunciation of the following words:

ALLEDGE VS ALLEGIANCE
Alledge means to state something, to affirm.
Allegiance means loyalty or commitment.
KNOW VS KNOWLEDGE
Know means knowing something
Knowledge is the name. It’s what you know.
CLEAN VS CLEANSE
Clean (long e sound)
Cleanse (clens)
Introduction to IPA
With phonetic transcriptions, dictionaries tell you about the pronunciation of words. Phonetic
transcription is necessary, because the spelling of a word does not tell you how you should
pronounce it. Ex. “Car” c – a – r
Remember…
You should always check the IPA transcription of English words.
WHAT IS A PHONEME?
A phoneme is a very short sound that could change the meaning of a word.
The sounds /i:/ and /I:/ are DIFFERENT PHONEMES in English (they’re not just allophones as in
Italian)
Ex. You cannot pronounce the word “been” with a short i, because the meaning of the word would
sound like “bin” (trash can)
MINIMAL PAIRS
Minimal pairs are used as a test to decide whether a sound is a phoneme or not: if two words
which differ in regard to ONE SOUND ONLY have different meanings, then the two differing
sounds are two different phonemes.
In English we have a special sound for n, a velar sound. You pronounce it by placing your tongue
backwards in your oral cavity.
Italian has 7 vowel sounds: a, i, u, “open” and closed”, e “open and closed”, o.
English has sixteen (In general American) or twenty vowel sounds (In British English).
Why should I pay attention to this?
Because mispronouncing a vowel might change the meaning of the whole word and can lead to
misunderstandings!
THE US PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
To owe allegiance to = to have an obligation to be loyal / faithful to someone or something (duty
of fidelity)
Domanda 1.
“I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, with liberty and
justice for all.”
Domanda 2.
The pledge was originally written to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus’ landing into the
new world, to recover some of the patriotism from the Civil War and to provide a patriotic
emblem for school children.
Domanda 3.
The word “flag” was changed with “the Flag of the United States” and in 1954 the words “under
god” were added to the pledge, creating a controversy.
CRITICAL THINKING: The Pledge of Allegiance and the Bill of Rights, an American paradox.
What is the US Bill of Rights?
It comprises the first ten amendments (modifications) to the American Constitution (created in
1789, ratified in 1791)
it spells out the rights of the Americans in relation to their government.
It guarantees civil rights and liberties.
FIRST AMENDMENT: FREEDOM OF RELIGION
The First Amendment (“Free exercise clause”) prohibits government from encouraging or
promoting religion in any way.
As a matter of fact, there is no official religion of the United States.
At the same time, the government cannot penalize you because of your religious beliefs.
The US Founders, who were of different religious backgrounds themselves, knew the best way to
protect religious liberty was to keep the state out of religion. So, they created the First
Amendment, to guarantee the separation of church and state.
In school, teachers cannot start the day or a meeting with prayers because prayers violate the 1 st
Amendment as they promote religion.
This is true even if the prayer is “non-denominational” (Not of any religion)
At the same time though…
The Pledge is required to be recited before:

