The Use of Form, Metaphors and Similes in The Destruction of Sennache

The Use of Form, Metaphors and Similes in The Destruction of Sennacherib In Lord Byrons (George Gordon Byron) poem, The Destruction of Sennacherib he depicts the Assyrian King Sennacheribs army attempting the siege Jerusalem the city of the Israelites and ending up losing all of his army overnight without a single sword being lifted. This was supposedly the work of the angel of death from the Judo-Christian bible sent by god to annihilate the army and protect the city. George Gordon Byron was born January 22nd 1788 in a London Borough of Harrow and died April 19th 1824 from Malaria in Missolonghi in western Greece. He is regarded highly as one of the greatest British poets and was leader in the Romantic Movement. As Grime states it Byron uses form superbly, illustrating an underappreciated genius of rhythm (Grime). In the poem Byron repeatedly uses nature in his similes as a metaphor to better convey the speakers meaning and to illustrate the scenes. The use of similes and metaphors combined with Byrons style of form in the poem more clearly convey the sp eakers thoughts, ideas and create descriptive imagery The first simile of the poem compares the Assyrian King Sennacherib to a wolf on a fold The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold. This simile uses a natural element of the wolf to set the mood of the attacking army as vicious, blood thirsty and without mercy, like the animal its being equated to. The next simile found compares the reflection off Assyrian soldiers spears to the stars reflecting off the sea And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the sea. Since there are tremendous amount of stars in a night sky the simile brings forth an image of thousands of warriors readying to destroy the Israelites. Byron reinforces the last image with the next simile found on lines six and seven Like the leaves of the forest when summer is green, That host with their banners at sunset were seen. He compares the vast army to the leaves in the forest while its green this better conveys the idea of Sennacheribs extensive army and also changes the mood bringing a feeling of impending doom for the battle to come. This also brings about the image of a massive expanse of warriors readying for nightfall. On the following lines eight and nine Byron follows this comparison with one of the same thyme of nature but containing the opposite effect Like the leaves of the forest when Autumn hath blown, That host on the morrow lay withered and strown. In this simile he uses nature process of leafs dying on trees shedding them for winter to express that he army has been destroyed overnight and no longer poses a threat to the Israelites. The simile clearly paints an image of the Assyrian army destroyed without a battle. In the fourth stanza of the poem Byron continues to reinforces the destruction of King Sennacheribs army with the metaphor found in lines thirteen through sixteen And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide, But through it there rolled not the breath of his pride: And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf, And cold as the spray of the rock-beating surf. The stanzas directed to a dying horse that has breathed its last breath and is foaming at the mouth from exertion caused by its to breath. Byron chose this metaphor to better relate the demolished army to the reader. He uses the natural metaphor of the oceans cold spray to convey the shift in mood and the oceans beating surf to convey the violence of the destruction the has taken place. In the next stanza Byron uses a metaphor to represent King Sennacheribs death and his lifeless body And there lay the rider distorted and pale, With the dew on his brow, and the rust on his mail. Goodman acknowledges the point that Byron focuses the fifth stanza on who we can guess to be King Sennacherib himself, dead on the ground in rusting armor, amid an empty group of tents and banners (Goodman). In these lines Byron uses the metaphor of the dead rider to represent King

Jacobean world picture in King Lear Essays

The ways in which Shakespeare presents different ideas relating to the Elizabethan/ Jacobean world picture in King Lear Essays The ways in which Shakespeare presents different ideas relating to the Elizabethan/ Jacobean world picture in King Lear Paper The ways in which Shakespeare presents different ideas relating to the Elizabethan/ Jacobean world picture in King Lear Paper Essay Topic: A Long Way Gone Back in the World Stories King Lear Literature During the Elizabethan/Jacobean period, ideas such as the Divine Right of Kings, the nature of order and hierarchy and the idea of the microcosm and the macrocosm were all seen as common sense. This ideology can be directly translated within King Lear because it is clear that these Elizabethan/Jacobean themes and beliefs run throughout the play in a number of different ways. One motif that is particularly prevalent in King Lear is the notion of kingship and the theory of the Divine Right of Kings. The Divine Right of Kings was a theory that argued that certain kings ruled because they were chosen to do so by God and that these kings were accountable to no person other than God. Shakespeare shows these beliefs in King Lear because, despite the fact that Lear has