FYS-Long Paper Information
1. Pick a societal problem area, except for poverty, from the list of problem areas created in class on Monday, March 13th (or if you think of a new problem not in one of these areas, get it approved by Prof. Goddu).
Human trafficing, Discrimination (racial, gender, economic status, disability, sexual orientation, etc.), Climate change (renewable energy, global warming), Excess incarceration, Wrongful conviction, Right to life issues, Reproductive control, Immigration, Migration, School to Prison Pipeline, Identity Theft/Fraud, Terrorism, Obesity, Overpopulation, Antibiotic Resistance, Vaccination, Access to Food/Water, Food/Water Safety, Censorship, Foster Care System, Gun Control, Animal Testing, Piracy, Drugs, Alcohol, STD, Genetic Engineering, Corporate Excess, Daylight Savings, Corruption (political, economic, etc.), Technological Dependence, Access to Employment, Access to Housing, Access to Education, Access to Healthcare, AIDS, Orphans, Child Soldiers, Child Labor, Privacy, Cyberbullying, Fake News, Falsifying Research Data, Psuedoscience, Domestic Violence, Indiginous Peoples Rights
2. Within your problem area (a) identify a specific problem that has been proposed for resolution and (b) find at least two articles that offer substantive proposals for solving the problem, yet disagree on either (i) the nature of the problem (including whether it really is a problem, in which case the proposed solution is to not treat the alleged problem as a problem) or (ii) how, or (iii) if, the problem can be solved.
3. For your chosen problem: (a) Present the problem, as articulated by each article, and make clear how the articles disagree.
(b) Perform a theoretical critique of the problem, at least with respect to your chosen articles. A theoretical critique applies the tools and criteria of the various puzzles we have considered in the first half of this course to the articulations of the problem and the proposed solutions. For example, such a critique might claim that the problem as stated is ambiguous or that the problem is vauge enough to have multiple conflicting solutions or that the problem has no clear parameters for what counts as a solution. Additionally such a critique might argue that the solution offered is to a different problem than the one given or that the solution makes unwarranted assumptions or that the solution is not practically possible, etc. Be sure to justify your claims.
(c) Conclude with some suggestions, based on your analysis in (b), for how we might proceed in order to solve the problem presented in (a).
Extra Information: Papers should be a minimum of seven pages typewritten--double-spaced with no more than one inch margins. Be sure that any work that is not your own is properly cited via footnotes. [Any of the standard citation models is acceptable, but you must be consistent with your choice.]
The title of your paper should be: A Theoretical Critique of the Problem of [name of your problem].
If you wish to get some feedback prior to my grading the first version of the paper, you are permitted to submit one version to me provided that it is given to me no later than Friday, April 7th.
Evaluation criteria (in no particular order) include: Is the paper clearly, cogently, and concisely written? Are the author's claims precise? Has the author fairly and accurately represented the positions of others? Does the paper have a clear and accurate introduction and conclusion? Would the paper be intelligible to another student at this level who is interested in the topic, but not enrolled in the course? Are the author's claims and positions accompanied by cogent arguments? Are claims and arguments provided in different parts of the paper consistent with each other? Has the author been fairly thorough? Can the reader think of some fairly obvious objection to the author's position already raised in class that the author has not anticipated nor addressed? Has the author in fact performed the tasks of the assignment?
First Version Due: Friday, April 14th, at the beginning of class.
Final Version Due: Friday, April 28th at 2pm.
Note on the Final Version: Part of the grade of the Final Version will involve how well the student has responded to the comments or issues raised on the First Version. For example, has the student adequately addressed substantive issues brought up in the evaluation of the First Version? Has the student corrected grammatical and stylistic issues (whether identified in the first evaluation or not)? Has the student, in attempting to solve old concerns, introduced new problems? Has the paper been substantively improved or merely superficially improved?