Research paper

the topic : Should someone spend time watcing youtube videos?

Length: 3 - 4 pages, double spaced, Times New Roman, 12 pt font, standard margins and spacing between paragraphs.

Drafts: I will look over drafts and offer suggestions, provided you send me the draft by 5pm, Monday, December 5. If you send me a draft after that point, I will try to get to it, but I cannot make any guarantees. (Please note: if you send me a draft, I will know which essay is yours when I grade the final versions.)

Your task is to develop an applied ethical question and then evaluate two different answers to that question.

Structure:

You must discuss two different possible answers to your question, and determine which (if either) of those answers is correct. So, it is a good idea to structure your paper like this:

1. Introduction: what is the question? What is your thesis statement?
2. Explain the first potential answer.
3. Present an argument regarding this answer: argue that it succeeds or that it fails.
4. Explain the second potential answer.
5. Present an argument regarding this answer: argue that it succeeds or that it fails.
6. Conclude

The Answers:

Each answer must be developed by considering some material that we have studied up to this point. (Two examples: you might develop an answer that relies on Thomson’s standard of ‘Minimally Decent Samaritan,’ or you might develop an answer that Sadler’s analysis of the wrongness of deception.) You are required to use quotations and explain the relevant material thoroughly. You do not have to explain elements of the related texts that are irrelevant to your project, and you should be careful to avoid tangents. 

The Arguments:

Keep in mind the different elements we have seen to arguments all term: 

• Moral principles (claims like ‘It is morally necessary to maximize utility’ or ‘All persons have a right to life’)
• Empirical claims (claims like ‘Animals and humans have similar neurological structures’ or ‘It hurts to be punched in the face’)
• Moral Intuitions (claims like ‘It is wrong to kick puppies for fun’ or ‘It is permissible to unplug yourself from the famous violinist’)

Your argument will require some combination of the above. Keep in mind the different normative ethical theories we have studied (consequentialism, Kantianism, virtue ethics, ethics of care). Try to identify what intuitive claims you’re relying on, and consider how they relate to those different normative ethical theories.

Regarding empirical claims, be very careful: this is not a research paper. You are permitted to include citations for relevant empirical data, but do not fall down a research rabbit hole. This is an opportunity for you to look into a subject that you find personally significant, but keep in mind that your grade is determined by your interaction with the philosophic material we have been studying.

Scoring Information:

Thesis Statement: 5 points

• Is clear
• Is appropriate for this assignment
• Is located near the beginning of the paper
• Is the claim actually supported throughout the paper

Explanation of Answers: 30 points

• Both are expressed clearly and thoroughly
• Both actually answer the chosen question
• Both rely appropriately on relevant material
• All claims required to support each answer are thoroughly and correctly explained
• All claims are thoroughly and reasonably justified
• All key terminology is defined

Argumentation: 30 points

• Conclusions expressed clearly and thoroughly
• All claims required to support conclusions are thoroughly and correctly explained
• All claims are thoroughly and reasonably justified
• All key terminology is defined
• All background assumptions are expressed and explained
• Argument is contextualized, so relevance and significance is clear

Use of Relevant Material: 20 points

• Material explained is in fact relevant
• Relevant material is explained thoroughly and accurately
• There are no unnecessary tangents
• Quotations are used appropriately to justify claims about the content of a text
• Quotations are the appropriate length
• Quotations are explained thoroughly

Structure and Writing: 15 points

• There are no spelling errors
• There are no egregious grammatical errors
• The paper has clear introduction and conclusion
• There are appropriate paragraph separations
• Each paragraph has introductory and concluding sentences
• All words in the paper are the students’ own or are clearly attributed as a quotation
• The student at no point quotes Dr. Saint