Hello! I would very much appreciate some help with my short answer responses for the Columbia University undergrad supplements.
Thanks for your help.
Please tell us what you found meaningful about one of the above mentioned books, publications or cultural events. (300 words or less)
Compassion is the act of suffering with another. To have compassion is to sympathize, to empathize, and to open up oneself to the emotions, trials, and stories of another. This compassion for another, be it a character or another human being is one of the purest, most untainted facets of humanity. To see someone shed tears over the plight of a character from a novel or a film or entangles one's fingers with another's and share the burden of fear and courage both transcends all words. No one word can describe beauty such as this.
Shakespeare and his ability to draw compassion and emotion from his readers have compelled me since I was a child, reading short abridged versions of his plays, hidden in my local library in Singapore. I treasured the turns of each worn page, but none more so than Shakespeare's Othello. A tragedy about jealousy and betrayal, I continue to be as entranced as I once was. Iago's love and loyalty to Othello, his loyalty and jealousies, give him far more depth than the average character. Though Iago is near sociopathic in his rage, his actions are never unmotivated, unexplained or undeserved in his eyes.
Drawn in by Shakespeare's beautiful language, I was not only enthralled by Iago's evil nature but also by his capacity for both good and evil, the very same that all human beings hold. The ability for a single individual to become quantum opposites of oneself, Iago or Othello, Macbeth or Macduff, is fascinating. A person is consistently changing from moment to moment. One's motivations, fears, dreams, and hopes lend themselves to one's actions and it is my captivation with the 'Why?' behind individuals and characters that drives my desire to study the intimately intertwined disciplines of Creative Writing, English Literature, Sociology, and Psychology.
Please tell us what you find most appealing about Columbia and why. (300 words or less)
I am lion. Born under Leo's sign and raised in Singapore, the Lion City, my name -- Ari -- is manifest. Lions are the epitome of bravery, of strength, fearlessness, and discovery. Columbia's Lions echo these traits and more, promising opportunities untold and the chance for change. Columbia is a pioneer in each and every field that I am interested in. With plans to major in more than one discipline, Columbia offers me a range of choices in the fields of not only the humanities, but also the social sciences.
I am lion but this is the part where my hands get sweaty. Cue the lights; hush the audience, every one is waiting for my soliloquy. The audience is waiting for a decision but the jury is out - the director is on her lunch break. So I freeze up, I choke, because lions may be brave, may be kings, but I have no reply to the universal question for high school seniors everywhere - "What do you want to do?" I do not know 'what' but I do know 'where'. The 'why' is in the gray between tangible and intangible, but I do know that Columbia is where my journey will continue.
Columbia - the heart of the city - with its myriad of English concentrations, its endless sociological research clusters from cultural sociology to ethnography and inequality, and firsthand research opportunities in the Psychology department, instills within me an excitement that cannot be sated. This burning need to be at Columbia, to learn and live and be fills me, colors me in that particular shade of blue. Lions are the epitome of me, of Columbia, and it is only there that I believe I will find not only myself, but also my pride.
For applicants to Columbia College, please tell us what from your current and past experiences (either academic or personal) attracts you specifically to the field or fields of study that you noted in the Member Questions section. If you are currently undecided, please write about any field or fields in which you may have an interest at this time. (300 words or less)
Life and its innate ability to contort itself into nigh unimaginable designs, and the people who live it, just as complex and intricate - fascinate me. I have always loved watching people and the way they interact with the world around them. I watch and listen, and I try to understand. I have always done this, be it in the form of characters and worlds in a book, or people I pass on the street. I watch, listen, understand, and perhaps most importantly, I ask why?
Why are things the way they are? Why do people do what they do? And most importantly - What can I do to help? Perhaps it is naivety, but I believe it is hope. As difficult and as painful as the days can sometimes be, I am a dreamer. Times are hard on people like me, but I believe I can make a difference. When my Sociology instructor asked us to question the very foundations of the things around us, I did, and I have never stopped.
The 'why' behind things, behind people, spearheads my passion for Psychology. People and the reason why they do the things that they do are infinite. As society ages, as it changes, humanity expounds upon itself and though we may never understand everything there is to know about people, about the world, about the universe; we should never stop trying.
While I watch, listen, understand and question, I also write. I always write. Be it for school or for pleasure, the words never stop. I love reading and writing because words are infinite and endless. With only twenty-six letters, one could break or make a dream - change or make the world stay the same. I write so I may one day find a story in me that needs to be told.
