I have to do a seven page paper in Philosophy and cite five relevant sources. It has to be a persuasive paper. I'm not very good at stuff like this, does anyone have an resources to help me get started? The teacher has given out the most vague directions ever and will not clarify. He just tells us to read other people's work (like Kant or Mills) to get an idea of how they write persuasive opinions.
2006-10-18 05:32:22 · 6 answers · asked by Anonymous in Arts & Humanities ➔ Philosophy
Cary, I do enjoy thinking for myself, and I'm not embarassed to admit that I struggle in Philosophy. It can be a very difficult subject considering the reading and concepts are very challenging and abstract. I'm a microbiology major, so 80% of my classes are very difficult science classes, but because I find science and math to be concrete, I'm able to understand those concepts much more easily than philosophy. I wasn't attempting to get out of doing my work, just merely asking for some tips and suggestions. I did excellent in my logic class a few quarters ago, so I thought I'd take another philosophy class (ethics). Boy do I have a new admiration for people who study philosophy at this level!
2006-10-18 05:50:21 · update #1
It's actually not that bad. There is a really good webpage from James Pryor, a philosopher at NYU, on how to write a good philosophy paper. Just google him and you can find it from there. As far as getting sources, there is another really good webpage, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Google that and you will find it. Search on the page for the topic. If you are taking an ethics course you may need to refine your search to something a little more specific. In any case, the entry for ethics is a good place to start. In each entry many articles and books will be referenced. Simply find the appropriate references (the ones that pertain to your subject of interest) in the bibliography at the bottom of the page and get them from the library. Then use James Pryor's advise on how to actually write a paper. Hope it helps.
2006-10-18 10:25:43 · answer #1 · answered by justsomeguy 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I have the same problem with essay papers. The best thing to do is go in steps. First just jot down random (by random, I don't mean irrelevant) thoughts on scrap paper. Then organize those thoughts on a separate sheet of paper. Now take those organized thoughts to a quiet, comfortable area and convert them into sentences. Surround those sentences with supporting phrases and dry yet witty humor and you have a paper very similar to one of mine...lol. Seriously though, what type of thinker are you. If you are a kinesthetic like me, writing can be very aggravating. That's why I type all my drafts and final copies. Of course, this is only good if your computer is in a peaceful area of the house. A good book for you to read is "Strategies for the Technical Professional", a Pearson Custom Publishing publication designed for use in technical courses but the first 3-4 chapters are very relevant to your question and have helped me in my work/study habits IMMENSELY. Anyways, philosophy huh? Wow...good luck dude.
2006-10-18 06:19:55 · answer #2 · answered by ? 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Most universities have senior students who do tutoring, I would suggest that you see if you can contact one of these tutors who has taken philosophy and ask their advice. It would help if they had had the same lecturer who has set this paper so they know what is expected.
Meanwhile -
1/ Do the reading your teacher suggested.
2/ Think of the subject for your paper.
3/ Start researching books in the subject area so you can have 5 sources to quote from. Use notated bookmarks, so you can find the reference again easily.
2006-10-18 05:45:55 · answer #3 · answered by Sue 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Look to your major. Isn't some concept in there that you can defend (Persuade). Site five sources that support your POV.
2006-10-18 06:50:23 · answer #4 · answered by Sophist 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
just flirt with the professor, they are usually desperate for attention and looking for anything to distract them from the academic persuits.
2006-10-18 06:26:08 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Maybe a decorating course would be more appropriate for you. If you do not want to think for yourself, why would you take a philosopy course?
2006-10-18 05:38:36 · answer #6 · answered by Cary Grant 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