Existentialism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 5

Existentialism - Essay Example In other words, existentialism is a philosophical idea that is related to discovering oneself and the whole significance of life by the use of self-determination, freedom, autonomy, choosing, and responsibility. The idea is that every individual is seeking to discover and realize their true existence - who they are; what they are? - in life as each one makes decision according to his or her experiences, principles, and point of view. And options become distinctive without having the need of an impartial mode of reality. Existentialists believe in the idea that every person are compelled to make choices so as they should be responsible enough in making decisions with the aid of ethics and traditional beliefs. Freedom is a rudimentary idea in existentialism. Existentialists assert that while there are things that one cannot control such as skin colour, parents, race, etc., there is no possibility in pre-determining human actions, and that every human are deemed responsible for every act that he or she takes. In addition, the existentialist’ idea of facticity – a person is what the person’s past is in that his past co-establishes itself. (Sartre, â€Å"Being and Nothingness†). Many philosophers agree that freedom is something that cannot be separated from a person’s own nature. As a matter of fact, some existentialists subscribe to the notion that in dealing with human affairs, more so, on issues related to existence and personal concerns, human reasoning becomes limited, and sometimes, become insensible. Moreover, rationality does not have the ability to completely provide a person with the kind of consciousness needed to understand oneself; thus, human reasoning and other forms of rationality are insufficient (Kierkegaard 5). In religion, existentialists asserts that every believer should realize that, in studying the

Project Planning - Integrating Professional Experience Essay

Project Planning - Integrating Professional Experience - Essay Example These same naysayer would also argue that the plan, once completed is disregarded and merely put on the shelf so the team can get down to doing some real work. To people management, we mean the planning activity that involves deciding on the types of people in form of resources that are required to fulfill the requirements of the project. In other words the types of skills and number of workers we need to complete the project (kwysocki, 1997). In this chapter, we will discuss about planning. What kind of role planning plays? Does it works in Governmental Infrastructure Projects? We will start this chapter with general talk about planning. Whenever we talk about the methods involved in the project management we normally refer those methods towards the management of people as well as resources. The management of people is the management of workers. Management of people guides us about the roles and duties that a worker can perform in a project for making a project successful. It also g uides management what type of staff should reserve for a specific project. How management will take advantage of skilled workers to making a project successful. Project Management plays an important role in Government Infrastructure Projects (Kerzner, 2003). Planning is a basic element of project management which allows management to make plan needed for the completion of project. As such, it is a most important feature of intellectual actions. This thought action is required to the creation and improvement of a plan, or integration of it with other plans, that is, it merge forecasting of developments with the research of situation of how to take action to them. The Word Planning is also used for explaining the appropriate actions used in such an effort, including preparation of documentation, designing work, or meetings to discuss about the main issues in project, how to achieve objectives, and what approach should be followed. Further than this, the

Science and Technology Essay Example for Free

Science and Technology Essay Essay: These days, science and technology is essential to live and it is something without which we can’t imagine to have a comfortable life. The workplace is full of machines based on science and technology. While working, people use machine almost for each tasks. Opinions as to whether this is a fine trend to have more machines is good or bad are mixed. Both the viewpoints would be analyzed before making any opinion. The people at workplace are surrounded by machines. For every single task, a machine is available. For example, calculator is used to do calculations, computer is required to do many activities like documentation, recording, editing, internet surfing, emailing. Printer is used to take print outs. Scanner is used to scan the documents and get soft copy from the available hard copy. Photocopier is used to make a photocopy. Fax machine is used to send any document copy to a recipient who is far away. All these machines are accurate, efficient, and fast and above all these machines do never get tired. So, these machines are making our lives easy and comfortable. On the other hand, many people argue that these machines are responsible to make people lazy and dependent. In olden days, people were not dependent on the machines and they were healthier than the present generation. Now, people are not close to nature. They are in their own sophisticated zone. And also, they are not ready with an alternative if these machines stop working. It is often said that people are not working towards improving logical ability due to these machine. In conclusion, I believe that machines are essential element of our lives and their positives outweigh their negatives. At the same time we should not be lazy and we should always try to improve our logical abilities.

