student will write a 1000-word thesis-driven essay on a selected topic.
Your paper must be typed, double spaced, with one-inch margins, using Times Roman 12pt font.
The purpose of a thesis-driven essay is to identify an issue, establish what your stance is on a
particular aspect of that issue, and to present a compelling case or argument for it. The essay will
draw on course material, demonstrating explicitly that it has been mastered (for instance by correctly
deploying vocabulary terms and theoretical concepts). You will analyze how those arguments stand up to
critical scrutiny. You will then summarize the central issues and arguments, and take a stance on the
central debates as you have defined them. This stance will constitute your thesis which you are
required to defend.
It is generally NOT recommended that students use the Internet to find secondary sources to help
them write their essays.

You must also include a creative title centered at the top of your essay. DO NOT use “thesis driven essay”
as your title.
Please make sure that the final sentence of your first paragraph is your explicit thesis statement
(this is what your paper will be attempting to prove). I understand that such a constraint may not feel
natural to our creative writing spirit, but it will be good practice for your later academic careers in
exercising more “liberal” argumentative papers. For now, please make the final sentence of your first
paragraph your thesis statement.

The preferred method for citations in philosophy is Chicago style. I will accept any style of citation,
although I do prefer Chicago. Chicago uses footnotes and has a References list at the end of the paper.
An example of a proper footnote citation for an article in a journal would look like the following:
Melanie K. Yazzie and Cutcha Risling Baldy, “Introduction: Indigenous peoples and the politics of
water,” in Decolonization: Indigeneity, Education & Society, vol.7 no. 1 (2018): 1-18.
or, for a book:
Aristotle, Metaphysics X-XIV, trans. Hugh Tredennick (Cambridge: Harvard University Press: 1962), 197.
You can find online resources to guide your citations at The Chicago Manual of Style or Purdue Owl.
You are not encouraged to use material outside of our course’s material. Remember, this is your
opportunity to demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of the course provided with this
university. If you attempt to argue a point completely alien to our course, you will not receive a
strong grade.

Essay Question

Should we refuse to eat non-human animals for ethical reasons as argued by Peter Singer? In your
answer be sure to note what a “consequentialist” argument is, as well as any objections to such
arguments. What does Singer mean by “sentience?” Are there ethical obligations to beings that
are not sentient? In your answer be sure to develop Singer’s argument as thoroughly as possible,
and regardless of your thesis, acknowledge an objection to your argument, and respond to such an
objection. *Be careful not to fall into the habit of stating what you believe regarding eating
animals – asserting your beliefs without providing a logical structure does not constitute and
argument. Keep in mind the is/ought fallacy we discussed in class.