The Research Paper
worth up to 150 points

mysteries

This paper (5-8 full pages) will be worth up to 150 points; it must be in MLA 9 format and must include an MLA 9 format Works Cited page with at least three sources.

There are different sorts of research papers. The ones that students often do in elementary and secondary schools are informational; those are called explanatory research papers, and they amount to little more than simple copy/paste fact files, almost like theme-based shopping lists or Wikipedia articles. They do not involve actual thinking, logic, argument. We will not be doing one of those.

The other sort of research paper is called exploratory (which means it explores some significant issue that requires both expansion and proof), and it involves looking at a subject that is more open-ended, often controversial, and taking a side based on the research evidence you uncover.

You will be developing an essay on a subject that is open to investigation or speculation. And there are actually TWO topics (related but still different) you will get to choos from. Much more detail will follow, but for your paper you are going to do one of the following:

Either

1. research some unsolved crime (possibly a cold case), and based on the evidence you discover, argue what likely actually happened and why,

or (and this on is very similar)

2. research some mystery where they got it wrong, and based on the evidence you discover, argue what actually happened and why based on evidence you find,

or (and this is another "they got it wrong" topic)

3. research a popular conspiracy theory and use available evidence to write a convincing argument that the more-accepted popular/historical version of what happend is not actually true; in this case you will support one possible conspiracy theory based on the evidence you discover.

You will be doing this in three major steps: 1. pick a topic that fits the assignment and make sure there is sufficient, detailed evidence available to make your case, 2. put together a complete research proposal and get it approved, 3. develop the final paper. Those first two steps are explored in more detail on the Research Proposal assignment page. What follows here is more detail on what the final paper will contain.

the final research project: a sort of check list:

Very important first point: The final Research Paper MUST use the thesis (word-for-word) from the Research Proposal, and that MUST have first been approved. Without that your paper will not be read or scored.

• The finished paper must be at least four full pages to earn any score; shorter papers will be returned for you to revise, and they will be counted as late papers. If you are trying for an "A" or a "B" on this paper, it must be at least six full pages.

• If you include pictures (and I strongly recommend you do; it will help your score), then your paper will need to be longer; pictures do not count as pages of text; they do not count towards your minimum page limits).

• The language should not be stuffy with excessive inflated vocabulary. Write clear, direct (though detailed) language, the sort you might hear in a podcast or on a crime show video.

• Do not separate sections with in-paper headings or sub-titles. Write paragraphs with smooth transitions.

• Since this is a research paper, be sure there is sufficient documented secondary source material supporting and illustrating your claims throughout the essay; about 1/3 of your paper must be direct quotations followed by parenthetical citations. Yes, I DO KNOW there are other ways to use sourcees, and there are other ways to frame quotations. The lecture on Research explained in detail why I want to see direct quotations and parentical citations, SO DO NOT just summarize or paraphrase.

  The last page of the paper will be your Works Cited page, which must be done in standard MLA-8 format (it is the same format taught in English 101, so it should not be at all new to you). The Works Cited page always starts on its own page, and it does not count towards your page count.

• ANY entry on the Workd Cited page must be a work you directly quote (followed by a parenthetical citation) in the body of your paper at least once.

OK, that's a straighforward, nuts-n-bolts breakdown of what you need to turn in, but I'm going to guess you might have some further questions, so let's move on to...

a couple of additional requirements

1. You were required to get your Research Proposal APPROVED back on Week 4. Unless you submitted ANOTHER Proposal that was also APPROVED later, your paper MUST be on the topic that was APPROVED.

2. For the Research Proposal you were also required to follow a very specific thesis template (basically filling in the blanks). That same thesis (starting with the word "Although..." remember?) MUST be your thesis in this paper.

3. However, your sources can have changed (that is normal); you might have more sources now, and you might have found stronger sources and swapped a few weak ones out. That's actually a good thing!

faq, tips, hints, further things i am looking for

Sure, you have all done research papers before (it's a requirement for passing English 101). But here are some points you might need to be refreshed and reviewed:

• First, if you did not read the lecture on Research, do so now. Really. It's important.

• If you are wondering how you can possibly write six full pages (not counting the pictures and the Works Cited), remember that 1/3 of the paper needs to be EVIDENCE--direct quotations (followed by the required parenthetical citations) taken directly from your sources. You are NOT the expert on this topic. You are consulting experts, and their findings are what you will use to make your case.

• Alongside that last point, this paper is in no way about you. There should be no "I think" or "I feel" or "I believe" statements or any other "I/me" statements. Be objective. Make the argument based on what you have read in your sources.

• Likewise, you are not doing a PowerPoint presentation or an informal speech, so do not talk to your reader. Things like "And next you will learn about the motive of Jon Benet Ramsey's mother!" Instead, begin the paragraph with "Jon Benet's mother had a clear motive for her involvement in the murder." Be direct.

• OK, finally, and this is also really important: use good sources. Yes, good is an abstract word, but here it means you want rich, detailed sources with a lot of thought and information. As a general rule (not always true, though) a book is a better source than an article; a long, detailed article is much better than a short one. And, of course, the authority of the writer is often important (so an article published in The New York Times is generally more-credible than one on a personal blogsite).

And, well, maybe that last point was not the FINAL "Finally." Let's soften things a little. REMEMBER you do not have to PROVE BEYOND SHADOW OF A DOUBT that your position is correct. You can't. History either has no idea what happened, or it has accepted a different version of what happeneed. All you need to do is provide reasonable doubt that __________ was the actual Black Dahlia killer or that __________ and __________ conspired to have Marilyn Monroe killed because _______________. Argument, after all, is not about difinitive proof; it is about making a "reasonable" case based on evidence :)

Final, final, FINAL point? Please try to have some fun with this paper. It's not a stuffy, dusty, academic topic. Pick something exciting to explore and try to solve the mystery :)