What is Morally Concerning About Mass Incarceration?

Your paper will be divided into five parts:

I. Introduction and Context

Your essay should begin with an introduction where you set up the issue. The goal is to introduce the reader to what’s at stake, and to convince them that your topic is worth discussing. It may be helpful to introduce opposing views here. At the end of the introduction, you will present a rm thesis that indicates your stance, and previews your arguments in favor of it. You may also want to give a road map of your essay, indicating the various components.

The second paragraph of the essay will provide relevant background and context information to your topic. You should also dene any important key terms. For instance, if you are writing on question 1, you should provide an overview of the history of humanitarian and political pictures of refugees, and perhaps cite the way that the scholars we read in class come down on the issue. If you are writing about a specic application of the debates discussed in class, you should provide relevant empirical information about the issue– for instance, if writing on climate migration, you should dene climate migrants and cite some data about prevalence of the issue. Some brief research from outside of course materials will be helpful for some topics. Finally, if you are writing a response to a philosophical argument (as in the prompt 5 questions), you should spend this paragraph analyzing the argument you respond to.

2. Argument

3 The most important part of your paper is the argument in defense of your view, and I recommend you spend a substantial amount of time working on the structure of your argument before you begin writing. Your goal is to defend your stance by way of 2-3 philosophical arguments. Sign-posting will be helpful, and make sure your arguments are distinct. The best papers will use examples and thought experiments to support your normative position.

4. Objection and response

In this section, you will consider how a critic would respond to one of your arguments, or to your main thesis, and then provide a response to them. You should be charitable and spell out the criticism in detail. Your response should also be a paragraph long. Sign-posting is crucial to organization here.

5. Conclusion

Your essay should close with a conclusion where you briey summarize the main points of the paper, and

then point to any questions that remain, or that your paper gives rise to.

The barebones outline of your essay (which you can share with me) will look like:

I. Introduction

II. Background/Context

III. Argument 1

IV. Argument 2

V. (Argument 3)

VI. Objection

VII. Response

VIII. Conclusion

Requirements for all papers:

● Be sure you are making a normative, philosophical argument. You are not just giving evidence for or against a proposal, but rather trying to convince the reader that it is or isn’t the right thing to do.

● Papers should be 6-7 double-spaced pages in length, and in MLA style with “works cited” section at the end. You will upload your paper to Canvas for submission.

● Your paper should have an introduction and conclusion.

● In your introduction, you should contextualize the relevant issue in light of the course materials.

You should explain all technical terms and convince the reader of why the issue matters.

● Your paper should contain at least two quotations from sources we read in class and should cite at least two dierent sources. If we read something that is directly about your topic, you should cite it! You are also welcome (and indeed encouraged) to cite the foundational texts from unit I when helpful.

● However, be sure your arguments are original: you should not just restate others’ arguments. You can mention any of the arguments we read, but you should work to strengthen those arguments by providing original reasons in defense of the position.

● Examples and thought experiments are always helpful!

● Papers will be checked for plagiarism.

● Clarity is key!

Grading:

Your papers will be graded along ve dimensions. The requirements for attaining full credit on each are described below.

1. Structure (20 points): your essay followed the assigned structure, and all necessary components were included. You also met the required word-limit.

2. Argumentation (30 points): your argument had a clear logical structure. Your objections were genuine counterarguments to the claims you consider, and your arguments were logically valid.

3. Writing and Clarity (20 points): your paper was clearly written. You dened key terms, and it was easy for the reader to follow the structure of your paper.

4. Creativity (10 points): your arguments and examples were creative and original.

5. Proofreading and Formatting (20 points): your paper was carefully proofread and properly formatted, free of typos and grammatical errors.