Trabajo Ingles

29/01/2026

English presentation

PROJECT SECOND TERM:

WHY DEMOCRACIES ARE STRUGGLING TO HOLD THEMSELVES TOGETHER

Pau Francés and Pablo Navarro

start ➛

Index

1. Analyse of the source
2. Word formation
3. Phrasal verbs
4. Collocations
5. Our opinion
6. Debate

next➛

Analyse of the source:

-Our source -

The source

next➛

contextualiza tu tema

Word formation:Prefixes

• un- (not / opposite of) • unimaginable: “would have been unimaginable two decades ago” • unable: “governments unable to pass even basic reforms” • unprecedented: “viewed with unprecedented suspicion” • unanimity: “depends not on unanimity but on coexistence”

• dis- (not / apart / removal / opposite) • dissolve: “friendships dissolve over political disagreements” • disagreements / disagreement: “political disagreements” and “Disagreement is inevitable” • disengagement: “disengagement or radicalisation” • disagree: “those they disagree with”

• re- (again / back) • replaced: “dialogue is often replaced by sarcasm, hostility” • retreat: “As people retreat into echo chambers” • reinforcing: “reinforcing the perception that the opposing side…” • rebuild / rebuilding: “rebuild trust” and “rebuilding a culture of respectful dialogue” • reversing: “Reversing this trend will demand…” • respectful: “respectful dialogue”

• ir- (not; variant of in- before “r”) • irrational: “the opposing side is irrational, dangerous, or ill- informed” • irreversible: “polarisation is not irreversible”

next➛

contextualiza tu tema

Word formation: Prefixes

• mis- (wrongly / badly / incorrectly) • misinformation: “outright misinformation”

• de- (down / away / reversal / removal) • deteriorate: “Civic trust continues to deteriorate” • delegitimise: “attempts to delegitimise election results” • descending: “without descending into contempt” • deliberative: “deliberative councils”

• co- (together / with / joint) • cooperation: “rewards ideological purity over cooperation” • coexistence: “on coexistence”

• con- (with / together; also intensive) • convinced: “each side convinced that the other represents…” • conspiracy: “conspiracy theories” • constructive: “constructive debate becomes increasingly rare” • confrontation: “toward confrontation rather than negotiation” • collective: “collective effort”

• in- (not / into / within) • inequality: “growing inequality” • inflammatory: “inflammatory comments” • incentives: “political incentives push leaders…” • inevitable: “Disagreement is inevitable” • intensified: “political polarisation has intensified”

next➛

• -ity ( express a quality or state)

• inequality: Sociologists attribute this transformation partly to economic frustration and growing inequality
• hostility: What once resembled spirited debate has morphed into a climate where dialogue is often replaced by sarcasm, hostility, or outright misinformation

• purity: Politicians, eager to hold onto their voter base, adopt extreme rhetoric that further deepens divisions and rewards ideological purity over cooperation.

Word formation: suffixation

• •-tion / -sion (nouns that indicate action, process, or result)
• polarisation: Despite the bleak outlook, experts argue that polarisation is not irreversible.

• transformation: Sociologists attribute this transformation partly to economic frustration and growing inequality.

• discussion : Even routine policy discussions now tend to spark heated arguments, with each side convinced that the other represents a fundamental threat to the nation’s future.
• participation: Sociologists attribute this transformation partly to economic frustration and growing inequality
• radicalisation: Researchers warn that long-term exposure to such hostility can lead to political burnout, disengagement, or radicalisation

• -ance / -ence (state, quality, or condition)
• governance: Unless societies learn to navigate conflict without descending into contempt, the promise of democratic governance may be at serious risk.

• coexistence: Democracy, after all, depends not on unanimity but on coexistence.
• violence:In some countries, polarisation has fuelled violent protests,harassment of public officials, and relentless attempts to delegitimise election results, threatening long-standing democratic norms.

• -ment (result, state, or action)
• engagement: Social-media algorithms, designed to maximise engagement, also feed into public outrage by promoting content that triggers strong emotional reactions.

• harassment: Neighbours stop talking to one another, friendships dissolve over political disagreements, and online harassment becomes routine.

• government: Legislative paralysis has become common, with governments unable to pass even basic reforms on issues

such as education, healthcare, or climate policy.

• -ism ( indicates ideology, movement, or belief system)
• populism: Yet the rise of populism is only one piece of the puzzle.

• radicalism: Researchers warn that long-term exposure to such hostility can lead to political burnout, disengagement, or radicalisation.

next➛

Word formation: suffixation

• -ing (gerunds or nouns related to actions in progress)
• growing: Sociologists attribute this transformation partly to economic frustration and growing inequality
• threatening: In some countries, polarisation has fuelled violent protests, harassment of public officials, and relentless attempts to delegitimise election results, threatening long-standing democratic norms.

