Imagine looking through a window at any environment that is particularly significant to you. Reflect on the scene, paying close attention to the relation between what you are seeing and why it is meaningful to you. Please limit your statement to 300 words.
I would make my way through the white corridors, down the stairs and out into a place filled with the scent of. My childhood home represents everything about my childhood and its innocence. Everything was new beautiful, and exciting. Anything , including magically transforming into flower, was attainable anything was possible. I could be whatever I wanted, and there was no need to fear because I always felt safe. And the world was incomprehensibly large and vast. As I finish my last year of high school, the world and my outlook on life has greatly changed. The world has gotten smaller, it doesn't seem so secure, and not everything seems realistically obtainable. That in no way means that life has become less magical or the world has morphed into this perilous, disenchanting place. It has just changed. Although the world is smaller, at this age, I am able to awe in and appreciate its complexity rather than stand in trembling astonishment at its perceived hugeness. And even though I do not believe that a superhero will save the day I aspire to become a help to others. Childhood amazement with the world is celebrated and treasured, as it should be. I hope to never forget that childhood amazement, but I also realize that that I still am astonished by the world; it's just different type of astonishment.
CORNELL
Describe your intellectual interests, their evolution, and what makes them exciting to you. Tell us how you will utilize the academic programs in the College of Arts and Sciences to further explore your interests, intended major, or field of study.
Life always felt too shallow. And this for me continued into school. I worked hard, I could do chemistry reactions, and solve difficult match problems, but it all seemed so empty. The information was very useful and practical, but just empty. I went through life feeling that I was just skimming the top. Many people believe that philosophy is reserved for people without financial trouble or with too much leisure time. That's what I thought. Each time the word philosophy was brought up, images of grey, old, Caucasian males, who sat around in their 18th century Victorian homes, alone with no family or friends, came to mind.
After taking a class, starting a book club, and reading works of philosophers such as Alan Watts and Voltaire, I feel that it is one of the most important things a person could ever study. You are able to realize that we all are driven by curiosity about ourselves, the world and the unseen. And once we realize that our need and pursuit of knowledge is innate, questions such as or don't seem trivial at all. I would love to study and further explore the different topics within the subject of philosophy. A lot of the understanding I have about the subject has been through my book club and personal study. The prospect of being able to participate in lectures given by traveling philosophers who visit Cornell and to attend the lectures of faculty members who are well-respected and experts in their fields to lecture even better. I know the Sage School of Philosophy has reading groups where students can discuss certain topics. I know that I would be at each and every one of those discussion meetings because I love to talk about what I think about a certain theory or book and I love to listen to the opinions of other students who are also passionate about philosophy. I would apply to be one of two undergraduate students to be selected for research. I know that these two students do not receive academic credit. They do receive an hourly wage but that to me that would just be a perk; I would want to be there even if there was no pay. At Cornell, I would take advantage of all the resources available, not just because it would look good on my resume but because I love learning, exploring, and Philosophy.
