Please detail the five-year plan for your career, including the jobs Essay

Please detail the five-year plan for your career, including the jobs you would like to have, how you would leverage your education, and how you would otherwise - Essay Example My background has given me adequate tools to grasp the fundamentals of international business, but I am strong believer that learning must never stop. Hence, in the first two years after completing my MBA, I fully intend to apply in a corporation where I will be exposed to the challenges of surviving in a global environment, and more importantly, learn to overcome those challenges. The goal, after all, is to thrive and not merely to survive. With my educational background and my work experiences, I see myself rising up the corporate ladder and finding myself in a position where I will be required to make judgment calls, and where I have discretion over business policies and strategies. After having â€Å"learned from the masters† so to speak, I intend to set up my own Korean trade company, marketing Korean raw materials or products to global markets. I believe that a company is only as good as its product and its people, so I intend to make sure that I have a viable product and a team of efficient, talented and committed individuals as passionate about global trade as I am, to manufacture and market those products under my leadership. A business is not merely about numbers and profits, it is also about human resource and I am intent on harnessing the best human resources available and making sure that my employees are amply rewarded, not only in the form of a competitive income package but also in terms of training and skills development. I am also committed to the concept of corporate responsibility, and I believe in setting up an international company that has a conscience and is aware of the role it plays in society. I believe in raising the bar when it comes to environmental-conscious practices, or labor practices, for instance. Lastly, as a way of giving back, my five-year-plan includes teaching young minds, and guiding those who want to embark on a similar journey. I have a

The negative effects of being to dependt on technology Essay Example for Free

The negative effects of being to dependt on technology Essay Today’s technology is more advanced and it may make your life more easier, but today im going to give you an insight on how being too dependent on technology has it negative effects on us as people in this world. When depending on technology it will give you negative effects toward your education, behavior, and economy. â€Å"People have become too dependent on technology. Many people now won’t go anywhere without their cell phone, or GPS or even their laptop computer. People today have forgotten how to spell correctly or do simple math† according to ask.com The negative effect on education by being too reliant on. Technology is relied on more and more, children today use digital communication instead of improving their writing skills. They don’t know how to write cursive, do proper grammar, and correct their spelling. People that want or feel like their cell phone or laptop is everything to them in other words its and addiction. It makes you lose track of what you’re supposed to do for instance you’re doing your homework but you keep checking your phone or laptop knowing you have to focus. According to 500 American student 73 percent said â€Å"they wouldn’t be able to study without technology†. And 38 percent couldn’t study without checking their phone or laptop. On the other hand technology has a negative effect on behavior, lazy both physically and mentally. Physically when you’re too lazy to move because you’re so use to some type of technological equipment. And mentally because your brain become too lazy to think and less able to do critical thinking. . Automobiles make it less effort for people to move however, car accidents are responsible for more death than non-health related issue. Obesity and Physical Fitness is also a result children are overweight by 10percent because of their lack of exercise and spending countless of hours in front of the computer, or television. Instead of going out to ride a bike or play out door games. For example, I’m one of those people that depends on technology and I felled P.E. my first semester in high school because I rather txt, talk on the phone or be on Facebook. Instead of doing what I was supposed to do in a result II failed P.E. but was giving an opportunities to take an online P.E. class and take this from me if you don’t want to sit at a computer all day of the week then I would suggest do our physical  activities. \ Economic also have several different negative effects. It cost financial drain focusing small businesses to close because of machine technology are taking over. Not only can it put small businesses out of business it can also put big businesses because people look a technology as in it doesn’t take strike, you don’t have to pay them, and you don’t have to worry about a machine going on break. Its sound good but what happens if the machine break down you can’t fix it because the lack of education due to the fact you’d rather invest in technology instead of learning about the risks. The risk of it putting you and or your employees out of a job. Plus it cost those practice for the tec hnology to be even used which the money is being waste instead of being put toward something more effective. With that in mind, let’s say all technology stops and your so depended on technology that you don’t know what to do. From a simple tasked such as writing a paper without typing to knowing a problem right off the top of your head with looking it up. Or let’s say you’re a game freak what happen if all video games and television was gone what would you do with yourself? Go out and become crazy having mental problem, go out and do crime to relive your game or go on with your life. For example my sister dropped her phone and it broke she was said crying like a child but she 22 she thought her whole world end. I looked at her in disbelief thinking to myself is she really doing this over a phone but people today grown attracts to their technology they would freak out if it wasn’t around and that’s a bad thing to see. Generally speaking being too dependent on technology has it negative effects dealing with our education, behavior, and economy. It keeps you from focusing, makes you lazy, and putting people out of jobs. So, remember when depending on technology it will give you ne gative effects toward your writing and grammar, your physical and mental body, and small businesses. Everyone is depending on Google for everything and they are not referring to books.

