<p>I have a question about the long Stanford essay prompt no.2. It's the one you have to write about the influence of what someone said, or expressed in any manner. Does it have to be a quote or a great piece of art (such as a painting, a piece of literature, etc.) or can it be any old book that sparked a passion? I was thinking of writing about a book and how it sparked an interest, but the book is a generic book off the shelf. Can I do this and how would this reflect on me? Thanks.</p>
<p>Your choice is only a small part of it...what you make of it in your essay is WAY more important. If you can write a compelling unique essay about it then go ahead, books certainly do fit the prompt...</p>
<p>So the book doesn't have to be Purgatorio from the Divine Comedy or something like that? It can be a generic nonfiction book?</p>
<p>Sure, you could probably write a great essay about a comic book or even a bad joke. The question is basically "tell us something about yourself." As long as you share something interesting about yourself in a way that is uniquely you, what you write about is less important (provided that you don't write about stuff like getting arrested, details of romantic relationships, etc.)</p>
<p>Okay thanks guys.</p>
<p>How should I mention the book? Should it be stated explicitly in the beginning or should I just work it in there somewhere or should it be the title of the essay? Oh gosh...I haven't even started on it yet and apps are due in three weeks. :(</p>
<p>Don't stress out, but do finish it ASAP (Thanksgiving holiday is perfect). That way you can let it sit for 1 week and then come back to it with fresh eyes, and still have time to revise.</p>
<p>If it will make you feel better my son doesn't plan to even look at the Stanford application before Dec. 1. Well to be fair he has looked at it, and maybe he's mulling over the questions.</p>
<p>Hm, mathmom, you might want to tell him to mull pretty deeply :D because the application has 3 short essays as well as 1 long essay, and it's hard to transfer them directly from the Common App really (although for my long essay I was able to).</p>
<p>The quote can be anything - it is just a vehicle to tell them something important about you.</p>
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Hm, mathmom, you might want to tell him to mull pretty deeply because the application has 3 short essays as well as 1 long essay, and it's hard to transfer them directly from the Common App really (although for my long essay I was able to).
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<p>Oh I know. I'm trying very hard not to say anything. He's done a bunch of essays for MIT and Caltech, but they are going to need major tweaking to work for Stanford. It's aggravating because Stanford is probably his second choice.</p>
<p>That's awesome, mathmom. I was being a bit of a hypocrite because I totally resent my parents who are constantly nagging me about college essays</p>
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The quote can be anything - it is just a vehicle to tell them something important about you.
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<p>Yeah I thought it could be anything (something your mother, sister, friend, teacher said) and not just a great quote or book.</p>
<p>yeah i was thinking about beginning with sth. my friend once said to me. but the rest of the essay might have little to do with his words themselves, more about what i thought and did later. and actually his words aren't even what the flow of the essay was based on. will it do?</p>