One of the official GRE Analyze an Issue prompts explores this thought-provoking claim:
“People’s attitudes are determined more by their immediate situation or surroundings than by society as a whole.”
This GRE essay prompt challenges us to consider whether our environment in the moment has more influence over our beliefs than broader societal norms. In this post, we’ll break down the prompt, review arguments on both sides, share a perfect-scoring sample response, and highlight what makes it successful.
Understanding the Prompt
The prompt asks whether individual attitudes are more shaped by immediate experiences—such as interactions with peers, emotional moments, or personal settings—than by large-scale societal structures like laws, education, or cultural norms. A successful essay must take a stance and support it with logical reasoning and examples.
Arguments in Favor of Immediate Situations
- Direct personal experiences—such as growing up in a low-income area—can lead to vastly different attitudes toward money, opportunity, or privilege than societal messages might suggest.
- Social proximity matters: Family, friends, and local environments often have a stronger influence than abstract societal norms.
- Emotional triggers—a specific incident (e.g., experiencing discrimination) can drastically reshape attitudes regardless of broader social teachings.
Arguments in Favor of Society’s Influence
- Social institutions like schools, governments, and media shape attitudes from a young age and reinforce shared values.
- Cultural expectations (e.g., gender roles, consumerism, patriotism) often influence people unconsciously over time.
- People may be affected by societal norms even if they haven’t directly experienced them—for example, buying into materialism due to advertising, not experience.
Sample GRE Essay (Score: 6)
Title: The Role of Immediate Situations in Shaping Attitudes
Essay:
Attitudes are an individual’s beliefs, feelings, and behaviors toward a subject or group. They are constantly evolving and are shaped by a wide range of influences, including personal experiences, societal norms, and immediate environments. While society certainly contributes to our overall worldview, I believe that immediate situations often have a more profound and lasting impact on our attitudes. This essay will explain why.
Society plays a fundamental role in establishing norms and expectations. For example, in cultures that promote equality, people may be more likely to develop positive views toward diversity and inclusion. Schools, religious institutions, and the media all work in tandem to shape a shared belief system, providing individuals with a framework for how to think and behave.
However, this framework can quickly be altered—or even shattered—by personal experience. Imagine someone raised in a community that values tolerance and inclusion, who is then repeatedly treated unfairly by members of a particular group. Despite the broader social messaging, the individual may develop negative attitudes based on their immediate interactions. This illustrates how direct, emotionally charged situations can override society’s influence.
Immediate situations are also dynamic and ongoing. A workplace that fosters competition over collaboration, for instance, can reshape an employee’s attitude toward teamwork—even if they previously valued cooperation. Similarly, a student exposed to a highly supportive teacher might develop a more positive attitude toward education, regardless of negative societal views around schooling in their community.
Moreover, our attitudes shift continuously. A person who once believed in gender equality due to societal messaging might revise their stance if faced with personal experiences of discrimination. Conversely, someone raised in a conservative environment might become more progressive after exposure to new cultures or ideas during college.
In short, attitudes are fluid and highly reactive to immediate experiences. While society lays the groundwork, personal situations often refine—or redefine—how we actually feel and act.
Conclusion: Although societal norms play a significant role in shaping beliefs, I believe immediate experiences and surroundings exert a stronger influence on individual attitudes. From emotionally charged moments to day-to-day interactions, these situations have the power to reshape our worldview more directly and profoundly than broader cultural forces. Recognizing this influence can help us create environments that nurture understanding, empathy, and growth.
Why This Essay Earns a Perfect Score
This sample GRE essay earns a score of 6 because it demonstrates:
- Clear stance and thesis in the introduction
- Well-organized structure with body paragraphs supporting the core argument
- Relevant and relatable examples grounded in real-life contexts
- Counterpoints are acknowledged and addressed effectively
- Strong vocabulary, transitions, and clarity throughout
Key Takeaways
- Immediate situations can have a powerful impact on beliefs and behaviors
- Society lays a foundation, but real-world experiences often shape final attitudes
- Strong GRE essays use personal, real-world examples and acknowledge multiple perspectives
- Structure and clarity are just as important as content