My Goodness! You’ve recently encountered a quotation that is nearly identical to this one.  I have only refined  the statement by adding one key word.

Please write a tightly focused essay in which you take a stand in support of or against this proposition.  In particular, I am asking you to focus on what it means to preserve human dignity.  As you write your essay, think hard about what is required to defend or rebut Singer’s argument. In particular,

as you found in your debate, it is important to establish a common ground on which Singer and the Church could engage in a meaningful and substantial debate. Thus, it would not be sufficient to defend your position on human dignity by asserting your belief in God. Singer would simply respond that he’s an atheist and then there would be no point in continuing the discussion. In fact, he would probably win the debate.

Your position and the counterarguments against it must be crystal clear.  This assignment is meant to challenge you in two ways: 1) to dig even more deeply into your assessment of the subject matter; and 2) to hone your skills of persuasion even further.

I am once again asking you to write the best paper you have ever written in your life, even better than your first one.

My usual observations, cautions, and rules apply.

You are writing one paper, not two papers. Be sure to answering this question and not some other question you would rather answer. Address counterarguments directly. Explicitly refer to evidence from your three primary readings: Singer, Johnson, and the selections from the Vatican’s Compendium. Be concise and to the point. Pick a title that captures the message you seek to send to your reader.

When referring to your readings, feel free to use any simple citation form (e.g., author and page). It is fine to use short quotations, but indicate why you are using them. Quotations do not speak for themselves.

Remember the Shaker hymn: “’tis a joy to be simple . . .”  State your argument boldly; justify it in a logical fashion; when you are done, stop.

The Honor Code to which you have affixed your signature applies!  Since you have already discussed this topic with your classmates, please figure out your answer by yourself. Your essay and argument must be absolutely, completely, and unmistakably your own.  Also, dare to visit the Writing Center!

If I were in college, I would do so because I know there are always ways to improve my writing. You can also send me the draft of your intro paragraph and the first sentence of your second paragraph. I will be happy to comment if you give me adequate time to do so.

As with your previous essay, this assignment is both straightforward and challenging. Happily for you, you have already given considerable thought to the topic.  This also means that you are more aware of what it means to defend one side over the other. I will take this into account in evaluating your essay. Thus, I recommend that you begin writing and re-writing immediately.

To help you in your writing and rewriting, I can think of no better approach than to re-read my comments on your first essay and use them to avoid any of the pitfalls you previously encountered. As always, consult my Tip and Guidelines with religious devotion.  If all of you do this, I will not have to refer to it repeatedly when I read your essays.

Please observe the following rules without exception:

Your essay should be no more than 4 (four) typed, double-spaced pages (12 point font) of careful reasoning. Don’t forget to put your name on it. Don’t forget your title.

Your essay should be in Word format (no PDF or any other mysterious format that I can’t edit).

Your essay is due by Friday, March 29 at 12:00 pm. Since this is the beginning of Easter Break and I am giving you one and a-half weeks to respond, you should feel free to hand it in earlier.  Given this long lead time, I will not grant any extensions unless you provide a documented medical excuse.