In the case of this past week's “Connection Lost” episode, it was her college essay to Yale which for me stole the show from the filming experiment and the main story about Haley's whereabouts. There was actually quite a bit I wanted to say about it once I got a chance to read it, and while I could have shared my thoughts in the recap, I figured there was enough to say that it merited its own post.
First off, to save everyone from having to switch between this post and the recap post, here again is what Alex wrote that she sent to Claire:
"Nietzsche believed that most culture exists purely to distract us from the truth. If he is to be believed, then the context of our experience matters little compared to the content of our experience. For this reason, I believe Yale will provide the best possible opportunities to expand as a scholar, pupil and person. No institution, however dedicated and prestigious, can instill a desire for betterment where none exists and I know you're not reading this, mom. If allowed to join the student body, I will diligently strive to make the most of every advantage, both in school and beyond campus.
This is not to say I lack hobbies. In addition to graduating in the top two-percent of my class, I have also participated in many extracurricular activities. I followed my love of the cello to join a quartet three years ago. My interest in renewable energy drove me to enter the Annual Pasadena Robotics Competition in 2010, build my own small robot, and compete as that year's youngest female one-person team. In addition, I have co-captained numerous Mathlete and Mock Trial teams, and spent my free periods as a teachers' assistant.
If admitted, I am certain my varied interests will find a prosperous foothold at Yale, whether through my fellow students or honored professors. I aspire to one day say that”
My first thought is how well written this essay was (certainly a lot better than I could ever come up with - I actually don't think I ever even wrote an essay). In fact, I wondered if Ariel wrote it herself, and since (as I noted yesterday) she was taking questions on Twitter after the show, I figured I'd ask her about it. Sadly, her answer was not what I hoped for, but at least she got right to the point:
@noahproblem no🙈🙈
— Ariel Winter (@arielwinter1) February 26, 2015
(No, I don't know what was up with the 2 “See No Evil” emoji – I didn't ask...)
But will the powers-that-be at Yale be impressed? I don't know. There is a touch of overboard in her praise of the school, but I'm sure a lot of the other candidates are doing the exact same thing.
I do question why she asked Claire to review this (actually being a perfectionist she sent at least 5 drafts, based on Claire's e-mail inbox in the closing credits scene) – I would think her guidance counselor at school would be closer to a peer as far as assisting her in writing as perfect as essay as she can. I am not surprised she didn't ask any of her classmates though – as competitive as she is with them I don't think she'd trust any of them not to undermine her efforts.
And I think maybe she was having misgivings herself, based on the “and I know you're not reading this, mom” line (which I hope she remembers to delete before sending the essay to Yale - in an earlier scene we see an earlier draft of this essay and Alex hadn't yet added that line).
The most intriguing/important part of her essay from a future story standpoint is “in addition to graduating in the top two-percent of her class...”. Does that mean Alex already is assured of graduation before the school year is barely half over? It doesn't seem likely but if so that would take out a potential drama point - remember back in September I thought there was a chance of a problem at the end of the year that could temporarily jeopardize her graduating?
On the other hand, if that's true then if she's “only” in the top 2% then she's not #1 (I'm sure she'd say she was top of the class in her essay if she was). Now while I personally would have been thrilled with a top 2% finish (I was middle of the pack back when I graduated a long time ago, but then again while I was smart I didn't have Alex's level of ambition), I wonder whether Alex has accepted that fate, or if she's bitterly disappointed about it (my guess would be the latter). This may or may not get clarified in the “We're Number One!” episode coming later this season.
As to her cello playing, I'm torn whether or not she should have mentioned her band name (Electric Light Dorkestra) in the essay – would it have made her look better or worse? It's hard to believe at one point she actually hated playing the cello.
So she herself once built a robot? Hmmm, maybe what happened to Sanjay in 8th grade with his robot attacking him wasn't an “accident”... [I'm kidding, I think ;) ]
I'm surprised she never took up chess (or if she did, I don't know why she wouldn't mention it).
And I can't believe she mentions her co-captaining Mathlete and mock trial competitions, but not her solo victory in that academic competition (the one she won her freshman year but then lost the following year in “Mistery Date” on the very first question). Or any of the other trophies for which she was willing to get out of bed to win (because they were big enough to be deemed worthy to her).
Finally, I wish we had seen the rest of the essay, or at least what she aspired to say one day – I doubt it was “get this party started”. But I'm glad they let us see a little bit more of what Alex does - e.g. I didn't know she's a teacher's assistant in her free school time (unless that includes her math tutoring we heard about in “Strangers In The Night"). It's not surprising, but it's a bit sad that once again given the choice to either take on another responsibility or to relax, she chose taking on more responsibility and potentially adding to her stress.
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