Traditional Versus Lean Project Management Techniques Information Technology Essay

Traditional Versus Lean Project Management Techniques Information Technology Essay Project management is a structured approach towards managing projects. It is defined as The application of knowledge skills, tools and the techniques to project activities in order to meet stakeholders needs and expectations from a project (Burke, 2003). The project management team is responsible for finding methods of meeting the control budgets and schedule rather than justifications for not meeting them (Ballard and Howell, 1997). Developing a fully integrated information and control system to plan, instruct, monitor and control large data amounts, quickly and accurately for problem solving and decision making will determine the success of the manager. Projects are temporary production systems. Production is defined as designing and making things. Designing and making something for the first time is done through a project, which is arguably the fundamental form of production system. Three fundamental goals of production systems are (Ballard and Howell, 2003) Deliver the product Maximize value Minimize waste Lean Project Management Performance improvement for competitive advantage is a general characteristic of practitioners in most industries (Porter, 1985). In project management for satisfactory performance the consideration of time, cost and quality is not adequate. Performance is described in terms of attaining value effectively and efficiently where effectiveness is maximising value of output whereas, efficiency refers to minimising or elimination non value-adding items in production. Beside a stream, dont waste water, even in a forest, dont waste firewood. Chinese Proverb The systems those are structured to deliver the product while maximizing value and minimizing waste, are said to be lean projects (Ballard and Howell, 2003). Lean is the term originally coined in 1990 by Womack, Jones and Roos to describe the Toyota Production System (Reeves, 2007). A production system which was capable of producing more and better vehicles in less time, less space and using fewer labour hours was given the name Lean. Organizations can reduce project timelines and costs by eliminating waste and focusing on value creation for the customer. The bottom line with lean is: if the action does not provide value to the end customer then it is waste. Lean refers to a general way of thinking and specific practices that emphasize less of everything fewer people, less time, lower costs (Reeves, 2007). Lean project management has been constructed by drawing together two approaches: management of projects and lean production. For project management performance improvement, the management of project focuses on meeting customer needs effectively while lean production aims at meeting customer needs efficiently utilised in lean project management. The justification of lean production with management of project is done at the methodological level (Horman and Kenley). Lean Project Management Methodology Management of Projects Methodology Lean Production Methodology Figure 1: Generation of Lean Project Management Methodology Fig. 1: Generation of Lean Project Management Methodology Lean product development helps improve a companys competitive advantage. Its application in the automobile industry has brought significance performance improvement. But this does not mean that lean production is applicable to only automobile industry. Many non manufacturing companies like the one those are involved in product development, transportation, accounting, hospital, sales, administration, vehicle repair and many others are making use of the lean principles. There are five traditional lean principles that are applicable outside the automobile industry (Womack and Jones, 2003) value to the customer value stream to provide the product or service that the customer values seamless flow of the product or service pull mode- provide the customer with the product or service in a timely fashion perfection for continuous improvement Traditional versus Lean Project Management Techniques Lean project management differs from traditional project management in the goals it pursues, the structure of its phases, the relationship between phases and the participants in each phase. The traditional production methodology manages conversion of an input to an output. Lean production is managing the production process by converting input to output, by minimising the input flow waste and maximising the value of the output efficiently. Thus the lean production methodology has flow management and management of value in addition to the input, conversion and output of the conventional project management technique. The traditional approach focuses on efficiency rather than value, whereas in lean production the focus is on minimising waste (efficiency) and maximising value of output (effectiveness). Under lean production with the introduction of the notion of value, effectiveness is expanded. In the traditional approach, value is not given much importance. Customers requirements are compromised which extends barely further than market requirements and lowering costs. Lean production emphasises on maximising the value of output by satisfying the customers specific requirements. The change in the production management from conventional to lean production management is because: Inappropriate control mechanisms and performance improvement efforts are used in conventional methodology. Poorly understood and addressed quality under traditional method. These show poor efficiency and effectiveness in the production process which roots from inadequate understanding of the production process. The change in production