American Studies Research Project

American Studies
Research Project


Background and task
You get to decide your topic for your American Studies research project. Your topic does not have to relate directly to an American author, but it does have to focus on some aspect of American culture. Think about the subject areas that most interest you (film, politics, government, history, war, music, visual arts, sports, justice, etc…) and then brainstorm more narrow topics that could become your focus. Remember the importance of cultural myths or frames with respect to examining our position and agency in American society. Research frequently reevaluates events, trends, policies, etc. in order to reveal new perspectives, consequences, lessons, etc.

Before you spring into a topic with confidence, remember that you’ll need to find credible, published sources—that can become difficult if you choose a topic that is very contemporary, especially when it comes to pop music. Once you have some narrow ideas, ask yourself how this topic represents some aspect of American society, culture, etc. at a specific time in our history. Your final paper should be 5-7 pages (MLA format) and should refer to at least 6 credible sources.

Process—early stages
At this stage, you must develop an essential question that will help to guide your own research. Keep in mind that in order for your paper to be more than a rewrite (research is not rewriting!) of the facts that you find, you need to develop an essential question, which will help you develop an argument. If written correctly and thoughtfully, the essential question will ensure that you critically and creatively process the information you find. Be aware that your essential question might change as you conduct your research. Be willing to revise your question as research leads you to understand your topic in a more informed way.

Developing Essential Questions For an English Project
As you consider moving from a topic to a thesis for research, consider these “template” questions to help you develop your own thoughtful question to explore. Your topic or person of interest goes in the blank. Try these questions on and see which one fits!
“How” questions:
How does your topic help us understand ___________ event/issue/aspect of American society?
How does your topic relate to the American Dream?
How has your topic led to any societal reforms?
How did one area of culture lead to this event? (For instance, how did the Reconstruction era influence Mark Twain? How did technology influence Ray Bradbury?)
How has your topic changed the way Americans perceive themselves?
How does your topic play a role in the evolution of the ______ century (or decade)?
How does _______ Cultural movement (Realism, Beat Period, Civil Rights…) relate to your topic?
“Why” questions
Why did _________________ storyteller behave or respond to _____________ event/issue/aspect of American society as he/she did during________?
Why did __________ storyteller choose to address a particular event/issue/aspect of American society?
Why did __________ storyteller choose to use satire/Romance/ Realism/Impressionism/etc. to tell his/her story?
Task: Using the prompts above, answer the following statements to help develop a focus for your paper. I will read your ideas and give you feedback. Teacher has final approval over topic. Topics will be finalized by _____________ ; library research days begin on Feb. 27th
·


· How will you benefit from each project? What will you learn from it? Why do you want to learn more about it? REMEMBER: A research paper should help you to answer questions you have about your topic of interest!

ESSENTIAL QUESTION