Fe Emsley S.

Beltran November 8, 2019

9-Emerald SS9 Final Major Paper

Long Gone, Ghost, Living: Is Feudalism Still Existing?

Feudalism according to Mark Cartwright, was a social hierarchy. The King is the one

who ruled the land and was the most powerful in the hierarchy. The Bishop was the leader of the

church; and in in some parts in Europe the Church was the most powerful and that made the

Bishops more powerful than the king. The Barons and the Nobles were the ones who helped the

king in maintaining the lands that the king divided. The Knights were the ones who protected the

village and the lords were in charge of maintaining the manors. The last in the hierarchy was the

serfs, they were either free men or worked as slaves.

It was based on control and distribution of lands into units (or also called as fief). It has a

landowner or the lord, that gives the vassal a land in exchange of service and military protection.

This started in the 10​th​ to 13​th​ centuries in Europe.

As the feudalism spread across Europe and other parts of the world, it also had a negative

effect on people. The only positive effect was: the serfs helped in sustaining the income of the

lords. The negative effect was experienced by the poor or the serfs. They worked hard for the

lords but the income that they received less than from what they did. Some were free to own

business like ​carpenters, bakers, and blacksmiths but some were made as slaves.
 This affected history by discouraging trade and economic growth. They made the serfs

worked on land and they were not given freedom to change their position. They would remain as

serfs for the rest of their life and they could not have the chance to become rich. They also

discouraged unified government. There was no loyalty to a place but they had loyalty to a

person. For example, a knight could serve two different lords until they die.

This also affected our society today. It affected us on the idea that there is someone more

powerful than us and that there are different kinds of classes in our society. But the difference is

that the poor can have the chance to become rich and not stay poor for the rest of their life. The

first example that we could see is that there are still farmers that works for the landowners. The

second that we could see is the trust of people to other people, just like companies.

But in the Middle Ages in Europe they had issues on feudalism. The issue that I found is

that the people were not given a chance to rank up. It was like a rule that people cannot change

their position for the rest of their life. What I can say about this is that the people since the early

times were really greedy and the hierarchy was very unfair. It was really unfair for the poor

because the rich and powerful can only have the benefits and the poor had to suffer.

I think that feudalism still lives until today but you can only see it if you will observe

thoroughly on what is happening to our country. In the Philippines we still have farmers that

works for landowners. They work hard but they aren’t paid as much as they work for, but the

people and the landowner that they are working for gets the benefits. We can still see some

people that can’t rise from poverty. The poor today can’t get any good job that has a fair

contract.
 What I can conclude from this is that Feudalism only benefits the rich and powerful.

Feudalism is also one of the reasons why we have rich and poor people.
Sources:

· Cartwright
​ M. (22 November 2018). Feudalism. Retrieved from

https://www.ancient.eu/Feudalism/

· Feudalism. (n.d). Retrieved from​ ​https://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/feudalism.html

· Middle Ages: Feudal System. (n.d). Retrieved from

https://www.ducksters.com/history/middle_ages_feudal_system.php

· Saez A. (24 June 2018). Advantages and Disadvantages of Feudalism. Retrieved from

https://classroom.synonym.com/advantages-disadvantages-feudalism-8697323.html

· Snell M. (21 October 2019). Retrieved from

https://www.thoughtco.com/the-f-word-feudalism-1788836
Louise Mariel Bautista November 8, 2019

9-Emerald SS9 Final Major Paper

Long Gone, Ghost, Living: Is Feudalism Still Existing?

Feudalism is a historiographic construct designating the social, economic, and political

conditions in western Europe during the early Middle Ages. It was also the medieval model of

government predating the birth of the modern nation-state. This is where the concept of Feudal

Society came. Feudal Society is a military hierarchy in which a ruler or lord offers mounted

fighters a fief, a unit of land to control in exchange for a military service. Basically, what’s

happening is that rich landlords become more powerful because they have people to work for

them and those people put their effort and patience to protect and serve their landlords. In the

Early Middle Ages, these vassals (an individual that accepts the offered land) and serfs

(peasants) accept the labor because for them to be able to survive, they have to work to support

and sustain their family’s needs. In our present-day society, I think Feudalism still lives and

affects our way of living. The concept of Feudalism gave an idea for Capitalism to also happen

in our society today. One evidence of this Feudal system in the Philippines is the agricultural

system. Farmers work for the land they don’t own and that is why powerful families were able to

dominate many people. There were some cases that these farmers fought for the land they

believe is theirs and some governments already attempted agrarian reforms, but of course they

failed to reduce poverty in the Philippines. President Duterte also supports the concept of

