| Phi 346-01 Spring 2014 |
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Write an essay (of roughly 6-7 pp. or 1800-2100 words) on an issue relevant to topics discussed in this course. You should
(i) explain the issue and
(ii) discuss a position concerning it, including in your discussion
(a) a rationale for holding the position,
(b) at least one objection to it, and
(c) an evaluation of the relative strength of the two sides.
The position you discuss may be one you hold, but it need not be.
In your essay, you should
(α) discuss in some detail a portion of a selection read in the course and
(β) make some reference to a second selection.
Your detailed discussion of a passage may serve you in any of several ways. It may, for example, help you to set up the issue you will address, or it may help you to present any of the elements of your discussion of a position on this issue—i.e., the position itself, a rationale for it, or an objection to it. Your second reference can also serve in any of these ways, but it may be briefer (though it need not be), so it might be no more than a quotation (or paraphrase) of what seems to you a notable way of presenting some idea.
The focus of this paper is an issue rather than what someone you’ve read has said about it, so I will place somewhat greater emphasis than in the first on your own thinking about the issue. You should, therefore, choose a topic that allows you to bring in your thinking, but there are various ways that can happen. Of course, the simplest is for the position you discuss, or the objection to it, to represent your own thinking. But if neither of the two sides you consider represents your own views, your thinking will be brought in if you devote a substantial part of the paper to your evaluation of them. And even an exposition of material you’ve read can display your thinking if the way you present this material is significantly different from what a reader might find in the source.
Let me also emphasize two things I consider in evaluating papers that are more likely to be an issue on this paper than on the last one. First, a variety of considerations in favor of, or in opposition to, a view you consider will count for less than a deeper consideration of a few or even just one. Also, be careful to give a fair and accurate account of any selection you consider even if it is opposed to a position you hold.
Although I’ll be willing to accept your essay on paper, I’d prefer that you submit it electronically. One way to do that is to send a copy by e-mail (either as an attachment or in the body of a message). My address is helmang@wabash.edu. (An alternative, if it is more convenient, is to upload the file to your group on the Canvas site for the course; but, if you do that, please send e-mail to alert me that it’s there.)