2. My Expectations for Your Papers
• An accurate and well-reasoned representation of the
material
• Entirely original material – no plagiarism of any kind
will be tolerated
• Meeting at least the minimum page requirement of 5
full pages
• Correctly formatted
• Proof-read and free of typos and grammatical errors
How to get an ‘A’ on your paper
3. Unit 1 Lecture Roadmap
I. The Writing Process
I. How to write a Philosophy paper
II. Basic Grammar
I. Apostrophes
II. Capitalization
III. Quotation Marks
IV. Sentence Fragments
III. Proper Formatting
IV. Sources
V. Plagiarism
4. I. The Writing Process
• I’m sure many of you have never written a philosophy paper. This
paper can make a philosophy paper more daunting than it really is.
The following process is recommended to assist you as you write
this semester.
1. Pick a Topic: Be sure to do this early in the course in case you want to
change it later. I have provided you with 5 paper topics. Please choose one
of these for your paper.
2. Read your Text: Palmer’s Does the Center Hold? Is an excellent starting
point for learning about your topic. Be sure to read the pertinent sections
of the text carefully to gain an idea of what your topic entails.
3. Determine your Focus: Philosophy papers are different from your typical
research papers, in that they are not simply a summary of the research on
that topic, but rely heavily on the student’s critical evaluation of the topic
chosen. For example, a paper on the three major proofs for the existence
of God would include a description of each proof, followed by an evaluation
of the strengths and weaknesses of each proof, concluding with a
determination of the merit of each.
5. I. The Writing Process, cont’d…
4. Complete your Research: Some students find that they can complete the paper
without any additional sources. Others prefer to utilize sources other than the
textbook and primary sources. It is up to you, although I would recommend
trying to write your paper without any sources, only adding sources as you need
them.
5. Outline, outline, outline: Perhaps the most critical step, be sure to sketch a basic
outline of your paper, organizing it in the most coherent way. You want to be
sure your reader has a clear picture of where you are going, and the progression
of arguments that will carry them there.
6. Write your Heart Out: Using your outline and basic research, write your paper. I
have found the best approach in writing a philosophy paper is to pretend that
you are explaining the topic to a friend or family member who knows nothing
about philosophy. Trying to explain your topic to someone who does not know
about it will help you to break down complex topics into a simpler argument.
7. Proofread and Edit: I am always available to read-through your papers prior to
submission to assist you in the editing process. However, even if you choose not
to take advantage of this option, please be sure to carefully read through your
paper prior to submitting. This action could be the difference between a B and
an A!
6. II. Grammar - Apostrophes
• Appropriate uses of apostrophes:
• To show that a noun is possessive
– CORRECT: The student’s notebook is full of doodles.
– INCORRECT: The student’s are busy studying for exams.
• In contractions
– CORRECT: I don’t know the answer.
– INCORRECT: I cant see the board without my glasses.
• To represent omitted numbers
– CORRECT: She graduated in ‘06.
– INCORRECT: I went to summer camp in 04.
7. II. Grammar - Capitalization
• When should a word be capitalized?
• Proper nouns
» Ex: names of deities and religious followers; government
departments; names of countries; trade names; etc.
• Titles
» Ex: President Barack Obama; Professor Jones
• Major words in the title of an article or book
» Ex: “In John Smith’s work, Walking Your Way to a Healthier
You…”
• First word of a sentence
» CORRECT: Texting while driving is a very dangerous behavior.
» INCORRECT: so many students text while they drive.
8. II. Grammar – Quotation Marks
• When to use quotation marks:
• To enclose direct quotations
» Ex: According to Smith, “Puppy dogs make far better pets
than does your typical rock.”
• When short works are mentioned
» Ex: Johnson’s article, “New Tree Planted in Central Park,” was
published in this morning’s paper.
• When setting off words mentioned in a sentence
» Ex: The words “their,” “they’re” and “there” are often
mistaken for one another.
• When calling a word into question
» Ex: He was “working” very hard on his paper as he napped in
the library.
9. II. Grammar – Sentence Fragments
• A fragment is an incomplete sentence that cannot
stand alone.
• Ex #1: When I was a college student.
• Ex #2: Because there was not enough milk.