method from traditional to lean was to add to the existing approach and make it more appropriate for contemporary and complex production systems. Lean Product Development Lean product development encompasses numerous inter-related techniques. The first technique is supplier involvement. Instead of being involved for detailed design specification, suppliers are involved from the beginning of a new product. Since it is the responsibility of the suppliers to develop complete modules for the product, often without detailed specifications, black box engineering is used. Second technique is simultaneous engineering which means performing different activities parallely in the development effort. Parallel development helps reduce time. Another technique is the use of cross-functional teams which consists of members from different functional areas in the company, to facilitate the development of products that are easy to manufacture and assemble. This technique aims at integrating rather than coordinating all the functional aspects in the product from the beginning. When individuals work together to develop a new product, the physical proximity that arises results in the team being integrated. To improve communication, create stronger commitment towards the project and bringing focus for cross-functional problem solving, one should use the heavyweight team structure where the project manager has direct access to and is responsible for the work of all those involved. Instead of detailed specifications because of visions and objectives the whole project is straegically managed. Even though a company implements these techniques, it does not achieve lean product development in a simple way, for successful lean product development the company has to approach these interrelated techniques as a whole. Techniques other than Lean Product Development Lean is a continuous process improvement technique that can be used to evaluate, analyze and improve how a company delivers values to its customers. However this is only one of the several approaches, some other techniques are six sigma and theory of constraints (TOC). Lean focuses on the flow of value to a companys customers whereas six sigma focuses on individual problems, which shows the companys ability to satisfy the customers needs and TOC focuses on the constraints and how to minimize those to improve the volume of throughput within a system. Another technique is lean six sigma which combines the analytical tools of six sigma with the speed and customer value focus of lean to optimize the improvement process. For companies undertaking continuous improvement initiative, it is important for them to first determine the goal, and then apply the appropriate method to achieve the goal. Lean Project Delivery System Theoretical and practical investigations led to the emergence of the Lean Project Delivery System emerged in 2000. It is in the process of on-going development through experimentation. The job of the project delivery system is not only fulfilling the customer needs, but also help the customer decide their needs. It is necessary to understand the customers purpose and constraints, exposure of customer to alternative means for accomplishing their purposes and help them understand the end results of their desires. The lean project delivery system model consists of four phases: Project Definiton, Lean Design, Lean Supply and Lean Assembly. The four phases are a set of interconnecting triads, where some downstream activity takes place from the subsequent phase in each triad. Alteration Decommissioning Commissioning Fabrication Logistics Product Design Design Concepts Purposes Detailed Engineering Design Criteria Operation Maintenance Installation Process Design Use Lean Assembly Lean Supply Project Definition Lean Design Work Structuring Production Control Learning Loops Fig. 2: Lean Project Delivery System. Project Definition Project definition is the first phase in project delivery system which consists of determining the purposes (customer and stakeholder purposes and values), design criteria for translating those purposes for both product and process, and design concepts against which purposes and criteria can be tested and developed. The movement through these three need not follow any specific sequence, although the logical starting point seems to be the purpose. To reveal to stakeholders the consequences of their needs and different value generation possibilities, the cycle through these three modules is necessary. The involvement of stakeholders is a must for the best outcome from the project definition phase. Typical stakeholders can be the client (holds the contract), users of the facility, governing agencies, designers, installers, operators, fabricators, etc. The Lean Design phase should be launched only after bringing the three modules of project definition into alignment. (Project Definition Process: Appendix 1) Lean Design The alignment of values, concepts and criteria is the gate between Project Definition and Lean Design. At the functional systems level, developing and aligning product and process design can lead towards Lean Design. If at all the search for value reveals opportunities that are consistent with customer and stakeholder constraints, the project may go back to Project Definition stage. In order to allow more time for developing and exploring alternatives, the decisions are deferred systematically until the last responsible moment. This differentiates the Lean Design from the traditional practice of selecting options and executing design tasks as soon as possible causing rework and disruption because of conflicts in decisions made by specialists. Lean Supply Lean Supply consists of detailed engineering, fabrication, and delivery. To