<p>I know the essay is to measaure skill in writing, etc, but out of curiosity, could you write with first person about personal experience and still score high? --- as to writing in 3rd person, formal, historical/lit examples, etc.</p>
<p>THanks in advance.</p>
<p>Well, I don't prefer writing in 1st person. (Talk about hypocrisy, lol!)</p>
<p>Anyway, What's the point? The graders know it's YOUR essay, they don't want to read 'I THINK' and 'I BELIEVE' and I did this and I did that. Seriously, they don't give a crap. Some people (at least me) even feel offended when a person just keeps saying 'I ... I... ' It's like 'um, yea, dude... okay. I know it's you. I'm reading YOUR essay...'</p>
<p>See what I mean?
Besides, it sort of makes your essay weak because you seem reluctant when you say 'I think deception is never justified'... as compared to just saying 'Deception is never justified'. The latter statement makes you seem more focused, and straightforward. </p>
<p>As to getting a high score by using personal examples, it's definitely a possibility.
There's nothing wrong with using personal examples in the essay but make sure that you're presenting them in an appropriate manner. (Of course allusions are better though!).</p>
<p>hrm. maybe thats what I was aiming for: personal examples; thanks for the response feed</p>
<p>I think it depends largely on the prompt. Some are intended to be very personal, others call for more objective evidence.</p>
<p>If you are able to integrate personal examples into your essay in a manner that supports your thesis, that is perfectly acceptable. However, don't write colloquially -- the essay must be formal, regardless of the use of the first-person.</p>
<p>yeah, i understand. thanks for the response. I think i might just do that.</p>
<p>i definitely propose taking an unsusual position.</p>
<p>i remember an essay question that asked students whether having many choices in life is a good or bad thing. while many people would say yes, i said no.</p>
<p>i think it could make you stand out.</p>
<p>also try choosing less conventional pieces of literature when it comes to examples.</p>
<p>^ Dude, I can't think of like any examples from literature although it depends on the topic. Any examples of flexible literature pieces?</p>
<p>(Btw, how do you know what side other students picked, huh? I detect a hint of cheating. =P)</p>
<p>I did it on the second SAT I took. I didn't do as well as I did on the first. But, I still got a decent score. 9/10. It's not like it really mattered that time around...</p>
<p>^ Um, isn't the score out of 12?</p>
<p>asdfjkl1, did you write the full two pages?</p>
<p>That's why this was my 2nd time taking the SAT. And, I barely practiced before it. Anyways, I ended up using my ACT instead due to the large difference in scores on that..and the SAT.</p>
<p>Yes.</p>
<p>You don't need to cite obscure literary sources in order to stand out -- while the graders may enjoy reading your essay more, that won't translate into a higher grade. You should just write about the subjects you feel most comfortable about. For example, I like political economy, so on the March prompt about individualism vs. teamwork, I wrote about the Great Depression, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Sweden's political system.</p>
<p>The readers don't read anything. They glance at the essays and grade by gut reaction. (That's from the horse's mouth.) The colleges know this and that's why so many give no consideration to the score. Chillax.</p>
<p>^ My mind has a hard time grasping that idea, though I'm completely aware it may be true.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Anyway, What's the point? The graders know it's YOUR essay, they don't want to read 'I THINK' and 'I BELIEVE' and I did this and I did that. Seriously, they don't give a crap. Some people (at least me) even feel offended when a person just keeps saying 'I ... I... ' It's like 'um, yea, dude... okay. I know it's you. I'm reading YOUR essay...'
[/quote]
</p>
<p>I know where you're coming from because my teachers and professors have forced me into doing the same thing in order to get a good grade, but I hate that justification regardless because if you don't allow the essay writer to state what he or she believes then you don't know if what the essay writer is stating is fact or if it's something the essay writer merely believes.</p>
<p>This is especially true when people try to proclaim constructs as universals, make statements regarding things that don't actually exist, or make claims to things that would otherwise be mythological. Stating it's their "opinion" is simplifying the issue.</p>
<p>For example, if you see an editor say "Obama can't reel in white working-class voters" instead of "I think Obama can't reel in white working-class voters" you encounter several problems. The most obvious problem is that you don't know if the editor thinks that, given the reasoning laid out in the article, the editor believes it highly likely (in other words, factworthy) that this is true, and you run the risk of readers thinking this is basically true as well. The second problem is that there could be overwhelming statistical evidence that Obama can or can't gain the support of a majority of white voters and it could thus be a fact. Finally, you don't know if the editor is claiming his or her opinion as fact and thus making a logical fallacy, such as in the statement "secular progressives are taking over America." You have also additionally not defined "opinion" which in itself is ambiguous--if it's a belief or a view, then on that grounds religious beliefs are "opinions" which is an oversimplification, and even if it's a preference many people belief preferences to be objective such as in the case of music taste, however false that may be.</p>
<p>There's multiple problems if you take out "I think" and assume it as a given. I know this won't change your writing (and as long as I'm being marked down for writing that way, it won't change mine either) but it's regardless a huge pet peeve.</p>