Undergraduate / My interest in the facet of sociology in novels of manners -Sarah Lawrence supplement [3]

Can you guys proofread this essay quickly? I have to submit it on 1/1>.<, this is extremely late>.<

The cornerstone of a Sarah Lawrence education is the combination of small, seminar-style courses accompanied by an independent study component known as conference work. These independent study projects allow students to explore their academic and personal passions under the guidance of professors in the humanities, creative and performing arts, social sciences, and the natural sciences and mathematics. (To learn more about conference work and view current student projects, please visit our Student Works site at: slc.edu/undergraduate/work/student-work.html.

There are infinite possibilities, so take a moment to step into the shoes of a Sarah Lawrence student. Is there a topic you've always wanted to learn more about? Has a class in high school rushed past a subject that you found fascinating? In a 250-500 word essay, tell us about an independent study project you would design if given the opportunity.

My interest in the social hierarchy was first sown by the movie "Mean Girls". I was primarily fascinated with the social elites, personified by "the Plastics" and simply defined by my inexperienced mind as those people whose social standings were the envy of the rest. I was obsessed with figuring out the source that dictated the degree of one's popularity and the possibility of one's social position being jeopardized.

This interest, long forced into abeyance by the staggering schoolwork in Vietnam, germinated afresh in the glow of my experience living in a single-sex hostel in Singapore. This community offered me a unique opportunity to observe the social dynamic within a group that lacked female admiration as a barometer and thus had to rely on other factors in determining one's social position. Being a casual observer as well as a participant in the social scene, I saw the initial liquidity of mingling friendliness divide itself and crystalize into individual hard substances, otherwise known as cliques. Gradually, a social hierarchy formalized. As expected, the "jocks", among whom sports were the mainspring for conversation, ruled the apex and the "loners", who were always seen doing things alone and behind whose backs people often ridiculed when nothing better offered for conversation, occupied the other end.

Being in the "gossip" clique, who made it our business to know everything about everyone, I was curious less by the social prominence of the "jocks" and more by the social positions of the "loners". To be able to get a scholarship to study in Singapore and join this privileged community, these "loners" were indeed brilliant individuals; and my extensive usage of Facebook showed me that they figured prominently in other social settings. What made them so easy targets for ridicule, which in turn led to their social undoings? Certainly, different backgrounds and propinquity made a dangerous concoction for social antagonism, but I knew certain computer game geeks with far more questionable habits who were condoned by this community.

My newfound interest in classic literature introduced me to the works of Edith Wharton. Reading through these novels's analysis on GradeSaver and Sparksnotes, the idea of clan's protection came to me. The House of Mirth's Lily Bart was urged to marry quickly after her aunt disinherited her, since now she did not belong to a family or a social sphere, which left her floating with no real roots. The Age of Innocence's Ellen would have been snubbed without the Luydens' social endorsement. I realized that the interaction between the cliques in my community prohibited them from openly criticising individual clique member, and thus "loners" were made victims, for they had no social alliances to fall back on.

My social experience, while by no means extensive, helps me relate to these novels of manners, whose focus center on social behaviors. They offer me familiar yet fresh understanding of human nature and society. I want to explore the integral facet of sociology in these novels.

Undergraduate / My newfound interest in the arts-commonapp essay [4]

Here is the essay.

I used to have no patience with novels (and by extension, the arts) and thought that their only audiences were those sentimental people, who had too much free time in their hands to weep for fictional people with whom they had no business with whatsoever. It was expected of a boy who had hitherto been raised with his parents' prejudices against artists, not uncommon among Vietnamese people in that developmental stage of the country. These took the form of backhanded compliments employed by them in their various encounters with "amateurs"-their generic name for persons who did not study science. It was unexpected that I have taken an interest in the arts.

My original distaste for the arts was almost strengthened after my first endeavor to understand them, if not for my addiction to the internet. My experience with Wuthering Heights, a literary classic, was a total failure, as I grew weary of the long text, the ridiculous proclaimations of love and Joseph's gibberish. Looking through the internet to find scathing Wuthering Heights reviews that would justify my boredom, I found myself err in the opposite direction. Apparently, the pain and anguish portrayed in the book have intrigued millions of people around the world. I was fascinated by the emotional impact it has on past readers, and was equally amazed by how such a simple plot could be effectively harnessed to embody complex themes, if literary analysis on Sparksnotes was to be trusted. I read the book the second time, being certain that if "amateurs" could "get" arts, there was no reason I, who had won various prizes in science in Vietnam, could

not. I did not.

