LEARNING KIT IN ENGLISH

GRADE 8
3RD QUARTER

(WEEK 2)

Name:
Grade & Section:
Ms. Mary Cris B. Genil

PERCEIVE IDEAS
Sentence Prompts
Complete the following unfinished sentences about Vietnam. Look for the appropriate missing parts from the list found
inside the box.
created from French colonialism
the long-flowing tunic that is regarded as the national dress
a common ingredient for cooked dishes and the dipping sauces
a Vietnamese noodle soup consisting of broth, linguine-shaped rice noodles, a few herbs, and meat
formerly called Saigon

1. Pho is a vietnamese noodle soup consisting of broth linguine shape rice noodle a few herbs and meat
2. Ho Chi Mihn city is formerly called saigon
3. Ao dar is the long flowing tunic that is regarded as the national dress
4. Modern Vietnam was created from french colonialism
5. Nuoc mam or salty fish sauce is a common ingredient for cooked dishes and the dipping sauces

PERUSE AND READ

"Thoughts of Hanoi" is a poem written by Nguyen Thi Vinh, a Vietnamese poetess. It serves as an eloquent testimonial of
the civil war in Vietnam, waged between communist controlled North Vietnam led by Ho Chi Minh, and non-Communist
South Vietnam with the full support of its major ally, the United States.
"Thoughts of Hanoi" talks about the speaker's bittersweet recollection of a place she fondly remembers as a child.
In this poem, the speaker wonders whether her village, split in two by war and sliced by hatred," is still the same.
As you read, think about what attitude the poem `conveys about war.

Thoughts of Hanoi
A Poem by Nguyen Thi Vĩnh
Translated by Nguyen Ngoc Bich
(Vietnam)

The night is deep and chill

as in early autumn. Pitch-black,
it thickens after each lightning flash.
I dream of Hanoi:
Co-ngu Road
ten years of separation
the way back sliced by a frontier of hatred.
I want to bury the past
to burn the future
still I yearn
still I fear those endless nights
waiting for dawn

Brother,
how is Hang Dao now?
How is Ngoc Son temple?
Do the trains still run
each day from Hanoi
to the neighboring towns?
To Bac-ninh, Cam-giang, Yen-bai,
the small villages, islands
of brown thatch in a lush green sea?

The girls
bright eyes
ruddy cheeks
four-piece dresses
raven-bill scarves
sowing, harvesting
spinning, weaving
all year round,
the boys
plowing
transplanting
in the fields
in their shops
running across
The meadow at evening
to fly kites
and sing alternating songs.

Stainless blue sky,

jubilant voices of children
stumbling through the alphabet,
village graybeards strolling to the
temple,
grandmothers basking in the twilight sun,
chewing betel leaves
while the children run---

Brother,
how is all that now?
Or is it obsolete?
Are you like me,
reliving the past,
imagining the future?
Do you count me as a friend
or am I the enemy in your eyes?
Brother, I am afraid
that one day I'll be with the March-North Army
meeting you on your way to the South.
I might be the one to shoot you then
or you me
but please
not with hatred.
For don't you remember how it was,
you and I in school together,
plotting our lives together?
Those roots go deep!
Brother, we are men,
conscious of more
than material needs.
How can this happen to us
my friend
my foe?

LITERARY POINT
Flashback, Paradox, and Imagery
“Thoughts of Hanoi" by Nguyen Thi Vinh is a timeless poem about two friends who are caught up in the brutal war in
what used to be North and South Vietnam.
The literary devices used in the poem convey the speaker's deepest feelings about her memories of childhood spent
with her dearest friend. These devices are flashback and paradox.
Flashback is used to interrupt the current action of a story to show a scene from the past and its connection to the
present. It can add dimension to a poem or a short story by making readers see into a character's real time that reveals
his thoughts, feelings, and expectations.
In "Thoughts of Hanoi," Nguyen Thi Vihn uses this device through the insertion of a scene from a character's past life, to
infuse a certain mystery or clue to what she is recalling or remembering.
Paradox is a statement that is self-contradictory, yet states a truth. Poets often use paradox to create an unusual
thought or visual image with words. Sometimes, the paradox may convey a tone of irony on the subject of some poems.
This kind of irony usually generates a feeling of intrigue in a reader's mind, achieving a deeper level of contemplation.
Example:
I want to bury the past
to burn the future
still I yearn
still I fear
The lines "still I yearn" and "still I fear" are paradoxical since they are self contradicting and do not seem to make sense.
How can you long for someone or something if you fear him/her/it? However, when you reflect upon the lines, you
realize that there is truth in them. You can actually yearn for someone or something, but behind the yearning, there is a
fear of the unknown.
Here is another example:
How can this happen to us
my friend
my foe?
In the same manner, "my friend" and "my foe" convey an undeniable truth. You can be an enemy, yet be a friend in the
most unexpected circumstances, and vice versa.
In the course of war, someone whom you have become very attached to in the past may eventually become your enemy
because of the differences in your ideology or principles: The circumstances that brought about such differences may
have been inescapable, but deep within you, you would always feel a sense of mistrust for the other person since you
belong to opposing sides.
There are also dominant images used the poem. Imagery, as you have learned is a technique or device used by a writer
to describe or enhance a reader's sensor, experiences while reading a literary piece through the use of vivid and
descriptive language.
Imagery is commonly utilized in a literary work for the following purposes:
a. to entice the reader's human senses
b. to add depth to a writer's work
c. to deepen a reader's understanding of a literary work
The following are examples of imagery used in the poem:
1. "The night is deep and chill"
This line does not only refer to the physical surroundings. It may also refer to the speaker's feeling. The image created by
this line is intense fear and disquiet brought about by inescapable events. The intensity of her feelings causes an
inexplicable anxiety that makes her go "icy" or "frigid."
2. "the way back sliced by a frontier of hatred"
This phrase presents a very powerful image of fierceness and violence, an indescribable antagonism one has for another.
3. "jubilant voices of children”
The lightheartedness image expressed by this phrase produces a wistfulness and sentimentality as the speaker
remembers the children playing.

