1. I want your best work,
well-researched, organized, documented. Impress
me.
If it's good enough, perhaps you can publish it!
2. Seven
to ten pages, not including
the Title, End Notes, or Bibliography pages.
(Make sure to include Title, End- [or Foot-] notes, and Bibliography.)
3.
Include End- [or Foot-] notes and
Bibliography (firm requirement).
4.
Number your pages!
5. Use and references at least one
primary source, and a minimum of two secondary source books
(more would impress me). The use of journal articles is also
encouraged. The use of essays from reputable websites (as long as they are
well documented) is acceptable.
6. Use MLA, APA, or one of the other
standard style conventions, such as Turabian or Chicago Manual of Style (earn dividends if you
do)!
7. Due date for papers: last
day of class. (Drafts may be submitted for review at any point prior to the last
week of class.)
8.
Include End Notes and Bibliography
(firm requirement), and, again, number your pages!
9.
Staple your pages together, so they don't fall apart.
PAPER COMPONENTS
1. Introduction: state what you are
going to do in your paper. For
example, if you intend to argue something, state your thesis and describe how
you intend to demonstrate it. Or,
if you simply wish to explore a subject, state what it is and how you intend to
approach it and what you expect to show. Do
not waste time on many biographical details.
Stick to philosophical issues.
2. Detailed exposition and analysis:
at each stage, describe what you are going to do, what you are doing, and then
what you have done. Explain where
you're headed and what you're doing, so I understand why you're writing
the things you're writing.
3. Critical evaluation: offer your
own appraisal of the theory or set of ideas and issues that you have described. Analyze strengths and/or weaknesses. Offer reasons or arguments in support of your evaluations.
4. Conclusion: state what you have
done in your paper. If you have
argued a thesis, describe what you have succeeded in demonstrating.
If you have explored a subject, summarize what you have found and what
you've managed to show the reader.
PAPER
GUIDELINES
1. First, your paper must deal with
some issue of current importance in the culture, such as racism, just war
theory, cloning, genetic engineering, stem-cell research, fetal tissue
harvesting, euthanasia, abortion, pre-marital cohabitation, extra-marital sex,
recreational sex and its relationships to contraception and abortion,
pornography, recreational drug use, feminism, the future of marriage,
homosexuality, “same-sex marriage,” consumerism, capitalism, socialism,
etc. You must choose one such
topic and state the nature of the problem that you wish to address.
For example, if your topic is abortion, you need to state how it is a
problem—that over 4000 abortions per day occur in the United States, why
they occur, whether abortion is morally justifiable (and, if so, under what
conditions) even though it is legal, whether or not adoption is a viable
alternative, etc.
2.
Second, you need to research and examine what the Christian Faith has
to say about the issue, both historically and today.
Thus, if your topic were abortion, you would want to note that the
traditional condemnation of abortion is found in the earliest writings of the
Church (such as Didache), and then examine what contemporary churches
are saying (here you will need to distinguish between a spectrum of
views—some of which will be traditional, others of which will tend to be
quite liberal and reflect the values of secular culture).
3. Third, you must offer your own
personal assessment and evaluation of the material you have examined.
This will include your own evaluation of the Christian positions you have
examined on the problem in question, your assessments of strengths and
weaknesses in those positions, and your own view of how the problem should
properly be addressed. Here it is
important that you do more than simply state your opinions about which views you
may happen to agree with. It is
imperative that you state why you agree or disagree with particular views,
offering arguments and evidence in support of your opinions.
This should provide you with the satisfaction of a well-reasoned and
timely assessment of a pressing contemporary issue and how the Christian Faith
bears on that issue.
For further details, see: