"How did HE Get In?"

Parents Forum
761

<p>I get the Stanford “thing,” despite having expressed myself clumsily. I also understand that Yale and Stanford are looking for somewhat different sets of qualities. I too think that Stanford’s description was clear.</p>

<p>I also think that Yale’s description was clear, though, and that it was intended a bit more literally than others are reading it. I do understand that they are not just looking for “captains of industry,” or the next President, Justice of the Supreme Court, or very influential Senator. But when they write “leaders,” I think they mean that.</p>

<p>In my opinion, it cheapens a specific virtue to use it to label anything that is virtuous.</p>

<p>I can admire the contributions of, say, elementary school teachers, ministers who influence only their local congregations, PTA/PTO presidents, or people who open and run soup kitchens or homeless shelters, without having to fit their work under the category of “leadership.”</p>

<p>For example, I think that William Faulkner was neither a leader (Nobel Prize notwithstanding) nor an entrepreneur. I do think that J. K. Rowling <em>is</em> an entrepreneur. I would consider artists who found a school (of art, in the sense of artists who have a common approach to their work) or in other ways have a strong influence on those who come after them to be leaders, even though they work alone–but others who may be equally important qua artists are not really leaders. </p>

<p>I think that Moses, for example, was a great leader, but no entrepreneur (no matter how you interpret the term). I also think that there are great entrepreneurs who are not great leaders. Stan Ovshinsky of Energy Conversion Devices (dubbed “the stock you have come to hate” or something similar, by the Wall Street Journal) was a superb innovator, and definitely an entrepreneur, but he was actually not much of a leader (in my opinion).</p>

<p>If you stretch the concept of leadership, you can consider practically everyone to be a leader (in the same sense that “everyone is a winner!”) Honestly, I don’t think this is what Yale has in mind. </p>

<p>Perhaps I will write a biography of J. D. Salinger. Working title: “The Leadership of J. D. Salinger.” Or Howard Hughes in his later years.</p>

762

<p>Looks like we have not just “merit in motion” but also “leadership in motion”…;)</p>

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<p>I think lookingforward understood what I said perfectly.</p>

<p>I agree with you that many people objecting to your position are upper class. Upper class folks are “liberal”, or so it seems. My sneaky feeling is that once theirs or their progenies’ best interest is at stake, you will know how they really think.</p>

<p>My filter is to pay attention to what they do instead of what they say. One comes from the heart … the other comes from the lips.</p>

763

<p>@Pizzagirl - Hit the nail on the head.</p>

<p>This reads like an episode of Big Bang Theory without witty writers and good comedic timing necessary to get the laughs.</p>

764

<p>Wait, Big Bang Theory is supposed to be funny?</p>

765

<p>Lol. I like that one.</p>

766

<p>“I agree with you that many people objecting to your position are upper class. Upper class folks are “liberal”, or so it seems. My sneaky feeling is that once theirs or their progenies’ best interest is at stake, you will know how they really think.”</p>

<p>Can you explain further what you mean here? And in what circumstance my or my children’s interests would be at stake? I wanted my kids to have a good education, but that didn’t mean falling on a sword and crying to the gods above about the unfairness of it all if they didn’t get into a top 20 school or anything.</p>

767

<p>

Bazinga!
:)</p>

768

<p>Well done, QM.</p>

769

<p>I generally find QMs posts much funnier than anything on tv, and not at all literal. It usually takes me a while to google and understand all the allusions and then a few days to finally have the “Eureka!” moment of comprehension. I was following the MIT postings for a few years before it finally at long last occurred to me - oh wait! this isn’t even really about MIT! Of course, neither my intellect nor education is the equal to that of most posting on this board.</p>

<p>Lucky for me I do know something about Faulkner and Salinger and don’t need to spend quite so much time researching today. Joyce Maynard sure got Yale’s name in the news during her brief attendance. Was she a successful admit from their point of view? I tend to think Yale would want these guys, and gal, because of their fame. Do you disagree, QM? Are you arguing Yale only wants future leaders? An entire class? I tend to think they don’t really look for run-of-the-mill ministers but definitely need a few religious studies majors just so they can have a department in that field. Best case scenario, their religious studies majors either write major extremely serious ground breaking new works of theology that change the way experts think -or- popular works of theology that get them on the best seller lists and talk shows -or- best of all, manage to combine the two and go on to sell movie rights and give a percentage back to Yale. Of course they might also just go into consulting or investment banking. I guess that’s sort of a dice roll the admissions office has to make?.</p>

770

<p>I thought may be Yale hired a Stanford grad as President to inject more emphasis on entrepreneurship but alas he seems to be a psychology professor.</p>

