Philosophical Analysis Paper
You will read both W. K. Clifford, “The Ethics of Belief” (Norton 85-95), and William James, “The Will to Believe” (Norton 97-105). You will then write a philosophical analysis paper. Your paper must have the following specific structure and this structure must be clearly distinguishable.
I. Summary. In this section you will give a brief overview of both articles. For each article, your overview must identify the author, the title of the article, and the specific question or position discussed.
II. Analysis. You will give a more detailed analysis of each argument, identifying the major steps and arguments. This section must be at least two pages.
III. Evaluation. You will evaluate the argument of each article by identifying strengths and weaknesses. What supporting arguments to the argument might somebody make? What objections might someone make to the argument? This section must be at least two pages.
IV. Position. You will present and argue for your own position on the point at dispute between Clifford and James. Be sure to consider and address possible objections someone might put forward against your position. This section must be at least two pages.
V. Conclusion. You will end with a paragraph describing what you have done in the course of your paper, as well as the fundamental conclusions you have drawn.
Additional Requirements
* Your paper must be double-spaced, 12-point font, with ordinary margins. It must also be in one of the required formats: .doc, .docx, .odt, .pdf, .rtf. No other format will be accepted.
* Your analysis should not just make claims about the article but give evidence. You should cite the articles you are using. Citation is not merely listing it as a source! Your citation should make clear which information is based on which passage in the article. Common ways of doing this are footnote, endnote, or parenthetical citation. You are free to use whatever format you prefer, as long as you are consistent, but you should use page numbers or paragraph numbers where possible
* Your evaluation should not just give your opinion; philosophy is primarily concerned with reasons.
