從Costco essay談大學申請作文的寫法

從Costco essay談大學申請作文的寫法

 

Costco是一家倉儲式商場，凡在北美生活過的人，無人不知，幾乎無人不曾去那裏購過物。然而，特拉華州威明頓市的一位18歲的高中生Britany Stinson 卻通過自己在Costco平凡的購物體驗寫出了一篇不平凡的大學申請作文，讓她在眾多優秀的大學申請者中脫穎而出，被5所常春藤大學和矽穀著名的史丹福大學錄取。這篇隻有604字的Costco essay，究竟有什麽魔力獲得了常春藤大學那些眼光犀利、挑剔的AO的青睞，並引起了主流媒體跟風式的追蹤報道？

 

作為美國著名大學的高中畢業生申請者，一份全A的成績單和幾乎滿分的SAT考分對他們來說一點也不稀罕，真正能讓大學AO入眼的是才藝、各種傑出的獎狀和榮譽、推薦信以及課外活動，還有一個就是讓申請者鶴立雞群的essay。大學AO給高中申請者的寫作建議是，如果一篇沒有署名的essay丟落在地上，別人檢起來一看就能斷定是誰寫的。

 

一篇傑出的essay，開篇就要引人入勝，激起讀者想繼續往下看的興趣，向大學AO展示一個特別的你。

 

Essay通常采用記敘文式寫法。

開頭寫一件個人親身經曆的軼聞、趣事或奇聞，以激起讀者繼續讀下去的興趣。大多數新聞報道都用這種寫法，在英文寫作中把這種敘述方式叫做“anecdotes"。開頭要采用小說式或戲劇化的手法來介紹一段真實的事情或經曆，目的是要激起讀者閱讀的興趣和好奇心。Costco essay的開頭就處理得很好。作者首先講述了自己從二歲起就跟母親去Costco購物，描述自己如何試圖掙脫母親的束縛，從小就有了探索世界的欲望與興趣，對Costco高高的堆頭陳列、碩大的冰庫以及所有的東西都充滿了興趣，又把自己比喻為16世紀的西班牙探險家，不是去尋找傳說中的黃金城，而是穿梭在Costco的過道中尋找免費試吃品，並對Costco王國內的一切都充滿了好奇心，最後不得不被母親喚回購物車內。讀了這個開頭，讀者不禁會問：Costco究竟有什麽魔力讓一個小孩子對它充滿了好奇心？

 

作者在接下來的段落裏回答了讀者的疑問。經常光顧Costco, 作者不僅僅是購物，而是通過購物培養了自己的好奇心和觀察、獨立思考能力。作者通過舉例來展示自己的這些能力，如吃一塊五毛錢的全牛肉熱狗套餐，不是把注意力放在Costco宣傳的“全牛肉”上，而是想到有限和無限的關係；通過觀察另一名購物者的購物車撞柱子，想到了物理學中的慣性定律；從胡桃木熏火腿引出了與其父親 對具有爭議的美國第七任總統安德魯·傑克遜的討論，因為傑克遜的外號就叫“老胡桃木”。胡桃木是美國東部山區特有的樹木，以其質地堅硬而出名。傑克遜因1812年在新奧爾良率領5千人馬全殲英軍7千5百人而被人們讚譽為“老胡桃木”。作者對其堅定的信念和頑強、堅韌不拔的品格推崇有加，而對其個人道德卻不苛同。通過對Costco商品和購物者的觀察和思考，作者不僅顯示了其豐富的知識麵、觀察和獨立思考能力，而且向AO展示了個人品格。

 

再下麵作者把對Costco的好奇心和在那裏購物學到的觀察思考能力引申到自己的課內學習和課外活動上，Costco培養了作者的好奇心、求知欲以及觀察思考能力，有助於她的課堂學習和課外活動，並向AO展示了一個多才多藝的自己。

 

最後一段是全文的總結，起到畫龍點睛的作用。

 