disturbed the natural order of things by giving up all of his land and in effect renounced his status as King, he still expects to be treated like a King by his daughters and subjects alike. Lear shows this belief when Oswald responds to his question of Who am I, sir with My ladys father, my lords knave. Lear is so outraged by this seemingly disrespectful answer that he strikes Oswald, thus illustrating the fact that despite giving up his kingdom, Lear remains proud and believes that he has the right to be treated like a king. Another significant issue that Shakespeare uses in the play is that of the Machiavellian alternative. This idea is portrayed primarily through the character of Edmund but also to a lesser extent through Lears daughters Goneril and Regan who according to Lear wicked. The Machiavellian characters in King Lear are all self centred, tyrannical and villainous. The relationship between the microcosm and the macrocosm is an underlying issue in the play, which is conveyed with the idea that as the storm rages out on the heath, so Lears mental health decreases and there is metaphorically a storm in his head. Shakespeare has of course implanted many other examples of the Elizabethan/Jacobean world picture and beliefs within King Lear. One such issue is the value of the family. Contradictory to the values of the time both Lear and Gloucester have poor relationships with their children and both misjudge one of their children and treat them unfairly. At the beginning of the play Lear misjudges Cordelia and exiles her to France when she refuses to tell him how much she loves him. This is clearly a great mistake on Lears behalf because Cordelia is in fact the only one of his daughters who truly loved her father. This demonstrates that Lear is a petulant and unwise old man. A lesser theme within the theme of family relationships would be that of there being a parent child role reversal starting at the beginning of the play when Lear behaves like a spoilt child towards Cordelia. Cordelia however behaves maturely, honestly and with dignity. One more example of this role reversal comes when Goneril and Regan begin to order Lear around and seem to exert their authority upon him, which is not usually the case in a parent- child relationship. A good quote to demonstrate this role reversal would be when Regan orders Lear out of her castle by saying Good sir, no more! These are unsightly tricks. Return you to my sister. Parents traditionally protect their children and save them from danger, However at the end of the play Cordelia saves Lear from madness and death, which is another role reversal. When Lear is descending into madness his style of language totally changes from the regal manner in which he speaks at the beginning of the play to a lowly tone that would be expected of someone much lower in status. This contrast is best illustrated by the fact that at the start of the play Lear uses the royal we when referring to himself whereas at the end of the play he does not and even goes so far as to describe himself as a foolish fond old man. This would not have been seen as an appropriate way for a king to describe himself, especially at that time in history because of the fact that the king was seen as akin to God. At the end the play when Cordelia appears and she and Lear reconcile Shakespeare creates a sense of order being restored to the play and there even appears to be a glimmer of hope for Lear. We are able to see this slight glimmer of hope through his recognition of Cordelia when he says, Do not laugh at me, for, as I am a man, I think this lady to be my child Cordelia. Because Cordelia remains loyal to her father throughout the play, This links in with the theme of loyalty because even after Lear has wronged her, Cordelia has remained faithful to Lear and obeyed him throughout the play. Cordelia is the only one of Lears children who remains respectful to him and even at the end of the play she says How does my royal lord? How fares your majesty? Through speaking to Lear in this way, Cordelia shows her loyalty and respect towards Lear. A strong comparison can be drawn between the relationships within Lears household and the relationship Gloucester has with his sons. Gloucester misjudges both his sons in a similar way that Lear misconstrued his daughters actions. Both Lear and Gloucester send their only loyal and righteous child in to exile and both later suffer the conse quences of their reckless actions. In the Gloucester family the laws of primogeniture, which would have been keenly upheld in Elizabethan/ Jacobean society are overturned. This appears when Edmund becomes Gloucesters heir in favour of his legitimate son Edgar. This clearly suggests that this law was a topical and interesting issue at the time in which Shakespeare wrote King Lear. Shakespeare brings the echoing theme of exiling the wrong child to the surface again later on in the play when he shows both Lear and Gloucester suffering the consequences of casting out the wrong child. In this way it could be said that justice is done to Gloucester when his eyes are plucked out and to Lear when he is cast out into the storm. Like Lear with Cordelia, Gloucester reconciles with Edgar at the end of the play, and in a similar way to Lear he too dies shortly after this reconciliation. One interpretation of the reason