Rrrrrrreturn to Wildcat English
The following case will challenge you to help two unfortunate families to cope with personal conflicts. As things stand now, they could respond to their problems in very destructive ways. The families could use your help in treating the problems constructively. After you have read about the current circumstances, you and your partners will select one problem about which you will deliberate and report to others. After you have discussed the problem, you will be expected to offer a written response. In the end, this critical thinking activity will prepare you to judge the behavior of characters in the literature you study.
Current Circumstances: Rocco Capo owns and operates "Il Capo Paving and Cement," a family business that repairs and replaces driveways, parking lots, and walkways. His leading competitor is Rami Movvagh, owner of a company called "Rami's Cement Works." Both men live in, and operate their businesses from, Verona Park, Illinois. Rocco and Rami grew up in Chicago and were at one time close friends. Since they have been business competitors, Rocco and Rami have become bitter enemies. It is hard to identify the original source of their animosity, but they continue to voice some serious complaints. Each man considers the other's work inferior, and they don't mind sharing their assessment with potential customers. As a result, each man believes the other has cruelly and unfairly damaged his reputation. One significant source of conflict stems from an episode when both men made a bid on a lucrative contract to repave all the municipal parking lots in Verona Park. The town accepts sealed bids for this type of work in order to avoid bid rigging and patronage. Rocco believes that Rami somehow learned the specific details of Rocco's bid and was able to underbid him and win the contract. For his part, Rami maintains that he never had any knowledge of Rocco's bid and likes to point out that Rocco's losing the bid is evidence that he is unreasonably overpriced. This dispute occurred twenty years ago when both men were just starting their businesses, and they have hated each other ever since.
Six Problems: Each of six groups will deliberate about a problem that affects Rocco, Rami, and their families. One person in each group will select the problem and read the description aloud to the others. The group will then follow the directions specific to the situation. After the small group discussion, representatives from each group will be expected to report the group's decision and respond to questions from the rest of the class.
Written Response: After small group and large group discussion, everyone in class will be expected to produce a written response about a particular problem. The written response should examine all the reasonable solutions to the problem and identify and defend the best choice. The writer should also answer any serious reservations that other class members voiced about the proposed solution.