 Congressional sessions
 Government meetings
 Every day in School
But the Pledge contains the words “a nation under God”.
IS THE PLEDGE MANDATORY?
The Supreme Court has ruled in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette that students
cannot be compelled to recite the Pledge, nor can they be punished for not doing so.
The high court determined that a group of Jehovah’s Witnesses, who objected to the flag salute
and mandatory pledge recitation for religious reasons, could not be forced to participate.
Is the Pledge unconstitutional?
It is not. The practice has been challenged in courts many times, but so far it has been upheld
(confirmed).
The Pledge can be found constitutional as a kind of “ceremonial deism” that merely uses
religious language for secular purposes or refers to the role of religion in American history in
general, rather than establishing religion in violation of the First Amendment.
We can say we are not really talking about religion in the Pledge, but it is used to celebrate
American patriotism, but words do matter. It still has the word God in it.
Why is the pledge of allegiance controversial?
The Pledge of Allegiance might be considered controversial because the words used in it go
against the First Amendment, in which the principle of “Freedom of religion” is stated.
In the Pledge of Allegiance, which is recited in schools and before any official government activity
or congress, the words “a nation under God” are considered the most controversial part,
especially considering the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights.
In the last few years, it has been debated, if the word “God” refers to an actual religion or if it just
symbolizes American patriotism, since it was written to recover the lost patriotism and love for the
nation, especially directed towards school children and immigrants.
Therefore, the Pledge of Allegiance could be considered controversial, but, since nobody Is forced
to recite it, it is still accepted as a symbol of the American nation.
Defining Key Concepts – Politics
Politics is the practice and theory of influencing other people on a global, civic or individual level.
More narrowly, it refers to achieving and exercising positions of governance, i.e. organized
control over a human community, particularly a state.
By means and as a result of this practice, politics performs the task of distributing power and
resources withing a given community (a social unit of any size that shares common procedural or
substantive values) as well as that of settling the interrelationship(s) between communities.
What is the outcome of politics?
METHODS EMPLOYED IN POLITICS
A variety of methods are employed in politics, which include promoting one’s own political views
among people, negotiation with other political subjects, making laws, and exercising force,
including warfare against adversaries.
Politics is exercised on a wide range of social levels, from clans and tribes of traditional societies,
through modern local governments, companies, and institutions up to sovereign states and to the
international level.
A political system is a framework which defines acceptable political values and methods within a
given society.
How can Politics be defined?
Politics can be defined as the practice and theory of influencing other people on a global, civic or
individual level and achieving and exercising positions of governance.
Find a synonym for the word “Governance”
Control/administration
How can a community be defined?
A community can be defined as a social unity of any size that shares common values.
What is a political system?
It is a framework that defines political values and methods within society.
FOCUS ON GRAMMAR
Mathematics (the science) is an exact science.
Politics (the art of government) fascinates me.
The mathematics (the calculations) of the launching of a spacecraft are extremely complicated.
I like him personally, but his politics (political opinions) are repellent.
POLICY
Is a policy a procedure? It is implemented as one, but it is a principle that guides the way a
community act.
Definition: A policy is a principle to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes.
Synonym: statement of intent
How is it put into practice? It can be implemented as procedure or protocol
Policy Levels: government, private sector organizations, families and individuals
Examples of policies: 1) corporate privacy policies 2) presidential executive orders in the US
(called standing orders in the UK Parliament), which are rules for facilitating discussions and group
decision-making.
Find one or more synonyms for “policy”.
- Plan, Principle, Strategy, Action, Scheme, Programme, Code.
What is the difference between Politics and Policy?
- Politics is the science of government (forming, directing, administrating states) or the
practice and profession of conducting political affairs.
- A policy, instead, can be defined as a plan or course or action that is proposed by a
government, an individual, business or any party.

FOCUS ON LEXIS (P. 5 of course materials)

Difference between i.e. and e.g.

 The hotel is closed during low season, i.e. from October to March
i.e.  That is (id est)
 You should eat more food that contains a lot of fibre, e.g. fruit, vegetables and bread.
e.g.  For instance, For example (exempio gratia)
READING COMPREHENSION ON PUBLIC POLICIES PAGE 5
Paragraph 1. Definition of public policy.
Paragraph 2. Relationship between public policy and law and lawmakers
Paragraph 3. Advocacy, what it is and how it works.
b) Which of these statements is false?
A public policy is made by advocacy groups.
c) What does shape a policy mean?
It means organizing and setting a goal for a policy, also having influence on a policy.
d) A synonym for advocacy?
Backing
e) We can assume that competing interest groups try to influence policy makers to get what
they want.
KEY TERMS – PRACTISING COLLOCATIONS
Citizen

 A native or naturalized person who owes allegiance to a government and is entitled to

protection from it; a person who legally belongs to a country and has the rights and
protection of that country.
 Also, a civilian as distinguished from a specialized servant of the state.
Polity

 An organized society with a specific form of government;

E.g., a state or one of its subordinate civil authorities (province, prefecture, county, city or
district)
Policy Maker

 Someone who sets plans which are then carried out by a government or business.
Important or influential person whose actions and opinions strongly influence the course
of events.
 If you are responsible for designing a policy at any level, you’re the policy maker.
For instance, a mayor, a school board, a corporation’s board of directors and the President
of the USA are all policy makers.
Civil society

