Writing a Philosophy Paper
Charles H. Manekin and Andrew Kania
Introduction
The main goal of writing a paper in the history of philosophy is to provide an clear exposition and analysis of a given topic When students ask us “Do you want us to just repeat what the book says, or to give our own opinions,” we answer, “Neither.” For just repeating or summarizing gives little indication of comprehension. And presenting one’s opinions are only of interest if they are accompanied by serious analysis and argument.
“Clear exposition” means that you tell the reader first what a philosopher says, or intends to say, in a lucid and coherent manner. Clarity in exposition is very important. Give the essay the “roommate” test – if your roommate can understand it, that’s a good sign.
“Analysis” means that you dig deep into the claims and arguments. What are the assumptions, hidden or otherwise? How are the claims supported? Does the philosopher provide variations of his claims in different writings? What do important scholars say about the material? Do they agree? And if not, what is the basis of their disagreement, etc? What is the intellectual context of the material? These are questions that should be in the back of your mind when you plan and write your paper.
Choosing a Topic
1. Generally, if you choose a topic provided by the professor, the topic will be reasonable and doable. There will be ample primary and secondary literature. If you decide on your own topic, check first to see whether there is sufficient bibliography and get the professor’s permission
2. It is often a good idea to go one of the standard encyclopedias of philosophy (Routledge, Macmillan) and spend a half-hour reading an entry on a philosopher (or a subject) before you choose the topic. That will give you ideas. Also, if you have particular interests (government and politics, epistemology), you may be able to tie them in with your subject.
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Preparing a Preliminary Bibliography
There is an excellent Guide to Doing Research in Philosophy prepared by Alan Mattlage, Reference Librarian in McKeldin. You should look at this guide before starting.
1. Once you have a topic, GO TO THE LIBRARY, if you haven’t done so already. Go to the section in the stacks where there are books on your topic. Look at their indices and tables of content and find the appropriate chapters and read them. Some times the best sources in the history of philosophy are monographs.
2. Find out if there are specialized bibliographies for the philosopher that are arranged by topic. Some times these appear as books; sometimes as long articles.
3. When you get a source you think is scholarly and important, scour that source’s footnotes for other sources. What books or articles do you see cited again and again? Those are probably worth reading.
1. The web is a blessing and a curse. There is a lot of material on every conceivable topic; most of it is not worth much for serious scholarship. There are exceptions, such as the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. But on the whole, experience has shown to avoid the web.
2. There are two sorts of web-based databases: bibliographic references only and full-text.
Both are useful, but both have problems. Full-text databases (Jstor, Project Muse, etc.) seem ideal – you can download a paper without having to leave your dorm room! But they generally have older material, and the focus of the articles is very narrow. And how do you know if the material is good? When I see a bibliography that is composed exclusively of web-available articles and webpages, one word leaps to my mind: “lazy” !
1. Make sure your paper is largely philosophical discussion, that is, that you always (i) give reasons for your claims, and (ii) consider possible objections to them.
2. The degree to which you do this is a matter of judgment, of course. You won’t need to cite anyone for the claim that ‘dogs exist’, but you will need to provide an argument for the claim that ‘dogs are people, too’. If you make a claim somewhere in between, and you’re not sure about it, ask your professor. Similarly, you might be able to think of five pages of objections and replies to the claim that ‘dogs exist’, but this probably won’t be relevant in a paper on animal rights. Again, if you’re unsure, ask your professor.
3. You can get full marks from just doing well what your professor asks. If you want to do something a little bit ‘out there’ make sure you talk to your professor about it ahead of time.
1. Use standard formatting for your essay. This includes:12 point font (preferably Times New Roman).Double line-spacing.Standard margins (1” top & bottom, 1.25” left & right).Page numbers. No extra gaps between paragraphs, or at the beginning of the essay.Papers handed in without page numbers will have points taken off.
2. Clearly indicate somewhere (e.g. title page or title) what your topic is, or what question you are answering, if this is a take-home assignment.
