Position Paper

English 1002

Position Paper

"One reason, then, for the waning prestige of theology is the fact that its source of authority can no longer be regarded as lying in a class apart from all other works of the human spirit. Its aloofness and uniqueness are even more threatened, however, by the doctrine of evolution, which subsumes not only the Christian religion but the entire nature of man under universal rubrics. . . . Charles Hodge . . . declared 'that a more absolutely incredible theory was never propounded for acceptance among men.' The burden of his logical and able What is Darwinism? (1874) is expressed in these sentences: 'The conclusion of the whole matter is that the denial of design in nature is virtually the denial of God. Mr. Darwin’s theory does deny all design in nature, therefore, his theory is virtually atheistical; his theory, not he himself. He believes in a Creator. But—He is virtually consigned, so far as we are concerned, to non-existence.'"—Ambrose White Vernon, A.M., D.D., Professor of Biography in Carleton College in The Cambridge History of English and American Literature, Volume XVI, Chapter 8, "Evolution," 1907-1921.

image from Mark Gonyea's Poster at http://www.mroblivious.com/evolution.gif

Paper Objective: In this paper, you will explain what you know about the controversial issue of Evolution, what you think or believe about it, and why you hold the position that you do. You are aiming for a formal expression of your position that addresses and is respectful of other points of view.

For this paper you will need to create a thesis, narrow it effectively, and make sure that the rest of your paper supports that thesis and does not stray to other interesting but irrelevant points—or does not repeat the same supporting points. You may do research to support your point in this or to develop your opinion, but the focus should be on why you believe what you believe about the issue. Because of this, I am not looking, at this point, for you to quote from many sources, although if you do use outside sources you should certainly cite them. Rather, I am looking to see what you already know about this issue and how you've incorporated what you know into your own schema—or construction—of reality.

Format: This paper should be double-spaced, laser-printed, carefully edited and proofread, prepared using the MLA format, and stapled before you turn it in. You should have a heading with your name, my name, the course title and section number, and the date on it in the upper left-hand corner. Your last name and the page number should appear at the top right of each page, either beginning with or after your first page. Additionally, you should have the paper number and the title of your essay on a separate centered line before you begin your paper. The essay should be two to three pages in length with one-inch margins, not including your Work(s) Cited (if necessary).