1. We are looking for passionate students to join our diverse community of scholars, researchers, and artists. Answer the question that corresponds to the school you selected above. Limit your answer to a half page or roughly 250 words.
-College of Arts and Sciences: What work of art, music, science, mathematics, or literature has surprised, unsettled, or challenged you, and in what way?
One afternoon, after I finished reading "The Metamorphosis" by Franz Kafka, I realized that I had lived my entire life as a vermin. "Unsettled" is an understatement for the effect this novella had on me. The psychological focus of "The Metamorphosis" allowed me to see that Gregor Samsa's life before his transformation is the life that we live and his experience after his transformation is only an exaggeration of this condition in order to serve as a metaphor for twentieth-century life. I felt a chill as I saw the modern world reflected in each of Gregor's main predicaments. The maddening uncertainty Gregor faced about his future-would he be an insect forever?-is the same fog that clouds our minds and frightens us. The agonizing alienation Gregor felt from humanity is the same rift that separates us from each other. The pitiable detachment Gregor underwent-increasingly part of the insect's world and less of the human's-is the same reason that most people do not even blink when they learn that yet another passenger plane has crashed. The heart-wrenching despair that Gregor had succumbed to is the same conclusion humanity faces as a consequence of the uncertainty, alienation, and detachment of modern life. I wonder with what complacency it was possible for society to allow our world to come to this and hope that we will be able to reverse this pattern before we launch the fatal fruit at one another. The horror of this possibility and the current dilapidation of society elucidated by "The Metamorphosis" compels me to struggle against it.
-What is your favorite word and why?
"Antidisestablishmentarianism" is quirky, historically meaningful, and psychologically significant. Like a person, this word has many layers and the best way to understand it is to go through these layers individually. Since psychology is my life's passion, this word is a perfect match for me. I feel drawn towards this word because its essence lies in its root, "establishment," referring to the Roman Catholic Church, just as an individual's psychology has its start in childhood. The word is, in turn, made increasingly complex through the additions of extra strata, such as "anti-," in a manner that makes it a perfect metaphor for the psychological processes that humans undergo and the experiences that comprise their being. Aside from its structure, the definition of antidisestablishmentarianism covers a significant and fascinating length of history: the rule of King Henry VIII, England's split from the Catholic Church, and the opposing reactions of some to this split. It is remarkable that one word can convey such a broad range of information. The definition, mainly focused on history, also enables the word to capture my attention not only because I love this subject, but also because every snippet of it carries deep psychological meaning: the stress and the ego of a King, the upheaval of a country's tradition-a part of the national psyche-and its ramifications, and the motivations and perseverance of those who chose to disagree with the new order. Thus, "antidisestablishmentarianism" has a unique, unparalleled personality among words that endows it with an irresistible spark of life that captures the hearts of all those brave enough to spell it out.
-College of Arts and Sciences: What work of art, music, science, mathematics, or literature has surprised, unsettled, or challenged you, and in what way?
One afternoon, after I finished reading "The Metamorphosis" by Franz Kafka, I realized that I had lived my entire life as a vermin. "Unsettled" is an understatement for the effect this novella had on me. The psychological focus of "The Metamorphosis" allowed me to see that Gregor Samsa's life before his transformation is the life that we live and his experience after his transformation is only an exaggeration of this condition in order to serve as a metaphor for twentieth-century life. I felt a chill as I saw the modern world reflected in each of Gregor's main predicaments. The maddening uncertainty Gregor faced about his future-would he be an insect forever?-is the same fog that clouds our minds and frightens us. The agonizing alienation Gregor felt from humanity is the same rift that separates us from each other. The pitiable detachment Gregor underwent-increasingly part of the insect's world and less of the human's-is the same reason that most people do not even blink when they learn that yet another passenger plane has crashed. The heart-wrenching despair that Gregor had succumbed to is the same conclusion humanity faces as a consequence of the uncertainty, alienation, and detachment of modern life. I wonder with what complacency it was possible for society to allow our world to come to this and hope that we will be able to reverse this pattern before we launch the fatal fruit at one another. The horror of this possibility and the current dilapidation of society elucidated by "The Metamorphosis" compels me to struggle against it.
-What is your favorite word and why?
"Antidisestablishmentarianism" is quirky, historically meaningful, and psychologically significant. Like a person, this word has many layers and the best way to understand it is to go through these layers individually. Since psychology is my life's passion, this word is a perfect match for me. I feel drawn towards this word because its essence lies in its root, "establishment," referring to the Roman Catholic Church, just as an individual's psychology has its start in childhood. The word is, in turn, made increasingly complex through the additions of extra strata, such as "anti-," in a manner that makes it a perfect metaphor for the psychological processes that humans undergo and the experiences that comprise their being. Aside from its structure, the definition of antidisestablishmentarianism covers a significant and fascinating length of history: the rule of King Henry VIII, England's split from the Catholic Church, and the opposing reactions of some to this split. It is remarkable that one word can convey such a broad range of information. The definition, mainly focused on history, also enables the word to capture my attention not only because I love this subject, but also because every snippet of it carries deep psychological meaning: the stress and the ego of a King, the upheaval of a country's tradition-a part of the national psyche-and its ramifications, and the motivations and perseverance of those who chose to disagree with the new order. Thus, "antidisestablishmentarianism" has a unique, unparalleled personality among words that endows it with an irresistible spark of life that captures the hearts of all those brave enough to spell it out.
