Project #1 & Research Proposal Questions

Brandi Bradley
Sep 4, 2019
7 min read

Let's get started!

First, we are meeting next week in our first video conference meeting. If you have not signed up already, do so immediately. Make sure you have signed up for a time because I do not make up conferences. In this conference we will discuss the answers from your Getting to Know You Form, you writing style as exhibited in your Mandate, and your Research Proposal.

These assignments, although small, are graded. I do not award points for "doing the work". All assignments require excellent work in order to receive all the points.

Before we meet, before 11:59 pm on Friday Sept. 6, you will be posting on your Wix Project #1 page, a Research Proposal, pitching to me your idea for your first project. You will take the correct link to your proposal and post it to Canvas under the correct assignment, P1SA1-Research Proposal.

Where should you begin in writing a research proposal?

All of the projects in this course are connected, so make sure that you Choose Wisely regarding your topic. What you research in Project #1 will directly affect what you compose as your narrative for Project #3. NOTE: You cannot switch topics after P1 has been turned in for grading. For Project #1, you will be researching a question about an existing piece of fiction. Fiction is based under a veil of truth or believability. The concept "willing suspension of disbelief" is when you put aside your critical thinking skills in order to enjoy something for its entertainment. However, sometimes fiction can fly so far from reality that the viewer cannot help but pick apart its flaws. The reason a reader or viewer is willing to suspend their critical eye is because the composer has connected to its audience in a way in which even the unbelievable seems real. For Project #1, I want you to select a narrative work of fiction of substantive length and develop a research question. Once you have done that, you will use the FSU Databases to find 10 Scholarly and PEER REVIEWED SOURCES and use them as evidence to back up your insights regarding your research question. You will then, using the narrative text AND the 10 PEER REVIEWED SOURCES, write a 2,000 word paper posing the research question and reporting what you discovered through your research Note: this is not an opinion paper. You are not taking a stand, assigning some moral judgment, or convincing your reader to take a stand. You are also not trying to prove the accuracy of something. Project #1 is testing your ability to explore a topic and find possible answers to something which you have not already decided in your mind. In addition to that, you are being asked to analyze a work of fiction.

Your research question MUST BE SPECIFIC and RESEARCHABLE.

Last semester research questions included:

By examining the video game Undertale, to what extent does violence in video games affect the behavior of youth and their mentality?
“Does Black Mirror's, “The Entire History of You” suggest that advances in technology have allowed for more honesty and transparency in relationships, or does the idea of technological transparency lead to an increase in mistrust and need for control in partners?”?
Were the creators of Flatliners able to accurately depict medical scenarios?

To Brainstorm, you may start by considering these questions:

Is it accurate?

Analyze a work of fiction which addresses a controversial issue. What choices does the composer make to address this issue? How do the characters discuss the issue? Is the information about the issue they are dramatizing accurate? Does the composer take liberties with the seriousness of the issue?

Is it stereotypical?

Review a character in a work of fiction and analyze how that character is portrayed. Ask yourself if the character in question has been generalized or stereotyped?

Does it work? Select a piece of fiction which highlights a certain technology. Using peer-reviewed research on the technology, analyze its appearance in a specific narrative and determine if the technology is being used accurately.

Is it economical? Look at a work of fiction which depicts a certain career. Determine whether this is a feasible career? Can a human being live off of it? Are the hours reasonable? Would the benefits be worth it?

Is it anachronistic? Select a work of fiction which depicts a certain period of time. Using peer-reviewed Sources, analyze the accuracy of the period piece. Would characters actually wear that clothing? What would be the cost of living? What would be the major concerns or issues? What would be the toll of walking or horse transport for the characters?

These are only starter questions for the brainstorming phase. You are not actually proving the accuracy of something, but instead exploring how these situations might be reflected in real life. I am asking for you to search beyond the superficial. Don't just apply this question to a text broadly. Think about how you can make the question as specific as possible. For example, the research question, Is the depiction of Greek Life stereotypical on Law and Order SVU? can be made much more specific if it is phrased, How does Law and Order SVU rely on villainous and generalizing depictions of fraternities in order to play on the audiences' assumptions about Greek Life?