Literature Activity 1
Answer the following questions about the poem "Thoughts of Hanoi."
1. Examine the following lines. What is the essence of these lines and how do they tone of the poem?the tone is
sombler
"The night is deep and chill
as in early autumn. Pitch-black,
it thickens after each lightning flash
I dream of Hanoi:”
2. What is the antecedent or the referent of “it” in the “Pitch black”, it thickens after each lightning flash? Why does
the speaker describe it as pitch black?because the lightning became night
3. Why does the speaker consider the nights "endless”?because of flashback
4. How does the speaker describe the situation that leads back to Hanoi? What does the description imply?ep aker
describe hanoi because of flashback
5. Why does the speaker use the word slice in the line, "The way back sliced by a frontier of hated? What is the impact
of this image on you?if you go back there is an enemy
6. Whom does the speaker address as "Brother"? Is he a blood relative of the speaker? Cite evidences from the poem
to support your answer.because is their her city
7. Why does the speaker fear being with the March-North Army? What does her joining the army imply?because if you
joinmarch north army you should shoot.
8. What does the speaker beg of "Brother" from the following lines? Why does she make this appeal?Is there her city
"Brother, I am afraid
that one day I'll be with the March-North Amy
meeting you on your way to the South.
I might be the one to shoot you then
or you me
but please
Not with hatred"
9. How do the images in the poem reflect the speaker's thoughts of Hanoi? They effect because if no image the
thought of hanoi is not poem
10. How does the overall tone covey the attitude of the poet toward her subject and audience?tone is sombler

GRAMMAR POINT
Modals in Formal Language
In the English language, there is a subgroup of auxiliary or helping verbs that are used to s ability, obligation, permission,
possibility, intention, request, advisability, or past habit. The subgroup of auxiliary or helping verbs is called modal verbs,
modal auxiliaries, or simply, modals. Since they function as helpers, they are always followed by a main verb when used
in sentence.
Modals are classified into single-words and phrasals. See the chart:
Single-Word Modal Phrasal Modal
Can Could Be able to Had better
May Might Be going to Ought to
Shall Should Be supposed to Used to
Will Would Have to
Must Have got to

