Coming Up With Your Topic _ Institute for Writing and Rhetoric

6/22/2015 Comingupwithyourtopic|InstituteforWritingandRhetoric

https://writingspeech.dartmouth.edu/learning/materials/materialsfirstyearwriters/comingyourtopic#reading 1/15

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Comingupwithyourtopic

Onthispage:ReadingtoWriteUsingCriticalTheoryInformalStrategiesforInventionFormalStrategiesforInventionFocusingYourIdeaBroadeningYourTopicNarrowingYourTopic

READING TO WRITE

Peoplereaddifferentlyfordifferentpurposes.Whenyoureadinordertocramforaquiz,youmightscanonlythefirstlineofeveryparagraphofatexttoremindyourselfoftheargument'smainpoints.Whenyoureadforpleasure,youmightpermityourselftolingerforalongwhileoveraparticularphraseorimagethatyoufindappealing.Itshouldn'tcomeasasurprise,then,thatwhenyoureadinordertowriteapaper,youmustreadasawriter.Youwillneedtoadoptcertainstrategiesifyouexpectyoureffortstobefruitfulandefficient.

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READ ACTIVELY

Whenyouknowthatyouaregoingtowriteapaperaboutabookorarticle,prepareyourselftoreadactively.Don'treadatextsimplytogetitsinformation.Thismethodofreadingispassive:you"receive"thetextasyouread,andyouholdoffmakinganyintellectualresponsetothetextuntilafteryou'vefinishedreadingit.

Thiswayofreadingdoesn'tgetyouveryfar.Whilereadingpassivelymightenableyoutounderstandthegistoftheargument,you'lllikelyoverlookthemanytwistsandturnstheargumenttookonthewaytomakingitspoint.Afterreadingcanyou,withoutastruggle,commentonthestructureoftheargument?Itsuseoflanguage?Itswealthofdetail?

Probablynot.Andsoyouhavetoreadthebookagain,thistimemakingnotestoyourselfabouttheargumentanditsdevelopment.Whileasecondorthirdorfourthreadingofatextisalwaysagoodidea,it'scertainlybettertoreadwellthefirsttimethrough.Youcanthenensurethatyoursubsequentreadingswilltakeyoudeeperandfartherthanyoumightotherwisehavegone.

Buthowdoyoubecomeanactivereader?

BREAK THE LINEAR TRADITION

Tobecomeanactivereader,youhavetoridyourselfoftheideathatthemostefficientwaytowriteapaperistoreadfirst,thinklater,andwritelastofall.Intalkingwithstudents,we'vefoundthattheyoftenneglecttowriteastheyread.Whenyouread,doyoustoptojotdownquestions?Doyouchallengethewriter?Doyousearchyoursoulforwhatyoureallybelieveaboutthetopicathand?Onceyou'vebegunwriting,doyouevergobacktothetext?Perhapsyougobacktofindapieceofevidencethatwillsupportyourclaims,butdoyoudothekindofrereadingthatwillforceyoutoreconsiderthetextandyourownpositiononit?Ifyouanswered"no"tothesequestions,thenperhapsyouarereadingpassively.Yourthinkingwillnotgoasfarasitmight,andyourpaperswillsufferaccordingly.

TRUST YOUR GUT

Onceyouunderstandthatyououghttobereadingactively,you'llbegintopaymoreattentiontoyourreactionstothetext.It'snotabadideatokeeptrackofhowatextmakesyoufeelwhileyouarereadingit.Ifyoufindyourselfgettingangryorgrowingbored,askyourselfwhy.Istheargumentcomingapart?Aretheretoomanydetails?Notenough?Isthewriteramisogynist?bigot?liberal?conservative?jerk?Payattentiontoyourownresponses.Theymightbetheseedsforyourpaper.

It'spossible,too,thatyou'llfindyourself"wowed"byatext.Orthatsomeparticulardetail,whichtheauthortouchesoninpassing,seemstoyoutoholdthekeytoaproblemthatyou'vebeenthinkingaboutforalongtime.Again,payattentiontoyourselfasyouread.Monitoryourreactions.Interrogatethem.Theymightleadyoutoaninterestingpapertopic.



ENTER THE CONVERSATION

Whenawriterwritesabooksheis,inasense,invitingyouintoanongoingconversation.Sheistakingapositioninthegreathumandebate,andsheisaskingyoutotakeyours.Whenyouwriteapaperincollege,youareenteringthisconversation.