Effect of Buffers on pH Levels

Effect of Buffers on pH Levels   Abstract A buffer is a solution that helps keep the pH of other solutions at a steady level with the addition of limited acids or bases. The purpose if this experiment was to figure out how to create an optimal buffer and to determine how effective buffers are at stabilizing the pH of different solutions. An optimal buffer was made after calculating the [H+] levels and determining how much weak acid and conjugate base was needed to test when added to beakers containing either acidic or basic solutions. The results found that the buffers helped get the solutions closer to a neutral pH and were found to be effective pH stabilizers. Introduction In the real world, pH levels are important in the function of many life processes. For instance, the average human bodys average pH level is approximately 7.4, and if there are any changes to that pH at all, no matter how small it may be, one would eventually get sick and die, since the human body is not meant to handle such a large fluctuation of pH levels. These pH levels are the measurement of Hydronium ions (H3O+) in a solution and are measured on a pH scale going from 0 to 14, with 7 being neutral, anything less than 7 would be considered acidic, and anything greater than 7 would be considered basic. One might wonder how a persons pH levels do not change so easily, and the answer is because of a solution is known as a buffer. The main function of buffers is to help keep pH levels steady when a certain amount of acids or bases are introduced in a solution. Once a buffer has reached its limit, the solution will exponentially increase or decrease, depending on if a base or an acid were used, respectively. In the graph shown, it depicts how the buffer helps to keep the pH levels steady for as long as it can, but when too much base is added, the buffer will reach its capacity and the excess base will cause the pH to rise quickly, while an addition of excess base will cause the pH to drop quickly. Buffers are made from weak acids or bases paired with their conjugate bases or acids, and weak acids and bases are used because they do not disassociate fully in a solution and the hydrogen or hydroxide (OH) ions will mostly stay connected to the other molecules, unlike strong acids or bases that will completely dissociate into either the hydrogen or hydroxide ions. A good weak acid to use is acetic acid (CH3COOH), which is commonly found in vinegar. Another thing to keep in mind is how this relates to Le Chateliers Principle, which means for acetic acid that if a base were added, the equilibrium would shift to the right to want to produce more hydrogen ions, and if an acid were added, the equilibrium would shift left to want to produce more conjugate base. Lastly, a good buffer should have equal amounts of a weak acid and a conjugate base, which is done experimentally. Materials and Methods Materials used: Three 250 mL beakers One 50 mL graduated cylinder One 10 mL graduated cylinder An unknown weak acid Ka=[CH3COO]/[CH3COOH] pH=-log[H+] [H+] =10-pH Ka=([H+]*[WA])/[HWA] Procedures: Obtain three 250 mL beakers, and a 10 mL and a 50 mL graduated cylinder. To the first beaker, add a pipette bulb of the unknown weak acid and 110 mL of distilled water. Measure 50 mL of the acid solution and add it to each of the remaining two beakers, and then wash it out and keep the beaker. Label one beaker [HWA], or acid, and the other [WA], or conjugate base. Fill burette with an NaOH solution and add two to three drops of phenolphthalein indicator to [WA] beaker and titrate solution using base in burette to indicator end point, which will be signaled through a pink color change, so HWA will be converted to WA. Determine the volume of base added to [WA] beaker during titration and add that same volume of water to the [HWA] beaker so that the [HWA]=[WA]. Make an optimal buffer by mixing 20 mL of [HWA] and 20 mL [WA] in the third beaker. Prepare pH meter by standardizing it with standard solutions of pH 4 and 7. Take pH of optimal buffer and calculate [H+] from pH reading. Determine Ka value and show calculations to TA, and a new buffer will be assigned to be made. Using assigned buffer, determine [H+]. Use Ka equation to determine volume of conjugate base needed when 10 mL of acid is used, and use Ka value from step 10, [H+] value from pH, and 10 mL to replace [CH3COOH] to find volume of [CH3COO] needed. Make a new buffer using these volumes in a clean beaker, then take the pH of the new buffer to see how close the found pH is to the assigned value. Get two 50 mL beakers and add 5 mL of new buffer to one beaker and 5 mL of distilled water to the other. Add five drops of NaOH to each beaker and read pH for each one and record both. Thoroughly wash out small beakers and repeat step 13. Add five drops of HCl to each beaker and read pH for each one and record both. Clean up and turn in data sheet. Results: Data and Calculations 0.10 M NaOH added to 50 mL of acid mixture: Initial Burette Reading mL Final Burette Reading 34.7 mL Volume of