• Ex #3: Such as pancakes, sausage, and waffles.
• “Red flag” words that indicate a possible
fragment:
• Because; especially; such as; which is; etc.
• Any of these words at the beginning of a sentence may
indicate that the sentence in question is a fragment.
• To prevent including sentence fragments in your paper, it is
best to try and avoid starting sentences with any of the
above mentioned words.
10. III. Proper Formatting
• Guidelines among professors can vary, so it is best to check with
your professor before writing your paper. Ideally, your professors
should provide guidelines at the beginning of the course but if they
do not do so, be sure to ask them.
• My guidelines for your paper:
• Times New Roman, 12pt. Font (no other fonts or sizes)
• Double-spaced with 1 inch margins
• Separate title page (does not count towards page total)
• Separate ‘Works Cited’ page at end of paper (does not count towards page
total)
• Last name and page number in the upper-right corner of each page
• No extra spaces between paragraphs
• In-paper citations – either parenthetical or footnotes. MLA, APA, Chicago and
Turabian styles all accepted
• For an example of an appropriately-formatted paper, I have
uploaded a sample to the Course Documents tab
11. IV. Sources
• Not all sources are created equal!
– What makes a good source?
• A listed author
– A credible academic source will nearly always list an author’s name.
– This makes sense! If you worked hard on a paper or article that was later
published (in print or online), wouldn’t you want your name to be
associated with it?
• A stated, recent date
– A lack of a date is problematic, as the information may be old and
outdated. Try to avoid using sources without dates.
– Recent dates are always better, as older sources may no longer be
relevant.
– Exception: Primary Sources. In philosophy, you may be writing a paper
on an original piece by a philosopher. In those cases, the date of
publication may not be recent, but the source itself is still acceptable.
12. IV. Sources, cont’d…
– Good sources cont’d…
• Pertinent credentials of the author
– Is the author an expert in the field, or a layman?
– In philosophy, is the author of the source an academic in the
field? Or simply a layman blogging about philosophy from his
couch? While the layman might have some interesting points, his
information is likely not reliable enough to be included in an
academic paper.
• No blatant bias
– When searching for sources, be aware of potential biases.
Writing a paper about politics, for example, and drawing only
from very left-leaning or right-leaning sources does not produce a
balance paper. Unbiased sources are always best.
– If you must use a biased source, try to use another source from
the opposite camp to help bring balance to your paper.
13. IV. Sources, cont’d…
• Print Sources:
– Examples of excellent print sources:
• Peer-reviewed philosophy periodicals
– Found on EBSCOhost or in-print in the library
• Philosophy textbooks
– Such as Palmer’s Does the Center Hold?
• Primary Sources
– Plato’s Republic, Descartes’ Discourse and Method, etc.
– Examples of poor print sources:
• Any “pop” philosophy periodical (non-academic)
• Book reviews
• Books published prior to 1980 (non-primary sources)
14. IV. Sources, cont’d…
• Online Sources
– Examples of excellent online sources
• Online Encyclopedias
– Encyclopedia of Philosophy, etc.
• University-sponsored philosophy sites
• Open courseware
– MIT’s open courseware, etc.
• Online peer-reviewed journals
– Things to watch out for:
• No Wikipedia our about.com-type sites. If anyone can update
them, they are not rigorously academic enough to cite in a paper.
• No blogs that aren’t written by professionals in the field
• Unprofessional-looking websites – lots of color, few recent
updates, etc.
15. V. Plagiarism
• Plagiarism is ANY use of another’s material without appropriate
credit. It is the accidental or intentional passing off of another’s
work as one’s own.
– Examples of plagiarism:
• Use of an entire paper written by another person
• Copying and pasting a paragraph from a source word-for-word (without
officially quoting the text)
• Quoting briefly from a text without citing the source
• Plagiarism is a very serious offense. Plagiarism on an assignment in
this class will result in automatic failure of the assignment and the
likely failure of the class, depending on the extent of the plagiarism.
• If you aren’t sure if something is plagiarism – ask me.
• Plagiarism extends to my lecture materials as well. You are free to
quote me, but you should not copy my notes word-for-word in your
paper without citing the source.
