Researched Paper

Goals

• To define, plan, and develop a project over time
• To study a topic within Classical Tragedy in individualized focus and depth
• To practice skills of critical thinking and literary analysis through close study of ancient literary texts in translation
• To practice skills of research and critical thinking by identifying secondary materials relevant to your analysis, studying and assessing them, and applying them to your own investigation
• To practice skills of communication by writing up a persuasive account of your research and analysis

Dates

• Friday, 15 March: preliminary statement of interest due (about 1 typed page)
  • Identify three (3) topics you would potentially like to focus on in independent research within Classical Tragedy. The topics should relate to assigned course reading, but need not focus on one particular work alone.
  • Be sure to think about topics that relate to plays we will be reading in the second half of the semester, as well as those we have already read. More good material is still to come!
  • Feel free to consult with your instructor about which works might make good anchors for problems that intest you.
  • For each of your possible topics, write a brief paragraph explaining what about the topic interests you, and what you hope to learn.
• Monday, 18 March: start refining your most productive topics
  • Make appointment to consult with instructor about your topics and research (F 3/22 - W 3/27).
  • Strategic questions to ask yourself:
    • What are the most interesting and important aspects of your topic?
    • What questions will you be addressing?
    • What information do you need to know in order to be able to understand your topic fully?
    • What sources will contribute something valuable to your research?
      

      Primary sources are the texts of plays and other ancient works - including translations of these works into English.

      Secondary sources are modern scholarly works, such as articles or books, that investigate the ancient literature and culture.

      Reserve list of helpful resources (in progress).
    • Continue to pursue your research and investigation (this week and hereafter). Identify a play or plays you will analyze, and secondary studies you will build on. See Guide to Beginning Research on Topics in Classical Studies for suggestions. Keep checking back with the instructor as you uncover new material, clarify your project and refine the direction you're taking it in - and of course, if you run into any questions!
• Monday, April 8: annotated bibliography due (1-2 typed pages)
  • Concisely describe the problem you are investigating in your researched project.
  • List the primary texts and secondary studies you have identified as most relevant to your topic. This list should include everything that you currently anticipate you will be using in your final paper.
  • For each item of your bibliography, describe concisely how it contributes to your work. How do the primary sources and secondary studies relate to your topic? What questions do the primary sources raise? How do the secondary studies fill in information or provide models of analysis that you will use to help you solve your problem?
  • Finally, state briefly where your own analysis will need to go beyond your secondary studies, and what you will be trying to demonstrate in your argument.
• Wednesday, 17 April: Researched Paper due (7-9 typed pages in the format of a persuasive essay, plus bibliography)
  • Identify the problem you have chosen to focus on, including the primary sources that relate to it.
  • Solve your problem: analyze your primary sources, indicating clearly how relevant secondary studies contribute to your analysis or may need to be modified in light of your results.
  • Support all observations and suggestions by referring to specific, concrete passages of evidence, and explaining how the evidence helps confirm your points
  • For suggestions about pulling an essay together, see this Strategic Guide

This file last updated 19 March 2002 by jlong1@orion.it.luc.edu.
http://www.luc.edu/depts/classics/