Understandthatscholarshipisthewrittenexchangeofaparticularcommunityinthiscase,theacademiccommunity.Asastudent,youhavejoinedthiscommunity,attendingitlikeyoumightattendacocktailpartythathasthepeculiarqualityofbeingcenturieslong.Inessence,whatisexpectedofyouasastudentisn'tsoverydifferentfromwhatisexpectedfromyouasapartygoer.Asistrueofanyparty,thereareprinciplesofconductthatgovernyourbehavior.Nevertheless,thebasicprinciplesofconversationarethesameintheacademyastheyareatthecocktailparty:youmustlistenwell,youmustthinkaboutwhatyouarehearingandyourresponsetoit,andyoumustcontributetotheconversationinawaythatisrelevant,thoughtful,andinteresting.

Inordertoentertheconversationfullyasawriter,youmustfirstentertheconversationfullyasareader.Payattentiontothetext.Takenoteofhowyoufeelaboutwhattheauthorissaying.Thenconsidertheargumentthattheauthorispresentingtoyou.Aretheregapsintheargument?Doyouwanttochallengethesegaps?Doyouwanttofillthemin?Doyouwanttoacknowledgethevalidityoftheargumentandthenapplyittothingsthattheauthorhasn'tseemedtoconsider?

Allofthesequestionsmoveyoubeyondyourownreactionstoaconsiderationoftheargument.Yourconversationwiththewriterhasbegun.

USE THE MARGINS

Maybethebestpracticaladvicewecangiveyouaboutreadingmoreactivelyistomakeuseofthemargins.Insomeimportantways,anunmarkedbookisanunreadbook.Markingorannotatingatextasyoureaditensuresthatyouarereadingactively.Eventhesimpleactofunderliningapassagerequiresyoutoaskyourselfwhatismostimportantinatext.Theactofweighingimportanceisonewayofbreakingthehabitofpassivereading.

Butyoucandomuchmoreinthemarginsthansimplymakenoteofimportantpassages.Youcanaskquestionsinthemargins.Youcandrawarrows,establishingobscureconnectionsinthetext.Youcannotepatternsofimageryorlanguageasyouseethem.Youcanlocatecontradictions.Youcangetfeisty,even,andcalltheauthoroutforadebate.

Youalsomightfindthatyoucandemystifyatextbywritinginit.Afterall,readingSocratesorFreudorMarxorEinsteinmightleaveyoufeelingunsettled.Intimidated,even.Thesemindsseemsooriginal,soperfectintheirway,thatitseemsimpossiblethatyourprofessorisaskingyoutomakesomecommentonthem.Evenwhenyoureadunknownwritersyoumightfeelintimidated.Afterall,theyarepublished.Theirworkisdeemedgoodenoughtofinditswayintoprint.Butwhenyoumarkyourtextwhenyouputyourownwordsonthepagerightnexttothewordsof



HegelorHemingwayyoudiscovertwothings.Firstisthatthereis"room"foryouonthepage.NeitherHegelnorHemingwayhasthelastwordonanysubject.Second,youcometoseethatyourprocessisnotsodifferentfromtheirs.Theyreadtextsandtheyrespondedtothembywriting.Nowyouare,too.

MOVING OUTSIDE THE TEXT

Oneimportantideatounderstandwhenyoureadisthateverytexthasacontext.Rememberthateverywriterisinconversation:withotherwriters,withhistory,withtheforcesofherculture,withtheeventsofhistime.Itishelpful,forexample,toreadKarlMarxorSigmundFreudwithsomeknowledgeoftheirmomentinhistory.VirginiaWoolfandSimonedeBeauvoirwererespondingtowritersandeventsintheircultures,aswereThomasJeffersonandBenjaminFranklin.Whenyouunderstandthecontextofawork,youcanbetterseetheforcesthatmovedtheauthortowritethatwork.Youwillgainclarityaboutwhatandwhythewriterwaswriting.Youmayevengainclarityaboutwhatyouyourselfwouldliketosay.

Buthowdoyouplaceaworkincontextifyouknownothingaboutthehistoricaltimeinwhichitwaswritten?Youmighttakeatriptothelibraryordosomeonlineresearch.Perhapsyourprofessorhasreservedsomebooksonthesubject.Maybeshehasdiscussedthecontextofaparticularbookinclass.

Evenifyouknownothingaboutthecontextofaparticularbookorwriter,youknowalotaboutthecontextofaparticularreader:you.Youareamemberofacomplexculturethatprovidesyouwithaparticularcontextforyourreadingexperience.Yourgender,race,andsocioeconomicclassprovidecontext(s)foryourunderstandingofatext.Youbringyourowncontext(s)withyouwhenyoureadtextsasdiverseastheDeclarationofIndependence,theKoran,thefilmsofFellini,andthetranscriptionsoftheWatergatetapes.