這篇文章反映了作者紮實的語言能力、豐富的知識麵和寫作功底，通篇語言流暢、詞匯豐富。一篇優秀的essay要有明確的目的，通過小事用心去感知生活，透過經曆尋找意義，展示個性和品質，這樣才能給AO留下深刻印象，令其刮目相看。

 

據最新報道，Costco essay的作者Brittany Stinson最後選擇了去史丹福大學。

 

附Costco essay:

Prompt 1: Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

Managing to break free from my mother’s grasp, I charged. With arms flailing and chubby legs fluttering beneath me, I was the ferocious two­ year old rampaging through Costco on a Saturday morning. My mother’s eyes widened in horror as I jettisoned my churro; the cinnamon­sugar rocket gracefully sliced its way through the air while I continued my spree. I sprinted through the aisles, looking up in awe at the massive bulk products that towered over me. Overcome with wonder, I wanted to touch and taste, to stick my head into industrial­sized freezers, to explore every crevice. I was a conquistador, but rather than searching the land for El Dorado, I scoured aisles for free samples. Before inevitably being whisked away into a shopping cart, I scaled a mountain of plush toys and surveyed the expanse that lay before me: the kingdom of Costco. 

Notorious for its oversized portions and dollar­fifty hot dog combo, Costco is the apex of consumerism. From the days spent being toted around in a shopping cart to when I was finally tall enough to reach lofty sample trays, Costco has endured a steady presence throughout my life. As a veteran Costco shopper, I navigate the aisles of foodstuffs, thrusting the majority of my weight upon a generously filled shopping cart whose enormity juxtaposes my small frame. Over time, I’ve developed a habit of observing fellow patrons tote their carts piled with frozen burritos, cheese puffs, tubs of ice cream, and weight­loss supplements. Perusing the aisles gave me time to ponder. Who needs three pounds of sour cream? Was cultured yogurt any more well­mannered than its uncultured counterpart? Costco gave birth to my unfettered curiosity. 

While enjoying an obligatory hot dog, I did not find myself thinking about the ‘all beef’ goodness that Costco boasted. I instead considered finitudes and infinitudes, unimagined uses for tubs of sour cream, the projectile motion of said tub when launched from an eighty foot shelf or maybe when pushed from a speedy cart by a scrawny seventeen year old. I contemplated the philosophical: If there exists a thirty­three ounce jar of Nutella, do we really have free will? I experienced a harsh physics lesson while observing a shopper who had no evident familiarity of inertia's workings. With a cart filled to overflowing, she made her way towards the sloped exit, continuing to push and push while steadily losing control until the cart escaped her and went crashing into a concrete column, 52” plasma screen TV and all. Purchasing the yuletide hickory smoked ham inevitably led to a conversation between my father and me about Andrew Jackson’s controversiality. There was no questioning Old Hickory’s dedication; he was steadfast in his beliefs and pursuits – qualities I am compelled to admire, yet his morals were crooked. We both found the ham to be more likeable–and tender.

I adopted my exploratory skills, fine tuned by Costco, towards my intellectual endeavors. Just as I sampled buffalo­chicken dip or chocolate truffles, I probed the realms of history, dance and biology, all in pursuit of the ideal cart–one overflowing with theoretical situations and notions both silly and serious. I sampled calculus, cross­country running, scientific research, all of which are now household favorites. With cart in hand, I do what scares me; I absorb the warehouse that is the world. Whether it be through attempting aerial yoga, learning how to chart blackbody radiation using astronomical software, or dancing in front of hundreds of people, I am compelled to try any activity that interests me in the slightest. 

My intense desire to know, to explore beyond the bounds of rational thought; this is what defines me. Costco fuels my insatiability and cultivates curiosity within me at a cellular level. Encoded to immerse myself in the unknown, I find it difficult to complacently accept the “what”; I want to hunt for the “whys” and dissect the “hows”. In essence, I subsist on discovery.