Death of a Salesman

Research Topic and Working Thesis Post information about the topic of your research for your paper on Death of a Salesman (see the Unit 7 Researched Essay Dropbox folder for additional details). Your posting and comments should address the following: your potential thesis statement in bold the reason you have chosen the topic for your research paper the interest you have in the subject matter any discoveries you have made about your topic through your research so far The thesis statement you include here is a “working thesis”; you may find that you change and refine it as you continue to work on your researched essay. A good thesis is usually in third person (no “I” or “you”), is a statement (not a question), and tells the reader the main points you are claiming in your paper. Make sure that your claim is original and interesting, not simply an obvious statement of fact. Please see below for more information thesis statements: Thesis Statements and Topic Sentences – http://public.wsu.edu/~campbelld/topic.htm The UNC Writing Center: Thesis Statements – http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/thesis-statements/ Your thesis should indicate a critical focus related to Death of a Salesman. NOTE: Be sure to check the course calendar frequently while you are working in this research unit. Thesis Statement and Working Bibliography First, in bold, write your updated thesis statement for your researched essay. Please reference the following link for some handy tips on improving your thesis statement: University of Illinois’ Center for Writing Studies – http://www.cws.illinois.edu/workshop/writers/tips/thesis/ Remember that your thesis should indicate a critical focus related to Death of a Salesman. Next, list 3-5 academic sources that you plan to use for your researched essay. Compose them as though they are entries in a Works Cited page. Make certain that they are listed in alphabetical order and use correct MLA format. Below is an example of a working bibliography: Brian, Real, et al. “Rural Public Libraries and Digital Inclusion: Issues and Challenges.” Information and Technology Libraries, vol. 33, no. 1, Mar. 2014, pp. 6-24. ProQuest, search.proquest.com.i.ezproxy.nypl.org/docview/1512388143?accountid=35635. Langhamer, Claire. “Love and Courtship in Mid-Twentieth Century England.” Historical Journal, vol. 50, no. 1, 2007, pp. 173-96. ProQuest, doi:10.1017/S0018246X06005966. Accessed 27 May 2009. *Note that entries should be double-spaced and that the second and following lines of an entry should be indented. You can go to the Purdue OWL to find a more detailed discussion of creating a bibliography for research. GALILEO full-text articles should be your chief source for research material. Your sources should primarily be critical analyses of Death of a Salesman. Your instructor should be able to obtain the articles you obtain. Your Works Cited page should contain sources available inside the University of Georgia System. The play itself does not count as one of the 3-5 sources. Before continuing on your research project, read over the other bibliographies and reply to at least 2 other students’ posts. Comment on the format (MLA, using the Purdue OWL as your guide) and see if you recognize any errors. Also, pay attention to any emerging trends or themes in the article titles and take note of any topics or titles that interest you. You might find some sources useful for your own research! NOTE: Be sure to check the course calendar frequently while you are working in this research unit. Respond to at least 2 other students’ posts, commenting on their topics, research, and working thesis statements. Your initial post and peer responses should be substantive. *NOTE: Pay careful attention to the list of sources you are asked to AVOID using. Sources to AVOID Using Material from the following sources should NOT be used: 1) Web sites that sell term papers 2) Abstracts 3) Dictionaries and encyclopedias 4) Wikipedia 5) Masterplots 6) Cliff Notes 7) Spark Notes 8) Monarch Notes 9) Literary Cavalcade 10 Bloom’s Guides 11) Bloom’s Notes 12) Bloom’s BioCritiques 13) Magill’s Choice (like an encyclopedia) 14) Magill’s Survey 15) Web sites and blogs 16) Book reviews, article reviews, or movie reviews. Instead of a review (which usually would include a short overview of the source), find the book, article, etc. that is being reviewed and use that as your source.