Self

My wheelchair is not the punchline of your joke

My wheelchair is not the punchline of your joke

Naomi Hess

“One day I hope to live in a world that truly understands the challenges of being disabled, while also understanding how to support and empower disabled people to be our best selves without pitying and further marginalizing us.”

“One day I hope to live in a world that truly understands the challenges of being disabled, while also understanding how to support and empower disabled people to be our best selves without pitying and further marginalizing us.”

THE PROSPECT | 4 days ago

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For all the tigers who love being tigers

For all the tigers who love being tigers

José Pablo Fernández García

“March 24, 2023, will go down as one of those days that somehow encapsulates everything I love about being a Princeton Tiger. It began with a thesis presentation, continued with a smiling singer, crescendoed on the basketball court, and dwindled with a quiet conversation heading home.”

“March 24, 2023, will go down as one of those days that somehow encapsulates everything I love about being a Princeton Tiger. It began with a thesis presentation, continued with a smiling singer, crescendoed on the basketball court, and dwindled with a quiet conversation heading home.”

THE PROSPECT | 1 hour ago

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Advocating for myself: Navigating allergies at Princeton

Advocating for myself: Navigating allergies at Princeton

Avery Danae Williams

“But oh, how I wished I could deny the existence of the dreaded warning label reading, ‘This product was manufactured in a facility that produces nuts.’ Maybe then, food would not have separated me from my friends.”

“But oh, how I wished I could deny the existence of the dreaded warning label reading, ‘This product was manufactured in a facility that produces nuts.’ Maybe then, food would not have separated me from my friends.”

THE PROSPECT | 5 days ago

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10 things I love about Princeton

10 things I love about Princeton

Caroline Kirby

“Cheers grow at 1952 Stadium, talking and laughter reverberate throughout every courtyard, and we grasp every extra moment, knowing June approaches. Then, it all begins again.”

“Cheers grow at 1952 Stadium, talking and laughter reverberate throughout every courtyard, and we grasp every extra moment, knowing June approaches. Then, it all begins again.”

THE PROSPECT | 5 days ago

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To visit or not to visit: A vocabulary to better care for the sick

To visit or not to visit: A vocabulary to better care for the sick

Hasan Hameed

“The question is, how do you know if a sick friend wants to be visited? People respond differently to illness, and the same person suffering from the same condition at one point might respond differently at another point.”

“The question is, how do you know if a sick friend wants to be visited? People respond differently to illness, and the same person suffering from the same condition at one point might respond differently at another point.”

THE PROSPECT | March 13

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Thank you, COVID-19, but an even bigger thank you to me

Thank you, COVID-19, but an even bigger thank you to me

Claire Shin

I am rarely the star of my own works, which is oxymoronic since they’ve all been labeled “self essays.” This time is going to be different, though. This time, my co-protagonist is not a past lover. It’s the global pandemic that shook the world in 2020 — say it with me — COVID-19. 

I am rarely the star of my own works, which is oxymoronic since they’ve all been labeled “self essays.” This time is going to be different, though. This time, my co-protagonist is not a past lover. It’s the global pandemic that shook the world in 2020 — say it with me — COVID-19. 

THE PROSPECT | March 7

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Adopting a new language

Adopting a new language

Isabella Dail

“Underpinning technical terms and problem sets was the concept that language is something beheld and formed by its speakers and hearers. People make their own languages to suit their communities, needs, and traditions.”

“Underpinning technical terms and problem sets was the concept that language is something beheld and formed by its speakers and hearers. People make their own languages to suit their communities, needs, and traditions.”

THE PROSPECT | March 3

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Ants in a sandbox

Ants in a sandbox

José Pablo Fernández García

“Everywhere one goes, everywhere one looks, there abound signs of something fraying, something so torn up and unsettled that it may erupt. It’s not just Princeton, but one’s very grasp of Princeton, that has been challenged, turned upside down: Princeton bouleversé.”

“Everywhere one goes, everywhere one looks, there abound signs of something fraying, something so torn up and unsettled that it may erupt. It’s not just Princeton, but one’s very grasp of Princeton, that has been challenged, turned upside down: Princeton bouleversé.”

THE PROSPECT | February 26

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One year since the war began

One year since the war began

Sofiia Shapovalova

I didn’t know how I was meant to act then, when my peers and teachers at school suddenly became acutely aware of my Ukrainian heritage, prompting a few well-meaning souls to reach out in solidarity with no previously established strong rapport between us to merit this. I was confused, and I was scared. I am still guilty. 

I didn’t know how I was meant to act then, when my peers and teachers at school suddenly became acutely aware of my Ukrainian heritage, prompting a few well-meaning souls to reach out in solidarity with no previously established strong rapport between us to merit this. I was confused, and I was scared. I am still guilty. 

THE PROSPECT | February 23

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Love Languages

Love Languages

Kyung Eun Lee

Why is there always tension and suspense in these three words; “love” between lover and beloved? What is it about this arrangement, the entanglement of “I” and “You” and the mediating “Love” in between? What does it really mean for a relationship to be defined by love?  

