The Pool of Issue Topics

This page contains the Issue topics for the analytical writing section of the GRE General Test. When you take the test, you will be presented with two Issue topics from this pool.

The wording of some topics in the test might vary slightly from what is presented here. Therefore, read your test topics carefully and respond to the wording as it appears in the actual test.

Present your perspective on the issue below, using relevant reasons and/or examples to support your views.

"Spending time alone makes one a better companion to others."

"One can best understand the most important characteristics of a society by studying its major cities."

"In most professions and academic fields, imagination is more important than knowledge."

"The most effective way to communicate an idea or value to large groups of people is through the use of images, not language."

"The people who make important contributions to society are generally not those who develop their own new ideas, but those who are most gifted at perceiving and coordinating the talents and skills of others."

"Truly profound thinkers and highly creative artists are always out of step with their time and their society."

"People today are too individualistic. Instead of pursuing self-centered, separate goals, people need to understand that satisfaction comes from working for the greater good of the family, the community, or society as a whole."

"Schools should be required to teach the essential interconnectedness of all human beings and thus help eliminate wars, cultural clashes, and other forms of conflict."

"Major policy decisions should always be left to politicians and other government experts, who are more informed and thus have better judgment and perspective than do members of the general public."

"All students should be required to take courses in the sciences, even if they have no interest in science."

"Patriotic reverence for the history of a nation often does more to impede than to encourage progress."

"Government should never censor the artistic works or historical" title="a.历史(上)的">historical displays that a museum wishes to exhibit."

"Government should preserve publicly owned wilderness areas in their natural state, even though these areas are often extremely remote and thus accessible" title="a.易接近的；可到达的">accessible to only a few people."

"In any field of endeavor, it is impossible to make a significantcontribution without first being strongly influenced by past achievements within that field."

"Government funding of the arts threatens the integrity of the arts."

"Young people should be encouraged to pursue long-term, realistic goals rather than seek immediate fame and recognition."

"In any field of inquiry, the beginner is more likely than the expert to make important discoveries."

"Technologies not only influence but actually determine social customs and ethics."

"Leaders are created primarily by the demands that are placed upon them."

"College students should be encouraged to pursue subjects that interest them rather than seek programs that promise entry into the job market."

"Most people think that their deeply held values are the result of rational choice, but reason often has little to do with the way people form values."

"In any academic area or professional field, it is just as important to recognize the limits of our knowledge and understanding as it is to acquire new facts and information."

"The concept of 'individual responsibility' is a necessary fiction. Although societies must hold individuals accountable

"Universities should require every student to take a variety of courses outside the student's field of study because acquiring knowledge of various academic disciplines is the best way to become truly educated."

"People work more productively in teams than individually. Teamwork requires cooperation, which motivates people much more than individual competition does."

"Although, critics who write about the arts tend to deny the existence of any objective standards for evaluating works of art, they have a responsibility to establish standards by which works of art can be judged."

"It is unfortunate but true that political decisions and activities affect all aspects of people's lives."

"Colleges and universities should offer more courses on popular music, film, advertising, and television because contemporary culture has much greater relevance for students than do arts and literature of the past."

"In any realm of life-whether academic, social, business, or political-the only way to succeed is to take a practical, rather than an idealistic, point of view. Pragmatic behavior guarantees survival, whereas idealistic views tend to be superceded by simpler, more immediate options."

"The pressure to achieve high grades in school seriously limits the quality of learning. An educationalenvironment without grades would promote more genuineintellectual development."

"Governments should provide funding for artists so that the arts can flourish and be available to all people."

"For better or worse, education is a process that involves revising the ideas, beliefs, and values people held in the past."

"The study of history has value only to the extent that it is relevant to our daily lives."

"It is primarily through formal education that a culture tries to perpetuate the ideas it favors and discredit the ideas it fears."

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"The true strength of a country is best demonstrated by the willingness of its government to tolerate challenges from it's own citizens."

"All students should be required to take at least one course in ethics, even if taking the course means a decreased emphasis on academic subjects."

"Instant communication systems encourage people to form hasty opinions and give quick replies rather than take the time to develop thoughtful, well-reasoned points of view."

"In many countries it is now possible to turn on the television and view government at work. Watching these proceedings can help people understand the issues that affect their lives. The more kinds of government proceedings-trials, debates, meetings, etc-that are televised, the more society will benefit."

"The purpose of many advertisements is to make consumers want to buy a product so that they will 'be like' the person in the ad. This practice is effective because it not only sells products but also helps people feel better about themselves."

"When we concern ourselves with the study of history, we become storytellers. Because we can never know the past directly but must construct it by interpreting evidence, exploring history is more of a creative enterprise than it is an objective pursuit. All historians are storytellers."

