Topic: Judith Jarvis Thomson suggests that women have a moral right to get an abortion. Please
reconstruct and critically assess Thomson’s argument.
Students are responsible for demonstrating a competency in understanding some of the substantive
philosophical themes associated with the content of this course. This competency will be
demonstrated in a final paper that addresses some aspects of the philosophical arguments developed
in the readings associated with this course. Papers should echo some of student presentations—i.e.,
students should borrow, modify, and further develop their presentations into term papers. Final papers
should be 7-10 double-spaced pages in length.
Final papers should include four aspects:
1. A substantive thesis that clearly specifies all of the argument, the main points of the
argument, and indicates how these points connect together.
2. A substantive summary of the key points from one or two of the readings on the syllabus.
3. Explicit and substantive reference to no less than two legitimate (i.e., peer- reviewed,
academically published) secondary sources.
4. A critical component. Please note, a critical component might involve an elaboration of how
the paper’s themes relate to the student’s lived experience.
