Writing the Position Paper

What is your opinion?

What is your opinion?
What is your opinion?
 The famous American poet once said, “The middle of
the road is where the line is, and that’s the worst place to
drive.”

He suggested that there are risks in being neutral, that

there are consequences in not making a stand on issues
of concern.
Position Paper
• defined as a detailed policy report that usually
explains, justifies, or recommends a particular course of
action.
• an essay that presents an opinion about an issue –
typically that of an author or some specified entity.
• position papers range from the simplest format of a
letter to the editor through to the most complex form of
an academic position paper.
Characteristics of a Good Position Paper
1. In the author’s own words. Plagiarism is intentionally or
unintentionally representing somebody’s else's ideas as one’s
own.
2. Clear purpose. Your readers should always have a clear
understanding of what you’re going to do in your paper.
3. Well organized. Your paper as a whole, and each part of your
paper, should work to fulfill its purpose.
4. Coherent. Your paper should flow nicely from one point to
another. Avoid sudden jerks. Use smooth transitions.
5. Clear. Make sure that you really understand what you’re saying
and that an average member of your audience could be expected
to understand it, too.
Characteristics of a Good Position Paper
6. Complete. Think slowly. Don’t jump to conclusions. Flesh out all
ideas and arguments in sufficient detail and ensure that you
adequately defend claims that need defending.
7. Focused. Try not to include irrelevant or inessential material,
unrelated to the attainment of the paper’s purpose.
8. Substantively correct. Attribute positions to the right person
and represent those positions correctly.
9. Mechanically correct. Adhere to the rules of style and usage.
10. Creative. Ideally, ask new questions, answer old questions in
new ways, see new things, see old things in new ways, or make
an original point.
 Kinds of
Position Papers
Kinds of Position Papers
1. Expositive Position Paper – it tries to answer questions of
the form What did A say or think about B?, What did A mean in
the following passage? and so on.
• Expositive writing consists of summarizing or setting out
the ideas of a given philosopher in your own words, in
order to help your reader to understand materials that is
otherwise obscure or hard to follow.
Kinds of Position Papers
2. Comparative Position Paper – it takes up answers like How
are positions X and Y similar, and how do they differ?, What is the
relationship between the arguments for X and Y?, and How do
philosophers A and B compare with respect to their thinking on P?
• Comparative paper will usually require you to summarize
or setting out the arguments and positions in your own
words similar to expositive paper. It will also require you
to defend your claims of commonality and difference.
Kinds of Position Papers
3. Evaluative Position Paper – it considers such questions as Is
position P plausible?, Is P more or less plausible than Q?, is the
argument for P strong?, and Is the argument for P weaker than
the argument for Q?
• If a position seems to contradict what we know, or if we
can find a case which seems to contradict the position,
that’s a mark against the position.
Kinds of Position Papers
4. Constructive Position Paper – it considers a less directly
concerned with pre-existing positions or arguments. It asks
What should we think about P? or What’s the truth about P?
• In defending a position of your own, usually involves an
analysis and evaluation of particularly relevant and
influential work to elucidate or advance your own position.