Length 1000-1500 words While there is a lot of talk today about conspiracy theor

Length 1000-1500 words
While there is a lot of talk today about conspiracy theories, determining what the term refers to and what is and isn’t a conspiracy theory turns out to be somewhat complicated. The purpose of this paper is to clarify how the term “conspiracy theory” is used in current research on conspiracy theories.
This assignment asks you to write a 1000-1500 word paper that synthesizes four research sources from the list provided below to answer the question: how is the term “conspiracy theory” used in current research and what complications are involved in the term?
Your answer to the assignment prompt will involve identifying three or four fundamental characteristics of the term “conspiracy theories” according to the research as well as discussing complications/controversies related to those characteristics. (Not all features are controversial.) Where sources disagree, you can simply characterize the nature and reasoning behind the different positions. Keep in mind that disagreements are almost as important as agreement.
Topics you might consider include but are not limited to:
Conspiracies vs. conspiracy theories
Delegitimation
Conspiracy theories as “theories”
Problems of evidence
Rationality/irrationality/paranoia related to belief in conspiracy theories
Differences between conspiracy theories and related terms (conspiricism, conspiracy thinking,
conspiracy ideology, etc.
The four sources you use must consist of Butter and your choice of three additional sources from the list at the end of this document. You must both directly quote and paraphrase each of the four sources you discuss in your paper.
You paper should begin with an introduction that explains the paper’s focus. Study the first paragraphs of the sources you cite to see how they set up their essays. You can even cite them regarding the complexity of the term. Your introduction should end with a “map” focus statement that characterizes how the term is used in current research and/or what its main characteristics are. A map focus statement sets up body sections for the remainder of the paper.
E.g.,: Three key features of the term “conspiracy theory” as it is used in current research include
x, y, and z.
Three important controversies in the use of the term “conspiracy theory” include a, b, and
c.
The body of the paper should consist of paragraphs that begin with clear, declarative topic sentences. Devote at least one paragraph to each of the parts (x, y, and z) of the map focus statement in your introduction. Somewhere in your paper you must both quote and paraphrase each of the sources you use to support of the paragraphs’ topic sentences. Quotations and paraphrases must begin with signal phrases and end with correct parenthetical documentation per MLA or APA. Be sure to address complications, controversies, and disagreements between researchers regarding how the term is understood. Paragraphs should end with transitions that relate the content of the current paragraph to that of the next.
The paper’s conclusion should highlight major features regarding the use of the term that are brought to light through the synthesis of the sources you discuss.
Please indicate the number of words in parentheses and the documentation style (MLA/APA) immediately below the body of the paper and before the bibliography.
Papers must conform to MLA or APA guidelines for formatting, usage, grammar, spelling, citation/documentation. Papers must be proofread and corrected. The paper must include a Works Cited/Reference page that conforms to MLA, APA (you should pick whatever is appropriate for your major). Purdue OWL is a great resource for MLA/APA information.
List of Sources Approved for A1
Bratich, Jack Z. Conspiracy Panics: Political Rationality and Popular Culture. SUNY Press,
2008.
Available electronically at CMU library. Check CENTRA
Butter, Michael. The Nature of Conspiracy Theories. Polity Press, 2020.
Required textbook for this course.
Dentith, Matthew R. X. “From Alien Shape-Shifting Lizards to the Dogy Dossier.” Conspiracy Theories:
Philosophers Connect the Dots, edited by Richard Greene and Rachel Robinson Greene. Open Court, 2020.
Available electronically through CMU library. Check Centra
Pigden, Charles. “Everyone’s a Conspiracy Theorist.” Conspiracy Theories: Philosophers Connect the
Dots edited by Richard Greene and Rachel Robinson Greene. Open Court, 2020.
Available electronically through CMU library. Check Centra
Uscinski, Joseph E. “What is a Conspiracy Theory.” Conspiracy Theories and the People
Who Believe in Them. Edited by Joseph E. Uscinski. Oxford UP, 2019. 47-52.
Available under course reserve on Bb. Physical book with many relevant chapters on reserve in CMU Library.
Hofstadter, Richard. “Paranoid Style in American Politics.” The Paranoid Style in American Politics and
Other Essays. Harvard UP, 1964.
Available under course reserves on Bb.
Walker, Jesse. “What Do We Mean When We Say ‘Conspiracy Theory.’” Conspiracy
Theories and the People Who Believe Them. Edited by Joseph E. Uscinski. Oxford UP, 2019. 53-61.
Available under course reserve on Bb. Physical book with many relevant chapters on reserve in CMU Library.