CO 451 Research Paper (Honors)
The Department of Communication requires that students hand in a disk copy of each written assignment. Please use a disk that you do NOT need back. Always save a separate copy of your work for your files.
Since this is an honors class, your final paper for the course should be on a topic related to gender and communication that you might like to pursue for your honors thesis. You are not obligated to complete your thesis on this same topic even if you choose to work with me (and you can also choose the professor of your other honors seminar as your thesis advisor). However, this assignment will give you an opportunity to explore and begin research on an area of potential interest for your thesis.
The paper should be 20-25 pages long with standard margins and
a bibliography of at least 15 scholarly works (academic books
or articles from scholarly journals). The paper should include
at least one quote from each of 15 sources. You can of course
include additional quotes from these same sources or from additional
sources. The bibliography and source citations should be in standard APA or
MLA format.
This course covers a wide range of topic areas including magazines, television,
advertising, language, and art. These are suggested areas for the final paper,
but you need not be limited to these. Other possibilities include film, video,
popular music, and the internet. Because the focus of our readings and discussion
this semester is analytical, the paper must also be analytical. It should make
an argument about the content of the medium or text type you choose to analyze.
(It should not cover areas such as the diffusion of women workers in various
industries or legal aspects of gender and communication). You will need to
identify a theoretical approach from one or more of our readings this semester
and apply or adapt that approach to analyze your chosen medium or type. Once
you have identified a medium (such as television) you will definitely want
to narrow your topic to a specific genre, artist, period, director, (etc.).
Your goal is to analyze the representation in this limited set of texts and
make an argument about the significance and function of what you find.
I would be happy to discuss topic selection with you any time during the semester.
The paper should include the following sections:
- Introduction of the topic and paper (1-3 pages)
- Statement of the importance of your topic and approach
- Thesis statement (should appear within the first 4 pages)
- Literature review (3-6 pages)
- Preview of the paper’s main sections (1/2- 1 1/2 pages)
- Argument/Body of paper (at least 1/2 total paper length)
- Conclusion (conclusion should include summary of main points/ evidence supporting your thesis, restatement of thesis, statement of the significance of your topic and findings, statement of the limitations of your research, and suggestions for further research related to your analysis
Topic Selection for the final paper is due in writing during class on Tuesday, October 12.
I will read drafts at any point during the semester given to me
PRIOR TO Thanksgiving break (by class time on Nov. 23rd).