Single-word modal verbs can be used to express thoughts and ideas in a more formal way while phrasal modals are used
more colloquially.
Can and Could
Can is used to express a request, an offer, or an invitation. It also expresses ability, permission, and possibility.
Examples:
Request: "Devata, can you give us a child?"
Offer: The old man says he can work in the farm.
Invitation: You can come to the shrine to pray for a child.
Ability: The old man can work on the farm.
Permission: You can bring candles and flowers to offer to the gods.
Possibility: The children can become kings of their tribes.
Could is the past tense of can. It is used to express a more polite request, offer, or invitation.
Examples:
Polite request: "Devata, could you please give us a child?"
Polite offer: "I could look after the children," said the old woman.
Polite request: Devata says the old couple could come to the shrine to pray for a child.
Ability: The old man could work on the farm.
Permission: You could bring candles and flowers to offer to the gods.
Possibility: The children could become rulers of their tribes.
Be able to is not strictly a modal since it consists of the main verb be, the adjective able, and the particle to. However, it
is sometimes used to replace can and could to express ability.
May and Might
May is used when a speaker is not sure about something. It is also used to make a polite request or permission.
Examples:
Possibility: The old couple may be visiting the shrine to pray for a child.
Polite request: "May the great devata bestow a great blessing on us.”
Polite permission: "You may go back to your former selves."
Might is used when the speaker is not sure about something. It is also used as the past tense of may for requests and for
making polite requests.
Examples:
Possibility: The old couple might go to the shrine tomorrow.
Past form of may: The old couple wanted to know if the great devata might grant them a child
Polite request: The old couple prayed, "Great devata, might we be granted a child?
Shall and Should
Shall is a modal that is used to express futurity or future action.
In formal English, the chief use of shall is with the first person subject I or we. It is used to express a suggestion, a
promise, or a voluntary action.
Examples:
Suggestion: Shall I hide the things in a jar?
Promise: I shall never forget how these things turned my life around.
However, when shall implies a command, a threat, or a promise made by a speaker, it uses the second person subject
pronoun you and the third person subject nouns or pronouns he, she, l, or they.
Examples:
Command: You shall weave a cradle for the "things."
Threat: The dragon shall spit out fire.
Promise: The old man shall see the rewards of his goodness.
Furthermore, in formal language, when shall expresses an inevitability or a predestination in describing the future, it
also uses the second person pronoun or the third person subject nouns or pronouns.
Examples:
1. The four brothers shall become rulers of the Lao people.
2. Each of them shall reign as king of his own kingdom.
Should is the past tense of shall. It is used in the following.
 Making recommendations or suggestions
Examples:
1. The couple should visit the shrine.
2. They should continue to pray to the great devata.
 Giving advice
Examples:
1. The couple should allow the four things to live in their shells until the proper time has come.
2. They should not be selfish.
 Expressing obligation
Examples:
1. The four brothers should really stay in their shells.
2. The couple should do what the four brothers have told them.
 Expressing expectation
Examples:
1. By now, the couple should already prepare for the lunar month.
2. They should look forward to seeing their sons.
Will and Would
Will is used to express promise, willingness, or voluntary actions that will take place in the Future. It is also used to make
predictions. Be going to is also used to express predictions, by not willingness or volition.
Examples:
Promise: The four brothers promised that they will come out of their shells every day.
Voluntary Action: The man will weave a cradle for the four brothers.
Prediction: The Lao people think the shells of the four brothers will heal all kinds of sickness.
The four brothers are going to be rulers of the Lao people.
Would is the past form of the modal verb will. It is commonly used to create conditional verb forms and to indicate
repetition in the past.
Examples:
Conditional: If the old couple would remain childless, they would have no one to care of them.
Past habits: When the old couple first received their unexpected gift, they would always marvel at their good fortune.
Must and Ought to
Must is used to express certainty, necessity, or strong recommendation. Sometimes though, speakers prefer to use the
more flexible term have to.
The modal phrase must not is used to express prohibition. However, because of the sharpness of the word, speakers
often substitute it with the words should not or ought not.
Examples:
Certainty: The four young lads must say good-bye to live in their shells again.
Necessity: The four young lads must live in their shells.
Strong Recommendation: The old couple must follow the young men's instructions.
Prohibition: The young men must not be allowed to turn into complete human beings before the twelfth lunar month.
Ought to is used to ask for advice or make recommendations and express assumptions or expectations and strong
probability.
Examples:
Recommendation: The couple ought to stop asking the young lads to take human form.
Expectation: The young men ought to be understood.
Probability: Living with the four young men, the couple ought to improve their way of living.
Ought not is used to ask for advice against doing something, but should not or had better not are often preferred by
American speakers. In using ought not the particle to is omitted.
Example:
Recommendation: the couple ought to stop asking the young lads to make human form.
Expectation: the young men ought to be understood.
Probability: living with the four young men, the couple ought to improve their way of living.
Ought is used to ask for advice against doing something, but should not or had better not are often preferred by
American speakers. In using ought not the particle to is omitted.
Example:
To ask for advice against (something): The couple ought not reveal their secret.

Grammar Practice 1

Complete the following sentences by filling in the blanks with the correct modal. Choose your answer from the words
found inside the parentheses.

1. The old couple thought, "There _____must________ (must, ought to) be something magical happening there."
2. Each day the old man ____will_________ clear the entire mountain for farming without feeling tired. (will, is going
to, would)
3. The young men _____cannot________ live outside their shells. (may not, cannot)
4. The old couple and their children ___should__________ live in peace and harmony. (should, shall)
5. The four brothers promised that they ___are going to__________ become completely human on the twelfth lunar
month. (will, are going to)
6. The old couple ____ought to_________ absolutely follow the four men's wishes. (must, ought to)
7. The young lads_can____________ transform their appearances at night. (can, may)
8. I think the old couple __must___________ relax now. (ought to, must)
9. The four young men ___would__________ like to marry the king's daughters. (would, should)
10. They _____must________ work hard to get the king's permission. (must, ought to)

PUBLISH WORKS
Expressing Insights
Construct a seven-sentence paragraph using modals to express your insights on the topic:
How I Can Be a Reflection of a Shared Heritage
In constructing your paragraph, follow these simple steps:
1. State your main idea through a topic sentence.
2. Provide details and examples to support your main idea.
3. Explain how each of your details and examples relate to your main idea.
4. Tie up the loose ends of your paragraph by completing or concluding your paragraph’s main idea clearly and
coherently.