【TED演讲稿】大学申请中“创伤作文”的层出不穷

TED演讲者：Tina Yong / 约翰·佩吉特

演讲标题：The rise of the "trauma essay" in college applications / 大学申请中“创伤作文”的层出不穷

内容概要：As if college applications aren't stressful enough, disadvantaged youth are often encouraged to write about their darkest traumas in their admissions essays, creating a marketable story of resilience that turns "pain into progress," says politics student Tina Yong. She brings this harrowing norm to light, exploring its harms and offering a more equitable process for colleges everywhere.

就好像大学申请还不够让人压力山大一样，弱势青年还总是被鼓励在招生作文中写出他们最痛苦的创伤，创作为人津津乐道的坚韧故事，化痛苦为成长，政治学学生蒂娜·杨（Tina Yong）如是说道。她揭露了这折磨人的“风俗”，探究了它的危害，为各地的大学提供了一个更公平的流程。

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【1】There's a story of mine that I've told about a million different times, and it goes a little something like this.

有一个故事我已经讲了几万遍, 故事是这样的。

【2】When I was 10, my family and I packed up our entire lives into large suitcases and dragged them across the Pacific to a foreign land called Canada.

我 10 岁的时候,我和我的家人 把我们的一切装入大行李箱, 拖过太平洋,来到了 这个名叫加拿大的异国他乡。

【3】I was put in a school where I was the only Asian kid in my grade, and I got teased for my broken English, Asian features and funny smelling ethnic lunches.

我被送入了一所学校, 是这个年级中唯一一个亚洲小孩, 我因为我支离破碎的英语、亚洲特色 和闻起来很奇怪的 民族风味餐受到嘲笑。

【4】The racism was a real doozy.

种族歧视真是很奇特。

【5】But don't feel bad.

但不要难过。

【6】Through the magical healing powers of extracurricular activities and pure perseverance, I stand before you today, a new woman: healthy, healed and extremely employable.

通过课外活动的神奇治愈力 和坚持不懈, 我现在作为一名全新 的女性站在各位面前: 我健康、痊愈、完全适宜雇用。

【7】You wouldn't even be able to tell from just looking at me that I was once the weird little immigrant girl who begged her mom to pack PB&J sandwiches so she wouldn't have to eat lunch alone in the bathroom.

光从表面上看,你根本看不出 我曾经是个奇怪的移民小女孩, 求着妈妈做花生酱果酱三明治, 这样她就可以不用 独自在卫生间里吃午餐了。

【8】This is a story that I've told in academic essays, job interviews and even in the very application that got me into this fine university.

我在学校的作文里、求职面试中, 甚至是把我送入这所优秀大学的 那一份申请中都说过这个故事。

【9】It's also a story that, despite all of its truth, I've come to hate.

虽然这个故事说的都是事实, 但它也是我讨厌的故事。

【10】Now this is a story that I don't have copyright claim over.

我对这个故事没有什么独家版权。

【11】It's one that continues to be regurgitated by immigrant kids all across the country to be served on a silver platter to prestigious universities who chew these stories and spit out acceptance letters in return.

这个故事在全国各地的 移民儿童口中反复叙述, 它成为了顶级学府的敲门砖, 这些学校细细品味这些故事, 再丢出录取信作为回报。

【12】The contents of the story may change.

故事的情节可能会有点差异。

【13】Instead of a difficult immigration experience, it might be the death of a loved one, a chronic illness or a racist encounter.

如果不写艰难的移民经历, 可能会写挚爱之人的逝去、 慢性疾病或者遭到种族歧视的经历。

【14】But what remains constant is the moral: A bad thing happened to me, but it made me a good person.

不变的就是这个道理: 我遭遇了不幸, 但不幸让我成为了一个好人。

【15】This is part of a larger phenomenon that I'm here to talk about today.

这是我今天要说的 一个更加普遍的现象的其中一部分。

【16】The overwhelming pressure being put on high school students to write about their deepest traumas in their college applications with the hopes that they seem resilient and interesting enough to be given a spot.

