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| A prospectus is a proposal (for us, approximately
500 words in length) that begins to give shape to the research and thinking
that you've been doing. In the prospectus you will narrows your field
of inquiry, give your essay a suitable title, lay out the title, settle your
critical stance (audience, thesis, critical approach to material) and convey
in concrete terms the importance of the project in moving beyond what other
people have written to generate a new idea from the combination of your
creative reading and conscientious scholarship. The prospectus should
include:
 | A useful title for your paper.
The title should define the topical area and imply a stance. You might
take a look at titles of articles on your subject as found in the MLAIB (Modern
Language Association International Bibliography). Remember, you
can change a title later, but a good one up front can help remind you --
and later us -- of what you're supposed to be discussing. |
| Context and background. This
section of the prospectus gives the reader a relevant frame of reference
(context) within which to understand your project as meaningful and
important. Often this involves describing the question or problem you have
decided to address, and if pertinent, summarizing criticism that has
addressed or failed to adequately address that question or problem. Think
of this as a way of explaining the place of your work, and the importance
of your point in the critical conversation about your author. Ex. "While
Wordsworth critics have often talked about Freudian imagery and symbolism
in his poems, few have considered . . . and many have overlooked . . . ."
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| Key terms and definitions, as well as key
critics.
The prospectus should show your intentions to define
important concept words and texts necessary for discourse in the field of
study (literary criticism about your author). In other words, if
you're going to use that Freudian imagery above and you want to talk about
"the id," then you'd better make sure to tell us up front and clearly what
it means, both for Freud and in the context of your essay. |
| A sense of your thesis, your strategies, and
methods. This is the core of
the paper and the prospectus. What is your main idea, your answer to the
question or solution to a self-posed problem? How will you organize your
paper? How will you rhetorically argue your thesis? What critical theories
will you use? Although the previous material may seem important, this is
where the majority of your time ought to be spent, since this is where
your ideas get concretized for us, and for yourself. Remember,
this is your essay, not your research's. |
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