文書解析 | 寫土豆，也能進約翰霍普金斯大學？！

你對美食的定義是什么？

你對美食的熱情有多大？

你對美食的研究有多深？

你對美食的期許有多遠？

在眾多申請者的文章中，關于美食的文章不勝枚舉。美食達人們在分享饕餮珍饈的同時，往往會帶你進入一個宏大的場面，甚至各界名流粉墨登場。本文作者也是一位美食達人，他所鐘愛的美食和對美食的理解，定會讓你覺得眼前一亮：原來美食也可以是這樣的??！

On Potatoes

-By MADISON

“If you had to choose one food to eat for the rest of your life, what would it be?”

Having had this question asked of me many a time, I realize that such an inquiry must be considered practically. The correct answer would keep me happily sustained for the rest of my years, whereas the wrong choice could leave me tormented until I wither away from monotony. If I chose macaroni and cheese, per se, I’d be trapped consuming glutinous pasta, tacky milk-fat, yellow dye No.5, and copious amounts of sodium, forever. But if instead, I call upon my contentment understandings and assess my options accordingly, I may arrive at an indefectible conclusion. And after much deliberation, I believe that I have come to such a response: potatoes.

These tubers are the perfect sustenance due not only to their nutritional qualities but, most notably, to their remarkable versatility. Potatoes may be prepared in a myriad of dishes.

Creamy mashed-potatoes come first to mind, with their fluffy hills of whipped-bliss gracing one’s tongue so delicately. The thought of golden tater-tots follows; deep-fried potatoes cooked perfectly so as to create a slow crunch when chewed. Then are characteristic french-fries—shoestring or steak, skin on or off. Baked-potatoes, latkes, hash-browns, gnocchi—all respectable meals. And one mustn’t forget potato-chips when searching for alight snack.

Oh potatoes, how I love you. And when asked what to eat exclusively for the rest of my life, I will enthusiastically respond “potatoes!”, for by picking one, I choose an abundance.

To a casual onlooker, this question may appear inconsequential in its hypothetical nature, but as they say; you are what you eat. My inclination towards the varied is not contained to my food habits—it is a recurring theme throughout my life. I regularly switch from my mom’s house to my dad’s. I’ve moved twelve times. I have a fifteen-year-old sister and a two-year-old brother. I’m a dog and a cat person.

This variation tends not to leave me with an aversion to commitment, but a disposition towards diversity. I am interested in many things. So one must understand how I have struggled, faced throughout my education with the question, “If you had to choose one subject to study, one occupation to pursue, one thing to do, for the rest of your life, what would it be?”

I love to play viola; I get a rush communicating without-words to my quartet members in order to convey a musical message. I am at my happiest reading a good book; their complex stories captivate me and I aspire to write a novel of my own. I want to make laws that improve my country; all people should have a shot at the American dream. I am passionate about protecting the environment; reducing our effect on global-warming is of the utmost importance to me. I want to help those in need; people still don’t have access to clean water and I want to use my privilege to help change that. I strive to become fluent in Spanish; traveling the world is a dream of mine. Recently, I have discovered that I really like to code; I’m sure in the coming years I will explore things I didn’t know I was interested in.

I don’t have an answer to what exactly it is I want to do for the rest of my life. I love English and political science, but I have yet to find such an all-encompassing response as potatoes. What I’ve realized though, is that I don’t have to sacrifice all for one. From each of my interests I learn things that contribute to who I am and shape how I see the world. Eventually, I will focus my path. And when I do have an answer, I will go forth with the knowledge I’ve gathered from each of my varied interests; and I will never stop learning.