高中生在申请大学时需要 描述最深的创伤,身负重压, 还要抱着他们显得坚韧不拔、 很有趣、值得被录取的希望。

【17】I believe that these are not only bad metrics by which to evaluate applicants, but also incredibly harmful to the storyteller themselves and risks reinforcing existing inequities in higher education.

我相信这不仅仅是 评判申请人的不良标准, 还会对故事作者造成巨大的伤害, 有加深高等教育中 既有的不平等现象的风险。

【18】There's also pressure that's being amplified by admissions counselors themselves who play a huge role in influencing what applicants decide to write about.

招生顾问本身也在加重这种压力, 他们会深深影响 申请人想写什么内容。

【19】Take, for example, this tip from the MIT admissions blog, where the author compares two different introductions for a potential essay.

比如,麻省理工的招生博客中 有这么一条小提示, 作者对比了一篇作文中可能采用的 两种不同的开头方式。

【20】The first one reads: "I'm honored to apply for the Master of Library Science program at the University of Okoboji.

第一种是这样的: “我有幸能申请奥科博吉大学的 图书馆学硕士项目。

【21】For as long as I can remember, I've had a love affair with books.

从我记事起, 我就对书籍心心念念。

【22】Since I was 11, I've wanted to be a librarian."

我从 11 岁起, 就一直想成为一名图书管理员。”

【23】The second introduction reads: "When I was 11, my great aunt Gretchen passed away and left me something that changed my life: a library of about 5000 books.

第二种开头是这样的: “在我 11 岁的时候, 我的姑姑格雷琴去世了, 她为我留下了改变我一生的东西: 包含约五千册书的图书馆。

【24】Some of my best days were spent arranging and reading her books.

我最开心的日子就是 整理、阅读她的书。

【25】Since then, I've wanted to become a librarian."

从那时起,我就一直 想成为一名图书管理员。”

【26】The author notes that the second introduction is much more striking and leaves a much better impression.

作者说,第二段开头 更直击心灵, 可以给读者留下更好的印象。

【27】where he advises students to "get personal."

作者建议学生“说点私事”。

【28】He says, "Weirdly, including painful memories and what you learned from them usually helps a personal statement meet the goals of a college application essay.

他说:“奇怪的是 如果你写了一些痛苦的回忆, 还有你从中得到的收获, 通常就能让你的个人陈述 达到大学申请作文的目标。

【29】You come off as humble, accessible, likable and mature."

经历了这些,你谦逊、 平易近人、讨人喜欢、成熟。”

【30】Confessions from admissions officers themselves can also be telling.

招生官的坦言也说明了问题。

【31】Aya Waller-Bey, a former admissions officer from Georgetown University, said in a "Forbes" article that, "Within months on the job, I saw how the personal statements of Black and other racially minoritized students differed from those of white applicants.

阿雅.沃勒-贝（Aya Waller-Bey）, 曾担任乔治城大学的招生官, 在《福布斯》杂志的一篇文章中写道: “我在这个岗位上工作了几个月, 我看到了黑人学生和 其他种族少数的学生的个人陈述 和白人学生的文章有多大区别。

【32】Black students highlighted resilience through stories of survival, while their counterparts wrote casual essays about service abroad and sporting championships.

黑人学生通过他们的生存故事 彰显他们的坚韧不拔, 白人学生就会随便写一些出国服役 或顶尖的体育成绩。

【33】Black students shared their pain, white students shared their passions."

黑人学生传达他们的痛苦, 而白人学生传达他们的激情。”

【34】Now, lastly, and perhaps the least reliable source is my own life.

最后一个,也有可能是最不靠谱的 依据,就是我自己的人生。

【35】I remember feeling this way when I was applying to universities.

我记得我申请大学时的这种感觉。

【36】Like I had no other choice, no other experiences worthy of mentioning and no other merit beyond the fact that I had thrived despite what I had gone through.

就像我没有别的选择, 没有其他值得一提的经历, 除了“我虽然经历了这些 但我挺过来了”以外 没有任何优点。

【37】I even remember worrying that my tale wouldn't be harrowing enough after hearing from a counselor that writing about immigration has become a bit of a cliche because of how overused it is.

我甚至担心我的故事还不够惨, 因为一位顾问告诉我 移民的故事有点太老套了, 这种故事说得太多了。

【38】So what's the universities' role in all of this and why are these stories even harmful to begin with?