NaOH Added 16.3 mL pH of Optimal Buffer 4.7 Ka of Unknown Weak Acid 2*10-5 10-4.7=2*10-5=Ka Assigned pH of new buffer to make: 4.85 New Buffer Data: [H+] needed 1.41*10-5 Ka: [H+]=(Ka/[H+]) 1.42 [A]:[HWA]=(Ka/[H+]) 1.42 Volume of A 14.2 mL Volume of HWA 10 mL pH of New Buffer 4.84 (2*10-5)/(1.41*10-5)=1.42 Test of New Buffer: pH of Distilled Water with Acid 2.88 pH of New Buffer with Acid 4.5 pH of Distilled Water with Base 10.9 pH of New Buffer with Base 5.18 Discussion/Conclusion In conclusion, the results determined that the buffer was effective at stabilizing the pH of both solutions containing distilled water and either an acid or a base added. The results also showed that the new buffer pH was very similar to the assigned pH, indicating that the overall reactions in this experiment were precise and accurate. A buffer is a solution that controls the pH of other solutions it is added in from fluctuating, and it is made by mixing equal amounts of a weak acid with its conjugate base. The reason it needs to be a weak acid because it will not dissociate fully when added in a solution, so the hydrogen ions will mostly be intact and not free floating. This would be able to help the pH of the solution in which it is added stable when combined with the conjugate base that is formed when the hydrogen ion dissociates from its original molecule from which it was connected.   The Ka of the weak acid used in this experiment was determined after titrating NaOH to the acid mixture until the indicator turned light pink and then taking the pH reading of the titrated solution and using the 10-pH formula to find [H+] which equaled the Ka of the weak acid. The new buffer was then made when the newly assigned pH was taken, the [H+] needed to achieve that new pH was determined, the Ka value by the needed [H+] value was divided, and the decimal for the product was moved one decimal place to the right, since the amount of HWA needed was 10 mL, and the pH was then determined from that solution, and it matched very closely to the assigned pH. Lastly, although not major, there was one experimental error that occurred when the solutions prepared in the first part of the lab were accidentally disposed of early, but a new solution was made again which was the same pH of the previous solution, so that error did not affect the overall results of this experiment.

Coronary Artery Disease with a Primary Comorbidity of Type II Diabetes

Rob Geis is a 65-year-old Hispanic male from Cleveland, Ohio. He and his wife were visiting friends in Jacksonville as part of a multi-stop Florida vacation. Rob was brought to the emergency department of St. Vincent Medical Center’s Southside location on the evening of January 27, 2014, by ambulance after he experienced a total loss of consciousness while dining at a restaurant with his wife and a group of friends. Rob has no recollection of the event. His wife reported he stumbled as he was returning from the restroom, but did not fall and was able to make it into his chair at the table. She noticed he did not look well and he was pale. Once he was seated â€Å"his head kept dropping and then he lost consciousness for a few seconds.† His wife said he appeared very gray and sweaty. The emergency responders reported Rob had a low respiratory rate during assessment at the scene. Rob Geis reported he has never before had an episode of syncope. He denied having any heart palpitations, chest pains, or shortness of breath prior to losing consciousness. Prior to the episode he experienced no diaphoresis, fever, chills, dizziness, headache, or neck pain or stiffness. He also had no nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, rectal bleeding, hematuria, dysuria, focal weakness, or sensory changes. Also, there were no witnessed indications of seizure activity. Prior to the episode Rob Geis had an active day playing golf with friends and had consumed several alcoholic beverages, but these are not unusual activities for him. Rob reported he had experienced upper back pain, which is uncommon for him, while playing golf. His upper back pain had dissipated prior to the episode of syncope. Rob also reported that approximately ... ...& K.L. McCance (Eds.), Understanding pathophysiology (5th ed., pp. 447-476). St. Louis, MO: Mosby Little, T.K. (2013). Assessment of the Cardiovascular System. In D.A. Ignatavicius & M.L. Workman (Eds.), Medical-surgical nursing: Patient centered collaborative care (7th ed., pp. 686-710). St. Louis, MO: Saunders O’Donovan, K. (2012). Management of diabetes and acute coronary syndromes. British Journal of Cardiac Nursing, 7(8), 370-375. Roger, V.L., Go, A.S., Lloyd-Jones, D.M., Benjamin, E.J., Berry, J.D., Borden, W.B., †¦ Turner, M.B. (2012). Heart disease and stroke statistics—2012 update: A report from the American Heart Association. Retrieved from: http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/125/1/ e2.full.pdf+html Tierney, P., Hughes, C., & Hamilton, S. (2011). Promoting health behaviour change in the cardiac patient. British Journal of Cardiac Nursing, 6(3), 126-130.