"The worldwide distribution of television programs and advertisements is seriously diminishing the differences among cultures."

"Some educational systems emphasize the development of students' capacity for reasoning and logical thinking, but students would benefit more from an education that also taught them to explore their own emotions."

"It is primarily through our identification with social groups that we define ourselves."

"Humanity has made little real progress over the past century or so. Technologicalinnovations have taken place, but the overall condition of humanity is no better. War, violence, and poverty are still with us. Technology cannot change the condition of humanity."

"It is through the use of logic and of precise, careful measurement that we become aware of our progress. Without such tools, we have no reference points to indicate how far we have advanced or retreated."

"With the growth of global networks in such areas as economics and communication, there is no doubt that every aspect of society-including education, politics, the arts, and the sciences-will benefit greatly from international influences."

"In any field of endeavor-the sciences, the humanities, the social sciences, industry, etc.-it is not the attainment of a goal that matters, but rather the ideas and discoveries that are encountered on the way to the goal."

"When research priorities are being set for science, education, or any other area, the most important question to consider is: How many people's lives will be improved if the results are successful?"

"So much is new and complex today that looking back for an understanding of the past provides little guidance for living in the present."

"At various times in the geological past, many species have become extinct as a result of natural, rather than human, processes. Thus, there is no justification for society to make extraordinary efforts, especially at a great cost in money and jobs, to save endangered species."

"We owe almost all our knowledge not to people who have agreed, but to people who have disagreed."

"It is possible to identify a person's politics within a very short time of meeting him or her. Everything about people-their clothes, their friends, the way they talk, what they eat-reflects their political beliefs."

"Instant foods, instant communication, faster transportation-all of these recent developments are designed to save time. Ironically, though, instead of making more leisure time available, these developments have contributed to a pace of human affairs that is more rushed and more frantic than ever before."

"The past is no predictor of the future."-

"Society's external rewards are no measure of true success. True success can be measured only in relation to the goals one sets for oneself."

"Facts are stubborn things. They cannot be altered by our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions."

"It is often asserted that the purpose of education is to free the mind and the spirit. In reality, however, formal education tends to restrain our minds and spirits rather than set them free."

"Technology is a necessary but not always a positive force in modern life."

"How children are socialized today determines the destiny of society. Unfortunately, we have not yet learned how to raise children who can help bring about a better society."

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"The arts (painting, music, literature, etc.) reveal the otherwise hidden ideas and impulses of a society."

"The university community consists of three different worlds-the sciences, the humanities, and the social sciences. Because each world operates on its own assumptions and has its own special habits of thinking, rarely is there meaningful interaction among the sciences, the humanities, and the social sciences."

"The problems of modern society have led many people to complain: 'We live in terrible times.' Yet, given the choice, no one today would prefer to live in any other time."

"Students should be encouraged to realize that mental agility and rhetorical skill must be accompanied by sincerity and the true conviction of their own beliefs."

"While most of the environmental problems we face result from the use of technology, society must depend upon technology to find solutions to these problems."

"The absence of choice is a circumstance that is very, very rare."

"What we call progress is a matter of exchanging one problem for another."

"Only through mistakes can there be discovery or progress."

"Every new generation needs to redefine 'right' and 'wrong' in its own terms and according to the conditions of its own time."

"What society has thought to be its greatest social, political, and individual achievements have often resulted in the greatest discontent."

"Most people recognize the benefits of individuality, but the fact is that personal economic success requires conformity."

"The well-being of a society is enhanced when many of its people question authority."

"Artists should pay little attention to their critics.* Criticism tends to undermine and constrain the artist's creativity."

*those who evaluate works of art, such as novels, films, music, paintings, etc.

"It is the artist, not the critic,* who gives society something of lasting value."

*a person who evaluates works of art, such as novels, films, music, paintings, etc.

"A crucial test of character is whether one is able to adapt to changing social conventions without sacrificing one's principles."

"People who are the most deeply committed to an idea or policy are the most critical of it."

"Tradition and modernization are incompatible. One must choose between them."

"Many people admire idealism, but it usually leads to disappointment or trouble."

"The most practical and effective way to protect wilderness areas is to attract more tourists to these areas through environmentally sensitive projects."

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"Because of television and worldwide computer connections, people can now become familiar with a great many places that they have never visited. As a result, tourism will soon become obsolete."

"High-speed electronic communications media, such as electronic mail and television, tend to prevent meaningful and thoughtful communication."

"The only responsibility of corporate executives, provided they stay within the law, is to make as much money as possible for their companies."

"Students should bring a certain skepticism to whatever they study. They should question what they are taught instead of accepting it passively."

