Papers
In this class you will write three 1,000-to-1,200 word papers, and one 2,000-to-2,400 word final paper, for a minimum of 5,000 words. You will revise and resubmit your first paper after meeting with your recitation instructor.
For details on the papers, click on the links below.
General Guidelines
Things that make for a good paper are: clear and accurate reconstructions of arguments we have seen in readings and lecture, a clearly articulated position, your reasons for taking that position, answers to likely criticisms, and evidence of your thinking the issues through for yourself.
As you know, all your writing must be your own. This means that anything quoted verbatim must appear within quotation marks and be accompanied by a footnote1 that identifies its source. You’re welcome to quote a handout, but we expect the bulk of the paper to be your own wording. Whenever the insights or ideas of another person (including friends of yours and anonymous authors of material on the internet) appear in your paper you must credit that person in a footnote. If you are in any doubt about whether something you are writing amounts to plagiarism, talk about it with your TA before you hand in your paper. You can also review “Academic Integrity at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology: A Handbook for Students.” (PDF - 1.4MB)
1 Name of author, name of piece, place of publication, date of publication