know what to detail and fabricate, and when to deliver the components, the system requires prerequisite product and process design. Also Lean Supply helps reduce the lead time for information and materials. Lean Assembly Lean Assembly begins with the delivery of materials and the relevant information for their installation. When the client has beneficial use of the facility, which typically occurs after commissioning and start-up the assembly completes. Comparison of Lean and Non-Lean Project Delivery System Lean Non-Lean Focuses on production system Focuses on transactions and contracts Transformation, flow and value goals Transformation goal Downstream players involved in upstream decisions Sequential decisions by specialists thrown over the wall Product and process designed together Process design begins after product design is complete Considers all product life cycle stages in design Not all product life cycle stages are considered Activities performed at last moment Activities performed as soon as possible Systematic efforts to reduce supply-chain lead times Separate organizations link together through the market and take what the market offers Incorporates learning into project, firm and supply-chain management Learning occurs periodically Stakeholders interests aligned Stakeholders interests not aligned Sized buffers located to perform their function of absorbing system variability Sized buffers located for local optimization -(Ballard and Howell, 2003) The Difficult Path to Lean Product Development Lean product development is not an easy thing to do. Several factors can hinder attempts to achieve lean product development. The different factors are: Cross-functional team is a technique that helps an organization in lean product development. They might be having a positive impact on the development effort, but creating cross-functional teams is a difficult task. Even today development is regarded to be a task for the Research and Development department, this shows lack of cross-funtional focus in the organization which ultimately leads to difficulty in creating cross-funtional integration. Simultaneous engineering is another technique towards lean product development, but working with concurrent activities and thus overlapping phases in the development effort is a very complicated task. It is impsossible for the individual engineers to perform simultaneous activities. Coordination of the lean product development effort is not an easy task. For coordination, regular meetings with the whole group needs to be held which is a time consuming activity. If the size of the group is large it resulted in longer meetings with repeated discussions and it may also happen that individuals from one department may find it difficult to understand discussions on issues on other department than the one he is from. Organizations face difficulty in coordinating a visionary-led development project, where visions also create problems. Requesting for detailed design specifications disturb the visionary-led projects. For any project, the suppliers must be involved from the beginning of he project, which results in difficulties for the suppliers to give detailed estimate of costs demanded by the top management. The desire to have the flexibility of black box engineering and known cost of the detailed estimate approach, obstructs a lean process. Hindering factors are more easily identified. Other than the hindering factors in the process of implementing lean product development, there are some supporting factors, which helps in the implementation of lean product development (Appendix 2) Benefits Despite lean being originated in manufacturing, it is now applied in many other business areas including product development, administration, accounting, project management and many others, because of its generic approach of eliminating waste to create more value for customer. A variety of lean product development techniques when applied to project management can reduce project timelines, increase customer value and reduce costs. Some other benefits of lean project management are, it helps increase the productivity, higher quality products, reduction in order processing errors, etc. Conclusion An alternative method to project management is lean project management. The lean approach to project management has worked successfully in potentially difficult and complex areas. The approach contributes to project management performance by focusing on the effectiveness and efficiency of delivering value that is satisfying client needs. Its implementation offers the potential for faster product development with fewer engineering hours, improved manufacturability of products, higher quality products, fewer production start-up problems, and faster time to market. Lean implementations have also yielded improvements in the value generated for clients, users and producers, and also a reduction in waste, including waiting time for resources, process cycle times, inventories, defects and errors, and accidents. It also led to a high level of commitment and motivation from the team, and to the satisfaction of the client organization. Lean thinking when paired with an appropriate agile development methodology can provide significant benefits to an organization. It has the advantage of reducing risk to the client, with the right balance of quality, performance and value for money. Lean product development is the beginning of the journey of continuous improvement. Lean techniques are not simply management tools but rather they embody a culture that needs to be enforced from the top leadership down throughout the company. Systematic implementation of lean in all areas of project management will yield benefits that other improvement methods cannot.

