English 7

Quarter 4 – Module 5
Resolving Conflicts in Non-Violent Ways
NAME: ________________________________
GRADE & SECTION: ____________________
The Philippines is one of the countries that is hit greatly by the Covid-19 pandemic. Economy
has been down, jobs have been stopped and even education has been transformed to fit to the new
normal. It cannot be denied that people in our locality have been affected and this often creates
misunderstandings in the family, in the neighborhood or in the community. Your family might also be
affected and experiencing difficulties right now. So how do you solve problems in the family or in your
neighborhood? It is important that you should be able to acquire the skills in solving problems in a
peaceful way.
This lesson will help you deal with problems and consider them as a normal part of life. But
before that, check your understanding on the previous module about determining truthfulness and
accuracy of the material viewed.

About the Author

Jose Garcia Villa was a Filipino poet, literary critic, painter, and
lecturer. He used the pen name ―Doveglion‖ which came from ―Dove,
Eagle and Lion‖. He was born on August 5, 1908, in Manila’s Singalong
District. He used to study in the University of the Philippines and later on
went to University of New Mexico in USA. Footnote to Youth: Tales of the
Philippines and Others (Charles Scribner’s Sons) was the first fiction book
published by a Filipino author in a major State-based press in the United
States of America. His awards were the National Artist of the Philippines
for Literature in 1973 and Guggenheim Fellowship in Creative Writing.

