In his article “BEAM: A Rhetorical Vocabulary for Teaching Research-Based Writing”, Joseph Bizup proposes an alternative nomenclature for treating sources we use during the research process, which he abbreviates as “BEAM”. B stands for background, which refers to materials that writers use for general or factual information. E stands for exhibit, which refers to materials that writers analyze or interpret. A stands for argument, which refers to materials that a writer engages in conversation with. And finally, M stands for method, which refers to materials from which a writer derives a concept or manner of working from.
Using the standard nomenclature for research sources, categorizing them as “primary” or “secondary” automatically establishes a hierarchy that diminishes the value of some sources, which shouldn’t be the case. Additionally, in creating a ranking of sorts, the idea of writing a research paper sounds extremely mechanical and structured, when in actuality, it is a very interactive and complex process. As Bizup argues, we should use terms that describe what writers actually do with these sources.
When thinking about this new vocabulary and how it relates to my experience doing research, I can see how the idea of BEAM accurately displays the research process as the complex procedure it is. Many times, my research process involved using many different sources in different ways, whether that be for background information, proving a point, providing an example, or making an argument. BEAM illustrates this process perfectly, the idea that all of the sources that I use are a part of the same discussion and are working together in different ways to ultimately form the heart of my research paper. Categorizing sources as primary or secondary wouldn’t really be of much help to me and would probably end up giving me unnecessary anxiety over what constitutes a primary or secondary source exactly.
I enjoyed reading the article and its critique of conventional labels. It offers a fresh perspective that will aid me in research papers to come.
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