771

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<p>As a southerner I have a really soft place in my heart for Faulkner and probably can’t evaluate him critically, but even using your definition I think he qualifies as “leader” if only because of his place in the whole stream of consciousness thing? He gets mentioned with all the other greats as being influential… not just a follower, right?</p>

772

<p>Thanks, alh (/blushes)!</p>

<p>Interesting point about Faulkner. You are no doubt much more familiar with his works than I. I had always connected “stream of consciousness” writing with Virginia Woolf’s “To the Lighthouse.” Its publication apparently preceded the publication of Faulkner’s “The Sound and the Fury” by a matter of some months–but they must surely have been writing at the same time.</p>

<p>A quick check of wikipedia (you are not the only one who resorts to that, alh!) shows that others are credited with the use of “stream of consciousness” prior to Woolf and Faulkner. I was going to suggest that Faulkner brought the mode to the U.S., but noticed that wikipedia mentions Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart,” Henry James’ “Portrait of a Lady,” and T. S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” as precursors or examples–maybe, kinda, but I don’t think so, really.</p>

<p>So I am happy to move Faulkner to the “leader” category. </p>

<p>Not moving J. D. Salinger. Don’t care how influential his writing was!</p>

773

<p>Also, to comment on another point: No, I don’t think Yale is constructing an entire class of future leaders, even stretching the term a bit.</p>

<p>Years and years ago, I read about a woman who was supposedly recommended to a Seven Sisters school as a “follower.” It was claimed that admissions took her, because with so many leaders in the class, they needed to have a few followers!</p>

<p>A work of theology with movie rights? Staggering in its implications!</p>

774

<p>It takes generations if not decades to see how artists could have made differences.
On 22th Feb, I did not know that what Google doodle was commemorating with its cute drawings.
So I looked up, and found
[Edward</a> Gorey - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Gorey]Edward”>Edward Gorey - Wikipedia)
It would have been Edward Gorey’s 88th birthday.
I do not know how Google make decision on doodle image on certain days, but just imagine.
H class of 1950. becoming inspirations to so many movers and thinkers, mostly but not limited to the field of arts.</p>

775

<p>Google Doodles: usually I ask my kids. I don’t even know how to google a google doodle :(</p>

<p>Whew - great relief about Faulkner. I am okay with wherever anyone wants to put Salinger.</p>

<p>So - constructing a Yale class- some potential leaders, actual international leaders, and then some other folks? Are the leaders the most important part of the class? the other folks more or less there for their benefit? to give the leaders a more well-rounded education? </p>

<p>or something else going on?</p>

776

<p>Hi
I actually considered at some point.
"The Ursinus College Creative Writing Award is a $30,000 per year scholarship, renewable for four years. The award winner will have the honor of living in the dorm room once occupied by J.D. Salinger, who attended Ursinus. - See more at: <a href="http://www.ursinus.edu/netcommunity/page.aspx?pid=408#sthash.Bx9bGwsl.dpuf"&gt;http://www.ursinus.edu/netcommunity/page.aspx?pid=408#sthash.Bx9bGwsl.dpuf&lt;/a&gt;"&lt;/p&gt;

<p>[Financial</a> Aid Costs Scholarships Admissions Ursinu](<a href=“http://www.ursinus.edu/netcommunity/page.aspx?pid=408]Financial”>http://www.ursinus.edu/netcommunity/page.aspx?pid=408)</p>

777

<p>QuantMech, the “leaders of their generation” phrase refers to a letter written by Kingman Brewster in 1967.<a href=“http://www.yale.edu/terc/collectiblesandpublications/specialdocuments/Yale_College/Letter1967.pdf[/url]”>http://www.yale.edu/terc/collectiblesandpublications/specialdocuments/Yale_College/Letter1967.pdf&lt;/a&gt; Yale admissions refers to the letter on their web page titled, “What Yale Looks For” [What</a> Yale Looks For | Yale College Admissions](<a href=“http://admissions.yale.edu/what-yale-looks-for]What”>What Yale Looks For | Yale College Undergraduate Admissions).</p>

778

<p>In the face of the eloquence of Kingman Brewster, I (temporarily) have nothing to say. It is a very interesting letter, Periwinkle (#777). Without prejudicing the discussion by giving my opinion now, I would be very interested in the take by others on this letter.</p>

779

<p>Flashback!!
Kingman Brewster was president of Yale when my brother was there. Impressive fellow.</p>

780

<p>Alh - here’s the link.</p>

<p>[url=&lt;a href=“Google Doodles”&gt;Google Doodles]Doodles[/url</a>]</p>

<p>Enjoy!</p>