Onewordofcaution:contextneedstobeexaminedwithcare.Don'tassumethatthecontextofyourownclassorgenderorcultureisinformingyoucorrectly.Readcontextasactivelyandasrigorouslyasyoureadtext!

READING DIFFERENTLY IN THE DISCIPLINES

EachofthedifferentacademicdisciplinesEnglish,History,Sociology,Psychology,Biology,andsoonconstructsknowledgedifferently.Eachofthedisciplinesthereforeasksyoutoreaddifferently.Sometimes,infact,theyaskyouto"read"thingsthatyouwouldn'tnormallyconsiderastext.Forexample,inaSociologyclass,youmightbeaskedto"read"thebehaviorsofaparticulargroupofpeople.InaHistoryclass,youmightbeaskedto"read"asequenceofevents.InaGeographyclass,youmightbeaskedto"read"acertainspace.Youmight,inthecourseofyourcollegecareer,beaskedto"read"apainting,afilm,anadvertisement,anevent,alaboratoryexperiment,oranynumberoffascinatingthings.

Beforeyoutakeonthetaskofreadinganysortoftext,you'llwanttomakesurethatyou



understandthedisciplineinwhichthetextwascreatedandinwhichyouareworking.Whataretheconventionsandpracticesforreading,writing,andthinkinginthisparticulardiscipline?Howcanyoubestenactthese?Talkwithyourprofessors,whoareexpertsintheirfieldsandwhocanhelpyoutobetterunderstandthepracticestheythemselvesusetoconstructknowledge.

RESOURCES FOR IMPROVING READING

Somestudentshaveother,moregeneralproblemswithreading.Perhapstheyreadtooslowly,ortheyhaveaproblemwithretention.Ifyoufeelthatyouareoneofthesestudents,orifyousimplywanttolearnstrategiesforreadingmoreeffectively,contacttheAcademicSkillsCenterforinformationabouttheirworkshopsandotherresources.

USING CRITICAL THEORY

Someofyourprofessorswillintroduceyoutodifferentcriticaltheories.Thesetheorieswhichmightincludefeministcriticism,Marxistcriticism,psychoanalyticcriticism,newhistoricism,deconstruction,andreaderresponsecriticismcanleadyoutounderstandtextsinnewways.

Understandingcriticaltheoryrequiresseriousstudy.It'snotouraimheretoreviewforyoualloftheimportanttheoristsandtheircontributionstotheirfields.Whatwedoaimtodoistoprovideyouwithaverybriefoverviewoftheimportanttheoriesandtoshowyouhowthesetheoriesmightprovideyouwithdifferent"lenses"forreading.Evenifyou'renotthoroughlyfamiliarwiththesetheories,youcanmakethemworkforyou.Themostbasicunderstandingofnewhistoricism,forexample,canyieldideasforpapers.Bringingfeministtheorytoatextwillhelpyoutoseethingsinitthatyouotherwisemightnothaveseen.Andsoon.

Attheriskofbeingsimplisticwe'vesummarizedverybrieflywhatthesetheoriesareandhowtheymightbeusedtofacilitateyourreadingandwritingprocesses.Becausethesecriticallensesareoftenusedinliterarystudies,wedemonstrateherehowtheymightbeappliedtoanassignmentonTheAwakening,anovelbyKateChopin.ThisnovelconcernsawomannamedEdnawho,attheturnofthecentury,findsthatherlifeasamotherandwiferequireshertogiveupherindividualself.Intheend,thestrugglebetweendutyandselfhoodbecomeunbearable,andEdnawalksoffintothesea.

Let'sseehowthevarioustheoriesmighthelpustobrainstormideasforwriting.Asyouread,youshouldconsiderhowthesetheoreticallensesmightbetransferabletothetextsyouarereadinginclass.

(Note:Formorefullydevelopedexamplesofthesewaysofreading,pleaseseetheBedfordBooksEditionofTheAwakening,NancyA.Walker,Editor.)

FEMINIST CRITICISM:

Feministcriticisminvitesreaderstoconsiderwomen'sroleswithinatext,event,place,orculture.



Italsoattemptstoestablishwithintheacademyandthecultureaplaceforwomenwriterswhohavebeenneglected.Accordingly,afeministcriticmightconsiderthepublishinghistoryofTheAwakening,examiningreasonsforitslongabsencefromthecanon.Anothercommonstrategyinfeministtheoryistoexaminehowtextsperpetuatepatriarchalattitudesandmaledominatedpowerstructures.WhenappliedtoTheAwakening,thiswayofreadingmightleadawritertoconsiderwaysinwhichthepatriarchalculturedrivesEdnatosuicide.