Feudalism in the Philippines and that affects the weak development of our country today.
Another evidence of Feudal system is the concept of offering labor in exchange for a salary or

goods. These evidence can be seen to normal workers of rich families and companies, people

like them are given a contract in witness for their agreement that they’ll work for the rich family

or company in exchange for monthly or weekly salary. In this case, I think at some point this has

a fair agreement and treatment because the workers can own something in exchange for their

labor. But the concept can still be under feudalism. Last evidence is the taxation law that is

present in our country today. Taxation Law is where the government takes money from the

people using taxes and this taxes are used as the government’s money and budget for the

country’s own beneficial needs. The idea of having taxation law is fine but the fact that some

government officials itself are stealing money from the people is unfair. Obviously, these

evidences are the effects of having a feudal system in our society. These evidences are also

causing issues and disadvantages- like reforms, rebellions and protests- on how Feudalism is

present in our society today.

For me, Feudalism still exists in our society today because poverty and inequality are the

main issues that our country is currently facing now and then. The idea of Feudalism was an

influence coming from the Europeans that conquered the Philippines hundreds of years ago. And

this influence is adapted in our society that is why I think Feudalism still exists today. My stand

to this topic is that I am against Feudalism for it causes inequality to people and issues that the

people are most concerned about. The Government should here us out for it is our right to fight

for ourselves. Many people are already killed for fighting back to the government but if we will
all work together, our voices will be heard. Speaking up and fighting for what’s right will bring

the equality that everyone deserves.

References:

1)​ (​ n.d.). Retrieved from https://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/feudalism.html

2)​ ​What are the Merits and Demerits of Feudalism? (2015, August 8). Retrieved from
http://www.historydiscussion.net/articles/what-are-the-merits-and-demerits-of-feudalism/193
1.

3)​ ​“Why the Philippines' Feudal Agricultural System Is Here to Stay.” ASEAN Today, 9 Jan.
2018,
https://www.aseantoday.com/2018/01/why-the-philippines-feudal-agricultural-system-is-here
-to-stay/.

4)​ ​Brown, E. A. R. (n.d.). Feudalism. Retrieved from

https://www.britannica.com/topic/feudalism.

5)​ ​Medieval Life - Feudalism and the Feudal System. (2018, November 15). Retrieved from
https://www.historyonthenet.com/medieval-life-feudalism-feudal-system.
Rhianna Maycee L. Chee 8 November 2019

9-Emerald SS9 Final Major Paper

Gone, Ghost, Living: Is Feudalism Still Existing?

A system that started in the 10th century from Europe still exist today. Feudalism, it is the

dominant social system in medieval Europe according to Oxford dictionary. It is an agriculture-

based economic system where the farmers are forced to work in the landlord’s lands. The

landlord profits in excessive land rent rates, exorbitant loan interest rates, and very low crop

prices, and many more. In the Philippines, there is a feudal agriculture system happening. A

feudal agriculture system can be defined as an agrarian system, where traditional

farming was totally under the control of the landlords. It was basically an unbalanced system,

because the effects of the agricultural activities were not properly distributed among people

according to Economywatch. It lead to the division of the rich and poor people.

Hacienda is one of the influences of feudalism in the Philippines. The country inherited it

from the Spanish. It is a form of large landed estate system and it led to the division of the rich

and the poor. The farmers have to work for many hours or days to produce goods and supply for

their family. While landlords profit from the farmer’s labor. You can see clearly the system of

feudalism in Hacienda Luisita, a hacienda owned by the Cojuangcos. According to Wikipedia,

the hancienda is a 6,453- hectare sugar plantation located in the province of Tarlac. The hacienda

has eleven barangays in three towns of Tarlac province and most of the farmers are from there.
There was supposed to be a 200-300 hectares of land given to the farmers due to the land reform

but the Conjuancos refuse to give. The farmers went rallying and it ended up in a massacre.

For me, feudalism happens in the Philippines. It affected and shaped the society on what it is

now today. It created a division of the rich and the poor. Creating an inequal treatment to the

people, those who are rich experiences many benefits and opportunities while the poor does not.

The government should focus on this issue. According to agris.fao.org, the are experiencing low

price of palay, lack of capital, labor problem, lack of postharvest facilities, pest and diseases and

irrigation system that affects the rice production. Without the farmers, there would be no one to

give and support our rice, sugar production, and many more.
References:

Pennington, J. (2018, January 9). Why the Philippines’ feudal system is here to stay. Retrieved

from ​https://www.aseantoday.com/2018/01/why-the-philippines-feudal-agricultural-system is

here-to-stay/

N.A. (2010, May 25). Retrieved from

https://www.economywatch.com/agrarian/systems/feudalistic-agriculture.html

N.A. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https:/www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-is-the-hacienda-system.html

Arida, I.A. (2009). Problems in rice farming: a Filipino farmers' perspective.