The Culture of Montserrat ::

The Culture of Montserrat Culture on the island of Montserrat can be most easily characterized through the examination of the many natural forces influencing the lifestyles and customs of its people. Montserrat’s physical features have played a crucial role in shaping the attire, diet, shelter, and crops of the island’s inhabitants. Volcanic rocks and native plants scattered throughout the island were the source of a number of customs that remain prevalent in contemporary Montserratian culture. Prior to colonization by the British, the island of Montserrat was occupied by a number of Amerindian groups from Venezuela who made their living through fishing and cultivation. There is evidence from a small artifact found in the soil from roughly 500 B.C.E. that the first inhabitants of Montserrat were the Ciboney, known as the ‘stone people.’ The Arawaks arrived on the island around 400 C.E. and built their villages near the coastline. These were a peaceful people who made their living fishing and gardening, and made ceramic vessels, stone tools, and conch shell adzes. While the Arawaks had a few centuries on the island, at the time of European contact the Caribs had gained dominance by driving them to the north. By 1500 the cannibalistic Caribs practiced both permanent and shifting cultivation and built their villages and gardens near the coast with a pole framework and leaf thatch. Caribs grew a mix of economic plants for cultivation, including many from South America and some from the Old World, which modified Montserrat’s vegetative cover in addition to some structures, composed of saplings, reeds, and foliage. The Carib name for Montserrat was Alliouagana, meaning â€Å"island of the prickly bush,† which most likely referred to the native species of Acacia. When Montserrat was first settled in 1632, British colonial officials believed the land and people of their island colonies to be profitable machines and this view greatly determined the way in which a culture based on agricultural production and slave labor emerged. The British had sent Irish Catholics from St. Kitts to colonize Montserrat and these people were growing tobacco and sugar by 1654. By the 1650s, English and Anglo-Irish landowners formed the wealthy ruling class, and Irish indentured servants formed the bulk of the population. The Culture of Montserrat :: The Culture of Montserrat Culture on the island of Montserrat can be most easily characterized through the examination of the many natural forces influencing the lifestyles and customs of its people. Montserrat’s physical features have played a crucial role in shaping the attire, diet, shelter, and crops of the island’s inhabitants. Volcanic rocks and native plants scattered throughout the island were the source of a number of customs that remain prevalent in contemporary Montserratian culture. Prior to colonization by the British, the island of Montserrat was occupied by a number of Amerindian groups from Venezuela who made their living through fishing and cultivation. There is evidence from a small artifact found in the soil from roughly 500 B.C.E. that the first inhabitants of Montserrat were the Ciboney, known as the ‘stone people.’ The Arawaks arrived on the island around 400 C.E. and built their villages near the coastline. These were a peaceful people who made their living fishing and gardening, and made ceramic vessels, stone tools, and conch shell adzes. While the Arawaks had a few centuries on the island, at the time of European contact the Caribs had gained dominance by driving them to the north. By 1500 the cannibalistic Caribs practiced both permanent and shifting cultivation and built their villages and gardens near the coast with a pole framework and leaf thatch. Caribs grew a mix of economic plants for cultivation, including many from South America and some from the Old World, which modified Montserrat’s vegetative cover in addition to some structures, composed of saplings, reeds, and foliage. The Carib name for Montserrat was Alliouagana, meaning â€Å"island of the prickly bush,† which most likely referred to the native species of Acacia. When Montserrat was first settled in 1632, British colonial officials believed the land and people of their island colonies to be profitable machines and this view greatly determined the way in which a culture based on agricultural production and slave labor emerged. The British had sent Irish Catholics from St. Kitts to colonize Montserrat and these people were growing tobacco and sugar by 1654. By the 1650s, English and Anglo-Irish landowners formed the wealthy ruling class, and Irish indentured servants formed the bulk of the population.