MARXIST CRITICISM:

Marxistcriticisminvitesthereadertoviewatextineconomicterms,focusingontheissuesofprivilegeandpower.Itencouragesthereadertoseeatextagainstthebackdropofalargerdrama,inwhichtheworkingclassesareoppressedbytheprivilegedandthewealthy.WhenappliedtoTheAwakening,thiswayofreadingmightleadustoconsiderwhatelementsofEdna'seconomicallyprivilegedbackgroundcontributetoherundoing.OrwemightdiscusswaysinwhichEdna'sdependenceonherservantsinterfereswithherdiscoveryofanew,independentself.

PSYCHO-ANALYTIC CRITICISM:

SpringingfromtheworksofSigmundFreudandJacquesLacan,psychoanalyticcriticismarguesessentiallythateveryoneisinherentlyneurotic.Accordingly,studentsworkinginthisschoolofcriticismtrytounderstandatextintermsofawriter'soracharacter'sneurosis.ThiswayofreadingTheAwakeningmightleadonetoarguethatEdna'ssuicideisinfacttheresultofherownneurosis,andnottheresultofherpositioninapatriarchalorbourgeoisculture.

NEW HISTORICISM:

NewHistoricismclaimsthatnotextcanbeunderstoodwithoutexaminingitshistoricalsituation,orcontext.Historicalcriticsthereforeexaminetheeventsandvaluesthatmighthaveinfluencedtheproductionofatext.Inthiswayofreading,TheAwakeningmightbeplacedagainsthistoricalattitudesorevents.ThewritermightwanttoinvestigatehowEdna'sCreoleenvironmentpromotesorservesasanobstacletoherselfdiscovery.Orshemightwanttoinvestigatepropertylawsandhowtheytreated(ormistreated)womenatthattime.

DECONSTRUCTION:

Inthiswayofreading,criticsdeconstructortakeaparttheinternalstructureofatextbylookingforitscontradictions.Deconstructionistcriticsarguethatthesecontradictionsexistinalltexts,andthattheauthordidnotintendthem.Bypointingtothelackofcoherenceinatext,andbyunderminingtheideaofanauthor'sintention,deconstructionistsargueagainstthepossibilityofatexthavinganysinglemeaning.WhilereadingTheAwakening,adeconstructionistmightlookatthelanguagethatEdnausestoexplainherself,notingthatthislanguagebothjustifiesandliesaboutherexperience.AdeconstructionistwoulddelightinhowEdna'slanguagerevealsevenasitconceals,illustratinganEdnawhoispainfullyawareandyetperilouslyunawareofhersituation.



READER-RESPONSE:

Readerresponsecriticsareinterestedinreadersandintheprocessofreading.Inthisschoolofcriticism,meaningisnotcreatedbythewriteralone.Rather,readersareactiveandimportantparticipantsinthemeaningmakingprocess.Theycompletemeaning.Readerresponsecriticsarguethatatextisfullofgapsandthatthesegapsworkonareader,forcinghertomakeconnections,fillinspaces,andsoon.AreaderresponsecriticreadingTheAwakeningmightexaminethetextforgapsandthencataloguethechallengesthesegapsmaketothereaderasshestrugglestomakemeaning.

INFORMAL STRATEGIES FOR INVENTION

Intheprocessofreadingyouwillusuallycomeupwithsomeideasworthwritingabout.Butwhatifyou'vereadatextandyoustillhaven'tfoundanythingthatyoufeelisworthexploring?Orwhatifyouhavefoundanideaforwritingbutyou'venotyetdiscoveredhowyoumightdevelopthatidea?

Ineitherofthesesituationsyoumightwanttotakethetimetotryoneofthefollowingstrategiesforinvention:

BRAINSTORMING

Brainstormingasaninventionpracticeisusefulbecauseitisaquickandefficientwayoflayingoutwhatyouknowaboutasubject.BybrainstormingyoumightalsoseewhatyouDON'Tknowaboutatopic,whichmightmoveyoutoreadandthinkfurther.