for the discord within the two families could be the lack of a maternal figure or influence because in each of the families there is not another parental figure to moderate the decisions that are made. It would also be reasonable to say that had there been another parent in the two families the judgements made upon the children may not have been so dire and consequential. The Divine Right of Kings is an issue that appears strongly in King Lear, mainly due to the fact that even though Lear has committed the disorderly act of splitting his kingdom between two of his daughters, he still expects to be considered as a King. A King effectively forgoing his title and duties would have been seen as wrong to the people of that period in history because they believed that a King was appointed by God, therefore to go against the wishes of God would have been inexcusable. Due to this belief Goneril and Regan would have been seen to be particularly villainous because of their actions towards their father and therefore treason to the King. Treason and disobedience to ones parents would have both been great offences at this time in history, therefore it could been seen that the eventual demise of Goneril and Regan was their punishment for going against Gods word by rejecting Lears authority as both their father and the King. Towards the end of the play Lear recognises his failure as a king and a father. This recognition is clear through the language that he uses because he refers to himself as a poor naked wretch at the end of the play whereas he would never have used such language to describe himself earlier on. The effect of this language would be to show how pathetic and helpless Lear has become and to deliver a stark contrast to the regal language used at the beginning of the play. The relationship between the microcosm and the macrocosm is evident in King Lear through many aspects including Gloucesters strong belief in the Gods and the heavens being able to indicate disorder in the state. His belief reflects the core beliefs of the Elizabethan/Jacobean time because people believed that the Gods controlled everything that happens on Earth. Therefore what happens in the play is a microcosm of what is happening in the heavens, or so Gloucester would have seen it. When Lears sanity begins so wane there is a metaphorical storm of thoughts in his mind, which is echoed by the storm raging on the heath. It can be said that the storm of thoughts within Lear is a microcosm of the great storm on the heath because it is conflict of a much smaller magnitude within Lear. Another example of the idea of the microcosm/macrocosm in King Lear is the relationship between the main plot (Lears mental health and treatment by and of his daughters) and the subplot (Gloucesters treatment by and of his sons). A great many parallels can be drawn between the stories of Gloucester and Lear and their mistakes and actions echo each other. For example, both men cast out the wrong child and misjudge the intentions of their other children and for both men; these decisions have dire consequences in the end and are the main cause of their eventual demise. Because of this it is clear that Gloucesters story is a microcosm of Lears story because they are so alike. Machiavellian villains and anti-heroes who were only after self-gain and preservation were a very popular feature of Elizabethan and Jacobean drama. In King Lear Shakespeare uses Edmund as the main symbol of a Machiavellian attitude and way of life but inter-linked with the idea of the microcosm/macrocosm, Goneril and Regan also demonstrate the Machiavellian attitude but to a lesser extent. Edmund shows a total lack of respect for all social laws by lying to his father and framing his brother. He also casts aside political law by trying to break the law of primogeniture and he disrespects familial laws by framing his own brother for his own self gain. However he gets away with all this deceit for such a long time because of his false outer appearance and his false loyalty towards his father. Goneril and Regan also have false outer appearances because at the beginning of the play Goneril declares that she loves her father Dearer than eyesight, space, and liberty and Regan tells her father that she is alone felicitate in your dear highness love. Although they begin the play with this charade, they maintain it for much less time than Edmunds does and are quick to drop it when they achieve their aim. They are also are much less cunning than Edmund because of how quick they are to show their true nature. Despite the fact that many characters in King Lear are immoral and dishonest there are in fact a few very loyal and moral characters. The characters of Cordelia, Kent, Edgar, the fool and Cornwalls servants are all virtuous and obedient. The character of Edgar who is eternally loyal to his father contrasts strongly with the Machiavellian Edmund who is inconceivably deceitful. There is also great contrast character of Cordelia who never does any wrong and her sisters who are constantly deceitful and dishonest. Shakespeare uses the character of Kent to demonstrate loyalty, he is therefore, one of the most loyal in the play and even though Lear banishes him he remains loyal to him and comes back in disguise as a servant to look after Lear. This shows great loyalty and strength