Mr. and Mrs. Capo and Mr. and Mrs. Movvagh have been invited to serve as judges for Verona Park's annual Winter Carnival Parade. They would be seated together on a small reviewing stand where they will come into close contact with each other. The parade typically lasts two hours. In the end, the judges have to decide together on the Parade entry prizes, such as "Best Depiction of Theme," "Best Use of Animation," "Most Flamboyant," etc. The judges will have to be able to work together in a constructive way to make their decisions. On the reviewing stand, the judges will be in the public eye. They must at least be civil to each other.
The Capos hate the Movvaghs, and the Movvaghs hate the Capos. In fact, Mrs. Capo confided to a friend that if she ever meets "that Movvagh woman again," she will "tear out her eyes and feed them to the cat." Patrick Movvagh has sworn that he will never speak to Rocco Capo again. At best, putting both couples together in the same reviewing booth will result in icy silence; at worst, their meeting could result in bloodshed and embarrassment.
Although the Capos and the Movvaghs resist being together, they find it difficult to tell the President of the Chamber of Commerce about their animosity, for fear that she might think they were juvenile and petty. What, then, should each couple do?
As you work in your group to decide what to do in this situation, complete the following steps:
1. List the possible courses of action that each couple could take.
2. What are the possible benefits and dangers that could result from each course of action?
3. What course of action could solve the problem in the most constructive way? Why?
4. What course of action would be the most destructive? Why would you characterize the choice as destructive?
5. Compose a letter to the Capos and to the Movvaghs. Explain what you understand the current problem to be. Let them know that you've thought about the problem by identifying several actions they could take. Identify the best course of action, and explain why it is the best in the sense that it will offer the most benefits and the fewest disadvantages.
Return to Verona Park.