那大学在其中扮演着什么角色呢？ 到底为什么这些故事很伤人呢？

【39】Well, I believe that using your college application essay to discuss your trauma actually doesn't help you process it.

我认为通过你的大学申请作文 讲述你的创伤 其实并不会帮你排解它。

【40】And there are a couple different reasons why.

这有几个原因。

【41】First, writing about a difficult experience is, as you may have guessed, difficult.

第一,写下你的痛苦经历, 你也能猜到,是痛苦的。

【42】Not only do you have to relive the event itself, but you also have to actively suppress any negative emotions that arise during the process.

你不仅需要重现这个情景, 还得主动压抑在此过程中 产生的负面情绪。

【43】That kind of emotional labor can be taxing for anybody, but perhaps especially so for these young applicants who haven't had enough time on this world to process the terrible things that have happened to them.

这种情绪劳动对每个人都是繁重的, 尤其是对于年轻的申请人来说, 他们在这个世上 还没有足够的经验 处理眼前的糟心事。

【44】For that space to be one in which they're confessing to a faceless stranger who gets to make the most consequential decision of their adolescent life imposes an incredibly heavy psychological burden.

他们得对未曾谋面的 陌生人袒露心声, 这个陌生人还会 为他们的青少年人生 做出最重要的决定, 这就为他们带来了巨大的心理负担。

【45】I mean, imagine if you walked into your therapy appointment and your therapist tells you that they're not going to respond to anything you tell them except with a rejection or acceptance email sent months later.

想象一下你去接受治疗, 治疗师告诉你 不管你说什么, 他/她都不会有任何反应, 只会在几个月后给你发一封 拒信或者录取邮件。

【46】And also that whatever you tell them will determine the trajectory of your entire academic and professional career.

你告诉他们的内容 会决定你未来所有学业和 职业发展的轨迹。

【47】Hard to imagine that being therapeutic.

这哪能算是治疗啊。

【48】Secondly, the trauma essay makes one assumption that is extremely problematic.

第二,创伤作文有一个 很有问题的预设。

【49】It's not always the learning opportunity through which you can gain more confidence or develop better time management skills.

它不可能永远是个学习的机会, 让你借此取得更多的自信或者 培养更好的时间管理能力。

【50】Sometimes it's just a sucky thing that really sucks.

有些烂事就是烂事。

【51】And asking students to prove how they turn their pain into progress ignores this truth and falls prey to the toxic positivity narrative that everything happens for a reason, ignoring the very valid resentment and anger that many victims still feel.

让学生证明他们是如何 化痛苦为成长 无视了这个事实, 也陷入了这种有毒的正能量故事, 即万物皆有因, 无视了很多受害者仍不能释怀的 非常正当的怨恨和愤怒。

【52】Lastly, the things we write aren't just informed by our experiences, they shape how we view those experiences as well.

最后一点,我们写下的内容 不仅仅来源于我们的经历, 还会影响我们对这些经历的看法。

【53】And if we're writing about our trauma to prove to an admissions officer that we are worthy of a decent education, then it becomes necessary to sanitize our pain, to make it marketable and strategic, to scrub away all the suffering, so all that's left is what will fit into the narrow margins of what is palatable.

如果我们写下自己的创伤, 是为了向招生官证明 我们值得接受优质教育, 那就有必要净化痛苦、 让它很有市场、很有技巧、 抹消所有的磨难, 这样剩下的就是符合 “喜闻乐见”这一有限范围内的内容。

【54】And this is what I see as being the fundamental contradiction at the heart of the trauma essay.

这就是我认为创伤作文 最核心的矛盾之处。

【55】It seems to give the writer free reign on vulnerability, but actually leaves them very little room to be vulnerable.

看似是让作者自由支配自己的脆弱, 实则只为他们的脆弱 留下了一隅之地。

【56】Your story has to be just sad enough that it gains sympathy, but not so sad that it makes you seem beyond help.

你的故事得正好悲惨到 足以引发同情, 但不能悲惨到显得你无可救药。

【57】Just critical enough to inspire change, but not so much that it actually criticizes systemic structures.