of character because event though Lear has wronged him he is prepared to live the life as his servant which would have been a position well below his title of Earl. It could be argued that the central point of the play is whether divine justice is dispensed or not. This question can be explored through whether the good and loyal characters are saved and the bad and dishonest ones suffer the consequences of their actions and justice is done to them. However this is a somewhat confusing aspect of King Lear because of the fact that by the end of the play most of the characters, regardless of whether they were good or bad, are dead. In King Lear it appears that despite the fact that Cordelia was eternally loyal to her father she dies at the end of the play, which would suggest that an injustice was done to her. However, the characters of Edmund, Goneril, Regan, Cornwall and Oswald, who were all essentially wicked characters do reach their eventual demise by the end of the play. This type of ending is of course very common in Elizabethan/Jacobean tragedies and in other Shakespeare works such as Macbeth and Hamlet. The ending of King Lear appears to be not just for dramatic effect but also to emphasise that life is often not just, and that being a wholly good person will not guarantee safety from evil or tragedy. From studying King Lear it is my opinion that the message Shakespeare is trying to convey is that life is fragile, even when you are at the top of the hierarchy because man does not decide their own destiny. The fact that a great deal of the play is a microcosm of something bigger could be illustrating a belief that everything that happens in life is just a microcosm of something of a much larger scale and importance. Shakespeare uses a great deal of contrast between good and evil because every good character he uses appears to have an evil partner, which function as binary opposites. An example of this is the brothers Edmund and Edgar and Kent and Oswald. Through these contrasts he is imparting a view that for every good in the world there is, inevitably, an evil.

The film Solaris Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The film Solaris - Essay Example The film unsettles the audience in very many ways. The first instant where it does this is the part where Kelvin gets to the station and discovers that Gibarian has committed suicide (Solaris, 2002). This is unsettling because death or the visualization of a body is very uncomfortable. Moreover, it is unsettling as it signs to show that the film would have many such scary scenes and thus they become uncomfortable due to uncertainty. The next unsettling is seen not long after this as Kelvin goes around the station and sees many bodies. This is bound to make the audience even more uncomfortable to the site. The techniques used to achieve this unsettling is through the use of visual effects. In such a site where there are many bodies, dim light is used with several flashes of maximum light to show the large amount of bodies in the station. The lights dim again and this is used to instill some form of rush on the viewer because a dim light in an area with many bodies is bound to scare the ordinary human. Another element included in order to enhance such an uneasy scene is by zooming. As the movie progresses, parts where there are bodies present are zoomed in and this is quite uncomfortable for the site of a body is not appealing. This zooming is also used to frighten young children watching the movie for children fear death. Sound is the vastly used technique in the achievement of unsettling the audience. There are parts of the film that are calm, and even some soft music is played in the background. However, other sections of the film there exists suspense and the audience is anxious to understand what will happen next. During such times, the type of music played is quite high toned and fast. Combination of the two makes the section even scarier. At the scene Kelvin and Gordon found the stashed away body of Snow, they are surprised and shocked. Prior to finding the body, the sound produced is quite calm as a signaling of

MINI Cooper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

MINI Cooper - Essay Example ive Britain but never really caught fire abroad, has been hot ever since its reintroduction in 2001 in Europe and 2002 in the United States and Japan. Demand in the United States, especially, has taken off, thanks to a marketing strategy designed to build mystique through stealth advertising and limited distribution†.( Micheline Maynard- Can the Mini stay up to speed?) From the toggle switches for the windows and fog lights to the rocker buttons for the fan-speed controls, every switch and dial in the Mini feels of a piece with Mini and only the Mini. In truth, some of the components are gently massaged BMW parts, but thats not really obvious. And besides, BMW is a prestigious brand, so its not as if youre getting second hand Daewoo stuff in your Mini.