Forthesakeofargument,let'simaginethatyouaretakingaclassabouttechnologyandcommunication,andyou'vebeenaskedtowriteapaperonhowtechnologyischangingthewaywecommunicate.Thetopicisopenbecausetheprofessorwantsyoutoworkthroughthisvasttopictofindasmallertopicthatinterestsyou.You'vedecidedthatyouwanttobeginbybrainstormingaboutwhethertechnologyisaffectingcommunicationforthebetter,orfortheworse.Yousitdownandspendjustafewminutesmakingaquicklist,notingfiveprosandfivecons:

Pros:

CommunicationisquickerandeasierthaneverbeforeTechnologieslikefacetimeandskypeallowustotalkfacetoface,virtually,evenwhenwe'refarawayFacebookisawayofmaintainingacommunityoffamilyandfriends(you'llneverforgetabirthdayagain)Twitterisagreatwayofsharingnews,ofseeingwhatpeoplearethinking,andwhattopicsaretrending(kindoflikeamoderndayversionofthewatercoolertalkthatmydadalwaysrefersto)Newtechnologiesbringnewpossibilities,sowecanlookforwardtoimprovedcommunicationinfrastructuresinthefuture



Cons:

PeoplearealwayspluggedintosomedeviceBetweenconstanttextingandmultipledailyloginstofacebookandothersocialmedia,we'velosttheabilitytobealonewithourthoughtsWe'vealsolosttheabilitytocontrolourprivacyCurrentgenerationsareengaginglessfrequentlyinfacetofaceconversationsMygenerationmightnotbelearninghowtoreadfacialcuesandbodylanguageIsthiswhyweuseemoticonsandlols?Sopeoplewillknowhowtoreadus?

Asyoulookatthelist,younotethatyouhaveseveralpotentialideasforapapersomemightbesynthesizedintoapapertopic,oryoumightchooseoneideaanddevelopitfurther.Forthesakeofillustration,we'llimaginethatthefinalpointcatchesyourfancy,andthatyou'vedecidedtotrytodeveloptheideafurther,byfreewriting.

FREEWRITING

Freewritingissimilartobrainstorminginthatitisaquickandinformalwaytodevelopanidea.Butwhilebrainstormingmostofteninvolvesmakingalistofideas,freewritingrequiresthatyoutrytoelaborateupontheseideasbywritingaboutthem,withoutpayingattentiontosyntaxorgrammar.Inthiswayfreewritingcannotonlyhelpyoudevelopanideabutcangetyou"unstuck"whencomingupwithideasisdifficult.

Hereisanexampleofhowonemightusefreewritingtodeveloptheaforementionedidea:

OK,soI'msupposedtowriteapaperabouttechnologyandhowitimpactsourabilitytocommunicateaffectivelyandeffectively,whichIbelieveisanissueworthinvestigating.OnapersonallevelIthinkabouthowmuchofmysocialinteractionisdoneviatextorchat,andIwonderifmyrelianceontextingislimitingmyabilitytoreadpeople'sfeelings.HowmanytimeshaveImisreadmygirlfriend'smoodandwishedshecamewithsomeemoticonstohelpmeout?(lol)Butscholarsseemtobetakingthisissueseriously.Inclass,wereadalotofarticlesabouthowtechnologyingeneralandsocialmediainparticularareaffectingthecognitiveandsocialandemotionalgrowthofchildrenofadolescents.Somescholarsthinkthattechnologyisgettinginthewayofouremotionaldevelopmenttheysaythatemoticons(forinstance)arestandinginformorecomplexemotions,andthatslappinganemoticononamessagerelievesthereaderoftheresponsibilityofreadingforemotionalsubtexts.Butnotallscholarsagree.IwasreallyimpressedbyanarticlewrittenbyagroupoflinguistsstudyingJapanesechatroomstoseehowhousewivesusedemoticonstoexpresstheirfeelings.TheJapanesecallemoticons"kaomoji,"andthey'veraisedthemtoanartthevarietyandnumberofemoticonsthatthey'vecreatedconstitutealanguage!Itblewmymind.ThisarticledemonstrateshowKaomojihelpswomentocreatevoicesinthechatrooms,andthereforeprovidesthemwithasenseofagency.IthinkI'dliketothinkmoreabouttextabbreviationsandemoticonsasakindoflanguage,seewhatscholarshavetosayaboutthislanguage.Itwouldbefuntodoapaperonthat.



DISCOVERY DRAFT

Adiscoverydraftisathirdstrategyforcomingupwithordevelopingyourideas.Adiscoverydraftissimilartofreewritinginthatyoucanwritefreely,ignoringthestructureandthedevelopmentofyourideasforthetimebeing.Youcanalsoforgetaboutmattersofsyntaxandstyle.

Butwritingadiscoverydraftisdifferentfromfreewritinginthatadiscoverydraftmakesaconsciousattempttofocusonandtodevelopanideaorclusterofideas.Inotherwords,adiscoverydraftislikefreewritingwithanagenda.Becauseyouhaveanagenda,discoverydraftstendtobemorestructuredthanfreewritings.Theyalsotendtobewrittenmoreorlesscoherently,incompletesentences.

