Evaluate an article, and consider arguments about progress and explanation applied to the article. The article (not a research note) must be on American politics, you must not have read it before, and it must have been published in 2009 or 2010 or 2011 from one of the following journals:
The article must contain a theory that you can easily identify. For the evaluation, you could address the following points. The list is not exhaustive--you do not need to answer each question/item listed under each bullet point, and you could certainly address other points. The questions/items are meant to stimulate your evaluation:
Topics you should address concerning progress and explanation include:
A satisfactory paper--i.e., a 'C' paper--will
An excellent paper--i.e., an 'A' paper--will
The paper thus has two main components. The (relatively) easy component is analytic: you must take your article apart (critically review) and apply the readings. In doing so, you will be able to show strengths and weaknesses of a specific theory. Do not spend all of your space/time summarizing the article. You must also analyze and critique the article. The (relatively) difficult component is synthetic: you must bring together different authors' ideas and compare them, while applying them at the same time. A 'C' paper merely has the analytic component. An 'A' paper has both, and does them both well.
Choose your article wisely. For example, do not choose an article that has no theory (or a political philosophy article). You should not choose a research note because research notes are usually more empirically oriented rather than theoretically oriented. (Publications that are less than ten pages are usually research notes.) Choose your article so that you can show me your erudition in understanding the components of the theories and the different approaches to explanation and progress. As in any compare-and-contrast essay, more contrast is generally better than less contrast.
Include a clear thesis statement (primary argument) that guides the structure of paper. The thesis statement is usually presented along with an outline of the paper in the introductory paragraph.
Your arguments should be clear, well-stated, and analytical. Clear arguments do not include internal contradictions or leave questions unanswered. Arguments using logic show how one thing implies another. Arguments using evidence produce specific examples, citations of other work, etc. The arguments all relate to and support contention of the thesis. The arguments are not overstated; exceptions or qualifications are acknowledged.
Quality writing is usually correlated with how much time is taken to edit the paper (or how many drafts are written). Samuel Johnson said/wrote: “What is written without effort is in general read without pleasure.” The BYU Writing Center has also recently published a writing guide that has suggestions.
Use an academic style of writing, not a journal entry, or letter home, or an angry blog entry: no exclamation points, no contractions, no worthless adverbs (e.g. completely, definitely, honestly, hopefully, incredibly, really, very, etc.). Refrain from excessive personalization. It is not necessary to begin sentences with phrases such as “I think that,” “I feel that,” “I suspect that,” and “I [would] argue that”: Every sentence in a paper could begin with such a phrase. It is assumed that every sentence you write is your thought or argument. These phrases only need to be used in a paper if you mean to say, “I assert without accompanying logic or evidence that ....”
Use the Turabian in-text citation style taught in Political Science 200. If you are not sure whether to cite something, cite it. If you state something that is common knowledge--Barack Obama won the 2008 presidential election--then you do not need a citation. If you have to look something up to write it in your paper--Barack Obama won 28 states and DC--then you should cite it (CNN 2008). If you learned something during the course of this class, then you should cite where you learned it from (e.g. reading, lecture, etc.).
The essay has limit of 1500 words (not counting the title page and works cited page). I penalize 1 point for every percentage point over. Double-space the paper and number and staple the pages. (I suggest using 1-inch margins and Times Roman 12pt font.) Include a works cited page and a title page, with the word count (along with name and date) noted on the title page.
"American" politics means United States domestic politics. It does not mean comparative politics, international relations, or United States foreign policy.
If you do not meet with the FHSS Writing Lab, you lose 10 out of 100 points.
Attach a copy of the article with your paper.
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