( Michael Frank- Test Drives 2004 Mini Cooper) Minis hatch layout is actually quite well thought out, with a low well for groceries and with seat uprights that flip forward 50/50. That makes the Mini Cooper much more useful than other cheap sports cars. As far as safety is concerned Mini cooper went miles ahead from its competitors.. Mini Cooper gets excellent marks across the board in National Highway Traffic Safety Administration crash tests. The Mini comes standard with six airbags (front, side, headliner), while its competitors only has standard front airbags. And for $500 more, you can get a Mini Cooper with stability control that will help keep the car on track in an emergency manoeuvre. Besides, Mini Cooper is a much more capable car, which means it will be safer in most circumstances that require the driver to avoid an accident in the first place. Mini Cooper top five markets are Britain, with around 45,000 cars sold in 2005; the United States, with 41,000; Germany, 29,000; Italy, 22,000; and Japan, with 13,000. No other automobile companies have enjoyed such a huge success in the above countries. When we analyze the reasons for such a brand success we can see that apart from the brand value of the

Quality of corporate governance within an organization (Shell Company) Essay

Quality of corporate governance within an organization (Shell Company) and the impact on organizations key stakeholder - Essay Example For a company to remain competitive it must practice good and quality governance principles so as be innovative and be able to adapt in order to meet new demands from its customers and grasp new opportunities that may arise in the market. Corporate behavior is known to influence behavior of shareholder who is owner of equity in the company. Use of quality corporate governance principles by the Shell Company management was studied and the effects of applying quality governance principles studied to determine whether they have any effect on its shareholders. Table of contents Abstract 3 Chapter 1 1.1 Introduction 4 1.2Objective of study 5 1.3 Overall research objective 5 1.4 Research hypothesis 5 CHAPTER 2 2.1 Literature review 5 2.2 Importance of quality corporate governance in an organization†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦8 2.3 Role of stakeholders in corporate governance†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..9 2.4 Principles of good corporate governance†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦9 2.5 Corporate social responsibility (CSR)†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.12 CHAPTER 3 3.0 Research methodology 13 3.1 Evaluating level of corporate governance in the shell company†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦14 3.2Analyzing the stakeholder†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦14 3.4Process of carrying out stakeholder-based approach†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..15 3.5 Accounting techniques / business techniques used†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.16 CHAPTER 4 4.0 Findings /results 15 4.1 Code of Ethics and ethical behavior†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦16 ... Its aim is to help to meet the worlds growing energy needs in an economically, socially and environmentally viable ways now and in future in a sustainable manner. This is will be achieved by working closely with its customers, partners and policies makers so as to advance in a more efficient and sustainable use of energy and natural resources. Its objective is to engage efficiently, responsibly and in a profitable manner in oil, oil products, gas, chemicals and in other businesses and also to participate in the search for other sources of energy and development so as to meet the evolving customer needs and the world’s growing demand for energy. Shell Company believes that oil and gas will be an integral part of global energy needs for economic development in decades to come and therefore has a role in ensuring that they extract and deliver their products profitably and in environmentally and socially responsible Objective of study Overall research objective The research object ive is to find out the effect of good quality corporate governance and its impact in organization (Shell Company) stakeholders. Research hypothesis Good and quality corporate governance is vital in management of an organization and has a significant effect on the stakeholders of the shell company CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW Generally corporate governance can be described as the relationships that exist between organization management, the board of directors, shareholders and other stakeholders that are involved in with the organization. Corporate governance provides a structure of framework through which objectives of the company are set. For a company to achieve

Group Work Reflection Example

Group Work Reflection Example In today’s work culture and dynamic environment educational institutions and organizations require students and employees to work together in groups at certain tolerant and coordinative levels, thus proving â€Å"experience of working in group or teams† (Blease, 2006 cited Kelly, and P.2007). The students are asked to work in groups as it allows students to learn interactively. Moreover the researchers report that, regardless of the subject matter; students working in small groups tend to learn more of what is taught and retain it longer than when the same content is presented in other instructional formats (Barbara Gross Davis, Tools for teaching). There are number of possible reasons why students are asked to work in small groups. Some of them are as follows: Generating