Thinkofwritingadiscoverydraftaswritingalettertoanimaginaryfriendaboutyourhistory(oreconomicsorgovernment)paper.Youmightfirstsummarizeforyourfriend'sbenefitthetextsyou'vereadandtheproblemsthey'vepresented.Youmightthenraisequestionsaboutthetexts.Youmightchallengethewritersoncertainpoints.Youmightnotecontradictions.Youmightpointoutacertainpartoftheargumentthatyoufoundcompelling.Youmightaddressandthenworkoutanyconfusionthatyouhaveaboutyourtopic.Inwritingthediscoverydraftyoumighthavean"ahha!"moment,inwhichyouseesomethingthatyouhadn'tseenbefore.Andyoubreakoffinmidsentencetoexploreit.

Inasense,the"ahha!"momentisthepointofthediscoverydraft.Whenwritingthediscoverydraft,yourthoughtsarefocusedonyourtopic.Youaregivinglanguagetoyourquestionsandobservations.Inthisprocessthemindalmostalwaysstumblesacrosssomethingnewmakesadiscovery.Andwiththisdiscovery,apaperisoftenlaunched.

FORMAL STRATEGIES FOR INVENTION

Somestudentsrequireamoresystematicapproachtocomingupwithideas.Everywriterovertimewilldevelopherownsystemofinvention.Ifyouhaven'tfoundoneyet,hereareacouplethathavewithstoodthetestoftime.

TAGMEMICS

Tagmemicsisasystemthatallowsyoutolookatasingleobjectfromthreedifferentperspectives.Thehopeisthatoneoftheseperspectives(orevenallthree)canhelpyoutodetermineasubjectforwriting.Tagmemicsinvolvesseeingyourtopic:

1. Asaparticle(asathinginitself)2. Asawave(asathingchangingovertime)3. Aspartofafield(asathinginitscontext)

Let'ssaythatyouwanttowriteapaperonMalcolmX'sroleinthecivilrightsmovement.Ifyouusetagmemicsasasystemofinvention,youwillbeginbylookingatMalcolmXasathinginhimself.Inotherwords,whatarethecharacteristicsofMalcolmXasaman?Thecharacteristicsof



hisphilosophy?

YounextmightconsiderMalcolmXintermsofhowhisroleinthecivilrightsmovementchangedovertime.CertainlyMalcolmXexperiencedaradicalshiftinhisbeliefsaboutcivilrightsyoumightexplorethisshiftandtheconsequencesbothforMalcolmXandforthemovementasawhole.YoumightalsoconsiderhowhistoryhasviewedMalcolmXovertime.YoumighthavediscoveredinyourreadingthatthereexiststodaysomedivisionofopinionastowhetherornotMalcolmXoughttobeconsideredacivilrightsleader.Whatforceshavecontributedtothisdispute,andhowhasthenatureofthedisputechangedovertime?

Finally,considerMalcolmXasathingincontext.Relatehimtohisculture,tohismomentintime.LookforthecausesthatproducedMalcolmX,aswellastheeffecthehadonhisownhistoricalperiod.Orcompareorcontrasthimwithothercivilrightsfigurestoseewhatspecialcontributionhemadetothemovementanditshistory.YoumightevenconnectMalcolmXwithunlikelyeventsandfiguresinordertoprovideawidecontextforhisworkandhislife.

Thereareinfinitequestionstoaskhere.Thepointisthattagmemicscanaskquestionswhichencouragefocusedanswersthekindofanswersthathelpyoutowritethoughtful,interesting,andwellconceivedessays.

ARISTOTLE'STOPOI

Asoneofthefathersofrhetoric,Aristotleworkedtoformalizeasystemforcomingupwith,organizing,andexpressingideas.WeareconcernedherewithwhatAristotlecalledthetopoithatis,asystemofspecificstrategiesforinvention.Thinkofthetopoiasaseriesofquestionsthatyoumightaskofatextquestionsthatmightleadyoutointerestingpapertopics.Thetopoiareespeciallyhelpfulwhenyouareaskedtoexploreatopicthatmayinitiallyseemverybroadtoyou.Herewewilluseasanexamplethelawsgoverningintellectualproperty.Pleasenotethatwhilethetopoicanhelpyoutocomeupwithatopic,youwillstillhaveworktodotodevelopasuitablescholarlyquestion.