Bag Lady

â€Å"Bag Lady' Life's ups and downs come to all walks of life. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Baggage in life comes in all forms. Time heals all things, but people have to let go of the baggage in their lives that keeps them from moving on. They hold the keys to the doors in their lives and no one can turn the key but them. In the song â€Å"Bag Lady', Eureka Baud gives a wake up call for women to know what bags to hold on to, what bags to let go of, and what bag has the ticket for the bus that will move them on to bigger and better things In life.Eureka Baud said â€Å"bag lady, you goon hurt your back,' dragging all them bags Like hat. ‘ I guess nobody ever told you/ all you must hold on to is you, is you, is you. † This verse says to let go of all the disappointment people find in their lives and put them- selves first and make it all about them. The second verse says â€Å"One day all them bags goon get in your way/ one day all them bags goon get in y our way†¦ So pack light. † The second verse Is emphasizing the fact that women must learn how to let go of the excess baggage that pulls them down in order to survive.The third verse in â€Å"Bag Lady† says â€Å"Bag lady you goon' miss your bus/ you can't hurry up coos you've got too much stuff. This excerpt from the song tells women that by holding on to all the negative disappointment in their lives, they will end up missing out on opportunities to Improve themselves, that will move them on to bigger and better things in life. In â€Å"Bag Lady. † Eureka Baud mentions different types of women with different types of baggage that they hold on to that keeps them down.Baud is saying that bag ladies come from all walks of life. They are or have been at one point in time been the woman in the mirror and they have the power to change who they are or who they have become. The empowering keywords in† Bag Lady† are â€Å"Bet way love could make it be tter. † All Eureka Is saying Is to know your self-worth, and open the door to self-esteem; without It you have no chance at love, peace, Joy, power, and a sound mind.Accord ring to Leo Bogie, of Hawaii. Dude â€Å"Without self-worth, doubts and fears about our very existence will persist until they invalidate our dreams and vision, and undermine our greatest accomplishments†. Monica Poole English 102 Mr.. Green Bag Lady By Englishmen â€Å"Bag Lady† on to bigger and better things in life. Eureka Baud said â€Å"bag lady, you goon hurt your back/ dragging all them bags like hem bags goon get in your way†¦ So pack light. The second verse is emphasizing the The third verse in â€Å"Bag Lady' says â€Å"Bag lady you goon' miss your bus/ you can't missing out on opportunities to improve themselves, that will move them on to bigger In â€Å"Bag Lady,† Eureka Baud mentions different types of women with different types have become. The empowering key words in† Bag Lady' are â€Å"Bet way love could make it All Eureka is saying is to know your self-worth, and open the door to self-esteem; without it you have no chance at love, peace, Joy, power, and a sound mind.