Thanks for your help.
Please tell us what you found meaningful about one of the above mentioned books, publications or cultural events. (300 words or less)
Compassion is the act of suffering with another. To have compassion is to sympathize, to empathize, and to open up oneself to the emotions, trials, and stories of another. This compassion for another, be it a character or another human being is one of the purest, most untainted facets of humanity. To see someone shed tears over the plight of a character from a novel or a film or entangles one's fingers with another's and share the burden of fear and courage both transcends all words. No one word can describe beauty such as this.
Shakespeare and his ability to draw compassion and emotion from his readers have compelled me since I was a child, reading short abridged versions of his plays, hidden in my local library in Singapore. I treasured the turns of each worn page, but none more so than Shakespeare's Othello. A tragedy about jealousy and betrayal, I continue to be as entranced as I once was. Iago's love and loyalty to Othello, his loyalty and jealousies, give him far more depth than the average character. Though Iago is near sociopathic in his rage, his actions are never unmotivated, unexplained or undeserved in his eyes.
Drawn in by Shakespeare's beautiful language, I was not only enthralled by Iago's evil nature but also by his capacity for both good and evil, the very same that all human beings hold. The ability for a single individual to become quantum opposites of oneself, Iago or Othello, Macbeth or Macduff, is fascinating. A person is consistently changing from moment to moment. One's motivations, fears, dreams, and hopes lend themselves to one's actions and it is my captivation with the 'Why?' behind individuals and characters that drives my desire to study the intimately intertwined disciplines of Creative Writing, English Literature, Sociology, and Psychology.
Please tell us what you find most appealing about Columbia and why. (300 words or less)
I am lion. Born under Leo's sign and raised in Singapore, the Lion City, my name -- Ari -- is manifest. Lions are the epitome of bravery, of strength, fearlessness, and discovery. Columbia's Lions echo these traits and more, promising opportunities untold and the chance for change. Columbia is a pioneer in each and every field that I am interested in. With plans to major in more than one discipline, Columbia offers me a range of choices in the fields of not only the humanities, but also the social sciences.
I am lion but this is the part where my hands get sweaty. Cue the lights; hush the audience, every one is waiting for my soliloquy. The audience is waiting for a decision but the jury is out - the director is on her lunch break. So I freeze up, I choke, because lions may be brave, may be kings, but I have no reply to the universal question for high school seniors everywhere - "What do you want to do?" I do not know 'what' but I do know 'where'. The 'why' is in the gray between tangible and intangible, but I do know that Columbia is where my journey will continue.
Columbia - the heart of the city - with its myriad of English concentrations, its endless sociological research clusters from cultural sociology to ethnography and inequality, and firsthand research opportunities in the Psychology department, instills within me an excitement that cannot be sated. This burning need to be at Columbia, to learn and live and be fills me, colors me in that particular shade of blue. Lions are the epitome of me, of Columbia, and it is only there that I believe I will find not only myself, but also my pride.
For applicants to Columbia College, please tell us what from your current and past experiences (either academic or personal) attracts you specifically to the field or fields of study that you noted in the Member Questions section. If you are currently undecided, please write about any field or fields in which you may have an interest at this time. (300 words or less)
Life and its innate ability to contort itself into nigh unimaginable designs, and the people who live it, just as complex and intricate - fascinate me. I have always loved watching people and the way they interact with the world around them. I watch and listen, and I try to understand. I have always done this, be it in the form of characters and worlds in a book, or people I pass on the street. I watch, listen, understand, and perhaps most importantly, I ask why?
Why are things the way they are? Why do people do what they do? And most importantly - What can I do to help? Perhaps it is naivety, but I believe it is hope. As difficult and as painful as the days can sometimes be, I am a dreamer. Times are hard on people like me, but I believe I can make a difference. When my Sociology instructor asked us to question the very foundations of the things around us, I did, and I have never stopped.
The 'why' behind things, behind people, spearheads my passion for Psychology. People and the reason why they do the things that they do are infinite. As society ages, as it changes, humanity expounds upon itself and though we may never understand everything there is to know about people, about the world, about the universe; we should never stop trying.
While I watch, listen, understand and question, I also write. I always write. Be it for school or for pleasure, the words never stop. I love reading and writing because words are infinite and endless. With only twenty-six letters, one could break or make a dream - change or make the world stay the same. I write so I may one day find a story in me that needs to be told.
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