Specifications:
10 double-spaced pages
12-point font, 1-inch margins
Must include 10 sources – 7 must be scholarly
At least 2 of sources that offer counter-arguments or differing perspectives on the issue. This is one key to doing well on the final paper. Analysis of real-life dilemmas are not usually found with simple either/or thinking but are much more complex and nuanced.
Have an engaging and descriptive Title (and Subtitle, if desired)
Begin with an Introduction which orients your reader about the issues, terms, and researched positions with which your essay is most concerned. The Introduction should:
Include a statement of your research question including the problem addressed and the scholarly debate about that problem.
Mention the theoretical framework(s) that you will use and the specific case(s) you will be looking at.
Explain the nature and significance of your topic.
Include key definitions required to understand the issue.
End with a thesis that explains your own position in relation to the others you have
Your intro may be several paragraphs long.
In the Body of the paper you should:
Define key terms and concepts as they arise.
Develop the argument within which your research is intervening.
Use case and theoretical materials together.
Support claims with relevant evidence.
Analyze examples with relevant theory.
Sustain a balance of case, theory, and your own original analysis.
Use well-written paragraphs that open with a topic sentence and are coherently unified by a single issue.
Put source materials in conversation with each other—many paragraphs should reference at least two authors, and all subsections should include more than one author
In addition, the body of the paper should:
Use subheadings to clearly delineate the different sections of the paper.
Include “signposting” language that clarifies how each section or parts relates to the overall argument you are developing
Each subsection should consist of at least two or three paragraphs, with the first paragraph containing a clear statement of the project or argument that will be covered in that section.
Each subsection should include multiple sources.
You should have a tentative Conclusion subheading that should do one or more of the following:
Suggest recommendations based on what you have discovered and explore the potential implications of your findings.
Revisit the most original or surprising of your findings.
Ask new questions that emerge from your analysis.
End with a Works Cited page, written in MLA format, on a separate additional page.
