Designing a Research Topic and Searching the Secondary Literature

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Designing a Research Topic and Searching the
Secondary Literature
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Useful ReadingThere are many useful books and
practical guides around now that teach you how
to write a thesis consult the reading list for
this course. Having looked at a fair sample, I
have found the following two titles most helpful

• Nigel Fabb and Alan Durant, How to Write Essays
  and Dissertations A Guide for English Literature
  Students, 2nd edition (London Pearson, 2005)
  straightforward practical guide, breaks down the
  process of writing a thesis into its basic
  phases, offers plenty of useful tips
• Wayne C. Booth, Gregory G. Colomb and Joseph M.
  Williams, The Craft of Research (Chicago
  University of Chicago Press, latest ed. 2003) a
  more discursive, philosophical approach to the
  topic many practical tips but emphasis on the
  nature and process of research

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A caveatNo single formula can guide everyones
research youll spend time searching and reading
just to discover where you are and where you are
going youll spend time in blind alleys and
youll learn more than your paper requires. In
the end, however, that extra work will pay off
not just in a good paper, but in your ability to
deal with new problems more effectively.
Wayne C. Booth, Gregory G. Colomb and Joseph
M. Williams, The Craft of Research (Chicago
University of Chicago Press, 1995, 29)
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What is a thesis?

• A thesis is a contract you ask a question and
  then you answer it
• Your central question can take the form of
  several subsidiary questions, or form a sequence
  of questions, which then make up your argument
• The questions you ask do not have to be big,
  but they have to be specific
• You have control over your own questions, but
  autonomy comes with responsibility
• Your questions might change in the process of
  writing
• Make sure your thesis answers the questions you
  are asking
• Ideally, questions should be structured around
  intellectual problems, not around gaps

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What any thesis needs Topic (specific enough,
not too broad)Questions (that guide your
research)Problem (that your thesis will
solve)Structure (the form that your argument
will take)Evidence (to support your argument)
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Topic

• From an interest to a topic Example film
  world cinema theme of exile
• Narrowing down a topic Example the visual
  representation of exile in three
  Mandarin-language films
• Topics should be neither too general nor too
  specifictoo broad World Cinema and the
  Condition of Exile too specific The Impact of
  the Hand-held Camera on the Representation of
  Exile in one Iranian Film
• How personal should a topic be?

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Limit yourself

• Define the boundaries of your topic
• Contexts can expand indefinitely, so find
  reasonable cut-off points
• Do not digress into areas of little relevance to
  your central question
• Be specific! Define your terms!
• Less might be more

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Another caveatDont expect immediate success.
There is no linear or straightforward way of
finding a suitable research topic. You will
find yourself drafting a summary before you have
gathered all your data you will start
formulating an argument before you have all your
evidence and when you think you have an argument
worth making, you may discover you have to return
to the library for more evidence. You may even
discover that you have to rethink the questions
you have been asking. (Booth et al, p. 30)
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Questions

• Asking the right questions is key to successful
  research
• Start with who, what, where, when (facts), but
  move on to how and why (analysis)
• Question your topic from as many angles as you
  can think of questions give your research
  purpose and direction
• Listening to other peoples questions might help
  you formulate your own
• There are some questions that have no answers

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From a question to its significance three
useful stepsa) Name your topic I am working
on/studying b) Suggest a question I am
working on/studying ... because I want to find
out how/why ...c) Motivate the question/find a
rationale I am working on/studying because I
want to find out how/why in order to understand
how/why (Cf Booth et al, pp. 42-5)
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The killer question so what?
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Problem

• Your questions should help you solve a research
  problem
• A problem is something you do not yet know or
  understand
• Ask yourself why are you asking certain questions
• A problem might be the origin of your research
• but you may not be able to formulate your
  problem fully at the outset

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Structure

• Any thesis needs a clear focus and a mode of
  argument
• Your chapter outline ideally reflects both
• Possible foci author/s, text/s, generic
  groupings, historical issues, theoretical issues,
  
• Possible modes of argument revalue a reputation,
  analyse an aspect of style, relate text/film to
  historical/literary/aesthetic context/s,
  describe/interpret a text/film, take sides in an
  ongoing critical argument, exemplify critical
  theories/approaches with reference to a
  particular text/film,