3. Use present tense throughout, except for historical exposition. The idea is that Descartes’s arguments (for instance) still assert the existence of God, even though he wrote them down a few centuries ago.
4. Apostrophe + s: Usually an apostrophe indicates an abbreviation.I’m pleased to hear you won’t steal your essay off the web. But it is also used to indicate possession.Bob’s argument for the existence of God was terrible. When the possessor’s name ends in an ‘s’, you can simply follow the rule, but it is also acceptable just to add an apostrophe.Descartes’s argument for the existence is God is better than Bob’s. OR: Descartes’ argument for the existence is God is better than Bob’s. The one exception to the possession rule is when something belongs to ‘it’ – then you do not use an apostrophe. Thus, ‘its’ means ‘of it’ or ‘belonging to it’, while ‘it’s’ is an abbreviation for ‘it is’.It’s difficult to follow the argument, in part because of its circularity. is equivalent to It is difficult to follow the argument, in part because of the circularity it possesses.
5. Some tricky plurals: criterion, criteria; phenomenon, phenomena.There is only one criterion of truth, while there are many criteria for value. There are many strange phenomena in the world, but Sasquatch is the weirdest phenomenon.
6. E.g. = exempli gratia = for example; i.e. = id est = that isThe standard meter, i.e. the actual metal bar in Paris , has many properties, e.g. color, weight, mass. It actually looks better to avoid these abbreviations altogether and just use the phrases ‘for example’ and ‘that is’.
7. Acknowledge your sources. The rule of thumb here is that your reader must be able to find the passage you’re referring to.So you at least need to give enough information about the book or article so that anyone could find it in the library. For a book, author, title, publisher, and year are standard. For a journal article, author, article title, journal title, volume number, and year are standard. These should be listed in the bibliography.If you have used a direct quotation, you must give a page number after the quotation (together with the above information) so that your reader can find the passage.If you are paraphrasing, you can place the reference at the end of the paragraph.
Plagiarism and Sloppy Scholarship
1. When you present somebody else’s ideas or words as your own, that is plagiarism. In the case of direct quotation without attribution plagiarism is obvious. But there are less obvious cases. For example, say you make a point that is based on another author’s work, and you give that author credit. Then in the next paragraph you continue to base your argument on that author’s work, and you fail to give her credit. If you give the reader the impression that the second paragraph is your own idea, that constitutes plagiarism, even though you have given proper credit elsewhere in the paper or in the bibliography.
2. When you find an idea or a quote that you wish to use in somebody else’s work, which belongs to another source, then you should refer to the original source “as cited in the work you used.) Scholarship is hard, and there is nothing more annoying to a scholar than to see that somebody presents the fruits of many hours of labor as one’s own work.
3. If something is common knowledge, then there is usually no need to provide a reference for it.For quick information on the various forms of academic dishonesty and the policies of the University of Maryland, see the Student Honor Council Webpage.
4. Please read the link on Academic Honesty that I have written.
If you are citing a historical text (Descartes’ Meditations, Locke’s Essay, etc.) you must refer to the sections in the originalwork; for example, Ethics 2p23s. Then, you should give the page number of the edition that you have listed in the bibliography. So, if you are using Curley’s A Spinoza Reader, the intext reference can be(Ethics 2p23s, p. 143).The reader can then check the bibliography for the edition of the Ethics you have used.
1. Do not begin your essay with sweeping statements. Bad old examples include (but are not restricted to):For thousands of years, man has… Since the dawn of time, philosophers have… These claims are usually just false, but even if they’re not, you probably aren’t engaged on a complete history of the problem you’re addressing. It’s better to begin with a simple statement of the problem, or a concrete example that throws it into relief.
2. Do not waste time with extraneous biographical details. Finally, be careful about sentences that begin, “Hence,” “Therefore,” “It follows that”. You can use them only if the argument you are making is valid. Terms like these are red flags to the reader, who is ready to pounce on any weak or unconvincing argument you make.Our point is not that you should avoid such terms but to make sure that your arguments are convincing, and, at the very least, valid.