Sleep Apnea Devices Market Worth $19.72 Billion by 2017

The â€Å"Sleep Apnea Diagnostic & Therapeutic Devices Market [Polysomnographs, Respiratory Polygraphs, Pulse Oximeters, CPAP, Masks, Adaptive Servo-Ventilation (ASV), Oral Appliances, Nasal EPAP, Neurostimulation] Global End-user Analysis, Competitive Landscape & Forecast to 2017† analyzes and studies the major market drivers, restraints, and opportunities in North America, Europe, Asia, and Rest of the World. Browse 147 market data tables spread through 318 pagesand in-depth TOC of â€Å"Sleep Apnea Diagnostic & Therapeutic Devices Market [Polysomnographs, Respiratory Polygraphs, Pulse Oximeters, CPAP, Masks, Adaptive Servo-Ventilation (ASV), Oral Appliances, Nasal EPAP, Neurostimulation] Global End-user Analysis, Competitive Landscape & Forecast to 2017†. http://www. marketsandmarkets. com/Market-Reports/sleep-apnea-devices-market-719. html Early buyers will receive 10% customization on reports. This report studies the global sleep apnea devices market, with forecast to 2017. Sleep problems are touted as a ‘global epidemic’ and sleep apnea is a crucial contributor to this disorder. Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) is the most common type of sleep apnea; around 84% of people with sleep apnea are diagnosed with the disease. Studies suggest that about 100 million people worldwide are suspected to have obstructive sleep apnea, of which more than 80% remain undiagnosed. Sleep apnea is a relatively new market in the medical field, gaining momentum at a fast pace, especially in developed geographies. The demand for sleep apnea devices is slated to increase at a faster pace, owing to gradually increasing awareness among both patients and the medical fraternity. The global sleep apnea devices market was valued at $7. 96 billion in the year 2011 and is expected to reach $19. 72 billion by the year 2017. North America was the largest sleep apnea devices market, followed by Europe and Asia. North America will continue to lead the sleep apnea device market in the next few years, followed by Europe. The Asian region’s contribution to the global sleep apnea device market is expected to pick up in the coming years, as the medical condition gets more recognition. The global sleep apnea devices market, which is broadly classified into Diagnostic Devices and Therapeutic Devices, is witnessing high competitive intensity. Segment rivalry is high, as there are a few well-established firms and several small firms with similar product offerings. The market is dominated by Philips Respironics and ResMed, Inc. , which jointly comprise 70% of the market. Fisher and Paykel Healthcare, CareFusion Corporation, Natus Medical Incorporated, DeVilbiss Healthcare, Weinmann Medical Devices, etc. are some of the other prominent players in the global sleep apnea devices market.

How do poets use ‘voice’ to instil their poems with personality? Consider with reference to three poets

For poetry to be truly personal, a voice is needed. It is through the voice of a poet that the reader can glean some sense of that poet's identity and nature. Who are they? What are they trying to say? Why? One could even go so far as to say that the voice of a poem or poet is fundamental to its aesthetic value and ‘readability' – without a distinct and clear voice, how can we distinguish a poem from the surrounding, ambient babble? It is the voice which endears a poet to the reader – without a voice, how can we identify with a poet? All these questions must be considered carefully. The voice of a poet can be a vehicle for political, personal, and social expression, as well as instilling a poem with a sense of personality – one might say the function of a poet's ‘voice' is to stamp their poem with their identity. It is the idea of an author's voice, rather than the voice itself which draws us towards the author as an entity – someone with whom we can identify, converse and understand. The actual process of reading may be, on one level, entirely one-sided, but in reading a poem (or any piece of literature for that matter) we bring as much to the work as we take from it. In this way, reading a poem is not one-sided at all, and is instead a rich progression towards a higher understanding from the reader. In the end, it comes down to the age-old question: do words on a page in a closed book actually mean anything until they are read, and even when they are, is it possible to be both ‘voiceless' and meaningful? It has been argued in Introduction to Literature, Criticism and Theory (Bennett & Royle, 1999) that every literary text has a voice, be it that of an omnipotent and omniscient ‘god-like' authorial voice, or a character of the author's creation. According to this theory, even the Biology textbook – that most mundane and impersonal of publications – is infused with the voice(s) of its author(s). As Roland Barthes points out in his landmark essay â€Å"The Death of the Author† (Image, Music, Text, 1977), this is the sole reason why authors put their name on a piece of work. An author will lend their name to their novel/poem in order to distinguish it from other novels/poems. Ultimately, however, Barthes argues that this is meaningless: an author is nothing more than a product of his or her society and background, and therefore, the author cannot claim some sort of absolute authority over his or her text because, in some ways, he or she did not write it. In oth er words, it is writing that makes the author