While it was mortifying to my vanity, it also whetted my appetite for the arts. I started to long for that exquisite moment when I could revel in the warm and rich atmosphere only a piece of art could produce. In my efforts to get arts, I began to read professional reviews of those art stuffs that I used to watch solely for amusement, but the result was disappointing. I rewatched "The Bench", widely praised as the finest and most emotional contemporary piece on So You Think You Can Dance, and did not feel anything except admiration for the precision the dancers executed their moves. I knew this particular movie angle in American Beauty, with Kevin Spacey's face reflected in a computer screen filled with columns, was used to evoke the theme of imprisonment, but of which I could not sense. I was scared that years of training had hardened my heart into a rock. I was reminded of The Age of Innocence's May Welland, whose future husband compared her inability to speak her own voice, to "the Kentucky cave-fish, which had ceased to develop eyes because they had no use for them". It was indeed a dreadful fate.

I was about to give up when an incident changed my entire understanding of the arts. One day, I was looking at the speeding cars on the road below from an overpass when suddenly something hit my mind. I was five, looking at the car toy in toyshop's window and wondering how happy I could be having enough money to buy all the toys in the world. I was ten, sitting next to my uncle, a doctor, in his car (very few in Vietnam had a car at the time) and dreaming to become a doctor. I was eighteen, realizing that a career as a doctor may bring me a life of prosperity but not happiness, as my actual interest lied in the arts. I was surprised by the emotional reaction I had to that scenery, then it all dawned on me. To comprehend arts on the emotional level, one needs to have life experiences that would bridge the boundary between fact and imagination. Therefore, I set off on my new quest: to gain as many life experiences as possible.

I know my time on earth is limited. I know there are certain experiences I will never be able to go through, like the feeling of a child from a broken home. That was why I partook of teaching underprivileged kids, because to be there when they talked reluctantly about their families, when their lips quivered uncertainly and their eyes glared fiercely is a powerful experience in itself. I have tried my best to understand arts, and I am contented. (735 words)

Thank you so much:)

Undergraduate / Commonapp-How a trivial jealousy led to an epiphany on expectations in life [9]

I haven't thought of a proper prompt yet though :(

At the time of writing, I have approximately 6,877,200,000 jealousies and counting. I am jealous with everyone. On. This. Earth.

The moment I walked into my new class in Singapore, I was already envious of my Singaporean classmates. To my untrained ears, they all spoke English with such perfection, eloquence and sophistication that conveniently destroyed my confidence with English and cruelly strangled whatever syllable in my throat. To compensate for this, I vowed to read as many novels as possible in an attempt to force-feed my vocabulary with bombastic words with which I could sound refined when I speak and write. Even when my local teachers did not have much faith in foreign scholars' ability in English and Literature. Even when my fellow scholars "got their focus right" and went on to win all kinds of prizes in science, while I was still stuck in a rut, trying to wrestle with the task of not falling asleep reading Wuthering Heights. My jealousy got the better of me.

I became weary of this jealousy after a while. It was not that I thought reading classic novels would not aid in my learning of the language, but I would have liked the process to be more enjoyable. I had always had no patience with novels, especially those with generic plots and little relevance to the modern life, and thought that their only audiences were those sentimental people, who had too much free time in their hands to weep for fictional people with whom they had no business with whatsoever. However, now that I had set up this task, I felt obligated to follow it through, which meant submitting to more boredom and putting up with my roommates' constant nagging about my tendency to leave the light on and read novels before I slept and deny them the chance to put their blankets on and sleep before I did.

Naturally, I felt jealous with "those sentimental people", who could appreciate the beauty of novels but whom I used to despise. Looking through the internet to find scathing Wuthering Heights reviews that would justify my boredom, I found myself instead err in the opposite direction. Apparently, the pain and anguish portrayed have intrigued millions of people around the world. I was amazed by the emotional impact it has on past readers. I was equally fascinated by how such a simple plot could be effectively harnessed to embody complex themes, if literary analysis on Sparksnotes was to be trusted. However, I read it the second time, and still, Wuthering Heights could not be listed in the (empty) Favorite Books section under my Facebook page's Info tab. I was horribly jealous of those people for possessing all sorts of intuitions, sensations and perceptions that I so happened to lack, but at the same time, was surprised by my sudden interest in literary analysis.

