<p>For example, Princeton in the Nation's Service - am I supposed to make reference to this quote and/or to Princeton specifically in my essay, at the start of my essay or throughout my essay? </p>
<p>Like:</p>
<p>-describe how Princeton's served the nation?
-describe the significance of this quote?</p>
<p>Wouldn't that be extraordinarily boring, like some literature assignment? </p>
<p>I do have an essay that's about my goal of going into public service. But I'm sure not everyone who answers this question is interested in public service. So perhaps we're supposed to say how we plan to serve the nation, regardless of occupation, using the education we got at Princeton?</p>
<p>Don't take the quote so seriously. There's no formal way of including it in your essay, because this isn't an exercise in "use the quote". The idea is that the quote will allow you a starting point or a framework for you to talk about yourself, or to talk about Princeton and why it attracts you, or whatever else.</p>
<p>I'm using the "nation's service" quote to extrapolate on how I discovered my unerring faith in democratic government, and tying it all up with a bit on how I put myself in the "service of all nations."</p>
<p>Princeton wants to see your personality come out through the essay, so approaching the essay like a literature assignment probably isn't the best way to go about it. </p>
<p>If your essay doesn't specifically address the question, chose your own quote, rather than the ones they've given.</p>