Retrieved from​ ​http://agris.fao.org/agris-search/search.do?recordID=PH2009001446

N.A. (n.d.) Retrieved from​ ​https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hacienda_Luisita

Fe Emsley S. Beltran November 7, 2019

9-Emerald AE#1

Should Divorce Be Allowed in the Philippines

In the Philippines, divorce is not yet allowed because we are conservative and religious. When
two people get married it is seen as a religious ceremony wherein the couple pledged to the Lord to stay
together for the rest of their life. This is one of the most important decisions that a person will make in
their life. However, not everyone who gets married ends up happy. In some cases, the two people who got
married end up unhappy and unwilling to be together anymore. This can happen for a number of reasons
including: infidelity, domestic violence or abuse, substance addiction, etc.

The main problem with not having divorce is that the other person or both parties being treated
badly, manipulated or assaulted have no way of leaving each other. That is why in my opinion it would be
better to allow divorce in the Philippines. Because one cannot say for sure that they will end up happy
later down the line after getting married. Sometimes people are really not meant to be. I think that if the
marriage does more harm than good to the two people involved, then the marriage should be nullified.

According to the Philippines statistics authority “​one in four (26%) ever-married women aged
15-49 has ever experienced physical, sexual or emotional violence by their husband or partner. One in
five (20%) women has ever experienced emotional violence, 14 percent has ever experienced physical
violence, and 5 percent has ever experienced sexual violence by their current or most recent husband or
partner.​” This shows us that the women that goes through this has to suffer living with their husbands.
They don’t have a way to get out in this toxic marriage because divorce is not yet allowed here in the
Philippines.

In conclusion, divorce should be allowed by people who really need it. If the people in the
marriage are not happy or their situation cannot be resolved or fixed, it is better for them to get divorced
rather than hurting each other.
Source:

(Bersales, Lisa Grace S.) (March 26, 2018) PSA.gov.ph ​One In Four Women Have Ever
Experienced Spousal Violence (Preliminary results from the 2017 National Demographic
and Health Survey)
https://psa.gov.ph/content/one-four-women-have-ever-experienced-spousal-violence-prel
iminary-results-2017-national
Rhianna Maycee L. Chee 6 November 2019

9-Emerald AE#1

It’s a life-long Commitment

As a Christian, I do not approve divorce. Marriage is a public, social and legal contract
between two individuals that unite their lives voluntarily, legally and permanently. It is the
beginning of a family and it is a life-long commitment. It gives you a life partner that will go
with you through the challenges of life together.

In the Philippines, many people think or view marriage in a religious way. But then, even
in legal marriages, there are also promises and the vows of the individuals for each other. It is
your decision to marry that person, it is a commitment. According to Cambridge, vows ​are a ​firm
promise or ​decision to do something. Before going into a marriage, you must think about it first.
Question yourself if you are ready or not.

It is normal for couples to fight and to have misunderstandings. If the problem went to
the discussion of divorce, it will not be the solution. Whatever the problem or misunderstanding
it is. But then there are cases that the husband hurts his wife physically and emotionally, the
husband can be sued and be jailed. There is an existing law about those kinds of issue. They can
live separately but their marriage will be still in effect.

For me, if fraud was proven to consummate the marriage then if may be declared as null
and void but if marriage was done out of love and the couple has decided to get married then
they’re bound to their vows and commitment. For better or for worst, until death do as part.
Louise Mariel Bautista November 8, 2019

9-Emerald AE Final

Is Divorce applicable to the Philippines?

A divorce happens after a husband and wife decide not to live together anymore and that
they no longer want to be married to each other. They agree to sign legal papers that make them
each single again and allow them to marry other people if they want to. Divorce is a worldwide
issue that most countries are currently facing right now. In the Philippines, divorce is not adopted
because the Catholic Religion believes that Divorce is a grave sin for it disrespects the vows and
the blessing that the church gave to those who swore to the Lord. Basically, there are some
people who doesn’t want Divorce to happen in the Philippines. What these people can’t see is the
advantages of Divorce. The advantages of divorce are beneficial to yourself. If you’re divorced,
you have your own freedom, you don’t have limitations, you have your own choice, and lastly,
you will no longer have any connection with your ex through legal papers. There are more
advantages in Divorce than Annulment. Divorce can make our lives easier. In fact, it is a less
expensive process than annulment. There may be some people that are not happy with this but
this is done to give equal rights to people.

