<p>This is the prompt that I am choosing to write about for the Amherst College supplement. However, this is a difficult prompt and I am not sure that I understand it. Is it saying that others’ stereotypes make you behave stereotypically or do others’ beliefs dictate their views of you? </p>
<p>For my response, I pretty much wrote about resisting the power of stereotypes, but I think that the prompt is asking me to write about cases where the power has dominated my behavior?</p>
<p>It is very confusing to me, but if I get a grasp of the prompt I believe that I can write something great. Can anyone help me figure out what this promt means?</p>
<p>I don’t think that anyone can tell you what the prompt means to you. The point of the essay is two-fold:
1 - For you to interpret the quote and say what it means to you
2 - For you to tell the adcoms something about you that hasn’t been revealed elsewhere in your application.</p>
<p>The adcoms are trying to learn about you! What does your response tell them about you specifically. I don’t believe they are looking for a critical essay like you’d write for your English class. They are looking for a window into who you are.</p>
<p>Don’t write an essay on a topic that you don’t understand. Pick a different one. (BTW this means that habitual beliefs can be incorporated into one’s “philosophy” and thus dictate behaviors. An example would be the issue of American superiority over other cultures. This leads to an underclass in the U.S. of non-American individuals, which, in turn, deprives them of opportunities and thus, reinforces the idea that Americans are best…)</p>
<p>In response to hpg90, I feel that this may be the easiest prompt for me to relate myself to I’m going to stick with it. For the other prompts, I can’t see myself being able to relate to those as much. </p>
<p>To ShesOnHerWay and elbeeen, to verify, you’re saying that these prompts are for you to interpret and tell a story about you. Does this mean that there isn’t necessarily a WRONG answer to this promt if it stays on the topic of stereotypes and tell a story about you?</p>
<p>Yes there is. A wrong answer is tangential to the question, badly written or ill conceived. Be careful, they read what you write. If you are above the academic threshold, but do not have a sport or other draw, what you write can put you from the “maybe” into the “out” pile pretty quickly. But…these are just my assumptions as an Amherst student; I am not on the admissions committee…</p>