Kelsey Moser

Honors 100, Section B

Application Essays
(09/10)
Prompt 1

When I see the statement, Good citizenship comes from good scholarship, I
first think, Of course. How can we expect to be fully functioning citizens of a
society if we refuse to further our education and develop our ideals? The ignorant
good citizen does not exist. Good scholarship is the discipline and commitment
exhibited by individuals in order to better themselves and increase their
appreciation for the world we live in. Many of the qualities that we value, no, that
we expect in our citizens are those that we cannot acquire naturally. The realization
of the importance of national policies is not possible without an understanding of
the tragedies caused in the past by countries at war. Without studying the founding
documents of our nation, how can we appreciate the rights and liberties we
possess? And respect for our environment is not likely if were not aware of how
the global climate change will affect the natural world and our way of life.
Dedication to education creates model citizens. It lays the foundation for a society
where people assume responsibility for their actions, preserve natural resources,
stay informed about current world events and issues, take and dedicate their time to
bettering the state of their fellow man. After all, how can you know where youre
going if you dont know where youve been?
























Prompt 2

Each time period of our history, each culture within a time period, has its
own rules. These moral guidelines vary widely from society to society throughout
our history; values we assume every human possesses are, in fact, often a result of
our surroundings and upbringings rather than an innate sense of right and wrong. I
have always been interested in the ancient cultures, in the views of the average
person of the era and how they differ from ours today. What inspired the peasants
awe of their pharaohs in ancient Egypt? How did the ancient Indian caste system
affect everyday lives? So many studies have been conducted to find out the ways of
kings, or generals, or high priests, to learn what they ate and drank and aspired
towards. But I would love to learn how the rest of the population lived, the people
who left no names in the history books. Id like to find out about the morals the
average Romans were taught, what did the Aztecs consider right, and wrong, and
what did the Persians not speak of at all? What possessions did they treasure, what
accomplishments did they dream of? The detective work required to answer these
questions is extensive, and while little can be known for certain, psychologists can
often assume a great deal from anthropological findings. If the opportunity
presented itself, I would jump at the chance to visit an archeological site and to
converse with an expert, and would be willing to put aside other aspirations in
order to satisfy this desire to understand the people of history. By learning more
about the average person in ancient societies, we can not only honor their lives, but
learn a little more about our own.