and not vice versa. There are, however, flaws in Barthes' argument, which will be analysed further on. It is important at this stage, however, to make a clear distinction between the ‘author' and the ‘voice' in order to avoid any confusion that may arise. In many ways, the ‘author' and the ‘voice' of a poem or any work of fiction are intrinsically linked: the author is the voice and the voice is the author, in much the same way that Sylvia Plath is the voice in her poems or her work of fiction, The Bell Jar. There is no getting around the fact that we ‘hear' Jean-Paul Sartre's voice in The Age of Reason and Nausea, or Fontane's voice in Effi Briest. The same can be said of the poets I have chosen: Linton Kwesi Johnson's voice is clear and distinct, as are those of Tom Leonard and Sylvia Plath. In this way, one might say, the author or poet and their voice are one and the same – indistinguishable from each other. In other ways, though, it is easy to trip up and become muddled in the literary thorn bush that blocks our path whenever we try to make a generalisation. A novel like Anthony Burgess' A Clockwork Orange (1962) displays no apparent sign of the author's ‘voice' – indeed it is written in a language entirely of his own creation (NadSat – the disjointed, disorderly jargon of a future jilted generation) and through the voice of the novel's protagonist, ‘Alex'. Obvious questions arise. Whose ‘voice' is Burgess speaking with? His own or Alex's? Can they be both? Of course, Alex is a creation of Burgess' mind and therefore the voice is ultimately that of Burgess himself – he thought of the character, put pen to paper, and put words in Alex's mouth. But how far does this go? To what extent is Alex his own entity, free to evolve and grow within the limits and boundaries imposed by his author? How far and to what extent is Alex simply a mouthpiece for Burge ss' ‘voice': moralising and ominous. In the end, we are never really sure whether Alex has been ‘cured' or not, or (which is more interesting) whether the author even knows. The same theme is explored in Flann O'Brien's novel, At Swim-Two-Birds (1939), in which issues of ‘author', ‘voice', and even the idea of a character, are thrown into question. But how does this relate to poetry and the issue of ‘voice'? To start with, the same problems of discerning the ‘voice' from the ‘author' are present, but much more subtle, in the poets I have chosen. I have deliberately picked poets who ‘speak' in their own ‘voice' as it were, in an attempt to highlight the different motives with which ‘voice' is used. For example, in Sylvia Plath's poems, ‘voice' is used to express deep and intimate emotional feelings, and in some cases, psychological trauma as in her moving poem â€Å"Daddy†. In this poem, Plath's voice is clearly enunciated, and the effect of this is to give the reader a powerful insight into the workings of the poet's mind. The poem deals with Plath's relationship with her dead father, and how she must reconcile his past and her roots in a post-war world. As the poem progresses, however, the reader comes to realise that ‘Daddy' is not the bà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½te noir we suppose him to be – and instead we understand that he is an integral part of Plath as a person. A part she has come to hate and associate with her father. A part she can never escape: â€Å"Daddy, daddy, you bastard, I'm through.† (80) Plath's voice comes through in a number of cunning ways here. It seems as though she is addressing her father, and therefore speaks in the first person singular for example: â€Å"I used to pray to recover you.† (14) As a result, the poem seems all the more intense and personal – perhaps because we are listening in on a one-sided conversation which we feel we should not be listening to. The effect is akin to reading someone's personal letter, when feelings of guilt compete with an innate curiosity about other people's intimate details. In this way, her anguish is eloquently expressed in the first stanza: You do not do, you do not do Any more, black shoe In which I have lived like a foot For thirty years, poor and white, Barely daring to breathe or Achoo. 5 (1-5) But we could also make a case that the â€Å"Daddy† in the poem is not only her father (and perhaps a part of herself), but her husband, Ted Hughes, as well. For example, towards the end of the poem, various subtle references to marriage are made: â€Å"And I said I do, I do.† (67) The idea of two men (the two men in Plath's life) is brought up again when we are told that â€Å"If I've killed one man, I've killed two†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (71), and a direct reference to the poet's marriage is made at line 72: â€Å"The vampire who said he was you/And drank my blood for a year,/Seven years if you want to know† (72-74). It is almost as though Plath is being suffocated by the omniscient and omnipotent men who surround her – both alive and dead. We can only understand this because Plath has instilled her poem with her own ‘voice' – had the poem been written in an impersonal, detached way, completely devoid of any discernible ‘voice', the intensely personal sense we get of Plath being smothered would be lost. But the strong and clear voice that comes through also raises issues about Plath's identity: who she feels she is and is not. She says at one point that she thinks she â€Å"may well be a Jew† (35), when in fact she is not. This is echoed by her despondent, resonant cry in a foreign language: â€Å"Ich, ich, ich, ich.