I was scouring the internet to find ways to improve my emotional faculty when I realized that apparently novels often have multiple different interpretations, and that reviewers recount different experiences when reading the same text. Something in the ambiguous nature of novels appealed to me, as I realized that reading novels, unlike studying science, has room for all kinds of explanations, which allowed for these countless debates and unique responses, and one is not forced to follow anyone's particular opinion. Moreover, it seemed to me that only a person who has gone through a heartbreaking isolation from his or her loved one could absorb the intensity of Heathcliff's love for Catherine. Yes, you need experiences to be able to have that emotional journey when reading novels. Therefore, I set off on my new quest: to gain as many life experiences as possible. This quest has been fulfilling. Naturally, I grew increasingly interested in novels and the arts.

There was a time when I scorned a quote that says, "The secret of happiness is not in doing what you like but in liking what you do". I thought it only taught us to settle with what we have and prevented us from realizing our full ability, and so I thought a life of jealousy was ideal. However, I realized that an ideal life should comprise a complex interplay of those two factors, jealousy and settlement. We need jealousy to motivate us to stretch ourselves and push for that lofty goal, but we also need settlement to give us the resilience needed to reach it. And I hope I have found that perfect combination. (749 words)

Thank you all so much:)

Research Papers / The impact of the human rights issue in Sino-American economic relationship [5]

Hi, Im doing a research paper on this topic. The question is:

How far has China's human rights record impeded the Sino-American economic relationship since 1989?

Can u help me with the structure of my paper? When I went for consultation with my teacher, she said that while it has relevant ideas, the organization is messy and "all over the places", and I have to constantly make the link between the human rights issue and the economic relationship. I would really appreciate it if you can comment on the structure of my essay. I have finished this paper according to this structure, and I would be really grateful if you can critique the full paper also (:

The structure I have planned for my essay is like this:

Introduction:
-China and America's divergent views have often led to political tensions, which can spill over into their vital economic flows.
-However, upon further examination, the human rights issue has not resulted in any extreme economic measures from both China and America. America and Chinese foreign policies ensure that conflicts over the human rights issue-most possibly irresolvable due to fundamental differences-are confined to the socio-political arena.

-Thesis Statement: Human rights have become the voice of diplomacy - justifying action and inaction- but descend to little more than rhetoric when they hinder the accomplishment of strategic goals

Body
-America's absolute internationalization of human rights clashes with China's principle of non-interference->political tensions, and occasionally, economic tensions. America put human rights at the central of their foreign policy, and is prone to using economic sanctions to punish countries that do not comply to its human rights standards. Cite the example of the Tiananmen Square Incident, when US suspended economic dialogues with China, and their trade suffered.

-However, trade and FDIs continued to grow in the 1990s, as many in American administration maintained that economic liberalization would lead to political liberalization (this is their justification for continuing to do business with China). While the American government occasionally confronts the Chinese government about its human rights record by warning about possible economic sanctions, these actions are seen as "feigning public outrage to satisfy domestic audiences" rather than seriously aiming to hurt China's economy.

-However, contrary to belief, china's human rights record worsened despite economic liberalization. However, the American government showed no sign of stopping conducting business with China->human rights does not factor in their China economic policy. Their continuing growth in economic cooperation can be attributed to 2 factors: geopolitical interests and economic interests.

-Geopolitical interests: China's business with repressive regimes, while undermining US human rights initiatives, also gives them leverage to deal with these regimes, and so US government has to cooperate with China and become mindful of actions that can irritate Beijing, i.e. the human rights issue. China, recognizing the importance of further engagement with US on its path to become a global power, played its parts->tensions diffuse, and their economic cooperation was affected.

-Economic interests:
+Due to their economic interdependence, they have to keep good relations. America tries not to provoke China, while China cooperates by entering human rights dialogues with America. However, the recent economic crisis and the huge trade imbalance give China an upper hand, and China has used it to apply political pressures on US to ignore the human rights issue.

+Even tho doing business with China gives American companies bad press, American companies are attracted to China's big market and cheap labor so they are not likely to pull out.

Thank you so much :D