a broad array of possible alternative points of view or solution to a problem Giving students a chance to work on a project that is too large or complex for an individual Allowing students with different background to bring their special knowledge, experience , or skills to a project , and to explain their orientation to others Giving students a chance to teach others Giving students a structured experience so they can practice kills applicable to professional situations There are numbers of benefits for students working in groups for short period of time or large projects such as: Students who have difficulty talking in class may speak in a small group. More students, overall, have a chance to participate in class. Talking in groups can help overcome the anonymity and passivity of a large class or a class meeting in a properly designed room. Students who expect to participate actively prepare for class. Students get prepared for their professional future. Our group was formed to complete an assignment on a case study â€Å"Merged School Business†. The assignment was to critically analyse the case study and to find out the problems in the merger and then provide recommendations on strategies and practices to management. The purpose of this report is to reflect my experience on our group assignment. In this report I will discuss my experience in relation to formation of our group, organization of work and how did we manage our group work. Group Formation This is the initial stage. This is the time when the group members and the tasks of the group will be decided. Students can form their own groups or either they can be assigned. Our case falls in first category teacher gave us some time to form our group so we selected our group members and formed a group of five. We were familiar to each other faces as we all were class mates; but at that time everyone introduce himself/herself to others. We decided to select a leader to make communication smooth and clear, than we took contact numbers from each other. We also discuss a bit about our group assignment that what needs to be done. Everyone shared their ideas on the project. Organization of Work The first challenge faced after group formation was how to organise the work to complete the task on time. At first stage we divided the task in to smaller pieces and assign these parts to each team member. Developing a time line is the best way to complete the task on time, so we decided for each task when it should be completed. Now all team members know who will do what, in what format and by when. We made our Gantt chart like this: *Denotes task for meeting Understanding and Managing Group Processes In order to perform effectively in a group it is important to understand and manage group processes properly. Some suggestions in this regard are as under: Group work best if everyone has a chance to make strong contributions to the group project and to the discussion at meetings. At the beginning of each meeting, decide what you except to have accomplished by the end of meeting. Select someone from group to write ideas to record all meetings and group’s decisions. Allocate responsibility for group process; in order to do that a group leader can be selected. Save some time towards the end of the first meeting and periodically as the group continues; to check in with each other on how the process is working. By following the mentioned group process we proceeded with our group assignment as follows: Including Everyone and Their Ideas: We gave a chance to everyone to contribute their ideas about assignment. Our goal was to produce as many ideas as possible. We listened all the ideas carefully and then we mentioned all the ideas sheet so we don’t forget them or they don’t get lost. By using this approach we improved our group work a lot and did some creative modifications as well. Group Leadership Group leadership helps to work group more effectively, so we chosen a group leader. The group leadership helped us in number of ways such as: Group leader was responsible to monitor that the work is organized to get it done. He was also responsible for understanding and managing group interactions to keep the positive atmosphere. The leader also encouraged every one’s contributions with an eye to accomplish the work. In order to do this, he observed our group work process to check is the group moving quickly, leaving some people behind? Is it time to shift focus to another aspects of the task? He also encouraged group interactions and maintained a positive atmosphere. He also anticipated what information, material or other resources the group needs as it works. He was also responsible for beginning and ending on time. So he planed work accordingly. Focusing on Direction After we gathered a large numbers of ideas we categorize and examine them. Then we choose some ideas among all of them. Then we discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each of them. We also ask group members to vote for ideas that helped us to eliminate some of them. Moreover based on this voting we rank the ideas in priority order and then finalized them. Making a Decision After everyone’s views are heard and all the points of agreement and disagreement are identified, the group tried to arrive at an agreement that makes sense to everyone. Decisions are an important for