† (27) It is clear that the poem has a strong personality, and this personality is only made possible with the presence of Plath's voice. A link can be made here to another of Plath's poems, â€Å"The Bee Meeting†, which also raises the question of identity. Unlike â€Å"Daddy†, this poem is not addressed or aimed at anyone in particular, but this does not mean that it is any less personal, and it still retains Plath's ‘voice' as she is again speaking in the first person. The poem reinforces the poet's sense of abject loneliness in a world populated by well-to-do figures of society who (it seems) neither really care for, nor understand her. In â€Å"The Bee Meeting†, Plath joins various members of the parish to collect honey from the â€Å"white hive†(34). When the other figures don their veils and heavy outer garments for protection, however, their identities are lost, and this frightens Plath, who does not want to be lost in turn: Is it some operation that is taking place? 30 It is the surgeon my neighbours are waiting for, This apparition in a green helmet, Shining gloves and white suit. Is it the butcher, the grocer, the postman, someone I know? 35 (30-35) Plath's voice comes across most strongly, however, when she tells us of her fear and her nakedness while all others are clothed. We are told that she is â€Å"nude as a chicken neck, does nobody love me?† (6) and â€Å"Now I am milkweed silk, the bees will not notice./They will not smell my fear, my fear, my fear.† (9-10) Clearly, a tortured, lonely, forlorn voice is at work here, appealing vainly for understanding in the hopelessly detached way that abject melancholia brings. Her tired, sad, frail voice is heard at the end: â€Å"Whose is that long white box in the grove, what have they accomplished, why am I cold.† (55) The lack of a question mark at the end implies that an answer is not expected, perhaps because Plath knows that she will never receive one. The subtlety in the image of the coffin-like â€Å"long white box† hints at hidden depths to Plath's feelings – depths which are both limitless and moving. We could go so far as to say that Plath associates and identifies herself with the hive and its angry bees: confused, chaotic, and directionless. By putting the bees to sleep, the hive, â€Å"as snug as a virgin† (34), is violated. In the same way perhaps, Plath sees herself as violated or raped by the world around her. Once again, it is only through her powerful voice that we understand these emotions. Problems of identity are strongly linked in both poems (the â€Å"Ich, ich, ich,† of â€Å"Daddy† and images of lost identity in â€Å"The Bee Hive Meeting†), and this question surfaces again in the poems of Linton Kwesi Johnson. In a poem like â€Å"Mekkin Histri†, Johnson's voice is immediately clear and challenging: â€Å"now tell mi something/mistah govahment man/tell mi something.† (1-3) Johnson's voice searches, accuses, demands: how lang yu really feel yu coulda keep wi andah heel 5 wen di trute done reveal bout how yu grab an steal bout how yu mek yu crooked deal mek yu crooked deal? ` (4-9) It is clear that the voice coming through here is a purely political one, and the colloquial language that Johnson employs reinforces his poems' sense of ‘otherness' and originality. The language is both alien and familiar, both intimidating and soothing. But it is also a collective voice – a voice of the people, but not all the people. It is a voice demanding complete and radical change, an alien voice that has become disillusioned with the society that surrounds it. The title of the poem, â€Å"Mekkin Histri† implies a time of great change, and this is exactly what Johnson was doing at a time when the British establishment was threatening to revert back to an entirely conservative, jingoistic and exclusive mindset. It is not surprising that Linton Kwesi Johnson has earned himself the nickname of ‘The Prophet', who, with his eclectic mix of dub beats and chanting poetry, captured the political heart and soul of Britain's black youth in the 1980s, and, many say, continues to do so today. It is perhaps due to the African tradition for collective storytelling and music that Johnson's voice is so much more powerful and raw compared to other poets/songwriters talking about the same thing, for example Gil Scott-Heron. Perhaps it also has something to do with the way the poems are written and their apparent inaccessibility to the ‘Western' reader. What it succeeds in doing is creating, once read aloud, a true sense of Johnson's voice – its rhythm and patterns, recreated in our own, individual voices. These are poems that cannot be read silently: they make no sense just as words on a page. For them to be truly understood, these words, seemingly unfamiliar at first, become familiar once we voice them ourselves. In a way, Johnson is raising the whole concept of ‘voice' in poetry to another level – ‘voice' is no longer something we get a sense of when reading words on a page; it is something we must enunciate for ourselves. When it becomes colle ctive poetry (Johnson's words through everybody else's voice), it speaks for everyone, regardless of his or her colour. We cannot help but identify with the poet and his words because, essentially, they become our own. This sense of a collective poetry, of Johnson speaking for everyone, comes across strongly in all of his poems, and â€Å"BG† (his tribute to Bernie Grant, the first black Member of Parliament) is