Overview
Please answer the following questions in a 4–6 page paper that includes an introductory paragraph with a thesis statement, body paragraphs, and a conclusion
- Is evil real? In the Protagoras, Socrates argues that ignorance is the sole reason for bad behavior. People never intentionally do bad things. In contrast, Augustine argues that not only did he know that stealing was wrong, but he actually stole pears because it was wrong. Besides ignorance, wrongdoing can be due to intentional malice or evil. What is your view? Write a paper summarizing Socrates’ view in the Protagoras and Augustine’s in the Confessions. Then, take a stand on the issue and introduce your own argument. ALONG WITH THIS I AM PROVIDING YOU AN OUTLINE I MADE ON WHICH MY PROFESSOR HAS LEFT COMMENTS , MAKE SURE TO FULLY ABIDE THOSE COMMENTS AND A RUBRIC AS WELL Dear Students,
- I wanted to provide you with a rubric for the paper and also reiterate some of the general tips I've given in class:
1. I'm looking for two major things: a) Can you summarize and synthesize the readings that we have done in class well and b) can you engage with the readings philosophically (i.e., do you have any original thoughts of your own).
2. As such, do not bring in outside sources (this is not a research paper)– stick with what we have done in class.
3. Make your thesis known right away in the intro - give me the specific position that you will defend and why (it is not enough to tell me that you will share your thoughts without telling me what those are and the rational argument you will present).
4. Make sure that you answer a question from the prompts, and do not make up your own question - you will fail if you do not answer one of the questions on the prompt doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mVGkSoDVO3ZgNomcB40BF3T-QThIQltJb9EdglYaOiU/edit?tab=t.0#heading=h.5yp4q7ud8sab
5. Read, re-read, and then read one more time the readings from the question you are working on. There is no shortcut to this as half of the grade is looking at how well you can comprehend and synthesize information from the readings.
Prompt-specific tips
1. Many of you are working on the is evil real question, but most of you are not grasping the complexity of this question. Make sure you are looking carefully at Socrates' argument for why ignorance is the result of wrongdoing. His argument is not easily refuted given his two premises that goodness=pleasure and all people act for the sake of goodness/pleasure. A successful critique will engage critically with these two premises. To give you some perspective on this question, here is an article that explains some of the nuances of Socrates' argument (you can read this article for background info): https://socraticmethod.net/socratic_essay_nature_of_human_evil.htm