Geography 4712

Fall 2002                                                           Paper Guidelines

 

 

Mechanics:

 

Deadlines

1)       Proposal – due to the TA in recitation section in the week of October 14th

2)       Final paper – due to the TA in recitation section in the week of November 25th

 

Length

 

The paper should be between 8 and 10 double-spaced pages in length (between 2000 and 2500 words), not including tables, graphs, maps etc and bibliography.

 

Format of References:

 

Any standardized referencing system is acceptable so long as it is internally consistent.  Remember – when in doubt, cite the source.

 

Proposal:

 

The proposal should be a couple of paragraphs in length and should include some preliminary references.  An ideal proposal would a) briefly state the question to be answered, b) state the theory that will be used to try to understand or analyze the problem, and c) would list some key references.  Proposals should be typed.

 

Students should meet/email with their TAs or the instructor if they have any questions about the proposal or the topic.  The key is to pick an interesting contemporary problem and draw on political geographic theories to gain some insights into this problem.  A focused topic is more likely to produce a successful paper.

 

Paper:

 

Topic:

 

The topic should be a contemporary one (i.e. after 1945) and should be political-geographic in nature.  Examples of unacceptable topics are a) what caused World War I?; b) how the Israelis captured Eichmann in Argentina in the early 1960s, or c) the nature of Zimbabwean agriculture and the resulting famine.  The ‘political-geographic’ rubric is broad and most topics can be accommodated in that framework.  If in doubt, ask your TA or the instructor.

 

Examples of acceptable topics are: a) what caused the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991? b) the reasons for the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq in 1991; c) the rise and fall of the Taliban in Afghanistan; d) why Chechnya has rebelled against Russia and not the other North Caucasian peoples; e) the role of Brazil in the world-economy; f) US geopolitical strategy in the post-September 11 world; g) The Silk Road Act (considered by Congress) as a geopolitical document – a critical geopolitical perspective, etc.

 

After you define the topic of interest, which of the following sets of political-geographic theories can help to understand the subject – a) geopolitical theories (classical and critical); b) world-system theories (Wallerstein and Modelski); c) globalization theories – economic, cultural, world-city, etc; d) state theory – including those that explain the stability of regimes; and e) nationalism theories (primordial, Marxist, mixed).  Read the sections of the text that explain/review the relevant theory and follow up on some key references – e.g. for Wallerstein’s world-systems theory, read some of Wallerstein’s original works.

 

After you become familiar with the theory and its elements (assumptions, background, expectations, relations, predictions, etc), read about the topic from that perspective.  For example, looking at the Silk Road Act, you could examine its statements about democracy, US investment, relations with Islamic world, oil companies and exploitation of the region’s resources, etc from a critical geopolitical lens.  What “story” is being sold? What discourse (words, phrases, images) is being promoted?  Is it plausible?  Who stands to gain and who is losing?  Who supports and who opposes the initiative, in the region and beyond?

 

By the time the proposal is due, we will have covered geopolitical and world-system theories, so you need to look ahead to the text sections for the other theories.  In particular, if you are dealing with a nationalist conflict, read the chapter in the Taylor/Flint text on this topic.

 

Paper     

 

In a 10 page paper, about 2-3 papers should be devoted to elaboration of the theory – why it is useful for the examination of this particular topic.  There is no need to present all the details but focus on those elements that are more relevant to your topic.  Then, devote the remainder of the paper to showing how this theory is helpful to understanding of the problem at hand.  You will have to present some empirical details of the problem but emphasis should be on interpretation using the theory.

 

Submission:

 

Submit a hard-copy of the paper to the TA and either email an attachment or give him/her a diskette of the electronic file.

 

Grading:

 

The paper will be graded according to the following rubric:

 

Theory 20%

Empirical 20%

Analysis 40%

Writing 20%

One of the political geographic theories specified

Clear or poor choice of topic

Uses theory well

well written or poorly written

clear or unclear

accurate or inaccurate facts

Able to interpret specific events in wider theoretical context

grammar is correct

sophisticated or superficial

relevant or irrelevant

spelling is correct

considers alternative arguments – is there a better theoretical alternative

Political geographic in nature

Able to pick events to illustrate point

formatting is consistent

 

organized or disorganized

 Thorough connections or missing links

Use of ancillary materials (maps etc)

 

For more on the nature of a ‘critical thinking’ essay, see the web page from Professor Roland Paris’ class (IAFS 1000) and his links to the writing lab at Purdue University.

http://socsci.colorado.edu/~parisr/IAFS_1000/essay.htm

 

 

If you have any questions about the assignment, see your TA or the instructor well before the deadlines.