If you have questions about your research question, please feel free to set up a Google Hangout appointment for Brainstorming.

When you figure out your research question, you need do some GENERAL (or TERTIARY) RESEARCH. Tertiary research will NOT appear in your paper but this will make you more knowledgable about your area of research before you get you started. Google your narrative. Google your research question in connection to your narrative. Read Wikipedia articles on your narrative. Find out what other questions people have about this narrative. Once you get an idea of the conversation happening about this narrative, you should be better able to find PEER-REVIEWED SOURCES.

PEER-REVIEWED sources are typically found in academic journals. You want those articles because they have been severely examined for errors and inconsistencies in research. You know an academic journal is chocked full of ethos. I will not accept newspaper articles, magazines, blogs, random websites or anything with .org or .gov in the URL. All of these are not reviewed at the same level as academic journals. MAKE SURE when you use the databases that you click the Peer-Reviewed Journals box (Not Reviews. Know the difference). But furthermore, double check if the publication is a peer reviewed journal, which can be easily done by Googling the publication and examining their About page.

Frequent P1 Roadblocks:

Fiction is NOT based on a true story. Memoirs, autobiographies, documentaries, and journalism are classified as nonfiction and are based on fact. If you propose researching a nonfiction work, your proposal will be instantly rejected.
What do I mean about a SUBSTANTIVE LENGTH work of fiction? This means the fictional narrative you choose needs to be a movie, short story, television series, novel, comic series, etc. Do not select flash fiction, short films, poems, songs or anything that can be consumed in 20 minutes or less.
How can I find Peer Reviewed Sources? First, you are required to complete the Library Module for using FSU's Research Databases. Peer-Reviewed Sources cannot be Googled. You must learn how to operate the FSU databases to make sure the information you are using is the most accurate. No Fake News in this class. There is a "Library Instruction Module" under Pages on Canvas will walk you through using the FSU website, database, Boolean search terms and setting up a Ref Works account. Follow the Guide, watch the videos and answer the questions.
Now that you know where to find sources, where do you begin? Pick a narrative you enjoy and read it, watch it, engage with it and the ask yourself:
What is good about it?
What is missing from it?
What questions are you left with when you are done?
What could they have done different? Why would that have made it better?
Why do you think it is popular?
Why do you think it is not popular?

Select a research question about that narrative. Write down a list of key research terms you might use for this question

Our cat friend here is convincing, but y'all are not cats. Once you have selected a narrative and a research question, you must write a research proposal. I have included a Research Proposal Guide in order for you to write a thorough and professional research proposal. Your Research Proposal (or Short Assignment #1) should be posted on your P1 page and upload the correct link to Canvas before 11:59 pm FRIDAY 9/6.

What is the purpose of a proposal? Proposals are written to get either attention or money for a project. Consider this proposal from Shark Tank.

This is an example of a pitch. You are pitching to me, your shark, the idea you have for your Project #1 paper. If your proposal is not convincing, then your reader will either ignore it or deny you the funding you need to create your project. In our class, you do not need funding for a project. However, someday you might. We write proposals so you can professionally ask individuals for assistance, approval and support for a project. You might need to ask for a loan, create a crowdfund page, fundraise, and the way to do that is to be clear, be professional, and be enthusiastic. Be clear about what you want to write about in this project. Use specific terminology and not academic words that you don't really know, but you think makes you sound smart. Don't try to impress with big words. Simple is usually best.

Be professional. Let your reader know you have thought long and hard about this project and that you have completed the preliminary research. This commands ethos and shows how professional you are. Be enthusiastic. Infuse your work with excitement for the project. Enthusiasm does not mean exclamation points, but word choice. Some writers believe that the enthusiasm that a writer has for a project comes through on the page, like a sort of magic. If you don't care about the project, I am going to be able to tell. And that does not get me excited about the project. Make sure you use the Research Proposal Guide. You can write this in first person, but remember, it is not about you, but the project you want to write. Keep the focus on the project and its importance.