2016 SASS EL Prelims P1 SectC w Ans

St Andrew’s Secondary School Prelim 2016 SAMPLE ESSAYS 2 Qn 2 ‘It only takes a spark to get a fire going.’ What are your views? When broken down, this statement essentially conveys through its metaphors how a small event – ‘a spark’ – could inspire great change – ‘a fire going’. It could have been what Martin Luther King thought of as he initiated the war against racism; Ghandi, as he fought for the freedom of India from the British Empire; and Hitler, as he stirred up the hatred of the Germans against the Jews. Unfortunately, this statement does not always translate into a positive movement. On the positive side, there are many real-life examples and inspirational stories that attest to the validity of this maxim. Martin Luther King’s simple thought of "Why should I be treated differently just because of the colour of my skin?" – an emotional spark – ignited a raging inferno of passion amongst millions of Americans of different creed and colour against racism that many people today can still remember through the vibrant tone of his inspiring speeches. A fire was created so strong that even after his death, his ideals of freedom and fairness still burn brightly in most around the world as his cause is still being strongly supported around the world. As such, we can clearly see how this statement applies positively to Martin Luther King's case. Apart from emotional and moral shifts, Bill Gates is another compliment to this maxim. His simple thought of wanting an easier use of computer inspired him to invent Microsoft, which changed the technological scene forever. Microsoft paved the way for many more technological advances that place the end-users at the forefront, making computing as easy as eating a meal. Hence, because of Gates, the world has seen many wondrous inventions which run the world today. Just by counting how many devices you have at home serves as enough evidence to know how big of a change Gates’ initial idea – a spark – has led to. However, this statement can be abused and used out of hatred and selfishness to cause catastrophe. Nazi leader Adolf Hitler used his personal hatred towards the Jews to spark a blaze of anti-semitism across Germany during World War Two which resulted in mass genocide and the torture and murder of millions of Jews. More recently, the rise of terrorism can be attributed to the same modus operandi. This is recognised by Singapore's defence Minister who states: "Those who distribute and spread ideals of terror are more dangerous than the ones who carry out the attacks." Terrorist group ISIS has successfully used social media to ignite sparks of hatred and extremism in many young people which leads them to carry out acts of extreme violence which has scorched this world with extreme violence and the loss of innocent lives. These two examples show the danger these ‘sparks’ can cast on our world. Overall the maxim has inspired many beautiful success stories around