Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
Region XIII-CARAGA REGION
SCHOOLS DIVISION OF SURIGAO DEL SUR
CARRASCAL NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL
Nat’l. Highway, Gamuton, Carrascal, Surigao del Sur

LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEETS IN 21ST CENTURY LITERATURE FROM THE PHILIPPINES AND THE WORLD

GRADE LEVEL: 11 – STEM/HUMSS & TVL DISCIPLINE: Literature

SUBJECT AREA: 21st Century Literature from the Philippines and the World TOPIC: “Suddenly, a Knock on the Door”
QUARTER: Second WEEK: January 4 – 8, 2021

General Instructions: This learning activity sheet is intended to be answered for the duration of one week, answer all given activity to
earn a grade in this subject. You are not allowed to write anything, crumple or put unnecessary marks in the worksheets, provide yellow
sheet of paper/s for your answers. Please answer the activities provided HONESTLY. Enjoy answering!

WHAT IS IT

Suddenly, a Knock on the Door is a collection of comedic short stories by Israeli author Etgar Keret. Originally published in
2010, the first English translation appeared in 2012. The book contains thirty-five stories, the majority of which are less than two-
thousand words in length. The very short nature of the stories allows them to serve as snapshots into the lives of various strange and
satirical characters rather than as traditional narratives with beginnings, middles, and ends.
Some of the more noteworthy stories in the collection include:
In “Suddenly, a Knock on the Door,” the titular story in the collection, a Swedish stranger demands a story from the narrator at
gunpoint. Before he can comply, they are interrupted by a Moroccan man taking a door-to-door poll. The narrator tries to get rid of the
Moroccan who thinks he is being rude and subsequently pulls a gun of his own. The narrator begins to tell a story but is interrupted by
another knock on the door. A pizza deliveryman has arrived, and he, too, pulls a gun and demands a story. The narrator is nervous, but
haltingly begins a story about a man who is accosted by three armed strangers who want to hear a story.
In “The Polite Little Boy,” a young boy listens to his parents argue viciously in another room. He interrupts to show them a
model airplane he has made, and they both dismiss him, sending him outside to play. The young boy plays with his airplane in the park
for a time, encountering a young girl who cruelly taunts him and his parents. The young boy ignores her and heads home. His parents
are still visibly upset but make time to tell the young boy that they love him even when they fight.
“Teamwork” is about a divorced man who uses his ex-mother-in-law as a babysitter for his young son. The babysitter
frequently neglects and mistreats the boy, who demands that his father kill her as punishment. Instead, the father manipulates his son
into hurting himself while in his grandmother’s care, leading to her being barred from seeing the child. Father and son form a special
bond while conspiring together.
“Big Blue Bus” begins with a young child having a tantrum because he wants to take a bus to kindergarten instead of walking. A
cartoon he likes to watch has convinced him that if he wishes hard enough, he will be able to take the bus or do anything else he
wants. His father tries to reason with the boy and cajole him into walking to kindergarten. Eventually, he gives up, carrying his son the
rest of the way, but the boy continues his tantrum. The teacher won’t let the boy stay in his agitated state, so his father takes him to the
bus stop to spend the day riding buses instead.
In “Lieland,” a pathological liar awakens one day to find that all his lies have come true. The main character has a long history
of lying, dating back to when he was six years old and successfully stole money from his mother. After a strange dream about his
mother that harkens back to that lie, he discovers that all his old lies have become reality. He is transported to a dream space where he
has to contend with all the lies, he has told over time, including a childhood bully and a wounded dog. He eventually finds his way out,
but only after coming to terms with all the people his lies have hurt.
“Simyon” is about a young woman who acquires fake marriage papers in order to get out of mandatory military service. She
never meets the man she is supposedly married to, and enough time goes by that she all but forgets about the arrangement. One day,
two soldiers come to her home and inform her that her fake husband has been killed. The young woman, called to identify the body,
experiences a complex series of emotions as she sees him for the first time. She has been unlucky in love and allows herself to briefly
wonder what it might have been like to marry the dead soldier, who looks like a nice person.
Many more stories flesh out Keret’s collection. Taken individually, they tend to seem too short and not sufficiently fleshed out.
However, when taken as a whole, a picture of Keret’s worldview begins to emerge. He approaches a wide variety of subjects
irreverently and satirically, without sentimentality or inborn respect for common institutions. The downside of this approach is that his
characters are often thinly sketched, and it can be difficult for the reader to feel much sympathy for them during more serious stories,
such as “Simyon” or “The Polite Little Boy.”
 WHAT I NEED TO LEARN

