Write an essay (of roughly 2-3 pp. or 600-900 words) focused on a passage in Descartes. The point of this paper is to give you a chance to explore further an issue of interest to you and to provide a basis for me to evaluate both your understanding of the material we’ve read and the depth of your thinking about a philosophical issue. With this in mind I ask that your essay include the following elements:

The appropriate length of a passage will vary somewhat since the density of Descartes’ writing varies, but the total amount of text you consider should be small. In most cases, it should be substantially less than a page. This is a short paper and it will be easier to achieve the depth of thought and clarity of writing I will be looking for if you do not attempt to cover too much ground. That also means that you may be able to address only one aspect of even a short passage.

Also, be careful not to attempt to give an exposition of an author’s views by paraphrasing or even summarizing everything in the part of the text you are discussing. Instead think through what Descartes says, decide what a reader will need to know to understand Descartes’ point and the objection you will consider, and design an account of the material in light of this and the space you have available. It will often be best to discuss ideas in an order different from the one Descartes uses.

The objection to Descartes that you consider may be one that Descartes himself points to, but that is not necessary. It is fine to consider an objection you would offer or that you can imagine someone offering (whether or not you would offer it yourself).

Be sure to give a substantial proportion of your attention to the third element of the assignment—i.e., the discussion of the relative strength of the two sides. I tend to think of the three elements of this assignment as having roughly equal importance, so you might think of devoting about a page to each. There can be considerable variation from this, however, so the key thing is to take each of the three seriously. In particular, your discussion of the relative strength of the two sides should be more than a brief concluding comment.

The reading guides indicate some of the topics appearing in Descartes, but don’t feel limited to the topics noted there. You are likely to do your best work with a topic you find interesting, so thinking back through passages that caught your attention is probably the best way to look for a topic. You should also feel free to pursue ideas that have come up in discussion whether or not you are the one who introduced them. And don’t hesitate to seek my help in choosing a topic or finding a passage.

Although I’ll be willing to accept your essay on paper, I’d prefer that you send a copy by e-mail (either as an attachment or in the body of a message). My address is helmang@wabash.edu.