Hello! This is my essay for the Princeton supplement. I tried to demonstrate a much more pensive and serious aspect of myself, since my personal statement is much more light-hearted in comparison.
Any critique/edit/comment is greatly appreciated! Thank you!
Tell us about a person who has influenced you in a significant way. 500 words
"People think you are self-centered" - these are some of the kindest, most well meaning words someone has ever told me, and they came from my best friend of six years ago. I had mistakenly believed that I was well liked, and my dear friend bluntly pushed me to realize that I did not know how to appreciate my friends; I wanted attention, but would not reciprocate affection. Her words have prompted my slow journey for self-improvement so that I have become more considerate of others, and perhaps, more deserving of friendship.
It is difficult. If expressing empathy were a race, I would be the sloth with stunted legs and a grotesque outgrowth of mossy bacteria weighing me down. I was not born with the ability to genuinely care for and love others, and perhaps no one is. Darwin might say that humans are intrinsically selfish in a survival of the fittest mentality, and therefore no one is inherently altruistic. Then, selflessness would be an acquired trait.
Yet, I am filled with a desire to succeed socially in society, where compassion is one of the greatest human virtues. That social Darwinism has lost its luster indicates that most others do too. Thus another, greater factor must be considered: happiness, which is found most in relationships with others. To fulfill my human, self-interested desire in finding happiness in friendship and love, I strive to become more sympathetic and caring. Altruism is based in selfishness; yet, it is a form of selfishness that is good for everyone.
If I had continued in my purely self-centered and egocentric personality, I would have headed towards a lifeless and colorless world. So, I am indebted to my honest friend for drawing me away from a path of loneliness. How to listen to someone's troubles, brighten someone's downcast day, or comfort someone's pain - I have had to learn how to be a friend, just as a toddler learns that "A" is for apple, or as a student learns that "A" is for adultery. What began as a self-serving venture to satisfy my own happiness, however, has turned into a genuine care for friends and family. My friends, whom I once burdened with incessant troubles, I now try to support and listen to in sincerity. My mother, upon whom I blamed my unhappiness, I now try to enliven with companionship in hopes that her melancholy will fade. My truthful friend has spurred me, with her frankness, to pursue a worthy goal: to always strive to be a better person.
Any critique/edit/comment is greatly appreciated! Thank you!
Tell us about a person who has influenced you in a significant way. 500 words
Self-Centered People
"People think you are self-centered" - these are some of the kindest, most well meaning words someone has ever told me, and they came from my best friend of six years ago. I had mistakenly believed that I was well liked, and my dear friend bluntly pushed me to realize that I did not know how to appreciate my friends; I wanted attention, but would not reciprocate affection. Her words have prompted my slow journey for self-improvement so that I have become more considerate of others, and perhaps, more deserving of friendship.
It is difficult. If expressing empathy were a race, I would be the sloth with stunted legs and a grotesque outgrowth of mossy bacteria weighing me down. I was not born with the ability to genuinely care for and love others, and perhaps no one is. Darwin might say that humans are intrinsically selfish in a survival of the fittest mentality, and therefore no one is inherently altruistic. Then, selflessness would be an acquired trait.
Yet, I am filled with a desire to succeed socially in society, where compassion is one of the greatest human virtues. That social Darwinism has lost its luster indicates that most others do too. Thus another, greater factor must be considered: happiness, which is found most in relationships with others. To fulfill my human, self-interested desire in finding happiness in friendship and love, I strive to become more sympathetic and caring. Altruism is based in selfishness; yet, it is a form of selfishness that is good for everyone.
If I had continued in my purely self-centered and egocentric personality, I would have headed towards a lifeless and colorless world. So, I am indebted to my honest friend for drawing me away from a path of loneliness. How to listen to someone's troubles, brighten someone's downcast day, or comfort someone's pain - I have had to learn how to be a friend, just as a toddler learns that "A" is for apple, or as a student learns that "A" is for adultery. What began as a self-serving venture to satisfy my own happiness, however, has turned into a genuine care for friends and family. My friends, whom I once burdened with incessant troubles, I now try to support and listen to in sincerity. My mother, upon whom I blamed my unhappiness, I now try to enliven with companionship in hopes that her melancholy will fade. My truthful friend has spurred me, with her frankness, to pursue a worthy goal: to always strive to be a better person.