Why is there always tension and suspense in these three words; “love” between lover and beloved? What is it about this arrangement, the entanglement of “I” and “You” and the mediating “Love” in between? What does it really mean for a relationship to be defined by love?  

THE PROSPECT | February 16

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Valentine's Prospects

Valentine's Prospects

Claire Shin, Kerrie Liang, Brett Zeligson, and Katelyn Ryu

Whether you’re single, taken, battling a six-year situationship, or still mourning that breakup from a year ago, The Prospect invites you to join us on our emotional rollercoaster. We hope you enjoy.

Whether you’re single, taken, battling a six-year situationship, or still mourning that breakup from a year ago, The Prospect invites you to join us on our emotional rollercoaster. We hope you enjoy.

PROJECTS | February 14

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An ode to solitude

An ode to solitude

Russell Fan

“But the centerpiece of my mind’s mantel is personal maturation, something that I find is best done solo.”

“But the centerpiece of my mind’s mantel is personal maturation, something that I find is best done solo.”

THE PROSPECT | February 14

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What you’ll say about me

What you’ll say about me

Claire Shin

 I am a giant, and I would have turned myself into a mouse because I loved you.  

 I am a giant, and I would have turned myself into a mouse because I loved you.  

THE PROSPECT | February 13

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Coming back to love: the ‘Before Sunrise’ trilogy

Coming back to love: the ‘Before Sunrise’ trilogy

Kyung Eun Lee

“Beyond the aesthetic qualities of the film, the beautiful actors, and the retrospective admiration for the late ’90s, there’s something about this film trilogy (that also includes “Before Sunset” and “Before Midnight”) that seared a hole into my heart when I watched it the first time.” 

“Beyond the aesthetic qualities of the film, the beautiful actors, and the retrospective admiration for the late ’90s, there’s something about this film trilogy (that also includes “Before Sunset” and “Before Midnight”) that seared a hole into my heart when I watched it the first time.”

THE PROSPECT | February 12

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Passing by: On Triangle Tour 2023, Part Two

Passing by: On Triangle Tour 2023, Part Two

José Pablo Fernández García

“As we all celebrated the successful conclusion of the tour, she turned to face me, awaiting a reply. I barely mustered a response; I’m not quick with words. But I too was happy as we returned, in the dark of night, street lamps, taillights, and city skylines passing by.”

“As we all celebrated the successful conclusion of the tour, she turned to face me, awaiting a reply. I barely mustered a response; I’m not quick with words. But I too was happy as we returned, in the dark of night, street lamps, taillights, and city skylines passing by.”

THE PROSPECT | February 12

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First day to fraying: On Triangle Tour 2023, Part One

First day to fraying: On Triangle Tour 2023, Part One

José Pablo Fernández García

“Perfection is a funny concept. This venue wasn’t perfect by being as large and well-equipped as our familiar McCarter haunts; rather, it was perfect because it offered nearly every problem one can have on tour in a manageable dose.”

“Perfection is a funny concept. This venue wasn’t perfect by being as large and well-equipped as our familiar McCarter haunts; rather, it was perfect because it offered nearly every problem one can have on tour in a manageable dose.”

THE PROSPECT | February 9

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Seeing like a student

Seeing like a student

Kyung Eun Lee

“That’s why my site of enjoyment, not quite here or there, makes the contradiction in just existing so recognizable. It’s jarring and comforting at the same time. Everything that seems unnatural and out of place is a testimony to the usual comfort of nature; every imperfection signals the great potential of what could be.”

“That’s why my site of enjoyment, not quite here or there, makes the contradiction in just existing so recognizable. It’s jarring and comforting at the same time. Everything that seems unnatural and out of place is a testimony to the usual comfort of nature; every imperfection signals the great potential of what could be.”

THE PROSPECT | February 6

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An ode to the return trip

An ode to the return trip

Joshua Yang

“I will forever be grateful to this charming, underfunded public transportation system for creating a liminal space in which I could simply exist, explore, imagine, and dream. In those rocking, ugly train carriages, I existed in the in-between.”

“I will forever be grateful to this charming, underfunded public transportation system for creating a liminal space in which I could simply exist, explore, imagine, and dream. In those rocking, ugly train carriages, I existed in the in-between.”

THE PROSPECT | February 2

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Waiting for a warmer Paris

Waiting for a warmer Paris

José Pablo Fernández García

“I wasn’t unhappy. I wasn’t as happy as I knew I could be. I was cold. Simply cold, but with no desire to add another layer.”

“I wasn’t unhappy. I wasn’t as happy as I knew I could be. I was cold. Simply cold, but with no desire to add another layer.”

THE PROSPECT | January 30

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Clinging onto Lunar New Year

Clinging onto Lunar New Year

Joshua Yang

“Some part of me fears that once I graduate and no longer have an abnormally long winter break to spend at home, Lunar New Year will be consigned to the same scrap heap of obscurity that Thanksgiving and Christmas currently occupy in my mind.”

“Some part of me fears that once I graduate and no longer have an abnormally long winter break to spend at home, Lunar New Year will be consigned to the same scrap heap of obscurity that Thanksgiving and Christmas currently occupy in my mind.”

THE PROSPECT | January 22

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