“Je deteste des
Americains,” said the old Swiss woman sitting across from me. Her face
contorted into a grimace of disgust as she and her friend continued to complain
that Americans had no culture, that they never learned another language, and
that their inferior customs were spreading throughout Europe like an infectious
disease. Each hair on the back of my neck sprang to attention, as I strained to
hear the women’s inflammatory remarks. I gripped my bag of McDonald’s harder
with each insulting phrase.
I had been living in
Geneva, Switzerland for four years, during which time I had attended an
international school consisting of over 96 different nationalities. I had
already become fluent in French and had become accustomed to the new culture in
which I was living-a culture which I had believed to be rich in tolerance and
acceptance. Naturally, the women’s remarks hurt. Was I really an “ugly
American?” Did I have no appreciation of anything other than McDonald’s or
Coca-Cola? Had I not been touched by the new world I had been exposed to?
Without question, my four
years in Switzerland changed my life in countless ways. From the minute I
stepped off the plane at Cointrin Airport, the vastly different sights along the
clean street, the ubiquitous smells of rich delicious French cuisine, and my
feelings of excitement about my new surroundings told me that I definitely was
“not in Kansas anymore.” My school helped greatly in modifying my attitudes,
as for the first time I was with peers from countries which I had only read
about. Although it was sometimes difficult trying to find links between my self
and my Saudi Arabian, Hungarian, French, Nigerian, or Chilean friends, I soon
came to enjoy my new stir fry environment. By the time I left, I was wondering
how I ever could survive the boredom of attending a homogeneous institution.
This is not to say that, prior to this, I had been closed up in a bland box of a
world. I had traveled to India, my father’s home, and England, my mother’s
home, annually: a practice my family and I continue to this day. I had been
brought up without specific religious beliefs, but an awareness of my parents’
spiritual backgrounds of Judaism and Hinduism. Thus my exposure to these various
different nationalities in Switzerland built on my found-ations of cultural
awareness, rather than laying the cornerstone for it.
My understanding of my new
environment was aided tremendously by my ability to speak French, and was
subsequently one of the best gifts I brought back from my four year stay in
Switzerland. An entire year of school lessons could not have taught me as much
of the language as I learned form speaking with my Swiss friends, shopping in
the local stores, or apologizing to my neighbors for hitting my ball into their
yard. My proficiency in French earned me a regular spot on a nationally
broadcast Swiss radio program, in which a Russian child and I discussed tensions
between major world powers. This was a rare opportunity, as, although Stephen
and I were peers, the fact that Russian children attended the Soviet Embassy
school meant that we were not classmates. Though, even if we had been allowed to
speak casually before, I am not certain that our conversation would have reached
the depth of discussion we achieved on the show.
America will never again
seem the same to me. Geneva gave me enough distance to look at my country
through objective eyes. Traveling throughout Europe was like a trip with
Gulliver: it gave me the ability to look inside myself and discern my
country’s faults as well as its numerous strengths. Like the Swiss women’s
remarks, it hurt me to find that the United States is not the only country in
the world with a rich and stimulating environment. With my new perspective, I
saw that America was not what it had been. Then I thought for a moment and
realized that America had not changed, but I had.
COMMENTS:
One officer called this,
“A good example of a foreign culture essay that works.” The only negative
comments about this essay came from one officer who found the conclusion to be a
bit weak. “I would like to see her elaborate a little more in the last
paragraph. This is because in most of her classes, she will be required to
support any opinions.” Another agreed that she could have kept her final
points more personal and specific.
The writing is
excellent.
The vocabulary is
sophisticated without seeming labored. I do not suspect that the author had
a thesaurus at hand! This tells me that she/he would certainly be successful
academically, at least in the courses that require strong communication and
analytical abilities.
This essay is very
well written. The writer demonstrates a refreshing maturity that seems to
come from his/her abroad experience. The essay demonstrates a transformation
of the student from just an American in a foreign land to someone who
embraces the international experience and grew with it.
What I like about this
essay is that it shows that the traditional categories of “extracurricular
activities” need not be the only way to demonstrate that one has something
of interest to bring to the college experience. I think this writer would be
a fascinating person to get to know, because she would be able to contribute
a fresh perspective to conversations about many of the important ideas that
we wrestle with in college. She might well be someone who would be
especially adept at bringing together diverse members of the student body
because she would not feel intimidated by differences, but would, instead,
seek them out and value them highly.
CampusNut Notes:
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