The Arguments and the Motives of Gay Marriage - Essay Example

Running head: Gay marriage annotated bibliography YOUR GRADE: 100 points Faiz, your annotations are written well, however, details on credibility are missing in most cases. The format of the paper is incorrect; I highly recommend that you follow the example I provided. See my feedback below, correct and resubmit for extra 30 points. Final Project Guidelines The Final Project for LIBY 1210/1551 is in three parts (175 points total): 1. Annotated Bibliography (90 points): -48 points, see comments below 2. Research Essay (55 points total) -17 points 3. Topic Essay (10 points total) 4. Format - Additional points will be given to overall format of the paper (20 points total) a. Title page -3 points, did not follow the format provided (missing date, professor’s name) b. Running title -1 point, use Microsoft Word’s ‘headers’ to format running title c. Double line spacing throughout the paper d. Reference list in Alphabetical order -3 points e. File name f. Page break - Gay Marriage Annotated Bibliography (Alosaimi Faiz) (wq9533) (date) (professor’s name) Gay Marriage Annotated Bibliography Annotated Bibliography Bidstrup, Scott (2009, June 3). Gay marriage, the arguments and the motives. Retrieved 03 November 2010 from http://www.bidstrup.com/marriage.htm This study discusses about the gay marriage issue and presents the different arguments for and against it. It thoroughly discusses each side of the issue and what the advocates for each side are claiming. The paper also discusses why gay marriage is a civil issue in relation to the usual medical and legal decisions which married couples make for each other. It also discusses about the implications of the current gay marriage issue and what the lack of civil recognition means to gay couples. At the end, the article makes a clear statement of support for gay marriage. This article was chosen because it thoroughly and fairly presents a balanced discussion on gay marriage. The specific details of gay marriage are discussed in this paper – helping to ensure that its clear implications as a civil union are understood by the reader. The author is a credible and reliable author in relation to gay marriage because he is a strong activist for this issue. He is a free-lance writer with a degree in Communications; he is a strong activist for gay rights. His research background has ensured him access to vital information about gay marriage and the in youth and marriage rights issues, since coming out as a gay man in 1994. Based on his specific qualifications, he has the analytic and information base in his discussion of the subject matter – sufficient to secure the credibility and validity of this material. The essay does not have a reference list, but presents links to the materials used in the paper, as well as related links to the paper. The website does not provide products for sale. Cole, D. (2010) How will gay marriage fare in the Supreme Court? The New York Review of Books. Retrieved 03 November 2010 from http://www.nybooks.com/blogs/nyrblog/2010/aug/11/how-will-gay-marriage-fare-supreme-court/ This paper discusses about gay marriage and how it is being handled by the Supreme Court. It runs down through the different cases which have been brought before its chambers and how the SC has decided on these cases. It also discusses how the SC has seemingly presented conflicting decisions on this issue, and how these decisions present trends and precedents which would likely affect future decisions on cases relating to gay marriages. This paper was chosen because of its relevance. The Supreme Court has made the issue of gay marriage very controversial due to its conflicting decisions in relation to its recognition. This paper presents a thorough picture of the legal framework in relation to gay marriages. The author is a credible and reliable author because of his background in writing and research and because of his organized presentation of the merits in the current issue. He has a degree in law from Yale University and is a law professor at the Georgetown University. He has authored various books and research articles related to policies and constitutional rights. Deakin, M. (2006) Gay Marriage, Real Life. California: Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations This book mainly presents an intimate portrait of ten gay couples who decided to get married, and how such decision has affected their families. It presented true stories from the heart of 10 gay couples. This book puts a human face to the gay marriage issue and provokes very emotional reactions from families and from the gay couples. It outlines the struggles that these 10 couples faced within their families in coming out as gay couples and in making the major steps in legalizing their bonds in the institution of marriage. It presents personal accounts of gays, lesbians, their parents, siblings, and their friends. It portrays stories and experiences from gay couples around the country who have felt alienated by their sexuality. This is a good resource because it presents personalized accounts from gay couples. It shows a more intimate picture of what it means to be gay and to be gay couples wanting to get married. It is a less technical picture of gay marriage and helps bring deeper insight into the gay marriage experience. The author is a credible author for this issue because for over two decades, she has been a prolific writer very much involved in issues involving social changes. She has won awards and accolades for her work on this book. This gives her a strong and insightful glimpse into the issue of gay marriage. The discussion of the author is based on current arguments being presented on gay marriage. The author presents the