你的批判性想法 得正好足以促成改变, 但不能过火到批判系统结构。

【58】Just honest enough to seem real, but not so unfiltered that it creates discomfort.

诚实到显得很真实, 但不能放飞到造成不适。

【59】The protagonist also overcomes whatever struggle they're facing by the end of the 500 word count, instilling the reader with a sense of optimism that despite our deeply unequal society, it is possible to rise through the ranks and overcome all the "-isms."

故事的主角得在 500 字结束之前 克服他们眼前的困难, 向读者传递乐观的情绪, 认为就算我们的社会严重不平等, 依旧有可能提高地位, 克服各种“主义”。

【60】This, of course, is not the reality of our world today.

这当然不是当今世界中的现实情况。

【61】And for me, this looked like settling for the familiar story of the stinky lunch, one that's been told so many times that it's devoid of any real meaning, instead of talking

对我来说,这就像是自己咽下 我刚说的恶心午餐的故事, 翻来覆去都说烂了, 还没有任何真正的意义, 却没有人去讨论

【62】about the ongoing social and political disenfranchisement of immigrants, the permanent loss of cultural identity that I suffered, or the sense of disbelonging that still haunts me every time I make a grammar mistake or someone mispronounces my name.

当下剥夺移民的 社会、政治权利问题, 我永远痛失文化身份的问题, 或是缺乏归属感问题, 每当我犯了个语法错误,或者有人 读错我的名字时就会涌上我的心头。

【63】These are all struggles that never really go away, but are carefully tucked away in my essay because they don't fit the linear narrative that is being constructed.

这些都是无法排遣的痛苦, 但在作文中,我都得 小心翼翼地把它们藏起来, 因为它们无法融入 精心打造的流畅故事线里。

【64】But how are universities to blame for all of this?

大学应该为此负什么责任呢？

【65】I mean, they never explicitly asked students to trauma-dump in their essays, and many admissions experts have actually come out and discouraged discussing explicit trauma in essays.

它们从来没有明确要求学生 在作文里大倒苦水, 有很多招生专家其实站出来 劝阻学生在作文里谈及明确的创伤。

【66】However, I still don't think that universities are blameless.

但我不认为大学是无辜的。

【67】The reason why the trauma essay is so ubiquitous is because it seems to be working.

创伤作文之所以大行其道 是因为它似乎很有效。

【68】Anne Trubek, who helped low-income high school students at Oberlin College write their essays, expresses the ethical dilemma that she faces.

安妮.特鲁贝克（Anne Trubek） 帮助欧柏林学院的低收入高中生 撰写作文, 她说出了她面临的道德困境。

【69】'"By pushing students to reveal their horror stories, I risk taking away their dignity, but by not pushing, I could be hindering their chances of getting into their dream school."

“要是我鼓励学生 展示他们可怕的故事, 我就冒着夺走他们尊严的风险, 但如果我没有鼓励他们这么做,我就在阻碍他们 被梦校录取的机会。”

【70】Whether trauma essays and acceptance letters are actually causally correlated is impossible to tell from the outside.

创伤作文和录取信 有没有严密的因果关系, 从外部来看是无法断言的。

【71】So this could all just be speculation and myth.

所以我们只能通过推断或者流言判断。

【72】But in failing to resolutely clear up these speculations and myths about whether trauma essays are rewarded or discouraged, universities are indirectly enabling the rise of the trauma essay and all of its harmful implications.

但是,大学并没有 坚决清除这些推测和流言, 讨论它们到底鼓励还是 不鼓励写创伤作文, 所以它们间接导致了创伤作文 和后续伤害的层出不穷。

【73】So what are they to do about all of this?

那它们该做些什么呢？

【74】Well, first of all, I think that this is a problem that goes much deeper than individual universities, and even perhaps the institution of higher education itself.

首先,我认为这不仅仅是 某个大学的问题, 甚至不是高等教育体系本身的问题。

【75】It's rooted in the cultural obsession with appropriating trauma and making it consumable, as well as the systemic tendency to tokenize oppressed people and their experiences.

