Critical Reading

The Policies and Achievements of the Government and Regeneration of the Filipino”

(An Excerpt)

By Manuel L. Quezon 

I have an abiding faith in our people. I know that they have all the faculties needed to become a powerful and enlightened nation. The Filipino is not inferior to any man of any race. His physical, intellectual, and moral qualities are as excellent as those of the proudest stock of mankind. But some of these qualities, I am constrained to admit, have become dormant in recent years. If we compare our individual and civic traits with those that adorned our forefathers, we will find, I fear, that we, the Filipinos of today, have lost much of the moral strength and power for growth of our ancestors. They were strong-willed, earnest, adventurous people. They had traditions potent in influence in their lives, individually and collectively. They had the courage to be pioneers, to brave the seas, clear the forest and erect towns and cities upon the wilderness. They led a life of toil and communal service. Each one considered himself an active part of the body politic. But those traditions are either lost or forgotten. They exist only as a hazy mist in our distant past. We must revive them, for we need the anchorage of these traditions to guide and sustain us in the proper discharge of our political and social obligations.

The Filipino of today is soft, easy-going. His tendency is towards parasitism. He is uninclined to sustained strenuous effort! He lacks earnestness. Face-saving is the dominant note in the confused symphony of his existence. His sense of righteousness is often dulled by the desire of personal gain. His norm of conduct is generally prompted by expediency rather than by principle. He shows a failing in that superb courage which impels action because it is right, even at the cost of self-sacrifice. His greatest fear is not to do wrong, but of being caught doing wrong. He is frivolous in his view of life. His conception of virtue is many times conventional. He takes his religion lightly. He thinks that lip-service and profession are equivalent to deep and abiding faith. He is inconstant; he lacks perseverance; the first obstacles baffle him, and he easily admits defeat. The patriotism of many Filipinos of today is skin-deep, incapable of inspiring heroic deeds. There are those who are apt to compromise with ethical principles and to regard truth as not incompatible with misrepresentation or self-deceit.

Directions: Search for two examples from the text which support the claim. Next, give your evidence. Then, explain how it would make the claim stronger.

I. Claim: The Filipinos of today have lost much of the moral strength and power for growth of our ancestors.

A. Evidence from the text:

i. __________________________________________________________________

ii. _________________________________________________________________

B. Characteristics of a good evidence:

Unified

Relevant to the central point

Specific and Concrete

Accurate

Representative or typical

C. My sample evidence:

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

D. Reason:

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

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 II.  Claim: The Filipino today is soft, easy-going.

A. Evidence from the text:

i. __________________________________________________________________

ii. _________________________________________________________________

B. Characteristics of a good evicence:

Unified

Relevant to the central point

Specific and Concrete

Accurate

Representative or typical

C. My sample evidence:

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

D. Reason:

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

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