<p>For the two main essays, are two 300 word essays enough? I feel like they should be longer, and yet, I think adding on more words would just be filler because I've accomplished in my essays what I want to.</p>
<p>Also, for the short answer questions... is just a sentence of two okay?</p>
<p>Last question: who did you guys put (or consider putting) for the "greatest intellect of our time"? I promise I won't use your answers but I just need somewhere to start because I'm drawing a huge blank on this one. Right now, Phil Jackson and the triangle offense head the list (can you see why I need some new ideas?) I'm not quite sure how they're gonna take that one. </p>
<p>My essay about the challenge was about 350 words.
My academic passion essay was about 500 words</p>
<p>And since I applied online and didnt really have space limits...
My short answers were all between 100 and 200 words - basically short paragraphs.</p>
<p>As for the intellect, I didnt really know what 'our time' meant, and being the the nerd that I am, I wrote about Jean-Paul Sartre, a big philosopher with the French existentialist movement who died in the 80's.</p>
<p>I almost wrote about Nelson Mandella, but I wasnt sure if he was an intellect or an activist.</p>
<p>i'm a freshman at wake and we didn't have that question last year, but i would put either jean-paul sartre, paul tillich, murray rothbard, or jrr tolkein.</p>
<p>Well I loved The Stranger. Personal preferences I guess- although I do enjoy some of his other works better. Existentialism is just interesting. </p>
<p>Sorry I can't be of more help. I struggled at first with that question.</p>
<p>just a thought...how can u guys pass these people off as the greatest intellect of our time if the majority of the world has never heard of any of these people...</p>
<p>The majority of the world may not have heard of 'these' people, but the majority of the educated world has. Mention Sartre in any intellectual circle, and you will immediately be swept into a conversation about existentialism. Being an impressive intellect has nothing to do with recognizibility, and everything to do with the quality of your thoughts.</p>
<p>see im gonna have to disagree with u on that, because i actually had a group of friends over tonight who go to columbia and MIT, none of them heard of the people you mentioned.</p>
<p>Now this is just my opinion of wakes essay topic...im not applying there so this is an unbiased view. I personally think they would view those individuals as people you searched the internet for and therefore you feel that because you read something interesting about them, they become the greatest intellect of our time (not to say you did this, of course). These adcoms arent stupid, nor are they artificially intelligent robots, they are real people with normal interests...they can tell when a person talks about the things they really care about.</p>
<p>I was really concerned about that in my essay, actually. I like reading philosophy. My favorite book, which I wrote about in another short answer is called The Unbearable Lightness of Being. How many high school seniors write about crap like that? aka. Will the adcom think its contrived?</p>
<p>Well, if they do, I dont care and if thats their opinion, well then I dont think I would want to attend their university (in this case, 'their' applies to ANY college).</p>
<p>Speaking of Columbia, a co-worker of mine goes there. We actually talked about Sartre while on shift together tonight :)</p>
<p>This doesn't really have anything to do with the topic at hand, but the mention of The Unbearable Lightness of Being reminded me that there was an interdisciplinary honors seminar this past semester on Goethe (sp.?), Mozart, and Kundera. I know someone who was in the class and loved it.</p>