Paper 6

Choose one of the following two paper prompts.

1. Analyzing an abstract concept.
--Choose an idea that is important but is hard to define. Examples include things like "love," "freedom," and "honor." Love is important for all of us, but what is love?

In the introduction, show us what idea you will talk about. Briefly state why it is important. In the body, make an effort to define thoroughly what the word means; keep in mind that these ideas have many forms: there are many kinds of "love"; there are many kinds of "freedoms". Try to define all of them, and try to show why so many different ideas are contained within one word.

In the conclusion, make some general statement about the importance of abstract ideas, using the topic of your paper as a starting point.

You can use a word/concept from another language, but be sure to define that word carefully.

2. Discrimination

Discrimination is a very powerful force. Arguably all of us discriminate against some group or type of people. Choose a form of discrimination to write about. Possibilities include the following: age discrimination, gender discrimination, class discrimination (against the poor or rich), racial and/or ethnic discrimination, sexuality discrimination, etc. You are free to write about the concept within whatever scope you wish--for example, you could write about discrimination against women in general or discrimination against women in Taiwan. You may use personal observation in the paper.

The introduction should show the reader what your topic is. What will you write about? Why?

The body should analyze the extent of the discrimination you analyze. You should also make an effort to understand what the discrimination "means" and why it exists. Try to look at subtler forms of discrimination, forms that are harder to notice and harder to define as discrimination.

The conclusion should discuss why discrimination is such a powerful force in people's lives. Also, you should suggest ways in which we can deal with (bear) discrimination against ourselves and how we might reduce the amount of discrimination in the world.

The paper can take a personal bent (approach) if you'd like. Feel free to discuss personal observations or experiences with discrimination, or think about the ways in which you discriminate against others.