Madonnas Global Influence 
You are required to hand in a 20-page research paper on Madonna. Madonna has been around
so long and so much has been written about her (scholarly and non-scholarly) that there are
many areas to discuss. She will be your frog, your fetal pig, a model of “anatomy” to dissect, a
subject all will work on as a prerequisite to human anatomy and surgery. This paper is not to be a
biography but might include biographical details. Tailor your topic and your research toward your
particular musical / music business interest.
The paper must include a Works Cited page and MLA-style notes. Proper citation is essential in
this course. Begin in the initial stages of your paper (annotated Works Cited page, i.e.,
bibliography, one-page précis) as if the paper is already written or as if it is the first page of a
paper. Never use pronouns “I,” “me,” “you,” “we,” “us” or possessive adjectives for first and
second persons. Never use all-caps, bold font or underline (Time magazine not TIME magazine).
Never use contractions in scholarly writing. If you are quoting a source exactly, “then you’re
permitted to violate injunctions.” Commas and periods go inside “quotation marks.” You must
adjust your sources (like Wikipedia) to reflect this. If your notes are not uniform, complete and
according to MLA (8th edition, in-text citation) style, points will be deducted from your final paper.
All discussion about the paper will take place via Blackboard Collaborate.
Please take your writing seriously, and carefully proofread each submission. For those of you
whose writing skills are not up to college level (and this probably means you), please visit the
Baruch Writing Center periodically throughout this process.
You are about to graduate with an American Bachelor’s degree from a first-tier college, by all
gauges a college that ranks in the top ten percent of US schools (despite the modest “15%”
listed on the college website). I will not tolerate poorly written papers. This paper needs to be
entirely your own work; therefore I will treat plagiarism and suspected plagiarism according to
Also, we will filter the papers through
The paper writing will occur in stages and there will be a series of gates through which you must
pass. Each assignment must be completed and, for your own good, no late stages will be
accepted. Except for the topic, which must be submitted and approved via e-mail, everything
must be handed in at the time assigned in hard copy only (and printed on both
sides of the paper), otherwise, corrections will not be made by me and you risk not receiving
credit for that portion of the paper. Please save all versions corrected by me until you receive
your final grade.