TOEFL® sample essay: Which historical person would you like to meet and why?

[Michail.jitomirski]

Topic: Which historical person would you like to meet and why?

In the history of the humankind there were many different great people around the world who influented and changed our life by thinking different. It is quite hard to decide only one person which I would prefer to meet. If it were possible that person would be Leonardo da Vinci. I will explain my choice in two reasons.

First, Da Vinci is one of the most important and most famous people of the humankind. His works especially his inventions fascinate people until the present time. Therefore his paintings and his inventions are shown in the best and most popular galleries and museums on this planet. For instance the most important painting is the Mona Lisa which you can see in the Louvre in Paris. The smile of a beautiful woman on that artwork still remains a mystery for the scientists and historians. For that reason meeting da Vinci would be a great option to reveal this secret.

Another reason to meet Leonardo da Vinci is that few month ago I read the bestseller “Da Vinci Code” written by Dan Brown. This book deals with the history of the Priority of Zion, a very old union in which Leonardo da Vinci participated. The author emphasises in his fiction story the importance of the woman and declares similarities with the holy grail.

In addition, Leonardo da Vinci who was the head of the secret union during his lifetime is said to have put many of the ideas mentioned in the story in his paintings. This is why I would like to talk to this fascinating person to get evidence for Brown’s arguments.

Finally, I can say, that meeting Leonardo da Vinci would be a good chance to get many answers to the queries the humankind is still troubling with. I wonder if sometime there will be such a technology for example a time machine which could realise moving in time and meet people from our past.

TOEFL listening lectures: A university lecture in Political Science