1) USE DEFINITION

Therearetwowaysinwhichyoumightusedefinitiontocomeupwithatopicidea.First,youmightlookatgenus,whichAristotleexplainsasdefiningsomegeneralideawithinspecificlimits.Forexample,youmightinyourpaperdefineintellectualpropertylawwhatitis,andhowitfunctionswithinthelimitsofaparticularindustry.

Thesecondwaytousedefinitionisbythinkingintermsofdivision.Inotherwords,trytothinkofyoursubjectintermsofitsparts,classes,andsoon.Here,youmightdefinethecomponentsofalaw,perhapswiththeaimofdeterminingtheirrelevancetoaparticularincidentordispute.

2) USE COMPARISON



Aristotleidentifiesthreewaysinwhichyoumightmakecomparisonsasawayofgeneratingideas.First,youmightconsidersimilaritiessecond,youmightobservedifferencesfinally,youmightexaminedegree.Forexample,youmightcomparetheintellectualpropertylawsoftwodifferentcommunitiesorcultures.Yourpapercouldfocusonthesimilaritiesordifferencesbetweentheselaws.Alternatively,youmightwanttoconsidertowhatdegreevariousintellectualpropertylawsprotectorobstructinnovation.

3) EXPLORE RELATIONSHIP

Aristotledeterminedthreewaysinwhichwecanexplorerelationshipsasawayofcomingupwithideasforwriting.Thefirstofthesewaysistoconsiderthecauseofyoursubject,oritseffects.Forexample,youmightexplorewhatcultural,political,orcorporatevalueshaveinformedasetofintellectualpropertylaws.Conversely,youmightexaminetheeffectsoftheselawsoncertainindividualsorindustries.

Youmightalsotakealookatasubject'santecedentandconsequences.Inotherwords,youmightaskthequestionofyoursubject:"Ifthis,thenwhat?"Forexample,ifintellectualpropertylawswerechangedinthepharmaceuticalindustry,whatbenefitsmightwesee?

Finally,youmightlookforcontradictions,incompatiblestatements,orcontroversy.Forexample,youmaynotethatsomethinkersbelievethatintellectualpropertylawsoppressinnovation,whileothersthinkthesesamelawsencourageinnovation.Yourpapercouldaddressthiscontroversy.

4) EXAMINE CIRCUMSTANCE

Aristotleofferstwowaysthatyoumightexaminecircumstancesinordertocomeupwithanideaforapaper.Thefirstistoconsiderthepossibleandtheimpossible.Sometimesyoucanconstructaninterestingargumentbyconsideringwhatispossibleandwhatisnot.Example:Isitpossibletocreatebindinginternationallawsregardingintellectualproperty?Whyorwhynot?

Anotherstrategyistoconsiderthepast,ortolooktothefuture.Forinstance,examiningcurrenttrends,youmightconsidertheprobabilityofacountryrevisingitsintellectualpropertylawsinthefuture.

5) RELY ON TESTIMONY

Theopinionsofotherscanbeasourceforyourpaper.Looktoauthorities,testimonials,statistics,maxims,laws,andprecedents.Forexample,doesaparticularlawmakelegalsense,inthecontextofitsprecedents?

FOCUSING YOUR IDEAS

OK.You'vedonesomepreliminarybrainstorming.Perhapsyou'veevencompletedadiscoverydraft.Theproblemsittingbeforeyounowisthatyouhavetoomanyideasandyoudon'tknowwhattodowiththem.Ortheideasyou'vecomeupwithdon'tseemtobeadequatelyacademic.



Whatdoyoutrynext?

NUTSHELLING

Nutshellingisthesimpleprocessoftryingtoexplainthemainpointofyourobservationsinafewsentencesinanutshell.Whenyouputyourthoughtsinanutshell,youcometoseejusthowthosethoughtsfittogether.Youseehoweachthoughtisrelevanttotheothers,andwhattheoverall"point"is.Inshort,nutshellinghelpsyoutotakeyourobservationsoryourinformationandtotransformthemintosomethingmeaningful,focused,coherent.

Imagine,forexample,thatinyourwritingclassyouareaskedtoreflectonyourwritingexperiencebeforeyoucametocollege.Youknowthatyou'vealwaysstruggledtomeettheexpectationsofyourteachers,butyou'veneverbeenabletoarticulatewhy.Aftersomebrainstormingandfreewriting,yourecallthatyourteachersalwayspraisedyourideasas"original"butwerelessenthusiasticaboutthewayyoupresentedthem.Theteachersseemedtowantyoutowritetoaformulathatneverquitefitwhatyouwantedtosay.Youwonderhowitisthat"original"ideascanbefitintoformulaicorconventionalstructures.Asyoucontemplatethisdilemma,somequestionsbegintotakeshape.Shouldteachersexpectoriginalityfromstudentwriters?Andiftheydoexpectoriginality,whydotheypromotecertainmodesofwriting,suchasthetimedessayorthefiveparagraphtheme?Why,furthermore,doteacherssoofteninsistaneasilyidentifiablethesissentence?Whydotheyflinchwhentheyseefragmentsorrunons?Whydon'ttheyencourageexperimentationwithstructure,syntax,andstyle?

