I find the best way to get around a perfectionist streak (something I suffer from occasionally) is to write some nonsense at the start, then get onto the serious meat and potatoes. Maybe start out with a paragraph concerning Descartes' facial hair, or just write out a silly song.
Another idea is to set a timer. Sit down a few days before the paper is due in, write for an hour or two, and at the end get up and do something else. Applying time constraints may help to force you to just get stuff down so that you can come back and edit later.
Or maybe try getting up at three in the morning, or when you're feeling groggy. Get some wordidge down.
Maybe free writing would help to. Just write free for an hour or two on the subject, let your mind carry you wherever it wants to go, and see what happens as a consequence.
Those are strategies I've found help anyway. As usual with these things, your mileage may vary.
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