I am an example of a child that has an annulled parents. Having annulled parents is not
easy because both of them are not in good terms. It becomes harder every day to deal with this
type of agreement. What’s worst is that I have younger siblings that are suffering because of my
parents’ unfinished issues. In the case of annulment, it is a slow process in our country but
developing our system in the government will help divorce to happen. I think, divorce can help
my parents to finish their issues once they agree to cut off all their connections and properly
separate. Making divorce bill happen in the Philippines will surely help many families- like
mine- and will also help develop our government in a way that they will allow everyone to have
their own freedom to choose whether they want an annulment or divorce.
CHEE, ​Rhianna Maycee L.

Grade 9-Emerald

Social Studies 9 -
Major Paper (AE#3: Outline)

Sir Jose Marie Fernandez

October 7, 2019

Long Gone, Ghost, Living: Is Feudalism Still Existing?

I.Introduction
A. ​A system that started in the 10th century from Europe still exist today. Feudalism, it is
the dominant social system in medieval Europe according to Oxford dictionary. It is an
agriculture- based economic system where the farmers are forced to work in the landlord’s lands.
The landlord profits in excessive land rent rates, exorbitant loan interest rates, and very low crop
prices, and many more.
B.​ It led to the division of the rich and poor people.
C. In the Philippines, there is a feudal agriculture happening.
​II.​ ​Body
A. Hacienda is one of the influences of feudalism in the
Philippines.
a. According to worldatlas, the country inherited it from the Spanish. It is a form of
large landed estate system. The farmers have to work for many hours or days to
produce goods and supply for their family. While the landlords profit from the
farmer’s labor.
b. You can see clearly the system of feudalism in Hacienda Luisita, a hacienda
owned by the Cojuangcos. According to wikipedia, the hancienda is a 6,453-
hectare sugar plantation located in the province of Tarlac. The hacienda has
eleven barangays in three towns of Tarlac province and most of the farmers are
from there. According to rappler, there was supposed to be a 200-300 hectares of
land given to the farmers due to the land reform but the Conjuancos refuse to
give. The farmers went rallying and it ended up in a massacre.

III.​ ​Conclusion
A. For me, feudalism happens in the Philippines. It affected and shaped the society on
what it is now today. For an example, the farmers hancienda LuisitaCreating an inequal
 treatment to the people, those who are rich experiences many benefits and opportunities
while the poor does not.
B. ​It affected and shaped the society on what it is now today. It created a division of the
rich and the poor. Creating an inequal treatment to the people
C. W ​ ithout the farmers, there would be no one to give and support our rice, sugar
production, and many more.
D. The government should focus on this issue. According to agris.fao.org, the are
experiencing low price of palay, lack of capital, labor problem, lack of postharvest facilities, pest
and diseases and irrigation system that affects the rice production. Without the farmers, there
would be no one to give and support our rice, sugar production, and many more.
BAUTISTA, ​Louise Mariel D.

Grade 9-Emerald

Social Studies 9 - Major Paper (AE#3: Outline)

Mr. Jose Marie Fernandez

November 8, 2019

Long Gone, Ghost, Living: Is Feudalism Still Existing?

I.Introduction

A. Feudalism is a historiographic construct designating the social, economic, and political

conditions in western Europe. The concept of Feudalism was adopted in the Philippines until
today. The purpose of writing this paper is because I want to give awareness to people about
Feudalism that causes big issues in our society.

B.​ F
​ eudalism is an influence coming from Europeans that we adopted until today.

C. The content of the paper will be the definition of Feudalism and where it came from. It will
also tackle about the evidences and issues present in our society today.
2. Body

A. Feudalism is originally present in Western Europe.

a)​ ​According to the source​ ​https://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/feudalism.html​,

Feudalism was the medieval model of government predating the birth of the
modern nation-state. This is where the concept of Feudal Society came.
Feudal Society is a military hierarchy in which a ruler or lord offers mounted
fighters a fief, a unit of land to control in exchange for a military service.

b)​ ​According to Brown, E. A. R., Feudalism is a historiographic construct

designating the social, economic, and political conditions in western Europe
during the early Middle Ages.
 c)​ ​We can see that Feudalism was originally influenced by Western Europeans.
It is them that influenced many countries in the concept of Feudalism. Rich
landlords become more powerful because they have people to work for them
and those people put their effort and patience to protect and serve their
landlords.

B. Feudalism still lives and affects our way of living.

a)​ ​According to the source

https://www.aseantoday.com/2018/01/why-the-philippines-feudal-agricultural
-system-is-here-to-stay/​., one evidence of feudal system in the Philippines is
the agricultural system.

b)​ ​According to the source

https://www.historyonthenet.com/medieval-life-feudalism-feudal-system​., one
evidence of Feudalism is taxation law.
c)​ ​These evidences are causing issues and disadvantages on how Feudalism is
present in our society today.