630-proposal 1 Yhtomit

Research Proposal Suggested Format

GEN 410

(Erion)

(1) Author:

Insert your name here.

(2) Working title:

Try to develop a preliminary paper title that accurately describes your project, but that also captures the interest of your audience; "GEN 410 Paper Proposal," for instance, would fail on both counts.

(3) Introduction:

As the bulk of this document (at least one page, but perhaps two or three), your Introduction should describe your proposal for an audience of non-experts in a narrative that is both interesting and informative . Make sure that you explain why your project is important, and why your audience should take your work seriously. Sketch out any preliminary lines of argument that you have identified, and briefly summarize your research plans in this section, so that your audience can better evaluate your proposal 's chances

of success.

Note that the Introduction of your written proposal will likely serve as the foundation for your oral presentation; thus, it may help to include in this section the sort of information that you would use to introduce your project to your classmates.

(4) Research question(s):

Here, you should report the main question or questions that you hope to address with your research. See Booth, Colomb, and Williams' The Craft of Research, chapter 3, for helpful suggestions on turning interests into topics, and topics into questions.

(5) Thesis:

If you already have a preliminary answer to your primary research question (i.e., "Ethical relativism is self-refuting'), include it here; at this stage, though, it is more important that

you have clear and focused questions than theses, since your research could turn up evidence sufficient to justify rejecting a thesis that you presently accept.

(6) References:

List at least 3-5 books, articles or other materials that you have preliminarily identified as sources for your project, using any standard citation method (i.e., APA.)