Section VII.5. Minority rule (p.149 – p.152) Words:

majority government

parliamentary election

verdict

self-critical

decisive

resignation

mere

to emerge

twice

pluralism

approximation

to misjudge smth.

Phrases:

to provoke smb. to do smth.

to correspond to smth.

to vote smb. out of office

election day

the loss of votes

to force one's decision upon smb.

to form a coalition

to govern with an absolute majority

to be turned out of office

to be in direct opposition to smb.

to be represented in the government

in the interest of smb.

defeated party

an electoral defeat

to be convicted

as things stand

to give smb. a chance to do smth.

to be incompatible with smth.

to wield a power

to be in a position to do smth.

an open society

to open a political debate

Commentaries and notes:

Day of Judgement - or, Last Judgement, the final judging of mankind by God: a general, or sometimes individual, judging of thoughts, words, and deeds of persons by God, the gods, or by the laws of cause and effect (e.g., karman [русск. "карма"] in Hinduism). In some religions (e.g., Christianity) the last Judgement is of both the living and the dead; in others (e.g., Islam and some African religions) the judgement in which God rewards or punishes persons according to their actions occurs only after death.

Pericles of Athens - (c.¹⁴ 495 B.C. - 429), Athenian statesman, largely responsible for the full development, in the later 5^th century B.C., of both Athenian democracy and the Athenian empire, making Athens the political and cultural focus of Greece. His achievements included the construction of the Acropolis, begun in 447.

...the decisive issue of | how to get rid of a government... | (p. 148) - определение к слову "issue", выраженное придаточным предложением (см. Грамматика: раздел Эмфатические конструкции").

...even in the case of a single party governing ¹ ... and thrown out ² ... (p. 149) - 1) первое определение к слову "party", выраженное причастием I, 2) второе определение к слову "party", выраженное причастием II.

Only in this way can they be induced... (p. 150) - инверсия сказуемого (см. Грамматика: раздел "Эмфатические конструкции").

Reply: ... (p. 150) - здесь: существительное.

Complete openness ¹ would... be self-defeating ²|, as ⁴ would be ³ complete freedom. (p. 150) - 1) подлежащее, 2) сказуемое, 3) инверсия сказуемого в придаточном предложении (пропущена смысловая часть, аналогичная смысловой части сказуемого в главном предложении; см. Грамматика: раздел "Эмфатические конструкции"); 4) союз (см. Грамматика: раздел "Эмфатические конструкции")

And more important ² ... may be ² a proper attitude ¹ towards... (p. 150-151) - 10 подлежащее, 2) инверсия сказуемого (см. Грамматика: раздел "Эмфатические конструкции").

Exercises:

1. Find Russian equivalents for the following English phrases:

to govern with an absolute majority, to be in direct opposition to smb., an electoral defeat, an open society, as things stand, to wield a power, defeated party, the loss of votes, election day, to be represented in the government, to give smb. a chance to do smth., in the interest of smb., to be turned out of office, to force one's decision upon smb., to be incompatible with smth., to vote smb. out of office, to open a political debate.