Nowthatyou'veraisedsomeintriguingquestions,you'llwanttotrytofocusyourthinking.Whatareyoutryingtosay,inanutshell?Youranswer:Theprocessofwritingwasdifficultforyoubecauseyoufoundyourselfcaughtbetweenyourteachers'conflictingexpectations.Ontheonehand,yourteachersencouragedyoutobeoriginalinyouthinkingontheother,theyinsistthatyouconformtoconventions.Wheredidtheseconflictingexpectationscomefrom?Andwhateffectdidtheyhaveonyouasawriter?

Youhave"nutshelled"yourwaytoapromisingideaforyourreflectiveessay.

BROADENING YOUR TOPIC

Whathappenswhenyou'veputyourthoughtsinanutshellandtheyseemtoo"small"?Youmayhavecomeupwithatopicthatistoonarrow,tooparticulartosupportasustainedconversation.Nowwhat?

FIRST, TRY TO MAKE CONNECTIONS.

Usingpenandpaper,begintosketchyouridea.Putyourideaatthecenterofthepage,thenlistandclusterotherobservationsthatyoufindinteresting.Ifyouseeconnections,drawarrows.Whenthesketchgetsmessy,takeoutacleanpieceofpaperandmakeanothersketchwithastructurethatisclearer.Aftertwoorthreeroundsofsketching,youmaybesurprisedtofind



Last updated: June 24, 2013

yourselflookingataninterestingwebofideas,wherebeforeyouhadonlyasingleobservation.

SECOND, TURN YOUR IDEA INSIDE OUT.

Ifyourthoughtseemstoosmall,considertheotherside(s)ofthematter.Whatdootherscholarshavetosayonthetopicyou'reexploring?Whatdoyourclassmateshavetosay?Howcanyouusetheirperspectivestobroadenyourown?Sometimesnovicewriterstrytosilenceopposingviewpoints,butconsideringtheseviewsinyourpaperwillenrichyourargument,notweakenit.

THIRD, CONSIDER THE CONTEXT.

Everytextiswritteninthecontextofothertextseveryideaisaresponsetootherideas.Ifyourideaorobservationseemstoosmall,trytoarticulatethebiggerconversationofwhichitispart.Byexploringandarticulatingthecontextofyouridea,youwillmostcertainlybroadenthescopeofyourargument.

NARROWING YOUR TOPIC

Butwhatifyourtopicseemstoobigtohandle?Whatdoyoudothen?

FIRST, TEST YOUR CLAIM.

Broad,generalstatementsopenthemselvesuptochallenges.Ifyousaythatsomethingisgenerallytrue,someonewillstepforwardtoinformyouofthemanyexceptionstoyourassertion.So,testyourclaim.Consideryourexceptionsbeforeyourreadersdo.Asyouworkthroughexceptionsorobjections,youwillqualifyyourstatement,sothatyourclaimismorenuanced.Theresultwillbeamorefocusedtopic.

THEN LOOK FOR EXAMPLES.

Remember:"broad"isalso"vague."Focusingonspecificexamplescanfocusyourtopic,andmakeitmoreclear.Alsorememberthatyouarewritingapaper,andnotabook.Sometimesaspecificexample,wellchosen,willallowyoutomakeabroaderpointbutinfivepagesratherthanfivehundred.

FINALLY, CONSIDER THE CONTEXT.

Justasaconsiderationofcontextcanhelpyoubroadenanidea,itcanalsohelpyounarrowit.Contextsareconstructedoutofparticulars.Payattentiontotheparticulars,andyou'llbeabletonarrowyourfocusappropriately.



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Materials for First-Year WritersMaterials for Writing in the DisciplinesSources and Citations at Dartmouth

Support for Writing, Research, and Composing with Technology

What is an Academic Paper

Coming Up With Your Topic

Researching Your Topic

Developing Your Thesis

Considering Structure and Organization

Revision: Cultivating a Critical Eye

Logic and Argument

Attending to Grammar

Attending to Style

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Coming Up With Your Topic _ Institute for Writing and Rhetoric