Thesis for Philosophy

This paper will contain a statement of a thesis (that is, a proposition to defend), along with one or more arguments in support of it. An argument is an attempt to justify the claim of truth for a given assertion by reference to the truth of other assertions that support or are evidence for the claim (Guttenplan and Tamny). Do not plagiarize.

Plagiarism:

Occurs when a student:

•Fails to place quotation marks around material copied word-for-word from another source, published or not, and including web-based content. (Long quotes are indented and blocked, according to discipline documentation requirements.)

• Neglects to attribute words and/or ideas to their author, whether the author is published or not

•Closely follows the original's wording and sentence structure when attempting to paraphrase •Presents all or part of a paper from an essay-purchasing site as his or her own work

(CCAC Student Code of Academic Conduct)

In selecting a thesis, you have two options.

OPTION A

Think up a thesis and run it by me for approval.

OPTION B

Step one: Choose the question of the following three that interests you the most.

1. Can a thing (or person) move itself? (see S & F p 116)

2. Is there something (or someone) that is best? (see S & F 117)

3. If at one time nothing was in existence, would it have been impossible for anything to have begun to exist? (S & F pp 116-117)

Step two: Answer the question honestly yes or no.

Step three: Convert your answer into a statement.

EXAMPLE:

1. (Q:) Can a thing move itself?

2. (A:) No.

3. (Statement:) A thing cannot move itself.

This statement is now the thesis of your paper. Do not include the question and the word ‘Yes' or ‘No' in your paper, merely the thesis itself. Do not qualify the thesis with words like "It is my opinion that . . . " Write exclusively complete sentences (do not write sentence fragments). The paper will be four to eight pages in 12-point type, double-spaced. (For extra credit, you may write a paper of nine to 12 pages.) Each paper must include at least two citations in correct form: at least one from the required reading (i.e., anything that has either been assigned or that is on the "Tentative reading list" in the syllabus) and at least one from another source. Do not use Wikipedia, and do not cite Scripture as an authority. You may consult a style manual such as A P A, M L A or Chicago. The papers are due at 11:59 p.m. on July 29.

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