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Evidence

• All answers must be based on evidence
• What is your evidence?
• Always ask yourself what is it in the text
  and/or context that makes me think this is the
  right answer?
• Always explain what is self-evident to you might
  not be self-evident to others
• Always avoid generalizations

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Topical Examples

• Here are some titles of MA theses from
  2006-07Timelessness in Homers OdysseyForms
  of Vengeance in Ancient Greek and Shakespearean
  TheatreMrs Dalloway A Postmodern PasticheThe
  History Behind the American Gangster Film The
  Beast Within A Study of Victorian GothicFrom
  Albatross to Automaton Depictions of Femininity
  in Baudelaire Titles raise expectations but
  they dont say anything about the success of the
  thesis

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Selecting texts

• Primary and secondary literature
• Choice of primary literature (possible criteria
  representative, best known, unjustly neglected )
• Choice should be consistent with the overall
  direction of your argument
• Use the right editions!

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Finding secondary literature

• Why consult secondary literature? The importance
  of critical contexts
• Start with random wandering bookshops,
  libraries, journals, newspapers, websites
• Aim to get an idea whats out there and what
  others are currently working on
• The next step is to search systematically start
  with bibliographies in printed books, then move
  on to specialised bibliographies and databases
• Use the library! Speak to librarians!
• Check the departmental webpages for resources
  (Film, Drama, Literature)
• MLAthe most comprehensive bibliography in
  literary studies (incorporated in LION)

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Some tips on secondary reading

• Be selective there will always be a lot more to
  read than you have time for
• First criterion availability. Is the book in the
  library, can you get it through inter-library
  loan? How long would this take? Check this early,
  to avoid later frustration
• Survey range of titles in your field and the
  frequency of certain topics
• Read recent books first they may include useful
  summaries of earlier works and debates, plus an
  up-to-date bibliography you can ransack
• How to read the single book or article - start
  with contents page and, if possible, try to
  construct the books argument- read
  preface/introduction, then look at bibliography
  and index. What does the article/book include,
  what does it leave out? - read last
  page/conclusion of book/article for possible
  summary - gauge importance of the work against
  what you already know
• Always keep notes when reading! And from the
  start, take down the exact bibliographical
  detailsthis will save you much time when doing
  the footnotes at the end

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The Secondary Literature Review

• This exercise counts for 15 of the course
  assessment
• Due Wednesday 12 December 2007, 4 pm, to Jane
  Thorp (5A.115)
• Creating an initial bibliography is a core
  component in any research strategy. Books and
  journals continue to be a vital source of
  material, but other resources include databases,
  CD-roms, and websites. Much web-based
  information, unlike printed matter, tends to lack
  any form of editorial control so remember to be
  both wary and critical of the sources you use.

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The Secondary Literature Review

• Your secondary literature review needs to be
  keyed towards the research of a particular topic.
  If you have a dissertation topic in mind, then
  this exercise will help you along the way. If
  you have a possible topic, then the exercise
  might help you decide whether its viable. If
  you dont have any idea yet, then simply choose
  any feasible topic. You will not be penalised if
  the topic of the Secondary Literature Review
  (SLR) doesnt become your actual dissertation
  topic.

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The Secondary Literature Review

• Your SLR should start with the title for this
  putative dissertation ( a purely descriptive
  title is fine). Follow that with a brief (c. 50
  words) description of its scope and a note of the
  primary texts involved. These elements are for
  orientation.

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The Secondary Literature Review

• The main body of the SLR should consist of
  between six and twelve entries (six if they all
  books, twelve if they are all chapters or journal
  articles or any appropriate combination in
  between those numbers, according to your
  judgement of what is most relevant for the
  topic). Each entry should be divided into a)
  content (topic, scope) b) critical/theoretical
  orientation (what approach is discernible?) c)
  argument (what sorts of conclusions are drawn?)
  d) advantages and shortcomings (what might this
  item offer your project? what might be its
  drawbacks?). The purpose, in other words, is not
  simply to provide a booklist, but a
  critical/theoretical catalogue with a rationale
  as to why and how the books and essays you cite
  could be used to further the project.

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The Secondary Literature Review

• The entire word count should be between
  2000-2500. Concision and communicability are the
  keywords each entry should not be so short that
  it cant be read intelligibly by a third party
  not so long that it becomes an essay in itself.
• The bibliographical materials should be presented
  in the correct scholarly manner according to the
  style guide in the MA Handbook.