Great Expectations: Use of Irony :: free essay writer

Great Expectations: Use of Irony Many professors, analysts, and common readers believe that Great Expectations was possibly the best work of Charles Dickens. Perhaps it was because of the diverse themes displayed by Dickens, which modulate as the story progresses. A clear example of the measures taken by the author to create diversity, is the application of irony. Dickens uses Rony to create suspense and conflict in plot events related to Estella, Miss Havisham, the convict, Joe, and Mrs. Joe. The relationship between Pip and Estella is very complex and ironic. It keeps the reader entertained, with the humor of sophisticated children. A major irony, of situation, occurs when Estella kisses Pip after insulting and degrading him. The reader becomes confused with Estella's actions and feels sympathy for Pip. The confusion causes conflict, which keeps the reader on the edge of their seat. On page 104 Estella says, "Come here! You may kiss me, if you like." This is something unexpected, which livens up the story. Dickens portrays Miss Havisham in a very unique way. There is a dramatic irony between Miss Havisham and Pip. It is ironic how she wanted to watch him become miserable, just because he is of the male gender, and ironically she grew to like him. She even paid for part of Pip's expenses for the partnership. Yet what is more ironic is that Miss Havisham does not praise herself for the good deed. In the beginning of the novel, Miss Havisham displayed a harsh, cold attitude toward Pip. This is displayed in her deceptive act on page 69, where she says, "Well, you can break his heart?" As the novel ends Miss Havisham's attitude completely changes. She realizes the pain she has caused Pip and apologizes to him. Because of her positive change, she becomes more likeable to the audience. A third person to have an odd effect on Pip is the convict. One of the greatest examples of irony is brought out, in the sudden confrontation between Pip and the convict. On page 12, the convict speaks to Pip, " Get me a file." Pip listens to the convict and brings him food and a file. It is ironic how a simple task such as this, changed Pip's life forever. Pip obeyed the man, and later in life the man repaid him. It is ironic how the convict takes from Pip, then later gives back. Great Expectations: Use of Irony :: free essay writer Great Expectations: Use of Irony Many professors, analysts, and common readers believe that Great Expectations was possibly the best work of Charles Dickens. Perhaps it was because of the diverse themes displayed by Dickens, which modulate as the story progresses. A clear example of the measures taken by the author to create diversity, is the application of irony. Dickens uses Rony to create suspense and conflict in plot events related to Estella, Miss Havisham, the convict, Joe, and Mrs. Joe. The relationship between Pip and Estella is very complex and ironic. It keeps the reader entertained, with the humor of sophisticated children. A major irony, of situation, occurs when Estella kisses Pip after insulting and degrading him. The reader becomes confused with Estella's actions and feels sympathy for Pip. The confusion causes conflict, which keeps the reader on the edge of their seat. On page 104 Estella says, "Come here! You may kiss me, if you like." This is something unexpected, which livens up the story. Dickens portrays Miss Havisham in a very unique way. There is a dramatic irony between Miss Havisham and Pip. It is ironic how she wanted to watch him become miserable, just because he is of the male gender, and ironically she grew to like him. She even paid for part of Pip's expenses for the partnership. Yet what is more ironic is that Miss Havisham does not praise herself for the good deed. In the beginning of the novel, Miss Havisham displayed a harsh, cold attitude toward Pip. This is displayed in her deceptive act on page 69, where she says, "Well, you can break his heart?" As the novel ends Miss Havisham's attitude completely changes. She realizes the pain she has caused Pip and apologizes to him. Because of her positive change, she becomes more likeable to the audience. A third person to have an odd effect on Pip is the convict. One of the greatest examples of irony is brought out, in the sudden confrontation between Pip and the convict. On page 12, the convict speaks to Pip, " Get me a file." Pip listens to the convict and brings him food and a file. It is ironic how a simple task such as this, changed Pip's life forever. Pip obeyed the man, and later in life the man repaid him. It is ironic how the convict takes from Pip, then later gives back.

