Final essays must be double-spaced, with one-inch margins, a title, and page numbers, and should have a works cited page. For the final essay you are required to pose a clearly articulated thesis, which, in the body of the paper, you support with cogent arguments. (A thesis statement is like an opinion; i.e., it is a claim the rightness of which you want to persuade your reader. An argument is the logical and systematic presentation of reasons to support your thesis. Your essay is to be an argumentative paper, not a research paper.) You may judiciously use block quotes in your final essay. The use of sources in the assignment is to be documented according to MLA, APA, or Chicago style.
You are encouraged to use any of the assigned readings that might help you make your case. Your grade will be based on your demonstrated understanding of all of the course readings, themes, and lectures, as well as on the relevance, accuracy, and quality of your writing. This is your opportunity to work with and develop your own ideas. But you should do so in a way that shows your grasp of the different texts we have examined throughout the semester.
Write an essay one of the following prompts.
Option 1. The authors of Infinite Reality make several strong claims about the potentials of virtual reality. One of the strongest claims is that virtual reality will allow an unprecedented degree of control over experience, especially identity formation. (Think of the last short paper you wrote.) And yet, Andy Clark asserts that the “I” (the soul, the mind) is wholly integrated with, is an inextricable part of its surroundings and setting (recall the image of a mangrove swamp), which means that the physical body is (and remains) integral to the formation of the “I.” What do you think? Whose account of subjective experience (or of identity formation, although identity formation and subjective experience are not synonyms) do you think is more persuasive and defensible?
Option 2. “More Human than Human.” That is the title of the final chapter of Infinite Reality. Similarly, Turkle tells us that some owners of “robot pets” say that their robot is “better than” a real, live pet (more like a dog than an actual dog?). As we have seen, some maintain that simulations can be equally, if not more “real” than the objective, shared, physical thing or event. But Sherry Turkle, Wolfgang Sachs, and sci-fi writer Philip K. Dick caution us about collapsing the distinction between the real and the virtual, or between the actual and the simulated. What do you think? Is the distinction between real-virtual simply an old-fashioned prejudice? Is there something to be said for authenticity, or originary experience? It has long been believed that “reality” is external and objective; it existed before me and will exist after me; it “pushes back,” fixing limits to my will and action. But one of the promises of strong versions of virtual reality is that we need not accept limitation: indeed, technological progress promises unlimited possibility. Do you think this is right? Do you think it is a worthwhile goal to pursue?
Use the order calculator below and get started! Contact our live support team for any assistance or inquiry.
[order_calculator]