<p>I'm writing my UVA school-specific supplement, and the prompt is ""What work of art, music, science, mathematics, or literature has surprised, unsettled, or challenged you, and in what way?" </p>
<p>The only thing that has really come to mind while thinking about this is writing about Lolita. Obviously I'd have to be super conscious about making it clear I'm not in support of Humbert Humbert, but more interested by how he nearly appears as a sympathetic narrator. I feel like this might be too risky, considering I don't know who would be reading it. Or, it could be seen as not being afraid to discuss that sort of thing, but I'm not sure which way it would be more likely to lean.</p>
<p>My Common App essay is pretty personal, and my other supplement covers social media/some foreign affairs stuff which is what I'm interested in, so I'm not sure there's a specific base left to cover and am just going for whatever I feel like I could write an interesting supplement about.</p>
<p>Any opinions/advice is welcomed!</p>
<p>While this idea could work, I’d recommend that you focus on two out of the three suggestions - ‘surprised’, and ‘challenged’, and ignore ‘unsettled’. You risk coming off as negative, weird, bookish, naive, or a dozen other unflattering characteristics. It’s a gamble, with no extra returns. </p>
<p>Still, let’s suppose you really like this topic. There’s definitely a way to straddle the fence effectively and list out both the pros and cons to this Humbert character. You can make a rational argument against moral absolutism and whatnot, and hope that your reader has followed your reasoning with the same sensibilities. Effectively-done, it will be an intellectual exercise, well-presented. </p>
<p>In any other case, it will be a show of poor taste. You can never know how moralistic or political your audience is. </p>
<p>I’m the last person to advocate white-washing an interesting topic, but this kind of stuff is better left to discussions with friends rather than a formal application that will impact your future. </p>
<p>More on my philosophy and recommended approach here - [The</a> App Style - A College Application Guide](<a href=“http://www.theappstyle.com%5DThe”>http://www.theappstyle.com)</p>
<p>Very valid points! After taking them into consideration and struggling a little, I abandoned that idea. It doesn’t work on multiple levels. </p>
<p>Now, I’m going with my problems with implicit differentiation in Calculus. I’m sure writing about having issues with math is no new idea either, but it’s absolutely personal and significantly easier to write. </p>
<p>Thank you for taking the time to answer me!</p>