<p>Thanks for the help!</p>
<p>the words work best, but i dont know if colleges will look negatively upon using them</p>
<p>You can, but I wouldn’t suggest it, in general. It depends very much on context. Mind explaining?</p>
<p>A college should never consciously consider someone who uses expletives in their essay in a negative manner - however, you should take into account some of the people that may read your essays. Often admissions officers are older people, and may find liberal usage of such words offensive; if your writing is too flamboyant to be safe, then you should make changes…</p>
<p>sure. “Families are one of the few constants in life, and I used to treat mine like crap, and while I’m not as perfect as I would like to be, I sure am a hell of a lot better than I was”</p>
<p>topturn: i gave the lines in question</p>
<p>I don’t think “hell” and “crap” make that sentence any better. I think you could easily change them to something else without changing the meaning of the sentence or making it less powerful.</p>
<p>I don’t think they contribute much. If you want to keep one, keep “hell”-- it kind of works in the reformed-bad-kid-who-still-has-an-edge-and-has-refocused-that-aggression-into-positive-works sort of way.</p>
<p>thanks guys! what word would you put in place of crap and hell?</p>
<p>bump bump</p>
<p>ypu should really refrain from using those words. Perhaps try to use a metaphor for how you treated your family.</p>
<p>Or, you could simply give an example of how you treated them- rather than say just saying it</p>
<p>show, don’t tell</p>