The excerpts that you are about to read is entitled, Footnote to Youth. It was
written by Jose Garcia Villa in 1933. It is a story of marrying very young and
regretting life’s choices. Find out more about this story by reading the excerpts on
the next page.
Footnote to Youth
by Jose Garcia Villa
Excerpt A
"I will marry Teang," Dodong repeated. "I will marry Teang." His father kept gazing at him in
inflexible silence and Dodong fidgeted on his seat. "I asked her last night to marry me and she
said...yes. I want your permission. I... want... it...." There was impatient clamor in his voice, an
exacting protest at this coldness, this indifference. Dodong looked at his father sourly. He cracked his
knuckles one by one, and the little sounds it made broke dully the night stillness. "Must you marry,
Dodong?" Dodong resented his father's questions; his father himself had married. Dodong made a
quick impassioned easy in his mind about selfishness, but later he got confused.
"You are very young, Dodong."
"I'm... seventeen."
"That's very young to get married at."
"I... I want to marry...Teang's good girl."
"Tell your mother," his father said.
"You tell her, tatay."
"Dodong, you tell your inay."
"You tell her."
"All right, Dodong."
"You will let me marry Teang?"
"Son, if that is your wish... of course..."
There was a strange helpless light in his father's eyes. Dodong did not read it, too absorbed
was he in himself. Dodong was immensely glad he had asserted himself. He lost his resentment for
his father. For a while he even felt sorry for him about the diseased tooth. Then he confined his mind
dreaming of Teang and himself. Sweet young dream.…
Excerpt B
Blas was not Dodong's only child. Many more children came. For six successive years a new
child came along. Dodong did not want any more children, but they came. It seemed the coming of
children could not be helped. Dodong got angry with himself sometimes. Teang did not complain, but
the bearing of children told on her. She was shapeless and thin now, even if she was young. There
was interminable work to be done. Cooking. Laundering. The house. The children. She cried
sometimes, wishing she had not married. She did not tell Dodong this, not wishing him to dislike her.
Excerpt C
She accepted me tonight." Dodong lay on the red pillow without moving. "Itay, you think it
over." Dodong lay silent. "I love Tona and... I want her." Dodong rose from his mat and told Blas to
follow him. They descended to the yard, where everything was still and quiet. The moonlight was cold
and white.
"You want to marry Tona," Dodong said. He did not want Blas to marry yet. Blas was very
young. The life that would follow marriage would be hard... "Yes." "Must you marry?" Blas's voice
stilled with resentment. "I will marry Tona." Dodong kept silent, hurt. "You have objections, Itay?" Blas
asked acridly. "Son... n-none..." (But truly, God, I don't want Blas to marry yet... not yet. I don't want
Blas to marry yet....) But he was helpless. He could not do anything. Youth must triumph... now. Love
must triumph... now. Afterwards... it will be life. As long ago Youth and Love did triumph for Dodong...
and then Life. Dodong looked wistfully at his young son in the moonlight. He felt extremely sad and
sorry for him.
The story that you read gives you an idea that conflict occurs in one’s life. You will encounter
conflict in life which will teach you to become what you will be today and in the future. Conflict
happens internally and externally. Find out more about conflicts by reading the text below.
Struggle or Conflict is one of the elements of a short story. It refers to the issue that the
main character is facing in the story.
Two types of conflict:
 Internal conflict refers to the character’s internal struggle which takes place in
his/her mind. A struggle to make a decision or to overcome a feeling are examples of
it.
 External conflict, on the other hand, refers to the conflict between a character and
external forces. This type of conflict can be between a character and another or a
group of people. It can also be between a character and the force of nature, event or
situation.
Conflict arises from differences, both large and small. It happens at whatever point. Individuals
differ over their qualities, inspirations, observations, thoughts, or wants. The key is not to avoid
conflict but to learn how to resolve it in a healthy way. Whatever the cause of disagreements, by
learning the following possibilities in resolving conflict and choosing the correct response, you can
keep your personal relationships strong and growing.
 Get Angry (Lose-Lose). Both persons involved in an argument may insist that they are right and
would refuse to listen to the other person. In the story, conflict starts on Dodong when he wanted
to marry Teang and asked for his father’s permission because he had a thought that he is in the
legal age and can be independent. Dodong felt uncomfortable and then became angry because
his father kept looking at him without uttering anything. His father was doubtful of Dodong’s
decision but did not tell him and Dodong insisted that he really would like to marry Teang. With
this as a solution, both sides lose and might create a broken relationship.
 Postpone. Both may put off talking about the problem until they are both calm to talk. The
thought that Dodong’s father easily agreed on marrying Teang at an early age has contributed a
lot on Dodong’s situation at the later part. In this possibility, it is not good to talk while emotions
are out of control, instead talking is done after being calm. Being calm and respectful in
communicating increases understanding of the other person, and strengthens your relationship.
 Give in (Lose-Win). The other person surrenders to what the other one wants. Using this
strategy to resolve a conflict involves taking steps to satisfy the concerns or demands of the other
person at the expense of the other one’s needs. As it happened in the story, Dodong’s father did
not insist or made long conversation with his son. He just simply gave his approval.
 Get help. The two persons involved in disagreement would ask a third person to help them solve
the problem. If you are in this position, do not take sides. Remember, your goal is to simply help
them work out their problems. In the story, Footnote to Youth, Dodong should have involved his
mother about the thought of marrying Teang and seek guidance from her.
 Compromise (Win-Win). Both persons involved in the conflict talk calmly and find a solution that
would make them both satisfied. This strategy involves finding an acceptable solution that will
satisfy the concerns of all persons involved. Having experienced marriage life at young age,
Dodong should have made an agreement with his son, Blas, that he will allow him to marry when
he is now able to provide the basic needs of a family and is mature enough to handle stress and
challenges as the head of the family.
Being able to choose and apply the best conflict resolution strategy effectively is made
possible by developing better conflict resolution skills. Examples of conflict resolution skills that can
help you include the ability to:
 Listen effectively.
 Identify specific points of disagreement.
 Express your own needs clearly.
 View conflict as an opportunity for growth.
With time and effort, you can learn new conflict resolution skills that will improve your ability to
negotiate and resolve issues with others. Eventually, you will be able to select and use
the possibilities in conflict resolution that is best for the situation.

Activity 10: Tell a Friend

Directions: Your friend wanted to enrol in an online class. But his/her parents could not afford the
gadgets needed. Write a short letter to your friend giving him/her advice on how to solve
the conflict. Follow the format given below. Letter writing rubric is provided for you.