（英文文章來源：約翰霍普金斯大學官方公布錄取范文）

生詞：

1. Glutinous [?ɡlu?t?n?s] adj. 黏的; 膠質的;

2. Dye [da?] v. 給…染色; 染;

3. Contentment [k?n?tentm?nt] n. 滿意; 滿足;

4. Deliberation [d??l?b??re??n] n. 細想; 考慮; 商議; 審議;

5. Versatility n. 技術全面；用途廣泛;

6. Tater-tots 薯塊

7. Privilege [?pr?v?l?d?] n. v. 特殊利益; 優惠待遇;

8. Gnocchi [?njɑ?ki] n. 意大利團子(用面粉和馬鈴薯做成);

9. Hypothetical [?ha?p??θet?kl] adj. 假設的; 假定的;

10. Viola [vi?o?l?] n. 中提琴;

解析：

1. “If you had to choose one food to eat for the rest of your life, what would it be?”

本文以提問開篇，這是一種比較常見的方式，其目的是引起讀者的興趣，讓讀者思考，試圖引起和讀者的共鳴。讀到這里，大家的腦海中都會浮現各種不同的食物，你能想到的食物是什么呢？

2. These tubers are the perfect sustenance due not only to their nutritional qualities but, most notably, to their remarkable versatility. Potatoes may be prepared in a myriad of dishes.

出人意料的答案，是不是？作者的答案不是什么珍饈美味，而是最最平凡無奇，毫不起眼的食材-土豆！意不意外？讓我接著往下讀，看看平凡的土豆，能給我們帶來怎樣不平凡的體驗。

3. Creamy mashed-potatoes come first to mind, with their fluffy hills of whipped-bliss gracing one’s tongue so delicately. The thought of golden tater-tots follows; deep-fried potatoes cooked perfectly so as to create a slow crunch when chewed.

一段對土豆各種吃法的描述，極強的畫面感，甚至隔著屏都能聞到奶酪撒發的誘人香氣，尤其讀到“拿起一塊炸的微焦的土豆，送進嘴里慢慢咀嚼。”這個情節的描述，讓我們忍不住舔舔嘴唇，似乎自己正在細品一塊醇香的炸土豆。

4. Oh potatoes, how I love you. And when asked what to eat exclusively for the rest of my life, I will enthusiastically respond “potatoes!”, for by picking one, I choose an abundance.

“噢，土豆！”作者終于解釋了自己對土豆無限熱愛的原因：選擇了一個，等同于選擇了很多種食物。但，這一句其實僅僅是個過渡，起到了承上啟下的作用。作者在此基礎上，又賦予了土豆新的涵義：多種吃法，映射出了不同背景不同階層的人，也引申到自己。

5. To a casual onlooker, this question may appear inconsequential in its hypothetical nature, but as they say; you are what you eat. My inclination towards the varied is not contained to my food habits—it is a recurring theme throughout my life. I regularly switch from my mom’s house to my dad’s. I’ve moved twelve times. I have a fifteen-year-old sister and a two-year-old brother. I’m a dog and a cat person.

本段，我們看到了作者閱歷，這已經超越了作者對土豆是一種食物的認知，豐富的人生經歷與前邊土豆的花式吃法和豐富口味形成了呼應。相信作者從這些經歷中也領悟出了人生的哲理。

6. “If you had to choose one subject to study, one occupation to pursue, one thing to do, for the rest of your life, what would it be?”

又是一句提問，雖然沒有明示自己的答案。卻含蓄的揭示了作者的人生態度，也預示著文章即將升華。

7. Recently, I have discovered that I really like to code; I’m sure in the coming years I will explore things I didn’t know I was interested in.

以小見大，從研究土豆的各種吃法和口感，作者發現了土豆的玄妙，一個最普通的食材，通過不斷地探索和嘗試，就會產生不同的口感和味道；猶如自己經歷的十二次搬家一樣，每一次都是對陌生環境的探究。這也讓我們看到了作者對自己人生既定目標的堅定態度：就像自己對土豆的熱愛一樣，不斷擴展自己對未知領域的探究范圍。

8. I don’t have an answer to what exactly it is I want to do for the rest of my life. I love English and political science, but I have yet to find such an all-encompassing response as potatoes. What I’ve realized though, is that I don’t have to sacrifice all for one.

在作者眼中，土豆為他揭示的人生哲理就是：不必為一個目標而犧牲一切。全文在一個發人深思的結論中完美收尾。

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