 Civil society is the aggregate of non-governmental organizations and institutions that

manifest the interests and will of citizens and is often referred to as the “3 rd sector” or
society, distinct from government and business.
Volunteering is often considered a defining characteristic of the organizations that
constitute civil society, which are often called NGOs (Non-governmental organizations) or
non profit (NPOs).
DEFINING LOBBYING
“To lobby” has a rather neutral meaning: “to persuade”, “to promote”, “to campaign for”
It can be used also with a negative meaning, depending on the context.
Lobbying is an action.
Lobbying is a direct approach on an issue which plays a significant role in modern politics.
Lobbying means making the case for:
1) A particular policy
2) Cause or
3) Group
Directly to a government minister or member of parliament with the aim of influencing their
decisions.
To make the case (or a case) for = to argue in favour of something or someone
(Perorare una causa presso qualcuno)
Ex. The Report makes the case that current policies are inadequate
To make a strong case for someone = Trying to convince someone of something.
The bulk (Most, the greater part) of lobbying typically takes place when business and professional
interest groups hire paid professionals, i.e. professional lobbysts.
Some lobbyists represent NPOs pro bono (without charge) for issues in which they are personally
interested.
Pro bono publico lobbyists offer activities to meet and socialize with local legislators at events like
fundraisers (charity events) and awards ceremonies.
When lobbying is done by individuals it is often referred to as advocacy. Nowadays, everybody
can have an impact by using social media to facilitate civic engagement and collective action.
On the UK official government website you can find a guide on how to lobby.
What does lobbying mean?
It means supporting a cause or a policy with the aim of influencing a policymaker.
WHAT IS LOBBYING AND CAN IT BE GOOD? Youtube video. And I answer the questions page 11.
SUBJECT VERB AGREEMENT
1) Grammatical agreement = correspondence of a verb or pronoun with its antecedent in
person/number/gender
2) Proximity agreement = with the closest noun phrase
3) Notional agreement = based on meaning

AVOIDING GENDER CONNOTATED REFERENCE IN ENGLISH

Gender is no longer an inflectional category in Modern English (it used to be in 11 th century Old
English).
The only traces of the Old English gender system are found in the system of pronoun-antecedent
agreement which is now based on natural gender.
Ex. My friend is super nice, her boyfriend isn’t.
Natural gender refers to the sex, gender identity or perceived sexual characteristics.
Awareness about gender-connotated reference is a relatively recent phenomenon, it starts
spreading in the ‘90s. If you overuse the masculine it is a problem in English, especially in modern
English. If you over-extend the masculine, people will notice it a lot.
FROM GENDER-CONNOTATED TO GENDER-NEUTRAL REFERENCE

 A good manager knows his staff.

We are used to our language rules by using the masculine, but we can’t do so in English.
 A good manager knows his or her staff.
This makes it weird, it’s not elegant enough, it’s acceptable but not the preferred form.
 A good manager knows their staff.
 Good managers know their staff.
The best strategy is to make the subject plural, it would respect the grammatical
agreement and it also respects the gender of the staff, which we don’t know if it’s
masculine or feminine.
How can we solve the gender agreement problem?
By using plural pronouns, which are gender-free in English.
A nurse should be nice to her patients. (it’s biased, we’re assuming all nurses are female)
Nurses should be nice to their patients. (it’s not biased towards male nurses)
These are some of the words and expressions which have changed to become more inclusive.
Chairman  Chair or Chairperson
Spokesman  Spokesperson/people
Salesman  Salesperson/people
Policeman  Police officer
Fireman  Firefighter
To man a vehicle  To operate a vehicle.
NOTIONAL AGREEMENT
It is an agreement based on the meaning we give to a collective noun:
1) Plural concord  Puts the focus on the fact that a group is made of individuals.
2) Singular concord  Puts the focus on the group as a whole.
Singular collective nouns like team, government, committee, staff, family, allow either singular or
plural concord in BrE, while in AmE the singular is the normal choice.

 Ex. The Government want to increase taxes (BrE)

I am trying to put the focus on the individuals forming the Government.
 Ex. The Government wants to increase taxes. (BrE; only usage in AmE)
COUNTABLE/UNCOUNTABLE WORDS
People always takes a plural verb (People are easily influenced)
Information and Money always take a singular verb.
News always takes a singular word (The news is worrying)
The majority takes a singular verb, but you can say “Most people” + plural verb.
Ex. A 60 % majority disagrees with the proposed policy. BUT
The majority of voters agree…  Proximity agreement
Most voters agree…
Nationality words and adjectives take a CAPITAL LETTER.
CONNOTATION VS DENOTATION
When you denotate you are neutral.
When you connotate you attach a meaning to what you’re saying, you place a lot of meaning in a
word, which could be negative or positive.
English Consonants
Three features are sufficient to describe a consonant sound:
1) Place of articulation: lips, alveolar or tooth ridge, post-alveolar or pre-palatal region
between the alveolar ridge and the palate, the palate itself.
2) Manner of articulation: stop, affricate, fricative, nasal, lateral, semi-vocalic.
3) Force of articulation: voiced vs voiceless
RULES FOR THE CORRECT PRONUNCIATION OF THE -S ENDING

