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Old 05-15-2009, 06:06 PM   #15
quaere
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: VT -> Oberlin '12
Posts: 1,039
In general, I think Oberlin is way too complex for a single word (except maybe this ). What bothers me about "fearless", specifically, is that to me it implies recklessness or thoughtlessness, which is definitely not what Oberlin is about. While I understand that that's not what they're trying to evoke, it's hard to get across a more nuanced impression of the school when everything is branded with just "FEARLESS" in huge letters. (The new stories on the front page of the website are a step in the right direction.) The "we are Oberlin" also sounds weird - reminds me of sports teams at huge universities or something. It's got a triumphant, monolithic, "with us or against us" kind of tone.

I also dislike the design of the "fearless" admissions materials. The bold neon scheme is kind of gaudy and generic, and they're too light on actual information about the school. They definitely didn't give me the impression that Oberlin was the peer of places like Reed, Swarthmore, Wesleyan, etc. Then again, my first contact with Oberlin was through the old admissions materials ("Think one person can change the world? So do we"), which were very different...

Whew! That was cathartic.

Last edited by quaere; 05-15-2009 at 06:15 PM.
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