KS Bull 2019 Issue 2

KS Bull 2019 | Issue 2 © Raffles Institution Unauthorised copying, sharing & distribution prohibited 1 KS Bull 2019 Issue 2 The views expressed in each essay are purely for the academic purposes of crafting a viable argumentative response. They do not necessarily reflect the personal opinions of any student or staff member, nor do they necessarily represent the perspective(s) of Raffles Institution. No portion of this collection may be reproduced or shared for any reason and by any means whatsoever. Note: The comments that follow each student response may include both markers’ and editors’ comments.

KS Bull 2019 | Issue 2 © Raffles Institution Unauthorised copying, sharing & distribution prohibited 2 CONTENTS 2019 Year 6 GP – Commendable Responses 1 Is our pursuit of beauty justifiable? Austin Tan Meng Keat | 19S06H 4 2 Discuss the claim that science has a positive impact on sports today. Bryan Ge Ruo Da | 19A01B 8 3 Discuss the claim that science has a positive impact on sport today. Chuah Cheng Yu Marvin | 19S06T 13 4 “Fiction has no place in a pragmatic world.” Discuss. Catherine Kausikan | 19A01B 17 5 “Fiction has no place in a pragmatic world.” Discuss. Eugene Chua Weiheng | 19A01B 21 6 “Fiction has no place in a pragmatic world.” Discuss. Hannah Chia Kai Xin | 19S06T 25 2019 Year 6 KI – Commendable Responses Paper 1 Section A 7 ‘The best kind of knowledge is the kind built on evidence.’ Discuss. Samuel Foo Hern Khai | 19A01A 29 Paper 2 Section B 8 Y6 CT1 Section B – Passage 34 9 Y6 CT1 Section B – Response Joshua Yong Zhi Hao | 19S06D 36 10 Y6 CT2 Paper 2 Section A – Passage 39

KS Bull 2019 | Issue 2 © Raffles Institution Unauthorised copying, sharing & distribution prohibited 3 11 Y6 CT2 Paper 2 Section A – Response Joelle Phua Yixuan | 19S03C 41 2019 Year 5 GP – Commendable Application Question Responses 12 Paper 2 - Passage 44 13 Paper 2 – AQ Response Cylvin Sim Kiat | 20S03C 47 14 Paper 2 – AQ Response Ashita Ashish Sule | 20S03J 50 Editorial Team 53

KS Bull 2019 | Issue 2 © Raffles Institution Unauthorised copying, sharing & distribution prohibited 4 1 2019 | Y6 GP | CT2 | Paper 1 Austin Tan Meng Kiat | 19S06H Is our pursuit of beauty justifiable? Since time immemorial, the human race has had an inexplicable, yet innate desire for beauty and aesthetic perfection. While notions of be auty have changed over time, our desire for it has not waned, and in fact has arguably gotten more fervent in a world perv aded by social media and idealis ed beauty standards. In this light, the human pursuit of beauty, especially that of physi cal beauty, s eems to have gained a bad reputation, perpetuating unrealistic standards and leading to negative impacts on self -worth, especially for teen agers. However, if we ex pand our horizons, we may realis e that beauty is present in everything, across spheres of sport, art and music, and that our pursuit of beauty not only has positive impacts on character, but is also innate to us humans, and can serve real purposes in communities. Given this renewed understanding, our pursuit of beauty is not only justified, but also vital to human survival and development. In recent years, the pursuit of an idealis ed standard of beauty has gotten much flak1 for having negative psychological impacts on the self, particularly for young teenagers who are i n their formative years, and have consequently the most impressionable minds. With the rise of Internet technology and social media, and how it has pervaded into daily life now, the display of an ideal physical beauty is not limited to glossies or celebrity magazines anymore, but is a ll around us, constantly reinforcing our mindsets and showing itself through television shows, movies and Instagram feeds alike. Glorious and glistening six-pack abs and crystal- clear skin have become more the norm than the exception on the silver screen today. These displays of physical beauty are the manifestation of countless hours of hard work and intense dieting and daily routines, as many ‘superhero’ actors and supermodels would attest to, and are nigh impossible to reach. Where does that leave us mer e mortals? For one, increasingly many young adults are hitting the gym in an attempt to shave off calories, and within Asia the Gangnam district in Seoul, Korea has become infamous for its specialty in plastic surgery clinics. Meanwhile, there has also been an increasing trend of self-esteem issues and eating 1 Colloquial language – simply ‘received criticism’ would do.

KS Bull 2019 | Issue 2 © Raffles Institution Unauthorised copying, sharing & distribution prohibited 5 disorders in the young, with a sharp rise in disorders like bulimia across developed countries like the U.S. Admittedly, th e specific pursuit of an idealis ed beauty standard is harmful for it is not j ust unrealistic, but more importantly has an excessive focus on simply the results of beauty, and not the journey getting there, thus leading many to have a warped and unhealthy understanding of what beauty entails as well as their own body image. Yet, whi le it is true that the overt pursuit of an idealis ed beauty standard is worrying, it is heartening that such a phenomenon is increasingly downplayed with the more responsible transmission of information and values by media users and businesses today. For one, actors like Chris Evans or Chris Pratt, who are famous for their roles in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, are very open about how unrealistic their physiques displayed on the silver screen are, and how much work it takes to get them there. Similarly, influencers like Michelle Khare or Evan Ghang on YouTube do extreme challenges that emulate these superhero workouts, giving viewers a more nuanced understanding of beauty and the work that comes with it. This is further in line with the trend of increasing liberalism and acceptance of diversity online today, with people becoming accepting and inclusive of all body types and skin types. Online fashion retailers have become more conscious of the sizes they supply and constantly expand the sizes they offer, making online shopping for plus -size women much easier today, in stark contrast to the past. Cosmetics retailers like Fenty beauty are similarly lauded for having a wide and diverse foundation range that caters to women of colour. Hence, the more responsible transmission of values today through business as well as media mea n that the pursuit of an idealised beauty standard has been tempered, and increasing acceptance of diversity mean that people have a more holistic and healthy perception of beauty today. Crucially, this movement toward a more nuanced understanding of beauty has been catalys ed by the democratisation of access to media and the presence of responsible role models, where in the past the idealised beauty standard may have been entrenched due to the one -way nature of traditional media, as well as the lack of discourse and plurality of views about body image and appearance. Moreover, if we expand our understanding of beauty and aesthetic perfection, we realise that the pursuit of beauty is justifiable for it represents the echelons of achievement for humans. Even from the previous examples raised, it is clear that achieving beauty represents the peak of human physique. In fact, since long ago humans have already had a notion of be autiful people being more capable and

KS Bull 2019 | Issue 2 © Raffles Institution Unauthorised copying, sharing & distribution prohibited 6 moral, as evinced by the conceptions of beauty by ancient Greek thinkers. Today, this can be seen through examples like the various beauty pageants globally, such a