Prompt: This prompt comes with two options. The first gives you a topic for your paper. The
second invites you to come up with your own. The second is therefore much harder, and so I
suggest you only take it if you feel confident in your writing ability.
(1) We have discussed three major ethical theories in our class – utilitarianism, Kantianism,
and Aristotle’s virtue ethics. For this prompt, I want you to take a position in the dispute
between the three theories. This will involve some kind of defense of one theory with
respect to one (or both) of the others. This is an argumentative paper, and so it will be
organized around a thesis. Your thesis can be that one of the three theories is wholly
correct, but it needn’t be. Perhaps it will be that one theory is closer than the other to the
truth. Or perhaps it will be that one theory can be made stronger (or even wholly correct) if
it is modified in some way. But no matter what your position is, make sure that you clearly
articulate it for your reader.
In your paper, make sure you do the following things:
• State your thesis in the introductory paragraph, so that the reader knows what to
expect as she reads.
• Start with a clear explanation of the basic ideas all of the theories you’ll be talking
about. This will be at least two of the theories, but could be all three.
• Present what you take to be the stro
ngest reasons in favor of your thesis. These can
be taken from our readings, but you should put them in your own words. Keep the
number of arguments small (one or two, but no more) – aim for depth of insight,
rather than breadth of coverage.
• Present what you take to be the strongest argument that opposes your thesis, from
the perspective of one of the other theories, and provide a response to it. Again,
this can be taken from arguments in the readings, but you should put it in your
own words. Pick only one – explain it carefully and in detail, respond to it carefully
and in detail.
• Your concluding paragraph can be brief, simply stating the conclusions of your
arguments.
(2) Come up with your own paper topic! It still needs to be an argumentative paper, whose
main goal is to argue for a thesis, but you can choose what that thesis is, and what readings
from the course will be relevant. If you choose this option, you must submit your topic for
acceptance by me by Tuesday, Nov. 10.
Formatting: 3—5 pages, double-spaced, 12 point font, 1” margins. Email the paper to me as a
.doc or .docx file. No need for a separate title page – just put your name, course number (PHL
200), and the words “Essay Assignment” as a header, and title your paper above the body. The
body of the paper must be at least 3 pages; header and title do not count toward the total length