A Hope in the Unseen

franglish
Sat, 08 Mar 2008 14:45:12 +0000

My D is at Brown. She absolutely loves it as well. But there is a general misconception about its being laid back. I would say it is not, in the sense of relaxed and stress-free. However, it is absolutely not competitive. It is not cut-throat. The students adore the place. It IS high stress at times, and it can be very intense. It is, after all, an Ivy League school with very smart people there. So, of course it will be intense. The Open Curriculum allows each student to challenge him or herself in the ways that are appropriate for him or her. So, it is what you make of it. That can be daunting for some students. The social scene is very accepting, very diverse, and it also can be intense. I am reading “Hope” right now, too. And I would agree that Cedric’s background may have made his first year difficult. From what I understand, the book ends after his first year (?). I think it got better for him as he grew up. Everyone is different. You will interpret things your own way. I know that currently my D has never worked harder. She finished a recent paper at 5 am. But, she has never felt such exhilaration at accomplishing good work.