Several of the poems from Different Cultures seem to be encouraging people to discover their true selves and their place in society

Several of the poems from different cultures seem to be encouraging people to discover their true selves and their place in society. Love after Love, Hurricane hits England and Search for my Tongue are among those poems. These poems written by different poets encourage people to discover their true selves and their place in society by using many techniques such as interesting word and phrase selection (language), thoughtful imagery to convey messages, using descriptions focussing on sounds and using structure to create an effect. Also, the poets use their own cultural experiences to convey their message especially Hurricane hits England and Search for my Tongue. The three poems are all from different cultures and traditions therefore it is important to look at the cultural context of the poems. Love after Love is a poem wrote by Derek Walcott, much of Walcott's work has explored issues of Caribbean cultural identity. He has remarked, ‘The process of poetry is one of excavation and self- discovery'. Hurricane hits England is a poem written by the Caribbean born writer Grace Nichols, who moved to England in the 1970s and now lives in the coast of Sussex. In 1987, the southern coast of England was hit by hurricane winds, these hurricane winds were rarely experienced in England, in the Caribbean, on the other hand, hurricanes are a regular occurrence and had been part of Grace Nichols' childhood. Concerning the 1987 English hurricane, the poet felt that the voices of the old gods were in the wind, specifically within the Sussex, in fact, for the first time she sensed a closeness to the English landscape like never before, and felt that the Caribbean had come to England. She now feels at home both in Guyana and in England. Search for my Tongue is a poem written by Sujata Bhatt. The poet was born in Gujarat, India, where her ‘mother tongue' or native language was Gujarati. Later, her family lived for some years in the United States, where she learnt English although she now lives in Germany. She wrote Search for my Tongue at a time when she was beginning to worry that she might lose her original language. She has always thought of herself as being in Indian who is outside India. Her mother tongue is, for her, an important link to her family and to her childhood. It is the deepest layer of her identity, she has claimed. The poets use language in their poems to encourage people to discover their true selves and their place in society. Love after love is a poem written in the second person, as if the poet is addressing the reader directly' Writing to ‘you' rather than talking about ‘me' gives the impression that the poet is offering advice to everyone. The poem is full of imperative verbs or commands: ‘sit' (lines 6 and 15), ‘Eat' (line 6), ‘give' (line 8), ‘Take' (line 12), ‘Peel' (line 14) and ‘Feast' (line 15). Derek Walcott is encouraging every reader to go through this process of self discovery, to ‘feast' on the opportunities that one's real self can enjoy, and to ‘sit' and feel comfortable with it. Hurricane Hits England varies its style of language, the first stanza is in the third person whereas the second stanza is in the first person when we ‘hear' the woman's voice. There are some contradictions in the poem. For example, the woman says that the wind is both ‘fearful and reassuring' (line 7), and, at first sight, these two words do not seem to make sense together in what could be called a paradox. This contradiction may be demonstrating that the woman, too, is unsure what her feelings are towards the hurricane, her thoughts are also contradictory. The woman asks many questions between lines 13 and 27, in each of these four questions, the poet is trying to make sense of what is happening. The exclamations towards the end help us to understand how the woman is feeling and contribute to the tone of the poem. She becomes excited, even ecstatic, at the power of the storm and the thoughts it arouses within her, ‘O why is my heart unchained? ‘, (line 27). Questions asked in lines 13 to 27 are answered in the final lines, ‘Come to let me know. That the earth is the earth is the earth'. The poet means that she finally feels at home in England, and that wherever you may find yourself on this planet, you will eventually find peace with your place in society. Search for my tongue uses the word ‘tongue' for many different meanings. The poet, Sujata Bhatt, plays with these different meanings. For example, she imagines that knowing two languages is like having ‘two tongues in your mouth' (line 4) and speaks of her original language as being her ‘mother tongue' (line 5). The poem begins colloquially, using everyday language, but then develops to employing striking imagery and language. The poem begins by appearing to answer a question- ‘You ask me what I mean†¦ ‘ (line1). If you are replying to a question someone has posed, you would use natural