To aid in our research process, we were assigned a reading by Margaret Kantz in my CTW class. This reading was designed for us to think about our own research process and how we could develop an effective research paper as a result. Kantz focuses on several key points that I know that I can use when thinking about my paper.
Keeping an original argument and purpose
The ultimate goal of researching and finding sources is to form your own argument about the given topic. Rather than repeating and evaluating your sources, you want to come up with a viewpoint no one had considered in the topic’s conversation. In our CTW class, we refer to this as “entering the conversation.” You consider what has already been said about the subject matter and offer your own unique perspective. For example:
“On one hand, some people argue that_______. On the other hand, scholars have said______. However, both sides fail to consider_______.”
Considering who the author is and their intended audience
Something that my CTW class has stressed a lot these past two quarters was considering the author and the audience. Before this class, I never really gave much thought to these concepts, but I realize now how important they are for writing any paper.
For example, let’s say a paper was trying to argue that dogs are better than cats. You might have two completely different sounding papers if one was written by a dog-lover and the other was written by a cat-lover due to bias. Same thing applies to the audience. Who will wan to read their papers? These two people might write different things when they consider who their audience is.
This relates back to my research paper because when I’m searching for sources, I need to consider the author’s ethos and who he or she was writing to.
Factual texts aren’t always “the truth”
Don’t assume everything to be true. This all relates back to the credibility of the author and the message they wanted to send to their intended audience. It’s our job as researchers to challenge and further complicate the conversation already happening. Putting together all of the facts will not create a great paper.
As I continue to search for more sources, I will keep Kantz’s article in the back of my mind. Because not only will it help me develop a strong paper, but it will help me find useful sources that will argue and support my claim.
Source: Giphy