estandiaa
Dec 30, 2011
Undergraduate / I had the opportunity to live in Germany for a year; intellectual vitality essay [2]
Hello to all. I am from a Spanish speaking country and am applying to Stanford. I will be thankful for any feedback. Don't worry if you are harsh.
Stanford students possess an intellectual vitality. Reflect on an idea or experience that has been important to your intellectual development. 2000 Char
After numerous years learning German, I had the opportunity to live in Germany for a year because I was awarded a scholarship to a scholarship due to my academic performance. In August 2009 I set foot in the "Saechsisches Landesgymnasium Sankt Afra" (Federal School of Saxony-Saint Afra). Being there was an experience different to anything else, as it is an "elite-school" with a difficult application process and stellar academic curricula, which encourage a very capable and enormously motivated student body.
In the second semester in the German course we were to read Goethe's Faust: The First Part of the Tragedy. At first I was intimidated by the play as it was the first book in the German language I had seen written all in rhyme. Aside from the noteworthy style, my classmates regarded it as complicated and difficult to read. After the initial panic, I set aside my anticipations and started reading it, at first I found it extremely complicated and difficult to understand; I had to consult the dictionary countless times. As I continued with the play I got more and more intrigued by the plot and appreciated Goethe's mastery. I identified with Faust's pursue of knowledge as I also seek to increase my understanding every day. More importantly, it left me the conception that deals which offer a great reward, but require the violation of one's principles, most often than not, end wrong and harm the persons one cares the most about. Despite the difficult language I deeply enjoyed the book and was happy to discover how many other stories are based in its interpretation of the Faust legend. I realized that its reputation as one of the cornerstones of the German literature is entirely deserved and I discovered the joy of reading in the original language, as there is no way to truthfully translate this book to any language. Finally, I was surprised by my proficiency in German.
Hello to all. I am from a Spanish speaking country and am applying to Stanford. I will be thankful for any feedback. Don't worry if you are harsh.
Stanford students possess an intellectual vitality. Reflect on an idea or experience that has been important to your intellectual development. 2000 Char
After numerous years learning German, I had the opportunity to live in Germany for a year because I was awarded a scholarship to a scholarship due to my academic performance. In August 2009 I set foot in the "Saechsisches Landesgymnasium Sankt Afra" (Federal School of Saxony-Saint Afra). Being there was an experience different to anything else, as it is an "elite-school" with a difficult application process and stellar academic curricula, which encourage a very capable and enormously motivated student body.
In the second semester in the German course we were to read Goethe's Faust: The First Part of the Tragedy. At first I was intimidated by the play as it was the first book in the German language I had seen written all in rhyme. Aside from the noteworthy style, my classmates regarded it as complicated and difficult to read. After the initial panic, I set aside my anticipations and started reading it, at first I found it extremely complicated and difficult to understand; I had to consult the dictionary countless times. As I continued with the play I got more and more intrigued by the plot and appreciated Goethe's mastery. I identified with Faust's pursue of knowledge as I also seek to increase my understanding every day. More importantly, it left me the conception that deals which offer a great reward, but require the violation of one's principles, most often than not, end wrong and harm the persons one cares the most about. Despite the difficult language I deeply enjoyed the book and was happy to discover how many other stories are based in its interpretation of the Faust legend. I realized that its reputation as one of the cornerstones of the German literature is entirely deserved and I discovered the joy of reading in the original language, as there is no way to truthfully translate this book to any language. Finally, I was surprised by my proficiency in German.
