For this paper, you will be writing about a controversial moral issue that you have strong convictions about. You will describe the moral issue, your position on it, then attempt to support your position using philosophical arguments.
Some possible topics (but not limited to): Morality of War; Torture; Our Duties to the Poor; Homosexuality; Euthanasia, Suicide; Moral Status of Non-human Animals; Our Duties toward the Environment; Abortion; Et Cetera.
Include the following sections 4 sections, clearly label when each section begins in your paper (You may do this simply with a section number or section title):
i) Introduction. Introduce and give a brief summary of the paper. Briefly describe the moral issue your chose, your position, and how you will support your position.
ii) Describe in more detail the moral issue you chose and why you chose it. (Only choose 1 moral issue). Pick a controversial moral issue, one that there is significant disagreement concerning the correct position.
iii) Explain what you believe is the correct position or answer to the moral issue. Make sure that you give a firm answer/position to your chosen question; do not simply state that you don’t know, or that there is no possible answer. At least attempt to formulate your own answer.
iv) Why? Attempt to give philosophical rational arguments in support of your position. Philosophical arguments should be universal, accessible by and applicable to all those who are rational. So they should not simply be based upon “this is how I was brought up,” “this is what I was taught,” “this is what my religion teaches,” “this is what a sacred text says,” etc.
The following are helpful articles on how to write a philosophy paper:
http://www.sfu.ca/philosophy/resources/writing.html
http://www.jimpryor.net/teaching/guidelines/writing.html
