ENWR 1510, Section 48: Animals & Ethics
Instructor: Michelle Taylor
Paper #2 assignment:Applying Theories in the Animal Rights Debate
Draft 1 due: Tuesday, March 22, 2016
Final draft due: Thursday, March 31, 2016
Objectives
Now that you have down the legwork with paper #1, you will insert yourself into an academic conversation.For your second paper, you will apply the philosophies that underpin the animal rights debate to a particular situation (or rather, group of situations).
Among the theorists we read—Singer, DeGrazia, Regan, Cohen, Frey, and Adams—with whose position do you most agree? You may use more than one theorist if you wish tocobble together a position that combines elements from multiple thinkers, but ultimately, this paper isn’t about their opinions; it’s about yours. This portion of your paper should be for introductory purposes only.
After (briefly) establishing a theoretical position, discuss how it applies to ONE (and only one!) of the following: wearing animals; eating animals; or experimenting on animals. Get into the dirty details. Under which circumstances, if any, is it [more] acceptable to wear, eat, or experiment on animals? If your position is similar to Regan’s, then what are the challenges at hand, and how might we begin to face them?
Tip: While you’re beginning with theory, you’re ending with practice. Start by making a list of all the elements you can think of that pertain to wearing, eating, or experimenting on animals. There is a lot more to wearing animals than wearing fur coats á la Cruella de Vil! You won’t be able to cover every single component of your topic in 5 pages (or in an entire book, for that matter), but you can certainly zoom in on some of the most important components.
Tip #2: For inspiration, you may find it helpful to read about how uses of animals play out in daily life. Feel free to include discussion of a news article or blog post pertaining to the issues at hand (for example, remember the social media outrage at Taco Bell’s use of horse meat).This is not a requirement, however.
Specifications
Your paper should be ~5pages long, double-spaced, in 12-point Times New Roman font. Anything less than halfway down page 5 will be considered too short, though up to 6 pages is acceptable. Please use MLA citation style for paraphrases and direct quotes, as well as to cite any news articles or blogs that you use.
Grading
The starting assumption is that your work is of B quality. You will move up or down according to how well you present your position and how detailed your discussion is. As stated in the syllabus, this paper (which includes both drafts and written feedback for your peer evaluation partner)is worth 25% of your final grade.