speech. However, if you really want to get your message across, you should turn the question back on the questioner- ‘I ask you, what would you do†¦ ‘ (line 3). The poet uses ‘shock tactics' or such striking images to do that. It could be said that if the poem says more or less the same thing twice in two languages, then it might just is well be written in only one language. However, the whole point of the poem would then be lost. The same thing being said in two languages is the key, the poet has ‘two tongues' and she doesn't want to loose one of them. Imaginative imagery is used in all three of the poems to encourage people to discover their true selves and their place in society. In Love after Love the poet uses images of feasting throughout the poem. This is because a meal, especially an intimate one between two people, is an important form of social interaction in which people can get to know each other. Therefore it is natural that the dining room scenario is used for getting to know your true self. This is a very happy poem and presents a particularly positive image of the later years in life, portraying them not as a time of loss, but one of fulfilment and recovery. In Search for my tongue the poet uses the imagery of comparing her tongue with a plant as she develops her ideas. She compares it by using an extended metaphor. You can almost imagine the ‘plant', first in decline, then growing again. This image of the plant is successful because it includes contrasts. Some of the imagery is quite startling, for instance, when she imagines that the ‘mother tongue' might ‘rot and die in her mouth' (lines 12 and 13) as the second foreign language takes over. The lost tongue grows back at night when she dreams in Gujarati, like a plant that appears to have died, but then starts to bud and grow strong again, producing beautiful blossoms. Hurricane Hits England is full of natural imagery, mainly because it is about the effect of the wind on the landscape. For example, ‘trees/ falling heavy as whales' (line 23-24) is effective because the huge trees become like floating sea creatures when the torrential rain that accompanies the hurricane makes the land become almost like sea. There is also a lot of symbolism wrapped up in the imagery, ‘Come to break the frozen lake in me' (line 33). This may indicate that the poet has been ‘frozen' by being away from her own country, so that the arrival of the hurricane can help to ‘break the ice' and allow her to live more comfortably in her new home country. The poets use descriptions focussing on sounds to encourage people to discover their true selves and their place in society. In Love after Love repetition is the device used by the poet in this poem as a sound effect. He repeats some words, or variations of them- ‘mirror' (lines 4 and 14), ‘stranger' (line 7 and 9). ‘love'/ ‘loved'/ ‘love-letters' (lines 7/9/12) and ‘life' (lines 10 and 15). This is the poet's way of emphasising the main stages of the self-discovery process. Hurricane Hits England varies the way it sounds, the first stanza is in the third person whereas the second stanza is in the first person when we ‘hear' the woman's voice. All three poems have their own specific structure, the structures of the poems are organised in orders of ideas in the poem and how they develop. In Love after Love the stanza form is irregular, but most lines are loosely iambic. This means that there is one short unstressed syllable followed by one long stressed syllable. Some of the lines are also quite regular tetrameter- for example, lines 8 and 13. The poem is split into four small sized stanzas whereas Search for my tongue is split into three large stanzas. In the first stanza she tells us how hard it is for her to know two languages and how she has neglected the one she feels most belongs to her. In the second stanza she explains these ideas in Gujarati. In the final stanza she then translates her thoughts for us into English, lines 31-39 meaning something similar to lines 17-30, showing that although her ‘mother tongue' (line 38) dies during the day, it ‘grows back' ( line 31) in her dreams at night, becoming strong and producing ‘blossoms' (line 39). Of all these three poems Hurricane Hits England is the largest. The poem is written in eight stanzas of varying lengths. The lines themselves are also of varying lengths. This irregularity helps us to see how unpredictable the hurricane is, and how unpredictable the woman's thoughts are. The first stanza of the poem is in the third person, as the reader is introduced to the woman, but the majority of it is written in the 1st person. Love after Love, Search for my tongue and Hurricane Hits England are three poems from Different Cultures which encourage people to discover their true selves and their place in society. The poets who wrote the poems do this by, the poetic devices they use, significant use of language and imagery and significant use of style and structure. All of these ideas and style are influenced by the poets' cultural backgrounds.