The hedgehog’s dilemma. Kanye West. YouTube video essays. Karl Marx. To the normal eye, they have nothing in common, but to Dyllan Han (12), they are all connected. He takes each one, fascinating and complex, and forms pathways between them, synthesizing them into meaningful media, waiting to be consumed.

Dyllan aspires to help others discover the profound depths of art by forging distinctive connections between various mediums, from the latest Kendrick Lamar album “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers,” to philosophical essays by Plato, to movies like “Everything Everywhere All at Once.”

“The most powerful way that people learn is by delving deep into a story, because it’s the next best thing to experience,” Dyllan said. “You are taking the place of a narrator, of a character in a story, and you’re going through these things and these events and relating to it. When the final conclusion comes and it has some thematic ending that might be clichéd, it’s not clichéd anymore, it’s not so simple. It’s something that really connects with you, because you’ve almost lived it.” 

Dyllan also expresses his thoughts through poetry, where he focuses on fantasy while examining different ideas of philosophy, like love and death, as well as those related to social life, including gender roles and toxic masculinity. By sitting on these topics, Dyllan has reflected on the events of his own life and how they have shaped his perspectives.

“I used to have a conception of happiness as this thing that you work towards your whole life and achieve, and then you’re in this state of happiness,” Dyllan said. “Death has taught me generally that any sort of happiness won’t last. The biggest way that’s changed me is that I’ve stopped trying to be perfect. From a line perspective, I have started to prioritize making the slope of that line positive rather than making it super high. As long as I’m making that steady progress, I’m okay with that; as long as I’m improving, that makes me happy.”

Even today, Dyllan’s perspective continues to shift as he explores the unknown: as a senior, Dyllan chose to partake in the Congress event of speech and debate. Though new to the event and ranked lower than his fellow senior participants, Dyllan is still glad he chose to try something different.

“This year, I’ve also failed a lot,” Dyllan said. “I haven’t made it to the elimination rounds, quarterfinals, semifinals and any of them, but I see my speaking improving, and I find that I’m arguing better. If I am to rate myself beyond these achievements, I’m happy with that because I feel like I’m doing better, I’m becoming more well rounded and I’m progressing.”

Upper school speech coach Scott Odekirk, who has overseen Dyllan’s transition to Congress, expressed appreciation for his curiosity and receptiveness towards his peers throughout the process of learning. He admires Dyllan’s ability to step back into the position of being a student again, even after being successful in past categories and tournaments.

“His transition has been really interesting, because it has been really generous, the way that he, one of the most successful people in our team, has entered Congress and said, ‘Teach me, show me,’ rather than deciding that he knows,” Odekirk said. “This transition is really an example of his leadership because he is empowering people to participate.”

Close friend Mir Bahri (12), who has known Dyllan since sixth grade, recognizes the same persistence Dyllan has in speech in the other work he does. 

“Every time you see him, he’ll always have a smile on his face,” Mir said. “He really cares about what he does, and if he has a minor setback, he still has a smile on his face. He’s still enthusiastic and cheerful and really works hard.”

Benjamin Tian (12) admires Dyllan’s ability to stay true to himself, regardless of the people who surround him and the pressure to conform to societal standards. 

“I see him as someone who doesn’t care what people think a lot of the time,” Benjamin said. “[It’s] very admirable the way he is passionate, and he won’t shy away from something because it’s not the social norm.”

Through his poetry and forging of connections, Dyllan hopes to provoke his fellow peers and community to think deeper in conversation. He aspires to be a person that provides others with a place to talk through their thoughts and process different questions, while also learning from them and drawing inspiration for new poems.

“My favorite conversations I’ve had with people involve us talking about something really vague that’s bothering them or that’s bothering me, or an argument that’s always vague,” Dyllan said. “I find that the biggest utility I have in that conversation would be making this vague thing on their mind something tangible and understandable for them by articulating it well. I find myself writing about topics that I’ve talked about with other people, after listening to what they have to say and the problems that they have.”