NOTE: After reading the description of this assignment (in Below), please post your paper here. You may submit it as an attachment, as a copy and paste, or both. Best, Dr. C.
PLEASE READ THROUGH THE DESCRIPTION OF THIS TERM PAPER ASSIGNMENT BELOW.
WHEN IT IS COMPLETED, YOUR TERM PAPER IS TO BE SUBMITTED HERE BY THE DUE DATE POSTED ON OUR HOMEPAGE.
IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS, PLEASE CONTACT ME.
BEST, DR. C.
This course is a “Gordon Rule” course, which requires writing. To satisfy this requirement there are discussions due over the philosophers studied, to be posted in Discussions, as well as a term paper due at term’s end.
Here are the details of the end-of-term paper assignment.
Note: YOUR PAPER MUST BE WRITTEN IN YOUR OWN WORDS–ALWAYS AVOID PLAGIARISM
—— I will be submitting each paper to Turn-it-in.com. ———-
Length: 6-8 double-spaced pages (changed from 10-15)–for the body of the paper and does not include title page or reference pages. Note: a standard word-count for one page=250 words. The word count should therefore be between 1,750 and 2,000 words.
Font: Any readable font (e.g. ,Times Roman) 12 font.
Format: Any standard format (e.g., APA, MLA) is acceptable.
Research: The main source for your paper is The Wild Longing of the Human Heart text. However, other sources may be included for Part Two of the paper (as described below). For this you can use our online text and classroom information (my Audio Lectures and Videos provided in Announcements), as well as FGCU’s databases (e.g. academic search complete). Examples are peer-reviewed journals dealing with topics relevant to your paper. Sources used must reflect consistent effort in analysis and relevance to the paper’s topic. You also may use reliable websites such as the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy and the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
The topic for your paper is my text The Wild Longing of the Human Heart. The Paper has to be separated into TWO parts.
Part One (roughly 2/3rds of the paper):
Briefly discuss what you take to be the main philosophical points (at least two points per chapter) in each of the nine chapters of the text. Avoid the use of quotations (except when necessary and keep these short), and state the themes in your own words. Also, state and briefly explain/defend your OWN position on the issues that you raise within each chapter.
Part Two (roughly 1/3rd of the paper):
Discuss any specific issues or thinkers raised in the text that interest you. There are many topics to choose from, as indicated within each chapter of the text, and any relevantly related topics are welcome. Choose among those related topics of interest to you. You may also choose to write on any thinker referenced in the text (i.e., even if they are non-philosophers–such as the mathematicians, scientists, poets and artists mentioned). Many major philosophers from the ancient world to the present are mentioned, as well as thinkers from other disciplines (e.g., mathematics, psychology, neuroscience and literature).
In the end, I ask that you take a position on the philosophical issues you raise in the paper. It is, therefore, an argumentative rather than simply an expository essay. Make sure to defend the positions you take with reasoned arguments, since that is the very nature of the discipline of philosophy. Above all, do not feel obliged to agree with the conclusions I defend in The Wild Longing text. Contrary positions are welcome and even desired if they are philosophically defended.
Link to one of the textbooks we use: https://open.library.okstate.edu/introphilosophy/
