What is the purpose of elections? In the readings by Ahmed, Jamal & Lust-Okar, and Schaffer, we discussed the different kinds of political work that elections can do, both from the perspectives of those making the rules and what people (our example was Senegal) do when they vote together. Think beyond “choosing who governs” to other political effects.
For all topics, be sure to draw on three readings from the course, use the appropriate vocabulary, and define all key terms. Give page numbers (or time stamp for videos) for citations. You do not need to provide a bibliography or reference list, since all of your materials will come from this course.
Be sure to use ONLY the course materials (readings or videos) from this class. Each of these authors has written many books and if you go to external material or use AI, you will very likely pick up other arguments they have made beyond what we have discussed. I’ve tested out putting these questions into ChatGP about a dozen times each, and none has come close to covering the ideas we specifically discussed in class.
I will grade the papers anonymously, so PLEASE DO NOT WRITE YOUR NAME ON YOUR PAPER SUBMISSION. Only once I have completed grading will Blackboard match the grades with individual students.
Final instructions:
In citing arguments from the readings, avoid quoting long passages. Instead, you should primarily paraphrase unless you feel that the wording of the original is absolutely essential. Use parenthetical citations (not footnotes), giving the authors’ last name, year of publication, and page number. For example, you might state something like this: Marx argues that all of history is the history of class struggle (Marx 1848: 14). Note that the period follows the citation; the only exception is if a quote contains punctuation other than a period, but even in that case a period still follows the citation: “…the end of the world!” (Schwedler 2018: 43).
The first time you mention any author, give the full name. After that, only the last name.
Organize your thoughts and outline your answers before you start writing.
Draft your essay as soon as possible, put it aside, and re-read them at least two or three days later. I cannot stress this enough. Feel free to peer-review your drafts to give each other feedback. Writing well is a process and peer-review can help you see what others are seeing in your work. I am also happy to meet to discuss your paper and topic, but I cannot read and comment on drafts. I am available to discuss drafts or your ideas until 5 pm on April 19, just before the start of Spring Break.
Avoid “empty subjects,” such as beginning sentences with “There is,” “It is,” “There are,” and avoid imprecise words such as “things,” etc. When you revise your answers, look for empty subjects and try to replace them with more precise nouns.
If you say something is important or interesting, always say why. “Elections are very important” is not enough. Instead, “Elections are very important because…”
