Toefl Essay Prompt 1

Essay Prompt #1

Describe a custom from your country that you would like people from other countries to adopt. Explain your choice, using specific reasons and examples

For the past several centuries, Korea had encountered countless hardships and afflictions. For the most of the time, they lived in such harmony and peace but sometimes incessant assaults from foreign intruders made our ancestor’s living unimaginably harsh. Through these periods, our nation had formed its unique customs which enabled our minjok to significantly adapt to the environment. One of the most attractive customs is sharing close emotional feelings and interest with neighborhoods which scarcely exists in the modern society where every individual are regarded as rivals or competitors.

                  ‘Pummati(품앗이)’ is a custom in which our ancestors in certain community helped each other whenever they had lot of works to be done. Korea, as a country that had agriculture as a fundamental basis for its economy, needed significant amount of helping hands to successfully harvest every crops on its field. Due to this demand, our early generations had developed ‘Pummati’, an efficient and practical means to increase their food supplies. During farming seasons, neighbors would allocate their work and take turns to implement farm work such as planting rice(모내기) despite some had comparatively more works to do than others. This means that ‘Pummati’ was not just a method to bring rising tide of prosperity to peasant’s economy but a custom that was based on individual’s trust and compassion. Thus, Pummati eventually engendered active interaction and strong emotional bond between neighbors and enabled our nation to unite as one whenever foreign nations made abortive efforts to overtake our country.

                  Our forefathers not only shared interest through working together under the glaring sun. “Pungmulnori (풍물놀이)”, a play proceeded by an orchestra comprised of Korea’s traditional musical instruments, provided people the opportunities to enjoy music together at same place. Neighbors who gathered to watch the show would usually share our traditional cuisines or snacks and thus develop fraternal relationship. Also the fact that performance was descended from our predecessors and never undergone changes made people in certain communities feel the sense of kinship. Whenever people felt enervated, they would use the given time to relieve themselves to hum the rhythm presented during the Pungmulnori performance together. Although Pungmulnori was not the only event that strengthened the bond between neighbors, it is a custom that clearly shows how our ancestors enjoyed time with amiable neighbors and expresses the true spirit of sharing mind.

                  In both customs, ‘Pummati’ and ‘Pungmulnori’, our ancestors have implicitly emphasized the importance of maintaining and building relationship with neighbors and furthermore the essence of being affable to people around you. Technological development and modifications in family unit have debased the ‘community spirit’. Bound by the prevalent biases of our society, we are often deceived by our first impressions to see others superficial appearances rather than the actual truth that usually lies beneath the surface. Although approaching to estranged neighbors might be a considerable pressure to people around the world, it is imperative to adopt these Korean customs to normal life for it will ultimately bring a lively and peaceful society.