So I’m applying for a scholarship that will cover 150% of my tuition, but the essay I have to write for it sounds like the author was off fishing while it was developed. “How do you eat jelly beans, and what does that say about your personality?” OK, I could say I sort them (I’m organized) or I eat the icky ones first (I don’t shirk unpleasant duties), blah blah blah… I can’t think of anything that won’t already have been said by thousands of other people! How do I approach this? My brain is numb!
<p>Tell them that you use your toenails to peal apart the jelly bean, layer by layer and then pour them all into a cup of soda and drink it. Wow, I'm tired...but, who knows? lol</p>
<p>Tell them that you eat them in no particular order based on color, which shows that you support racial harmony and want to create a model society in which we all are dissolved in hydrochloric acid in a large stomach.</p>
<p>Hahahaha...</p>
<ol>
<li>Grab random jelly bean.</li>
<li>Put jelly bean in mouth.</li>
<li>Chew jelly bean.</li>
<li>Swallow jelly bean.</li>
</ol>
<p>Now just figure out how to stretch that to how many words you need.</p>
<p>your ideas have the same vibes as mine, hysterical, but how do I write an essay on it? It's the only essay on the application, so how can I have mine show me and be original, with such a fluffy question?</p>
<p>That's based on a Ronald Regan quote, I'm pretty sure. It's something like "You can tell a lot about a fellow by his way of eating jelly beans."</p>
<p>Anyway I say just have fun with it, they obvioulsy want you to.</p>
<p>Tell them you are allergic and talk about how you eat ice cream or pizza and claim that everything in life isn't like it should turn out to be, or you could have easily eaten the jelly beans. Then, talk about the hardships you have encountered by not having the ability to eat jelly beans as a metaphor of not being able to do something that you want to desperately do but cannot. </p>
<p>Then, use jellybeans as a metaphor for life and how you cannot eat jelly beans, and therefore, are inept in life and claim that you really really need the scholarship because of it.</p>
<p>Yea, it is based on something that Reagan said. While Reagan was President, he kept a crystal jar full of jelly beans in the Oval Office and often passed them out during Cabinet meetings. He once told reporters, "You can tell a lot about a fella's character by whether he picks out all of one color or just grabs a handful."</p>
<p>It is one thing for Reagan to make a little joke, and another thing for a scholarship fund to make it into an essay question. Ordinarily I would think that they are inviting you to write something whimsical and show your creative writing style. On the other hand, anyone who would make that an actual essay question might be serious about it.</p>
<p>You could also go into the direction of "one doesn't just eat jelly beans, one analyzes and savors them. . ." Good luck!</p>
<p>I haven't found any reference to how Reagan, himself, ate jelly beans. Somehow though I can not imagine him picking out one particular color.</p>
<p>Jelly beans, huh? I haven't heard of an essay prompt like this before.</p>
<p>I think it's a great prompt. Just think of all the decisions you have to make along the way... whether any old Safeway bin bean will do or whether a trip to the gourmet shop is in order... whether you dip into the bag sitting on the seat next to you for a little bean tasting behind the wheel on the way home or whether you wait until the mood is right (lights down low, a little mood music? LOL), or do you just eat absent-mindedly out of the bag in front of the tv, or use them as little rewards as you perform an unpleasant task... do you avoid touching the yucky ones or do you just toss 'em back? do you eat them deliberately, savoring one at a time, rolling it around in your mouth before gently biting down on the delicate crust or do you eat them with gusto like a dog, barely tasting them as you chow down?... do you start with the more delicate flavors so they don't have to compete with the stronger ones or do you just let the licorice beans have their way with the eggnog? do you try to guess at the unfamiliar ones before popping them in or prefer a surprise?... how do you know when you're done? when they're all gone? when your teeth ache and stomache hurt? when there's still enough for another day or to share with a friend?... do you evaluate the whole experience when it's over? were they worth the money, time, cavities and calories or is there a better way to spend these precious commodities? you could probably write a whole essay on the trip to the store... do you get distracted by the ice cream shop? do you question your sanity? everyone else seems to have important things to do and here you are, spending $3 a gallon on gas, to go by jelly beans.... so many possibilities... :-)</p>
<p>The end of the writing prompt was about what that says about your personality. That is probably where the emphasis should be.</p>
<p>I think it's a pretty creative question that's screaming for creative answer. There's really no wrong way to do it, as long as you reveal something about yourself. I think a question like this is preferable to the same old...</p>
<p>I definitely don't eat the icky ones. I hate licorice so much I avoid grape too bc sometimes they look the same...
this thread makes me want jelly beans...</p>
<p>but what does not eating the icky ones say about your character?</p>
<p>I somehow think they are looking for something that Reagan meant when he said it. It is a reasonably well known quote. Personally, I don't get it. But I think Reagan ate them by the handful without regard to color.</p>
<p>Wow... if you write an essay on this. I'd like a copy! Its getting so hard to take people seriously these days. have fun!</p>
<p>I can only relate to this question by substituting M&M for jelly beans.</p>
<p>"but what does not eating the icky ones say about your character?"</p>
<p>I think it says whatever elphaba says it says. The prompt begs the writer to take a stand and defend it. There's no wrong answer... jelly bean eating as serious business, a once-a-year treat, maybe you approach it deliberately, develop a plan... if it's a frivolous bit of momentary pleasure, maybe you grab all the gusto you can, shove 'em in by the handful, crush the yucky ones under your shoe or feed 'em to the dog...</p>
<p>lol, what scholarship is that? I'm surprised I haven't heard about it like the duct tape prom dress one.</p>