no exception to this rule: yu woz wi cheef yu woz wi choice yu woz wi champian yu woz wi face yu woz wi voice 20 yu woz wi main man (16-21) But if Linton Kwesi Johnson is using ‘voice' in his poetry to achieve a political end, then Tom Leonard is using his voice to represent a social one. Like Johnson, Leonard writes in the strong dialect he speaks, hailing from Glasgow. Like Johnson and Plath, his poems are infused with his own voice, and, by writing in his colloquial way, forces the reader to read the words aloud, or imagine how they would sound spoken. Thus, what seems to be an incomprehensible passage can be understood when read aloud in a broad Scottish accent: ifyi stull huvny wurkt oot 35 thi diff- rince tween yir eyes n yir ears; 40 – geez peace, pal! (From â€Å"Unrelated Incidents† 33-42) Not only does Leonard's voice come through very strongly here, the form of this particular poem (â€Å"Unrelated Incidents†) adds to the overall effect Leonard is trying to achieve – namely by breaking up the flow of the writing, the reader is forced to ponder over and analyse individual words and phrases at a time. It seems also that Leonard is concerned with the subjectivity of language, and the way different words and different intonations mean different things to different people. It has been said that language is a slippery medium, and this is all too true in the cultural divide between England and Scotland. Although on paper both countries speak the same language, in reality, the different ways in which English is used by both the Scots and English themselves, suggests that this is not the case. Leonard points out the root of these differences in â€Å"Unrelated Incidents†, in an excerpt called â€Å"The 6 O'clock News†: thirza right way ti spell ana right way 90 to tok it. This is me tokn yir right way a spellin. this is ma trooth. 95 (â€Å"The 6 O'clock News† 88-95) Leonard seems to be highlighting here the discrepancy between ‘tokking' (or talking) and spelling. There may be a ‘right' way of spelling, says Leonard, but there is no ‘right' way of talking (not in these days when ‘received pronunciation' is an institution which is frowned upon and laughed at, anyway). Your right way of talking is not my right way of talking. Similarly, Leonard says, your right way of spelling is no longer my right way of spelling. â€Å"this/is ma trooth† (94-95). We see this most clearly in his poem â€Å"In the Beginning was the Word†, in which spelling and language is slowly corrupted and deconstructed, leaving in its place something new and startlingly clear: . in the beginning was the word . in thi beginning was thi wurd in thi beginnin was thi wurd in thi biginnin was thi wurd in thi biginnin wuz thi wurd 5 n thi biginnin wuz thi wurd nthi biginnin wuzthi wurd nthibiginin wuzthiwurd nthibiginninwuzthiwurd . in the beginning was the sound . 10 We can see, then, that these poets are all linked in the way they use their ‘voice': Sylvia Plath uses hers to instil her poems with a sense of her own personality and intimacy; Linton Kwesi Johnson uses his to use our voice, in effect, in order to put a political point across; and Tom Leonard uses his to illustrate the subjective nature of language, and how we use it to achieve our own ends. In this way, we can see how these poets have all used their ‘voice' in different ways – all to create the effect that it is their poetry and no-one else's. These poets are distinct in their original and compelling use of their own individual ‘voices'. Earlier in this essay, I mentioned Roland Barthes' piece, â€Å"The Death of the Author†, and it seems appropriate here, now that I have highlighted the ways in which these poets operate concerning ‘voice', to analyse his essay in this context. Barthes holds that an author or poet cannot be individual or original because he or she is merely a product of the society that surrounds them. This throws the whole concept of the ‘author function' into question: is an author really an author? Have they really written what they have written? I believe that the use of ‘voice' in poetry proves that a poet or an author can be individual and original. It is true that a poet like Tom Leonard or Linton Kwesi Johnson writes in the dialect of his society, and is therefore (to an extent) a product of that society, but this does not address the fact that these poets are entities in themselves, bringing something original to their work, and they are not simply blank sheets which society has filled in. In short, these poets do not regurgitate their society: they regurgitate themselves. Every poet brings something new and original to the world of poetry and literature, and if this were not the case, then poetry and literature would never have advanced at all. Wordsworth said that a poet is someone who is â€Å"pleased with his own passions and volitions, and who rejoices more than other men in the spirit of life that is in him; delighting to contemplate similar volitions and passions as manifested in the goings-on of the Universe, and habitually impelled to create them where he does not find them,† (â€Å"Preface to Lyrical Ballads†, 1798) and to this I would only add that today, a great poet should have a strong voice. The voice of a poet is his true identity – that which he is judged against, and that which compares him to all others. Ultimately, a poet's voice is his defining feature: an existential monument to who he is – something entirely unique, and something that should be cherished.