"Both parents and communi tiesmust be involved in the local schools. Education is too important to leave solely to a group of professional educators."

"Contemporary society offers so many ways of learning that reading books is no longer very important."

"Choice is an illusion. In reality, our lives are controlled by the society in which we live."

"There is no such thing as purely objective observation. All observation is subjective; it is always guided by the observer's expectations or desires."

The arts (music, dance, visual arts, etc.) are vitally important to students' education and should therefore receive as much emphasis as mathematics, science, reading and other mainstream subjects."

"The human mind will always be superior to machines because machines are only tools of human minds."

"The most essential quality of an effective leader is the ability to remain consistently committed to particular principles and objectives. Any leader who is quickly and easily influenced by shifts in popular opinion will accomplish little."

"In this age of intensive media coverage, it is no longer possible for a society to regard any woman or man as a hero. The reputation of anyone who is subjected to media scrutiny will eventually be diminished."

"One often hears about the need for individuals to take responsibility for their own lives. However, the conditions in which people find themselves have been largely established long before people become aware of them. Thus, the concept of personal responsibility is much more complicated and unrealistic than is often assumed."

"Most people live, whether physically or morally, in a very restricted circle. They make use of a very limited portion of the resources available to them until they face a great problem or crisis."

"Sometimes imagination is a more valuable asset than experience. People who lack experience are free to imagine what is possible and thus can approach a task without constraints of established habits and attitudes."

"In any given field, the leading voices come from people who are motivated not by conviction but by the desire to present opinions and ideas that differ from those held by the majority."

"Over the past century, the most significantcontribution of technology has been to make people's lives more comfortable."

"It is impossible for an effective political leader to tell the truth all the time. Complete honesty is not a useful virtue for a politician."

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"Critical judgment of work in any given field has little value unless it comes from someone who is an expert in that field."

"Those who treat politics and morality as though they were separate realms fail to understand either the one or the other."

"The surest indicator of a great nation is not the achievements of its rulers, artists, or scientists, but the general welfare of all its people."

"People who pursue their own intellectual interests for purely personal reasons are more likely to benefit the rest of the world than are people who try to act for the public good."

"Important truths begin as outrageous, or at least uncomfortable, attacks upon the accepted wisdom of the time."

"Originality does not mean thinking something that was never thought before; it means putting old ideas together in new ways."

"Laws should not be rigid or fixed. Instead, they should be flexible enough to take account of various circumstances, times, and places."

"It is always an individual who is the impetus for innovation; the details may be worked out by a team, but true innovation results from the enterprise and uniqueperception of an individual."

"The function of science is to reassure; the purpose of art is to upset. Therein lies the value of each."

"The study of an academic discipline alters the way we perceive the world. After studying the discipline, we see the same world as before, but with different eyes."

"It is possible to pass laws that control or place limits on people's behavior, but legislation cannot reform human nature. Laws cannot change what is in people's hearts and minds."

"What most human beings really want to attain is not knowledge, but certainty. Gaining real knowledge requires taking risks and keeping the mind open-but most people prefer to be reassured rather than to learn the complex and often unsettling truth about anything."

"Many problems of modern society cannot be solved by laws and the legal system because moral behavior cannot be legislated."

"The way students and scholars interpret the materials they work with in their academic fields is more a matter of personality than of training. Different interpretations come about when people with different personalities look at exactly the same objects, facts, data, or events and see different things."

"It is dangerous to trust only intelligence."

"As we acquire more knowledge, things do not becme more comprehensible, but more complex and more mysterious."

"It is a grave mistake to theorize before one has data."

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"Scandals-whether in politics, academia, or other areas-can be useful. They focus our attention on problems in ways that no speaker or reformer ever could.

"Practicality is now our great idol, which all powers and talents must serve. Anything that is not obviously practical has little value in today's world."

"It is easy to welcome innovation and accept new ideas. What most people find difficult, however, is accepting the way these new ideas are put into practice."

"Success, whether academic or professional, involves an ability to survive in a new environment and, eventually, to change it."

"If people disregard the great works of the past, it is because these works no longer answer the needs of the present."

"As long as people in a society are hungry or out of work or lack the basic skills needed to survive, the use of public resources to support the arts is inappropriate-and, perhaps, even cruel-when one considers all the potential uses of such money."

"Education should be equally devoted to enriching the personal lives of students and to training students to be productive workers."

"Success in any realm of life comes more often from taking chances or risks than from careful and cautious planning.

"It is not the headline-making political events but the seldom-reported social tranformations that have the most lasting significance."

"The best preparation for life or a career is not learning to be competitive, but learning to be cooperative."

"The goal of politics should not be the pursuit of an ideal, but rather the search for common ground and reasonable consensus."