Date:
_________________

Dear ____________________,

_______________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________.

Quarter 4 – Module 6 Your friend,

_____________
_____

Asserting One’s Unique Identity and Understanding

Others

Pliant Like the Bamboo

by Ismael V. Mallari

There is a story in Philippine folklore about a mango tree and a bamboo tree. Not being able to agree as to which
was strongest of the two, they called upon the wind to make the decision. The winds blew its hardest. The mango tree stood
fast. It would not yield. It knew it was strong and sturdy. It would not sway. It was too proud. It was too sure of itself. But finally,
its roots gave way, and it tumbled down. The bamboo tree was wiser. It knew it was not as robust as the mango tree. And so
every time the wind blew, it bent its head gracefully. It made loud protests, but it let the winds have its way. When finally, the
wind got tired of blowing, the bamboo tree still stood in all its beauty and grace.
The Filipino is like the bamboo. He knows that he is not strong enough to withstand the onslaughts of superior forces.
And so he yields. He bends his head gracefully with many loud protests.
And he has survived. The Spaniards came and dominated him for more than three hundred years. And when the
Spaniards left, the Filipinos still stood—only much richer in experience and culture.
 The Americans took the place of the Spaniards. They used more subtle means of winning over the Filipinos who
embraced the American way of life more readily than the Spaniards’ vague promise of the hereafter.
Then the Japanese came like a storm, like a plaque of locusts, like a pestilence rude, relentless and cruel. The
Filipino learned to bow his head low to ―cooperate‖ with the Japanese in their ―holy mission of establishing the Co-Prosperity
Sphere.‖ The Filipino had only hate and contempt for the Japanese, but they learned to smile sweetly at them and to thank
them graciously for their ―benevolence and magnanimity.‖
And now that the Americans have come back and driven away the Japanese, those Filipinos who profited most from
cooperating with the Japanese have been loudest in their protestations of innocence. Everything is as if the Japanese had
never been in the Philippines.
For the Filipino would welcome any kind of life that the gods would welcome any kind of life that the gods would offer
him. That is why he is contented and happy and at peace. The sad plight of other people of the world is not his. To him, as to
that the ancient Oriental poet, the past is already a dream, and tomorrow is a vision; but today, well-lived, makes every
yesterday a dream of happiness, and tomorrow is a vision of hope.
This may give you the idea that the Filipino is a philosopher. Well he is, He has not evolved a body of philosophical
doctrines. Much less has he put them down into a book, like Kant for example, or Santayana or Confucius. But he does haves
philosophical outlook on life.
He has a saying that life is like that life is like a wheel. Sometimes it is up, sometimes it is down. The monsoon
season comes, and he has to go undercover. But then the sun comes out again. The flowers bloom, and the birds sing in the
trees. You cut off the branches of a tree, and, while the marks of the bolo are still upon it, it begins to shoot forth-new branches
– branches that are the promise of new color, new fragrance, and new life.
Everywhere about him is a lesson in patience and forbearance that he does not have to learn with difficulty. For the
Filipino lives in a country on which the gods lavished their gifts aplenty. He does not have to worry about the morrow. Tomorrow
will be only another day – no winter of discontentment. Of he loses his possessions, there is the land and there is the sea, with
all the riches that one can desire. There is plenty to spar – for friends, for neighbors and for everyone else.
No wonder that the Filipino can afford to laugh. For the Filipino is endowed with saving grace of humor. This humor is
earthly as befits one who has not indulged in deep contemplation. But it has enabled the Filipino to shrug his shoulders in times
of adversity and say to himself ―Bahala na‖.
The Filipino has often accused of being indolent and of lacking initiative. And he has answered back that no one help
being indolent and lacking initiative who lives under the torrid sun which saps vitality.
This seeming lack of vitality is, however, only means of survival. He does not allow the world to be too much with him.
Like the bamboo tree, he lets the winds of chance and circumstances blow all about him; and he is unperturbed and serene.
The Filipino, in fact, has a way of escaping from rigorous problems of life. Most of his art is escapist in nature. His
forefathers wallowed in the moro-moro, the awit, and the kurido. They loved to identify themselves as gallant knights battling for
the favors of the fair ladies or the possession of hollowed place. And now he himself loves to be lost in the throes and modern
romance and adventure.
His gallantry towards women – especially comely women – is a manifestation of his romantic turn of mind.
Consequently, in no other place in Orient are women so respected, so adulated, and so pampered. For his women have
enabled Filipinos to look upon the vicissitudes of fortune as the bamboo tree regards the angry blasts of blustering winds.
The Filipino is eminently suited to his romantic role. He is slender and wiry. He is nimble and graceful in his
movements. His voice is soft, and he has the gift of languages. In what other place in the world can you find people who can
carry on a fluent conversation in at least three languages?
This gift is another means by which the Filipino has managed to survive. There is no insurmountable barrier between
him and any of the people who have come to live with him—Spanish, Americans, Japanese. The foreigners do not have to
learn his language. He easily manages to master theirs.
Verily, the Filipino is like the bamboo tree. In its grace, in its ability to adjust itself to the peculiar and inexplicable
whims to fate, the bamboo tree is his expressive and symbolic national tree. It will have to be, not the molave nor the narra, but
the bamboo.

Activity 9: A Symbol of Myself

Instructions: Perform the activity below.
1. Write a poem/song/rap describing yourself using your name as an acronym, highlighting your uniqueness
.