Conflict in a narrative is created when the main character wants something. When something else gets in the protagonist's
way, a conflict arises. All stories contain conflict, and some people disagree about how many types of conflict there are. These
discrepancies depend on individual narrative circumstances, but there are cases in which you should recognize a total of seven
different types of narrative conflict.
Man vs. Self
"Man vs. Self" is the only true version of internal conflict you will find in literature. In this mode, the conflict takes place within
the mind of the main character, and often involves the character deciding between right and wrong, or other mixed emotions. However,
this struggle could also exist in the form of a character battling mental illness.
Man vs. Man
"Man vs. Man" is probably the most common form of external conflict and is also known as interpersonal conflict. This mode
lies at the heart of all dramatic arts and places the struggle directly between the protagonist and the antagonist -- otherwise known as
the good guy and the bad guy. In a man vs. man conflict, the protagonist wants something, and the antagonist obstructs the protagonist
from getting what he wants.
Man vs. Society
This mode of external conflict occurs when the protagonist is placed at odds with a government or cultural tradition. This type
of conflict applies to societal norms as well. For example, if a child gets in trouble with his parents for sneaking out of the house at
night, he conflicts with the societal tradition that children are expected to obey their parents.
Man vs. Nature
"Man vs. Nature" pits the main character against the forces of nature -- in the form of a natural disaster or a similarly
dangerous situation -- and is often associated with literary naturalism, which hinges on the idea that nature is indifferent to humanity.
Stephen Crane's short story, "The Open Boat," is a prime example, and demonstrates that the sea can cause shipwrecks easily and
without regard for humanity.
Man vs. Machine
"Man vs. Machine" can mean that a person is in direct combat with robots, in the context of science fiction, or it could mean
simply that technology stands in the way of the protagonist getting what she wants. In the science-fiction version, the same attributes of
a man vs. man conflict apply. However, if a person struggles to keep a job that a new machine can do better, the physical struggle is
against the machine, but the emotional struggle is against the society that breeds technology.
Man vs. Fate/Supernatural
"Man vs. Fate" exists in any story in which the protagonist is struggling against a god or gods. It is sometimes considered part
of "Man vs. Self" when focused on an internal, moral struggle, but should be considered separate in the context of epics -- such as the
"Iliad" and "Odyssey," in which the gods are present antagonists. "Man vs. the Supernatural" falls into a similar standard: If the
protagonist is the only one witnessing supernatural acts, it could be considered "Man vs. Self." However, if it's certain that these
supernatural powers are real, then the mode of conflict stands on its own.

WHAT I CAN DO

Direction: Answer the following questions based on “Suddenly, a Knock on the Door.” Write your answer in the answer
sheet.
1. What is the conflict in the story? Remember that there are two general types of conflict: external conflict and internal
conflict. Person vs. nature, person vs. person, person vs. society, and person vs. fate are types of external conflict.
Person vs. himself/herself is a type of internal conflict.
2. How is the conflict manifested in the situation in the story?
3. Is this conflict a prevalent issue in the world today? Why do you think so?
4. Pair up with a classmate. Brainstorm with your partner on what demands on a reader a literary work from a different
culture makes in order to better comprehend the text. Specifically, what should the reader be prepared to do in
order to make better sense of the literary work, such as this story? Identify at least one way of preparing to read on
nonlocal literary text.

Prepared by: Checked and Reviewed by: Validated by:

CHARLIE JOY G. INTANO EMILY P. NIMES __________________

Subject Teacher Grade12 Coordinator External Validator

Approved by:

FLUELLEN L. COS, PhD

Principal IV