So in class tomorrow, we are going to the ARCHIVES! But what are archives in the first place? According to Katherine Tirabassi, a professor of a academic writing, archives are places to rediscover, extend, and gain fresh perspectives on historical stories. As she puts it,

Archives are…an inert repository of artifacts to a layered, historical record of dynamic stories.

Are task in the archives is simple: find something interesting to do a research project on. After reading some articles assigned in my class about archival research (one of which is the article I quoted), it seems like finding an interesting topic is not that hard. Archives are what you make of, something like a conversation between you, the researcher, and the artifacts.

What am I looking to research? Many of my peers seem to already have a topic in mind, or at least a general sense of what they want to research. For me, I have a completely open mind. Yes, it is a little scary not to have a specific game plan set in stone. Yes, it seems a little cliche to say that I have no plans “on purpose,” when most times it means I just did not have any good ideas. This is somewhat true, as I don’t really know where to start. There are many topics that interest me: inequality, cultural climate, educational policy. But I will not know what direction the artifacts will lead me until I actually open them with white gloves on. Until then, it will be a mystery, but one that is full of potential and optimism, not uncertainty.