RULES FOR THE CORRECT PRONUNCIATION OF THE -ED ENDING

Past Simple and Past Participle of regular verbs (-ed)
Dark l is slightly pronounced.
SILENT L
In some words, the letter L is simply not pronounced.
Calm, folk, walk.
COLLOCATIONS
Collocations are words that co-occur.
If a word collocates with many other words, the result is a free combination and we say that the
word does not have a restricted collocational range (e.g. “go”, “girl”,“car”)
On the contrary, if a word can be found only with certain other words, we say that the word has or
forms a fixed or restricted collocation (e.g., ajar and door, auburn and hair, nod and head, shrug
and shoulder, etc.)

For example:
  Referring to height, we would never say “Tom is high”, but we can say “Tom is tall”.
 We take a “quick shower” not a “fast shower”.
 We have a “heated argument” not a “hot argument”.
IDIOMS
An idiom is a special type of collocation.
The word “idiom” can be paraphrased as a group of words that together have a meaning that is
different from the ordinary meaning of each separate word.
Idioms acquire a different meaning when they’re used together, sometimes the final meaning is
completely different than the original word.
For example, if you are feeling “under the weather”, it means that you are not feeling very well.
Idioms can show different degrees of semantic opacity. For instance, “green light” is less opaque
than “red herring”.

 To give someone the green light = to allow a project, plan, etc. to begin;
 To be a red herring = a fact or idea that is not important but is introduced to divert your
attention (take your attention away) from the points that are important.
Example of RED HERRING:

The second sentence seems to be used as an obstruction to obtain consensus; I’m bringing up a
topic that is not really related to the main topic but I’m using it as a distraction.
It is also a type of fallacy; I use it to obtain the agreement of the people.
INDIVIDUAL ACTIVITY

1) Where does the idiom “red herring” come from?

It originated from a news story by an English journalist William Cobbett, in 1807, in which
he claimed that as a boy he used a red herring (a cured and salted herring) to mislead
hounds following a trial; the story served as an extended metaphor for the London press,
which had earned Cobbett’s ire by publishing false news accounts regarding Napoleon.
2) Can we say that fake news are examples of red herrings? Why?

CAVEATE!
The use of idioms requires good language knowledge. Consider all your options carefully before
including an idiom in your essay. Make sure you’re using the appropriate idiom for that context.
PHRASAL VERBS
Phrasal verbs combine verbs and prepositions to make new verbs whose meaning may be
different from that of the original verb. In other words, phrasal verbs often have meanings which
we cannot easily guess from their individual parts.
For instance, “give up” is a phrasal verb that means “stop doing” something, which is very
different.
The particle may come before or after the object if the object is not a personal pronoun.
Ex. 1) Would you like me to hand the copies out / to hand out the copies?
I’ve made some copies. Would you like me to hand them out?
Ex. Put out (extinguish)
“Could you please put out your cigarette?”
Ex. Get rid of (eliminate)
“She decided to get rid of her car.”
PREPISITIONAL VERBS
Prepositional verbs have two parts: a verb and a preposition which cannot be separated from
each other:
Ex. “The US is the only country in the world that depends on/upon (NB: not from) for-profit
insurance companies for the majority of their health-care coverage.”
CLASS SHIFT
We speak of class shift when the basic form of a word does not change, but its function does.
Ex. “Can” (lattina)
Noun  “Please open the can”
Adjective  “Use a can opener”
Verb  “Help me can the food”
Of course, morphological rules hold, ex. “Yesterday I canned some food.”
Yield /ji:ld/
To yield (verb) = to produce profit, food, information
Yield (noun, usually singular) = profit
N.B. Schaws and short vowels are mainly found in non-stressed syllables!
PRACTICE STRESS DISTIRBUITION USING THE FOLLOWING VERBS