different arguments on the issues citing credible sources and current materials as argued by interest groups on the issue. The book presents a list of sources per chapter and a bibliography at the end of the book. The list of references was reviewed and was deemed accurate and factual. Lewis, G. B. & Seong Soo Oh (2008) Public opinion and state action on same-sex marriage. State and Local Government Review, volume 40, number 1, pp. 42-53. Retrieved 02 November from JSTOR database This study sought to reevaluate the links between state policies on gay rights, same-sex marriages, and sodomy laws in relation to the morality policy. It evaluates the link in testing state-level measures of support for same-sex marriage using about 69,000 respondents and assessing the support for the passage of laws on liberalism, elite attitudes, and state innovativeness. The study reveals that prior studies have not considered the effect of public opinion which has a strong impact on legal bans on gay marriage issues. Studies have also not considered the strength of Protestant groups in amending state laws on gay marriage and other more liberal state policies. This study was chosen because it considers public opinion in the assessment and evaluation of the gay marriage issue. It also considers the legislative aspect of the different controversial and more liberal issues which has often plagued different governments. The authors for this paper are credible and reliable because they are experts in the social sciences and in evaluating human behavior. George Lewis is currently a professor of Policy Studies with the George State University, the American University, and the University of Georgia. He has a PhD in Public Administration and Politics from the Syracuse University and the University of California respectively. He has authored various books and journal articles on policy issues, including policies on gay marriage. Seeong Soo Oh has also graduated with a PhD in Public Administration and a degree in Political Science from the George State University. He is also a professor of policy studies at the George State University. Essay 1: Description of the research process I found the book by doing a catalogue search in the library using the words “gay marriage” as search parameters. After gathering the relevant books, I searched their indices and table of contents for chapters relevant to the gay marriage issue. Relevant books were set aside for further analysis, depending on credibility, analysis, and on their relevance. For the academic journal, I searched in the Google search engine for the JSTOR database, and when I reached the JSTOR database, I entered the words “gay marriage” as search parameters. For the web sources, I used the Google search engine and chose articles relevant to the issue through the different articles which were revealed in the search results. I used the Boolean method in conducting my search. After I found books related to gay marriages, I then searched the contents page to determine their relevance to my current topic. For the academic journal, I also read the abstract first in order to detect how the paper applied to the current issue or topic. I used the keyword “gay marriage” and “gay marriage issues” in my catalogue and Google search. A potential research question for this current issue is: What are the civil implications of the legalization of gay marriage for married gay couples? I chose this research question because this discussion came up as a crucial point in one of the articles. It caught my attention and I want to further explore such topic in order to assess how gay marriage actually applies in the practical context. I had some difficulties finding sources because there were too many hits. Too many hits meant that I had to wade through a wealth of material and find specific credible sources for my issue. In order to narrow down the sources into more credible ones, I changed the setting to Google Scholar and to Google Books Essay 2: Description of what you learned about your topic I have learned that gay marriage remains to be a controversial topic because it straddles the moral and the legal realm of thinking in civil society. I have found out why it remains controversial and what the opponents and the advocates are arguing and expressing in the overall context of this issue. I have also found out that gay marriage needs to be settled as an issue because it has major implications in the actual civil context. All in all, this topic has given me rich resources about gay marriage. It has given me rich and credible resources from credible and informative authors on the subject matter. This research topic has given me the necessary tools to make my own objective and well-informed decision about it. It has also given me a strong direction in the overall assessment of this subject matter. I am more confident in the stand I have chosen to personally take on this issue as a result of this research process. Moreover, I am also more engaged in this issue and in discussing it with both its advocates and its opponents. Works Cited Bidstrup, Scott (2009, June 3). Gay Marriage, The Arguments And The Motives. Retrieved 03 November 2010 from http://www.bidstrup.com/marriage.htm Cole, D. (2010) How Will Gay Marriage Fare in the Supreme Court? The New York Review of Books. Retrieved 03 November 2010 from http://www.nybooks.com/blogs/nyrblog/2010/aug/11/how-will-gay-marriage-fare-supreme-court/ Deakin, M. (2006) Gay Marriage, Real Life. California: Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations Lewis, G. & Seong Soo Oh (2008) Public Opinion and State Action on Same-Sex Marriage. State and Local Government Review, volume 40, number 1, pp. 42-53. Retrieved 02 November from JSTOR database Read More