Notion lieu et forme de pouvoir

Places and forms of power

        Well, I’m going to deal with the notion places and forms of power. First, let me try and give a simple definition of this notion. On the one hand, a place is a geographical area. On the other hand, a power is the ability to influence. In relation to this notion, the topic of my presentation will be higher education abroad. Thus, we may wonder to what extent can be university an instrument of power? My presentation will fall into two parts: in a first part, I will focus on the reasons that lead to study abroad. My second part will be about the influence of money.

        Currently, there are many reasons for students to pursue higher education abroad, particularly in the United States.

        Thanks to an article published on the English Telegraph website entitled "Studying in the United States: How to Apply for an American University", discovered these many reasons.

First, the United States has 8 of the top-ranked schools in the world like Columbia, Harvard… This reputation is linked to the high level of qualification they offer. Education is much more practical than academically oriented, students have time to experiment before choosing a major. Thus, students can discover to new areas of interest. Moreover, this system enables students become more open-minded.

        Otherwise, higher education can also be a source of fulfilment this is what we discovered in excerpt from the novel entitled Middlesex written by Jeffrey Eugenides in 2003. This passage focuses on the story of Chapter 11 the narrator's brother who went throught a real metamorphosis during years of studies.

Higher education is very important because it is a passage from childhood to adulthood and also a place of blossom. Indeed, Chapter 11 gradually changed behaviour, hobbies. Indeed, he studies anthropology rather than engineering. Despite the choice of his, Chapter 11 is how he managed to blossom and found a place in society as accomplished and independent citizen.

        High studies have consequently the power to change a person but also to be a source of knowledge. Although studying abroad has many advantages, tuition fees remain an important obstacle.

        In recent years, registration tuitions and fees have increased by three hundred and seventy-five percent. As a result, students are forced to take out student loans from public or funds private funds. So there is some power of selection.

        For example, we watched in class a video how explain this problem. Annabelle Rosario had to borrow private money. Unfortunately, even with two jobs she not repay her debts, so interest increased. She was angry at the system because the government help the lower classes by funding their education. And wealthy families finance higher middle class education. On the other hand, nobody helps the class of workers. So having money means having the power to choose.

        Therefore, Crystal explained in an article how to avoid student loans. She summarizes her method in the quote "a mixture of work, luck and help". First of all, she started working at the age of 12 and saved so that she could start higher education without loans. Then she combined three parallel jobs of his studies to cover her expenses. Then, she obtained a scholarship. She is convinced that students can cope with the cost of university without resorting to loans provided they are determined. Her story is almost the embodiment of the self-made man story.

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