group. So we were quiet careful in deciding. Our group made all the decisions based on all members’s input. Problems Here are some problems which we encountered during our group project: Floundering: While we were figuring out the work and were trying to decide everyone’s role in the group, the group work got a bit delayed and some work got postponed. Dominating or Reluctant Participants: Some of the group members were taking more share of the discussion by talking too often by telling lengthy stories and by not letting others finish. While others were speaking rarely as they were having difficulty to get in the conversation. Digressions and Tangents: As some group members were telling many interesting side stories it was acting as an obstacle in group progress and we were lagging behind out timeline. Getting Stuck: After giving the case background and highlighting some issues we got stuck at solutions or possible strategic solutions. This problem was moving our group progress down than expected. Recommendations/Solutions In order to improve the group project and get better results we can give some recommendations to mentioned problems such as: To avoid delays in work at initial level some sentences can really help such as: Here’s my understanding of what we are trying to accomplish. Do you all agree? What would help us move forward: data? Resource? Let’s take a few minutes to hear everyone’s suggestions about how this process might work better and what we should do next. In order to discourage dominating people humour can be used. For the people who do not speak non verbal actions such as looking at them can be used to include them in discussion. Moreover asking quiet participant about their thoughts outside the group may lead their participation within group. In order to stick with main theme of discussion, try to summarize where discussion was before digression. When a group feels that it is not making a progress they should look on the things which are preventing them from progression. Conclusion At the end of the project, what matters the most is what we have learned from our group work experiences. During the tenure of working together, situations cropped up and tested us on the scales of making the decisions and handling the pressures and exceptions. As per Belbin (1993), Team performance is influenced by the kinds of people making up a group, and testing indicates that certain combinations of personality-types perform more successfully than others but the key to its implementation is how the team analyzes its performance and then adapts the situation so as the result can be achieved. Team work was definitely one of the most important aspects of our project. We would have been unable to accomplish anything if we had not worked together. Even though the design process was broken up into individual pieces, we often consulted with one another when we ran into difficulties with our work. Team work was definitely one of the most important aspects of this project. We would have been unable to accomplish anything if we had not worked together. Even though the design process was broken up into individual pieces, we often consulted with one another when we ran into difficulties with our work. As a result we managed to achieve a strong out come thus enhancing our knowledge, competencies and empowering group as a whole. References Ellen Sarkisian, Derek Bok Center., 2007. â€Å"Working in Groups† Derek Bok Center for teaching and Learning,Harvard University J. Sketchley, A. Mejia, I. Aitken et al., Work Improvement in Health Services. Geneva: World Health Organization, 1986 Moon J.(2004), A Handbook of Reflective and Experiential Learning, London, Routledge Falmer Experience of working in groups or teams, Human Resource management,UkEssay.com

INNER CHANGE FOR OUTER DEVELOPMENT Essay examples -- essays research p

Nowadays, people get so pre-occupied with their external environment that they don’t feel attention to themselves. This typical scenario has been the concern for almost every person in this planet. The ones who are affected are mostly those who belong to the urbane society. Professionals, self-employed individuals and students belong to this social order. The paradox of our time as shown here affects us always in our daily activities. We tend to forget ourselves and pay much interest on our day-to-day work. What is then the way for self-awareness to get back into our senses? Inner change for outer development is the main concern of this dissertation. First, the assessment of our own values must be taken into consideration. Let us reflect on what we want we did. Either on the school, offices, or even on the streets, let us contemplate what we have done. Did we do the right thing? If this query answers our trivial minds as no, then it’s time to change our ways. Change can either be on the lighter side: it can bring a rather exuding feeling of calmness and peace inside ourselves. Or, on the other hand, on the dark side of it: changing to become more egocentric and excluding yourself into the world. If we change, we must then aim for the better and not choose the latter. What is then the value of change if the results don’t give a positive outcome; a waste. We can start by accepting our own weaknesses as individuals. Let us not become intolerant to others feelings. Helping the...