The Epitome of Humility by Alexandra

The Epitome of Humility by Alexandra - December 2020 Scholarship Essay

As a voracious reader since an early age, I always prided myself on my expansive vocabulary, even as an elementary school student. But my world came crashing down in my third grade English class, when I declared that the book we had just finished reading had the “epitome” of a gripping plot: pronouncing it as “ep-ih-toam.”

My teacher’s eyes darted towards mine, a clear sign that something was wrong, but without an indication of what. Perhaps to spare me the embarrassment of explaining to my classmates why my proclamation had been flawed, she continued the discussion of the book. I stayed silent for the rest of the day, refusing to risk another concerned glance. I had read the word countless times in other books; surely, it could not be that I had misused or mispronounced it. Only when I returned home that afternoon and regaled my mother with the tale did I realize my error. My face flushed with retroactive shame; I felt my status as a reader had been diminished, if not outright destroyed, by my inarticulateness.

In 2021, my goal is simple: to look up every single word that I do not know inside and out, even ones I have read a million times -- to learn its usage, its roots, and, perhaps most importantly, its pronunciation. Part of the beauty of literature is its ability to expand your understanding, add texture to your experiences of the world, give you the ability to describe your feelings and circumstances with richer, more specific depth. But literature can only do that for you if you approach it with a deep level of humility.

For too long, well before third grade, I thought that my penchant for reading imbued me with a superior status. Yet, as that fateful mispronunciation of “epitome” illustrated, there is always more to learn. Through the vehicle of a studious approach to vocabulary, I hope to approach my 2021 education with the humility and self-awareness that my third-grade self could only dream of. After all, books can only take you someplace new if you admit you have not been there before.