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Writing Program

Instructions

Guidelines: When writing the essay, please observe the following guidelines. Submit the essay using the space provided in the online form to upload your essay.

  • Limit the length to approximately 750-1000 words (which translates to between one and two double-spaced pages).
  • Be sure to include an essay title and your name in the text boxes provided for these in the online form. This will ensure that when your essay is printed out, it will be identified as yours; otherwise, the essay will appear to have no author or title.
  • ompose the essay without any assistance, either in the form of other people or outside commentary. You cannot use the web or the library for research. You are, however, permitted to use a dictionary (online or hardback) for words which are unfamiliar to you. And you can use reference tools (online or otherwise) to identify names which you don’t recognize. Your best interests will be served only if the Writing Program can make an honest appraisal of how you write on your own. This will be your first opportunity to put Haverford’s Honor Code into practice.

Assignment: Peter Singer’s “The Singer Solution to World Poverty” via nytimes.com or in the placement package.

“The Singer Solution to Word Poverty” is both a provocative and well-known argument made by the philosopher Peter Singer. In a clear and concise argument—and using evidence drawn from Singer’s article—answer the following: do you agree? Disagree? Whether you agree or disagree, is the article worth reading? Is it useful? Usable? How so? Or, if not, why not?

    When evaluating your essay, Writing Program faculty will attend to the following criteria:

    • Engagement and reasoning: How well do you demonstrate a grasp of Singer’s argument while still establishing and supporting your own position?
    • Structure and style: Does the organization help or hinder readers? Is there enough control of particular sentences to allow us to follow your reasoning?

    Any questions, please contact Prof. Debora Sherman, Director of College Writing, 610-896-1255.