它归根结底来源于挪用创伤、 让它为人津津乐道的文化执念, 还有一个系统上的习惯, 总是想标签化这些受压迫 的人和他们的经历。

【76】But there are still things that universities can do to make things better.

但为了改善这个局面, 还是有大学能做的事的。

【77】First, they can be more transparent about their admissions guidelines.

首先,它们可以让招生标准 更加公开透明。

【78】If it's really true that they don't want to reward trauma storytelling just for the sake of it, then they should be more forthcoming about this expectation.

如果它们确实不想 奖励无谓的创伤故事, 那就应该更直接地表明这个要求。

【79】They could also restructure their prompts to avoid putting pressure on students to talk about past hardships and adversities and instead refocus prompts to ask students about their goals for the future and their academic interests.

它们也可以重新组织一下题目, 避免给学生施加压力, 谈论过往的艰难和困境, 而是将题目聚焦在 要求学生谈一谈对未来的目标 和学术兴趣。

【80】Secondly, admissions counselors should be trauma-informed and trained in working with BIPOC folk.

第二,招生顾问在与黑人、原住民 和有色人种（BIPOC）交流时, 应更了解他们的创伤, 更加训练有素。

【81】As the unofficial gatekeepers to the secrets of getting into your dream college, they should wield their power responsibly and not pressure students to talk about traumatic experiences that they're not yet ready to talk about.

作为保守踏入梦校秘密的 非官方守门人, 他们应该负责任地发挥他们的力量, 不要逼迫学生说出 他们还没准备好谈论的创伤经历。

【82】Lastly -- and this one's for anyone who's actually applying to a postsecondary institution sometime soon - remember that you are more than the bad things that happened to you.

最后,也送给每一位在不久的将来 要申请高中后教育机会的申请人, 记住,你身上发生的坏事 不是你的一切。

【83】I know that when it seems like every other classmate of yours is writing an essay that could be adapted for an HBO original drama, that you may feel like your experiences are not worth talking about.

我知道,你的每个同学 都在写那种可以改编成 HBO 原创电视剧的作文, 你可能会觉得你的经历 根本不值一提。

【84】But I promise that they are.

但我可以向你保证, 它们值得一提。

【85】You just have to find your voice and use it.

你只需要找到 你的发言权,去使用它。

【86】Now as much as I don't want to live that nail-bitingly stressful time of my life ever again, I can't help but wonder: what would I have written about if I got the chance to apply to UBC again?

虽然我不想再经历 那段神经紧绷的时光, 但我不禁想: 如果我可以再申请一次 UBC （不列颠哥伦比亚大学）, 我会写些什么呢？

【87】This time absent the pressure to strategically use my immigrant background to gain sympathy points.

这次,不再有 巧妙利用我的移民背景 博取同情分的压力。

【88】Maybe I would have written about how I overcame my fear of public speaking and became comfortable with being the loudest voice in the room.

也许我可以写一写 我如何克服公开发言的恐惧, 适应成为在场最愿意发表意见的人。

【89】Or I could have written about watching trashy reality television is what first sparked my interest in political science.

我也可以写一写 看很烂的真人秀 是激起我对政治学的兴趣的 第一个火种。

【90】Or maybe I still would have written about my immigrant story because that was a big part of my life journey and still impacts me to this day.

也许我还是可以写一写我的移民故事, 但只是因为它是 我人生旅途中的一大篇章, 时至今日依然在影响着我。

【91】But I would have done it on my own terms.

但我会用我自己的方式 写下这个故事。

【92】Instead of being written as a one-dimensional, trauma-turned-triumph trauma drama, I would have been able to tell a story that actually reflects who I am today

我不会把它写成单一维度的、 “克服创伤,取得胜利”的创伤大戏, 而是让它讲述现在的我是谁,

【93】and acknowledge the fact that my journey is ongoing and it doesn't begin or end with my racial identity.

证明我的旅程还在进行中, 它不会因我的种族身份 开始或结束。

【94】This is the kind of ownership that I wish for everyone to one day have over their story.

这就是我希望每个人都能拥有的 对他们自己故事的主导权。

【95】And now it's up for universities to decide whether they get to tell it.

现在就取决于大学给不给他们机会 说出这个故事了。

【96】Thank you.

谢谢。