• bringing: Local initiatives—such as community forums and deliberative councils—have shown promising results in bringing together people with different viewpoints.

• -ive (adjectives that indicate capacity or function)
• constructive: As people retreat into echo chambers, constructive debate becomes increasingly rare, even within families or workplaces.
• collective: Reversing this trend will demand collective effort—from policymakers, educators, media organisations, and ordinary citizens alike—but many believe that rebuilding a culture of respectful dialogue is still within reach.

• -er (person who performs an action)
• supporters: Election cycles have become emotionalbattlegrounds in which supporters of opposing parties lash out at one another both online and offline.

• leaders : Political incentives push leaders toward confrontation rather than negotiation.
• researchers: Researchers warn that long-term exposure to such hostility can lead to political burnout, disengagement, or radicalisation.

• -al (adjectives related to something)
• political: When citizens feel ignored or marginalised by political elites, they gravitate toward parties that promise to “shake up” the system or give a voice to those who feel left behind.
• emotional: Election cycles have become emotional battlegrounds in which supporters of opposing parties lash out at one another both online and offline.

• institutional (implicit in institutions): Civic trust continues to deteriorate, and public institutions—from courts to electoral commissions—are viewed with unprecedented suspicion

• -ful (indicates full of or characterized by)

• respectful: Reversing this trend will demand collective effort—from

policymakers, educators, media organisations, and ordinary citizens alike—but many believe that rebuilding a culture of respectful dialogue is still within reach.

next➛

Phrasal verbs

• lash out — “supporters of opposing parties lash out at one another” • shake up — “promise to “shake up” the system” • left behind — “give a voice to those who feel left behind” • feed into — “also feed into public outrage”
 • crowd out — “crowding out more nuanced perspectives”
 • hold onto — “eager to hold onto their voter base” • reach out — “persuading citizens to reach out to those they disagree with”

next➛

Phrasal Verbs

(Their meaning)

• lash out — 
(Meaning: to suddenly attack or criticize someone angrily,) • shake up — 
(Meaning: to make major changes to something, often to improve or disrupt it in a significant way.) • left behind — “ meaning: to be abandoned, forgotten, or excluded from progress.) • feed into — ”
(Meaning: to contribute to something or help make it stronger/grow, here adding to or intensifying public anger.) • crowd out — ”
(Meaning: to force something/someone out by filling the space or taking attention away.) • hold onto — ”
(Meaning: to keep or retain something tightly, often refusing to let go.) • reach out —(Meaning: to make contact or attempt to connect with someone, often to communicate or reconcile.)

continuar ➛

Word formation: compound adjectives

cross-party

long-standing

• that has existed for a long time

Example: long-standing democratic norm In some countries, polarisation has fuelled violent protests, harassment of public officials, and relentless attempts to delegitimise election results, threatening long-standing democratic norms.

• involving more than one political party.

Example: Citizens’ assemblies, cross-party dialogues, and media-literacy programmes can help rebuild trust and encourage more thoughtful participation.

media literacy

far-reaching

• related to the ability to understand and analyze media.

Example: Citizens’ assemblies, cross-party dialogues, and media-literacy programmes can help rebuild trust and encourage more thoughtful participation.

• having broad or important effects.

Example: The consequences are far-reaching.

• Occurring outside of the internet.

Example: Election cycles have become emotional battlegrounds in which supporters of opposing parties lash out at one another both online and offline.

Offline

next➛

Collocations

• political polarisation: Across the democratic world, political polarisation has intensified to a degree that would have been

unimaginable two decades ago.

• economic frustration: Sociologists attribute this transformation partly to economic frustration and growing inequality.
• growing inequality: Sociologists attribute this transformation partly to economic frustration and growing inequality.
• heated arguments: Even routine policy discussions now tend to spark heated arguments, witheach side convinced that the other represents a fundamental threat to the nation’s future.

• constructive debate: As people retreat into echo chambers, constructive debate becomes increasingly rare, even within families or workplaces.

• extreme rhetoric: Politicians, eager to hold onto their voter base, adopt extreme rhetoric that further deepens divisions and rewards ideological purity over cooperation.

• legislative paralysis: Legislative paralysis has become common, with governments unable to pass even basic reforms on issues such as education, healthcare, or climate policy.

• civic trust: Civic trust continues to deteriorate, and public institutions—from courts to electoral commissions—are viewed with unprecedented suspicion.

• violent protests: In some countries, polarisation has fuelled violent protests, harassment of public officials, and relentless attempts to delegitimise election results, threatening long-standing democratic norms.

• respectful dialogue: Reversing this trend will demand collective effort—from policymakers, educators, media organisations, and ordinary citizens alike—but many believe that rebuilding a culture of respectful dialogue is still within reach

next➛

Our opinion

next➛

Debate:

Can citizens really be persuaded to listen to those they disagree with, or has hostility already become permanent in our societies?'

next➛

Thanks to see us!

END