<p>is writing about an incarcerated parent and its affect on my high school years a safe topic for a college essay? to barnard in particular?</p>
<p>i haven’t written it yet, im still brainstorming…</p>
<p>Not sure what you mean by "safe", but it sounds like a very significant thing in your life, so I think it would be a good topic as long as you can talk about more than just how hard things have been or such. Just my opinion, but any essay about unusually difficult circumstances would be difficult to read unless the writer found a way to identify and discuss positives that have resulted...</p>
<p>I hope that makes sense. Best of luck to you (I am sure you will write much better than I just did!)</p>
<p>thanks. i've given it more thought though, and im thinking about relating my experience to a quote from a movie called 'the united states of leland.' the main character says in the film, "nothing, not tears not prayers not anger, nothing can make something that happened, unhappen." so in a nutshell, i planned on relating that quote to myself in the way that i've learned to accept this unfortunate part of my life and not be angry or sad about it, as i initially did. i wanted to show my growth through this experience in that way. do you think that sounds like a good idea? thoughts? suggestions?</p>
<p>oh and just a side note about the film, its about a teenage male who kills a young mentally challenged family friend. but he never really says why, nor does he know why he did it. it comes across through the film that he did it to release the boy from the bad experiences he was bound to suffer through in life due to his illness. he wanted to make life easier for him by ending it. but that part of the story isnt really a major part of the plot, the film mostly deals with the way the murderer views life, who's name is leland, thus the title 'the united states of leland.' he's really just a sweet, emotional guy who didnt want the kid to spend his life suffering . of course, i'll be devoting more of the essay to myself and not the actual film.</p>
<p>I like using the quote to how you have dealt with the situation and using that to, as you said, help illustrate how you have matured. </p>
<p>I don't think I would spend a lot of time, or any really, on the film. It sounds like a good movie but pretty far off topic for your essay (except for the quote, of course).</p>