Article Research Paper Assignment—Critical Task

Assignment Instructions- Read one of the following articles found either on Blackboard or by using Academic Search Complete (see the instruction for how to find specific articles in Academic Search Complete by going to Blackboard and looking within the Course Documents tab):

Ahmari, Sohrab. “Uncontained: Obama’s Confused Iranian Policy.” World Affairs. Nov/Dec2011, Vol. 174, Issue 4: 47-55.

Birdsall, Andrea. “The Monster That We Need to Slay? Global Governance, the United States, and the International Criminal Court.” Global Governance. October/December 2010, Vol. 16, Issue 4: 451-469.

Farr, Thomas, F. “The Trouble with American Foreign Policy and Islam.” Review of Faith & International Affairs. Jun2011, Vol. 9, Issue 2: 65-73.

Fitzpatrick, Mark. “A Prudent Decision on Missile Defence.” Survival . December 2009/January 2010, Vol. 51, Issue 6: 5-12.

Hudson, Leila; Colin Owens and Matt Flannes. “Drone Warfare: Blowback from the New American Way of War.” Fall2011, Vol. 18, Issue 3: 122-132.

Kelly, Michael J. “United States Ratification of the Law of the Sea Convention: Securing Our Navigational Future While Managing China’s Blue Water Ambitions.” Case Western Reserve Journal of International Law. Fall2012, Vol. 45, Issue ½: 461-472.

Totten, Michael, J. “No Exit: Why the US Can’t Leave the Middle East.” World Affairs. Nov/Dec2013, Vol. 176, Issue 4: 8-14.
Then write a paper (minimum 6 pages typed plus works cited page) which includes the following 3 elements:

• A brief analysis of the author’s main argument. This needs to indicate what the main argument of the article was; whether the author’s main assertions (or argument) were valid or not; whether or not the author’s perspective on the issue seems realist or liberal idealist; and whether or not US policy toward the issue is realist or liberal idealist. This section should be as brief as possible. Please do not do a summary of the entire article.

• Your own argument in reference to the article, its argument, and the realist or idealist perspectives of the author and US policy toward the issue in question (i.e. drone warfare, nuclear missile defense, or the International Criminal Court, etc…). This argument must be backed up by significant content. This means all assertions and statements that are made in your paper need to be backed up by detailed explanations, quotes, and/or statistics.

• A reference to other points of view- Indicate what other authors have said about similar issues, and whether or not these viewpoints support or undermine the author’s argument. Including quotes or statistics from other sources in an attempt to provide the required content noted above will cover this requirement. Please note that you are being asked to write an argumentative essay, not a literature review; so do not devote lots of space toward summarizing the works of other author’s.

Other paper requirements (Use for All Written Assignments):

• The paper must be typed in a size 12 Times New Roman font (and can be double spaced).

• It must have good structure. This means it must have a clear introduction and conclusion, and use clear sentence and paragraph transitions.

• It must display proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation.

• It must use a consistent and acceptable formula for documenting sources (footnotes, endnotes, or parenthetical documentation). Use APSA – American Political Science Association Citation Style.

• It must include a Works Cited Page (which means your final paper will be at least 7 pages in total).

• Your paper must utilize at least three secondary sources and one primary source. The secondary sources need to be either peer reviewed articles (you can check off the peer-reviewed box in Academic Search Complete) or non reference books (internet web pages may be used, but they must be properly documented, and are excluded from this count). Moreover, you may not use Wikipedia or Answers.com for the purpose of this assignment.