HIS 150 Critical Thinking through Historical Biography                              Spring 2016

FINAL PAPER ASSIGNMENT ON “NAMING JACK THE RIPPER”

The Final Paper is due in the box outside my office (Engleman C207B) by 
3pm on Thursday, May 12

    Your goal in this assignment is to use the critical thinking skills you have learned in this class to analyze the argument made by Russell Edwards in his book Naming Jack the Ripper.  Write a paper that responds to all of the following questions:

1) What is the claim and what are the premises in Edwards’ argument?
2) What major pieces of evidence does Edwards use to support his argument, and is the 
    evidence weak or strong?
3) Is Edwards’ argument deductive or inductive?
4) Does Edwards’ book contain any logical fallacies that weaken his argument?
5) Can Edwards’ argument be refuted? If so, how? If not, why?

Rules for the Paper Assignment

1) Provide a cover page with your name, class information, and date. Begin the text of your 
    paper at the top of the following page.
2) The paper should be about 5 pages in length, NOT including the cover page.
3) Double-space the text of your paper.  The pages must have 1-inch margins on the top, bottom 
    and sides.  Do not leave large spaces between the paragraphs of your paper.
4) You must use evidence from Naming Jack the Ripper to support your responses to the 
    questions. You may also use some evidence from any of the other reading assignments (including  
    the textbook) and the websites.  However, do not use any material that was not assigned for this 
    class. 
5) When you quote from and make reference to a source follow the modified MLA citation method 
    using the author’s last name and page number that is shown in the citation handout.
6) Provide a works cited page using the modified MLA citation method shown in the citation 
    handout.
7) Your writing must conform to the basic rules of English grammar and spelling.  If English is 
    not your primary language, please let me know.
8) The paper must be submitted as a printed copy.  I do not accept papers as email attachments or on 
    zip/jump drives.
9) If you give me a rough draft of your paper, you must submit the rough draft with your final paper 
    otherwise it will not be graded!

Paper Grade Criteria

1) Responding to all parts of the assignment
2) Using sufficient evidence from Naming Jack the Ripper
3) Avoiding errors in your interpretation of Naming Jack the Ripper
4) The quality of your writing, spelling, and grammar
5) Following all the rules for the assignment
6) Avoiding too much personal opinion!